Chapter 19
"Don't move." Zhuohua's voice rang out, carrying an undeniable calm. "Stand still. Wait for me."
Before she could finish speaking, her figure blurred!
Fast! So fast that Lu Xiao's eyes couldn't even keep up with its trajectory!
He only saw the slender figure under the streetlight, like an ink stain blending into the night, blurring instantly, and the next second, it appeared dozens of meters away in front of the noodle shop's closed door!
Lu Xiao's heart skipped a beat! He froze in the invisible "circle," his eyes fixed on the direction where Zhuo Hua had disappeared. A chill mixed with immense worry instantly gripped him! What happened at the noodle shop? What was she going to do?!
The noodle shop was pitch black.
Zhuohua stood in front of the tightly closed shop door, not even touching the lock. She extended her right index finger, and a wisp of pure, invisible, ice-blue divine power gathered at the tip of her finger. Like the sharpest carving knife, she lightly slashed through the air at the thin roller shutter door!
laugh--!
A very faint sound, like a hot knife cutting through butter.
The sturdy roller shutter door was torn open by an invisible force, leaving a narrow gash with smooth edges, no sparks, and no vibration. Zhuohua's figure flashed, and she slipped through the gap. The door closed silently behind her, as if it had never been damaged.
The shop was deathly silent. Tables and chairs were neatly arranged, and the aroma of the noodle soup from earlier in the day still lingered in the air, but the chilling, filthy stench was even stronger. The source was in the kitchen!
Zhuohua moved silently, like a ghost, through the front hall and pushed open the half-closed door to the kitchen.
The kitchen was small but very clean. The stove was cold, and the pots and pans were neatly arranged. The source of the filth was an inconspicuous old wooden crate piled with miscellaneous items in the corner.
Zhuohua's gaze locked onto the spot precisely. On the lid of the wooden box, a bizarre and extremely distorted symbol had been drawn with some kind of dark red, viscous liquid that emitted a faint fishy smell!
The symbols were intricate and exuded an extremely unsettling and sinister aura, which was the source of the filthy power!
It's like a cold eye, silently absorbing the peaceful and pure spiritual energy field of the noodle shop, and emitting a faint but persistent curse aura—if you stay there for too long, you'll be plagued by bad luck at best, and by illness at worst!
Zhuo Hua's eyes flashed with a cold light! This kind of despicable curse mark was like a rat in a gutter, disgusting! She didn't even bother to trace who left it; for such pure malice and filth, annihilation was the best purification!
She didn't even raise her hand. A slight thought!
Buzz—!
An invisible wave of divine power, carrying an absolute purifying will, descended instantly and precisely enveloped the distorted symbol!
There was no earth-shattering sound. The dark red, filthy symbol, as if splashed with strong acid, instantly emitted a soft "sizzling" sound! The viscous liquid that made up the symbol boiled, twisted, and contracted violently, and its color faded and lightened at a speed visible to the naked eye!
The nauseating, fishy-sweet smell was instantly dispelled by a refreshing scent, like morning dew in the mountains!
In just two or three seconds!
The curse mark, emanating an evil aura, vanished without a trace, as if it had never existed! The wooden box lid was spotless, leaving only a faint, fresh scent of grass and wood.
Zhuohua withdrew her power, her divine sense scanning the entire noodle shop once more to confirm there were no remaining abnormalities. Her expression remained unchanged, as if she had merely brushed away a speck of dust. Problem solved.
She turned around and prepared to leave.
Just as she pushed open the kitchen door and stepped back into the front hall—
"Blazing Splendor!"
A shout filled with immense panic and worry pierced through the tightly closed roller shutter door and rang out clearly! It was Lu Xiao's voice! It was filled with alarm and urgency!
Zhuohua paused. She "saw" the young man she had circled and protected in the alley, like a trapped little animal, anxiously and futilely looking and calling out towards the noodle shop from within the invisible barrier!
His face was deathly pale, and his glassy eyes were filled with fear and a reckless impulse, as if he were about to break through the confinement at any moment!
Tsk. Troublesome. She muttered to herself again, but the coldness rising in her eyes from the filth seemed to be somewhat diluted by the young man's worried cry. She quickened her pace.
In the alley.
Lu Xiao was trapped in that invisible circle, his heart pounding with anxiety! He couldn't see what was happening inside the noodle shop, but Zhuo Hua had been inside for several minutes! It was deathly silent inside! The terrifying speed at which she vanished just now… and her last words, "Don't move…"
All of this filled him with a tremendous, unknown danger! He couldn't imagine what Zhuohua might encounter inside! What if... what if she...
A wave of overwhelming panic washed over him like an icy tide. He even forgot Zhuohua's inhuman power, remembering only the image of her slender figure disappearing in front of the dark shop! He pounded on the invisible barrier in front of him, but the barrier remained unmoved, as solid as the Wall of Sighs!
"Zhuohua! Come out! How are you?!" he shouted hoarsely, his voice trembling with tears.
Just then!
Without warning or a sound, the tightly closed roller shutter door of the noodle shop rose slightly! A slender figure, like a silhouette in the moonlight, calmly emerged from the darkness.
It is indeed dazzling!
She was unharmed, not even a wrinkle on her clothes, and still had that expressionless look, as if she had just gone in to borrow a light.
Lu Xiao froze instantly! He stared blankly as Zhuo Hua approached step by step, and as he walked out of the darkness unharmed. The immense panic was instantly replaced by the ecstasy of surviving a disaster and an indescribable bittersweet feeling!
His eyes instantly reddened, and his voice choked with emotion: "Zhuo...Zhuohua...Are you alright? You scared me to death!"
Zhuohua walked up to him, looked at the young man's still-wet tears and pale, shaken face, and casually tapped his finger.
*Smack*
Like the soft sound of a soap bubble bursting.
The invisible restraints around Lu Xiao's body vanished instantly! He felt a lightness in his body, and the sticky, sluggish feeling disappeared completely!
Upon regaining his freedom, Lu Xiao almost instinctively took a step forward! He opened his arms, seemingly wanting to embrace Zhuo Hua, but froze abruptly just before touching the hem of her clothes!
He thought of his identity, her power, and the blue light in the bedroom that night... A huge wave of inferiority and fear surged into his heart, and his arm fell limply to his side.
Seeing his dejected and hesitant appearance, Zhuohua frowned almost imperceptibly: "It's resolved. Let's go."
She turned around and walked back the way she came, her pace still unhurried.
Lu Xiao stood there, watching Zhuo Hua's slender yet seemingly powerful back, which stretched long under the dim streetlights.
The evening breeze lifted a few stray strands of hair from her temples and brushed against her fair neck. Despite her petite and delicate figure, she was like an unshakeable fortress, protecting him time and again, shielding him from all the storms of darkness.
An overwhelming emotion, like a long-brewing volcano, erupted at this moment, shattering all his reason and cowardice!
"Zhuohua!" Lu Xiao's voice rang out in the quiet alley, carrying a resolute and trembling tone, as if he had given up all hope.
Zhuohua paused, turning slightly to the side.
The glow of the streetlights enveloped half of her face, making her look both cool and hazy.
Lu Xiao took a deep breath, as if using all his strength. He raised his head, his glassy eyes staring directly at Zhuo Hua, burning with an unprecedented, scorching light, mixed with intense admiration, deep awe, and an almost tragic honesty.
"I...I like you!"
He shouted it out, his voice hoarse with excitement, yet exceptionally clear, "From the first time I saw you on set, from the moment you rescued me from the water, from the moment you believed in me and helped me... I... I just couldn't help but fall in love with you!"
He paused, and immense courage sustained him as he continued, his voice choked with sobs and humility.
“I know! I know I’m not good enough for you! You’re so amazing… like… like a god! I’m just an ordinary person, I have nothing, I’m just starting out in acting… I don’t even… I don’t even know who you are… I can’t help you at all, I’ll only be a burden to you, making you protect me and solve my problems time and time again…”
Tears finally welled up uncontrollably, streaming down his pale cheeks. He wiped his face forcefully, but his gaze remained even more stubborn and resolute.
"But! But I will try my best! I will try my hardest! I will try my best to act, try to become better, try to make money! I will do everything in my power to catch up with you! To keep up with your pace! Even if... even if I can never catch up, I will still try!"
He stepped forward, his gaze burning with a desperate plea:
"I don't expect you to use those...those incredibly powerful methods to help me! Really! I just hope...I hope you can give me a chance! Let me...let me stand by your side! Let me...protect you! Cherish you! Like...like an ordinary person liking another ordinary person!"
"I...I will be very good to you! Very good! Very good!" he repeated clumsily, his voice trembling, yet resolute. "When you're tired, I'll pour you water; when you're hungry, I'll cook for you; when you're cold, I'll warm your hands... Although...although you may not need any of that...I just want to...want to be good to you!"
"So...so..." Lu Xiao's voice lowered, filled with endless humility and expectation, his glassy eyes becoming even clearer and brighter with tears, "Could you...could you...consider me?"
The night wind blew through the quiet alley, swirling up a few withered leaves. Lu Xiao's confession was like a stone thrown into a deep pool, carrying the courage of a desperate gamble and the burning heat of his heart.
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