Chapter 52: The Chase and the Oscar-Worthy Performance

The newfound power lent her an astonishing agility, allowing her to traverse the intricate rooftops with the lightness of a swallow, her speed breathtaking. A furious chase suddenly erupted above the burning village, a stark drama against the fiery backdrop.

“Stop!” Lu Hongzhuang’s voice, laced with both urgency and bewilderment, echoed behind her as she pressed on relentlessly. Though she couldn’t identify the figure, an innate sense told her this person harbored no malice. Yet, why did that retreating silhouette stir such a striking resemblance to Su Qinghan?

‘Impossible!’

‘Su Qinghan is a clumsy fool who can barely walk!’

Ahead, Su Qinghan’s scalp prickled with alarm as she fled. ‘What’s wrong with that blockhead? Why are they chasing so relentlessly? Didn’t I just help them? Why are they still pursuing me with such fervor?’ Daring not to glance back, she desperately drew upon the ‘mystic energy’ coursing through her veins, pushing her speed to its absolute limit.

The two, one leading and one trailing, swiftly burst from Niujia Village, vanishing into the dense woods beyond its borders.

Within the forest, the light grew dim, and the trees cast dancing shadows. Su Qinghan exploited the complex terrain, weaving left and right with a spectral grace. As the whooshing sound behind her grew alarmingly close, she steeled herself. From her sleeve, she produced a talisman, swiftly plucking two leaves to conceal it before flinging it backward with a flick of her wrist. The talisman ignited in mid-air, bursting into a blinding flash of white light.

Lu Hongzhuang instinctively squeezed her eyes shut.

‘This was her chance!’

Su Qinghan abruptly altered her course, pushing her breath-concealing art to its pinnacle. She melted into the dense canopy of a colossal ancient tree, becoming one with the encroaching darkness.

When Lu Hongzhuang finally opened her eyes again, the path ahead was utterly deserted. The figure, both familiar and utterly alien, had vanished without a trace. She stood rooted to the spot, gasping for breath, her chest heaving erratically. Her face was a mask of profound confusion and bewilderment.

‘Where did they go?’

Moments later, within a guest room at Master Qian’s residence, a shadowy figure slipped silently through the window, landing with practiced ease. Su Qinghan removed her bamboo hat, hanging it casually on the wall. She then leaned against the doorframe, slowly sliding down until she was seated on the floor. The demonic energy within her ebbed away like a receding tide, and the familiar, debilitating weakness returned to her legs. Even the few strands of silver in her hair reverted to their original raven black. In an instant, everything was restored to its former state.

“Not a single drop left,” Jiu Li murmured weakly. “It’s all burned away. I must fall into slumber.” With that, the little fox’s voice within the space of consciousness faded into silence.

‘My goodness, that girl, who usually seems so foolish, can really run. I was almost caught by that blockhead.’

She closed her eyes, recalling the wild, potent ‘mystic energy’ that had surged within her moments ago. It felt as though the spiritual energy purified by the little fox was growing increasingly potent.

Leaning against the wall, Su Qinghan gasped for air, her heart still hammering wildly in her chest. ‘No, I have to get back into bed quickly. If that blockhead discovers me sprawled on the floor instead of sleeping, it’ll be a huge mess.’

She braced herself against the wall, intending to move her legs, which had once again turned soft and unresponsive. Suddenly! From outside the courtyard, a flurry of hurried, chaotic footsteps approached, their destination unmistakably this very room! They were moving with alarming speed!

‘Oh no! Lu Hongzhuang is back!’

Su Qinghan’s heart plummeted. Disregarding her suddenly weak legs, she scrambled on all fours, desperate to reach the bed. ‘Play dead! I must pretend to be asleep right now!’

Yet, she was a fraction too slow. She had barely managed to scooch to the doorway, with no time to crawl further.

“Bang—!”

With a thunderous crash, the already rickety door was violently kicked open from the outside! The door panel, whistling through the air, slammed mercilessly towards Su Qinghan’s forehead.

“Thud~”

A sound both sharp and dull. Su Qinghan’s vision swam with black spots as the door panel sent her reeling backward, landing with an unceremonious thud on her backside.

“…” Clutching her throbbing, ringing forehead, she was utterly dumbfounded. ‘What the hell!’

Lu Hongzhuang burst through the now shattered doorway, sword in hand, her presence still radiating an undissipated killing intent and the faint scent of blood. Her gaze immediately fell upon Su Qinghan, who sat on the floor, cradling her head with a look of agony etched across her face. And… the door panel itself, which she had just kicked open with such force, now lay rebounded, having struck Su Qinghan squarely on the head.

Lu Hongzhuang: “…”

Her sword-wielding hand froze mid-air. The air itself seemed to solidify in that instant. Lu Hongzhuang stared at Su Qinghan, then at the door, her mind struggling to comprehend the scene. ‘Why is she at the door? Shouldn’t she be lying in bed?’ A potent wave of unease and doubt washed over her, instantly eclipsing the fury that had driven her to kick down the door.

“Su Qinghan!” Lu Hongzhuang’s voice was sharp and laced with steel. She strode forward a few paces, gazing down at Su Qinghan on the floor. “Where were you just now?”

‘Here it comes! Here it comes! It’s time for my grand performance!’ Su Qinghan clutched her forehead, while the little dramatist within her mind began a frantic rehearsal. Slowly, she lifted her head. Her exquisite face was now etched with a blend of shock, deep grievance, and the subtle anguish of being gravely misunderstood. She offered no immediate reply, merely fixing her cool, clear gaze directly upon Lu Hongzhuang. Her eyes, slowly but surely, began to redden. A single, crystalline tear clung stubbornly to the rim of her eye, trembling on the verge of falling. This sight caused an inexplicable pang in Lu Hongzhuang’s heart, and the torrent of questions she had prepared became abruptly lodged in her throat.

“I…” Su Qinghan finally began, her voice quivering and hoarse, as if she had just been knocked senseless. “Where else could I possibly go…?” She sniffed, and the tear, no longer able to bear its weight, finally traced a path down her pale cheek. “I heard the commotion outside… It was only after I asked a guard that I learned you had taken people to Niujia Village to exorcise demons…” Her voice grew fainter, imbued with a profound sense of apprehension and worry. “I… I was worried about you…”

Lu Hongzhuang’s heart gave a sudden, sharp jolt. As she gazed at Su Qinghan’s tear-streaked, on-the-verge-of-tears expression, a fleeting image of the agile, ruthless mysterious figure on the rooftop flashed through her mind. ‘No… It’s impossible. It absolutely couldn’t have been her. Su Qinghan can barely stand on her own, how could she possibly be that person? But… why was she at the door then?’

“Then why were you—”

“I wanted to find you!” As if a raw nerve had been struck, Su Qinghan’s voice abruptly rose, cutting off Lu Hongzhuang mid-sentence. She extended a trembling finger, pointing to a corner of the room. “But where is my wheelchair?! Tell me, where is my wheelchair?! You hid it! You never even gave it back to me!”

Lu Hongzhuang followed her gaze, only to find the spot utterly empty. Her mind gave a sudden, jarring thrum. She remembered. Last night, she had indeed pushed Su Qinghan’s wheelchair to a corner of the courtyard, instructing the guards to keep an eye on it. Afterward… too much had transpired, and she had completely forgotten about it!

“I…” Lu Hongzhuang’s mouth opened, but no words emerged.

Seeing her speechless, Su Qinghan’s emotions surged with even greater intensity, as if a lifetime of accumulated grievances had finally erupted. “What am I supposed to do when I can’t find my wheelchair?!” She pounded the ground with her hand, giving full vent to her ‘helplessness’ and ‘fury’. “All I could do was crawl! I crawled off the bed, inch by agonizing inch, all the way to the door! My legs have no sensation whatsoever! I had to drag myself with my hands! Do you have any idea how cold the floor is?! I finally managed to crawl to the door, just wanting to… just wanting to open it and see if you had returned…”

At this point, her voice dissolved into a heavy sob. She pointed first to her own forehead, then to Lu Hongzhuang. “And what was the result?! I waited, and what did I get? Your foot kicking a door panel straight into my face! Lu Hongzhuang! You heartless blockhead! Waaah… I worried about you for nothing!”

Su Qinghan’s cries grew more sorrowful with each word. Finally, she slumped onto the floor, burying her face in her knees, her shoulders heaving with dramatic sobs. Her weeping was so utterly heart-wrenching, it would make any listener weep alongside her. She had perfectly embodied the image of a fragile woman, worried for her companion’s safety, only to be cruelly harmed herself. ‘Today, this Daoist Master must win an Oscar!’

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