Lin Xue felt as if ten thousand alpacas were stampeding through her heart.
That Young Master Huzi was standing sideways, not even looking at her.
But he and his followers were blocking the only path she could take, so she had no way to slip past quietly.
She had planned to duck into the passage first, wait until that little tyrant left, and then come out again, avoiding an encounter.
Who could have guessed Yuan Ding’s shout would expose her?
Yuan Ding, you stupid cat! You’re going to get me killed this time!
Lin Xue saw Young Master Huzi stop beating the Rat Demon and look up at her, his eyes lighting up instantly.
A chill ran down her back, and her hair stood on end.
She didn’t have time to blame Yuan Ding.
Quickly swaying her snake tail, she turned and rushed at full speed toward the upward passage on the other side of the cave.
“Hey, little demon, stop right there!” someone shouted behind her.
Lin Xue didn’t even spare a glance, focusing on using the movement technique from the Swiftwind Sword Manual.
Like a gust of wind, she skirted the cave’s edge, circling around Young Master Huzi and his followers, heading straight for the spiral steps.
As long as she could run back to Hong Yanzhi, she’d be safe!
Unfortunately, the Blood Fiend’s demonic energy was exhausted.
Without absorbing fresh blood and flesh, she couldn’t summon the Red Mist.
Otherwise, with the Red Mist’s speed boost, she could’ve run even faster.
“Hey, you demon, stop!”
“Young Master Huzi told you to stop, didn’t you hear him?”
There were little demons yelling and hollering behind her.
Lin Xue ignored them completely, pushing herself to her limit as she raced up the stairs.
A little demon carrying a bundle of herbs got spun around several times as she crashed into him, sending the herbs scattering everywhere.
Inside the cave, the fat youth stared wide-eyed at Lin Xue’s lovely figure fleeing like the wind.
His eyes gleamed as he stuck out his tongue and licked his lips.
When did such a beauty appear in the mountains? And I, this Young Master, don’t even know her?
This fat youth was none other than Hong Huzi, eldest young master of Luoyun Cave on Xixia Mountain, beloved son of Hong Lao San.
Today he’d gone out with his followers to play, and had just returned to the cave.
Feeling a bit hungry, he planned to find some wine and meat in the kitchen to fill his belly.
Who would’ve thought that as soon as he arrived in the grand cave, a Rat Demon would suddenly whip out a knife and stab at him, only to be kicked to the ground by a quick-thinking follower.
He recognized that Rat Demon as Tian Shiqi, brother of the maidservant Tian Pingping, whom he’d toyed with to death last month.
Though Tian Pingping was a Rat Demon, her cultivation only at the mid-stage Body Tempering, her transformed appearance was very sweet and lovely, which was why his elder sister Hong Yanzhi took her in as a maid.
He’d lusted after Pingping for a long time, but since he feared his sister Hong Yanzhi, he hadn’t dared to make a move.
Last month, Hong Yanzhi went into closed-door training in the back mountain for over ten days to break through to Jindan, leaving only Tian Pingping to tend her quarters.
Egged on by a lackey, Hong Huzi, overcome with lust, forced his way into his sister’s room and abducted Tian Pingping, tormenting her with several followers through the night.
He’d thought, since Tian Pingping was his sister’s maid, he’d just have some fun and then let her go, but things dragged on too late.
She kept resisting, and as he thrust into her, he squeezed her neck with both hands, forgetting to let go.
When he finally finished, he found Tian Pingping dead, her eyes rolled back, breathless.
When Hong Yanzhi broke through to Jindan and left seclusion, she found her maid missing.
After learning the truth, she immediately dragged Hong Huzi over and beat him savagely, then slapped the instigating follower into mincemeat, beating the rest half to death.
Thinking back to how his sister handled him that day, Hong Huzi’s legs still went weak.
Afterward, he was grounded for over half a month, and had only been let out these last two days.
Today, seeing Lin Xue, Hong Huzi felt his heart itch again, and a certain part of him—held in check for over half a month—began to stir.
This little demon really could run.
Hong Huzi grinned, the hunting instinct of the feline kind awakening within.
This Young Master loves the rebellious ones, the ones who like to run.
Don’t you know we Cat Demons are best at catching little creatures like you?
He licked his paw, preparing to give chase.
But all his attention was focused on Lin Xue, so he failed to notice Tian Shiqi quietly getting up from the ground and picking up the fallen knife.
At that moment, all of Hong Huzi’s followers were also fixated on Lin Xue, so no one saw what Tian Shiqi was doing.
Tian Shiqi, eyes brimming with hatred, gripped the knife and stabbed it hard into Hong Huzi’s waist.
The long blade sank in.
“Awroo!” Hong Huzi howled in pain.
He turned and met Tian Shiqi’s hate-filled gaze.
“Scum! Die!” Tian Shiqi gritted his teeth, shoving the blade even deeper into Hong Huzi’s body.
The followers were all struck dumb with shock, the crowd of little demons equally stunned.
A Tiger Demon instantly pounced, sending Tian Shiqi flying with a swipe of its paw.
Other little demons supported Hong Huzi, shrieking, “Doctor! Call the doctor!”
“Hurry, go call Elder Huai to treat the young master’s wound!”
At once, a dozen little demons rushed toward the passage to the Yi Fang, shouting as they ran, “It’s bad! It’s bad! Young Master Huzi is injured! Elder Huai, come save him!”
Hong Huzi gritted his teeth, eyes red, and slowly drew the long blade from his waist.
With the support of several followers, clutching his wound, he walked over to Tian Shiqi.
Tian Shiqi had been sent flying by the Tiger Demon and now leaned against the wall, face full of hatred, laughing, “You mangy stray, does it hurt?”
“Too bad I couldn’t kill you, you scum!”
A twisted smile appeared on his lips as he bit out, “But your time will come soon!”
“Your Hong Family will get what’s coming to you! Mangy cat, just you wait! Your Hong Family will be wiped out!”
“Someone will avenge us!”
With a swing, Hong Huzi beheaded Tian Shiqi, cutting his words short.
The severed head tumbled to the ground, the rat face still twisted in a sneer.
After killing Tian Shiqi, Hong Huzi threw down the knife, eyes bulging with rage as he barked at his followers, “Are you all useless? So many of you watching, and you let that little rat hurt this Young Master?”
The followers all knelt in terror, kowtowing and begging for forgiveness.
One crawled over to serve as a bench, letting Hong Huzi sit on his back.
Soon after, a crowd of little demons bustled out from the passage to the Yi Fang, escorting an old man.
The old man carried a small box, walked over to Hong Huzi’s side, and immediately began treatment.
Lin Xue sprinted all the way up, never looking back, finally stopping beside the four Tiger Demon guards in the upper cave.
At last, she’d made it.
Her heart was pounding, about to leap out of her throat. Mouth agape, she was gasping for breath.
After all, the Swiftwind Sword Manual was created by human cultivators; its movement technique was better suited to human legs.
Running with a snake’s body made her slower.
And with her current low cultivation and insufficient demon power, she couldn’t form legs.
Several Tiger Demon guards stared at her, eyes full of curiosity as they admired her breathless state, not knowing why this little Snake Spirit ran so fast, as if something frightening was chasing her.
Lin Xue turned to look back, finding only emptiness behind her. No one was chasing.
She paused in surprise.
Young Master Huzi actually didn’t come after her?
Did he change his ways?
Or was he afraid of his father and sister, and so held back?
She let out a long sigh of relief, slowed her steps, tidied her slightly messy long hair, and walked toward the passage to Hong Yanzhi’s room.
As she walked, she warned herself silently that she must never leave Hong Yanzhi’s side again.
What happened today was lesson enough.