A light drizzle fell on the bluestone bricks.

The lights from the shops on both sides shone brightly, blurring the water and light on the ground.

Qin Shang held a miscellaneous book on metaphysics and fortune-telling in his hand, flipping through it idly.

The drizzle was as fine as silk threads.

A slight chill fell on my face, making me feel irritable.

He used to be in a good mood every time he went out with Ayan.

It's as if the years have never changed.

This time... he looked up at the overcast sky.

It was probably because of the rainy day.

Ah Yan has been inside for about half an hour; it's time for her to come out.

The night breeze blew in through the window.

The pages were turned with a rustling sound, finally settling on one particular page.

The inscription reads: "To avoid a bloody disaster, one must stay in a clean room for one hundred days, without seeing any living people."

"Ha," Qin Shang said expressionlessly, tossing the book aside.

Every day he was around was a day of bloodshed for others.

He put down the miscellaneous book and went upstairs to find Ayan.

But after searching everywhere, I still couldn't find it.

The spice shopkeeper was surprised and told him.

"Young master, you don't know? About an incense stick's time ago, that girl finished buying her things and went out on her own. Didn't you see her?"

Qin Shang's expression changed slightly.

Xizi Fragrant Medicine Shop does indeed have two entrances, one in the front and one in the back.

But he was waiting at the front door, and there was absolutely no reason for Ayan to go out through the back door.

She was his puppet.

They are docile and obedient, and unless something unexpected happens, they will never go against their own will.

Qin Shang lifted his foot and chased after him.

The shopkeeper called from behind:

"Young master, take the umbrella with you before you go out!"

.

The dense night rain was like smoke and mist.

The long street was teeming with pedestrians, and countless umbrellas filled the night sky.

Ah Yan had long since disappeared.

The Qin merchant leaped onto the roof ridge.

But then, under the cover of night...

Not far away, on the stone arch bridge along the Cai River, a white figure wearing a veil is walking towards the center of the bridge.

It was as if they could sense the gaze of the Qin merchant.

Through the cascading rain.

She turned her head to look over, the veil above her head swayed, and paused for a moment.

Continue walking onto the bridge.

Qin Shang's gaze turned gloomy, and he leaped down.

Weaving through the crowd, we ran toward the stone arch bridge.

…

After moving away from the riverside shops, the number of passersby gradually decreased.

On the opposite bank of the Cai River, a row of green willows stands by the river, their branches swaying like smoke.

There are far fewer shops and residences here, and not much light.

Because of the silence, even the rain overhead seemed noisy.

There was no sign of Ayan.

Across the water, the sound of string and wind instruments drifted from somewhere.

Accompanied by a soft, melodious singing style.

Qin Shang frowned and followed the sound of the string and bamboo instruments.

A solitary stone bridge spans the water.

The waters here are remote.

There was no boat, and no people.

There was only a thin pole on the bridge, carrying a ram's horn lantern, swaying precariously in the wind and rain.

The stage on the bridge was also faintly visible in the sunlight.

The young female lead and the young male lead seemed to be singing about parting sorrows, their voices soft and melodious, full of lingering emotion.

And between these two.

A person wearing a red dress stood silently on the stage.

The drizzle fell on him without leaving a trace.

The light from the ram's horn lamp fell on him, yet there was no light or shadow.

The female lead and male lead actors seemed not to have seen this person at all.

They live out their own joys and sorrows, oblivious to everything else.

Suddenly, the man in red raised his head from the darkness. He was wearing a strange blue demon mask!

Qin Shang's pupils suddenly contracted.

Blue-faced with fangs, wearing a Nuo ritual mask.

He was very familiar with this thing, so familiar that it was almost etched into his mind.

The moment he recognized the mask, the ghostly face on it grinned sinisterly.

Then.

In the wind, rain, and darkness, the person flew down.

Under the bridge.

A woman wearing a white veil is watching a play.

Whether they were startled by this bizarre scene or were being controlled by something, it's unclear.

She stood still, without moving.

Until the masked man swooped down and snatched her into his arms.

"Qin merchant—" a voice called out from under the eaves.

That bloody history in my memory seems to be repeating itself.

A person wearing a blue demon mask came stepping through the air.

The crossbow in his hand shot out with a whooshing sound.

The crossbow bolt pierced her chest, and Ayan fell backward.

She lay pale as a sheet in his arms, barely breathing.

Qin merchants —

The Qin merchant leaped across the river, and before he even got close, hidden weapons shot out from under his robes.

"Let her go!"

The masked man was highly skilled in martial arts.

Holding someone in my arms, it's as easy as walking on flat ground.

The blue-faced, fanged creature looked at him with a sinister gaze, as if mocking him.

He carried Ayan across the stone bridge, across the swirling night and the willows by the river.

Qin Shang's eyes gradually filled with blood.

Very well, you dare to provoke him like this.

Emotions surged, creating a sense of cataclysmic upheaval within.

His thinking, however, was divided into two.

One half is boiling and burning, while the other half, called reason, calmly observes like a third party.

Tear him to pieces.

Break his bones inch by inch, peel his skin off bit by bit.

He killed Ayan, it was him!

The Qin merchant's eyes were bloodshot.

He raised the small crossbow from his sleeve, aimed, and held his breath.

His arm did not tremble at all.

At that very moment, launch!

Several crossbow bolts, as black as the night, flew out and silently approached the target.

It seemed as if the sound of a crossbow bolt piercing flesh could be heard.

The masked man staggered, and blood dripped from mid-air.

One of the crossbow bolts hit his arm.

The woman in white that he was holding fell to the ground.

"Qin merchants—"

The calls drifted into my ears on the night breeze.

The Qin merchant's frenzied pursuit of the masked man came to a halt.

A night breeze blew. He couldn't tell if his face was covered in sweat or tears; the liquid was cool, as if it had seeped into his heart.

Qin Shang raised his hand and caught Ayan as she fell from mid-air.

This time.

I've protected you very well.

You see, nothing can take you away again.

The woman landed steadily in his arms.

The night breeze lifted the light veil she always wore on her head.

The slight smile that had just appeared in Qin Shang's eyes froze.

The woman wore a mask that looked exactly like the Ghost Mask, with a blue face and fangs.

Hehe, surprise!

Surprised? Unexpected?

A glint of cold light gathered at her fingertips; at such close range, there was no way to avoid it.

Qin Shang's face turned cold and dark, and he suddenly turned to the side.

It merely avoided piercing the heart.

That small crossbow bolt still pierced his body.

Blood spurted from the wound.

The woman wearing the blue demon mask had already floated down several steps away.

A slightly muffled, strange voice came from behind the mask.

"That person asked me to ask you if the crossbow bolt that pierced your chest seemed familiar?"

Qin Shang was taken aback.

A small portion of the crossbow bolt was still sticking out of his body.

That bluish-black metallic hue, and the familiar patterns, are just like...

“That’s right, it’s the same crossbow bolt that killed Ayan before. That person said that since you two died from this kind of crossbow bolt, you could say you were a couple with matching bolts.”

The woman's voice drifted over, carried on the gentle breeze and wind.

The Qin merchant held the crossbow in his hand.

The woman said, "If you pull it out, you'll die. That's suicide, and it has nothing to do with us."