A few feet away, the woman seemed to sense something, turned her head and said a few words to the man, then chased him away before swaying over.

Shi Lan's nerves tensed instantly. She concealed her body in the shadows, her slender figure arched, ready to annihilate her with lightning speed at the slightest sign of trouble.

The woman took a few steps and then stopped.

Shi Lan measured the distance between them and frowned.

The two were still quite far apart, and Shi Lan wasn't confident that he could reach the woman in an instant and kill her before she could make a sound.

The woman stood silently for a moment, then suddenly reached out her fair and delicate hands and gently pulled off the hat that had been covering her head. The bright moonlight fell softly, clearly illuminating the woman's fair and charming face.

Shi Lan was stunned when she saw the woman's appearance.

Unexpectedly, the woman turned out to be an old acquaintance of hers, Xiang Shisan.

For some reason, Xiang Shisan gave Shi Lan an extremely dangerous feeling at this moment.

What has happened these past few days? Xiang Shisan seems to have completely changed. Although his appearance remains the same, his temperament and demeanor have become entirely different.

Xiang Shisan seemed to sense Shi Lan's surprise. The corners of his mouth curled up, revealing a smug look. His dark eyes held an indescribable feeling, as if they contained a thousand words, yet also seemed as indifferent as a high god.

Shi Lan frowned, sensing that something was wrong. She moved her feet back slowly and carefully, finding a suitable angle to put pressure on herself, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

Xiang Shisan seemed to hear a friction sound that even Shi Lan herself hadn't heard. She lightly raised her fingers, brushed away the stubble that was blown by the wind, and gently covered her forehead. In an instant, a dark brown thing that looked like a head shot out from between her eyebrows, growing in the wind. In the blink of an eye, it twisted into countless ferocious giant pythons, coiling around Xiang Shi Lan and sweeping towards her.

Shi Lan's expression changed, and she pushed off the ground with one foot, soaring into the air like a roc taking flight.

A series of heavy thuds echoed beneath her feet. Using her quick movements, Shi Lan turned her head to look. The corner where she had just been hiding had been smashed open by that monster, leaving a large hole. Broken stones were flying in all directions with the force of the impact, and the thick walls were thudding with each collision.

Standing on the city wall two zhang away, Shi Lan's heart pounded.

Her attack missed, and she turned away gracefully, her forehead smooth, her face charming, and her steps elegant, just as graceful as ever.

Shi Lan, sword in hand, leaped down from the city wall.

No matter what she is, she is still made of flesh and blood. Shi Lan believed that as long as the person was killed, that strange thing would not be able to cause trouble.

Xiang Shisan coldly extended her slender finger, and with a slight turn of her fingertip, a delicate pale yellow flower appeared out of thin air in her hand.

With a gentle toss, the little flower spun rapidly and crashed into Shi Lan's sword.

With a crisp clang, Shi Lan felt a sudden tingling in her arms, her hands and forearms going numb as if they weren't her own, and the sword in her hand seemed like rotten wood chips, scattered on the ground by the wind.

Shi Lan stared blankly at her fingers, then grinned at Shisan. Her laughter was like a silver bell, clear and melodious, but her face was ferocious and vicious, like a demon that would take lives.

Upon seeing Xiang Shisan like this, Shi Lan subconsciously took half a step back, her back pressed against the cold stone wall.

Xiang Shisan looked up at the dark sky and saw that it was calm and vast as ever, so he chuckled softly.

As she laughed, she suddenly raised her head, and a green branch emerged from between her brows, slowly reaching out to Shi Lan.

“The day has finally come,” she said as she slowly stepped forward, her voice soft and ethereal, like a dreamlike murmur, but her deep eyes were cold and ruthless, like a python eyeing its prey. “I have waited for this day for far too long, so long that I thought I would never see it again.” She looked at her with a dreamy gaze, as if she were looking through her at something else.

Shi Lan pursed her lips, and asked in surprise, "What exactly are you talking about?"

Xiang Shisan chuckled lightly, offering no reply whatsoever.

The branches swayed nimbly back and forth, their cold, slippery bark gently brushing against Shi Lan's cheek, as if considering which part of Shi Lan's face to bite.

Shi Lan felt her hair stand on end and a wave of nausea washed over her. The nausea made her fingers twitch uncontrollably.

Xiang Shisan seemed to notice the slight tremor in her body and couldn't help but giggle. After a moment, she happily took two steps forward and stretched out her fingers to stroke Shi Lan's face.

"I really don't know what's so good about you. You're so dull and slow-witted, and you don't care about anything." As she touched him, she suddenly became fierce and ruthless, pinching Shi Lan's cheek hard with two fingers. "It's one thing to have Qing Yue bewitched, but you've also made Hao Ze lose his heart."

The intense pain caused Shi Lan's facial muscles to twitch slightly. If she still couldn't figure out this person's background by now, she would be too stupid.

The branches spiraled, aiming at Shi Lan's bright, dark eyes.

Shi Lan felt a chill run down her spine, but her heart felt like it was on fire. The relentless and endless pursuit was unbearable for Shi Lan. She cursed Ming Xiao inwardly for being useless, and then activated the Soul-Destroying Nail that had been trembling incessantly in her mind.

The Soul-Destroying Nail excitedly tugged at itself, then vanished from his mind in the blink of an eye.

A step away, Xiang Shisan stared wide-eyed, her mouth opening and closing, as if she had fallen to the ground like a wooden stake. A slightly transparent shadow rose from her body, staring at Shi Lan, and roared angrily, "He actually gave this to you too."

Shi Lan frowned at her. She actually knew about the Soul-Destroying Nails. It seemed that her relationship with Haoze was not simple.

Seeing how she was so angry she was gritting her teeth and wanted to kill him, could it be because of Haoze's romantic entanglements?

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!