There were about fifteen or sixteen black-robed men, each armed with curved blades, their expressions grim.
They looked like professionally trained death warriors.
At the moment, they were pursuing a young girl who appeared to be around twelve or thirteen years old.
When Xiao Wu and Ning Rongrong saw the girl, they instinctively looked down at their toes.
Both girls felt a wave of frustration!
This girl couldn't see her toes when looking down!
She looked about their age, yet her figure was far more... pronounced.
"Miss Zhuqing, there's no escape!"
The leader of the black-robed men shouted fiercely at the girl.
Addressing her with such a formal title while in pursuit felt oddly out of place.
Hearing this, Li Si scratched his head.
Wasn't this the classic scene where the Zhu family's people were chasing Zhu Zhuqing?
At this time, Zhu Zhuqing should be fleeing from the Star Luo Empire to the Heaven Dou Empire, heading toward Shrek Academy to find Dai Mubai.
But the direction she was fleeing in seemed a bit... off.
Ning Rongrong had already strayed thousands of kilometers from her path to Shrek Academy.
Now Zhu Zhuqing, fleeing from Star Luo City, had also veered thousands of kilometers off course!
Li Si couldn't help but wonder if meeting these two was "destiny."
Was it fate, someone's deliberate arrangement, or the work of the consciousness of the Douluo Continent? That remained unknown.
At this moment, Zhu Zhuqing noticed the trio ahead—one man and two women—and felt a pang of panic.
If these men chasing her turned their anger on the trio, it would be her fault.
But where else could she run?
This was the only path not blocked by the Zhu family's forces. She had no choice but to head toward Li Si and the others.
Resolving herself, Zhu Zhuqing gritted her teeth and ran toward them. She didn't want to die; she just wanted to live.
Li Si and the others were dumbfounded.
Zhuqing, if they really wanted to kill you, wouldn't they have done so already?
The lowest-ranked among these men was a Soul Elder, yet you, just a Soul Grandmaster, had managed to evade them for so long?
Li Si understood the hidden story behind this but also knew Zhu Zhuqing's real age—barely over eleven.
She was the youngest member of the original Shrek Seven Devils.
An eleven-year-old child didn't have the capacity to think through everything; she only knew that Zhu Zhuyun had sent people to kill her!
Zhu Zhuqing never stopped to think about the absurdity of the situation—despite being chased for so long, she hadn't suffered a single injury.
These men were trained death warriors, their soul power levels all higher than hers!
With the speed of a soul master, Zhu Zhuqing quickly closed the 200-meter distance to Li Si and the others in just a few seconds, running right past them.
She didn't say a word throughout, fearing that any attempt to alert Li Si and the others would make the Zhu family's forces suspect they were accomplices, dragging them into the conflict.
But Zhu Zhuqing didn't consider that, having grown up in Star Luo City, the Zhu family's forces would surely know everyone she associated with.
The black-robed men didn't even glance at Li Si, Xiao Wu, or Ning Rongrong, chasing after Zhu Zhuqing as if the trio didn't exist.
Li Si, Xiao Wu, Ning Rongrong: "..."
The three of them were utterly baffled.
These men really were professionals—laser-focused on their target!
Once Zhu Zhuqing and the black-robed men had run off into the distance, Li Si turned to Xiao Wu with a puzzled look.
"How strange... Why didn't Xiao Wu intervene?"
Given Xiao Wu's personality, she should have challenged the men just now, saying, "We'll protect this girl."
Why had she stayed silent?
Xiao Wu blinked at his question but quickly realized what he meant.
"Li Si, wasn't it you who said the secret to living a long life is minding your own business? And what was it you said? 'See injustice on the road, take another route'..."
Her face flushed as she spoke, slightly annoyed.
Li Si's words made it sound as if she was overly meddlesome!
She wasn't that kind of person!
Back at Nuoding Academy, she had loved to meddle in other people's business.
Li Si had always lectured her about it, and over time, she had come to understand his perspective.
Xiao Wu's response left Li Si scratching his head awkwardly. She remembered those lessons all too well.
Ning Rongrong blinked, a bit surprised.
So that's why they hadn't saved her earlier?
Good grief. "See injustice on the road, take another route" had been twisted into Li Si's personal mantra?
The secret to living long was... not meddling?
The earlier situation had been Ning Rongrong's first encounter with such danger, but she hadn't been too worried.
If push came to shove, she could reveal her Seven Treasures Glazed Tile Pagoda, and they wouldn't dare harm her.
A short while later—
"Hey, you two..."
Just as Ning Rongrong was about to say something to Li Si and Xiao Wu, Li Si's expression stiffened, his eyelid twitching wildly.
He made a silencing gesture toward Ning Rongrong.
"Shh! It's happening again!"
Ning Rongrong frowned, confused. What was this guy talking about?
What was "happening again"?
Before she could ask, Zhu Zhuqing reappeared, running back toward them!
Behind her, the same black-robed men continued their pursuit.
What on earth? How had they managed to make Zhu Zhuqing turn around?
Had she just now realized she'd been running the wrong way?
Her face was as stoic as ever, though there was now a hint of worry, and her breathing was labored—clearly, she wasn't in good shape.
Li Si sighed.
So this was how fate wanted him to "save" Zhu Zhuqing, huh?
Well, he didn't believe in fate. He wasn't going to save her!
The next moment, something surprising happened.
As Zhu Zhuqing reached the trio, she stopped abruptly, without reason, and looked at Li Si with a hopeful expression.
She said nothing.
The black-robed men also stopped, and their leader glared at Li Si.
"Kid, are you sure you want to interfere?"
Li Si: "..."
He was utterly dumbfounded.
What on earth was going on?
When had he ever planned to meddle? He hadn't even moved!
Zhu Zhuqing didn't know why, but she had a gut feeling that this unremarkable young man could save her.
It was his calm demeanor earlier that convinced her to take the gamble.
Li Si remained silent, curious to see how things would unfold.
A moment passed.
The black-robed leader broke into a cold sweat, sensing that this youth wasn't ordinary.
Surrounded by enemies, he remained unruffled, as if the black-robed men were beneath his notice.
What kind of identity could such a boy possess?
He had never encountered someone so composed!
No matter. Their mission was simply to escort the young lady to Heaven Dou Empire—they had technically already fulfilled it.
"Hmph, today—"
(End of Chapter)