Little Pink Starfish

Hua Rongyue felt that the atmosphere around her had suddenly shifted.

It was as if she had stumbled into another world — one completely different from what she usually saw.
White and red lights crisscrossed all around her. The light felt unreal, like it had passed through some kind of filter. The entire world appeared distorted, nothing like the one she was used to.

Hua Rongyue stood there dazed.
Was this the world of madmen?
She had experienced it before, but never from this perspective.

And even though this was a new view for her, it only took thirty seconds for her to understand what Yi Linglong had meant earlier.

There was no order in the world of madmen — only the law of the strong.
And the strong were perhaps the ones best suited to survive here.

So that’s what it was.

Hua Rongyue suddenly understood Yi Linglong’s earlier words.

So that’s what she meant.

Right now, the people on the flower boat could be strictly divided into three types —
ordinary people,
members of Six Doors,
and the madmen of the boat.
Hua Rongyue belonged to none of these categories. She didn’t truly align with Six Doors, nor did she support the madmen’s actions. Neither side fully considered her one of their own.

But now, the presence Yi Linglong exuded was powerful enough to confuse everyone.
Six Doors had always believed the masked person was a leader among the madmen, so this didn’t feel too unusual to them.

But the madmen?

They were completely baffled by Yi Linglong now.

Could it be… he really is one of us?

Many of the madmen were already stunned. Even those who doubted it at first now had no way to object.

Because Yi Linglong’s presence was just… too natural. She stood like a rightful ruler — like she had always belonged here.

Hua Rongyue had only ever bluffed Jiang Lianhuan into thinking she was their boss.
But Yi Linglong… she didn’t need to bluff.
She really believed she was the boss — and had never known what it meant not to be one.
Back at Tianyi Tower, she had been the most powerful tower master. In the martial world, she had ruled her own domain.

Hua Rongyue was now “hiding” behind Yi Linglong. She didn’t know if this was how Yi Linglong normally saw things — if she often viewed Hua Rongyue from this angle.

But from her current point of view, everything Yi Linglong did now felt completely foreign — not something Hua Rongyue would have done, even in her most unhinged moments.

Still, she said nothing. She could only wear a calm expression and watch silently.

She saw Yi Linglong step toward one of the women, gently brushing a finger by her ear. Reflected in a screen nearby, Hua Rongyue could see red deepening in Yi Linglong’s eyes. From a distance, the scene might look intimate — but Hua Rongyue felt the heartbeat pulsing under that soft skin.

The woman stood obediently still, appearing gentle and harmless.
But only Hua Rongyue knew — she had been frightened into submission. Otherwise, given the dominant nature of the women on this boat, she would have struck back the moment Yi Linglong approached.

Yi Linglong felt her obedience and seemed pleased, eyes curving into a smile.
Hua Rongyue stood off to the side, watching with a subtle expression of… unease.

You…

She knew Yi Linglong was also a woman, but this scene… the posture…
It was weird.

Hua Rongyue didn’t know if her inner commentary could be heard, but right after she finished the thought, Yi Linglong laughed — out loud, right next to her ear.

Then she said — perhaps to Hua Rongyue, perhaps to the others around her:

“I could have killed you all… but the other me wouldn’t allow it.
But you’re all too noisy.”

“So, could you be quiet now?”

Everyone around them was stunned. The room fell silent.

A murmur rippled through the crowd. No one understood what she meant by that. They didn’t know what she was going to do next.

Before anyone could react, Yi Linglong — who had been standing calmly upstairs — suddenly jumped down, rushing straight toward Jiang Lianhuan.

Jiang Lianhuan was startled, instinctively raising his hand to defend.

But something felt different.

He had fought this masked person before. Back then, though they had clashed, neither had gained the upper hand. So he reflexively moved to block again — just like before.

But this time — the masked person suddenly stopped midair, and chopped straight down onto his neck.

The speed was terrifying.
Even more terrifying was the posture — the move was so clean and sharp.
At that speed, most people would’ve injured themselves if they messed up even slightly.

But Yi Linglong didn’t.

She dealt with Jiang Lianhuan in one clean blow.
As he fell, his face was still frozen in disbelief.

He hadn’t even figured out how he’d lost.

The previous exchanges had lulled him into a false sense of security — and that’s what doomed him.

As Jiang Lianhuan collapsed, everyone else looked on in shock.

Even though they had known Yi Linglong was dangerous — they didn’t expect her to be this fast.

And she didn’t stop.

The moment Jiang Lianhuan hit the ground, she spun into the Six Doors group, cutting through them like a blade through silk.

Hua Rongyue stood frozen.
Even the other onlookers were stunned.
As for the Six Doors members themselves?
They didn’t even have time to be stunned.

“Wait—!”
Each one shouted before falling.
But Yi Linglong was far too fast.
Anyone who brushed past her would drop silently to the ground.

Even Hua Rongyue was shocked.

She had never seen Yi Linglong move this fast against ordinary fighters.
She’d always thought Yi Linglong’s duels with top experts were already swift — but now she realized she had been wrong.

Yi Linglong had taught her a harsh lesson today:

It’s fine to take your time against strong opponents.

But ordinary people?
You don’t even need a full second.

---

In just five minutes, everyone from Six Doors was down.

The sheer efficiency left everyone speechless.

Except for Jiang Lianhuan, all of them lay there wide-eyed, frozen in terror.
They were still conscious — just paralyzed.
But they could see everything.

They saw Yi Linglong standing alone, surrounded by fallen bodies.

None were dead.

But the sight was enough to chill anyone to the bone.

It was strange. Everyone went silent.

But for the people of Six Doors, their hearts were filled with dread.

“It’s over.”
That was the thought echoing in every mind.

One move.
And they were all down.
She hadn’t even broken a sweat.

And this was just one person in purple — clearly the boss.
If the others got involved…

No one could grasp the scale of the disaster — until they saw it firsthand.

Yi Linglong had just delivered a lesson.

Even Hua Rongyue had forgotten how Yi Linglong had shocked the world when she first appeared — because she was truly unlike anyone else.

Her fighting style was unmistakable — and overwhelming.

Everyone thought Yi Linglong would now kill them all.
Even Hua Rongyue began to brace herself for the worst.

But instead —
Yi Linglong did something no one expected.

The flower boat residents had assumed they’d won.
They were getting excited — ready to kill the Six Doors people, and then move on to the civilians.

But just as the excitement began to spread, Yi Linglong looked calmly around and said:

“Tie them up and throw them off the boat.”

The madmen paused.

Yi Linglong turned and cast them a cold glance.
Someone behind her suddenly shivered.

That look made them feel like they’d be the next ones on the floor.

Her strange command left everyone — even the fallen Six Doors members — bewildered.

But Yi Linglong wasn’t joking.

Some clever ones quickly moved to obey, tied up the injured, and carried them off the boat.

Hua Rongyue stood stunned.
Then she heard Yi Linglong’s voice again.

She smiled and said:

“See? That’s how you talk to them.”