Danger Approaches

Loving and not loving are very different, always so clear. Especially when encountering danger, it is no different from a microorganism under a microscope, exposed nakedly.

Bai Lin was not someone who lived in comfort. Although Chi Qing never let her suffer materially, whether it was a luxurious life or delicacies, Bai Lin had never wanted those things.

From childhood to adulthood, she had suffered a lot and faced death many times. Many people cared for and cherished her, whether out of sincere intentions like Lu Weilai, or fake concern like others. Bai Lin knew her heart didn't flutter much. If anything, it was just gratitude or indifference.

At this moment, hearing Chi Qing tell her to be careful, those simple words made Bai Lin feel exceptionally warm, as if bathed in warm water, gentle and comfortable. She liked Chi Qing—or rather, using "like" was too light. To be precise, Bai Lin loved Chi Qing, deeply.

This love was not maternal affection; it transcended time, gender, and worldly conventions. This was not a simple love, but weighed a thousand pounds, a love a man has for a woman, carrying the desire to love and be loved, a love Bai Lin wanted to cherish for her entire life.

However, Bai Lin had always regarded this affection as a pipe dream. Because she knew Chi Qing would never love her; even liking her was difficult. Now, seeing Chi Qing's attitude toward her improve, although Bai Lin remained cold on the outside, her heart was filled with gratitude and satisfaction.

She didn't want much, only hoping Chi Qing would continue to treat her like this. Once she helped Chi Qing achieve her wish, she would have no regrets.

Thinking of this, Bai Lin looked up at the foreign man not far away, finding him looking at her with eyes full of provocation. This man was very confident in his abilities, his expression showing clear contempt for the weak girl in front of him.

Since ancient times, one must not underestimate the enemy. Slow-flowing water will eventually overflow the banks; overconfidence is not a good thing. The man smiled at her, pulling out a strange weapon from his waist and waving it around. Bai Lin narrowed her eyes, evaluating the weapon in her mind.

Completely contrary to his large stature, the weapon he used was not a broadsword or a long staff, but a long, thin chain. The entire chain was silver, the end easy to hold, and the tip had a sharp, cone-shaped blade.

With just one glance, Bai Lin could deduce this weapon was similar to a whip. Suddenly, Chi Qing leaned close to her ear and whispered something. This unexpected intimacy made Bai Lin's body tremble, feeling the warm breath from Chi Qing's mouth brushing against her ear. Bai Lin could no longer concentrate, her entire attention drawn by Chi Qing.

Her body became hot due to the accidental touch, and her ears instantly felt like they were on fire, turning bright red. Bai Lin sniffed, greedily holding onto the scent of flowers and grass from Chi Qing's body. She knew she shouldn't do this under such dangerous circumstances, but Chi Qing's attraction was too great.

Just as Bai Lin was dazed, the man finally lost his patience. Hearing him curse in English, he whipped the chain toward her, and Bai Lin drew the machete from her waist to meet it.

The chain whipped down with a terrifying whooshing sound, as if tearing a hole in the air. Seeing the chain heading straight for her face, Bai Lin instinctively used her machete to block it. Unexpectedly, the cone-shaped tip opened up, extending a weapon with six sharp blades, like the claws of a wild beast.

The claws were black, and under the flickering white light, Bai Lin knew with one glance that this thing was poisoned! Thinking of this, Bai Lin turned to look at Chi Qing's arm. The place that had been bleeding earlier had now turned purple! It was a sign of poisoning!

And the person lying on the ground was Zeng Kehen, her face terrifyingly pale, her brown windbreaker soaked in blood. But the blood was not red but black, which was frightening. Chi Qing's injury was not heavy, but the poison was the most difficult to deal with. And Zeng Kehen's situation was probably even more severe.

Therefore, Bai Lin used her machete to quickly slash toward the foreign man. Currently, she had to attack proactively to reduce time, so they would have a chance to escape! Seeing Bai Lin's urgent attack, the man naturally guessed her intention, instead slowing down his movements and even stepping back. Bai Lin was both anxious and angry, distracted by worry for Chi Qing's injury.

Just as she turned her head to look at Chi Qing, the whooshing sound of the chain suddenly reached her ears. Chi Qing's words flashed in Bai Lin's mind: Be careful of that metal cone! Out of instinct, Bai Lin turned back, seeing a black shadow rushing toward her.

She quickly bent her waist, avoiding the black shadow. With a "bang," a pitch-black claw pierced straight through the wall—it was the claw from the man's chain.

Bai Lin now understood. This chain was not like a normal chain; the most difficult part was the cone-shaped object at the end. Its strength was not determined by its size or hardness, but by the mechanism on it. This claw was both sharp and poisoned, and it could be shot out through the mechanism.

Bai Lin analyzed the man's weapon thoroughly. On the surface, she pretended to struggle to resist, but in her heart, she already had a way to deal with it. Seeing the man slash at her again, Bai Lin timed it perfectly, spun around, leaped up, and kicked the chain with her right foot.

She stepped on a position, not in the middle or the end, but exactly one millimeter away from the cone-shaped head. Seeing his weapon stepped on by Bai Lin, the man shouted, wanting to pull the chain back. Unexpectedly, Bai Lin had such great strength that the chain didn't budge.

Looking at the man whose face was red and veins bulging from overexertion, Bai Lin suddenly released her foot. Taking advantage of the man's loss of balance, she quickly stepped along the chain toward him. Bai Lin moved extremely fast, arriving in front of him in an instant and slashing with her blade.

Despite losing his balance, he instinctively raised his hand to block. That slash pierced through the man's wrist, making him scream in pain. Injured by Bai Lin, the man felt humiliated. He pulled the chain hard, like an enraged beast, ignoring everything to attack Bai Lin.

Bai Lin's machete was still stuck in his hand, and the distance between them was so close they could touch by reaching out. Hearing the wind and the sound of the chain behind her, Bai Lin kicked his stomach hard, using the force to leap up.

At the same time, the cone-shaped end of the chain headed straight for her face. Facing this powerful strike, Bai Lin did not dodge but reached out to grab the chain. This move terrified Chi Qing. She didn't understand why Bai Lin didn't dodge but chose to meet force with force. She had clearly told her to be careful of that metal claw.

Her heart ached. Chi Qing didn't know that after losing Su Aoran, she could still worry about someone to this extent. The distance between the chain and Bai Lin grew closer. Chi Qing clenched her hands, not noticing that the wound on her arm bled even more due to this action.

At the critical moment, Bai Lin grabbed the metal claw on the chain. Seeing Bai Lin catch his weapon, the man's eyes were filled with shock and worry. He couldn't believe Bai Lin had the ability to stop this strike. While he was dazed, Bai Lin pulled the chain, wrapping it around his neck.

His neck tightened, and the man's breathing grew heavy. He thought of escaping Bai Lin's restraint, but the more he struggled, the tighter Bai Lin squeezed. Sensing danger, he went mad, roaring and slamming his back with Bai Lin against the wall.

Bai Lin's strength was not small, but her body was extremely weak. Slammed by the man, her face turned pale, and her strength decreased significantly. Seeing this move worked, the man exerted more force, also hitting Bai Lin's stomach with his elbow.

Bai Lin's stomach was already poor, and now hit repeatedly, she felt a sweet taste in her throat, blood rising. Glancing at Chi Qing's worried gaze, Bai Lin endured the pain, clenching her teeth to tighten the chain further.

Even falling to the ground, the man didn't forget to attack Bai Lin. His sturdy elbow was larger than Bai Lin's head, and each blow to her stomach made her gasp. Her strength gradually weakened with each attack. She glanced at the machete still stuck in the man's hand, released the chain, and reached out to pull the machete out.

While he was still immersed in the joy of escaping the chain, the pain in his hand brought him back to reality. Although he told himself to dodge, he was still a step too late. Watching the machete pierce his heart, the man looked at Bai Lin's pale face and slowly closed his eyes.

"Cough, cough, cough."

The danger resolved, her tense nerves relaxed. Bai Lin lay prone on the floor, covering her mouth and coughing hard. Seeing Chi Qing walking toward her, Bai Lin desperately swallowed the blood in her mouth, but the red liquid still spilled from the corner of her mouth.

Noticing Chi Qing standing in front of her, Bai Lin secretly blamed herself for being useless and failing to protect Chi Qing well. At this moment, a fair, slender hand was extended to her. Although stained with dark red blood, it still couldn't hide its perfection.

Bai Lin looked up at Chi Qing, seeing her looking at her with a complex gaze, her dark eyes carrying a hard-to-detect heartache. Just that little bit was enough for Bai Lin.

She had worked hard for so many years, and what she wanted and waited for was this very moment. Finally, her efforts had exchanged for Chi Qing's heartache and concern. Bai Lin thought that just this gaze made paying any price worthwhile.

"Can you still stand up?"

Hearing Chi Qing's question, Bai Lin didn't answer, but extended her trembling arm from overexertion, gently holding Chi Qing's uninjured right arm. Both of their hands were as cold as ice, but drawing close made their hearts exceptionally warm.

"Thank you," Bai Lin said softly as Chi Qing pulled her up. Hearing her voice, Chi Qing was slightly startled, looking at Bai Lin with a complex gaze before speaking:

"It's nothing. We must leave quickly. Zeng Kehen's wound cannot be delayed. Tonight's mission has failed."

When mentioning the failed mission, a trace of gloom flashed in Chi Qing's eyes. Seeing her lift Zeng Kehen to walk out, Bai Lin didn't say much, following behind her to leave. At this moment, a sound echoed in the room. The two turned around and saw a woman coming out with a little girl.

There were no wounds on the woman, not even a drop of blood. And the little girl in her arms showed no fear, her deep, dark eyes staring at Bai Lin with a hint of strangeness.

"You..."

Undoubtedly, this person was Ge Tong's subordinate, who had acted in the same group as Chi Qing and Zeng Kehen just now. Bai Lin wanted to ask why she hadn't helped, but after uttering one word, she stopped. This was not her place to ask, let alone this woman had her own selfish motives.

"I'm sorry. I was very scared, so I didn't dare come out. Moreover, this child also needed care, so I, I... Right, where are Sister Tong and Sister Ling?"

"They left," hearing her question, Bai Lin knew she was asking her, so she replied softly. Hearing this, the woman only uttered an "oh" and said no more.

Chi Qing cleared the way in front, Bai Lin helped Zeng Kehen in the middle, and the woman followed behind. As Bai Lin was walking, she suddenly heard a very faint sound. Because it was too quiet, she couldn't hear it clearly. This made her feel uneasy, so she listened closely. The sound grew clearer, but by the time Bai Lin noticed, it was already too late.

She saw the woman push the child away, holding a knife and stabbing toward her. Bai Lin tried to retreat, but had no way to avoid this strike. At the critical moment, a black shadow flashed to block for her.

Her vision was dyed red, and the surrounding air was filled with the scent of blood...