Danger 2

With a sharp crack, the whip lashed down—not upon their bodies this time, but onto the ground, slicing a long, deep welt into the earth. Startled, they stared at the mark in terror and promptly fainted from fright.

“Hmph! Is that all you’re capable of?” The boy leaning on the deck, arms crossed over his chest, let out a cold snort. He seemed utterly unfazed by the sight of his companions being struck.

Xiao put away her whip and scoffed, “You’re the very picture of a beaten dog. These people are nothing more than ants.” She looked at him with disdain, snapping the whip lightly through the air, but made no move to strike him—she wanted him to realize the consequences of crossing her.

The boy curled his lips into a frosty smile as he watched her, replying, “Does it matter that you aren’t using your whip?”

Xiao stowed her things and looked up, offering him a deceptively innocent smile. “Heh, dealing with you is hardly a challenge at all.” Without giving him a chance to retreat, she lunged forward, seized his shoulder, and easily pinned him against the wall.

With a heavy thud, Xiao pressed his head hard against the wall. Alarm bells rang in the boy’s mind—he’d underestimated her. Who would have thought that this pampered young lady was so adept at fighting?

However, if she thought she could subdue him so easily, she was sorely mistaken. In a swift reversal, he turned the tables and pinned Xiao beneath him.

She reacted instantly, bending low and bracing herself with one hand on the ground. With a sweeping kick, she struck at his feet. Caught off-guard, he was knocked to the floor by her relentless assault.

He lay there motionless for a moment, and Xiao, thinking he’d been knocked out, approached cautiously and nudged him with her foot. To her surprise, he’d only been pretending! In a flash, he sprang up, a dagger suddenly gleaming in his hand, and lunged at her.

Xiao squeezed her eyes shut, bracing for pain that never came. When she opened them, Ouyang Xianyu had appeared before her, shielding her.

She let out a breath of relief and patted her chest. For a moment, she’d thought she was doomed. She realized, yet again, that underestimating her opponent was a fatal mistake.

Without a word, Yu quickly subdued the boy, binding him tightly with rope and tying him to a water pipe. Only after these swift, efficient actions did he turn to check on Xiao.

With a hint of concern in his eyes, he asked, “Are you alright? Did you get hurt?”

Xiao wiped sweat from her brow. That was close! If Ouyang Xianyu hadn’t arrived, she would have been stabbed.

She shook her hand, then gently shook her head. “I’m fine! But how did you end up here?” That was the part she simply couldn’t understand. The oppressive darkness and cold around them made everything feel so unsettling.

Yu stood surrounded by an aura as chilling as if he’d emerged from hell itself. “I just got a call from the driver,” he said coldly. “So I came to look for you.”

As he spoke, he turned a menacing gaze toward the others, a look that could devour them whole. Xiao stared at him in surprise; she sensed that if she didn’t stop him now, something terrible would surely happen.

Acting on instinct, she reached out and caught Yu, halting him as he strode toward the terrified group.

Under the hazy glow of the streetlights, a shadow fell across Yu’s face. The terrifying aura that had surrounded him began to dissipate as he saw the look on Xiao’s face. Seeing his expression return to normal, Xiao knew he was himself again.

—End of Chapter—

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