Hu Mengyao reacted quickly, too quickly for Hu Yulin to pursue further.
At this moment, the foreign middle-aged man also approached Hu Yulin and looked out the window with a smile.
"The Dharma of Great Xia is truly miraculous," he said with an elegant laugh.
Hu Yulin, however, was in no mood for pleasantries. He turned to the man and said, "Mr. Connors, she knows our secret. We cannot let her escape, or she will bring us a great deal of trouble."
Connors smiled at this. "No, no, it will bring *you* trouble, not me."
"That is true," Hu Yulin conceded, "but surely you don't want the Ninth Division to know you've come to Great Xia, do you?"
Connors paused, his earlier elegance vanishing as he stared intently at Hu Yulin.
Just as Hu Yulin began to feel uneasy under the intense gaze, Connors broke into a smile again. "Hu, we are friends. I will help you this time, but I hope there won't be a next time. Otherwise..."
"Of course, of course. I will continue to rely on your assistance, sir."
Connors said no more, his entire body dissolving into a wisp of black smoke that dissipated into the air.
Hu Yulin loosened the button at his collar and let out a long sigh, his face etched with worry.
***
"Your fourteenth brother is in trouble, and you're still so happy?"
Yang Ruoyun was puzzled by Hu Yulin's continuous smile after leaving the milk tea shop.
"This means Sister Si is fine," Hu Mengyao said, clenching her fist in anger. "The problem lies with Fourteenth Brother, not that rotten thing Hu Yulin. He really isn't a good... fox."
"Do you not get along with him?"
"Few in the clan get along with him; everyone dislikes him. He shamelessly pestered Sister Si to bring him out to see the world, and I never expected..."
At this point, Hu Mengyao's face turned troubled.
"I wonder how Sister Si is doing? And who was that foreigner?"
"Could there be any danger to her life?"
Yang Ruoyun's words were subtle, but Hu Mengyao understood their implication.
Hu Mengyao shook her head. "No, because her Heart Lock has not shattered."
As she spoke, she revealed a bracelet on her wrist adorned with several star-shaped pendants.
"An elder in the clan made these for us. Each star represents a person. If they die, the heart on it will crack."
"It's good that she's alive. Since that's the case, I'll find her first."
Hu Mengyao nodded. "She must still be at the beauty salon, perhaps even in the office."
"Why are you so sure?"
"If she wasn't, Hu Yulin wouldn't have been able to prevent us from entering Sister Si's office."
"Then shall we find a way to rescue her?"
Hu Mengyao nodded. "We must rescue her, of course, but with just the two of us..."
She appraised Yang Ruoyun, clearly lacking confidence.
"I'm quite capable, you know?" Yang Ruoyun said, clenching her fist with youthful vigor.
"Sister Si is also very capable, yet she was ambushed. I'm not afraid of Hu Yulin, but I don't know the origin of that foreigner?"
"Does your Sister Si have any foreign enemies?" Yang Ruoyun asked with a touch of curiosity.
Hu Mengyao fell silent. Not only did she have enemies, but she had deep-seated animosity.
She was aware of Hu Siniang preying on vampires, but she hadn't paid it much mind. For one, vampires were hardly considered human. Secondly, they weren't demons from Great Xia, so she didn't concern herself with them.
"It seems she does."
Seeing Hu Mengyao's silence, Yang Ruoyun took it as affirmation.
"The possibility of seeking revenge is quite high."
Hu Mengyao also had a sudden realization. The foreigner was very likely a vampire.
With this thought, Hu Mengyao felt a premonition. She looked up at the night sky, noticing several bats fluttering above.
"Let's go."
She pulled Yang Ruoyun and darted into a nearby alley, using the darkness to flee swiftly.
Yang Ruoyun blinked in surprise, then her gaze followed Hu Mengyao's to the sky.
"Bats?"
"Vampires?"
Yang Ruoyun, being extremely intelligent, quickly grasped the situation.
Despite their speed, the bats in the air were faster and more agile, and the two couldn't shake them off.
"Run towards a crowded area," Yang Ruoyun suggested.
Hu Mengyao realized Yang Ruoyun's reasoning. The pursuers were foreigners, no, foreign demons, who would likely not dare to act recklessly in a crowded place, especially considering the deterrent effect of the Ninth Division.
Otherwise, few foreign demons would have dared to come to Great Xia over the years.
It wasn't that they didn't want to come, but that they dared not.
The two girls burst out of the alley and merged into the bustling crowds.
It was around eight or nine in the evening, the busiest time outside, with a throng of people.
After entering the crowd, they couldn't resist glancing back. At the mouth of the alley stood a fair-skinned, blonde middle-aged man in a well-tailored black suit, watching them with a smile.
"This seems troublesome," Yang Ruoyun frowned.
The fact that he was so brazen suggested he had some backing and wasn't worried about them escaping.
"Let's just keep moving," Hu Mengyao said.
So, they headed directly for more crowded areas, passing through several shopping malls, entering and exiting through different doors.
During this time, Hu Mengyao used a pen to draw several duplicates of themselves, making them disappear in different directions to confuse their pursuers.
"This is truly miraculous! Who taught you this Dharma?"
"My mother taught me," Hu Mengyao replied.
"Did your mother create this Dharma herself? It's quite rare. What is it called?"
"No, someone taught her. My mother said it's called 'Da Yan Chun Qiu'."
"Da Yan Chun Qiu? ... This damned thing... this damned thing..."
Yang Ruoyun's expression turned grim upon hearing this. She muttered curses under her breath and scrutinized Hu Mengyao.
Da Yan Chun Qiu was Feng Zhirun's summation of his painting path, meaning to capture the annals of time with his brush. Da Yan also signified the vastness of heaven and earth, thus Da Yan Chun Qiu meant that with his brush, he could depict all things in the world and the cycle of seasons. It was an extremely profound Dharma, representing the highest attainment in the art of painting.
"What's wrong?" Hu Mengyao asked, puzzled.
"Do you know who your father is?" Yang Ruoyun inquired.
Hu Mengyao looked surprised by the question but still answered.
"I'm not an idiot. Of course, I know who my father is. Unfortunately, he also died over a decade ago. It's thanks to Sister Si's care that I've been looked after," Hu Mengyao said with a trace of sadness.
"He's your biological father?"
"Of course, he's my biological father! You've been acting strangely since a moment ago." Hu Mengyao's expression turned somewhat displeased.
If it weren't for her good relationship with Yang Ruoyun, she would have already lost her temper. The fox clan's reputation wasn't particularly good, and Yang Ruoyun's question felt like an insult to her mother.
"I didn't mean it that way. It's just that I know the origin of Da Yan Chun Qiu, so..."
Hu Mengyao suddenly understood.
"The reason that person taught my mother this Dharma was because..."