Looking for the Runaway Heavenly Maiden - Chapter 72

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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72.

* * *

As the building crumbled around me, I sprinted through the air. Azure light shimmered across my plump feet.
Without the tortoise shell surrounding me, I would have been devoured by the Demons long ago. They clung to the shell in thick clusters.
The Demons struggled to crack the tortoise shell, yet not a single scratch marred its surface.
Finally, I burst free from the School Building. Behind me, the structure collapsed with a thunderous roar, and dust billowed through the air.
I came to a halt in the center of the Playground. I lifted my head.
The Unknown Man floated effortlessly in the air above me, gazing down.
Clang. Clang. Amid the silence of the Demons striking against the shell, the man’s voice cut through.

“Even without the master of the spirit Demons, this is impressive. Entertaining, even.”

Kugung. Another deafening roar echoed as the ground cracked with a sharp sound.
Kuwakwang. Simultaneously, the earth surged upward. Soil jutting up like an awl hurtled toward the shell.
There was no time to even decide to evade.
I couldn’t escape. Then I had to trust.
Kwang-!
The impact was deafening enough to make my ears ring. For a moment, I feared the shell might actually shatter.
But the shell remained intact. Like an eternal shield.

“Huh. It didn’t break?”

The Unknown Man had launched his attack with the intention of shattering the shell.
Yet far from breaking, the soil that struck the shell scattered into fragments, dispersing like dust on the wind.
Without realizing it, I opened my eyes that I’d been clenching shut. Through the swirling dust, I saw the shell, clear and pristine.
The transparent shell bore not a single blemish.
This was my moment.
I drew my bow. The pure white bow gleamed with light.
The Unknown Man sneered at me.

“You think you can defeat me with something like that?”

Instead of answering, I drew the bowstring.
A bow wasn’t meant to be used this way. One should fire from the side or rear in a surprise attack, not from the front.
So naturally, he believed he could dodge the arrow. It was his miscalculation.

“Huh?”

The arrow split into dozens—no, hundreds of shards. They all flew directly toward the Unknown Man.
The Unknown Man hastily shifted his position. But in that moment, I drew my bow toward the sky.
As light fractured into rays, the arrows split apart and poured down like rain toward the earth.
The Unknown Man hastily deployed a defensive barrier, but the arrows pierced through it with unbelievable ease.
Damn it. The Unknown Man muttered a curse under his breath as he dodged the incoming arrows.
However, he failed to avoid one arrow that grazed past. A raw wound appeared on the Unknown Man’s cheek.
The Unknown Man felt as though his cheek was burning.
The cascading arrows finally ceased.
The Unknown Man stood on the ground. He gritted his teeth and gripped his sword.
I faced the Unknown Man walking toward me. His eyes blazed with madness.
The demons clinging to the tortoise shell had long since vanished.

“Ha, a mere thing like this.”

The Unknown Man twisted his lips. Then he thrust his sword at the tortoise shell.
Crash!
The force of the Unknown Man and the tortoise shell collided violently.
Watching the flames burning in the Unknown Man’s eyes, I aimed my bow.

“You, how dare you, a mere creature like—”

The Unknown Man muttered in a voice filled with fury. But it meant nothing to me.
I drew the bowstring. That was the moment.

“Get your head straight, Mu.”

A wooden vine suddenly erupted from somewhere and wrapped around the Unknown Man’s body. Because of this, the arrow failed to strike him.

“Let go! Release this, Eul!”

The Unknown Man thrashed about. But soon he lost consciousness.
I looked up at the owner of the vine.
Yueul.
He gazed down at me with a leisurely expression.
I aimed my bow at Yueul. Without a moment’s hesitation, I drew the bowstring.
But the arrow did not reach Yueul.

“Then I’ll see you again, Jiho.”

All that remained was a faint farewell.
I exhaled a long breath. Then I looked around.
I was still on the school’s playground.
The collapsed ground had returned to its original state, but the ruins of the school building remained as they were.
That school is the core of this dream.
I drew my bow toward the school building.
Light burst forth as the arrow pierced the structure.
In the dazzling light spreading in all directions, I closed my eyes.
And when I opened them again, I found myself face to face with a familiar visage.

“Jiho!”

It was really Cheonhaerang. His eyes glistened with tears as he gazed at me, as though he might burst into sobs at any moment.
Relief and joy washed over me. A smile bloomed naturally on my face.

“Are you alright? Are you hurt anywhere?”

I was fine. Even within the dream, he had protected me.
I reached out my hand. His soft, supple cheek met my palm.
It was warm.

“Yeah. I’m okay.”
“Jiho, I really thought you were….”

Unable to continue, he pressed his lips together, and tears began to fall steadily from his eyes.
I carefully wiped away his tears.

“Don’t cry, Cheonhaerang.”

Usually, telling someone not to cry only makes them want to cry more. So his tears showed no sign of stopping.

“I never knew Cheonhaerang could be such a crybaby.”

It mattered not how much Jiho teased him—nothing could dispel the dread that gripped his heart.
The moment she collapsed remained vivid in Cheonhaerang’s eyes, burned into his memory with crystalline clarity.
When Jiho suddenly fell, no amount of calling her name could coax her eyes open.
That was not all. Her complexion grew increasingly pallid, and even her breathing became faint and shallow.
My heart plummeted, and my hands trembled. My mind went blank, and I had no idea what to do.
If my sister had not arrived at that moment, I would still be unable to gather my wits.
Breaking through the spatial barrier, my sister calmly assessed the situation.
She purified the building and guided me. Thus, I returned home with Jiho.
Even after returning, Jiho could not open her eyes. Hours had passed since then.
All I could do was hold her cold, lifeless hand. I was utterly powerless.
Some might say it was merely a few hours, but to me, it felt like an eternity.

“Are you going to keep crying like this? I’d really like to see you smile.”

Her damp eyelashes fluttered delicately. Cheonhaerang met Jiho’s gaze.
Seeing the smiling girl, something surged within him again, and he struggled to contain it.
He bit his lips hard to hold back the tears and smiled. Then he stretched out both arms and embraced Jiho.
The warmth of the girl’s body was so comforting that tears threatened to spill from his eyes once more.

* * *

As Yeonhwa slipped out of the school, she realized something.
Sun Wukong’s Formation had been broken. Jeong’s appearance was meant to bind her in place.
The Funeral Hall had been arranged the same way—to bind Jiho and Cheonhaerang’s feet.
And they would have needed the spirit as well.
A spirit tainted with impurity had shattered the formation.
And so humans were sacrificed once again. She could no longer even fathom how many more would be sacrificed going forward.
Yet there was little she could do. The Patriarch knows all of this, and still he refuses to help.
Yeonhwa gazed beyond the window. The city’s lights scattered across the landscape.
The more light there is, the deeper the darkness becomes.
Could she bear this darkness?
She could not say for certain.

“Sister.”

At the call from behind, Yeonhwa composed her emotions and turned around.

“Hey, Cheonhaerang. Is Jiho okay?”
“Yeah. She’s fine. I told her to rest a bit before coming out.”
“Good. I’m relieved.”
“What about you? Are you alright?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Didn’t something happen to you too?”
“….”

Yeonhwa’s words caught in her throat for a moment. Had it shown on her face?
She shook her head.

“No, nothing like that.”

At Yeonhwa’s denial, Cheonhaerang’s lips parted briefly before closing again. He sensed that pressing further would yield nothing from her.
In truth, Cheonhaerang had many questions he wanted to ask Yeonhwa.
Where had the Jade Emperor gone? What was Yerim doing? What had happened to her?
But knowing these were questions he wouldn’t get answers to, Cheonhaerang didn’t ask.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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