CHAPTER 48
Sheng Qing's consciousness was only clear for three seconds, just enough for him to realize that he seemed to be in the weeds of a garden in a manor, and that Meng Yunxi, who should have been with him on his left, had disappeared without a trace.
"Trying to escape?" The stern rebuke and the electric shock caused Sheng Qing's head to throb, making it impossible for her to distinguish whether the voice belonged to a hallucination or reality. She was then knocked unconscious by a group of women in dark black robes and taken away for detention.
The vortex on the curtain seemed to possess a special power. When Sheng Qing accidentally triggered it, it brought her into another strange world. As for why only she was affected, she was too exhausted to investigate further.
When Sheng Qing awoke again, she found herself trapped in a small room, dressed in a bright red robe, and with a bracelet on her left wrist that looked like a steel-metal composite material. Through the light shining through the window, she could barely make out the three English letters OFR. Before she could think further, there was a knock on the door, and then a woman, also wearing a red long dress, pushed open the door and entered.
The moment the door closed, the numbness on the woman's face vanished, replaced by madness and undisguised hatred. Before Sheng Qing could react, she lunged straight at him.
"One person makes a mistake, three people are punished!" the woman shouted, reaching out to grab Sheng Qing's hair. After being dodged, she continued to pull at Sheng Qing's clothes.
"Let go!" Sheng Qing's retort sounded perfunctory. But the quality of this red robe was far too poor; with the slightest tug, it began to tear along the seams.
"One person makes a mistake, three people are punished!" The madwoman's face showed a smug look, and she became even more reckless, about to strike Sheng Qing's face.
"You've mistaken me for someone else!" Sheng Qing wasn't powerless to resist. From the moment she regained her senses, she could always feel a faint, imperceptible gaze. She had intended to observe quietly and investigate the intentions of the person behind it all, but the actions of the madwoman in front of her were somewhat beyond her control.
Just as he was about to push the crazy woman away, there were three more knocks on the door. The crazy woman was also attracted by the noise outside the door, stopped scratching at Sheng Qing, and turned her head to look at the door with a wary expression.
Is he a savior? Sheng Qing also looked towards the door.
The door was carefully pushed open, and another young woman in a long robe leaned in. The madwoman seemed to recognize her; her guarded expression relaxed, and she grinned maliciously, saying, "Let's see how you escape this time!"
Oh no, oh no, oh no!
Are they in cahoots? What did I do to offend them?
"One person makes a mistake, three are punished!" The new woman joined the attack on Sheng Qing. "The old nanny's rage has caused us all to suffer; I'll make you pay double!"
This was utterly unexpected; Sheng Qing had no idea she'd run into two madwomen the moment she arrived. If it were a man, he would have been knocked to the ground long ago. People tend to hold back when dealing with women, especially since these two women looked like defenseless madwomen, and they were even wearing the same red robes as her—they should have been on the same side.
Forget it, it's best to avoid trouble and just stay away.
All that sweat from training wasn't for nothing; Sheng Qing deftly dodged the two men's attacks from the front and back with a few quick twists and turns.
Both women looked surprised and suspicious. After exchanging a glance, they launched another attack.
"Sisters, let's talk this over calmly. Can we please not resort to violence?" Sheng Qing said earnestly.
"Why didn't you think this day would come when you were running away?" The two women ignored him and attacked from both sides.
"Wait, we're all on the same side, there must be some misunderstanding?" Sheng Qing tried his best to calm the two of them down.
However, the two, caught up in their anger, ignored Sheng Qing's explanation and their momentum only intensified.
Isn't this exactly what the person behind the scenes wanted? Sheng Qing felt that probing gaze become clearer, and could even sense a hint of mockery.
What a twisted sense of humor! Is it really that interesting to watch women throw tantrums and fight?
Knock, knock, knock! There was another knock at the door. How lively! Sheng Qing thought to herself.
"Open the door!" The person knocking seemed very impatient. After a moment of silence, the knocking resumed. The doorknob turned, but something jammed it, and then the sound turned into a violent banging.
Sheng Qing glanced at the door lock. It turned out that the door had been locked from the inside when the second woman came in, which was why the door had to be forcibly broken down from the outside.
The woman who rushed at them was dodged by Sheng Qing and fell to the ground, and the second woman's attack was no exception. But the two women got up in perfect unison the moment they broke down the door and saw who it was, quickly tidied their appearance, and then stood facing the wall without saying a word.
The third person to enter was a middle-aged woman in a dark black robe. She paused for a moment when Sheng Qing looked at her, then her anger flared up, and she said fiercely, "What are you looking at! Look again and I'll gouge your eyes out. Anyway, your eyes don't affect your ability to use them."
What does that mean? Sheng Qing looked away in confusion, and followed the example of the other two, tidying up her clothes and standing in a row.
A crackling sound of electricity rang out, and a familiar stinging sensation traveled from her back to her brain. She was the one who had initially stunned her with electricity. Sheng Qing endured the pain without crying out, as the force of the shock was clearly much lighter this time.
"Someone will come to pick you up soon. Stay put and don't cause any more trouble, or the punishment won't be this simple." The woman in the black robe touched the bracelet on Sheng Qing's left wrist with the stun gun in her hand, and said in an extremely devout tone, "It's your good fortune to be chosen by the master. Many people would kill for this opportunity."
What kind of blessing is this? Sheng Qing heard a hint of envy and jealousy in the deep breaths of the two people beside her, which were then mixed with a crackling sound of electricity, and quickly turned into sobbing and pleading.
"If anything really happens to her, you two can forget about getting your hands back," the woman in black threatened. She was met with two muffled thuds. Sheng Qing caught a glimpse of the woman in red robes who had been struck by electricity and was lying unconscious on the ground, covered in sweat.
There was no time to care about others. Who was this "master" the woman in black robes was talking about? Sheng Qing tried, but he still couldn't use his elemental power. He had to find a way to escape. If he really fell into the hands of that so-called master, he was likely in grave danger.
The best thing to do is to escape when they come to pick me up. Sheng Qing pretended to be obedient and asked, "When will you come to pick me up, sir? I accidentally tore my clothes just now, so I need to change into a new one in advance."
The woman in black robes glanced at it casually and said expressionlessly, "No need."
Huh? Are you sure it's okay to meet people dressed in such tattered clothes? Sheng Qing barely managed to hold back her words.
There was no need to change her clothes. A group of people surrounded Sheng Qing, bathed and dressed her, and then spent half an hour applying lotions to her face. Finally, they wrapped her up in a blanket and sent her out.
Although Sheng Qing had taken precautions and refused all kinds of food and drink, he still couldn't escape the group's tricks in the bathwater.
It's unclear what strange stuff was added, but after soaking in warm water for just a few minutes, Sheng Qing felt weak and dizzy. If it hadn't been discovered in time, she would have been fish on a chopping board, at the mercy of others.
However, by a twist of fate, the two matrons responsible for receiving or escorting Sheng Qing lowered their guard, allowing Sheng Qing to see through the swaying curtains that she was being carried away from a convent. After about fifteen minutes of bumpy travel, the carriage finally stopped at the side gate of another secluded manor.
Under the cover of darkness, perfect for striking from behind and knocking the two women unconscious, Sheng Qing tried to move her limbs and found she was almost fully recovered. Without a sound, she quickly knocked the two old women to the ground, then hid the two unconscious women in the weeds. She casually picked out a black robe to change into, pulled down her cloak to slightly conceal her face, and hurried back to the side door she had come from.
All of this happened very quickly, within minutes. Sheng Qing looked around and saw only silence, so he figured no one had noticed. He then quickly opened and closed the door.
Should he find a hotel to rest for the night? Sheng Qing pondered in his mind. Based on past experience, he needed to return to where he came from to find a way to leave this world. But what identity should he use to return without arousing suspicion?
Sigh, my head hurts a little. Sheng Qing rubbed her temples, her gaze inadvertently sweeping to the side.
"Heavens!" How come there's suddenly someone else? Sheng Qing covered her mouth, but her heart was pounding.
"Have you decided where to run off to?" The foreign youth, dressed in a crisp military uniform, exuded an inexplicable air of menace, his gaze icy and his tone indifferent.
"Blake?" Sheng Qing recognized the person leaning against the right side of the side door, relaxed slightly, and asked in confusion, "What are you doing here?"
A layer of frost suddenly settled on the boy's face, his eyes sharp: "Your eyes are useless, you can gouge them out."
He took off his military cap, and his dazzling red hair cascaded down, the light reflecting off it in the moonlight making Sheng Qing blink several times involuntarily.
What bad luck, it was Reid, that ruthless guy who's always been cruel to Sheng Qing.
Upon catching a glimpse of the red hair, Sheng Qing retreated without hesitation and turned to run into the dark manor.
A game of cat and mouse unfolds in this manor that exudes a strange and eerie atmosphere.
This is so unfair! Why can he still use elemental power? Sheng Qing, who had finally managed to leave Reid far behind, only paused for a few seconds before watching helplessly as Reid easily caught up with her again.
After several rounds, Sheng Qing, panting and resigned, said, "I'm not running anymore. Tell me what you want to do."
"I want you to keep your promise." Reed had already tucked his red hair back into his military cap, looking like someone owed him a fortune.
"What promise?" Sheng Qing frowned, but was also quite puzzled by Reid's good temper this time, after all, he had always been the one tormented by him in the past. "I have no promises to you."
"Didn't you ever think about why he disappeared?" Reed sneered.
“Him?” Sheng Qing paused. “Blake? He disappeared?”
"Heh." Reed seemed quite annoyed, his smile forced. "Indeed, you're so busy, how could you have time to care whether it's disappeared or not?" He then took a deep breath, as if suppressing some emotion.
This Reed is acting strangely; he speaks in a sarcastic tone. But it's better than him resorting to violence at the slightest provocation. Sheng Qing thought for a moment and decided not to argue with him. So she adjusted her tone and asked gently, "I don't understand what you mean, but I think whether Blake disappears or not is none of my business. He has no obligation and will never tell me his whereabouts."
"Is that so?" Reed looked even angrier, his hands, which had been hanging down naturally, inexplicably clenched into fists, as if he were secretly competing with himself.
Upon seeing this, Sheng Qing involuntarily took a half step back, but her eyes were fixed on Reid's slightly reddened eyes.
What's wrong with him? Is he really Reed? Should we run away again?
“I will continue your deal.” After a long pause, Reed finally managed to squeeze out a few words.
"What kind of deal?" Sheng Qing asked, puzzled.
"Don't play dumb with me!" Reed finally broke free of his anger and acted swiftly, grabbing Sheng Qing's neck with one hand and restraining her left wrist with the other, his tone filled with undisguised threat, "Or do you want to back out?"
"What does my deal with Blake have to do with you?" Sheng Qing retorted.
"Don't expect him to come back to save you. No one can save you," Reed scoffed. "There's no one else here but me."
Was that what I was asking? Sheng Qing silently swallowed her question and remained quiet. Reid must have been provoked by something, and she just happened to walk into the line of fire. She'd let him get over his madness first.
"Do you see what it says here?" Reed slowly lifted Sheng Qing's wrist, finally stopping in front of them, showing Sheng Qing the side of the bracelet with the words engraved on it, and read it out word by word, "OF-RED".
Huh? Sheng Qing looked closely and saw that the bracelet, which originally had only three letters, now had two more letters.
"Read it aloud," Reed commanded, loosening his grip on Sheng Qing's neck slightly, but then tightening it again in retaliation when he heard no response.
Sheng Qing felt short of breath, and his face turned red due to lack of oxygen. Ignoring whether it would anger the other party, he clenched his free right fist and bent it to strike backward with his elbow.
Reed did not dodge, but instead let the blow land on his waist and abdomen.
This is utterly disrespectful. Sheng Qing held his breath, his mind suddenly inspired, and he randomly channeled his spiritual energy into his right arm, delivering another elbow strike.
Reid grunted and abruptly released his right hand that was holding Sheng Qing's neck. His left hand also slipped away, and he staggered back several steps, only managing to stop his backward momentum by kneeling on the ground.
"How did you do that?" Reed looked up, his face full of shock.
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