Transmigrated as the Villainous Love Rival of the Abusive Novel's Heroine [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 41

Chapter 41: Death

“D*mmit, that woman is a nightmare to catch!” One-eye, who had chased Yun Qianxue across two mountains without success, kicked the tree in front of him in a rage.

“She’s too cunning.” Beside him, a bearded man holding a rifle panted heavily. They had been delayed for a long time at that cliff; by the time they circled around, she had vanished without a trace.

“And she knows how to set false tracks to mislead us,” another bald man noted, rubbing his head in admiration. “No wonder the Young Mistress singled her out. She’s definitely got some skills.”

Although these brothers had undergone training, they were ultimately street thugs by origin. Their aptitudes were uneven, and their abilities varied greatly. Not everyone could distinguish a false trail. Therefore, they had to resort to human-wave tactics—a carpet search. Once found, they were to fire a warning shot.

“Tsk, it’s so damn annoying having no signal in the apocalypse,” the bearded man spat. Otherwise, a quick radar sweep would have settled everything.

“Let’s split up to search,” One-eye commanded irritably. Expanding the search area was the only way to find her quickly and head back.

“Dammit, how is this forest so huge!” Many men got lost during the search, but one was “lucky” enough to wander near the spot where Yun Qianxue and the others were hiding.

Zhe Yu covered the mouths of her two children, holding her own breath, her body shaking uncontrollably. Standing in front of them, Yun Qianxue tightened her grip on her miao dao, her body tense, her bright eyes fixed on the front. She stared through the gaps in the layers of grass at the person approaching.

Two meters, one meter… Her back arched like a wary leopard, ready to pounce and tear the prey apart!

“Eh? What’s this?” Just as the man was about to step into the hidden trap, a shiny object caught his eye. He bent down and picked up a thumb-sized fragment. A piece of a mirror?

“Finding it without any effort!” The man was ecstatic. He was certain that woman was nearby. He was going to strike it rich! As long as he caught her, he’d get a massive reward!

The mirror reflected the man’s ugly, ecstatic face—distorted like a demon. A demon…

The man’s joyful expression suddenly turned to horror, for in the mirror, he saw a woman. A tall, long-haired woman, standing right behind him!

Was she… smiling?

Terrified, the man raised his gun and turned to shoot the entity, unsure if it was human or ghost. But she was too fast. The moment he turned, blood sprayed from his neck. It splattered across the woman’s eerily curled lips, making her look like a descending demon.

She picked up the man’s corpse with one hand and tossed it into the tall grass. She used the handkerchief the little girl had given her to wipe the blood from her face. The more she wiped, the more disgusted she felt, and the more force she used.

“Stop!” Yun Qianxue, who had gone limp with relief the moment Yin Shaoqing appeared, shouted with displeasure. She hadn’t been able to stand up due to her weakened limbs. “That’s a face, not tree bark. Can’t you be gentler?”

Yin Shaoqing froze at the shout and irritably thrust the handkerchief forward. Her attitude was incredibly arrogant, as if her face said: Little Xue-zi, come serve this Palace~

Yun Qianxue muttered as she stood up, resigned to her fate. She took the handkerchief and stood on tiptoe to wipe the woman’s face. “Zhe Yu has really spoiled you with all these delicate habits.”

Yin Shaoqing blinked and said nothing. She knew someone else would object. Sure enough, Zhe Yu, coming out with the two children in her arms, huffed: “I am not taking the blame for this.”

“If we’re talking about who spoils Xiao Yin the most, there’s no one but you.” After all, she was the head of the household; who would dare disobey her?

Yun Qianxue’s ears turned hot at the teasing. She put away the handkerchief. Despite her red-tipped ears, she wondered internally why Zhe Yu’s words sounded so strange.

“Hide here. I’m going to handle those people,” Yin Shaoqing said. She had come straight here, guided by the system’s route, and hadn’t been discovered by anyone else.

“I’ll go with you,” Yun Qianxue offered, picking up her miao dao.

“No,” Yin Shaoqing refused decisively.

It was rare to see her so firm. Yun Qianxue was stunned by the rejection and instinctively looked up to ask, “Why?” She was confident in her abilities and certainly wouldn’t be a burden.

Yin Shaoqing didn’t speak; she simply cast her gaze silently toward Yun Qianxue’s mangled hands. Along this journey, Yun Qianxue had performed manual cliff climbing and set traps; those hands had been tortured until they were a mess. When they first met, the girl’s hands had been soft.

Yin Shaoqing lowered her eyelashes, hiding the desolation in her eyes. She hadn’t protected this person well enough.

“Fine, fine,” Yun Qianxue compromised. “I won’t go.” She secretly hid her hands behind her back, not wanting the other woman to see them again. It was strange—her hands, which had been numb with pain, suddenly felt hot and stinging under Yin Shaoqing’s gaze. The pain she was used to became hard to bear.

More than that, she didn’t want this woman—strong enough to block out all wind and rain—to show a despondent expression. Yin Shaoqing could be proud, free, domineering, or even look down on everything with disdain. She could be a gentle and powerful guardian. But she must not show loneliness, dejection, or any negative emotions.

Because that would make Yun Qianxue terrified. She was afraid of Yin Shaoqing’s misanthropy flaring up again. That was a threat of death…

“Stay hidden,” Yin Shaoqing urged once more before turning to leave. If she didn’t finish off those mantises, she couldn’t take her “cicadas” home properly. Tsk, truly an eyesore of a group.

“Ten meters ahead, on that tree, there’s one,” the fat cat acted as a radar, providing a one-sided cheat for Yin Shaoqing.

Yin Shaoqing moved through the forest like a ghost, silently eliminating many people. The death toll rose, yet terrifyingly, the survivors remained unaware of the anomaly.

Until…

“Liu Da! Did you go to the edge of the world to take a piss? What’s taking so long?” A thin man, who had bumped into a few others, roared impatiently toward the tall grass. They had been waiting for him for ages. Every time they called him before, he’d just keep saying, “Almost done, almost done.”

“If you don’t come out, all the credit will be snatched by Cheng Er and those bastards!” another man yelled.

Before joining the Young Mistress’s guard unit, they belonged to two different factions in the old district. They used to fight every time they met, and their hospital visits were frequent. Although they couldn’t fight openly within the unit now, they never stopped sabotaging each other in secret. Their leader, One-eye, allowed it. After all, in this era, only the capable survive. One-eye was “raising venomous insects”—one wolf emerges from ten dogs.

“Kid, if you don’t come out, we’re leaving without you!” the short man yelled a few more times, but received no answer.

“?” The group gradually sensed something was wrong.

“Liu Er, go check,” the short man pushed the person beside him.

The man waved him off with false bravado, stepping back irritably. “Why the hell don’t you go? That bastard probably turned that spot into a stinking mess; I’m not going to smell it.”

“Go!” Suddenly, the tall man behind him let out a roar and gave him a vicious kick. “You’re his damn brother, don’t you worry about him? You ungrateful wolf!” The man was incredibly strong.

Liu Er was kicked heavily to the ground. D*mmit… He climbed up with a grim face, gritting his teeth. Not only had he lost face, but he also didn’t dare fight the big guy. That guy was a mad dog; back in the old district, he used to crack people’s skulls and break their legs. I’m a civilized man; I won’t lower myself to a mad dog’s level.

Comforting himself this way, Liu Er ignored the quiet snickers behind him and went to find his “cheap” brother. But in his heart, he couldn’t help but complain: it would be better if his brother had just turned into a zombie and died early. It would save him the trouble.

“Brother?” When he parted the tall grass and reached the spot where Liu Da had been, he saw nothing.

“Where is he?” Liu Er circled around, puzzled. Unable to find him, he muttered, “Damn, did this bastard sneak off alone to find the target?” He wanted to hog the credit! At this thought, Liu Er shuddered. He ground his teeth; it wasn’t a bad idea. He had long wanted to leave the “mad dog” team. Once he found that woman and got promoted by the Young Mistress… he’d throw that mad dog into a zombie horde and let him die!

“Hahaha…” Liu Er laughed smugly, his distorted face looking remarkably like Liu Da’s. Just like Liu Da’s face at this very moment.

Drip, drip—

The sound of liquid hitting ice suddenly reached his ears. A sudden drop in temperature made Liu Er shiver. He instinctively stepped to the side.

Plip… A warm droplet fell onto his forehead, sliding down slowly. It felt a bit itchy. Puzzled, he reached up to wipe it.

“What on earth is this?” he muttered. He looked at his hand. Bright red, metallic, and warm… it was blood!

He looked up in terror. A distorted, hideous dead face was right above him, staring down! Liu Da’s bulging eyes fixed on him, and blood dripped from his slashed throat. He hung there on the tree, his eyes wide in death. He hadn’t even finished pulling up his pants.

“!” Liu Er’s scream was blocked by ice in his mouth.

An expressionless woman’s face flashed past. A sharp ice blade cut through his windpipe. The backflowing blood made it impossible for Liu Er to call for help; he could only struggle futilely on the ground before dying, his eyes equally wide with lingering shock.

Considering he hadn’t insulted Yun Qianxue with vulgarities, Yin Shaoqing didn’t make his death too hideous. At least his pants were still on.

Yin Shaoqing tossed Liu Er’s corpse under the tree, facing his brother. Even in death, they couldn’t leave each other’s side. Liu Da’s gaping mouth looked like it was mocking him: Look, brother, you can never escape me. Not even in death…

“What’s wrong with those two brothers?” When Liu Er failed to respond, the short man was completely enraged. They’re all damn useless!

“Let’s go together to look.” Among the four-man squad, one was cautious and suggested they move together. He felt cold—a life-threatening cold. Furthermore, his experience surviving in the old district told him that a threat was locked around his neck, as if a gentle squeeze could separate his head from his body, leaving him utterly powerless…

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