“From the sound of it, you heretics still plan to keep killing?”
Hearing an unfamiliar woman’s voice suddenly beside him, the cultist who loved giving advice jolted in fright.
In a flash, he leaped back, whirled around—and found himself face-to-face with a stunningly beautiful woman.
“Y-you… Who are you? How could you see through my illusion?”
Dazed for a moment by the breathtaking sword-wielding beauty before him, the cultist quickly snapped back to reality. The fact that she had approached him undetected and seen through his illusion meant she was no ordinary foe.
“Who am I? I’m the one here to take your life.”
Without wasting another second, the peerless beauty—Daoyan Empress, also known as Yan Qi—raised her sword and charged at him.
The cultist immediately tried to summon his supernatural powers to defend himself.
But before he could even activate them, Yan Qi’s blade flashed across his neck.
A fountain of blood sprayed out, followed by the sound of something heavy hitting the ground.
Without even glancing back, Yan Qi—her golden eyes gleaming coldly—lifted her spotless spirit sword and moved on to hunt down the remaining cultists.
“Damn it, damn it! Those wretched sinners actually dared to deceive us! Sooner or later, I’ll purify every last one of them!”
Using the same illusion technique, the hot-tempered cultist was storming away from Fangfeng City’s train station, muttering curses under his breath. He swore to himself that he’d make the authorities pay for what they’d done today.
But just then, Yan Qi—still in her Daoyan Empress form—appeared right in front of him, blocking his path.
“Trying to run, heretic?”
“Who the hell are you?”
“Who am I? I already answered that for your friend. Go ask him yourself—in the afterlife.”
With another flick of her spirit sword, Yan Qi struck. The hot-tempered cultist met the same fate as his companion—his head tumbling to the ground before he could even react.
“One left.”
“Ugh… Why do I feel like something terrifying is watching me? I need to move faster!”
A sudden chill ran down the spine of the last cultist—the one who had been livestreaming the entire ordeal. He quickened his pace, sensing impending doom.
But just as he was about to slip past the authorities’ perimeter around the train station—
A streak of golden light descended from the sky, slicing him clean in half.
Retracting her spirit sword, Yan Qi hovered in the air, her mission complete. Then, remembering her promise to her mother, she swiftly descended, dispelling her Daoyan Empress form.
In its place, she activated another transformation card—this time, becoming a fox-eared loli.
“Hold on, Dad. I’m coming to heal you.”
With that thought, the now fox-girl Yan Qi hopped onto the giant gourd she always carried and flew toward the waiting room where her parents were.
“Hang in there, dear. Someone’s coming to treat your injuries soon.”
Less than three minutes had passed since Yan Qi (as the Daoyan Empress) had left. For some reason, Li Caifeng felt an inexplicable trust in the girl’s words. She kept whispering to her severely wounded husband, praying he’d hold on until help arrived.
“Finally made it up! Is everyone alright?”
After Yan Qi (as the Daoyan Empress) had eradicated all the abyssal monsters—including the Flame Demon—the authorities, now aware that the waiting room was safe, had rushed in with rescue teams.
However, since the staircase from the first floor to the second-floor waiting area had been destroyed in the earlier battle, they’d had to scramble to find ladders to reach the survivors.
“Ma’am, is this man your relative?”
A paramedic climbed up and immediately noticed Yan Zhenyi’s horrific burns.
“He’s my husband,” Li Caifeng answered.
The paramedic hurried over to assess Yan Zhenyi’s condition—and paled at how critical it was. Without immediate hospitalization, his chances were grim.
“Ma’am, your husband has severe burns. His condition is life-threatening. We need to get him to the hospital right now. Please come with us.”
“Right now?”
Li Caifeng hesitated, recalling the girl in the ancient-style dress and her promise.
The paramedic was baffled. Was she seriously considering waiting while her husband was on death’s door?
Keeping his thoughts to himself, he replied firmly, “Yes. He needs emergency care now.”
“But… can’t we wait just a little longer?”
“Wait? Ma’am, if we delay, he will die.”
“But—”
“No ‘buts.’ Someone, bring a stretcher!”
Deciding there was no time to argue, the paramedic signaled for a team to carry Yan Zhenyi down.
“PUT. HIM. DOWN.”
Just as the rescuers were about to lift Yan Zhenyi onto the stretcher, a sharp, commanding voice rang out from above.
Everyone—survivors and rescuers alike—looked up.
And there she was:
A fox-eared loli with golden hair and emerald-green eyes, dressed in a soft red modernized Hanfu, riding a massive gourd. Her fluffy tail twitched in agitation as she glared down at them.
“Hey. I said put him down. Unless you want me to make you.”
Her tone left no room for argument.