Chapter 56: The Teleportation Array

Blazing sun hung high in the sky.

In the courtyard of the laundry house, a group of women were bent over their work.

Old Madam Zheng furtively glanced at the tightly closed door, lowered her voice, and whispered to the others, "Where do you think Hongxiu goes every day? She’s always up to something strange!"

"Hush, keep your voice down! She’s got real skills, you know nothing!" Another old woman of about the same age quickly clapped a hand over her mouth.

Old Madam Zheng shook off her hand, muttering softly, "As if I don’t know how formidable she is! But she goes out every night... Could she be plotting something against the masters of the household?"

"Well, mind your own business. The masters here are not to be trifled with! They don’t need us meddling!"

Madam Zheng gazed at the tightly shut door, her eyes dark and thoughtful.

At that moment, Chu Bing was inside the room, practicing her skills.

After the ordeal with Ren Changfeng, she had finally realized her own shortcomings. The feeling of her life resting in someone else’s hands was truly unbearable.

Every day, she told Ren Changfeng she was returning to work, but in truth, she was hiding away in her room, cultivating.

None of the old women in the laundry dared to report her. In this little world, Chu Bing had become something of a tyrant.

Inside the room, Chu Bing frowned as she stared at the array she had set up.

"System, is it possible to incorporate the teleportation skill into the array?"

She had been pondering this for days. If she could combine teleportation with her formations, they would become teleportation arrays, capable of concealing her presence and guaranteeing her safety.

But the task was enormous, and she had only made minor improvements on her own. Chu Bing hoped the system would help her.

The system saw through her intentions and ignored her completely.

Chu Bing pouted. "Stingy thing!"

If it wouldn’t help, she’d work it out herself!

She gathered up some materials and decided to find a larger space to test her progress.

She didn’t dare stray too far from the estate, for fear of being recognized. Circling around, she ended up back at the rear mountain, the same place where she had seen Li Yuxi before.

This time, she encountered no one.

Chu Bing arranged her formation and stepped into its center.

Previously, setting up arrays required many materials, but now she had streamlined the process, making it much easier to lay them down anywhere in the future.

The most crucial part was teleportation. If she could truly achieve what she envisioned, Chu Bing believed she would be nearly invincible.

However—

Perfecting the array to the level she imagined would take considerable time.

Chu Bing experimented throughout the night, but each attempt ended in failure.

The woods gradually grew cold.

She packed up, preparing to return and rest.

She needed to head to Li Haoran’s courtyard. If she was late, Ren Changfeng would surely find new ways to torment her.

Chu Bing moved cautiously on her way back. She had just reached the Li estate and was about to slip inside when she heard footsteps.

She quickly pressed herself against a wall, hiding in the corner.

"Master, we truly haven’t found any trace of him!" A group of black-clad men knelt on the ground, not daring to lift their heads.

Li Yuxi stood at the side gate, dressed all in black, his figure lean and powerful.

"He was so badly wounded—where could he possibly have gone? Keep a close watch, inside the city and out, leave no stone unturned."

"Yes, sir!"

Li Yuxi’s voice carried a chill. His presence was striking, and Chu Bing, crouching in the corner, blinked in surprise.

So, Li Yuxi was still hunting Ren Changfeng?

After all these days, he hadn’t given up!

Chu Bing held her breath, watching as the black-clad men vaulted over the walls and disappeared.

Li Yuxi remained by the side gate for a long while. He turned slightly, his eyes darting in Chu Bing’s direction.

Chu Bing froze, convinced she’d been discovered.

But Li Yuxi only turned and entered the courtyard.

After waiting a while, certain no one else was around, Chu Bing finally slipped out from the corner and dashed toward Li Haoran’s courtyard.

She didn’t stop until she arrived. Ren Changfeng’s face was still a little pale. "Where have you been? What took you so long?"

His wounds had yet to heal, and as a fugitive, he dared not wander outside, forced to hide in this courtyard.

Chu Bing braced her hands on her knees, panting, "I ran into Li Yuxi just now—he’s got people searching everywhere for you! Whatever you do, don’t leave this courtyard!"

She wasn’t truly worried for Ren Changfeng’s safety; rather, if something happened to him, she’d lose her only hope of an antidote!

Ren Changfeng stood by the gate with arms folded, quietly observing her, his brows slightly furrowed. "Li Yuxi is vengeful and will never let me go."

"But," he continued, lifting his chin with a glint of coldness in his eyes, "if he wants to catch me, it will cost him dearly."

He glanced at Chu Bing and suddenly asked, "If I had the chance to leave here, would you come with me?"

After spending some time together, he sensed there was something different about this little maid.

Chu Bing blinked and refused at once, "I’m afraid that’s not possible. My indenture contract is still with the Li family."

Of course, she’d never signed such a thing.

But Ren Changfeng had no way of knowing that. Chu Bing lied without the slightest guilt.

As expected, Ren Changfeng believed her. He’d always thought Chu Bing was just a maid, and the indenture contract was crucial—without it, she couldn’t live openly outside.

He mused for a moment, then said, "Leave that to me."

Chu Bing was taken aback and hastily reassured him, "It’s fine, I’m already used to things here. If you get the chance, just go on your own."

She still needed to stay and find Li Haoran, and complete the system’s tasks—how could she leave?

Looking at the round face of the little maid before him, Ren Changfeng felt his heart soften and a surge of heroic resolve rose within him.

He thought she truly didn’t want to get him involved or cause him trouble.

Though sharp-tongued, she was soft-hearted.

His gaze toward Chu Bing grew ever gentler. "Alright, let’s go to sleep."

Chu Bing: "..."

When she found herself tightly held in the man’s arms, forcibly pressed into bed, she couldn’t help but grumble inwardly.

Clearly, he was simply using her as a human pillow!

She stared at the ceiling, resenting her lack of martial skill—unable to teach him a lesson—and yet, she also felt somewhat aggrieved. She was, after all, a woman, yet Ren Changfeng, though he held her every night, never so much as took advantage of her.

Could it be... she no longer possessed any feminine charm?

The night was long.

A few days later.

Chu Bing stood in the forest, her feet positioned at the center of her newly arranged formation. After further study, she had finally found a breakthrough and was now conducting an experiment.

She wanted to test whether the teleportation array she’d designed would actually work!

She closed her eyes, calmed her breath, and activated the formation.

A gust of wind swept past, and Chu Bing’s figure vanished from where she stood.