031 Who Are You?

However, the next moment, two fierce auras erupted simultaneously, instantly suppressing the momentum of the group.

"Top-level warriors! Two of them!"

Chen Quan, standing not far away, felt his mouth go dry. In addition to the second-level warrior at the mouth of the valley, the other side had two more companions. Each of them had the strength to overpower their entire group, let alone the three of them working together.

The situation was now completely hopeless.

The petite girl covered her mouth with a laugh and said, "The wilderness is a place where the weak are preyed upon by the strong. Is this enough?"

She walked slowly down the beast's carcass and approached Jiang Qiuran, her pretty face wearing a playful smile.

"If you have the strength, you can try robbing us."

As she spoke, she twirled a strand of hair around her finger and continued, "By the way, our vice president is here too. He's a real second-level warrior."

Her voice was crisp and pleasant, but Jiang Qiuran and the others immediately understood the strong threat beneath the surface.

"A second-level warrior?" Everyone was stunned by the revelation.

They had barely managed to kill a beast that had just entered the second level, so facing a second-level warrior was a completely different matter. A powerful warrior with wisdom was on a different level entirely compared to a beast driven only by brute force.

Jiang Qiuran stared at the smug girl in front of her, her eyes dimming as the reality of the situation settled in. Her grip on the hilt of her knife loosened.

A second-level warrior and two peak-level first-level warriors—no matter how much they resisted, it would be futile.

"Give it to me," came the hoarse, tired voice of Huo Yu. Ling Fei, standing beside him, was too disheartened to look up and murmured sadly, "I worked so hard, but it was all for nothing..."

Seeing that her words had hit their mark, the petite girl glanced at the young man with earrings beside her and frowned.

"Why hasn't Guan Yun arrived yet? He left before us..."

As she spoke, she seemed to think of something and turned her gaze to Chen Quan at the back of the group, asking with a forced smile, "Little brother, I saw you running from outside the valley. Did you meet anyone else?"

In an instant, all eyes were on Chen Quan. Jiang Qiuran's voice was quiet as she whispered, "Where is Yogan?"

Chen Quan swallowed nervously, glancing at Jiang Qiuran and replying with a bitter tone, "Just now, a second-level warrior showed up outside the valley, and Brother Yogan fought him..."

The moment those words left his mouth, everyone was stunned. Even the petite girl's face showed a hint of surprise.

These high school students were really bold! Facing a second-level warrior, they chose to fight it out?

But then, as if she had realized something, a flash of worry crossed her face. A second-level warrior shouldn't waste so much time on a high school student.

"Do you want me to go check?" the young man with earrings asked, unease creeping into his voice. He looked toward the valley entrance, his mind clearly racing.

"Unless he encountered an evil warrior in the wilderness, Guan Yun should be fine," the petite girl said, shaking her head. "Forget it, let's take the spoils first, and we can talk about the rest later."

"Okay."

The young man with earrings trusted his teammates, turning around to start collecting the Qi Accumulation Fruits.

Jiang Qiuran and the others could only lower their heads and watch helplessly as their hard-earned fruits were snatched away.

"Forget it. We're no match for them. Let's leave," Ling Fei muttered through gritted teeth, slowly regaining his composure. He was about to lead the group away when—

The petite girl suddenly tensed, her gaze shifting toward the dark night with caution. Her hands were clasped behind her back, no longer as carefree as before.

Time passed, and as the moments dragged on, she grew more anxious. No one had arrived from outside the valley.

Looking back at Jiang Qiuran and the others, she revealed her true fierceness.

"Don't move," she snapped. "If you do, I can't guarantee that your lives will remain in the wilderness."

Just as she finished speaking, a faint sound of footsteps echoed in the distance.

"Da... Da..."

Finally...

A figure slowly emerged from the night.

Jiang Qiuran and the others instinctively tensed. The oppressive aura of a second-level warrior was enough to make anyone's heart race.

The petite girl's clenched fists loosened as a smile crept across her face. She stepped forward, her tone light and relaxed.

"Hey, why are you so late?" she called out, her voice casual, as if nothing was amiss.

But the reply that came was unexpected.

"He ran very fast, and I chased him for a long time before catching up..."

It seemed like a simple explanation, but something about it felt off.

The petite girl froze for a moment, her steps halting abruptly.

"What are you talking about? You're not Guan Yun?" she asked, her voice sharp with suspicion.

"Who is Guan Yun?" the figure replied, sounding genuinely confused.

The words felt like a chilling whisper to the petite girl.

Her face went pale, and her smile vanished, replaced by a look of horror as if she had seen a ghost.

The young man with earrings, who had been picking the fruits nearby, froze as well, his body going tense as he turned to face the figure emerging from the night.

A young man slowly walked out of the dark forest, his appearance clean and his face handsome. There was a faint rustling sound with each of his footsteps, as if he was dragging something heavy behind him.

"Who... who are you?" the petite girl stammered, her voice faltering. "Where is Guan Yun?"

Her lips sealed tightly as she realized she had made a grave mistake.

Then, with wide eyes, she saw what was dragging behind the young man.

A body.

A body covered in blood and torn clothes was tossed casually onto the ground in front of them. The moonlight illuminated the face of the young man who had been thrown down, and the petite girl immediately recognized him.

It was Guan Yun, the vice president of the sophomore martial arts club at Songjiang University. He was supposed to be a strong second-level warrior, but now he lay unconscious, barely clinging to life.

"You...?!" The petite girl gasped, her voice barely a whisper.

She covered her mouth, but the scream she tried to suppress echoed through the valley. Instinctively, she took a step back, her body screaming to flee from the danger that was now before her.

But the next moment, fear overtook her. Her legs moved, but she couldn't escape.

A bony hand had settled on her delicate shoulder. It was light, almost casual, but the pressure it exerted was enough to freeze her in place.

Looking up, the petite girl met the gaze of the young man standing before her. His face was calm, his eyes deep and piercing.

"You... what do you want?" she stammered, her heart racing.

Under the quiet gaze of the boy opposite her, the blood in her veins seemed to freeze. A bone-chilling fear crept down her spine, and for the first time, she felt the full weight of danger bearing down on her.

for more Episodes visit

patreon.com/Noan994