A Precarious Encounter in the Wilderness

Upon realizing their identity, I instinctively quickened my pace. To call them mere acquaintances would be a disservice; “nemesis” felt far more fitting, for truly, adversaries always cross paths in the narrowest of places!

“Hmph, just look at that little bastard, sly as a ghost, more cunning than a fox! We’ve been searching for two whole days, and haven’t found a single trace. What beast could possibly catch him?” another rougher, yet slightly less harsh voice grumbled resentfully.

Meanwhile, the rustling in the woods grew steadily closer.

A chill wind swept past me, raising goosebumps all over my body; whether from fear or cold, I couldn’t tell.

“Even if no beast carried him off, it’s fine. We’ll find him ourselves and get our revenge. We know he’s a student from Tianwu University, so where can he run? Even if we don’t really castrate him then, we’ll make him strike a hundred and eight poses!” The first speaker chimed in, echoing the sentiment.

That remark made me, having just scrambled ashore, completely overlook a crucial detail.

Hearing it sent cold sweat trickling down my back, filling me with dread.

Considering my current state – without a stitch of clothing, utterly naked, and now transformed into such a delicate, lovely girl, my internal energy depleted, my martial arts lost, and marooned in this desolate wilderness with not a soul in sight – if they were to see me now…

‘Oh, a hundred and eight poses…’

This was practically the standard setup for an explicit novel!

While my mind roared with indignation, I abandoned all modesty and dashed, naked, towards my old clothes scattered along the bank.

Yet, even as I ran, I inwardly longed to slap myself. ‘When did my thoughts become as depraved as Yang Laoer’s?’ I wondered.

‘Proximity to cinnabar makes one red, proximity to Yang Laoer makes one yellow.’ [TL Note: “Yellow” (黄) in Chinese slang refers to pornography or explicit content.]

Guo Hao’s veiled warnings to Linghu Ruoxu and me at the start of the semester had proven true, but alas, I hadn’t heeded them.

Oh, the regret!

As my mind raced with these chaotic thoughts, I swiftly gathered the scattered clothes and put them on.

At this critical juncture, I no longer cared whether the garments fit; my only desire was to dress quickly and flee in disarray.

What compelled me to perform this usually complex and time-consuming act with such incredible speed was a QQ status update Yang Laoer had posted roughly a month ago, during one of his many heartbreaks:

“I’ll never forget that autumn, when she was surrounded by burly men…”

I imagined if I truly fell into the hands of these burly men, practitioners of the Five Tiger Severing Blade, my fate, judging by the logic of explicit novels, would likely be just that!

Bah! I was letting my thoughts stray again!

****

As the saying goes, fate rarely grants one’s every wish.

Heaven, it seemed, had only fulfilled half of my two-part prayer.

Though I had clumsily managed to cover my naked body with clothes that were half a foot too long, troublesome details like rolling up pant legs and cuffs had cost me precious time.

Consequently, I hadn’t managed to escape.

Furthermore, the cultural shirt was considerably oversized.

In my previous life as a boy, I had often ripped my clothes off with abandon, a display of perceived manliness, which had stretched the already generous round neckline even wider.

Now, adorning my transformed, petite female body, it resembled a dangerously low V-neck, threatening to expose me at any moment.

It was a precarious situation indeed!

****

There I stood, disheveled, my hair still damp, clutching my satchel with a look of utter panic.

From between the trees, two burly young men, stout as bandits, emerged, pulling themselves through the undergrowth, their faces etched with indignation.

The morning sun shone brightly, a gentle, cool breeze sweeping through the air, and in this somewhat shimmering, picturesque setting, our paths converged.

Countless escape plans spiraled through my mind, but each was quickly discarded, rendered useless by my depleted internal energy and my inability to employ my light footwork.

In desperation, I resigned myself to a reckless thought: ‘So they want to castrate me? Fine, I’ll let them! It’s not like I have anything left anyway!’

Yet, such thoughts were merely a bitter attempt at humor.

Heaven knew what they would truly do to me if I fell into their hands.

Alas, Master, my Master, your disciple is incompetent. ‘Before the battle is won, I fall, into the hands of burly men!’

While I was perspiring profusely from my anxious thoughts, my two adversaries on the other side were staring at me, utterly dumbfounded.

Especially the one referred to as ‘Boss,’ the particularly robust fellow, who was now more than just stunned.

Observing his slightly agape mouth and the drool almost glistening at its corners, I would have suspected him to be the product of inbreeding—had I not spoken and sparred with him before, knowing his intelligence and martial arts were perfectly normal.

The burly man standing beside him, who had called him ‘Boss,’ reacted only marginally better.

Indeed, just marginally: he wasn’t drooling.

Beyond that, the two men looked as if they had been cast from the same mold.

They say when enemies meet, their eyes burn with fury.

Yet, observing these two, their eyes weren’t red with rage; instead, they seemed to gleam with a predatory green light.

It took a long moment for understanding to dawn on me, and I inwardly cursed my own foolishness.

I was now a girl, my appearance and figure completely transformed.

Although I wore the same clothes as before, these two men clearly struck me as honest, somewhat slow-witted types; such a minor detail would surely go unnoticed by them.

Moreover, this matter was simply too bizarre.

Even if I were to explain it, no one would likely believe me.

Therefore, even if the clothing discrepancy were noticed, it wouldn’t be difficult to brush off.

Swiftly, I assessed the immediate situation in my mind.

I felt there was no immediate danger of my identity being exposed.

Considering I was in such a desolate wilderness, my martial arts gone, and wishing to avoid being carried off by some beast, as these two ‘gentlemen’ had previously mentioned, the best course of action would be…

Having secretly settled on a plan, I decided to fully commit to acting like a girl.

Though I had impersonated girls countless times in my life – for instance, when Linghu Ruoxu and I would mimic Yang Laoer’s numerous heartbroken confessions, I invariably played the female lead – I believed this time would be my most convincing performance yet!

“You, you, who are you? What, what do you want?”

I clutched my satchel with one hand, while the other nervously tightened the drooping neckline of my shirt at my chest.

My gaze darted away as I timidly looked at the two burly men, who stood frozen as if their acupoints had been struck, and asked, my voice laced with fright.

Seeing me feign such fright, appearing so delicate and pitiful, the two burly men’s eyes seemed on the verge of popping out of their sockets.

After a long silence, the one whose initial reaction had been only marginally less crude finally flushed crimson.

He stammered, “Little sister, don’t be scared. We, ah, we’re not bad guys, really we’re not!”