That night, Su Yan stayed with Bibi Dong in the luxurious suite provided by Spirit Hall.
Bibi Dong slept in the big bed, while he sat cross-legged on the sofa and cultivated.
He was just one step away from reaching level ten again, and he might break through that very night.
The room was pitch-black, with only the fiery glow around Su Yan illuminating it.
A shadow flashed past the window, then nimbly climbed inside. It looked around, and after confirming the room was safe, crept toward Su Yan.
The shadow stopped a step away from him, pulled a black sack from behind its back, and held it over Su Yan's head to size it up. Then it lunged forward and pulled the sack over him.
"Who is it? Who's there?" Su Yan jolted awake and struggled desperately.
But the sack was made of excellent material. Even with his Fire Wolf possessed, he couldn't burst it, tear it, or burn through it.
He bellowed at the top of his lungs, "Master, help!"
"Xiaoyan!" Bibi Dong cried sharply. "Who are you? Put my disciple down!"
Hearing his master's voice nearby, Su Yan's spirits lifted. "Master, I'm over here!"
"Heh heh heh. Quiet down!"
Thud!
As soon as the words left her mouth, a club struck Su Yan on the head through the sack.
His eyes rolled back, and he passed out.
He didn't know how long it was before he gradually came to. He was still inside the sack.
There was a commotion outside, with footsteps coming and going.
"Have you found the Holy Maiden?"
"No, we haven't."
"What about Su Yan?"
"Not him, either."
"Quick, send more people! Search every inch of Spirit Hall—no, every inch of Notting City. We must find the Holy Maiden and Su Yan!"
Su Yan desperately wanted to tell them he was right there, but it was as if his mouth had been sealed. He couldn't make a sound.
He pushed out with both hands and felt two hard objects. Spreading his legs, he felt two more beneath his feet.
Was he locked in a cage?
Su Yan calmed down and tried to figure out who would kidnap him.
He had lived quietly in Holy Soul Village for six years, awakened his Martial Soul, and come to Spirit Hall. The only unusual thing about him was his master.
Perhaps someone wanted to harm his master and had decided to use him as a target.
After all, as Spirit Hall's Holy Maiden, she was constantly protected by Titled Douluo-level experts and kept her guard up even at night. Outsiders couldn't get close to her.
Kept her guard up.
Su Yan's taut nerves suddenly relaxed. He raised his hands and forcefully pushed aside the hard objects on either side of him.
With his throat hoarse, he did his best to make out two words. "Master..."
"Heh heh heh. What master? Your master was left behind ages ago."
"Cough, cough." Su Yan cleared his throat. "Master, I can feel your spider legs."
"Shoot, I forgot to put them away," Bibi Dong muttered, then immediately covered her mouth again.
Shoot, I forgot to disguise my voice. I've completely given myself away.
There was nothing else for it. She simply untied the sack.
Su Yan poked his head out and took a deep breath of fresh air. Phew, he could breathe again.
He saw his master crouched on a tree, holding the sack. The dense leaves blocked out all the light.
"Master, what kind of training is this? You're making it up as you go?"
Bibi Dong suddenly pressed a hand over Su Yan's mouth and pinned him between herself and the tree trunk. The eight spider legs on her back hooked around nearby branches, concealing them.
They were pressed tightly together, with barely a fist's width between their heads.
In the faint moonlight, Su Yan could almost make out the soft glimmer on Bibi Dong's long eyelashes.
The delicate fragrance of mimosa surrounded him, and his cheeks grew hot.
"Did you find anything over there?"
"No. What about you?"
"Nothing here, either. Hurry and report to Lord Blood Thorn. The Holy Maiden and her disciple are both missing."
Clop, clop, clop.
After the people below had gone some distance, Bibi Dong removed her hand from Su Yan's mouth and held her pale index finger to her red lips. "Shh—"
Su Yan nodded.
He realized the situation wasn't simple, too. Grabbing the branches on both sides to conceal himself, he whispered, "Master, why are we hiding?"
"They're not good people," Bibi Dong said, pouting as she crouched nearby and pulled some branches over herself as well.
Su Yan cautiously poked his head out. In the distance, people in Spirit Hall uniforms were moving back and forth. Among them was his benefactor, the Blind-Eyed Douluo, Su Yuntao, who had awakened his Martial Soul.
"Master, they all seem to be from Spirit Hall," Su Yan said.
"They're bad people who want to separate us," Bibi Dong said. "It doesn't matter if they catch me. Given my status as the Holy Maiden, they'll only put me under house arrest at worst. But you're different."
Bibi Dong turned to stare at Su Yan, the corners of her mouth lifting into a terrifying smile. "You have no power or influence. If they catch you, they'll threaten you, whip you, torture you, break your will, destroy your body, and lock you in a dark little room full of cockroaches. They'll make you wish you were dead but unable to die, and then..."
"Master, stop, stop!" Su Yan covered his ears and shuddered, his legs nearly giving out. "Let's run! Which way should we go?"
"Let's wait here first." Bibi Dong found a sturdy branch, sat down, and leaned against the trunk. "When they can't find us in Spirit Hall, they'll search outside. Then we can sneak into the woods, and they won't be able to catch us."
"Good thinking, good thinking." Su Yan copied Bibi Dong's pose and leaned against the tree trunk.
How relaxing.
"Su Yan?"
A child's innocent voice suddenly came from beneath the tree. Su Yan jumped in fright and fell from the branches.
"It really is you. What are you doing up in a tree in the middle of the night?" Tang Chi asked.
Su Yan scrambled to his feet. Seeing that no one nearby had noticed, he breathed a sigh of relief. "You scared me to death! I was going to ask you what you're doing here."
"I came out to use the toilet. The place we're staying at temporarily doesn't have one." Tang Chi looked up curiously, then suddenly fell to his knees and cried, "Holy Maiden!"
The cry was neither particularly loud nor particularly soft.
In the pitch-black night, it stood out all the same.
Bibi Dong appeared behind Tang Chi and knocked him unconscious with a chop to the back of the neck, but it was too late.
The approaching footsteps grew denser, and shouts rang out from all directions in the distance.
"Over there!"
"We found the Holy Maiden!"
"Quick, notify Lord Blood Thorn!"
Eight spider legs extended from Bibi Dong's back. She tossed Su Yan onto her back and prepared to run.
Su Yan hurriedly said, "Master, what if Tang Chi gets caught?"
"There's no time. Bring him along." Bibi Dong said as two spider legs lifted Tang Chi onto her back as well. With a few quick bounds, she vanished from sight.
"Holy Maiden! Holy Maiden! Don't run!"
"Everyone else, hurry after her! The Holy Maiden's already disappeared!"
"Quick, send someone to notify Lord Blood Thorn! The Holy Maiden has taken on another disciple!"
In Spirit Hall's main hall, Yue Guan had, for once, stopped playing with his chrysanthemum. He folded his arms and glared at the handsome man before him. "Blood Thorn, why did you come? Where's Lord Hall Master?"
"The Lord Hall Master's title-conferral ceremony hasn't ended yet. He sent me ahead to bring my fiancée back to the Main Martial Soul Hall. Is there a problem?"
"Hmph." Yue Guan snorted. "The Pope never agreed to it, and the Holy Maiden won't agree, either."
"The Pope didn't object, and the Holy Maiden certainly won't," Blood Thorn said with a crooked grin, taunting Yue Guan with his gaze. "Once I marry the Holy Maiden, the first thing I'll do is kick you out of Spirit Hall. A street performer like you is an embarrassment to Spirit Hall!"
"You ugly freak!" Yue Guan held the Singular Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum in his hand as nine Soul Rings appeared around him.
Blood Thorn's body bulged, and spikes emerged from all over him. Nine Soul Rings slowly rose around him as well.
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