A Hero's Heart - Chapter 13

Good news.

We had escaped.

Bad news.

The masked man was standing right in front of us.

Worse news.

The moment we ran out, the four of us inhaled a large amount of fog. I felt the heat inside my body go out as if someone had doused it with a bucket of water.

Seventeen seemed to sense that something was wrong. He turned toward me.

The masked man twisted his lips into a cold smile. “The same trick again? Do you still have any pills left?”

Seventeen’s expression was so helpless that his lips pressed into a tight line.

“A bunch of fools who don’t know their own limits.” The masked man gave a cold laugh and raised his hand to strike me.

Seventeen pushed me away and, in the same motion, pressed another pill into my palm.

He really did have more.

Without thinking, I threw it into my mouth and tore off a strip of cloth to cover my nose.

Lu Zichen looked away. His ears turned bright red.

I glanced down at myself.

After the abuse of the past few days, my once-fine dress was in tatters. One sleeve had been torn away, leaving most of my shoulder exposed.

With the masked man’s blood splashed across me, I looked thoroughly indecent.

But staying alive mattered more than propriety.

I rolled across the ground to avoid the masked man’s attack, then used the momentum to strike him in the chest.

To my surprise, the blow only forced him back. He seemed completely unharmed.

My martial skill was good enough that even my brother praised it. I had shattered a stone wall with one palm.

The masked man rubbed his chest and sneered. “Not bad. Once the poison wears off, I’ll take care of you.”

Something was very wrong.

This kind of unnatural strength immediately made me think of the Demon Cult, which everyone in the martial world wanted to destroy.

“You’re from the Demon Cult?” I asked, frowning.

The masked man curled his lips. “They are not worthy of me.”

He lunged toward me again.

I sprang up into a tree. My sword had already been confiscated, so I could only draw the black-iron hairpin from my hair.

The moment I pulled it free, my hair spilled down my back like a waterfall and streamed through the air.

I looked down at Lu Zichen, who was still frozen in place. “What are you waiting for? Run!”

I was not confident that I could defeat this monster.

The best outcome was for Lu Zichen to leave and find help.

Even in the worst case, I could trade my life to let the other three escape.

Thinking that, I quickly spat to ward off the unlucky thought.

Fortunately, Lu Zichen did not leave. He gathered Zhao Yihuan and Seventeen close to him instead.

While I was cursing him in my head, the masked man attacked again.

Soon, I was locked in combat with him.

My brother had taught me the technique I was using, but I could not land a single blow on him. Naturally, he could not hurt me, either.

The problem was that I had not eaten properly for days. If the battle continued, he would eventually wear me down.

The masked man seemed to understand this. He treated the fight like a game, attacking lazily and intermittently.

After another palm strike forced him back, I retreated toward Seventeen and the others. Lu Zichen watched the object in the masked man’s hand and whispered, “His mask.”

I froze for half a beat, then instinctively glanced toward Seventeen.

He nodded once.

Like a mirror, our attacks became more forceful. I directed my palms toward the masked man’s face. When he raised his hands to protect it, he exposed his lower body.

I seized the instant and used the hairpin to sever the strap of his mask.

With a sharp snap, the mask slid from his face before he could react.

The black iron used to make the hairpin had finally proved its worth.

Behind me, Zhao Yihuan gave a soft cry and drew in a sharp breath.

I turned to look.

It was horrifying.

Truly horrifying.