Chapter 44: The Spokesperson

At this moment, Situ Dao’s composure completely crumbled. He suddenly realized he could never be a match for this terrifying man before him—he wasn’t even sure now if his trump card, the Vanishing Myriad Paths, could actually land a blow.
Run!
As long as the green hills endure, there’ll always be firewood to burn!
His left hand slammed down on the switch for the Vanishing Myriad Paths, and he hurled himself bodily toward the nearby window.
A hissing sound filled the room as thousands of hair-thin silver needles shot out, raining toward Hua Tianyu and Shu Yue.
Under the lights, the needles reflected a dazzling, mesmerizing brilliance, like a peacock in full display—magnificent and blinding.
But Hua Tianyu knew all too well that this dazzling splendor was deadly.
He leapt up at once. Originally, he meant to pull Shu Yue into his arms, but hearing the relentless hail of needles, he made a snap decision, yanked off Shu Yue’s large bath towel, unfurled it, and spun it rapidly before them.
The thick, pink towel, now imbued with his unique power, whirled like a starry veil, an immense celestial force rising steadily to shield them, blocking every attack.
The needles struck the towel with a continuous sizzling sound, which went on for nearly thirty seconds before finally ceasing.
By then, Situ Dao was already outside the window, his face twisted with rage and hatred. Because of Hua Tianyu, his mission had failed yet again.
But without a new and stronger trump card, he dared not return. Still, it was only right to throw out a few parting words.
“Hua Tianyu, we’ll meet again! Just wait—I’ll be back for you! Hahaha!”
With that, he jumped, flipping his hands in midair.
Wait—where’s my spider utility?
Wait—where’s my grappling hook?
Wait—where’s my…
Hua Tianyu, you…
This almanac’s luck is just terrible...
He guessed correctly: all his tools were already in Hua Tianyu’s hands. During their earlier exchange, Hua Tianyu had deftly brushed past him and relieved him of every piece.
Staring at the pile of tools in his own hands, Hua Tianyu was equally stunned. Since when were thieves this reckless? Without tools, he just leapt from the twentieth floor, no hesitation?
He had only meant to detain Situ Dao, to keep him from escaping so easily and gradually interrogate him about the mastermind behind all this.
He never expected Situ Dao to be so reckless—after unleashing a storm of needles, he’d simply jumped out the window.
Couldn’t he have checked his equipment before leaping? And with that leap, such a crucial lead was lost for no reason!
Of course, for true experts, surviving a fall from the twentieth floor was not impossible—Hua Tianyu himself could do it with ease.
But after two encounters, Hua Tianyu had a clear measure of Situ Dao’s abilities—he was definitely not capable of surviving such a fall.
Where did he get this unfathomable confidence?
Thud!
At last, a distant heavy sound came from outside the window—a body hitting the ground.
Situ Dao, dead.
But aside from the broken lead, Hua Tianyu had another problem to deal with.
Just now, when Situ Dao unleashed the Vanishing Myriad Paths, Hua Tianyu, acting on instinct, had ripped away the bath towel that Shu Yue had wrapped around herself, using it to block all the deadly needles.
So now, Shu Yue stood utterly naked in his arms. Even after the sound of Situ Dao’s landing echoed faintly from below, Hua Tianyu still showed no sign of letting go.
Of course, Shu Yue had no idea that was the sound of Situ Dao hitting the ground.
She’d already been terrified by the hail of needles; when Hua Tianyu tore away her towel, she hadn’t resisted—in fact, she’d even turned her body slightly to help him act faster.
Then, watching Hua Tianyu display such power, protecting her with the towel, she felt as if he were her guardian deity.
In that moment, she was utterly spellbound—not by the dazzling brilliance of the silver needles, but by Hua Tianyu himself.
But when the needles finally ceased, she woke from her daze.
Realizing her state—naked in Hua Tianyu’s arms—a wave of feminine embarrassment surged over her.
It was like a rosy cloud sweeping across the sky, staining her face, her neck, and finally leaving a flush of red across every inch of her fair skin.
She tried to push Hua Tianyu away, but found she couldn’t budge him. Worse, her exposed body was even more on display, so she hastily covered her chest again. She wanted to shout at him, but her body had gone weak—she lacked even the strength to scold him.

She could only whisper, “Hua Tianyu, let me go so I can get dressed!”
Hua Tianyu replied righteously, “Don’t move. What if he doubles back for another attack?”
“Ah…” Shu Yue was just a scientific researcher; she’d never faced anything like this before. She’d already been frightened out of her wits, and now, after Hua Tianyu’s warning, she curled up in his arms again, not daring to move.
Time seemed to stand still. In Hua Tianyu’s embrace, every second felt like an age to Shu Yue.
She squeezed her eyes shut, not daring to look at Hua Tianyu’s face, terrified that if she did, she’d want to burrow into the ground and vanish.
One second, two seconds… ten seconds passed.
A minute, two minutes… five minutes passed.
At last, Shu Yue couldn’t bear it any longer. With eyes still tightly shut, her voice trembled as she asked, “It’s been so long—he isn’t coming back, is he?”
She herself didn’t know whether that tremor was due to fear or embarrassment.
“Mmm, for now, it doesn’t seem like he’ll return,” Hua Tianyu answered solemnly.
“Then why haven’t you let me go yet? Let me get dressed!” Shu Yue dared only to crack her eyes open a sliver, mustering all her strength to gently push Hua Tianyu away.
“Oh, I was so focused on protecting you, I forgot. Go quickly—and please, don’t ever come out to see me like this again.” Hua Tianyu released her at last.
“Pah!” Shu Yue spat softly, but dared not say another word. She dashed frantically toward the bedroom.
Behind her, Hua Tianyu’s lips curled into a faint smile as he called, “You still haven’t rinsed off all the shower gel!”
Bang! Without warning, Shu Yue ran straight into the doorframe.
But she didn’t dare look back. She hurriedly grabbed some clothes from the bedroom and, without lifting her head, rushed into the bathroom.
Soon, the seductive sound of showering once more filled the air. Hua Tianyu, holding that pink bath towel, sat quietly, listening to the enchanting melody…