Shen Biqian was momentarily stunned.
At school, Su Jianmo was known as the Melancholy Prince. His dark eyes always carried a trace of sadness. During the two years she had known him at university, this was the first time she had ever seen such a radiant smile on his face.
His obsession must have finally been broken.
Shen Biqian returned his smile with one equally bright.
Then her expression darkened.
“This is also the last time I’ll stand by and watch you get hurt. Next time, don’t even think about making me stay on the sidelines.”
“Okay.”
Seeing him agree, Shen Biqian immediately reached for his clothes.
“Where are you hurt? Let me take a look.”
Su Jianmo’s face flushed red as he awkwardly dodged her wandering hands.
“I-I’m fine.”
Shen Biqian was dissatisfied.
“Oh? When Bai Xue treated your injuries before, you didn’t dodge her. But when I try to heal you, you keep avoiding me. Just because I’m not as beautiful as the great beauty Bai Xue doesn’t mean you should discriminate like this!”
Su Jianmo’s face grew even redder.
“N-No, that’s not it.”
Shen Biqian chuckled.
Who would have thought that the prince charming admired by all the girls at school was actually so innocent? A few teasing remarks were enough to make him blush.
When she noticed him accidentally pulling at an injury and frowning, she reached out and began unbuttoning his shirt.
“I just learned this healing spell. It’s definitely not as effective as Bai Xue’s, so bear with it.”
Too embarrassed to struggle anymore, Su Jianmo allowed her to remove his shirt.
Bruises and injuries covered his body.
Seeing the ugly wounds, Shen Biqian glared at the men lying on the ground, groaning weakly.
Then she noticed the brightly dressed woman secretly trying to escape.
“Wood Binding—tighten!”
“Ah!”
Sister Li felt the vines around her body constrict even more tightly.
Sharp pain shot through her entire body, causing her to cry out.
“Take one more step and I can’t guarantee you’ll stay alive.”
After Shen Biqian’s cold warning, all of Sister Li’s earlier arrogance vanished.
“I was wrong! Please spare me! I’ve awakened two abilities. I can become your subordinate and help you hunt demonic beasts. You can keep all the cores—I don’t want a single one!”
“Shut up!”
After shouting at her, Shen Biqian ignored her completely.
She placed her hand above Su Jianmo’s injuries and silently recited an incantation.
A soft green glow appeared in her palm.
Under the green light, his wounds slowly began to heal.
Su Jianmo watched Shen Biqian, whose brows were slightly furrowed as she concentrated on healing him.
A warm feeling spread through his heart.
The feeling was completely different from when Bai Xue healed him.
Toward Bai Xue, he felt only gratitude.
Toward Shen Biqian…
There was a feeling he couldn’t quite describe.
Wood-element energy also possessed healing properties, though it was much weaker than light-element energy.
As a result, Shen Biqian spent considerably more time healing him.
By the time she finished, nearly all the spiritual energy in her body had been exhausted.
Her face was pale as she forced a smile.
“We’ll stay here for the night. We’ll continue our journey tomorrow.”
Su Jianmo took her slightly cold hand and helped her stand.
“Go recover your spiritual energy first.”
“Not yet. There’s still something I need to deal with.”
Shen Biqian released his hand and walked over to Sister Li.
“You wanted him as your male pet? And you wanted me handed over to your men for entertainment? You’ve got quite the nerve.”
Sister Li’s face was pale as she pleaded desperately.
“I was wrong! Give me another chance! Your spiritual energy is almost depleted. I’ll protect you while you cultivate and kill demonic beasts for you. Just spare me this once!”
Shen Biqian shook her head.
“Let you protect me? I wouldn’t dare.”
As she spoke, she examined the girl.
Her small face was almost completely hidden beneath thick makeup, making it impossible to determine her real appearance or age.
Frowning, she pointed at one of the men lying on the ground like a dead dog.
“You. Go bring me some clean water.”
The man trembled.
He tried to stand, but his injuries were too severe and he fell back down repeatedly.
Seeing that Shen Biqian wasn’t even looking at him, he could only crawl into the station, retrieve a bottle of mineral water, and crawl back.
Shen Biqian took the bottle and poured it directly over Sister Li’s head.
The water washed away most of her makeup.
Then Shen Biqian tore off a piece of cloth from her clothes and wiped her face several times.
A youthful face was revealed beneath.
The girl looked no older than fifteen or sixteen.
At an age when she should still have been attending middle school and enjoying her youth under her parents’ protection, she had instead become the leader of a gang of bandits in the apocalypse.
“Where are your parents?”
The girl’s expression darkened immediately, as if a painful wound had been touched.
She stopped begging for mercy.
“Kill me or torture me if you want. What business is it of yours where my parents are?”
Shen Biqian nudged one of the men lying on the ground.
“You tell me.”
The girl exploded like an enraged leopard.
“How dare you?!”
The man swallowed nervously.
Sister Li was terrifying, but the strange woman before him was even more frightening.
His life was entirely in Shen Biqian’s hands now.
Keeping his voice low, he said:
“She doesn’t have parents. She was an abandoned baby. When she was ten, she ran away from the orphanage and survived on these streets ever since. Later, when the demonic beasts appeared, she awakened abilities and turned this gas station into her base. She survives by robbing passing vehicles.”
Shen Biqian glanced at the girl.
The girl stubbornly lifted her chin, a disdainful smile still hanging at the corner of her lips.
Shen Biqian sighed.
This was a pitiful child.
Deep down, she had already forgiven her for the most part.
“Su Jianmo, protect me. I’m going to cultivate.”
Looking at the second leaf inside her spiritual sea, now slightly more solid than before, Shen Biqian smiled faintly and withdrew from cultivation.
By then, dawn was beginning to break.
Su Jianmo sat beside her with his chin resting on one hand. He looked somewhat exhausted.
“You stayed awake all night?”
Su Jianmo simply smiled and said nothing.
Nearby, the girl was sleeping soundly against the car.
A man lay slumped awkwardly beside her.
Not far away, two other men were sprawled on the ground, either unconscious or asleep.
As for the bald man’s underlings, they had probably fled long ago after seeing their leaders defeated.
Shen Biqian stood up.
“Looks like we got lucky today. We didn’t encounter any demonic beasts.”
Stretching lazily, she turned to Su Jianmo.
“Go sleep in the car for a while. I’ll drive today.”
“Alright.”
Shen Biqian walked over to the girl.
When awake, the girl was stubborn, domineering, and fiercely protective of her own life. Yet when asleep, she seemed utterly lacking in a sense of security. Bound by the vines, her small body was curled into a tight ball, making her look rather pitiful.
Shen Biqian gently patted her head, waking her from her drowsy sleep.
The moment the girl realized it was Shen Biqian, her expression immediately became guarded.
She instinctively shrank back.
“So, what’s it going to be? Are you going to kill me, or let me go?”
“Two choices,” Shen Biqian replied. “Death, or come with me.”
The girl instantly relaxed.
She jumped to her feet and grinned.
“If I can stay alive, then of course I’ll go with you. Untie these ropes first.”
“You’re not even going to ask where I’m taking you?”
The girl shrugged.
“Doesn’t matter. I don’t have a home anyway. Anywhere is the same.”
“Fine. Since you’ve chosen to follow me, you’ll obey my orders from now on. If you ever betray me, the only outcome will be death. Do you understand?”
The girl nodded indifferently.
“I’ve been surviving on the streets long enough. I know the rules.”
“Release.”
At Shen Biqian’s command, the rope formed from wood-element spiritual energy dissolved back into spiritual energy and flowed into her body.
The girl stared in amazement.
“Hey! Can you teach me that? It’s way too cool!”
Shen Biqian glanced at her.
“Go wake up the three subordinates of yours who are still lying on the ground. We’re leaving.”
The girl looked disappointed but obediently walked over.
Pouting, she kicked one of the men hard.
It was obvious she was getting revenge for him revealing her secret the previous night. The kick showed absolutely no mercy.
“Get your ass up, you useless bastard!”
Shen Biqian looked toward the east, where the morning sun was slowly rising.
A faint smile appeared on her lips.
Everything from her previous life had become the past.
In this life, she would live far more brilliantly.