Hu Xiaotian paled in shock. He had never imagined that something so serious could happen in the brief time he had been away.
The Black-Clad Man was burly. Standing amid the wind and snow, he watched Hu Xiaotian until Hu Xiaotian noticed him, then nodded, hoisted the unconscious Long Xiyue onto his shoulder, and leaped from the roof ridge. Hu Xiaotian no longer cared about finding his bundle. "Stop right there!" he roared. He broke into a sprint and took a great stride forward, tapping the ground with his left foot before stamping hard with his right. His body shot upward. Catching the eaves ahead with both hands, he flipped like a sparrowhawk and landed on the roof ridge.
Heavy snow swirled through the air. On this New Year's Eve, lights shone in almost every household in Kang Capital. Midnight was approaching, and deafening firecrackers filled the streets. The people were immersed in the joy of bidding farewell to the old year and welcoming the new, and no one noticed the desperate chase unfolding above their rooftops.
The snow had already painted the roofs completely white. With someone slung over his shoulder, the Black-Clad Man raced across them, twisting and leaping, swift as a hare springing up and a falcon swooping down, as though he were running on level ground. His black night clothes would ordinarily have helped conceal him, but on this snowy night they made him an exceptionally conspicuous target.
Hu Xiaotian pursued him at full speed, but however hard he tried, he could not close the gap. The Black-Clad Man kept running ahead. Whether his abilities were evenly matched with Hu Xiaotian's or he was deliberately allowing Hu Xiaotian to follow, the distance between them remained constant, and he never shook Hu Xiaotian off completely.
The longer