Volume 1, Chapter 152: Malignant Transformation

Su Xiuxiu’s expression shifted slightly as she watched the gale whip up the small branches by the roadside. Could it be that her brother hadn’t driven that woman away? With a sudden thought, she darted toward the guest wing, only to run into Su Haohao, who was rushing in the same direction.

"Xiuxiu, why are you out here? Get back to your room and lock the doors and windows!"

Su Xiuxiu grabbed her brother’s arm. "Brother, didn't you tell Mr. Lu the truth? Why is the Mountain God still hunting us down?"

"Mr. Lu has been kind to us; we cannot drive him away."

Su Xiuxiu stamped her foot in frustration. "Who told you to drive Mr. Lu away? I meant the woman he brought with him!"

Su Haohao cast a strange look at her. "Xiuxiu, that doesn't sound like something you would say."

Realizing she had been too hasty and let her true thoughts slip, Su Xiuxiu covered her mouth, searching for an excuse, but Su Haohao saw right through her.

"Xiuxiu, I raised you. I know your heart better than anyone. Someone of Mr. Lu's noble status is not someone you or I can afford to provoke. Cinderella stories only exist in fairy tales; do not mistake them for reality."

Though Su Haohao had never been to school, he had spent his life listening to Su Xiuxiu tell fairy tales, which gave him a clear understanding of her current frame of mind.

Embarrassed and annoyed, Su Xiuxiu flared up. "No matter how noble he is, he is still human, and all humans are equal. Keep your class-based theories to yourself! Besides, I don't have those kinds of thoughts about him!"

Knowing he wasn't good with words and couldn't win an argument against her, Su Haohao simply repeated, worried, "Just don't get any crooked ideas!"

Not daring to meet his eyes, Su Xiuxiu waved her hand, urging him on. "Brother, stop lecturing me! Let’s go see what’s happening with Mr. Lu!"

Su Haohao nodded, and the two set off together.

Before they could reach the guest wing, a group of villagers carrying kerosene lamps flooded the dilapidated courtyard. To prevent anyone from escaping, the village head, Jia Laosan, had cut the electricity and installed a signal jammer. Once inside Jia Village, one was completely cut off from the outside world.

The villagers immediately began berating the siblings. "Su Haohao, hand over Su Xiuxiu! The Mountain God is enraged and demands a bride!"

Su Haohao shielded his sister. "It is not yet the day for the Mountain God to take a wife! Why should it be my sister?"

"Don't waste our time! The Mountain God is coming in this direction! Who else could it be but Su Xiuxiu?"

As Su Haohao prepared to retort, a delicate voice spoke up from behind him: "It’s not me..."

Su Haohao frowned, glancing back in surprise; Su Xiuxiu seemed like a stranger to him.

"Xiuxiu!" Su Haohao warned her in a stern tone, but she seemed not to hear, trembling with fear. "It’s Mr. Lu’s friend! She carries the Mountain God’s curse!"

Su Xiuxiu shouted it loud enough for everyone to hear. The villagers, however, dismissed it as a desperate lie and clamored to seize her.

Two trails of tears streamed down Su Xiuxiu's face as she pointed pitifully toward the guest wing. "If you don't believe me, go look for yourselves! Mr. Lu and the bride are both in there!"

"You'd better not be lying to me!" Jia Laosan growled, leading the mob as they charged inside.

Su Haohao pulled Su Xiuxiu aside. "Su Xiuxiu, do you know what you’ve done? You’ve handed over your benefactor!"

The tears on Su Xiuxiu's face had not yet dried, and now they gushed like a broken faucet. "Brother, scold me if you must! I was so afraid that I couldn't control my tongue! Please, scold me more! It might make me feel better!"

She sobbed, her shoulders shaking, gasping for air in a way that made it hard for Su Haohao to remain angry. He let out a heavy sigh. "Forget it! Even if you hadn't said it, those people would have found them anyway! Don't ever do this again!"

Su Xiuxiu wiped her tears with the back of her hand and immediately broke into a smile. "I know, Brother!"

Su Haohao looked toward the guest wing with worry. He hoped Mr. Lu and his friend would be alright. His concern, however, was unnecessary; moments after the mob burst in, they were all kicked out of the door by an invisible force.

They didn't even know what had happened before they were sprawled across the courtyard. Jia Laosan had taken the worst of it, landing flat on his back. It took those nearest to him to pull him up.

"Village Head, are you alright?"

As soon as he steadied himself, Jia Laosan shoved his helper away. He spat into his palms, rubbed them together, and cursed, "I don't believe in this nonsense!" With that, he stormed back inside in a rage.

*Bang!*
*Thud!*
*Aaaah!*

The first was the deafening slam of the door. The second was the heavy thud of a body hitting the ground. The final sound was a scream of agony.

"V-Village Head, a-are you alright?" his companion asked weakly, not daring to reach out.

"Are you just standing there watching a show? Get over here and help me up!"

The man felt aggrieved, remembering how he’d just been shoved away, but he dared not speak his mind. With a flushed face, he hoisted the man up.

Jia Laosan shrieked throughout the process. "Gently, gently! You're breaking my arm! Watch what you're doing!"

He didn't have long to complain before a strange wind swept through. A powerful gust knocked the entire group of villagers to the ground.

"Aaaaaah!" Jia Laosan screamed incessantly, as someone in the panic had grabbed his broken arm with force.

"Return my bride... return her..."

Accompanied by the howling wind, the low, guttural roar of the "Mountain God" was piercing and shrill. Jia Laosan dared not delay; ignoring his throbbing arm, he immediately fell to his knees and began kowtowing, and the others followed suit.

Hiding in the shadows, Su Haohao and Su Xiuxiu observed the scene. From afar, they saw the true form of the "Mountain God"—it was nothing more than a mass of black matter hovering above the strange wind. The siblings exchanged a look of pure terror.

The "Mountain God" seemed wary, lingering before the door without moving closer. The howling wind grew sharper, like countless tiny blades scraping against their skin, causing a stinging pain. The villagers knelt on the ground, shivering, with Jia Laosan trembling like a leaf.

"Mr. Lu! Just give the Mountain God his bride!"
"Mr. Lu, return the bride to the Mountain God!"
"Give her back!"

Caught between two terrifying forces, the villagers began to beg one side.

*Snap.* The door was pushed open from within.

Lu Jinyuan appeared in the doorway, his face dark and sullen. A faint, black aura emanated from his body. Even standing still, the oppressive pressure in the space made it impossible for anyone to stand straight or catch their breath.

Jia Laosan’s broken arm was crushed further by the sheer force of the presence, and beads of sweat the size of soybeans crawled down his forehead. Soaked in cold sweat, he wailed, "Mr. Lu, please, withdraw your powers!"

The blackness in Lu Jinyuan’s eyes grew deeper as he glanced at Jia Laosan.

No one saw how he moved, but in the blink of an eye, he was standing directly behind the village head. Jia Laosan felt a chill run down his spine and slowly began to turn his head.

A sound like something being torn apart echoed through the tense air.

*Rip.*
"Aah!"

A scream tore through the sky, and some people even fainted from terror. Lu Jinyuan held one half of Jia Laosan in each hand, blood gushing from the severed body; those standing nearby were even sprayed with blood. The air was thick with a foul, metallic stench.

While Lu Jinyuan was tearing a man apart, the black mass above hovered quietly toward the room. Lu Jinyuan crouched, his leg muscles coiled, and with a single leap, he soared into the air, closing in on the black entity.

The creature feared him. Seeing him in pursuit, it abandoned its interest in Qin Yu, who was inside the room, and turned to flee.

A bloodthirsty light erupted in Lu Jinyuan’s eyes. The malevolent energy surrounding him intensified, enveloping him until he was no longer recognizable as a human, appearing only as a dark, humanoid shape.

—

In a dark corner, a man looked up at the sky, his grin stretching almost to his ears. "It worked! Hahahaha!"

But his laughter didn't last even thirty seconds. He clenched his fists. "Qin Yu! You’ve ruined my plans again!"

—

Below, the villagers were so stunned they forgot to run. In the mid-air, the two black masses were locked in a fierce struggle—or rather, the humanoid one was chasing the other, beating it relentlessly.

The humanoid form used brutal, violent methods, attacking with the intent to kill. After only a few strikes, using the same savage technique, Lu Jinyuan’s black aura tore the "Mountain God" into two pieces.

As the "Mountain God" was shredded, the surrounding wind returned to a deathly stillness.

Lu Jinyuan landed, his body hunched in an eerie, unnatural posture, his hands suspended in mid-air, looking somewhat like a zombie from an apocalypse. The gaze he leveled at the villagers was filled with murderous intent.

The villagers wanted to flee, but they were pinned to the ground by the suffocating pressure in the air. The terror was so absolute that some lost control of their bodily functions.

The stench in the air was indescribable. Some tried to cry out for help, only to find their throats constricted, unable to utter a single sound.

Lu Jinyuan walked forward step by step like a demon escaped from hell. Each step left a deep, shocking crater in the ground.

"Lu Jinyuan!"

A sweet, soft, yet powerful voice called out from behind him.

Lu Jinyuan’s forward pace faltered, but he did not turn around.