Lin Zhizhi’s roar echoed through the forest, as if some ancient, brutal power was truly awakening from the depths of her bloodline.
Those bloodshot eyes locked onto Xiran, filled with rage, madness, and a desperate, all-or-nothing resolve.
But Xiran’s reaction froze that resolve solid in an instant.
She didn’t move at all. Instead, she let out a soft sigh.
“Too noisy.”
The tone was like complaining that the neighbor’s dog was barking too late at night.
Lin Zhizhi’s expression froze on her face.
All the battle cries she had prepared, all the explosive power she had readied—everything jammed in her throat, unable to go up or down.
“You—”
“Heaven and Curse Binding.” Xiran cut her off, tilting her head slightly so her black hair slipped over her shoulder.
“That’s the constitution where the more you sacrifice, the stronger you become, right?”
Lin Zhizhi instinctively started to nod, then forced herself to stop.
Xiran continued, “So what did you sacrifice? Your eyesight? Your hearing? Or…” Her gaze slid downward. “…your ability to have children?”
“You fucking—”
Lin Zhizhi completely lost it. She stomped forward, muscles bulging as invisible power began to gather around her.
Then she looked down at her left arm.
On the inner side of her elbow, a clean, perfectly round hole had appeared out of nowhere, piercing straight through.
Blood poured out.
No attack trajectory. No wind pressure. She hadn’t even seen Xiran lift a hand.
It was as if the hole had always belonged there.
“Ugh—ah—!”
The moment the agony exploded, Lin Zhizhi staggered.
But even before the pain fully hit, a wave of absurdity crashed over her: she hadn’t even touched the other girl, hadn’t seen how the attack was launched—
And Xiran was already right in front of her.
Those pitch-black eyes were inches away, containing no triumphant glee, no battle excitement—only a bottomless calm, like a well at midnight.
“Let me guess.”
Xiran’s voice was soft.
“What you sacrificed was… a normal human lifespan?”
Lin Zhizhi’s pupils shrank sharply.
“You—how did you—”
“Correct.” The corner of Xiran’s lips curved in a smile so faint it was almost invisible.
“So right now, every second you live, you’re burning away your life. The longer you fight, the faster you die.”
She raised her hand and tapped her fingertip against Lin Zhizhi’s forehead.
“While I don’t have to sacrifice anything.”
“Because from the very beginning, I was far stronger than you.”
A light push.
The world in Lin Zhizhi’s eyes spun wildly.
The savage power she had been gathering collapsed before it could even surge out.
Darkness flooded over her like a tidal wave, swallowing every last bit of unwillingness and rage.
Her body went limp.
She toppled straight backward and thumped onto the grass, sending bits of dirt and blades of grass flying.
Then she lay completely still.
From explosion to silence, it had taken only a few breaths.
Bai Linlin hung in midair, her mouth hanging open unconsciously.
She had even forgotten the throbbing pain on her swollen cheek.
It’s… over? Just like that?
Where was the so-called “strongest bully”?
And that impressive-sounding “Heaven and Curse Binding”?
How could it be broken with just a few words?
No—the scariest part was Xiran’s final line—
“While I don’t have to sacrifice anything.”
So the power Lin Zhizhi had gained by staking her very life was nothing more than a joke in front of Xiran?
A deeper chill crawled up Bai Linlin’s spine and settled at the back of her neck.
Xiran didn’t spare the unconscious Lin Zhizhi another glance.
She turned around, her gaze falling back on Bai Linlin as she walked over step by step.
I’m done for. It’s my turn now!
Bai Linlin’s heart pounded wildly. The ropes binding her chest rose and fell with each frantic breath.
Not only had she tried to run away earlier, she had even blurted out something suicidal like “I won’t bully you anymore”… Old debts and new ones were about to be settled together!
Xiran stopped in front of her and tilted her head up slightly to look at the suspended girl.
Moonlight spilled across Xiran’s bloodless face, making her look like a delicate porcelain doll. Yet Bai Linlin only felt her scalp go numb with terror.
Suddenly, Xiran reached out.
Her icy fingertips gently brushed the cracked, swollen corner of Bai Linlin’s mouth, where a bit of half-dried blood still clung.
Bai Linlin trembled all over.
Xiran’s fingertip traced the blood, then she slowly brought the stained finger to her own pale lips and licked it with the tip of her tongue.
“Linlin’s things…”
“…shouldn’t be wasted.”
Bai Linlin’s mind roared.
All the blood in her body seemed to rush to her face, then drained away in an instant, leaving her ghostly pale.
Pervert! Massive, absolute pervert! But she only dared scream it inside her head. Her lips quivered, and not a single word escaped.
Xiran seemed satisfied with her reaction.
The corner of her mouth curved almost imperceptibly before smoothing back into its usual straight line.
“As for Linlin’s punishment,”
she continued, her gaze sweeping over Bai Linlin’s swollen red face, her disheveled school uniform, and the ropes binding her tightly.
“Let’s save it for next time.”
Bai Linlin froze.
She’s… not punishing me?
“I’ll let Linlin off the hook for today.”
The huge contrast left Bai Linlin momentarily stunned.
Only when Xiran walked behind her did she suddenly remember the even worse “punishment” methods listed in the scenario outline. Her heart instantly turned to ash.
So the death penalty is waived, but the living one is unavoidable?
Fine… I’m mentally prepared to be stripped naked and used however Xiran-sama wants… She tried to laugh at herself, but no smile came.
The sound of rope rubbing came from behind. The main rope that had been hoisting her up through the pulley suddenly loosened.
Is she letting me down?
But hope shattered in the next second.
Xiran had only untied the section connected to the pulley.
She caught the falling Bai Linlin with one arm, then lifted her in a perfect princess carry and carried her down from midair.
She walked over to a thick tree nearby and gently set her down so that Bai Linlin’s back rested against the trunk.
Bai Linlin’s hands and feet were still bound.
She could only lean against the tree like a giant doll, staring up at Xiran with wide eyes.
Xiran crouched in front of her, reached out, and gently brushed the sweat-dampened pink bangs from Bai Linlin’s forehead.
The motion could almost be called tender.
But the words that left her mouth made that tenderness feel utterly terrifying.
“Shh. If I untie you, naughty Linlin will run away again.”
With that, she stood up, walked over to the unconscious Lin Zhizhi, picked up the rope that had originally bound Bai Linlin, and came back to tie Lin Zhizhi to the tree trunk.
Loop after loop—from chest to calves. Not too tight, but enough to make escape impossible.
Of course Xiran knew that for Lin Zhizhi’s physical strength, these ropes were nothing more than decoration.
The real shackles were the magic restraints she had injected with a flick of her fingertip.
After finishing, Xiran lowered her head and quietly watched the unconscious girl, waiting.
Time trickled by in suffocating silence.
Only the wind and the chirping of insects filled the forest.
After what felt like an eternity, Lin Zhizhi’s fingers twitched.
She let out a pained groan and slowly opened her eyes.
Her vision was blurry at first, then sharpened. She saw Xiran crouching in front of her and, not far away, Bai Linlin leaning against the tree.
Memories flooded back. Pain flared in her arm.
Lin Zhizhi’s face twisted—humiliation and disbelief mixing together.
She struggled to sit up, only to find her body felt impossibly heavy.
That invisible magic restraint pressed down on her like an iron mountain.
Xiran watched her struggle until the futile efforts stopped and Lin Zhizhi glared at her, panting heavily.
Only then did Xiran speak.
Her voice rang clearly through the quiet woods.
“Let me confirm one last time…”
She tilted her head slightly, black hair slipping from her shoulder.
“Are you the strongest bully?”
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