“He helped me.” Mu Qingyun lowered her eyes. She still remembered the light in the old man’s eyes when he asked her to stay with him, and his determination to protect the victimized girls.

Her inexplicable disappearance must have been heartbreaking for that old man, and he's probably blaming himself for not protecting her.

"He's already endured many failures and faced many things that couldn't be saved. He's used to it all. Even if you were dead now, he'd only be sad for a short while." He glanced at her lazily, completely unconcerned.

The old man stayed there for two reasons: first, he was too old to go anywhere, and second, he was still grieving the death of his granddaughter. Otherwise, why would he still be here?

"Please take me there, I beg you." Mu Qingyun didn't answer his question, but just earnestly pleaded.

She knew that Yin couldn't understand human emotions; vampires were cold-blooded and always a step behind in perceiving feelings.

Since she couldn't understand, there was no need for her to argue with him any further.

"I'm busy, I don't have time." Yin rubbed his temples and frowned impatiently.

Last time, he had to figure out how to explain the fire to everyone. This time, the woman suddenly attacked with fire again. Once others figured it out, he would have to figure out how to explain it to them.

Not wanting to deal with her any further, he turned and walked away.

I'm truly impressed.

Mu Qingyun watched his departing figure, her eyes turning cold.

"What's wrong?"

A familiar voice suddenly came from behind her, and she immediately turned around to see Su Qiluo.

“I want to go out for a bit,” she replied.

"It's no big deal. Come on, I'll take you out." Su Qiluo said calmly, "Seeing your cold face, I thought something serious had happened."

"Really?" Upon hearing this, a hint of surprise flashed in Mu Qingyun's eyes, but she still asked uncertainly.

"Well, I happen to have a black umbrella in my room. Wait here for me a bit." Su Qiluo turned and left, while Yi Beixuan walked to her side.

Feeling his gaze shift towards her, Mu Qingyun raised an eyebrow in confusion, silently asking him why he hadn't left yet.

"Qi Luo asked me to protect you." Yi Beixuan smiled politely and stood beside her.

Hearing his words, she didn't say anything more. Although she didn't need anyone's protection, it was Su Qiluo's kindness after all. Besides, given his relationship with Su Qiluo, she guessed he wouldn't be able to refute or resist.

I'll tell Su Qiluo later.

Before long, Su Qiluo came over with a black umbrella.

After saying hello to Yi Beixuan, the two walked out of the castle together.

As soon as the castle door opened, Su Qiluo immediately opened the umbrella and placed it over her head. "I don't need the umbrella. Be careful not to let the sun shine on you."

"Mm." She simply responded, took the black umbrella, and placed it over her head to shield herself, while Su Qiluo walked to the side, not taking up the space of the black umbrella.

Gripping the umbrella handle tightly, she turned her head and looked around.

Yes, it's similar to the European castles she found on her phone, with piles of fences and all sorts of flowers planted inside, including roses and wild roses.

I turned to look at the castle behind me. Although the castle was luxurious enough and used a white theme, the curtains inside were drawn, which made the whole castle look strangely eerie.

"Where are you going?" Su Qiluo asked softly as she led the group outside.

Mu Qingyun gave him a rough account based on her memory, and he nodded. He led the group through a maze of turns, finally stopping in front of a deserted wall.

"Do you want to come with me?" She looked at the wall in front of her. She knew how to solve the maze, but she didn't know if Su Qiluo wanted to come with her.

"Together." Su Qiluo didn't know what this person wanted to do. She looked at the wall in front of her and the wide open space behind her, and was a little confused.

Having received Su Qiluo's affirmative answer, she nodded, reached out and pressed her hand against the wall, gently tapping it a few times.

Hearing the echo, she began to lead Su Qiluo in one direction.

After circling around several times, Su Qiluo looked at the plastic bag she had seen several times before and frowned in confusion, "Are you leading me in circles?"

"Yes, this is an ancient formation called a maze." She nodded in response, and led the people for a while until they reached the wall that the old man had led her to earlier, and pushed it a few times.

The wall broke open, and the familiar place inside reappeared before her eyes.

Su Qiluo looked behind her, then at the broken wall in front of her, her confusion growing.

He had seen this kind of ancient formation in novels before. The formations came in various forms, each with its own unique function.

He had always thought it was just something made up by novelists, but now he's actually seeing the real thing.

Indeed, art imitates life.

"Grandpa, grandpa?"

Su Qiluo called out to Mu Qingyun a few times but received no response. Then, looking at the rather old building, she wondered, "Could she have gone out on business?"

"You go ahead, I'll wait here for a while." She walked straight to the main house, remembering that there were many books there, so she could read for a while to pass the time.

Pushing open the main house door, the old door creaked, a dull sound that struck one's heart, making one feel somewhat uncomfortable.

However, as soon as she pushed open the door, what came into her view was a desiccated corpse.

"Clatter".

The umbrella slipped from her hand. Looking at the motionless body lying on the ground, Mu Qingyun suddenly felt a chill run through her.

"What's wrong?"

Su Qiluo looked at the stunned Mu Qingyun and asked in confusion. When she did not respond, he quickly went into the house.

As soon as he entered the house, he saw the corpse. It was an old man with a face full of wrinkles. He must have died in terror, as his face still retained the expression he had when he died.

It's always like this.

Mu Qingyun stared blankly at the corpse, but her hands clenched uncontrollably, her short nails digging into her flesh, causing a slight pain, but she seemed not to feel it.

Aside from her younger brother and mother, she could never protect anyone else she cared about.

The eunuch who gave her a few pieces of candy when she was little, the nanny who pitied her and secretly slipped her money, the empress who kindly let her in to warm up when she was locked in the cold palace...

It's as if she's under some kind of curse; everyone who helps her suffers a terrible fate.

Having arrived here, she thought such things would never happen again, but inevitably, they still occurred before her eyes.

"Yun Jie?"

Su Qiluo glanced at the corpse and had some guesses in his mind, but looking at Mu Qingyun's expressionless face, he didn't know whether he should say it or not.

He investigated these matters, but his current priority is to calm Yunjie down.

"I'm fine," Mu Qingyun replied, enunciating each word clearly. She slowly stepped forward and touched the old man's eyes, which he refused to close even in death.