Chapter Fourteen: Subduing Kui Hu and His Companions

Chapter Fourteen: Subduing Kuihu and His Companions (Part One)

Li Hao had run out for five or six minutes, but on his return, he sprinted at full speed and was back in three. Kuihu, summoning every ounce of his strength, barreled through smaller trees, crashing them aside; even if he stumbled and fell, he would scramble back up and continue the chase. The difference between chasing Li Hao a few minutes ago and pursuing him now was like night and day. Yet, despite all this, he was left far behind by the immense gap in power, and as for the injured Li Zhan, he was so far behind he had vanished from sight entirely.

When Qin Zhen, his nose still bleeding, saw Li Hao rushing back in such a hurry, he instantly blocked Li Hao’s way. In his heart, he was certain that Li Hao had been driven to desperation by Kuihu and Li Zhan and had no choice but to circle back. He was secretly delighted and thought, “Well now, boy, with a tiger ahead and a wolf behind, let’s see where you run this time.”

“Where is she?” Li Hao ignored what Qin Zhen might be thinking and asked him directly.

Qin Zhen was stunned by the question, thinking, “Is this kid stupid? He can barely protect himself—why is he worried about others?”

Just then, Kuihu, battered and bruised from his wild pursuit, appeared. Unaware of the impending disaster, Qin Zhen greeted Kuihu with smug satisfaction, saying, “Brother Tiger, what happened to you? Don’t worry, with me blocking him, that brat can’t escape.”

Kuihu, already in despair, was further agitated by Qin Zhen’s words. Gasping for breath, Kuihu was so enraged by Qin Zhen’s nonsense that he could barely speak. He wanted nothing more than to tear Qin Zhen to pieces, but instead, he stormed over and delivered a fierce kick to Qin Zhen’s chest. Caught off guard, Qin Zhen was sent flying dozens of meters by Kuihu, who was a realm stronger than he was. Battered senseless by his own leader for no apparent reason, Qin Zhen was too afraid to ask why and could only stagger to his feet, standing there in a daze.

Kuihu finally managed to catch his breath after all that running. In a panic, he roared at Qin Zhen, “Where is Her Highness?”

“Who?” Qin Zhen, still reeling from the beating, was bewildered, unable to process who Kuihu meant. If Li Hao hadn’t interrupted, perhaps he would have realized Kuihu was referring to Lu Yao.

“I asked you, where is Her Highness the Princess?” Kuihu forced himself to calm down and repeated the question.

“Where is Her Highness the Princess?” This question left Qin Zhen utterly confused. He had no idea why a princess was suddenly being mentioned and blurted out the question in reply.

It was understandable that Qin Zhen didn’t know Lu Yao’s true identity. A young lady of such noble birth would usually be accompanied by guards or elders, yet today they happened to encounter a mischievous little princess sneaking out to play, without any protection except a boy of about ten—Li Hao, who was outrageously strong. No wonder they’d fallen into such a trap.

…

Kuihu’s mind was in turmoil, feeling a pain worse than death by a thousand cuts. He could only complain in his heart, “Heavens, why are you so cruel to me? I’m on the verge of breaking down. I must have been cursed for eight lifetimes to run into a genius opponent and idiotic teammates all in one day.”

In truth, it wasn’t all Qin Zhen’s fault; Kuihu, on the brink of collapse, was barely capable of forming a coherent sentence. Qin Zhen, baffled by the questioning and the senseless beating, had no idea why this disaster had befallen him.

Li Hao looked at their comical exchange with frustration and coldly interjected, “Where is the little girl who was with me?”

Qin Zhen, still bewildered by his misfortune—brought on simply by coveting that hateful brat’s winnings of ten thousand soul coins—had no desire to talk. As the saying goes, men die for wealth, birds die for food.

He snapped at Li Hao, “Get lost!”

Crack!

With a crisp slap, Kuihu struck Qin Zhen hard across the face, sending blood gushing from his nose and mouth. The blood from his previous nosebleed hadn’t even dried before it started flowing again.

At this moment, Qin Zhen felt he had no words to express his suffering, being beaten again and again for no reason. His mind was full of doubt: “Why? What did I do wrong?”

“I asked you a question!” Kuihu shouted in desperation.

“What question?” Qin Zhen stammered.

Kuihu, enraged to the point of internal injury, coughed up a mouthful of blood.

“When the young master asks you something, answer honestly. Why so many useless words? Is your whole family tired of living?” Kuihu was overwhelmed with mixed feelings. If today’s mess wasn’t handled properly, his entire family could face ruin. Now, all hope rested on the whims of Li Hao and Lu Yao. Seeing Qin Zhen’s bloody nose only made him more anxious, fearing Qin Zhen had done something to Lu Yao. And, as it turned out, his fears were justified.

By now, Li Zhan had stumbled onto the scene, blood still trickling from his lips. The scene before him was even more shocking: the area was a mess, signs of a fight everywhere, but no sign of Her Highness. An ominous feeling rose in his heart.

Gone was the arrogance and swagger from before; now, every word was cautiously considered before being uttered, for even a single misstep could spell disaster.

Watching from within Li Hao’s spiritual sea, Xiao Jiu also felt anxious for the three boys. Their fate was deserved, the consequence of their own actions. Xiao Jiu knew exactly what had happened here—Lu Yao had suffered only a little.

“Why isn’t Her Highness the Princess here?” Li Zhan asked Qin Zhen anxiously.

“I don’t know where Her Highness is! Who is this princess, anyway? I didn’t see her when I got here,” Qin Zhen replied helplessly. Why would someone so noble come to such a remote forest?

If someone understood his thoughts, they would surely say: why did Her Highness come to this deep mountain? Wasn’t it all because of you three?

Qin Zhen felt something was off: “Why is everyone acting so strangely today?” But he couldn’t figure out why.

Hearing this, Li Hao was relieved, thinking perhaps Lu Yao had taken the Seven-Colored Cloud Eagle and returned while he was luring the three away. But his joy was short-lived, for Qin Zhen’s next words pulled him from the clouds into an abyss.

“Besides that little girl Brother Tiger told me to watch, there was no one else here,” Qin Zhen replied seriously.

Li Hao’s worry intensified: “Why isn’t Sister Yao’er here? Could something have happened to her, or was she taken? And why is the Seven-Colored Cloud Eagle missing?”

Kuihu and Li Zhan were terrified, cursing Qin Zhen inwardly: “Damn you, Qin Zhen! Weren’t you just told to keep watch? What did you do to Her Highness? Where have you taken her now?”

Li Hao, Kuihu, and Li Zhan spoke in unison, “We’re asking about that little girl!”

“What? She… she’s the… prin… princess…” Only now did Qin Zhen realize, his pupils dilating, mouth agape in shock, as if struck by lightning. He couldn’t even finish the word “princess” before his vision went black and he fainted.

At that moment, a chill like a winter storm settled on Li Hao’s face. His eyes were cold as ice as he stared at Kuihu. “Tell me exactly what happened.”

“I… I don’t know… I only told him to watch over Her Highness…” Kuihu stammered, struggling to get the words out.

“It’s over.”

That was the only thought in Kuihu and Li Zhan’s hearts. Today, they had brought calamity upon themselves. Not only might they lose their lives, but their families could be destroyed as well.

“Wake him up,” Li Hao ordered coldly, deeply worried that something terrible had befallen Lu Yao. If anything happened to her while he was secretly escorting her, how could he ever face Grandpa Baicao, Uncle Lufeng, or Aunt Qin Ya? Even if they didn’t blame him, he would never forgive himself.

There was no choice but to wake the unconscious Qin Zhen and get to the bottom of things.

Smack, smack, smack…

Kuihu went over and slapped Qin Zhen several times, finally rousing him.

Li Hao’s face was icy as he asked coldly, “What did you do to Yao’er?”

“She… no, Her Highness the Princess is over there.” Li Hao, Kuihu, and Li Zhan looked in the direction Qin Zhen pointed, but saw nothing—just a few large trees and some rocks.

The three of them stared at Qin Zhen, their eyes saying, “There’s no one there.”

“Her Highness is behind the tree,” Qin Zhen explained, understanding their confusion.

When Li Hao and the others approached, they saw Lu Yao bound to a large tree by a chain of law conjured by Qin Zhen, unable to move. Her mouth was sealed by a law seal, rendering her voiceless. Her mask had vanished at some point, leaving only her eyes, which were filled with pitiful helplessness. The sight made Li Hao’s heart ache.

“What are you all standing around for? Do you want me to untie her myself?” Li Hao’s voice was cold as frost as he saw the three of them standing motionless.

“My little ancestor, how dare we touch Her Highness’s noble person without your word?” Kuihu and the others dared not speak, only muttering in their hearts.

None of them dared approach Lu Yao, for even getting close to her would be disrespectful. Without Li Hao’s order, how could they lay a finger on the esteemed princess?

After Li Hao spoke, Kuihu gave Qin Zhen a glare, and Qin Zhen understood at once. He swiftly formed a gesture to unlock the seal, flicked it toward Lu Yao, and she was instantly freed.

Li Hao had wanted to undo the seal himself, but over the years he had devoted himself to studying medicine and other knowledge. When it came to other arts, he was woefully unskilled, which was why he had seemed so constrained in today’s battle. If not for the power boost from the primal chaos, granting him unmatched physical strength and sharp wits, he would have lost for sure.

The moment Lu Yao regained her freedom, she threw herself into Li Hao’s arms.

All her worries, fears, anxiety, and grievances surged up at once, and she wept in his embrace like a sudden storm. She was, after all, just an eight- or nine-year-old girl, pampered and sheltered at home, never having suffered such an ordeal. Fortunately, today’s danger had ended safely.

Li Hao gently patted her trembling back, comforting her, “It’s all right now, Yao’er. As long as I’m here, no one will ever hurt you. I will always protect you.”

After a while, Lu Yao cried out her feelings in Li Hao’s warm embrace, then rubbed her little nose and asked, “Brother Li Hao, is everything you said true?”

“When have I ever lied to you, Yao’er?” Li Hao replied.

Who would believe that? Hadn’t he been lying these past two days? But those were not malicious lies. Unfortunately, Lu Yao, unaware of the truth, didn’t know this.

“I suppose you really haven’t,” Lu Yao said after thinking.

“Are you all right, Brother Li Hao?” Lu Yao asked with concern, not forgetting to check him from head to toe to see if he was hurt.