Ch. 16
Chapter 16: Xiao Xiaoxiao’s Misfortune
Xiao Xiaoxiao, who was 1.65 meters tall, was lifted entirely off the ground. In pain, she kicked backward with her heels and bit down on the bronze-colored arm wrapped around her neck.
“You’d better not resist—the more you struggle, the more excited I get~” the man sneered, his tone playful.
The man’s name was Xuesha, an S-rank wanted criminal. He had originally planned to find a quiet place to hide for a while, but unexpectedly, he ran into a beautiful young girl the moment he arrived.
Gritting her teeth, Xiao Xiaoxiao tried to bite a chunk of flesh off him.
“Damn it! Believe it or not, I’ll play you to death!”
Enduring the pain, Xuesha slammed her to the ground and locked her hands with iron chains.
Hearing the commotion, Xiao Xiaoxiao’s father, Xiao Zheng, tried desperately to rush forward to help—but with ALS, he could only collapse to the ground, powerless.
“X… Xiaoxiao.”
Hearing her father’s worried voice, Xiao Xiaoxiao kicked at Xuesha with tears streaming down her face.
But her slender, weak body couldn’t do any real damage to his sturdy frame.
“Behave, and I might spare your father,” Xuesha threatened coldly. “Otherwise… your father will suffer~”
“No! Don’t hurt my father!” Xiao Xiaoxiao pleaded through tears.
Her father had raised her alone since childhood—he was her only family, her only support.
“Then be a good girl!” Xuesha grinned lewdly, lifting her body and heading toward a dark alley.
Despair filled Xiao Xiaoxiao’s face—and even more so her father’s.
“X… Xiaoxiao!” Xiao Zheng cried out, dragging his trembling body forward, crawling in the direction she was being taken.
But no matter how hard he tried, he barely moved at all.
Just as Xiao Zheng became so desperate that tears streamed down his face, a passing young man noticed the scene and stopped.
“Sir, you—”
Before he could finish, he saw Xiao Zheng pointing frantically toward the two figures about to disappear.
“M-my daughter.”
The young man, who had several years of experience as a Lightbearer of the Lighthouse, looked at Xuesha’s back—and the girl slung over his shoulder—and immediately realized something was wrong.
He quickly helped Xiao Zheng steady himself, then rushed forward.
“Stop!”
A gunshot rang out. A tranquilizer dart pierced into Xuesha’s broad back.
Xuesha’s lecherous gaze darkened. He pulled out the dart and turned around in fury. “Looking to die!”
Xiao Xiaoxiao was thrown to the ground. Xuesha immediately drew a boning knife from his waist and charged forward like a raging bull.
The young man was startled—the face before him was all too familiar. Xuesha, an S-rank wanted criminal, someone only a captain-level officer could handle.
Even with the tranquilizer in his system, facing him was still extremely risky.
The two clashed. Xiao Xiaoxiao tried to break free in the chaos, but the iron chains bound her tightly—no matter how hard she struggled, they didn’t budge.
Meanwhile, the fight was completely one-sided. After just a few exchanges, the young man was battered and collapsed on the ground.
“Tch, a mere little officer is nothing special,” Xuesha sneered, stepping on the young man’s chest. “With your pathetic fighting skills, I could take on ten of you.”
With that, he kicked the young man in the head and turned back toward Xiao Xiaoxiao, whose face was filled with terror.
“Heh, trying to run? Let’s see how I deal with you.”
As he spoke, a sinister thought crossed his mind—carrying it out right here didn’t seem like a bad idea.
Instead of picking her up, Xuesha leered at her, slowly slicing at her clothes with the boning knife.
Xiao Xiaoxiao cried uncontrollably, her sobs heart-wrenching—but those around her were powerless to help.
“Don’t worry, you’ll have plenty to cry about soon,” Xuesha said impatiently as he began undoing his belt.
But before he could finish, a boiling killing intent suddenly surged.
He froze.
A chill ran down his spine as he looked around in alarm.
The killing intent didn’t come from the young man, nor the old man—and certainly not from the girl.
Someone was watching him.
He had become prey.
“You vermin… tired of living?”
A cold voice rang out.
Shen Yi’an, carrying a black blade, stepped out from the shadows like a reaper. Under the sunlight, her expression was icy—laced with anger.
Even though in this life she hadn’t had much contact with Xiao Xiaoxiao, no matter what, Xiao Xiaoxiao was still like a younger sister to her.
Seeing Shen Yi’an’s appearance and figure, Xuesha’s eyes lit up.
This kind of stunning beauty—he had never seen before.
He instantly lost all interest in Xiao Xiaoxiao. The way he looked at Shen Yi’an was burning—and disgusting.
Such a top-tier prize delivered to his doorstep—if he didn’t take it, what kind of man would he be?
“Beauty, now that you’re here… don’t think about leaving.”
Xuesha walked toward Shen Yi’an. The barely conscious young officer forced himself up and grabbed Xuesha’s ankle, shouting, “Run! Just go!”
He knew exactly how strong Xuesha was—even captain-level Lightbearers struggled to deal with him, let alone a woman.
“Run? Run where?” Shen Yi’an remained unmoved. Her gaze was filled with disdain as she sneered, “I’ll cut his tendons first—then I’ll leave.”
“Arrogant.” Xuesha scoffed, eyes gleaming with excitement. In his mind, he had already imagined her reduced to a plaything.
With a swing of his blood-stained boning knife, he charged at Shen Yi’an with unstoppable force.
The heavily injured young man let out a grief-stricken roar.
That attack—there was no way she could withstand it.
If only he had been stronger… things wouldn’t have ended like this.
He didn’t dare look up—afraid he would witness the moment her chest was pierced, a sight he would never forget.
He didn’t understand—why did the strong always bully the weak? Why was it that, despite holding onto justice, he was so powerless?
Unwilling to accept it, he forced his blurry eyes open and slowly lifted his head.
Xuesha was strong—but perhaps he could buy them time to escape.
But the moment he saw Xuesha’s back, his entire face froze in shock.
Blood poured out from Xuesha’s body, and his massive frame collapsed straight to the ground.
Meanwhile, aside from her suit jacket being stained with blood, Shen Yi’an was completely unharmed.
“Tch, filthy.” Shen Yi’an took out a handkerchief, wiped the blood off her blade, and glanced at the twitching Xuesha on the ground with disgust.
“You can leave now.” She walked past the young man and said indifferently, “If you’re a man, get up yourself. Or do you need me to help you?”
“You… who exactly are you?” the young man asked, struggling to stand as he looked at her slender back.
Shen Yi’an said nothing. She crouched down, unlocked the chains binding Xiao Xiaoxiao, and replied flatly, “A pointless question.”
The young man stood there, stunned.
This woman… was something else.
“It’s you…” Xiao Xiaoxiao looked at Shen Yi’an in disbelief.
She hadn’t expected this beautiful woman to save her twice.
“Are you stupid? Coming to a place this remote for a walk?”
Shen Yi’an knocked her on the head.
“Ow!” Xiao Xiaoxiao clutched her forehead. Just as she was about to speak, she quickly turned toward her father.
“Dad! Are you okay?!” she rushed over anxiously.
Watching her, Shen Yi’an sighed and shook her head.
Just like in her previous life—still so troublesome.
“May I ask… how did you do it?”
A serious voice sounded beside Shen Yi’an. She turned toward it and saw the young man had already stood up, looking at her with firm determination.
“How did you become this strong?”
Hearing this, Shen Yi’an placed a hand on her chin, thinking for a moment.
“Am I that strong?”