Chapter 5: Escaping Death by a Thread
The young scholar’s heart leapt with surprise, then joy—had he encountered a senior expert, and was he saved?
He looked toward the source of the voice.
First, he saw a woman in a plain dress, wearing a veiled conical hat, a sword at her waist, exuding an ethereal immortal aura.
His gaze shifted to a scrawny boy beside her, with a decent face but… for so reason, oddly effeminate.
The kind that made you wonder if he was a girl in disguise.
Wait, what am I thinking about my savior?
The scholar quickly dismissed his stray thoughts, casting hopeful eyes toward Yun Qingping and .
Seeing the stone I threw had successfully distracted the beast, I felt my job was done and looked at Yun Qingping with anticipation, eager for the show.
“Roar… woof!”
The beast growled threateningly, its front claws scraping the ground.
Yun Qingping smiled faintly, her right hand resting on her slender sword’s hilt:
“It’s indeed ti to slay this vile creature… But Xun Qiu, aren’t you forgetting sothing?”
“…?”
“Today’s the seventh afternoon. By my count, it’s ti for to go.”
“Huh? Uh…”
I started counting on my fingers, shocked.
“Wait, hasn’t it only been six days?”
“It’s seven. You were so exhausted one day that you slept through at the inn. I didn’t ntion it,”
Yun Qingping said calmly.
“I just received a ssage from the organization—so trouble nearby. I’m leaving first.”
“No way…”
I reached out to stop her, but how could I, with no cultivation, catch soone at the supre human realm?
She stepped lightly and vanished into the forest, leaving stunned, arm outstretched like a fool.
The scholar: “…”
: “…”
After half a second, I turned and ran.
“You over there, good luck! I’m out! If sothing happens, burn paper and send a dream in the underworld—”
“Who the hell’s sending you dreams!”
The scholar didn’t freeze either.
Roaring, he sprinted after .
The beast, startled by the commotion, hesitated for a few seconds before giving chase, its shrill cries hot on our heels.
I glanced back, terrified out of my wits:
“You troublemaker, how do you still have energy to run? Be a decoy and let the beast eat you—don’t follow , aahhh!”
I tried to pull ahead, but the young scholar caught up quickly.
We raced up the mountain path we’d co from.
Maybe the pressure of mortal danger or so other factor gave us a burst of speed, and the stunned beast couldn’t catch us for a mont.
“Don’t just tell people to die!”
“I saved your life earlier! You’re a scholar—repay the favor by feeding that wolf!”
“Then my new life’s too short!”
Seeing the beast closing in, its roars shaking the sky, I glanced back and saw the scholar keeping a distance, foiling my plan to trip him and escape alone.
I shouted:
“Hey, troublemaker, think of sothing! Keep going like this, and we’re both dead!”
The scholar knew this but, new to the mountain and unfamiliar with the terrain, had no idea how to escape.
Still, as a scholar, he had his wits.
As we crested a small hill, the sound of water reached his ears.
Inspiration struck, and he yelled:
“River! Jump in the river!”
“River…?”
I froze.
I hadn’t read books, but I had common sense—where would a forest have a river big enough to stop a beast?
But since it was his life too, I chose to trust him.
When I saw the “river,” I couldn’t hold it together.
“What river? This is just a stream with a waterfall! Troublemaker, we’ll die jumping into this!”
At the critical mont, the scholar was bolder than .
He said calmly:
“Not jumping ans death too.”
I fell silent.
He was right.
If the beast caught us, we were dead for sure.
I didn’t believe Yun Qingping had truly abandoned , but you don’t bet your life on soone else’s fleeting kindness.
Gritting my teeth, under the scholar’s “What are you doing?” gaze, I grabbed his waist.
“What are you looking at? If I die, I’m taking you with !”
“Do as you please, cocky kid.”
The scholar didn’t hesitate.
The beast’s roars were close, and he had no ti to shake off.
We leapt into the river.
The icy water soaked my clothes, and I shivered, clinging to the only source of warmth.
The scholar struggled to stay calm, swimming toward the waterfall.
The stream wasn’t deep, but the current was swift, carrying us inch by inch toward it.
“Gurgle gurgle…”
A strange sound ca from beside .
The scholar absentmindedly humd in response.
The next mont, the rapid current swept us over the waterfall’s edge.
“Aaaaaaaaahhh—!!!”
I scread from the weightless sensation.
The scholar had the nerve to think I was just a kid, but the next second, he lost his calm too.
Not only was I clinging to him in free fall—fine, just dragging soone down with —but why was I biting?
“Aaaaaaaaahhh!!!” Lacking the stoic resolve of a legendary hero, the scholar’s face twisted in pain from my dog-like chomp on his shoulder.
The birds, just settled back on the branches, were startled again by our relentless screams.
Splash—
We plumted straight into the pool below the waterfall.
The impact knocked out instantly, but my interference gave the scholar a decent landing position.
Though his body ached, he stayed conscious.
“I knew hanging out with hunters was worth it. If I hadn’t heard about the pool below the waterfall, I’d never have dared jump…”
The scholar looked down at , unconscious.
My savior, after all.
Without him and that immortal lady, I’d be dead.
By reason or sentint, I can’t abandon him.
With that thought, he grabbed before I sank to the bottom.
But he didn’t expect that, even unconscious, I’d instinctively clutch his arm.
His swimming skills were barely enough to stay afloat, and my pull disrupted his balance, prompting a panicked “Woo woo woo” from him.
…
“Ha… ha… Where’d you co from, you water monkey…?”
Dragging himself ashore, the scholar tossed onto dry ground and collapsed, exhausted.
“If I died today, in the underworld, I’d tell the King of Hell you’re fully responsible…”
Gasping, shivering from the cold water draining his warmth, he managed a faint smile.
“Ha… After such a thrilling experience, dying wouldn’t be too bad…”
“Kid… next life, you owe … as an ox or horse…”
Muttering, he fainted on the ground.
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