Chapter 64: Escaping Death and Reaching Safety

Hua Sheng violently slammed his forehead against the white-robed man's face.

With a loud thud, sparks danced before his own eyes, and the man certainly didn't have it any better. Clutching his face, the man dropped his dagger to the floor.

Hua Sheng lashed out with a kick, sending the dagger sliding away. Fearing the man might reach for it again, he lunged in the opposite direction of the dropped weapon, grappling fiercely with the assailant.

The two collided wildly across the room, sending various furnishings clattering to the floor!

Amidst the chaos, the wardrobe was knocked over. Its doors swung open to reveal an interior that was completely empty.

Not a single piece of clothing belonging to the family of three was left!

Too many bizarre things had happened in this wooden cabin, but Hua Sheng could no longer afford to care. Grabbing the white-robed man by the collar while they wrestled, he roared, "Why on earth are you trying to capture us? What kind of damned game are you playing?"

Ignoring him, the white-robed man rolled over, pinning Hua Sheng to the wooden floor, and without a word, wrapped his thick hands tightly around Hua Sheng's throat.

With his immortal magic inexplicably failing, Hua Sheng found himself gasping for air as he struggled to fight back. Yet, the assailant possessed the robust physique typical of a heavily built Westerner.

Hua Sheng tried to push against the man's face, but his efforts achieved nothing except smearing the blood from his own hands across the man's face.

Just as things reached a critical juncture, Jane rushed forward wielding the thick Codex of the Starry Rainbow and smashed it mercilessly against the back of the white-robed man's head!

Following a dull thud, while the codex failed to knock the man unconscious, it at least forced him to loosen his grip for half a second.

Seizing the opportunity, Hua Sheng snatched up a fallen brass vase from the floor and struck it hard against the man's temple!

With a resounding crash, the man toppled over to the left.

Hua Sheng immediately rolled over to free himself, only to discover that the white-robed man had been knocked out cold on the floor.

At the same time, he caught sight of Jane’s pale, panic-stricken face.

Stammering nervously, Jane asked, "Why... why did my magic fail?"

"My immortal arts too. Even the incantations are useless! I don't know what's going on, but right now we're just like ordinary people."

Without hesitation, Hua Sheng yanked off the white-robed man's hood, revealing the unfamiliar face of a middle-aged European man.

Hua Sheng frantically searched his memory; he didn't know many foreigners to begin with. He confirmed that he did not recognize this man, nor had he ever laid eyes on him before.

Instead, he heard Jane gasp in a low voice beside him:

"How could it be him?!"

Hua Sheng quickly pressed, "You know this man?"

"I do!" Jane said, staring down at the white-robed man on the floor. "He is Professor Bervis. A full professor and head of the Department of White Magic at clin Magic Academy."

Hua Sheng was somewhat puzzled. "As far as I know, isn't white magic supposed to be healing-type spells? Cast mostly by priests and the like. Why would he want to kill us?"

He pointed at Jane. "Furthermore, he even wanted to kill you. Aren't you a top student at clin Magic Academy?"

Jane wore an expression of sheer disbelief.

"I have no idea why. He even taught me white magic in class, and he's usually extremely kind."

Hua Sheng gazed down at the man on the ground.

"Perhaps looks can be deceiving."

He wasn't familiar with this man named Bervis, and he had no time to dwell on it, as he urgently needed to check on the phantom-like figure.

Yet, when he looked back, the "Phantom" that had clearly been sitting there was gone!

Occupying the exact same chair was now Shadow-Slayer Xiao Qi, her golden-brown hair bound tightly.

With her head drooping, she had already passed out.

Hua Sheng hurried forward, dropping to his knees to call out, "Xiao Qi! Xiao Qi!"

There was no response from Xiao Qi.

Hua Sheng gently patted her cheek. "Are you alright? Wake up..."

"Mmm..."

Groaning as she regained consciousness, Xiao Qi's very first words were, "If you dare slap this young lady's face again, see if I don't bite your finger right off!"

Hearing that familiar voice, the rock in Hua Sheng's chest finally settled.

A sudden ache welled up in his nose, and he immediately pulled Xiao Qi into a tight embrace. "Thank God you're alive! As long as you're safe!"

Caught off guard by the fierce hug, Xiao Qi remained silent at first, but a moment later, Hua Sheng heard her softly sobbing against his shoulder.

Holding her close, Hua Sheng asked, "You're usually so quick-witted, how could you be foolish enough to choose yourself in a life-or-death situation like this? Why did you pick yourself?"

"It's none of your business! This young lady will choose whoever she wants..."

Xiao Qi sniffled, and then abruptly opened her mouth and bit down hard on Hua Sheng's shoulder!

Hua Sheng felt a sharp pain in his shoulder, but he did not struggle.

After biting down for a moment, she ultimately softened her grip, loosened her teeth, and whispered instead, "Hurry up and untie these ropes for me, or my snot is going to drip all over your shoulder."

Only then did Hua Sheng remember that Xiao Qi's hands were still bound, and he hurriedly set about untying her.

Xiao Qi pulled out a handkerchief to wipe her nose.

Once the ropes were tossed to the ground, the sudden wave of relaxation made Hua Sheng feel as though his bones were falling apart, and he slumped heavily onto the floor.

Only then did Xiao Qi notice the injuries on Hua Sheng's palms and thighs, her tone laced with a hint of heartache.

"You blockhead, how did you get hurt?"

"It's nothing, just a bit clumsy." Hua Sheng spread his palms to inspect them and said, "What on earth do you usually practice to end up with so many injuries? You must have been slacking off."

"I ran into a... slight mishap."

Noticing the white-robed man unconscious on the floor, Xiao Qi asked, "What just happened here?"

"Earlier, you vanished, and a strange figure appeared in this seat, claiming her name was Phantom."

Hua Sheng was still unable to determine whether that person was connected to Xiao Qi.

Xiao Qi was quite startled at first, but her expression quickly calmed.

"Eighth Sister appeared?"

"You're saying Eighth Sister is Phantom?"

Xiao Qi nodded. "Eighth Sister never shows herself under normal circumstances. Sometimes she won't appear even once in a year or two. So sometimes we even forget she exists."

"Why is she called Phantom?"

Slowly, Xiao Qi explained, "This isn't a name given by our parents; Eighth Sister chose it for herself."

"She named herself?"

Xiao Qi nodded and continued, "Not only that, but every time she appears, the duration never exceeds one luoyu, which is equivalent to one hundred and forty-four seconds in modern time..."

Hua Sheng was still eager to hear Xiao Qi elaborate on Eighth Sister "Phantom," when Jane suddenly hurried forward, lifted the noose from around Xiao Qi's neck, tossed it aside, and urged, "We need to leave quickly! It'll spell trouble once Professor Bervis wakes up!"

Thinking this made sense, and since they still needed to hurry onward to southern France, Hua Sheng had no desire to linger and invite further complications.

He rushed over to retrieve the iron-banded golden hoop chain from the floor. To his surprise, the moment he reached out, the chain flew straight into his palm.

Looking closer, the flame inside the pendant had recovered its former brilliance.

He hastily slipped the chain around his neck and shouted, "As-You-Wish Golden-Hooped Rod!"

A flash of multicolored golden light crossed the room, and the staff flew into Hua Sheng's hand. Catching it, he found it felt heavy, yet he could swing it effortlessly once more.

"My immortal magic is back!"

Overjoyed, he brandished the golden staff and smashed it against the front door, shattering it into splinters in an instant.

The three of them hurried out of the wooden cabin, only to find the red Ferrari sports car still parked outside. However, the thick thorn bushes blocking the path ahead had vanished, replaced instead by an accessible mountain trail.

Looking down the winding path, they could see in the distance where it merged into a wider country road.

Jane said with delight, "The magic array trapping us has been lifted!"