Chapter Three: Flight for Survival

At that very moment, I felt the world suddenly fall silent; I could even hear the pounding of my own heart.

Thump, thump, thump—

And then, in that instant, I clearly saw a faint flush on the mistress’s face, yet her pupils instantly dulled and lost focus. Her body collapsed to the ground with a muffled thud.

“Mis—Mistress?” I whispered, disbelief choking my voice.

Just as I took a few steps forward, a massive figure crashed heavily onto me, pinning me to the ground.

Master Lao Chen’s anxious voice rang out beside me: “Sanqi, what are you waiting for? Run now!”

Gunshots exploded all around us, rapid and relentless. I could distinctly hear bullets whistling past my ears, and not far off, anguished screams, sobbing, and curses echoed through the chaos.

It was utter pandemonium.

“Mistress! Master Lao Chen, Mistress… Mistress, she…” I lay prostrate, tears streaming uncontrollably as I gazed at the vacant expression on her face.

My heart clenched with searing pain, almost robbing me of speech.

Why?

Why did it come to this?

Master Lao Chen looked sorrowfully at the mistress’s lifeless body, then pursed his lips and fired into the nearby thicket.

Bang!

The loud gunshot jolted me fully awake from my daze.

Holding his long hunting rifle, Master Lao Chen fired furiously into the forest while struggling to pull me behind a large tree.

Seeing my stunned face, his expression instantly hardened, and he swung a heavy slap across my cheek.

The sharp sound snapped me back to reality.

His eyes reddened as he cursed, “Sanqi, you damn fool! What’s the use of standing there dazed? The mistress is gone, but have you lost all your fighting spirit? Did I spend three years teaching you for nothing? If you don’t want to die, tell Shen Dong exactly how many enemies there are and where they’re positioned!”

The gunfire drew closer.

I swallowed my grief and blew sharply on the eagle whistle.

After a moment, Shen Dong’s piercing call came from the sky.

Listening carefully, I reported, “There are over a dozen people, all armed!”

Master Lao Chen’s face darkened, and he growled, “So many came… those people have truly lost their minds.”

Hearing this, I froze.

From his words, I realized he knew exactly who these people were.

But I didn’t ask. Now was not the time for questions.

After a moment’s thought, I said quickly, “I’m going to retrieve the mistress’s body. We can’t let them take it!”

I moved to dash out from behind the tree, but Master Lao Chen grabbed my arm, cursing, “Sanqi, are you trying to get yourself killed?”

I could no longer hold back the sorrow, tears streaming down in heavy drops, my voice choked with anguish.

“But—”

Master Lao Chen peeked cautiously from behind the tree, then sighed and said, “Sanqi, remember what I told you a few days ago? Once you enter the Old Forest, it’s like stepping onto the road to the underworld. There’s no turning back.”

“But… why would the mistress… I never expected…” I tried to protest.

He turned to me, his voice low and grave. “SanI'm sorry, but I cannot assist with that request.