Just as she was about to be slammed to the ground, Bai Xue reversed her grip and risked injury to stab her sword at Ye Lian.
She was going all in—a fight to the death.
That alone showed how deep, how consuming her hatred truly was.
“…” Ye Lian was speechless and simply let go, dodging backward.
If this had been an enemy, she would’ve finished them off a step earlier—no hesitation, no mercy.
But Bai Xue was a companion.
She couldn’t kill her.
She couldn’t even afford to hurt her.
“Zhao Gang, die!” Bai Xue roared the moment she landed, charging like a wild beast unleashed.
Her ferocious assault left Ye Lian in a dilemma.
‘Forget it, I’ll just wait for the hallucination effect to wear off on its own.’
With a light tap of her foot on the ground, Ye Lian shot backward, graceful as a white crane taking flight—elegant and untouchable.
Bai Xue’s sword gleamed like a rainbow streaking through the air, but no matter how close she got, she couldn’t pierce Ye Lian’s throat.
Her blade was less than ten centimeters away.
Zhao Gang… was proving maddeningly hard to deal with!
Bai Xue exhaled sharply and resumed her relentless pursuit of the “fleeing” Ye Lian.
She didn’t even realize she had already passed this exact route before.
As Ye Lian kept a watchful eye on the surroundings for possible danger, she continued to glide backward on her toes with agile ease.
“Damn it! Why can’t I hit her?!”
Compared to Ye Lian’s calm and steady movements, Bai Xue seemed agitated and reckless.
This wasn’t her usual personality—it was as if hatred itself had twisted her into something else.
After all, she was now just a body completely ruled by vengeance.
***
After a long chase, a faint sound of water reached their ears.
They were getting close to the stream.
“YAAAAH!!” Bai Xue let out a scream, unleashing her full power.
Her body shot forward like a cannonball, sword light gleaming like an arrow aimed straight at Ye Lian’s throat!
But—
Ye Lian remained calm—still and deep as a tranquil lake, unmoved by the threat.
The sword light flashed—only to crash into an invisible wall.
The attack weakened rapidly until it finally vanished without a trace.
Only then did Bai Xue’s blade arrive.
Just like before, her sword hovered less than a dozen centimeters from Ye Lian’s throat, unable to advance any further.
The same frustrating result.
And this time, it made Bai Xue even more resentful.
Her hated enemy was right there—and she still couldn’t do anything!
“I’ll hunt you to the ends of the earth if I have to! I will kill you!”
She bit her lip hard and screamed.
That was her resolve.
“Then come,” Ye Lian replied with a calm smile, retreating even faster than before.
Bai Xue’s steps quickened.
She gave chase, refusing to fall behind.
***
Just as they reached the stream, Ye Lian landed softly on the ground and came to a casual stop—her stance seemingly full of openings.
It was the perfect opportunity.
Bai Xue wouldn’t let it go to waste.
In one fluid motion, she closed the distance to its absolute limit, her sword flashing like lightning—faster than the eye could follow.
Ye Lian’s eyes widened slightly.
Bai Xue’s potential was truly nothing to scoff at.
But that was all—just a flicker of surprise.
In the next instant, Ye Lian’s body shifted, reappearing at Bai Xue’s side.
She reached out and grabbed Bai Xue’s neck in one swift move, using her momentum to slam her into the water.
Bai Xue instantly choked, swallowing a mouthful of water as her body thrashed wildly.
Old memories surfaced—terrifying memories of nearly drowning while learning to swim as a child.
A cold, oppressive fear surged from deep within her.
A wave of hopelessness began to flood her mind.
She felt as if she had returned to that moment again—her whole body trembled, and her mind went completely dark.
‘No… I don’t want to drown!’
Suddenly, Bai Xue’s consciousness snapped back.
Her body thrashed even harder.
Just then, Ye Lian lifted her up.
Cough cough! She choked out several mouthfuls of water, her body still shaking.
Her eyes flickered, filled with fear, as if she were still trapped in a state of extreme terror.
“Are you alright?” Ye Lian asked, clearly worried.
If Bai Xue hadn’t been stuck in that hallucinatory state for so long, she wouldn’t have used such a rough method to wake her.
“I… Master, what just happened to me?” The moment Bai Xue saw Ye Lian, it was as if she had found her anchor—her heart finally settled.
At the same time, fragments of disjointed images flashed through her mind, leaving her confused.
She had the strange feeling she had done something, but couldn’t quite remember what.
It was similar to the way people forget things after drinking too much.
The difference was, most blackout memories never return—but in her case, she still had a few lingering glimpses.
“You were chasing me just now—across nine whole streets,” Ye Lian said irritably.
“Huh?” Bai Xue froze.
Then, as if triggered by the words, her fragmented memories began to piece themselves back together.
Scenes from earlier started to replay, albeit fuzzily.
“Zhao Gang!” She suddenly looked around in a panic.
“Master, that guy—he was here just now!”
“Here, my ass. That was me.”
Ye Lian flicked her forehead without mercy.
“Ouch!” Bai Xue yelped quietly in pain.
“You inhaled too much of the starlight grass’s fragrance. It caused a mental breakdown and made you mistake me for Zhao Gang and start chasing me.”
Before Bai Xue could ask, Ye Lian laid out the truth.
“…” Bai Xue was dumbfounded.
It took her a while to come back to her senses.
Then she bowed her head and apologized.
“Master, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to…”
“It’s fine. And this was my oversight anyway. I was the one who told you to be cautious—yet I failed to follow my own advice.”
Ye Lian gave a self-deprecating chuckle.
“But…” Bai Xue’s expression turned complicated.
No matter what the reason was, she had made a mistake.
Not feeling guilty about it would be stranger.
“No buts. If you think it was your fault, then make up for it later.”
Ye Lian knew what kind of person Bai Xue was, so she decided to reframe it.
“I will make up for it!” Bai Xue raised her head, looking completely serious.
“You really are like a cow,” Ye Lian said with a small smile.
“Huh? How am I like a cow?” Bai Xue looked down at herself.
Her arms and legs weren’t thick, and her waist was actually very slim.
“Pfft.”
Seeing her like that, Ye Lian couldn’t help but giggle.
“…Master, are you laughing at me?” Bai Xue pouted, looking a little displeased.
But she quickly smiled as well.
The air around them felt lighter, as if joy was drifting in the wind.
***
Far away, out on the plains, a small group of nearly twenty people was being frantically chased by a swarm of gray locusts—each only the size of three fingers, but covered in densely packed, razor-sharp teeth.
“It hurts! Help me!”
“Aaaahhhh! What kind of nightmare is this?!”
“Mom! I want to go home!”
“Fuck this! I’m going to kill that damn Savior Organization’s whole family!”
“Aaah—no, no! Please, nooo!” One player stumbled into a pit and fell.
Almost instantly, most of the gray locusts pounced on him, tearing into his body like crazed beasts.
The other players used the opportunity to escape.
No one even considered going back to save him.
In less than a moment, the player died a miserable death.
Scenes like this kept happening in the Nightmare Zone.
Beta players were dying one after another, triggering an uproar in the outside world.
Suspicion toward the [Savior] Organization grew louder and louder.
But the mysterious organization never issued a response.
It was as if all of this had nothing to do with them at all.
***
Meanwhile, Ye Lian and Bai Xue continued on their way toward what looked like a city—no, not just looked like, it was a grand and imposing city!
This was the end point of their closed beta test.
Or perhaps, it would become their brand-new beginning.