Its master had finally amounted to something! Even in a situation like this, she hadn’t been slaughtered by that murderous god!
Da Piaoliang trembled under the weight of oppression, shivering uncontrollably. Though, to be clear, this humiliating predicament was not something it wished to witness.
Still... this NPC was truly defying every rule...
“Damn you to hell... Call it even.”
“Not in your dreams.”
In a daze, Ye Shu caught fragments of conversation above her. Something about 'call it even,' something else about being killed a few times too. She understood instantly—it was Lin Qingyue.
She drove her sword forward in a flash.
In Da Piaoliang’s stunned gaze, Ye Shu rallied all her strength and thrust the peach wood sword straight through Lin Qingyue’s chest.
“Shlick—”
A direct hit to the heart.
Lin Qingyue looked at Ye Shu in surprise, his brows not even twitching. He didn’t bother glancing at his impaled body, instead asking absentmindedly, “After inhaling so much of the agent, why have you not collapsed?”
Out of ten thousand players, only Ye Xiaoshu remained an exception.
Under such a high concentration of sedative, she was still awake, still managed a direct stab to his heart... impressive!
The pain only made Lin Qingyue’s excitement burn brighter.
Ye Shu didn’t answer. Instead, she slipped into unconsciousness.
“It seems it wasn’t a prop after all.”
It was sheer willpower holding her up.
“Lin... should we kill this prey?”
“No need. Keeping a prey like this is far more interesting, don’t you think?”
The man drew the wooden sword from his chest, cradled the woman in his arms, the gloom in his brow dissipating as he darted a dark-eyed glance at the hunters across from him.
“Well... alright.”
A few meters away, the hunters eyed the woman in Lin Qingyue’s arms with mounting dread. If Lin Qingyue hadn’t explicitly objected, they’d have torn Ye Shu to pieces already.
All the while, Da Piaoliang shrank itself down, having witnessed everything. Without Ye Shu, it couldn’t return to its space—and now, utterly ignored.
Suddenly, a few hunters shifted their gaze from Ye Shu to Da Piaoliang. “Lin, if we can’t touch that prey, then this big cat here... this doesn't look like any ordinary animal! It actually brought live things into the game... we really underestimated this prey.”
“If you think you can handle it, go ahead. I won’t stop you,” Lin Qingyue replied, and, never glancing at the strange creature in the corner, walked away with the woman in his arms.
Da Piaoliang: “............”
It was an SS+ class anomaly, and yet, being ignored just like that?! For the first time, someone actually spoke of killing it to its face.
Some irrational irritation bubbled inside.
But, one thing was certain—it wasn’t a match for that NPC.
Lu Xiao fixed a steady gaze on the fuzzy black creature, a weird sense of familiarity rising within him. He was sure he’d never seen this black tiger, nor the prey of this game, and yet that familiar feeling gnawed at him.
He didn’t object to the suggestion either.
“Kill the tiger.”
“Haven’t seen such fresh meat in ages—makes me want to skin it, strip the tendons, break the bones, hehehe!”
The green glow in Da Piaoliang’s eyes flickered; its clear stare grew cold.
These men were even creepier than an anomaly. Were these really human words? Flaying and dismemberment—tsk.
No matter what, it was an evil spirit, not a plaything for these hunters!
“Bang bang—”
The most impatient hunter fired a few shots at the anomaly.
He soon discovered, to his shock, that the black tiger in front of him—despite being shot—remained completely unharmed. Not a single mark.
“Awooo—pathetic mortals!!”
They actually thought to threaten it with such feeble weapons? Laughable!
The hunters, convinced ammo grew on trees, fired round after round—none of them ever managed so much as to ruffle its fur.
“Monster!!”
“Why... why isn’t it hurt at all?”
“Where did this tiger come from? If we could catch it and hand it over above... wouldn’t we make a fortune?”
Several hunters’ eyes glittered with greed.
Lu Xiao didn’t make a move. He simply observed quietly. In his mind, this black tiger... should be a formidable creature. Regular weapons couldn’t harm it. But why did he know this?
“Awooo—”
Da Piaoliang toyed with the hunters, swallowing several of them whole.
Most of the hunters were terrified off by the anomaly.
The fact that the tiger ate people—no one saw that coming.
“Ptooey... disgusting. The folks from Blue Star were much tastier, but these hunters taste preserved, full of additives.”
The black tiger spat out the hunters’ clothing, shot them a disdainful look, and ran off quickly.
Before it left, it caught the scent of a familiar presence.
Its eyes met Lu Xiao’s.
“Awooo... Don’t know you. Must be my imagination, right?”
The black tiger flicked its tail and darted after Lin Qingyue.
“Awooooo…”
That man’s intentions toward Master could hardly be wholesome. If he managed to off Ye Shu, Da Piaoliang would have to follow her into the grave! So, it had to ensure its dear master’s safety.
Anyway, it wasn’t that it was weak—the enemies were just too formidable. Dealing with these weaklings was nothing.
…………
[Round four of the Hide-and-Seek Game will begin soon! All prey, hide well!]
[Teleportation complete.]
A mechanical voice jolted Ye Shu’s mind back into the real world, clearing away the fog of exhaustion. She remembered... she had stabbed that man through the chest with her peach wood sword! Twice, even.
“Awoo awoo awoo... That’s right, Master, you did stab him twice. But he’s still alive!”
Without thinking, she’d mouthed her thoughts aloud.
“Da Piaoliang, why are you here too?”
Ye Shu gazed blankly at the little cat perched on her shoulder, as if she had no idea she’d brought the anomaly out herself.
“You let me out, Master.”
Da Piaoliang licked its gleaming, black fur, kneading her shoulder with its delicate paws and releasing a yawning sigh.
“I see.”
Ye Shu quickly recalled everything that happened before she blacked out. To resist the white mist, she’d barely managed to control her breathing for a few minutes, gathered all her strength, and fought Lin Qingyue to a stalemate twice. In the end, her stamina gave out—and she accidentally brought the anomaly out with her.
Lin Qingyue... hadn’t finished her off.
It had been expected all along!
As for his nonsense about ‘calling it even’ before she passed out... she’d heard most of it.
Ye Shu scoffed. If an apology could fix everything, then why would anyone need laws?
He’d killed her seven or eight times, every death as real as the pain that came with it!
If the game hadn’t allowed her to rely on save points from the very start, the grass atop her grave would be shoulder high by now.
The nerve of that bastard to suggest things were even...
Ye Shu thought: Not in a million years. As long as I’m alive, we’re never even...
[Player, draw your form for this round. You have fifteen seconds. If you do not choose in time, the system will assign one for you!]