Chapter 289 He is protecting you
"Xiao...Zhen?" Yan An stared at the young man in front of him with wide eyes.
He blurted it out at first glance, and then he suddenly wasn't so sure.
That was clearly his child. No matter from which angle you looked at it, it was Xiao Zhen, whom he had not seen for a year, the same Xiao Zhen who was exactly the same as in his memory.
But here he suddenly appeared, a gleaming sword in his hand, looking very calm, just like, just like - a knight descending from the sky in a fantasy novel.
"Xiao-Zhen?" Yan An repeated it again, as if he could confirm some fact by doing so. Perhaps everything that had happened from just now to now was just an incredible dream. In the dream, his wish was answered and he reunited with his child. Although the way it was done was a bit bizarre...dramatic.
The boy standing in front of him stared at him, and he felt his eyes slide across his body, briefly pausing at his wound for a few seconds, and he saw anger flash in his child's eyes.
"Xiao Zhen... Daddy is fine." Although he was in great pain all over, Yan An still managed to force out a smile to comfort him. Then he saw the invisible mist condensing again not far away, and he immediately said anxiously: "No, Xiao Zhen, hurry up! It's dangerous here!!"
Xiaozhen didn't say anything.
At the same time, the temperature around it dropped sharply, and the fog reshaped its new shape. The unreal matter melted, then merged and expanded again. Its appearance became strange and abominable. It was a huge beast, with fire-like energy emanating from its body. Its body was like copper and iron, and like black blood. Every step it took made the earth shake. It was a creature that could never exist in reality, and it seemed to be a fantasy creation of human horror imagination.
It was staring at them, its molten lava eyes devoid of emotion.
Yan An wanted to get up. He wanted to grab Xiao Zhen and run away with him immediately, but the severe pain of broken bones made him unable to move. He felt like a broken leaf, shaking his strength for a long time but with nowhere to release it. So fear came over him. Originally, he was alone, and he just held on with the mentality that he would die anyway, but now, his child, Xiao Zhen, was in front of him. This fear and panic turned into a real bone-chilling cold that penetrated into his bones.
"Xiaozhen, run!" he shouted hoarsely.
But Xiaozhen in front of him did not retreat.
The boy didn't look back.
His sword gracefully drew a silver trail in the air, and star-like dust rose at the tail of the arc.
The young man walked towards the alien monster.
…
…
Yan An couldn't describe what he saw.
Xiao Zhen was fighting with the monster.
He could just barely see the trace of Xiao Zhen's figure flashing by. His sword light was like a flying meteor, and balls of bright flames kept exploding between the flashing sword and the monster's body.
The monster's thunderous roar resounded throughout the world, and its breath was a black mist of shadow. Every time it attacked, Yan An felt as if the sky was falling and the earth was cracking. And his Xiao Zhen jumped at high speed in front of the monster, and his sword light followed like a shadow.
The monster must have been stabbed by Xiao Zhen hundreds of times, and its seemingly indestructible body was scratched by Xiao Zhen. But in just a moment, the shadow mist gathered on its broken wounds and turned into new tissue. No matter how many times Xiao Zhen cut it, its wounds would always heal in an instant.
"You cannot defeat me," the monster roared. "You are but a mortal creature!"
Xiao Zhen responded with a sword strike that tore through the air. Its body was cut again and again, and the monster roared and swung its claws at Xiao Zhen, but Xiao Zhen was too fast. His sword was like a wind blade coming from all directions, everywhere.
The monster's huge body meant that it could not move faster than Xiao Zhen. Xiao Zhen took advantage of this opportunity and stabbed . Its pieces of flesh fell with the burning mist. The monster roared horribly, and its wounds healed again. They started another round of fierce fighting.
…
…
Yan An watched the battle in front of him with fear and trepidation. This scene was beyond anything he could imagine. He only knew that his little one was fighting with that terrifying monster. And he could only lie on the side, helpless.
His eyes could no longer keep up with the speed of their battle. His retinas began to blur because he received too much dynamic information. His head ached because he could not analyze the intelligence in front of him. This battle made him nervous and anxious. Xiaozhen, Xiaozhen, Xiaozhen, he kept calling in his heart.
(Do you feel like you are having a nightmare?)
A deep, soft voice echoed in his mind.
(Do you want to get rid of this nightmare?)
Who is it? Who is talking to me?
(Want to get out of this mess?)
Who are you?
A scene flashed before his eyes, so clear that it made his eyes swell.
He saw An Yuan standing at home with a worried look on her face, and his beloved Zhu Zhu was standing beside An Yuan crying. His parents were sitting on the sofa sighing.
Your family is suffering because of your disappearance.
Yes, he has been missing for more than a year, Yan An thought bitterly. He didn't know what happened to his company now. Could his partners tolerate his disappearance for a whole year? He couldn't imagine how An Yuan would deal with his sudden disappearance in the past year. What would Xiao Zhen and Zhu Zhu think of this irresponsible father? How many tears would his parents shed for him?
Among all the worries and shackles, his family was the only thing that had been hanging over his head for the past year. Just seeing An Yuan's slightly frowning face made his heart ache and his internal organs feel like they were being fried in oil.
I'm sorry, I'm sorry, he murmured.
(Look, your relatives far away are missing you.)
So what do you want to tell me? he asked the voice in his head that came from nowhere.
(I can take you home.)
…
(Earth.)
ah.
(I can send you back to Earth.)
real?
(Yes, I can get you back to Earth intact if you want.)
Go home. Yan An's heart suddenly jumped. A warm current of excitement and joy rushed through his body. Go home, he silently repeated this word in his heart. Home, An Yuan, and the children that he had not seen for a year. Just hearing this promise, every nerve in his body seemed to tremble with excitement. Go home. They were waiting for his return.
A ray of rationality held back his wild thoughts.
There is no such thing as a free lunch.
He asked: So, what is the price of sending me home?
(Fragments of an unfilled cup.)
…
(Give me the fragments of your unfilled cup. And you will return safely to Earth.)
…
(And your companion, the two of you will return safely to Earth together.)
Yan An did not answer.
(As long as you give up the fragments of the unfilled cup and give up this disaster, your life will return to normal.)
real?
(As long as you let it go.)
Then why don’t I use it to make a wish and go home directly?
(Oh? You want to use this powerful thing for such a trivial matter? Then do you know what the price of this wish is?)
…
(Give it up, and you will return to your family who miss you so much. Everything that happened here is nothing but a nightmare to you.) The voice said slowly, (Give it up, I know this is what you want most.)
Yes, Yan An admitted that all he wanted to do now was go home.
go home.
He stared at the scene in front of him motionlessly. They were his inseparable parents, his precious daughter, the girl he loved deeply. He looked at her cheeks, lips, and slightly drooping hair. Her eyes were looking straight ahead, and she was looking at Zhuzhu who was crying with sorrow. That was the gaze of a mother.
(Give it up, and you can go back to your family.) The voice whispered in his ear again, its words sweet and touching, stirring Yan An's heartstrings.
Look, she is so close to you. Maybe as long as you agree to it, in the next second, he will immediately return to her side, hug her tightly, and wipe away all the sadness on her face.
(Get it out of the way. Return to Earth, to your family.)
go home.
Yan An opened his mouth and said, "No."
(What?)
He could still hear the hiss of the sword cutting the air, the song of battle on the wind.
He shouted: "As a father, how can I abandon my son who is fighting!!"
Following this thunderous question, the illusion before his eyes disappeared.
Xiao Zhen was still fighting with the monster not far away. The sword light was like a meteor and the body was like a dragon.
(Short-sighted monkey.) The voice echoed in his ears, full of blatant malice.
"I knew it! You are in cahoots with that monster who came to torture me! Or are you that monster?"
(Die, die, die, die! Your son will die here!)
Then the voice turned into countless whispers and strange friction sounds that repeatedly shouted in Yan An's brain. Yan An felt that every groove in his brain was filled with crazy repetitive chanting. He pulled himself together and tried his best to resist the overwhelming mental impact in his brain.
Xiao Zhen's sword became faster and faster, and with a crackling sound, he cut off the monster's right arm. But in an instant, the exposed flesh and the swimming shadows gathered into dozens of arms with claws, and they attacked Xiao Zhen like deep-sea cephalopods with their fangs and claws.
A claw grabbed one of the boy's legs and spun him around in midair.
"Xiao Zhen--" Yan An said anxiously. He staggered to his feet and stood up with all his strength.
Xiao Zhen——
"Don't go over there." A steady voice sounded beneath him.
Yan An lowered his head, his eyes wide open. A cat was squatting under him.
That is his pet cat at home.
"Mim|mim?" he said.
The cat glared at him with great disdain.
"Ami?" he said.
The cat didn't seem to want to pay attention to him.
He turned his head and looked forward. His Xiaozhen, his child was in danger. As a father, he had to go -
"Don't go over there." His pet cat spoke again.
He looked at the cat.
"He is protecting you. He is fighting for you," the cat said. "Please remember that. Trust him."
After a moment's hesitation, Yan An understood the meaning of the cat's words.
He clenched his fists and looked ahead. Xiao Zhen was fighting for him.
One claw grabbed Xiao Zhen's leg, and another claw bound Xiao Zhen's left arm. Their strength was so strong that they were about to tear Xiao Zhen in two. Yan An couldn't help but scream. But in the next moment, Xiao Zhen spun and hung on the monster's body, and his sword suddenly cut off one of the claws. Under the light and shadow, another claw was cut off at the root.
Silver light flashed, the lightsaber spun, and he chopped into the monster's back. The monster's back broke, and the shadow mist condensed and entangled, and then its back twisted and healed. Xiao Zhen once again swirled the sword and stabbed it into its physical body, and the monster roared angrily.
The sword shone with light, and the hissing energy field tore through the floating gray fog. The monster's recovery speed could no longer catch up with Xiao Zhen's rapid attack. It was facing the boy's endless and ruthless sword network. The fog gradually thinned, and the material manifestation became more and more fragile.
He raised his sword, and the flash of its light was like the afterglow of a dying star.
"You dare to attack Yan Zhen's father." The young man said softly, "Then you will seek your own death."
