Ding Yi had just emerged from the alleyway and immediately saw Qiao Yu teetering on the verge of collapse.

Without any hesitation, she hauled the other Wisher upright.

“Run, if you value your life!”

Ding Yi dragged Qiao Yu for a short distance, but was forced to release her grip to dodge an incoming attack at a sharp turn.

When she glanced back to see if Qiao Yu had managed to stand, she found her staring blankly in her direction.

“Move your feet!”

A jolt of fear, sharp and primal, shot through Qiao Yu at Ding Yi’s abrupt turn. Goosebumps prickled her skin, and her eyes burned with unshed tears.

“Okay!”

Qiao Yu scrambled to her feet, her gaze fixed intently on Ding Yi’s retreating back.

For some inexplicable reason…

She experienced a dark yet unmistakable feeling of security radiating from that figure.

She couldn’t articulate why, but she instinctively felt that the person running ahead was fundamentally different from the human trash who had repeatedly hurt and abandoned her. This person… this person surely wouldn’t abandon her.

As long as she could manage to catch up.

As long as she could close the distance, perhaps… perhaps something could finally change.

The frantic exertion of running sent waves of aching pain through her entire body, but miraculously, she found herself able to endure it. Her legs, despite the screaming protests of her muscles, continued to lift and propel her forward.

Something was already shifting within her.

The sudden thought bloomed in her mind, fragile yet persistent.

Just as a fragile tendril of hope began to take root, a grotesque beastman materialized seemingly out of nowhere and thrust a crude short sword deep into her body.

At the precise moment the cold steel pierced her flesh, she felt no pain.

Only a sharp, disorienting jolt, akin to the unsettling sensation of stepping onto empty air when ascending stairs.

Through the haze of shock, she saw the person who had been running ahead abruptly halt and turn around.

She saw her brow furrowed in a frown of… concern?

A wave of unexpected happiness washed over her.

Truly, profoundly happy.

To witness someone stop and turn back for her, even in the face of her impending death.

Qiao Yu wasn’t sure if her fading vision would allow her to convey her final thought, but she desperately tried to shape her mouth into clearer syllables.

Run.

Get away.

Run!

Her vision swam, the world dissolving into a chaotic blur of light and shadow. She strained her eyes, desperately trying to focus, to ensure that the person who had offered her a fleeting moment of comfort at the very end had escaped this perilous and terrifying place.

She saw it.

Ding Yi was running.

That was good.

I’m sorry for being so unkind to you because of a piece of worthless trash.

Thank you… You must survive.

---

It was too late by the time Ding Yi whirled around.

She clearly saw the silent message Qiao Yu had tried to convey: “Run.”

In the blink of an eye, Qiao Yu’s neck was snapped with brutal efficiency, like a delicate flower stem severed by a sharp blade.

The impact of the death, though not physical to Ding Yi, felt like a massive hand had clenched around her heart, squeezed it with agonizing force, and then twisted it cruelly.

She cursed under her breath, a raw, guttural sound.

And then she turned and ran.

A nameless, previously ignored anger surged through her veins, hot and potent.

She instinctively dodged an axe swung wildly in her direction, snatched a short sword that lay hidden amongst the fruit on a nearby stand, and whirled around to thrust it into the attacker’s side.

The beastman shrieked in pain and surprise, and Ding Yi seized the opportunity of his momentary lapse to wrest his axe from his grasp. With a brutal, unskilled swing of her arm, she brought the heavy axe down on his neck.

The humans wearing grotesque animal headgear who were watching the carnage nearby erupted in enthusiastic cheers.

They didn’t appear to be actively participating in the slaughter. They merely held their weapons, their bizarre disguises allowing them to blend in with the executioners, and they seemed to derive perverse pleasure from the death of anyone.

Ding Yi had just dispatched one attacker when she glanced up and saw Jiang Xianqing surrounded by a group of beastmen, fighting desperately. The already injured Yan Ming was waving his weapon erratically, attempting to break through the encirclement to rescue Jiang Xianqing.

The image of the young woman’s severed neck flashed before Ding Yi’s eyes once more, and the axe in her hand suddenly rose with renewed purpose.

Qin Yuan, his clothes already stained crimson with blood, had just managed to break free from his encirclement and witnessed this scene—a woman drenched in gore, raising a heavy axe, her eyes clear and devoid of any discernible emotion regarding the violence she was enacting.

Her attacks were decisive and clean. Even when a dodge seemed the logical course of action, she met the enemy’s sharp blades head-on, without hesitation, to successfully cut her attacker’s throat.

The slight furrow in her brow betrayed that she was not immune to pain, and the blood spurting from a severed throat landed in dark droplets on her face. Yet, the subtle upturn of her lips hinted at a grim satisfaction, a feeling that the exchange had been worthwhile.

Qin Yuan found himself utterly incapable of expressing the tumultuous surge of emotions that flooded him at that moment with mere words.

His throat felt constricted, and every cell in his body seemed to vibrate with an inexplicable energy.

He wanted to laugh. He wanted to offer everything he possessed to the person fighting so fiercely before him, as long as she continued to surprise him like this.

The initial surge of anger that had clouded her judgment was gradually extinguished by the constant spray of hot blood that splattered across her face and clothes.

Just as Ding Yi began to regain a semblance of calm, the axe in her hand became firmly lodged in the skull of a charging deer-beastman, and she was unable to pull it free.

She felt no particular attachment to the now-useless axe. After a single, futile attempt to dislodge it, she let go and scanned the blood-soaked ground for a more readily available weapon.

Just as she took a step backward, a fair arm wielding another axe entered her peripheral vision.

She didn’t even need to look up to know whose arm it was.

She wordlessly took the offered axe, turned back-to-back with him, and together they waved back the surrounding beastmen, who were watching them with the predatory intensity of tigers eyeing their prey.

They maneuvered to bring the injured Yan Ming and Jiang Xianqing into their protective circle.

“Ophelia!” Ding Yi roared, her voice cutting through the chaotic din of battle. “I can find your child!”

“Ophelia! Make them all stand down! I know where your child is!”

Amidst the swirling chaos, Ding Yi’s eyes met Ophelia’s. She was certain that the enraged goddess had heard her desperate plea, but all she saw reflected in those unnatural pupils was cold contempt and unwavering killing intent.

“We will only wait to die if this continues,” Ding Yi stated, her voice now slightly hoarse from her desperate shout, yet devoid of any emotional tremor. “Qin Yuan and I will clear a path for you. The apple orchard is just ahead. Go inside and find the largest apple tree.”

“The child is there.”

Yan Ming and Jiang Xianqing understood the futility of uttering useless words about staying together. They both grasped what needed to be done now to maximize their chances of survival.

Their combat prowess paled in comparison to Ding Yi and Qin Yuan’s. Instead of foolishly insisting on fighting their way out together and inadvertently distracting their protectors, it was far more prudent to make a desperate dash for the indicated location, hoping to create an opportunity for everyone to survive.

“Sister, you must hold on!” Yan Ming’s hand, gripping his sword, trembled visibly, and tears streamed down his face. “We’ll be back for you soon!”

“Ding Yi, Qin Yuan, please hold out!” Jiang Xianqing added, her voice tight with fear and determination.

“Okay!” Ding Yi responded, her voice firm despite the grim circumstances.

Influenced by Ding Yi’s sudden ferocity, Qin Yuan found himself in an exceptionally focused state.

This was only his second instance of punishment, and the current level of difficulty, while deadly, was not insurmountable. He had deliberately held back in previous situations, partly due to a lingering concern about Ding Yi’s family, a topic she consistently avoided.

And then there was that stark declaration she had made: that she was not a good person.

But now, everything felt… right.

She was still fundamentally herself, that much was clear.

His motivation, which had been somewhat subdued, surged back with renewed intensity.

Ding Yi, of course, was unaware of the intricate layers of his inner thoughts. She felt a twinge of surprise at his abrupt change. How had this typically reserved person suddenly become so… lively, as if he’d received a strong stimulant?

On second thought, that analogy wasn’t quite accurate. This was likely his true strength, finally unleashed.

So what had he been doing just moments ago?

Merely… warming up?

Yan Ming and Jiang Xianqing, who had never witnessed Qin Yuan’s true capabilities, stole two brief seconds amidst the chaos to focus and exclaim, their voices filled with awe: “Wow, Superman!”

Jiang Xianqing, her eyes wide with disbelief, muttered, “What’s wrong with him? Did he suddenly contract mad cow disease? No matter what ailment afflicts him, with that level of strength, he will be able to hold on!”

Yan Ming, his fear momentarily overshadowed by admiration, declared, “Brother Qin is indeed cold on the outside but possesses a truly warm heart! He’s as utterly reliable as Sister Ding in these critical moments! If we manage to survive this, Brother Qin will be my one and only true brother!”