Pain!
Intense pain racked her entire body!
You Yu was in so much pain she couldn’t breathe, unable to even pry her eyelids open.
Recalling the scene from moments ago, You Yu figured the pain was understandable. The explosion was so powerful that the entire lab must have been obliterated; surviving at all was a miracle—what more could she ask for!
She had no idea who had swapped the solution she was using for her experiment. If she ever found them, she would certainly make sure they felt this exact same pain!
Ugh, it hurts so much. Why isn’t the hospital giving me any painkillers?
“Huh? Where is she? She clearly rolled down the hillside, so why can’t I see her?” A voice drifted from not far away, startling You Yu.
Hillside?
Wasn’t she sent to a hospital?
She struggled to open her eyes and found herself amidst a pile of jagged rocks. The pain in her body wasn’t from an explosion, but rather the bruises and scrapes of a tumble.
She looked up, seeing a gentle slope, and further beyond, mountain ranges that pierced the clouds.
What… what was going on?
Had the explosion blown her into the middle of nowhere?
Before she could react, another voice spoke: “We must finish off You Yu today. Otherwise, if the Madam blames us, we won’t be able to bear the consequences.”
You Yu was shocked. Were these people here to kill her?
Why?
A wave of dizziness hit her, and she quickly closed her eyes. As her chaotic mind cleared, she received a small influx of memories.
Ancient clothing, ancient people, something about a You family, and a Young Miss who was treated worse than a servant.
After haphazardly processing the information, she finally understood… she had transmigrated?
Her situation was dire. She was being hunted by two servants of the You family. She had fallen while fleeing, rolling down the hillside, and now every inch of her body throbbed from the impact.
And now, those two servants were closing in!
Judging by their relentless determination to kill her, and looking at her own malnourished body, she felt like today might be her end!
Fortunately, she was in a rock pile. The stones were scattered haphazardly, blocking their line of sight, which allowed her a moment to catch her breath and let the physical pain subside.
Actually, during the explosion, it had felt like an instantaneous event, without any distinct pain. Now, however, everything truly hurt.
Luckily, aside from a bloody gash on her head, she hadn’t broken any bones. After a brief rest, the pain lessened, and she regained some strength.
Supporting herself against a rock, she sat up and looked at her spindly arms and legs.
She was supposed to be a fourteen-year-old girl, yet this body looked no more than eleven or twelve. How had she even survived all these years?
“Found her! Big Brother, look, there’s a piece of her clothes!” A cheer came from behind, making You Yu’s heart tighten.
She’d been spotted!
Knowing they had knives and were physically robust, she wouldn’t have been a match for them even at her peak, let alone now.
What should she do?
Hearing them running toward her, she knew she couldn’t wait. If they caught up, she’d be completely defenseless!
She stood up and began to run through the rock pile, but the terrain was too uneven; many stones were stacked atop each other, making it difficult to move.
“Stop right there!”
“Why bother running? You’re dead meat today anyway. You might as well let us send you to the afterlife!”
Go to hell!
You Yu thought these two were absolute morons. Who would just stand there and wait to be killed?
Were they that certain she couldn’t escape?
Dammit, this was infuriating!
Talk about an explosive start!
The path through the rocks was too treacherous. As she jumped from one stone to another, a wave of dizziness struck. Her footing faltered, and she crashed onto the stones, spraining her ankle. No bones were broken, but the pain made walking difficult.
The two men quickly caught up. Without even turning around, she could hear the whistling of a large blade cutting through the air behind her.
The Grim Reaper was calling her name!
Just as she was beginning to feel despair, a sudden boom echoed from the distance. A wave of energy swept past, knocking all three of them over.
Lying on her back, You Yu saw two figures—one in black and one in white—streaking across the sky. They appeared to be in the midst of a battle.
“Big Brother! Big Brother! Are those people practicing Xiuxian?” one of the men shouted excitedly. He scrambled up, waving his arms at the figures flying through the sky.
“Yes, those are Xianren!” the other man exclaimed, though he was more restrained than his companion.
“To think we would actually see Xianren one day!”
The two watched until the figures vanished, remaining excited for a moment before remembering their target. But when they turned around, You Yu was nowhere to be seen.
“She’s gone!”
Startled, they searched around and spotted her behind a pile of rocks. She was straining to pry a large boulder loose.
They didn’t understand why she wasn’t running and was instead trying to move a rock, but it suited them fine; it made her easier to kill.
As they ran up the slope, they saw her successfully shift the boulder. The massive rock wobbled, then tumbled down, crashing into the rock pile below.
The stones were piled at a perfect angle; once struck, the whole heap shifted, and one after another, they began to roll down the slope.
Being so close and at the bottom of the slope, the two men had no time to react before being crushed.
The younger brother was hit in the head and died instantly. The older one tried to dodge, but the rocks still crushed his legs and torso, leaving only his head exposed.
“You bitch, how could you move such a huge rock?!” the leader shrieked. As he spoke, blood leaked from his mouth.
“The power of knowledge—you wouldn’t understand!” Limping down the slope, You Yu looked at the dying man. After a moment’s hesitation, she picked up a medium-sized stone and smashed it against his head.
The leader died as well.
Staring at the flowing blood, You Yu collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.
Thank goodness. Thank goodness she had found that particular rock pile, or she really would have met her end today.
Killing someone for the first time was hard for a law-abiding citizen like her to stomach; she felt physically ill. After gagging a few times, she threw up everything she had eaten the day before.
Unwilling to face the two corpses, she turned and walked back toward the direction she came from. Near where she had fallen down the slope, she found her original body’s wicker basket.
Its contents were scattered, but the waterskin and a medicinal herb were still there. She took a sip of water, then chewed up the hemostatic herb and applied the paste to the gash on her forehead.
With that task finished, she could no longer hold on. Her body gave out, and she slumped onto the gentle slope.