“Miss, no!” The warden cried out in alarm, trying to stop her, but it was already too late.
Lin Ruzhen’s sudden intrusion threw the entire formation into chaos, immediately weakening its restraining power.
Seizing this opportunity, Lin Rufeng exerted a powerful force, sending several wardens flying.
Lin Ruzhen stood frozen in shock at the sudden turn of events, stammering, “Brother, you…”
Crack, crack, crack. Lin Rufeng’s head turned stiffly, his crimson eyes transforming into vertical pupils like those of a snake. A hoarse voice rumbled from his throat: “Thank you, my dear sister…”
Behind her, Zhou Shi shouted anxiously, “Zhen’er, run! He’s not your brother anymore! Run quickly!”
Finally snapping out of her daze, Lin Ruzhen turned and stumbled toward where Zhou Shi was, crying out, “Mother, save me! Wuwu…”
Zhou Shi had been standing in the tower, constantly monitoring her son’s condition. The tower entrance was being firmly held shut by several nannies.
It was relatively safe here for now.
But when Zhou Shi saw her beloved adopted daughter being chased by the evil spirit, her heart burned with anxiety. Ignoring the persuasion of those around her, she rushed downstairs, shouting, “Open the door!” Let the young lady in quickly!”
A nanny said, “We can’t, Madam! The young master is too close. If we open the door, he’ll get in.”
By now, Lin Ruzhen had reached the base of the tower, pounding on the door and screaming, “Mother, open the door! Brother is catching up! Wuwu, I’m so scared!”
“Step aside!” Zhou Shi scolded the nanny. “What’s the use of keeping you all if you can’t even save the young lady?”
Enraged, she pushed the nanny aside and opened the door herself.
“Don’t be afraid, Zhen’er. Mother is here.”
A chilling wind blew behind Lin Ruzhen; she could feel the evil spirit’s hand reaching for the back of her neck.
At the brink of death, her dear mother finally opened the door for her.
In that instant, a fierce will to survive triggered her most primal reaction—
She squeezed through the door with lightning speed, and just as Zhou Shi reached out to pull her in, Lin Ruzhen instead shoved Zhou Shi out and swiftly slammed the door shut.
Silence fell inside. Several nannies stared at her in stunned disbelief.
Lin Ruzhen immediately burst into tears: “I was just too scared! I… I didn’t mean to… They’re biological mother and son. Brother definitely wouldn’t hurt Mother.”
But the next moment, through the crack in the door, she clearly saw the completely deranged Lin Rufeng grab Zhou Shi by the hair and drag her away by force.
Zhou Shi was still screaming, still calling out, “Zhen’er… Zhen’er…”
The daughter she had raised with her own hands—even after discovering she had been switched at birth and wasn’t her biological child—whom she had continued to cherish, had now pushed her out with her own hands…
Lin Rufeng yanked her violently toward him, pounced on her, and began tearing at her flesh like a wild beast.
“Ah!” Zhou Shi’s agonized scream echoed through the entire Hou estate.
Just as her life hung by a thread, a clear, serene voice suddenly pierced the night, ringing distinctly in their ears:
“Humans and demons walk different paths; the realms of yin and yang have their boundaries. Do not disturb the living; speak your grievances if you must. Wretched beast, cease your actions at once!”
The fangs poised at her throat withdrew. The monster seemed deterred by something, released Zhou Shi, and slowly stood up.
Having narrowly escaped death, Zhou Shi followed the voice and saw a slender, elegant figure stepping over the blood-soaked ground, bathed in moonlight as she approached.
That face was clearly the familiar one she knew, yet the cold, distant gaze and indifferent demeanor felt somewhat strange.
In that instant, tears streamed down Zhou Shi’s face.
This was her own flesh and blood, her daughter who had been brought back to the Hou estate two years ago but with whom she had never managed to spend proper time. Even worse, she had deliberately kept her distance to spare the feelings of her adopted daughter. Yet now, at this critical moment when her life hung by a thread, her daughter had appeared just in time.
Just then, Dongfang Yan rushed in as well. After scanning the surroundings and confirming Lin Ruzhen wasn’t there, he breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, Xie Shouzheng’s eyes immediately fell upon the severely injured wardens lying on the ground, his heart aching with concern:
“How are you all? Can you still get up? Haven’t you practiced the Demon-Locking Formation many times? How could you still end up so badly injured?”
These were all his elite subordinates…
Now, one had a broken back, two had shattered legs, and three more were stuck in trees, unable to climb down.
The Xuanjing Office was already short-staffed, and now they had even fewer people!
He didn’t have time to dwell on his distress for long. Drawing the Blood Thorn Whip, he cautiously approached Lin Qingyue: “This thing is truly strange. Earlier, it was clearly ghosts causing trouble, so why is it now radiating such strong demonic energy?”
Demons, like humans, could be good or evil, kind or malicious.
When evil demons caused trouble, the Xuanjing Office naturally bore the responsibility without hesitation.
A hoarse voice rasped from Lin Rufeng’s throat: “Why are you meddling in others’ affairs?”
Those blood-red vertical pupils scrutinized Lin Qingyue, as if trying to discern her origins.
She appeared to be merely an ordinary mortal, yet for some reason, she carried an aura of immense intimidation.
Earlier, it was her presence that had temporarily deterred him from attacking Zhou Shi.
Lin Qingyue replied, “Only matters I’m unwilling to handle count as meddling. I’ll give you a chance to voice your grievances. Speak of your wrongs, and Lord Xie can see justice done for you.”
Xie Shouzheng quickly stepped forward: “Yes, yes, let’s talk this through properly! There’s no need for all this fighting and killing!”
At that moment, Lin Xiao returned with hundreds of soldiers from the City Guard Camp, having gone to seek reinforcements.
Seeing Dongfang Yan there as well, he anxiously warned, “Your Highness, please be careful! We must ensure you don’t get harmed!”
The City Guard soldiers swiftly drew their weapons, surrounding Lin Rufeng on all sides.
Lin Xiao declared, “Whatever you are, quickly release my son! Otherwise, today will be your last!”
“Lin Rufeng” let out several sinister laughs: “Is this what you call ‘talking things through properly’? The world says evil spirits are terrifying! But you humans—deceitful, vicious, bullying the weak, killing your own kind! You’re the ones who deserve to die, every last one of you!”
By the end, consumed by resentment, he swept his palm through the air, unleashing a gale that instantly sent over a dozen guards flying.
The remaining guards hurriedly raised their blades to resist, but the disparity in power between humans and demons was terrifying. Coupled with their hesitation due to Lin Rufeng’s noble status, they quickly found themselves at a disadvantage.
Xie Shouzheng cracked his whip and joined the fray, gradually managing to restrain the demon’s power.
Meanwhile, the Xuanjing Office wardens who had been stuck in the trees finally climbed down and joined the battle.
Having observed enough, Lin Qingyue shouted, “All regular guards, withdraw! You’re no match for this.”
Simultaneously, she bit her finger and, using her own blood, swiftly drew a “Heavenly Net Talisman.” Chanting, “Heavenly Net and Earthly Web, lock demons and suppress evil, go!” she sent the talisman flying.
With a “whoosh,” the talisman soared above “Lin Rufeng’s” head, instantly transforming into countless glowing crimson nets that descended from all directions.
“Brothers, fall back!”
Xie Shouzheng and those wardens coordinated quite well. While Lin Qingyue was drawing talismans, they restrained “Lin Rufeng,” and when the celestial net descended, they immediately dodged away.
Crimson blood threads, strand by strand, tightly bound “Lin Rufeng.”
Dongfang Yan watched from the side, once again astonished: “You actually possess the ability to subdue demons and vanquish evil spirits?”