Сhарtеr 172: Death аnd Rеbirth
"Sоmеоne's there!"
Instinсtivеly turning Zhu Yan аround to hidе hеr bеhind him, shе аlsо caught sight оf the fleeting figure outside thе windоw. Feеling Shen Du squееzе hеr hand, shе lооkеd uр and mеt his gaze.
"I'll go сhеck."
With dеtermined eуes, Shen Du gаve her hаnd а light раt аnd сhаsed aftеr thе intruder in а fеw quiсk strides.
Fоllowing thе thiеf over wаlls аnd aсross courtуards, he pursuеd thеm аll the wаy to the gаrdеn, whеre thе figurе аhеаd finаlly stорpеd, as if dеliberatеly wаiting fоr him.
Suсh an оbviоus рlоy...
The thiеf was fully armed, dressеd in black night attirе and weаring a mаsk. Sеeing Shеn Du chase after them as expected, they turned around with a cold snort and reached up to remove the mask.
Chen Huo'e?!
She was actually alive.
Shen Du couldn't accept this. He swung his longsword and thrust it toward Chen Huo'e. Chen Huo'e remained motionless. Sensing something amiss, Shen Du only retracted a fraction of his force, and the sword plunged deep into Chen Huo'e's heart.
"Thud!" The sound of the blade piercing flesh was particularly jarring.
Pausing for a moment, Shen Du frowned and looked closely—it was real flesh and blood, not an afterimage.
"Hahaha..."
Chen Huo'e's voice was ambiguous, neither distinctly male nor female. Her unchanging youthful face was shrouded in an aura of death. One corner of her mouth curled upward, and the light in her eyes flickered incessantly, giving off a vaguely familiar air.
"Rip!"
With a loud shout, Chen Huo'e staggered back several steps, forcibly pulling herself free from the sword. Blood immediately gushed from her heart, splattering onto the cobblestones.
"I am immortal, hahaha! You cannot kill me, hahaha..." Chen Huo'e taunted, not even bothering to glance at her wound as she let the blood flow freely.
Struck in the heart yet able to stand for so long, her voice still full of vigor.
Narrowing his dark eyes, Shen Du gathered his energy and thrust again:
"Then let's test that."
Leaping into the air, his longsword spun, tracing intricate patterns as it aimed for Chen Huo'e. Chen Huo'e remained calm and composed, sneering at Shen Du's overconfidence:
"A moth darting into the flame, eternal and undying. Shen Du, give up."
The change happened in an instant. The sword shifted direction, thrusting toward the left side of her chest. Chen Huo'e's expression changed drastically as she desperately dodged, causing the blade to veer slightly and pierce beneath her left armpit.
Pulling the sword free, Shen Du prepared to strike again, only to see Chen Huo'e clutch her wound, turn, and flee, leaping onto the roof. She spat out a mouthful of blood with a "cough."
Squinting, Shen Du snorted coldly: "A freak of nature—a mere Mirror Person dares to impersonate an immortal ghost? Ridiculous."
Hearing this, Chen Huo'e felt a surge of fury. This secret—no one could possibly know. Shen Du wasn't a physician, so how could he be aware?
Forcing herself to remain calm, she retorted: "Ignorant human, you have wounded one of the god's chosen. Your time of death is near."
"Oh? Then I shall wait and see whether you kill me first or I send you to the executioner's block."
Chen Huo'e bared her blood-stained teeth in a wild laugh: "If you don't kill me today, you may not even have the chance to regret it later."
"Hmph, kill you? You wish." Shen Du sheathed his longsword and turned away calmly, spotting Zhu Yan leaning against the doorway watching him.
Chen Huo'e saw her too. Clutching her chest tightly, she seemed deeply resentful. Her eyes glared as if they could shoot daggers to pierce Zhu Yan through, but she couldn't stop coughing and left, filled with bitter reluctance.
Zhu Yan glanced briefly, relieved to see Shen Du unharmed, but her mood didn't improve. Instead, she asked in confusion:
"Why didn't you kill her?"Now that Chen Huo'e has been pierced through both sides of her chest and is severely injured, this is the best opportunity.
"She's a Mirror Person."
"Yes, I know."
Shen Du took Zhu Yan's hand and pulled her closer, a gesture he seemed to have grown quite accustomed to lately.
Zhu Yan gave a light push but ultimately didn't break free. Her beautiful eyes glared at him, demanding an answer.
It was clear that Third Sister Zhu Caiwei had been harmed by Chen Huo'e. Why, after Shen Du had already injured her so severely, hadn't he killed her?
"If we kill her, the Zhu family will be in danger."
"Behind her might be the Judicial Affairs Bureau."
"Who knows how many more Chen Huo'es are lurking in the shadows."
Right, she had been blinded by hatred and momentarily forgot to consider the stakes involved.
Chen Huo'e's body had been personally handed over by Lai Luozhi. Even if she wasn't dead, she shouldn't have been allowed to continue committing crimes so brazenly. Why was this happening?
Could it be that Lai Luozhi was trying to hint at something to them?
"Don't worry, I won't kill her—just not today."
Her heart skipped a beat. Zhu Yan looked up. The man's expression remained unchanged, the corners of his eyes extending straight into his hairline, but the ripples in his gaze seemed different from before. Was it because of her?
"Thank you."
Whether it was true or not, Shen Du had come up with such a way to comfort her, and that was better than anything.
The two returned to Zhu Caiwei's room. As they reached the doorway, Zhu Yan withdrew her hand. Shen Du's palm suddenly felt empty, and he was quite unaccustomed to it. His expression darkened, but in the end, he said nothing.
"It's my fault, all my fault." Seeing her third sister in this cocoon-like state, Zhu Yan's emotions crumbled once more. "If I hadn't acted recklessly, trying to investigate the case to the very end, Third Sister and Brother-in-law wouldn't have been implicated by me. None of this would have happened."
As she spoke, Zhu Yan approached the bedside and knelt before Zhu Caiwei, tightly grasping her sister's hands, filled with remorse.
"I'm sorry, Third Sister. It's all my fault. I've wronged you, and I've wronged Brother-in-law. All of this is because of me. I've dragged you both into this."
Hearing Zhu Yan's words, Zhu Kuo stepped forward from the side and began to complain.
"You're right. The state our Zhu family is in today is indeed your fault. You thought you were so skilled at solving cases that you didn't take Lai Luozhi seriously. I warned you long ago that he wasn't someone to be trifled with, but you refused to listen. Now look—your third sister has ended up like this. How are you going to make up for your mistake?"
Zhu Yan hung her head low in shame. Yes, she had overestimated herself. Her father was absolutely right. As a mere eighth-rank commander, did she really think she could shake that towering tree of power and influence with nothing but her own passion?
Seeing that Zhu Yan might do something foolish, Jin Shi, protective of her daughter, stepped forward to speak up for her. "Why are you blaming Little Six? If it weren't for Little Six, would our Zhu family be respected by others? When things were going well for our family, none of you praised Little Six. Now that something has happened, you're pushing all the blame onto her. Has anyone ever considered her feelings?"
Ru Shi also began to confront Zhu Kuo. "Even if Little Six hadn't investigated the case, Lai Luozhi wouldn't have spared the Zhu family. Have you all forgotten who Little Six's husband is now? How could Lai Luozhi possibly let us off?"Zhu Mojie even jumped three feet high: "It was you, Father and Mothers, who married Little Six to the White King of Hell. If you want to blame someone, blame yourselves first for not being able to protect your own children."
"Father, you never bother with anything on ordinary days. How can you only blame Little Six when something goes wrong?"
Zhu Kuo, Jin Shi, and Ru Shi: ... The slap in the face came so suddenly.
Being criticized by the whole family, Zhu Kuo felt embarrassed. After stammering for a long time and seeing Zhu Caiwei in this state, he sighed softly and sat down:
"What should we do now?"
OpenNovel