Senior Sister, Please Act Human! - Chapter 17

The two of them sprinted desperately, doing everything they could to shake off the bandits. Along the way, they threw down all kinds of obstacles behind them.

Unfortunately, every time they looked back, the bandits were still chasing them.

Gradually, Xiao Yuanzhi began running out of strength. Her legs no longer felt like her own, while the bandits behind them seemed incapable of exhaustion and continued pursuing them relentlessly.

Even with Wei Zisu pulling her along, Xiao Yuanzhi truly could not run anymore.

“N-No… I can’t… run anymore.”

She had to stop for breath several times just to finish that sentence. Her throat and chest both felt unbearably painful.

Xiao Yuanzhi was not the only one exhausted. Wei Zisu was tired too, especially since she was dragging another person with her.

They could not continue running like this.

When Wei Zisu spotted a narrow alley ahead, an idea came to her. She flicked the sword in her hand, striking several baskets stacked beside the road.

With only a little force, the baskets toppled behind them.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Wei Zisu hurriedly pulled Xiao Yuanzhi into the alley. They quickly crouched down and hid behind a wooden barrel.

Xiao Yuanzhi leaned against the wall, panting heavily.

Those bandits might have been low-budget, but they could certainly run.

Had they lived in modern times, they would have taken first place in a marathon without question.

Once she had recovered slightly, Xiao Yuanzhi glanced at Wei Zisu.

At that exact moment, Wei Zisu also turned to look at her.

Their eyes met.

It was as though they both suddenly remembered something.

Wait a minute.

Why were they running?

Didn’t Wei Zisu know martial arts?

Why had they run?

Didn’t Xiao Yuanzhi know martial arts?

Why had they run?

Now it was both women’s turn to freeze.

They spoke in unison.

“Why did you run? Don’t you know martial arts?”

The moment the words left their mouths, they froze again.

So both of them had been counting on the other?

Yet no matter how they thought about it, something seemed wrong.

They clearly knew martial arts, yet they had chosen to flee.

Could there be some unspeakable reason?

Remembering Xiao Yuanzhi’s timid, evasive behavior, a suspicion arose in Wei Zisu’s mind.

“Little Junior Sister, could it be that when you lost your memory, you forgot your martial arts as well?”

Xiao Yuanzhi had to admit that Wei Zisu was quite intelligent.

One guess, and she had hit the mark.

But what was with that look in her eyes?

Why did it seem as though she were mocking her?

Damn it. Who was she looking down on?

Xiao Yuanzhi might not know martial arts, but she still possessed internal energy!

Even though she had only ever managed to use it against Wei Zisu.

Xiao Yuanzhi was not stupid enough to expose herself.

She decided to strike first and seize the moral high ground.

“So what if I did? And so what if I didn’t? If you hadn’t refused to help with anything today and forced me to work myself half to death until evening, would we have left so late? If we’d returned earlier, would we have encountered those bandits?”

Before Wei Zisu could defend herself, Xiao Yuanzhi continued, “Even if meeting them was unavoidable, you could have stepped forward and fought them, or at least drawn your sword. Would they still have dared act so arrogantly? Would we have been chased?”

“Just look at what you did. You stood aside because it didn’t concern you. We’re both disciples of Cangfeng Manor, yet not only did you refuse to help me, you pushed me forward and distanced yourself from me.”

“And I was still thinking about you at the time.”

Xiao Yuanzhi let out a cold laugh, sounding exactly like someone mocking herself for trusting the wrong person.

“Now you even have the nerve to suspect me.”

She had originally wanted to add that her kindness had been wasted on a dog.

However, she feared provoking Wei Zisu and causing that hard-earned guilt to vanish completely.

So she changed it to, “No good deed goes unpunished.”

Xiao Yuanzhi dumped all the blame onto Wei Zisu.

After only a few sentences, Wei Zisu was left unable to save face and even felt slightly guilty.

After all, what Xiao Yuanzhi said was indeed true.

“I… I… I…”

Wei Zisu found it difficult to speak.

She repeated the word several times but could not produce a proper explanation.

Still, she did not want to give up. She wanted to defend herself and prove she was not the kind of person Xiao Yuanzhi described.

Seeing Wei Zisu looking so frustrated immediately brightened Xiao Yuanzhi’s mood.

Wonderful.

This felt absolutely wonderful!

She almost wanted to stand up with her hands on her hips, point down at Wei Zisu, and declare:

Wei Zisu, so you have days like this too! Weren’t you so arrogant a few days ago? What happened today? Go on—be arrogant!

However, Xiao Yuanzhi had no desire to court death, so she restrained herself.

“Then why didn’t you attack them? Could you be injured and unable to use martial arts? Will your meridians rupture and kill you the moment you use internal energy?”

Xiao Yuanzhi had only made a random guess and spoken casually.

Yet Wei Zisu looked at her with a hint of astonishment, as though Xiao Yuanzhi had exposed her secret.

Wei Zisu had concealed her condition so well.

Only when she used martial arts that day had her master accidentally noticed.

How did Xiao Yuanzhi know?

Could Xiao Yuanzhi’s martial arts truly have reached such an advanced level?

Could she determine Wei Zisu’s condition with only one glance?

But that did not make sense either.

If Xiao Yuanzhi was really that powerful, why would she fear those bandits?

Wei Zisu did not understand and did not dare reach a conclusion too quickly.

Xiao Yuanzhi suddenly remembered that she had accidentally used internal energy before and struck Wei Zisu hard enough to make her cough up blood.

“Don’t tell me you were injured when I hit you a few days ago?”

Fuck.

Was the original owner really that powerful?

Wei Zisu needed only one glance to understand what Xiao Yuanzhi was thinking.

She rolled her eyes—a rare display from her.

Of course that was impossible.

Still, Xiao Yuanzhi’s attack had been the beginning of what aggravated her condition.

Two months earlier, Wei Zisu had accompanied several junior brothers and sisters on a training expedition. She had suffered serious injuries during the journey.

She had finally recovered for the most part when Xiao Yuanzhi suddenly struck her while her guard was down.

That alone had not been too serious. Three to five days of rest would have been enough for her to recover.

Unfortunately, Xiao Yuanzhi seemed determined to make her life difficult.

By sheer coincidence, Wei Zisu had merely passed by and overheard Xiao Yuanzhi speaking badly about her behind her back.

Enraged, she disregarded her injuries and used internal energy to carry Xiao Yuanzhi into the tree.

Then, during martial arts class, Xiao Yuanzhi had talked in circles until Wei Zisu was forced to demonstrate the techniques.

Her master had even agreed.

What else could Wei Zisu do?

She had no choice but to force herself to perform.

Had Xiao Yuanzhi not repeatedly caused trouble like this, Wei Zisu’s injuries would not have worsened again and again.

Nor would she have repeatedly used internal energy before recovering.

That night, her master visited her and examined her pulse.

She gave Wei Zisu medicine for her injuries and repeatedly warned her that she must not use internal energy again until she had recovered.

If she ignored the warning, the lighter consequence would be losing all her internal energy.

At worst, she would lose her life.

The techniques Wei Zisu normally practiced required internal energy and cultivation methods to be used together. Only then could she bring out the full power of her swordsmanship.

Unfortunately, she was injured.

Even if she fought, her strength would be greatly reduced.

Moreover, she did not know how capable those bandits were, so she had not dared attack recklessly.

As Wei Zisu continued thinking, she suddenly realized something was wrong.

Wasn’t Xiao Yuanzhi the reason she had ended up in this condition?

Wei Zisu looked at Xiao Yuanzhi with profound meaning in her eyes.

How did Xiao Yuanzhi have the nerve to place all the blame on her?

That gaze made Xiao Yuanzhi’s skin crawl.

Why did it feel as though Wei Zisu might draw her sword and stab her in the next moment?

Xiao Yuanzhi said nervously, “I… I don’t think I did anything to you. I only injured you by accident last time. But to make up for my mistake that day, I saved you today!”

As though trying to make Wei Zisu understand the significance of this, Xiao Yuanzhi raised her voice and repeated herself.

“I saved you!”

One of the bandits had originally planned to search in another direction.

He had only taken a few steps when he heard a voice.

Following the sound, he entered the alley and looked around carefully.

Although his footsteps were light, Wei Zisu heard them with perfect clarity.

She hurriedly covered Xiao Yuanzhi’s mouth and moved her left hand toward her sword.

Just as she was about to draw it, powder suddenly fell from above them.

Before either woman could hold her breath, both collapsed unconscious.

Once the two women had fallen, the bandit dusted off his hands.

The Bone-Softening Powder truly deserved its reputation.

He called toward the others outside.

“Third Brother, I found them! They’re in here!”