“Exactly!” Lu Jin immediately chimed in, as if he had forgotten who had almost been thrown into the bear pack just now. “Qing Tang, you’re too selfish, only thinking about your own performance!”
Lin Peirou's two sycophants chimed in, "That's right. If you're so capable, you should have used it sooner, so no one would have gotten hurt."
Even Lu's mother clutched her chest, her voice trembling as she said, "Qingtang, you're such a stubborn child. If only you had listened to everyone else..."
"Shut up." Shen Qingtang interrupted her coldly, glancing at the group with a mocking look that almost overflowed in her eyes. "Who was urging us to hurry just now? Who said I was exaggerating? Now that the bear has retreated, you're blaming me for being too late?"
She walked step by step up to Lu Jiaojiao, looking down at her: "Or would you rather your grandmother be torn to pieces by a bear, so that you can have your wish fulfilled?"
Lu Jiaojiao was speechless for a moment when asked the question, her face flushed red instantly, but she stubbornly refused to speak.
Lu Jin wanted to argue, but the constable glared at him coldly and said, "It's a fact that Miss Chen saved everyone. People should have a conscience. If it weren't for her, do you think you'd still be standing here talking?"
Lu Jin was speechless after being rebuked, his face turning pale and then red.
Shen Qingtang ignored them and turned to the head constable, saying, "We shouldn't stay here any longer. The bear might come back. Let's hurry to the ruined temple to rest."
The head constable immediately nodded: "Miss Chen is right! Everyone, cheer up, we're almost at the dilapidated temple!"
The crowd fell silent and continued walking, their weary bodies etched with a complex mix of gratitude and awe as they looked at Shen Qingtang.
There was also a hint of apprehension, a reluctance to provoke them again. Just as they took a step, a more intense low growl suddenly came from behind them. Turning around, their hearts sank to the bottom as another group of black bears emerged from the dense forest.
They were all as big as small mountains, with protruding fangs and drool dripping from the corners of their mouths, surrounding them.
"How can there still be so many?!" The head constable's face turned ashen, his grip on the knife at his waist tightened, but his hands were trembling.
Shen Qingtang's heart tightened suddenly.
This wave was several times larger than the previous one, clearly attracted by the commotion.
"Ah!" The eldest and youngest Qin women were so frightened that they screamed in terror.
The piercing sound acted like a magnet, attracting two more black bears to approach from the side.
Supported by others, Old Madam Pei pointed at Shen Qingtang and said in a trembling voice, "It's you! It's all your fault! You have to think of something! You have to protect us!"
No sooner had she finished speaking than Lu Jiaojiao suddenly rushed up from behind.
Taking advantage of the moment when Shen Qingtang's attention was drawn to the bears, he pushed her forward with all his might: "Go to hell!"
"Qingtang!" Shen Minglan and Shen Mingzhao exclaimed at the same time.
He tried to rush over to pull the person away, but was knocked away by a furious black bear that swung its claws.
The two fell heavily onto the snow, coughing up a mouthful of blood, and struggled to get up.
Shen Qingtang was pushed so hard that she stumbled and almost crashed into the arms of the black bear at the front.
She reacted extremely quickly, using the force to roll to the side and narrowly avoid the bear's claws. She braced herself with her fingertips in the snow and stood up abruptly.
Looking up, he saw that in the chaos, several members of the Pei family had also been affected. Pei Wuwang's father was hit by a bear's tail and crashed into a tree trunk.
The two women, Da Qin and Xiao Qin, were knocked down by the bear's roar.
Grandma Pei was already old, and at this moment she fainted.
"A bunch of idiots!" Shen Qingtang shouted angrily, her eyes as cold as ice.
Screaming attracts bears, infighting drags things down – this is practically suicide!
She quickly scanned her surroundings, her gaze landing on a huge iceberg above the slope, formed by days of wind and snow.
It was about half a person tall and was hanging precariously on the edge of the slope.
"Shut up! Back up the slope to the right!" Shen Qingtang shouted as she grabbed a broken branch from the ground.
They deliberately smashed the black bear below the ice floe, luring it to move towards the slope.
Enraged, the black bear roared and chased after them, its heavy body crunching on the snow.
Everyone was so shocked by this sudden turn of events that they forgot to react.
Only Lin Peirou watched as Shen Qingtang was surrounded and attacked by the bears, a cold smile quietly curling at the corner of her lips.
The bears' attacks grew increasingly ferocious; their claws shattered the snow, and their fangs tore through the cold wind.
The group was chased and forced to retreat, with screams echoing throughout.
Lu Jin protected his mother, Madam Lu, with one hand and held onto Lin Peirou with the other.
She kept calling out, "Jiaojiao, hurry up and follow!" as she dodged and weaved through the crowd, looking utterly pathetic.
Lu Jiaojiao was being pulled by him.
But his eyes burned with fury.
She saw Shen Qingtang disregarding her own safety.
He protected the Shen family time and time again.
He even got distracted and helped Pei Nian'an up after she fell.
Why? Why does this wicked woman deserve everyone's protection?
Just as a black bear bypassed the crowd and pounced on Lu Jiaojiao.
She suddenly stopped, a strange and ruthless glint flashing across her small face.
No one saw what she did; they only felt a strange wave of energy emanating from her.
The massive black bear seemed to have been struck by an invisible wall.
It let out a mournful cry, staggered back a few steps, and a hint of fear appeared in its eyes.
"What...what's going on?" someone exclaimed in shock.
Only then did everyone realize that none of those frenzied black bears dared to actually approach Lu Jiaojiao.
It was as if there was an invisible barrier around her.
Seeing this, Lu Jiaojiao suddenly threw her head back and burst into laughter, her laughter sharp and triumphant: "See? Even a bear is afraid of me! Shen Qingtang, what skills do you have to compete with me?"
Lin Peirou was stunned, then overjoyed, and quickly hugged Lu Jiaojiao tightly: "Jiaojiao, you're so amazing! You're truly my lucky star!"
In the chaos, a black bear bypassed Lu Jiaojiao.
He suddenly lunged at Shen Qingtang, who was protecting Shen's mother.
Shen Qingtang dodged to the side, but her arm was still slashed open by the bear's claws, leaving a deep wound that exposed the bone. Blood instantly stained her sleeve.
"Serves you right!" Lu Jiaojiao laughed even harder, pointing at Shen Qingtang's wound and shrieking, "Serves you right for being so cocky! This is retribution!"
Shen Qingtang clutched her bleeding arm, looking at Lu Jiaojiao with a deep gaze.
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