Stranger Danger

“A foolproof plan…” Ye Qing sat on the roof with his head bowed and his fingers tapping the ceramic tiles rhythmically, thinking.

Giggle sat quietly beside him so as not to disturb his train of thought.

Nanke’s presence was currently concealed, so Dream Master would not be able to track it down for the moment, which gave him time to think. He knew that his time was limited though. The longer he dragged this out, the higher the chances that things might spiral out of his control.

Ye Qing thought long and hard, but in the end, he still believed that the best way to deal with Dream Master was to repeat what he did to Slaughterer and Earth Walker: pretend to be one of his allies and cut him down when he least expected it.

However, the chances that Dream Master would see through him was quite real. If the plan failed, then he would be in serious trouble.

Not only that, he didn’t have anything that specifically countered Dream Master’s arts. One misstep, and he might be serving his enemies his head on a silver platter.

It was the best and only plan he could come up with though. Everything else was either too risky or unrealistic.

“I have to give it a try.”

In the end, Ye Qing chose to give it a go. Not everything in the world could be done perfectly, just like no plan could account for every variable. Should the worst happen, he just had to bite the bullet and innovate on the fly.

His mind made up, Ye Qing jumped off the roof and got ready to create some commotion and lure Dream Master to him as he and Earth Walker had agreed earlier. However, something caught his attention before he could do anything. His eyebrows rose as he exclaimed in surprise, “There are others entering this city?”

Part of the fog shrouding the city was his own. Naturally, anyone who entered its range would alert his senses.

“There are two people. One of them is running away, and the other is giving chase.”

Ye Qing’s thoughts raced inside his head as he perceived the presence. Then, he began moving in the duo’s direction.

……

“Just surrender the item, junior sister! I promise I won’t hurt you!”

Two people were dashing through the fog at high speed. Both the pursuer and the one being pursued was a woman.

The woman at the front was wearing a red outfit and an exquisite-looking mask. Her feet were flawless and unhurt even though she was barefooted, and she looked calm and in control even though she was running away.

The woman at the back was wearing a snow white outfit that looked like the purest, cleanest object in the entire world, but her face was blacker than coal, darker than ink, and deeper than the night itself. It was as if she was the representative of the darkest side of humanity.

Ye Qing thought two newcomers had entered the city, when in reality there were three. The woman in white was carrying a man on her back.

The man’s legs seemed to be disabled. He was sitting on a wheelchair, and both him and the wheelchair were lifted into the air by the woman in white.

The man’s appearance was the opposite of the woman in white. He was wearing a black outfit that looked as dark as the night, but his face was smooth and milky like jade, and his eyes looked like a pair of clear pools, translucent and pure.

Despite carrying a person on her back and running somewhat boorishly, the woman in white wasn’t slow in the slightest. Every time she took a step, the earth beneath her foot would deflate and inflate like it was breathing. By the time it completed the motion, the woman in white was already ten meters away. Despite its clumsiness appearance, her footsteps were rhythmic and empowered by some sort of ancient wisdom.

This was why the woman in red was unable to break free despite moving very quickly herself.

On the wheelchair, the man called out again with a warm, gentle voice that resembled a cool breeze, “Junior sister, we are childhood friends who share a deep bond with each other, aren’t we? Is it really worth damaging that bond over some trivial object?”

“I know. Everyone knows that you cherish me the most, first senior brother. Since we were children, you would always give me any good stuff you find, but never sought anything from me.”

Further ahead, the woman in red replied in a sweet, melodious voice, “You won’t make an exception this time, will you?”

“But of course,” the man replied gently. “However, that old bastard is as old as he is cunning, and I doubt the item he left behind would be any better. I certainly wouldn’t be surprised if it turned out to be dangerous enough to threaten your life. For your own safety, you should give it to me for safekeeping.”

“You treat me so well, first senior brother.”

The woman in red giggled. “But that is precisely why I can’t risk your wellbeing. If the old bastard’s inheritance really is that dangerous, then it’s better that I keep it. I wouldn’t want to hurt you.”

“It’s fine. I am your first senior brother. You know what they say, the elder sibling is parentally responsible for their younger siblings. It is far more reasonable for a father to protect his daughter than it is the other way around, don’t you agree?” The man replied in an indifferent tone.

“My, my, you’re such a great man, first senior brother.”

For the first time, the woman in red turned around to shoot her pursuers a weird look. “I don’t think that third senior sister would be happy with your perspective though. She loves you like no other and thinks of you as her husband, but you’re telling me that you really think of her as your daughter? How sad.”

The woman carrying the man abruptly stopped in her tracks. At the same time, the earth beneath her feet began shaking unsteadily.

“Don’t listen to your junior sister’s nonsense, Ah Su. You know how she loves to spout nonsense every once in a while. Of course I know your love for me, and I too love you and only you.”

The man patted the woman’s head and stared into her eyes lovingly. “I, Su Xiu, love Ah Su forever and ever.”

“Ah Su… also… loves Ah Xiu.”

The woman named Ah Su replied somewhat disjointedly. Her voice sounded stiff and wooden, but there was no denying its seriousness.

“Are you tired?” Su Xiu asked gently while removing a silken handkerchief from his shirt and wiping the beads of sweat on Ah Su’s forehead.

“Ah Su… isn’t… tired…” Ah Su shook her head.

“Very well. Then let us continue the chase.”

Su Xiu looked in the direction the woman had disappeared to while saying, “Your junior sister is such a naughty girl. I think it’s time we teach her a lesson.”

“Naughty girls… should be… punished…”

Ah Su replied and bent her knees slightly. There was a deafening boom, and Ah Su shot into the air like an arrow after the woman in red.

In the air, Su Xiu lightly made a plucking motion. A brilliant star immediately appeared between his fingertips. Once upon a time, there were gods who could pluck stars out of the sky.

The next moment, Su Xiu flicked the star straight at the woman in red.

The star fell like a rock, a house, a mountain.

Long before it hit the ground, the earth was already rippling like a leg, and everything within a hundred meters radius were choking with energy. The woman in red was caught dead center.

Knowing that she couldn’t avoid the attack, the woman in red stopped running and produced a red umbrella. She slowly opened it.

When the red umbrella was fully open, the descending pressure and energy abruptly bounced off to the side like a water bead.

The falling star also froze in mid-air, unmoving.

To hold up an umbrella was akin to holding up a sky. What was a star compared to that?

However, Ah Su appeared on top of the star and brought her foot down. The woman in red’s arms immediately fell an inch, and her complexion turned a little white.

Seeing this, Ah su raised her foot and stomped the star again.

There was a deafening roar as the star cracked, and the red umbrella fell another inch lower. By now, the woman in red’s face had turned completely white.

“I was wrong, first senior brother, third senior sister! I’m sorry!” the woman in red pleaded in a hurry when Ah Su raised her foot a third time. Ah Su was unmoved, however. Like a demon god, she brought her foot down a third time and shattered the star completely. A terrific shockwave immediately washed through the area and tore the sky and earth asunder.

Despite standing at the center of impact, Ah Su couldn’t seem to feel the shockwave. She descended toward the woman in red and stepped on the red umbrella.