Desperate Escape

“Just in case, once I’ve suppressed it, you take the chance to run down.”

“O-okay.”

The massive eyeball blocking the cave entrance was only a few meters away. Qianwei’s voice trembled slightly—after all, this was her first time this close to the entrance. Feeling the furious gaze, along with a roar that made the entire cave tremble, the word ‘fear’ alone couldn’t describe her current state.

“By the way, is there any weapon in the ring that Hei gave you?”

“Weapon? Let me see…”

Qianwei paused, took a deep breath to focus, and scanned the space within the ring. Amidst the pile of odds and ends, there were indeed a few weapons—he had mistaken them for ordinary clutter before using Appraisal. With a thought, she pulled them all out and handed them over.

“See if any of these are useful.”

“Oh? Quite a few goodies… Looks like that guy Hei really gave you his entire collection.”

Qiuyue Han glanced over, then reached for a short rod. After infusing it with energy, the rod extended into a black blade over a meter long, wreathed in black flames.

“I’ll take this.”

“Wow, that’s so cool… Why didn’t I get those black flames when I used it before?”

“Your energy output is still too weak.”

“…”

Tch! So that’s how it is, he thought irritably.

Qiuyue Han, having mercilessly teased her, spun the blade stylishly and continued with a satisfied look. “I’ll borrow this until we get back to the city. It’s pretty handy~”

“You can keep it. It’s not like I know how to use it anyway… Besides, once you kill me later, everything I have will be yours…”

Thud!

“Ouch!”

With a melancholic expression, Qianwei received a chop to her head. Qiuyue Han rolled her eyes but didn’t pursue the topic.

“Alright, get ready. When you run, watch your step so you don’t trip and roll down.”

“Mm…”

Rubbing her sore head, Qianwei nodded, then turned her gaze to the giant eye blocking the cave. He instinctively began to Appraise it, only to be hit again.

Thud!

“Ow! Why’d you hit me again…”

“You want to be bait and get eaten? I told you not to Appraise living things lightly!”

“Ah…”

That made sense… he realized, coming to his senses. Then she saw Qiuyue Han, black flame blade in hand, erupting with a visible wave of pale yellow energy.

“Whoa~”

It reminded him of a Super Saiyan.

Roar!!

The next instant, Qiuyue Han and the giant eye vanished, and an enraged roar echoed from outside the cave. Qianwei hurried to the entrance to look. The magnificent mountain scenery, veiled in white mist, greeted her eyes, accompanied by a cold draft. It was breathtaking, like a painting.

On the gentle slope before the cave, the guardian beast Qiuyue Han had called a ‘puppy’ revealed its full form. It was a four-legged giant covered in multicolored scales—more lion than dog—with a pair of long horns, resembling a legendary Qilin. Qiuyue Han, floating and dodging attacks, slashed at its scales without leaving a scratch. She couldn’t break its defense, not even making it flinch.

“What are you gawking at? Run!”

“Mnh…”

Han’s tone and performance were far from relaxed. Didn’t she say she could easily suppress and defeat it? he wondered, worried. Qianwei averted her gaze, scanned the area, and started sprinting downhill where the obstacles were fewer.

But just as she reached the edge of the gentle slope, a white figure slammed heavily nearby. Qiuyue Han scrambled up, looking beaten, with a trace of blood at the corner of her mouth. Her aura had clearly weakened.

“Are you okay!?”

Qianwei instinctively moved to check on her, but a chill shot from her tailbone to her crown—she was overshadowed by an even larger dark figure.

“Uh…”

A huge paw with plum-petal pads was mere inches away. Time seemed to freeze; his thoughts raced, but her body couldn’t move.

Crack!

With a visually eerie spatial distortion skimming her skin, the giant paw was blocked. Her view shifted, and Qianwei found herself slung over Qiuyue Han’s shoulder.

Roar!!!

“Cough…”

“Qiuyue Han?”

A dozen consecutive spatial jumps followed, each less than ten meters apart, growing closer. The white-haired older sister’s breath grew weaker. The beast pursued relentlessly, its paw landing precisely where they had been a moment ago.

Qianwei’s heart jumped. Fortunately, after running a few hundred meters from the cave, the beast stopped attacking after a few more steps and turned back.

“Qiuyue Han… it’s going back! Boohoo, I thought I was gonna die…”

“What’s there to fear? I told you I’m here.”

“Uh…”

Qianwei’s mouth twitched, her relieved expression cracking as she retorted dryly, “You almost got beaten to paste by that puppy, and you’re still talking tough… You couldn’t even break its defense—”

Slap!

“Say another word and I’ll leave you here… Cough!”

“I haven’t been hit like this since elementary school…” he muttered. Uh, are you okay? You’re spitting blood.

Qianwei tried to look back, but it was awkward being carried on a shoulder. Qiuyue Han finally stopped, turning to look at the giant beast’s retreating figure.

“Indeed, it won’t go too far… Cough, let’s rest a bit…”

“Huh?”

Watching the ground come closer, Qianwei hurriedly reached out to brace herself, preventing a face-to-rock meeting.

“Qiuyue Han?!”

Damn, she fainted?

“Seriously, why play the hero? If you’d just used spatial ability to escape with me from the start, we wouldn’t be in this mess…”

Grousing to himself, she flipped the unconscious woman over with concern.

“Don’t die on me… Mm, but this is a perfect chance to deepen our bond, right? Hehe~”

Just in case, Qianwei carried her a bit further downhill and found a sheltered spot behind a large boulder. Compared to the cave, the outside temperature was harsh. Even wearing the special clothes from that damn woman, the wind hitting exposed skin stung with icy pain.

She made a simple bed, laid the woman down, and took the rare opportunity to Appraise her. What he found made him gasp.

“Whoa! Most of her bones are shattered?! And she’s still breathing?”

Would I be that resilient too one day? he wondered.

Taking a deep breath, he realized this level of injury was lethal. She quickly searched the ring for healing potions and forced them down Qiuyue Han’s throat. But the effect was far weaker than when he had tested them.

The reason was the Sacred Heart, one of Qiuyue Han’s abilities. It granted immunity to many negative effects and healing, but also conferred high resistance to positive effects not self-initiated. Recalling prior information, Qianwei frowned.

“Wait, doesn’t the Sacred Heart have healing abilities? Why didn’t you heal yourself…”

“Because that ability requires a calm mind. And whose fault is it that I can’t calm down?”

“Uh… You’re awake. Impressive you can still talk with injuries like that.”

An ability requiring a calm mind to activate… Well, that was indeed my fault, he thought.

Embarrassed, Qianwei looked away and was about to speak again when a strange voice sounded behind her.