Chapter 61: Knock Her Out, Take Her Away
"The light’s off. She should be asleep. Let’s go, we’ll get her out now."
Seeing the light in Yun Sheng’s room go out, the two men perked up. They expertly circled to the more secluded rear of the Lin Family estate, finding a blind spot in the surveillance.
The two exchanged a look. One squatted down to give a boost, while the other loosened his limbs, planning to scale the wall first and then pull his partner up after him.
Just as the man in the back lifted his foot off the ground, his hands barely gripping the brick wall, with most of his weight still hanging in mid-air...
A large, well-defined hand, brimming with terrifying strength, clamped down on his dangling ankle like an iron pincer appearing from thin air.
"Ah!"
The man only had time to let out a short, terrified cry of pain before he was yanked back from the wall by brute force and slammed hard onto the cold, solid concrete ground!
He was thrown into a dizzy and disoriented state, feeling as if his internal organs had all been displaced. The intense pain and vertigo left him unable to even groan, only able to curl up on the ground and convulse violently.
His partner, frozen in shock by the sudden turn of events, turned to flee.
A tall, dark figure appeared before him like a phantom, directly blocking his path.
In the dim light, a pair of deep blue eyes, like a man-eating abyss, stared down at him coldly.
The man was scared out of his wits. He subconsciously channeled his spiritual power to launch an attack.
However, a terrifying spiritual pressure—far more violent, icy, and filled with a destructive aura than his own attack—crashed down on him like an immense iceberg.
"Pfft!"
The spiritual attack the man released was instantly crushed to dust. Along with it, his own spiritual landscape cried out in agony as if struck by a giant hammer, unable to bear the strain.
He froze on the spot, unable to move even a finger.
Si Jin’s glacial gaze, like an ice pick, was fixed on the man’s face, which was twisted in fear.
"Who sent you?"
Under the overwhelming spiritual power of the SSS-level Dark Sentinel, the man’s eyes quickly lost focus and his pupils dilated. Like a manipulated puppet, he began to confess intermittently.
"It was... It was Mr. Chen... the head of the Chen Family... He-he suspects that Yun Sheng... is connected to Young Master Chen’s disappearance... He told us... to kidnap her... and interrogate her... to find out where Young Master Chen is..."
’It really is the Chen Family.’
A murderous glint flashed in Si Jin’s eyes.
"Just the two of you?"
"...Yes... Mr. Chen said... he was afraid of causing too much of a commotion... and alerting the target... He only sent the two of us... to scout first... and grab... grab her..."
The man answered mechanically, drool uncontrollably trickling from the corner of his mouth.
Having gotten the information he wanted, the last trace of warmth vanished from Si Jin’s eyes, leaving only pure, cold indifference.
He slowly raised his right hand, fingers slightly spread, and aimed at the two men on the ground.
Two threads of Dark Spiritual Power, as fine as hairs yet condensed to their absolute limit, shot like swords into the space between their eyebrows.
"Urk... AHH!!!"
The two men simultaneously let out a short, inhuman shriek. Their bodies went rigid and their eyeballs bulged as if they were enduring some unspeakable torture.
Their spiritual landscapes were torn and shredded, as if stirred by the crudest of tools, their core regions of perception and thought utterly destroyed.
Just two or three seconds later, the shrieking stopped abruptly.
The two men collapsed to the ground, their eyes empty and dull, drool streaming from their mouths.
Si Jin watched them dispassionately, as if looking at two pieces of unsightly trash.
He bent down and easily lifted them, one in each hand.
His deep blue eyes swept over the window of Yun Sheng’s room on the second floor, the corners of his lips curving into a slight smile.
This time, he would once again make these two disappear without a trace, ensuring there was no connection to Yun Sheng.
If the Chen Family continued to be this foolish, he would just save them as practice dummies for Yun Sheng, letting her deal with this trash herself!
Si Jin retracted his gaze. Carrying the two men, his figure quickly melted into the night and vanished.
...
At dawn, as the first glimmer of light appeared, Yun Sheng awoke feeling refreshed and clear-headed, an indescribable sense of lightness and comfort flowing through her limbs.
She sat up and subconsciously looked inward at her spiritual landscape.
Before bed last night, she had repeatedly tried to condense and release her spiritual power.
The process was tedious and painful. She had nearly exhausted every last bit of her mental energy, so tired she couldn’t even lift a finger, before she had drowsily fallen asleep.
Normally, after such overexertion, her spiritual landscape should have been even dimmer and more listless when she woke up the next day.
However, the scene she "saw" before her now left her slightly stunned.
The silver river of stars representing Bai Ye’s power and Si Jin’s dark, tranquil stream were still present, but the small area formed by her own condensed spiritual power was now more solid and vibrant than before.
’Is this the result of repeated practice?’
Yun Sheng tried to condense her spiritual power again.
With a single thought, two Silver Needles appeared before her, glinting with a cold light.
’It seems that repeated practice really does work!’
Just as she was basking in this small sense of accomplishment, trying to control the thin needles to form a more effective attack...
"KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK."
The sound of knocking interrupted her practice.
Yun Sheng’s concentration broke, and the Silver Needles instantly dissipated into nothingness.
She composed herself, walked to the door, and opened it.
Su Wan was standing outside.
She wore a gentle smile, but a hint of caution was hidden in her eyes.
"Shengsheng, it’s the weekend. There’s no training scheduled at the Tower today, right?"
"Right, it’s a day off," Yun Sheng nodded.
"That’s good."
Su Wan’s smile widened slightly, tinged with anticipation.
"I was thinking, you’ve been back for a while now, and I haven’t had a chance to properly take you out. The weather’s nice today, and a new interstellar department store just opened in the central district. I heard it has a lot of novel items from other Star Domains and the latest fashions.
Shengsheng, would you like to... go take a look with me? We can just relax and you can pick up some things you like."
Seeing the eager yet apprehensive light in Su Wan’s eyes, Yun Sheng’s heart softened.
"Okay. I’ll get ready and go with you."
Su Wan’s eyes instantly lit up. "No rush, no rush," she said quickly. "Take your time. I’ll wait for you in the living room downstairs. We’ll leave after breakfast."
After breakfast, Su Wan and Yun Sheng took a hovercar to the new interstellar department store in the central district.
Entering the department store’s main hall, they were greeted by a blend of brilliant holographic projections and soothing background music, creating an atmosphere of luxury.
Well-dressed customers moved back and forth, and a carefully crafted fragrance floated in the air.
Su Wan led Yun Sheng straight to the Advanced clothing section on the upper floors.
The environment here was quiet and refined, with each brand occupying its own elegant display space.
"Shengsheng, look at that light blue dress," Su Wan said, stopping in front of a well-known brand’s display window. "The cut and color would suit you perfectly."
Before she finished speaking, her optical computer suddenly vibrated.
After glancing at the caller ID, a hint of apology crossed her face. "Sorry, Shengsheng, I have to take this call. Why don’t you look around by yourself for a bit? Let me know if you find anything you like."
"Okay, go ahead," Yun Sheng replied.
Su Wan hurried over to a nearby seating area.
Left alone, Yun Sheng’s gaze fell casually on the light blue dress Su Wan had just pointed out.
"Well, well, if it isn’t Yun Sheng."
A sharp, female voice suddenly sounded from behind her.
Yun Sheng turned around.
Zhao Qian was walking toward her with several flashily dressed, arrogant-looking young men and women.
She walked straight up to Yun Sheng, her eyes sweeping over Yun Sheng’s plain, casual clothes, and her lips curled into an exaggerated sneer.
"At the Tower yesterday, I really fell for your act. The ’true heiress’? Please. I heard that Uncle Lin just transferred five percent of the Lin Group’s shares to Miss Yue Yao.
Don’t tell me you’re here pretending to shop with the Fifty Thousand Star Coins I so generously gave you?"