"Killing isn't to save someone."
"It's because—you were once abandoned too."
— Shen · Midnight Words
---
The rain had stopped.
A damp chill still lingered around Dongshan Town in the early morning. The bloodstained earth and stone along the alleys marked the last path of Yao Zhen before he "disappeared."
The official report said he was missing.
But only Shen knew the truth behind it.
He didn't rush to leave. Instead, he quietly infiltrated Yao Zhen's residence.
No traps.
—Far too careless.
Yao Zhen's home was modest, but there was a small study. Shen pried up a floor tile, and as expected, found a sealed pouch hidden within the floorboards.
He tore it open, revealing several sheets of pale blue paper laced with spiritual pressure—
They were part of Huanshui Hall's "Spirit Child Dispersal Archive."
---
[Target ID: 207]
[Name: Wan'er]
[Status: Filed for Recovery; scheduled for elimination at appropriate time]
[Assigned Executor: Yao Zhen]
---
Shen's knuckles tightened.
"Wan'er…"
He remembered that name.
She was one of the rare moments of warmth in his past life—
the girl he still longed to see before he died.
So she'd already been written onto this cursed paper.
Shen's eyes gradually turned cold.
Why had Yao Zhen been assigned this task?
Why was Wan'er chosen?
He kept flipping through the documents—
> "Suspected to carry the traits of a 'Phantom Blood Constitution.' Originally screened as an E-grade spiritual root holder. Recently reassigned to observation due to abnormal spiritual patterns and elevated blood reaction."
"Initially exempt from retrieval; background clean. Now suitable for inclusion in next phase of 'Spirit-Blood Implantation Experiment.'"
"Suggested to proceed with silent recovery soon. If failed, execute reset protocol."
[Note: Avoid alarming family; recommend discreet night processing.]
Shen's fingers trembled slightly.
He suddenly realized—
that anonymous "Spirit Child Roster" he'd received…
was no coincidence.
Someone had deliberately thrown that discarded truth into his hands.
Was it a test?
Or a warning?
---
He pocketed the documents.
Just as he turned to leave, voices drifted up from downstairs.
> "Yao Zhen didn't finish his assignment. Someone else has to take over the retrieval."
> "The vice-deacon said someone from Qilin's side will fill in."
> "Her? A half-spiritual root waste, doing recovery missions?"
> "Don't be fooled—her master used to be an inner-sect talisman artist. Specialized in poison runes."
> "Makes sense. I heard she's got… a 'special constitution' too."
> "Vice-deacon's been obsessed with those Blood Child types lately."
The voices faded into the distance.
Shen stood by the window frame, gaze sharp as a blade.
"…Mu Youlou." He murmured.
—
That name had been buried in his heart for fifteen years.
Wan'er was taken that year—by his order.
Now they planned to "cleanse" her—by his men again.
For fifteen years, that name had festered like a blade lodged deep in Shen's memory.
He never intended to save anyone. He only wanted revenge.
But now, Mu Youlou was no longer just a target—
He was a lock.
A lock that bound Wan'er's fate—
and chained Shen's past.
Tightening his cloak, Shen stepped lightly across the rooftop and vanished into the misty dawn.
The morning fog hadn't lifted.
But he knew—
behind the mist, there was blood waiting to be unveiled.