Reign of the Hunters
chapter-215

Bai Mo stopped dead in his tracks, and Ye Ci stopped as well.

They stood their ground, silently observing the mob of people that has surrounded them.

“It seems that we’re in trouble.” a smile formed on Bai Mo’s lips despite his cold expression. He looked at Ye Ci, trying his best to appear calm, hoping that he could calm her nerves. Many would mistake Ye Ci as a tough girl due to her exploits in the game. However, there was something Bai Mo would never forget.

Ye Ci was a little girl. In game and in real life.

If Ye Ci could be said to be tough as nails in the game, she was just a normal girl in real life.

In a situation that was full of danger with unknown circumstances, Bai Mo’s first thought was to create a chance for Ye Ci to escape, “I’ll distract them, I want you to seize the opportunity and escape.”

Ye Ci was standing beside Bai Mo and staring at the youngsters advancing upon them, as if she did not even hear his words. Her mind wandered back to the distant past that was her previous life. At that time, she had incurred the wrath of a powerful individual, who investigated her real life identity. She ran into the same situation on her way home one night. How did I survive through that back then?

She took in a deep breath, trying her hardest to remember. However, no matter how hard she tried, Ye Ci could not remember what transpired that night. The only thing she knew was that she was trashed within an inch of her life, and was sent to the hospital by a passerby. To think about it, the incident must be the cause of her ruthlessness in game.

Since then, Ye Ci deeply believed that if she did not crush her enemies thoroughly, they would rise up again and cause trouble for her. Because of that, she was crowned as the most cold-blooded top-tier player in Fate.

But… What about now?

Ye Ci had no time for such thoughts, as the youngsters were closing in on her and Bai Mo.

“Little Ci.” Bai Mo nudged Ye Ci when he received no response from her, trying to gain her attention. The events that happened next came as a shock to Bai Mo.

No sooner said than done.

The moment Bai Mo gave Ye Ci a nudge, the youngster who was walking at the front swung a baseball bat at Ye Ci’s face.

“Hehe… This lass is scared shitless…” said the youngster as he took his swing. However, the baseball bat did not hit its mark, while the youngster felt a sudden impact on his neck before he could finish his sentence. The youngster’s mind was blank as he flew backwards as a result of the force.

Bai Mo had already extended his arm in front of Ye Ci as an attempt to protect her and extended his arm to grab hold of Ye Ci. He wanted to pull her away and run to safety. However, Bai Mo caught nothing but air. He could not believe his eyes. He could not believe the events that just happened in front of him. Ye Ci, who was originally beside him dashed forward when he attempted to shield her from the blow.

Her movements were agile, but it was still not the source of Bai Mo’s astonishment. What happened next was something that Bai Mo would never expect. Ye Ci lifted her leg, and landed a solid kick on the youngster’s throat.

Ye Ci executed her kick in a very smoothly. Judging from her stance and the force of her kick, it was apparent that she had some experience with mixed martial arts. The youngster who was still talking aloud moments ago landed on the ground, with his eyes rolling into their sockets. The baseball bat on his hands fell onto ground with a loud “clunk!”.

Everything happened so fast that no one was able to react to it yet. Bai Mo was stunned when the youngster fell onto the ground. The rest of the youngsters were dumbfounded as well. The only person who kept her cool was Ye Ci.

Ye Ci retracted her legs and immediately picked up the baseball bet. She then tugged at Bai Mo’s sleeves and said in a low voice, “What are you doing? Run!”

Bai Mo was completely in shock. He did not know how to react to the situation unfolding before him. He would not be so surprised if it happened in the game. Ye Ci was a strong Huntress who was very good in PVE and PVP. However, this happened in real life. Why does it feel like Ye Ci was using a cheat engine in real life? She was able to knock out a young man who was nearly twice her size! How did she do that?

Bai Mo’s mind was completely blank. “How did you know how to fight? Since when have you trained in mixed martial arts?”

It was a question that Ye Ci had no answer to. The Ye Ci as this time was not trained in any form of martial arts. Even if she was strong in the game, she was just a normal little girl in real life. However, after being hospitalized in her last life, Ye Ci has learned mixed martial arts for several years so that she could be tough in real life as well.

Of course, it all happened in her last life, and had nothing to do with her current life. Everything happened so fast that Ye Ci simply reacted out of sheer instincts.

The throat, which is at a person’s neck, was one of the spots where athletes were prohibited to attack in tournaments. That was one of the weak spots of the human body. A miscalculation of force could easily result in death.

It was something that Ye Ci’s coach has tried to instill in her mind in her last life. However, Ye Ci preferred to take her opponent out with one blow in actual combat. She preferred to strike her opponents at their weak spot, and a strike to the neck was often unexpected and hard to guard against. That was why it was one of Ye Ci’s favourite spots.

Because of that, even if Ye Ci was never involved in a fight in her current life, her training in her last life provided her with the reflexes she needed to react. That was why she aimed at the youngster’s throat with her kick.

“What do you mean I’ve trained in mixed martial arts? I learnt it from watching movies,” said Ye Ci, “and I practiced some moves in front of the TV…”

“By the way, that guy was hit in the neck right? Will he die?” Bai Mo was reminded of an even more important issue.

“Nah, he won’t. I did not put much force into the kick.” Ye Ci was quite unsure as well. Although her current self lacked the strength to fight, her kick did pack some force. She herself unsure of what would happen to the youngster’s throat when it was hit by her kick.

“We won’t be able to get away! There’s just too many of them!” noting that they were about to be surrounded, Bai Mo took the baseball bat away from Ye Ci, “I’ve learned some martial arts, I’ll be able to take care of them. You go on ahead!”

“It’s oka-” Ye Ci was confident of her abilities to take the thugs on, and rejected Bai Mo’s proposal.

Before she could finish her sentence, she was pushed away by Bai Mo, “Run! Run or you’ll die!”

Ye Ci staggered backwards with the force of Bai Mo’s push. As she turned around, Bai Mo was already surrounded by the youngsters. He flailed the baseball bat around wildly in an attempt to keep the thugs away. Ye Ci was ready to rejoin the fray, but Bai Mo anticipated her intentions, “Ye Ci! Go! Get help or I’m dead!” shouted Bai Mo.

Despite her reluctance, Ye Ci decided against such a rash action. She immediately turned around and fled. After noticing that Ye Ci was running away, her pursuers turned focused their attention on Bai Mo instead. This gave Ye Ci the precious time to call the police with her phone as she ran. After successfully reporting the location of the incident to the police, Ye Ci headed back to the scene. The police would usually take 5 minutes to respond to such a call, and in that short time, Bai Mo might not be able to live to see the next day.

Even with Ye Ci’s presence, the odds were stacked greatly against them. However, it was still better than facing the entire group of opponents alone. Ye Ci immediately ran back to the scene, picking up a wooden stick on her way there.

As she approached the scene of the fight, Ye Ci could see the crowd, but Bai Mo was nowhere in sight, fueling her anxiety. She rushed at the crowd, swinging wildly at anybody within reach. Her blows were painful, but not lethal.

The youngster who was hit by Ye Ci turned around and glared at her with gritted teeth.

“You f*cking bitch! We gave you the chance to run away, but you came back instead! I’ll beat the living shit out of you!”

Ye Ci wasted no time in responding to his words. She began swinging wildly at some of the youths who had focused their attention on her. As she was occupied with dodging blows while swinging the stick around at her opponents, Ye Ci did not have the chance to look for Bai Mo. “Bai Mo! Bai Mo! Are you still there?” she could only shout at his general direction in desperation.

At that time, Bai Mo was already heavily injured. He stood his ground, hoping to buy time for Ye Ci, hoping that she would be able to get away. He did not expect to hear Ye Ci’s voice calling out to him. He turned around reflexively, and was shocked to find Ye Ci fighting off some of the youngsters with a wooden stick. “What are you doing? Didn’t I tell you to run aw-” shouted Bai Mo.

As he was distracted, Bai Mo felt a sharp pain on his head. His vision immediately blurred as the every ounce of energy left his body, and his consciousness began to fade… Before his consciousness was swallowed whole by darkness, Bai Mo could hear the mournful shriek of Ye Ci, “BAI MO!”

Ye Ci immediately turned around at Bai Mo’s direction when she heard his voice, just in time to catch a youngster taking a swing at his head with a baseball bad. She immediately cried out a warning, “Bai Mo!” However, it was too late. As the words left her mouth, Bai Mo slumped onto the ground like a puppet with its strings cut off. There was blood all over his face.

At that moment, Ye Ci’s world became an absolute vacuum.

There was only one thought in her mind.

Is Bai Mo dead? Is Bai Mo dead because of me again? Is Bai Mo going to leave me behind just like that again?

She could not believe such a fact, and was unwilling to believe such a fact. Ye Ci’s body reacted automatically. She brought down the few youngsters around her, striking at their vitals. There was only one thought that was reverberating in her mind.

I want to see Bai Mo! I want to see Bai Mo!

“No! Bai Mo!” Ye Ci shrieked out loud, the despair in her voice cutting through the silent night of the city. She rushed at the crowd surrounding Bai Mo, waving the stick in her hand frantically.

“F*ck, this bitch is a fiesty one! Hurry, let’s beat her up and go home!” shouted one of the thugs, and the rest immediately surrounded Ye Ci.

It was impossible for Ye Ci to fight off so many of them at the same time. After receiving a kick from the back, Ye Ci lost her balance and fell onto the ground. Blows after blows began raining on her the moment she was on the ground. However, she did not feel pain. She laid on the ground, trying to spot Bai Mo through the opening of their legs, and she found him lying on the ground without a shred of consciousness. It was as if he was dead.

Or… Perhaps… He was really dead…

Ye Ci’s heart was gripped by anguish and despair. She had never tasted the feeling of losing something so precious to her twice.

At that moment, Ye Ci could not even feel the pain on her body. All the sound in the world faded away from her sense. There was only one thing left in her vision and her mind: Bai Mo.

Before she could realize it, Ye Ci was pulled up from the ground by a person, and a gentle voice assaulted her sense, pulling her out of her daze. Ye Ci turned around to find a young man in police uniform staring at her with a concerned expression.

“Bai Mo! Bai Mo!” Ye Ci’s mind was blank. She pointed at the direction of Bai Mo and shouted at the officer, “Save him! Please! Save him!”

“Bai Mo?” the police officer was confused, but he was quick to understand Ye Ci’s when he noticed he direction Ye Ci was pointing at, “It’s okay, we’ve carried him into the ambulance. Let’s go, miss.”

“Where’s Bai Mo?” Ye Ci was oblivious to the officer’s words. She stumbled around in a confused daze, looking for Bai Mo who was no longer in sight. The pool of blood on the ground was a reminder of the incident earlier on. Fear gripped Ye Ci’s heart, and she grabbed hold of the young policeman, “Officer, where’s Bai Mo?” screamed Ye Ci at the top of her lungs as she shook the officer in a hysterical fit. She was no longer in control of her emotions.

One should never underestimate the strength of a person who was in hysteria, even if the person was a young girl. Ye Ci was the perfect example. The tall and sturdy police officer almost lost his balance when a hysterical Ye Ci grabbed onto him, rattling him out of his senses.

“Somebody please help me out here. Get her into the ambulance.” the officer who almost lost his footing called out to his colleagues for help.

It took three grown men to pin Ye Ci down and carry her into the ambulance.

A young man was already in the ambulance. When Ye Ci laid her eyes on the young man, she was able to calm down a little.

This young man had an oxygen mask covering his face, which was soaked in blood. Every inch of his body was bruised and battered. Despite that, Ye Ci was still able to recognize him as Bai Mo.

It was the Bai Mo whom she cared dearly for, the Bai Mo who promised to stay by her side. She threw herself at Bai Mo, ignoring her own pains, “Bai Mo…”

“Aiya, what are you doing?” the nurse in the ambulance pulled Ye Ci aside and said in a stern voice, “Do you want him to die? Are you trying to get him killed?”

Ye Ci was taken aback by the nurse’s outburst. She nodded, and took a seat in the ambulance, “Alright, alright. I will just sit by his side.”

The nurse let go of Ye Ci, while her colleague climbed into the ambulance, shutting the door behind him. He observed Ye Ci closely, and found that she was in really bad shape. The doctor immediately instructed the nurse to lay Ye Ci onto a stretcher.

As the medical personnel were busying with their task of inspecting Ye Ci’s injuries, she turned around and looked at Bai Mo who was so near to her. The electrocardiogram machine was placed just above his head, and the pulsing of the lines in the machine’s display an indicator that Bai Mo was alive. Ye Ci pulled Bai Mo’s hand into a tight grip.

His palm was cold, but a sliver of warmth remained. Ye Ci could feel warm liquid gushing out of his palm, dampening her own palm.

At that moment, Ye Ci’s vision blurred, and tears rolled down the corners of her eyes. She could not remember a single moment that was able to bring her to tears. This was the only time in Ye Ci’s life where her eyes were filled with tears. Even she herself was unsure if they were tears of joy or that of sorrow. Ye Ci’s sob grew louder and louder and she eventually was no longer able to hold back. Even her body began to tremble as she sobbed her heart out.

“Are you alright? Does it hurt?” the nurse that was looking after Ye Ci immediately leaned in closer to her.

Ye Ci wanted to shake her head, but she had lost control of her body. Her sobs went on unrestrained as her body was rocked with waves of sobs.

“Get her sedated, quick!” said the doctor after doing a quick inspection on Ye Ci and making sure that everything was fine. .

The nurse nodded, and immediately injected Ye Ci with sedative. Her movements were quick and practiced, giving Ye Ci no time to react. As the sedative flowed into Ye Ci’s system, her body started to relax, and her tensed muscles loosened up. Even the force of her sobs died down. Ye Ci started feeling tired.. She was so groggy, that she felt as if she did not have energy left to breathe.

Before her world plunged into darkness, the only thing in Ye Ci’s vision was Bai Mo’s face.

My body hurts.The pain was so unbearable that Ye Ci felt as if she was about to die. A deep frown appeared on Ye Ci’s face. She had the urge to curse at the top of her lungs.

“Ah… She’s awake!” Zuo Xiaolan’s voice entered Ye Ci’s ears. Her eyes were immediately stung by the sunlight as she forced her eyelids open. She could see the silhouette of Zuo Xiaolan in front of her, “Little Ci, how are you feeling?”

Zuo Xiaolan who went through a night full of anxiety rubbed away her tears and leaned closer to Ye Ci when she noticed that her daughter was awake.

It took Ye Ci a long time to focus her eyes to be able to see the faces in front of her clearly, and it took her even longer to recognize the faces. She opened her mouth to speak, and the voice that left her mouth was as coarse as sandpaper, “Mom…”

“It’s alright. It’s alright now. You don’t have to say anything. It’s good that you’re awake. Are you thirsty? Do you want something to eat?” asked Zuo Xiaolan with a smile on her face, but the traces of tears were still present in the corner of her eyes.

“Where’s Bai Mo?” asked Ye Ci after staring at the concerned faces of Zuo Xiaolan, Ye Nantian, and Tan Polang for a long moment.

“He’s in the room next door. This is a ward for female patients. He’s in the ward for male patients.” Zuo Xiaolan answered her daughter’s question while wiping away the remainder of her tears.

“Why are you not taking care of him?” Ye Ci could see the Bai Mo’s bloodied and battered face the moment she closed her eyes, and her heart was immediately filled with grievances.

“Your uncle and aunty came. They’re taking care of him.”

Just then, a hurried set of footsteps rang out in the hallway, followed by the voice of Ye Ci’s aunt, Zuo Xiaoqing, “Is Little Ci awake?”

“Aunty…” it has been quite a few years since Ye Ci had last met Zuo Xiaoqing. She was playful in nature, and despite being the older sister of Zuo Xiaolan, she acted more like a little sister to her. She would always travel to the different countries in the world on a whim just to have fun. Ye Ci remembered Zuo Xiaoqing as an elegant woman who was always dressed in the most fashionable clothing that has a beautiful smile.

Ye Ci could not believe her eyes when she saw Zuo Xiaoqing. Her hair was messy and her face unwashed. There was not an ounce of make up on her face. Her aunt appeared to be aged in the span of a night. Her looks were a sharp contrast to the elegant clothing she was dressed into.

She must’ve been very sad over this entire incident. thought Ye Ci to herself. Mothers are the same. No matter how they behave usually, their maternal instincts would always surface when something happened to their children.

Zuo Xiaoqing and Zuo Xiaolan were such example.

“My child, my sweet child,” Zuo Xiaoqing sat by Ye Ci’s bed, grabbing hold of her hand while caressing her hair, “aunty would have been worried to death if you had not woken up by now.”

“Aunty, where’s Bai Mo.” Ye Ci was relieved to see Zuo Xiaoqing.

“He woke up way earlier than you did, but he’s now asleep after a light meal. He did ask about you when he woke up. When he learned that you’re still unconscious, he was worried.” tears flowed from Zuo Xiaoqing’s eyes as she spoke to Ye Ci.

“Little Qing, what are you doing? She’s awake now. Didn’t the doctor say that she’ll no longer be in danger if she’s able to wake up? Why are you still crying?” said the man standing beside Zuo Xiaoqing. He was the father of Bai Mo, Bai Zixuan.

“I guess you’re right.” Zuo Xiaolan immediately wiped away her tears and her expression grew serious, “Little Ci, I have a question for you. Do you know who is responsible for beating you up?”

Ye Ci was momentarily stunned. It was a question that had never occurred to her. “I did not think about it yet.

“Your uncle and I have been thinking about it for an entire night, but we can’t figure out the culprit behind this. I’ve asked Bai Mo about this as well when he woke up, but he was clueless as well. This is why aunty wants to ask you. Do you know who is responsible for this?” despite her easy going nature, Zuo Xiaoqing was no pushover. With her rather influential husband, she was actually quite fierce.

Ye Ci shook her head, “I have to think about it.”

“Alright, take your time. There’s no need to hurry. Aunty and uncle will be here. This thing can’t end just like that.” Zuo Xiaoqing wanted to ask more questions, but Bai Zixuan shook his head, indicating that she should give Ye Ci some time to rest. She let out a sigh, and kept the questions to herself. She knew that something like this could not be rushed.

“Nantian, let’s go to the police station with me. Haven’t they caught quite a number of those thugs? Let’s go there to inquire about the interrogation process.” said Bai Zixuan to Ye Nantian after making sure that his wife calmed down. There was nothing they could do in the hospital, which was why they opted to head to the police station in search for clues.

Bai Zixuan’s thoughts were in line with Ye Nantian, “Alright. I have thought about this as well.” said Ye Nantian with a nod.

With that, Bai Zixuan and Ye Nantian left for the police station.

However, things did not proceed as simple as they were portrayed in the movies. The thugs caught were all nobodies that only did it for money. They were paid by their bosses and were clueless about the person who gave out the order.

With that, the only lead they had turned out to be a dead end. Bai Zixuan and Ye Nantian traveled to various places, trying their best to come up with a solution. However, the culprit behind the incident was able to cover his tracks well. They were unable to get any leads at all. In the end, Bai Zixuan made the decision to look for other options when he returned home with Zuo Xiaoqing.

Although Bai Mo and Ye Ci were roughed up very badly, they were lucky to suffer no permanent injuries. The only serious wounds the suffered was Ye Ci’s fractured ankle, and Bai Mo’s blunt head trauma, that required six stitches to fix.

Both of them were discharged from the hospital after two weeks. Bai Mo refused to return home with his parents, and insisted on staying with Ye Ci. Bai Zixuan and Zuo Xiaoqing respected the choice of their son, and returned to their city after a long night’s talk with Ye Nantian and his wife.

When she was home, Ye Ci did nothing but watch the television with Bai Mo by her side, while Tan Polang, who returned home during the weekends willingly played the role of their servant. Bringing them refreshments when required, while fetching various items for them when asked.

“I noticed quite a number of people loitering near our area these few days.” said Zuo Xiaolan to Ye Nantian as they returned home from a trip to the market.

“Yup. Public security seems to be quite bad these days.” Ye Nantian nodded as he turned around to face the only underage member in the family, “Polang, I don’t want you to leave home after 8pm.”

“Okay, dad” Tan Polang nodded.

“Mom, what were you talking about?” Ye Ci and Bai Mo exchanged looks when they overheard the conversation between Zuo Xiaolan and Ye Nantian. Anxiety began to grow in their hearts.

“What do you mean?”

“You were talking about outsiders lurking in our housing area recently?”

“Yup. There are a lot of youngsters loitering in this area these few days. From how they’re dressed, they look like bad people. Our neighbours said that they might be scouting out for targets that they will break into at night. Even the security firm in charge of our housing area is alarmed. They’ve added quite a number of personnel in this area.” said Zuo Xiaolan as she began sorting out the vegetables.

Ye Ci and Bai Mo remained silent, and their expressions darkened.

“What is it?” Ye Nantian was alarmed when he noticed their expressions. These people might not be mere thieves after all. They must be up to something. thought Ye Nantian.

“Dad, mom, let’s head out.”

“Where to?” Ye Nantian and Zuo Xiaolan asked in unison.

“We’re paying the real estate agencies in the city a visit.” Bai Mo answered in Ye Ci’s stead.

Despite their confusion, the expressions of Zuo Xiaolan and Ye Nantian darkened. They finally understood Ye Ci’s and Bai Mo’s words.

“Are you saying that these people are with the youngsters who roughed you up?”

“We’re not sure, but I think it’s best for us to move.” Ye Ci narrowed her eyes that held a subtle hint of anger, “ It seems too many people know our whereabouts.””

The family began looking for houses. As Ye Ci’s movement was impeded by her leg injury, she had to be pushed around in a wheelchair by her family.

They appeared to be having a casual walk when they left home. But the moment they left the area, the family began observing their surroundings, taking great measures to make sure that they were not followed. After a few days of choosing, Ye Ci finally bought two houses. One of them was brand new, while the second one was an older house.

Despite protests from Ye Nantian and Zuo Xiaolan, Ye Ci stood her ground. She made the decision to purchase these two houses after careful consideration. The houses were quite a distance apart from one another, located at the northern and southern corner of the city. They were in ideal locations that were close to shopping malls, hospitals, banks and even a food market. Of course, these houses were not cheap..

Ye Ci was willing to spend her savings on both houses willingly. After all, the safety of her family members was at stake.

The newer of both houses was still under construction. It would take months before the construction of the house would be completed. However, the second house was freshly renovated, but the owner of the house had to move to another city because of his work, and decided to sell his house. This was the house Ye Ci’s was most interested in. However, as the saying goes, “a crafty rabbit has three burrows”. That was why Ye Ci also purchased the newer house.

The renovation done on the second house was impressive. Despite the style of the house not really to her liking, Ye Ci paid little heed to such a trivial factor. What she wanted was the furnitures and other facilities that were already available when they bought the house.

Money was able to speed up the process of purchasing the renovated house. After paying the owner for the house, Ye Ci paid him an additional sum, asking for his help to purchase electrical appliances for the house. Although it was a tedious task, the owner agreed as Ye Ci was easy to deal with, and was not stingy with her money. After reaching an agreement with the owner, Ye Ci moved into the house on the next day.

Zuo Xiaolan was sad as she sat in the living room at night. Her heart was filled with sorrow, when she thought of abandoning the house that she had been living in for decades.