Chapter 75: The Wolf Arrives

Chu Ning did indeed have experience in passing through walls; he was once adept at the art of wall-walking, until one day his body underwent some changes. He could no longer traverse walls at will—now, he could only rely on his own talent to move through the world within mirrors, and even that was not as effortlessly smooth as it once had been.

Mirror Spirits themselves possessed the innate ability to traverse boundaries, which made it easier for him to deal with walls. Even though he hadn’t inherited the memories of his previous self after crossing over, this natural talent remained. Crossing through the mirror world had become an instinct as fundamental as eating or sleeping for ordinary people.

“You jump first, I’ll follow!”

Chu Ning led Tanya to the railing on the second floor. The monsters were close now; all the insects inside the living room were swarming toward the staircase. Jumping down from here would allow them to seize a crucial moment and escape the villa successfully!

After observing for so long, Chu Ning had discerned that the white insects acted purely on biological instinct, without any awakened intelligence. Their humanoid forms were likely a result of devouring humans and mimicking their structure, simple imitation rather than true intellect.

For creatures with insufficient intelligence, one could easily outwit them. Unless their strength or speed far surpassed that of humans, they would always be at a disadvantage when facing intelligent beings.

Humanity’s dominance over the world was entirely due to their ability to wield tools to achieve their goals.

Upon learning Chu Ning’s plan—jumping from here—Tanya remained silent for a long while. Sometimes, she had to admit that the limitations of her thinking could be a hindrance.

To be honest, it had never occurred to her. She would only consider jumping if the monsters were close enough to force her into desperation.

The height of the second floor was both high and not; it depended entirely on the jumper’s perspective. Spectators below never thought it was high.

Tanya took a deep breath, turned to look at Chu Ning who held her, and realized she had misjudged him.

Chu Ning helped Tanya climb onto the railing; for him, it was an easy task. The railing was mainly designed to protect children and vulnerable groups who couldn’t control their bodies and might accidentally fall below.

This was a necessary safety measure, so the height was not excessive.

Chu Ning had seen second floors without any railings before; the residents didn’t rely on stairs, they descended entirely by leaps of faith.

Tanya crouched shakily atop the railing, holding onto Chu Ning with one hand for balance. For the first time, the second floor seemed high to her—she was filled with fear at the prospect of jumping down.

She glanced at the monster nearing the top of the stairs, especially the tentacles probing about, and her courage returned.

Jumping wouldn’t kill her, but not jumping certainly would—a simple choice!

“Relax, this isn’t a big height. Have you ever watched action movies? People jump from high places all the time. As long as you master proper landing technique, it’s not terribly dangerous.”

Chu Ning encouraged Tanya to act quickly. Though the monsters moved at a snail’s pace, Tanya could not afford to be the foolish rabbit waiting to be overtaken by the tortoise.

“You go ahead… Wait a moment!”

Tanya exhaled deeply; her heart had nearly leapt into her throat. She was ready to jump, but Chu Ning suddenly interrupted her rhythm, causing her hard-won courage to falter.

“What is it? I’m in a hurry to jump—please, make it quick!” Tanya looked anxiously at the approaching monster. This wasn’t a film set; there was no need to wait until the last possible second to jump.

They could easily prepare to avoid danger before it arrived.

“Could you open your eyes first? Jumping with your eyes closed only makes it harder for yourself! You’re not trying to end your life, after all. Keeping your eyes open will reduce the chances of injury.”

“Sorry, it’s my first time—my technique is a bit rusty!” Tanya stared wide-eyed at the ground below, ready to leap.

“Oh, why are you grabbing my hand? I have no intention of dying with you, thank you.” Chu Ning laughed as Tanya gripped his hand tightly, and he pried her slender fingers off one by one.

Tanya looked up at the white ceiling, gradually freeing herself from Chu Ning’s arm.

Suddenly, she heard Chu Ning shout anxiously, “The monster’s here, go now!” and in that instant, she jumped from the second floor—she even felt someone gently push her from behind.

As a ghost, Tanya’s weight was negligible, so falling from the second floor did not harm her. After landing, she worriedly glanced back at Chu Ning, realizing she shouldn’t be concerned about that trickster—the monster was still some distance away from him.

Only a few stray white insects had breached the black mist and crawled near Chu Ning, nowhere near the dangerous proximity he’d described.

“Hurry up and come down!” Tanya cupped her hands around her mouth and shouted to Chu Ning.

Chu Ning glanced back at the approaching monster, focusing to draw the black mist back into his body. Without the mist’s obstruction, the monster moved much faster, but Chu Ning was unconcerned.

His figure flickered and blurred for a moment, leaving a shadow at the railing, while he himself had already teleported to the villa’s entrance.

“Run, quickly! Don’t just stand there, the monster’s coming!” Chu Ning called from the doorway.

Tanya felt a pang of annoyance upon seeing Chu Ning, who had mastered the core technology. It turned out she was the only one who needed to jump—he could teleport!

As for Chu Ning’s urging her to hurry, Tanya was not worried—she had already witnessed the monster’s sluggish pace. For it to climb down from the second floor to here would take…

Calculating it was too troublesome, so Tanya gave up and walked leisurely toward Chu Ning.

After all, they had the advantage in timing; she took all of Chu Ning’s warnings as mere pranks.

She had heard the story of “The Boy Who Cried Wolf” more than once. Tanya believed she would not make the same mistake as the characters in the tale—she would not be fooled again.

The jump from upstairs had already left her shaken; nothing could convince her to trust that trickster again!

When she jumped from the second floor, it was over before she could think or be afraid—she was already on the ground. The fear came late, only after everything was done.

Perhaps the fear had mistaken its target, Tanya thought smugly, waving cheerfully to Chu Ning.