“Second Brother, sob… I’m so scared.”
Xia Niannian burst into tears the moment she heard his voice.
“Are you hurt? Niannian, be good. Brother will be there in at most three minutes. Can you wait for me a little longer? First, tell me if you’re in the dormitory. Is anyone with you?”
Three minutes?
That fast?
Xia Niannian instinctively glanced at Pei Xun and then at her own disheveled state.
How could she possibly let Second Brother come and rescue her like this?
No. Absolutely not.
Besides, Pei Xun was like a demon now. He had completely lost his rationality.
The only reason Pei Xun had not killed her was because she was his master.
But if the Second Brother came over, Pei Xun, who had already become an aberration, certainly would not show mercy.
“Second Brother, don’t come here,” Xia Niannian hurriedly said.
“Why? Is it convenient for you to talk right now? If it isn’t, just tell Brother ‘yes,’ all right?”
Xia Yibai made the decision immediately and ordered the pilot in front of him to speed up.
The helicopters accelerated, charging toward Yanda with the force of a military operation.
Xia Niannian became so anxious that she started crying.
The Second Brother had actually come by helicopter.
That meant there were probably many other people with him.
She absolutely could not let them find out what was happening.
“Second Brother, please. Let me stay here alone for a while. I’ve grown up now, and I’ve awakened an ability too. I’m completely safe for the moment. Can you let me be independent just this once?”
“Niannian.”
Xia Yibai still sensed that something was wrong.
His Little Princess was normally obedient and always listened to him. Something must have happened for her to sound so frightened and uneasy.
Still, he was certain that she was safe for now.
She had grown up, after all, and he needed to respect her wishes.
“All right. Brother won’t come in. I’ll first have my people clear out the aberrations around your school. When you want to see Brother, I’ll come find you. How does that sound?”
“Mm, all right.”
Xia Niannian covered the phone with her hand, afraid that her voice would be overheard. Tears continued to stream down her face as she forced herself to hold back her sobs.
“Good girl, Niannian. Now listen to Brother. Some of your classmates may already be dead. After they die, they can become aberrations. Once humans become aberrations, they no longer retain human emotions. They become killing machines with their desires amplified a thousand times over.”
Xia Yibai carefully explained the danger to her.
He was afraid that she might be hurt because of her sympathy for her former classmates.
“Mm, I understand. I haven’t contacted any of them yet,” Xia Niannian said while holding back her tears.
“Good. Can you hear that? I’ve already arrived above your school. Brother will clear out the aberrations there first. You stay obediently in the dormitory. If you want to see Brother, call me. I’ll stay outside and protect you, all right?”
Xia Yibai’s voice was exceptionally gentle, soothing Xia Niannian’s frightened heart.
“Mm…”
But Xia Niannian did not dare speak. Tears continued to fall as she quietly sobbed.
“Good girl.”
Xia Yibai coaxed her from inside the helicopter. His gaze lowered toward the red velvet ring box that his fingers were gently rubbing, and his voice became even softer.
“Why didn’t my Little Princess call me Brother today?”
The truth was that Xia Niannian was not actually the biological daughter of the Xia family.
Twenty years ago, her parents had found her as an abandoned baby in the snowy mountains and brought her home.
Xia Yibai had learned this secret when he was six.
From that day onward, he had cherished the Little Princess of the Xia family even more because, in his heart, she was his Little Princess.
If not for the Apocalypse, perhaps Xia Yibai would not have realized his feelings so quickly.
That was why he had to rush over and rescue Niannian before his eldest and third brothers could.
He intended to propose to his Little Princess.
But he did not plan to tell Niannian the truth about her origins.
Instead, he would tell her that he was the one who had been adopted.
If everything went smoothly, perhaps they could even have a grand wedding that year.
There was no response from the other end of the phone.
Pei Xun had forbidden Xia Niannian from calling anyone else Brother, so she did not dare say it.
She was afraid that Pei Xun would become even more unstable if he heard her.
Xia Yibai did not press her about it. Instead, he gently comforted her.
“My Little Princess, no matter what happens, Brother will always stand by your side. Do you understand?”
“I’ll call Mom and Dad first and let them know I’m safe. Be good. When you want to see Brother, call me, all right, Little Princess?”
“Mm…”
Xia Niannian nodded.
After ending the call, she burst into tears.
Her brother was the person who loved her most in the world.
But she did not dare let Xia Yibai come and see her in this state.
Xia Niannian completely broke down.
Seeing her crying so desperately, Pei Xun stopped and looked at her.
A trace of rationality returned to his scarlet eyes, which now showed pain and concern.
He leaned down and gently wiped away her tears.
“Little Princess, don’t cry.”
“Go away! I don’t want to see you. Get away from me!”
Xia Niannian pushed him away with an expression of disgust.
Pei Xun froze.
His eyes flashed with pain.
He was no longer human.
He had neither his former memories nor the full intelligence of a human being.
At this moment, he was essentially a corpse controlled by killing instinct and overwhelming desire.
Yet he could still understand the rejection in Xia Niannian’s expression.
His Little Princess hated him.
That realization filled Pei Xun with pain and confusion.
“Little Princess…”
He awkwardly reached out to wipe the tears from her face, but Xia Niannian slapped his hand away.
“Don’t touch me!”
Xia Niannian hugged her sea turtle tightly and continued sobbing.
Her rejection seemed to shatter the last remnants of Pei Xun’s restraint.
His eyes turned scarlet as he pulled her toward him, his expression becoming frightening and violent.
“No!”
Xia Niannian struggled and tried to push him away.
“Go away! I hate you! I hate you!”
She struggled desperately and even slapped Pei Xun across the face.
Pei Xun suddenly stopped.
Xia Niannian froze as well.
She had thought she had angered the demon and immediately felt that something was wrong.
Even after becoming her subordinate, Pei Xun still refused to obey her completely.
That probably meant he possessed terrifying power.
If she truly enraged him and he lost control, the consequences could be far worse than simply spending hours crying.
“I’m sorry…”
Xia Niannian apologized fearfully.
Pei Xun remained motionless.
Something terrifying seemed to be struggling and building inside his scarlet eyes.
Xia Niannian was frightened.
“Pei Xun, please don’t be like this. I’m scared…”
In the next moment, Pei Xun suddenly lost control again and pinned her down.
“Please… no…”
Xia Niannian began sobbing again, even more desperately than before.
What she did not know was that Pei Xun was desperately trying to suppress his instincts, even injuring himself in the process.
But his desires had been amplified a thousand times over.
They had already reached a level that he could no longer control.
I’m sorry, my Little Princess.