Shadows Outside the Window and Ripples in the Pot

"Thump! Thump!"

Her heart pounded wildly in her chest, almost shattering her ribs! A bone-chilling terror, like being strangled by countless venomous snakes, made Su Wanqing's limbs go cold and her breath catch in her throat!

Her gaze, filled with a fear from the depths of her soul, was fixed on the massive floor-to-ceiling window outside! The sun shone brightly after the rain, the courtyard was lush and green, and dewdrops refracted colorful light on the leaves. The blooming Ancient Orchid exuded a faint, elegant fragrance. Everything was as peaceful and serene as a landscape painting.

But in her eyes, cleansed by Chaos Origin Qi and honed to an incredible spiritual sensitivity, this tranquil scene was utterly torn apart!

She could clearly "perceive" several cold "gazes" lurking in the distant forest shadows, sharply divided by the sunlight! These weren't physical sights, but energy probes carrying strong spiritual imprints and naked, greedy will! They were like invisible poisoned thorns, piercing through the distance of space, precisely and maliciously... locking onto the warm, smooth Zisha teapot in her hand!

Greed! Like hyenas smelling blood! That greedy intent was so intense, so undisguised, it almost condensed into tangible flames, scorching her spirit!

What made her scalp explode and her soul tremble even more was--

One of the coldest, most python-like greedy intentions, while firmly locking onto the Zisha teapot, actually... subtly split off a wisp! Like a slippery tentacle, it quietly probed into the living room, carrying a hint of confusion and even stronger desire, chillingly... sweeping over the half-shriveled steamed bun lying quietly on the carpet in the corner?!

The gaze seemed to generate a minuscule ripple of doubt the instant it touched the steamed bun? As if confirming something incomprehensible yet instinctively desired. But immediately, the greedy intent didn't weaken; instead, like oil poured on a flame, it instantly became hotter and... crazier!

Su Wanqing felt as if she had been stripped naked and thrown into an ice and snow world, watched by countless malicious eyes! The immense fear made her hand tremble violently as she held the Zisha teapot; the scorching heat of the pot burned her palm, but she was oblivious! She wanted to scream, wanted to run, but her body was frozen, stuck in place, unable to move!

"Hmm?"

On the sofa, Ling Ye's slurping of tea paused slightly. He seemed to not feel the several cold, greedy gazes outside the window, but rather sensed the abnormal vibration of the Zisha teapot in Su Wanqing's hand? He tilted his head slightly, his calm, undisturbed gaze sweeping over Su Wanqing's pale face and trembling hand, then glancing at the pot in her hand.

"Hold the pot steady," Ling Ye's voice carried a hint of annoyance at being disturbed, his tone as flat as if reminding a waiter not to spill soup. "You're making me dizzy."

Su Wanqing: "..." She was about to cry! Dizzy?! There are monsters outside coveting your teapot and steamed bun, big shot!

The moment Ling Ye finished speaking!

"Whoosh--!"

An extremely faint, yet bone-chilling sound of something cutting through the air, like a viper's flicking tongue, shot out from outside the window! The target wasn't Su Wanqing or Ling Ye, but... the Zisha teapot in her hand!

It was an almost transparent energy spike made of highly condensed, icy energy! It moved at extreme speed, silently, as if blending into the shadows of the sunlight! It ignored the thick bulletproof glass, penetrating instantly as if passing through air!

"Ah!" Su Wanqing only had time to let out a short gasp, watching helplessly as the deadly, icy spike, like a soul-reaping specter, shot directly at the Zisha teapot in her hand!

It's over! The pot will shatter! She closed her eyes in despair!

However, just as the icy energy spike was about to touch the cracked glaze of the Zisha teapot--

"Buzz!"

The Zisha teapot, which had been quietly resting in Su Wanqing's hand, seemed to be completely enraged by this malicious attack! The pot body suddenly vibrated! An indescribable, more domineering and furious Chaos aura than ever before erupted from the pot, like the boundless rage of a slumbering primordial beast bitten by an ant!

No dazzling light! No energy surge!

Only an invisible, yet heavy enough to crush all stars and galaxies, terrifying will! Carrying an absolute majesty that transcended eternity and could not be desecrated!

The moment this terrifying will descended, the cold, venomous energy spike couldn't last for even a fraction of a second. Like an ice crystal thrown into the scorching sun, it vanished without a trace, without even causing a ripple! As if it had never existed!

And that terrifying Chaos will did not stop! It was like an invisible surging tide, following the trajectory of the energy spike's attack, instantly surging back out! It ignored spatial distance, ignored any defense, and precisely bombarded a specific location in the forest shadows outside the window!

"Ugh--!"

A suppressed, yet extremely pained and terrified howl, like a night owl with its throat choked, suddenly erupted from the distant forest shadows! It stopped abruptly!

Following that was the dull thud of a body falling heavily, and a few suppressed, fearful gasps!

Su Wanqing's eyes snapped open, just in time to see a blurry figure in the forest shadows fall from the tree like a tattered sack, falling silently! The other several cold, greedy probing gazes, like startled rabbits, instantly retracted, disappearing without a trace with unconcealable panic!

Inside the living room, the Zisha teapot's buzzing and that terrifying Chaos will instantly receded, returning to calm. It was as if the scene of annihilation and remote curse just now was a hallucination.

Su Wanqing held the Zisha teapot, her heart still pounding, her back soaked in cold sweat. She looked down at the intact pot, then at the forest outside that had returned to its peaceful state, as if nothing had happened. A chill ran from the soles of her feet to the crown of her head!

This pot... not only can it bring the dead back to life... it can also... counterattack automatically?! Kill remotely?!

She felt as if she was holding not a teapot, but an... ancestor with a temper!

Meanwhile, Ling Ye seemed completely oblivious to everything that had happened outside the window. He put down the empty mug, his gaze finally falling on Su Wanqing's pale face, his brow furrowed slightly, with a hint of disdain.

"Water," he pointed to the Zisha teapot, "fill it up."

Su Wanqing jolted, as if receiving a royal decree. She hurriedly picked up the nearby still-warm water kettle, her hands shaking as if with Parkinson's, and carefully, little by little, poured water into the Zisha teapot, her movements as devout as if performing some sacred ritual.

Ling Ye watched her trembling demeanor, then glanced at the half-shriveled steamed bun in the corner that had been "coveted." He seemed to find it a bit... unsightly? Barefoot, he walked over with a "patta patta" sound and casually used his toes to... kick the half-steamed bun deeper into the corner, making it completely disappear into the shadow gap between the pillar and the sofa.

His movement was as natural as kicking away a small stone in his path.

"In the way," he mumbled.

Su Wanqing: "..." She looked at the half-steamed bun that had been "disdainfully" kicked into the shadowy corner, feeling that the fragments of her worldview, which she had just established, were once again ground into finer powder.

And far away from the villa, in the silent forest shadows.

A figure wearing a black, skin-tight suit that blended into the shadows, with a pale Ghost Mask covering its face, clung to the thick tree trunk like a gecko, its heart pounding wildly, almost leaping out of its throat! Beneath the mask, his face was as pale as paper, cold sweat flowing down his temples like a stream, soaking the inner lining.

Just now! He had personally witnessed the fate of his companion, "Shadow Thorn"!

"Shadow Thorn" was the best at stealth and energy sniping in the organization! His "Nether Soul Cold Cone" was enough to instantly freeze and pierce three centimeters of alloy armor! Moreover, it was silent when launched and had a soul-freezing effect, never failing!

However... the moment that cold cone was about to hit the target!

He didn't even see what happened!

He only felt an indescribable, terrifying will, as if originating from the very source of the universe, descend instantly! Then... "Shadow Thorn" was like an insect crushed by an invisible giant hand, falling straight from the tree without even being able to let out a complete scream! His life force instantly extinguished!

What was even more terrifying was that the almost imperceptible energy fluctuation when "Shadow Thorn" launched the attack seemed to have become a precise coordinate for the opponent's counterattack! That will... it had backlashed along the attack trajectory! It was precise to the point of despair!

"G-Ghost Mask sir..." another black-clothed figure of slightly weaker aura, dressed identically, spoke with uncontrollable trembling through an encrypted communicator into Ghost Mask's ear. "Shadow Thorn... is dead! Energy reaction... instantly annihilated! The target... the target's counterattack... we... we can't comprehend it at all!"

Beneath the Ghost Mask, his eyes were filled with horror and lingering fear! He had also sent a wisp of his consciousness to investigate that unremarkable "thing" in the corner just now, and now his very soul felt cold! That thing... was definitely more terrifying than that pot! It was a... a kind of Origin aura that seemed capable of suppressing all heavens and stabilizing eternity!

"Shut up!" Ghost Mask forcibly suppressed his churning Blood Essence and fear, his voice hoarse and low. "Mission change! Abandon all contact! Maximum level stealth! Evacuate this location immediately!"

"But... that pot... and that thing in the corner..." his subordinate was still somewhat unwilling.

"Idiot!" Ghost Mask roared, his voice tinged with a sharp edge of fear. "If you want to die, don't drag me down with you! Is that something we can covet?! Didn't you see how Shadow Thorn died?! Retreat immediately! The situation here... no! Elevate the threat level of the target 'Calamity' to 'World-Ending Level'! Report to 'Nether Lord' immediately! Hurry!"

As the order was given, several black shadows vanished like startled specters into the deeper forest shadows, retreating in panic, no longer daring to glance back at the seemingly tranquil villa on the mountainside.

Meanwhile, in the villa's living room.

Ling Ye watched as Su Wanqing finally finished filling the water, her hands trembling, and sat back down on the sofa. He picked up the Zisha teapot and poured himself another cup of amber-colored tea, lifting it.

Just as he was about to drink, his movements paused slightly. His gaze seemed to sweep over an empty corner of the living room unintentionally, as if piercing through space and looking towards a more distant place—the depths of an unremarkable old building on the other side of the city.

For the first time, a hint of... an extremely subtle, almost imperceptible interest, like watching ants move house, appeared in his eyes.

"Heh," a barely audible chuckle escaped his lips, carrying an unfathomable meaning. "This generation of mortals... they certainly have no shortage of courage."