It seemed that "Director Xu" had to exert a lot of effort before he finally spoke again, but the person he was speaking to was Xiao Tao, who was standing next to him.
"Xiao, Xiao Tao, where are your father, uh, and mother?" Director Xu asked urgently.
Xiao Tao suddenly burst into tears, "They're all dead! They all died of illness!"
Upon hearing her words, Director Xu's face turned even paler. He seemed unable to believe it, repeatedly muttering, "How could this be? How could this be?"
With an incredulous look in "Director Xu's" eyes, two grayish-black bones suddenly flew out of Xiao Tao's small red cloth bag. They were actually the two ribs from the underground air-raid shelter.
As soon as the rib appeared, it flew into "Director Xu's" body, at which point he let out a long sigh.
"So, I'm already dead?"
Yan Qing's eyes widened. This "Director Xu" was actually Xiao Tao's uncle—Xiao Boqian!
"Director Xu," oh, it's Xiao Boqian, now only has a bitter smile on his face.
He looked at Xiao Tao, hesitatingly, "Xiao Tao, besides you, is there anyone else alive in our Xiao family?"
Xiao Tao shook her head; Xiao Boqian had already guessed this answer. If there was still someone alive in the family, why would his brother send a stranger to bring Xiao Tao to see him?
"Unfortunately, I have disappointed everyone. I passed away more than 20 years ago," Xiao Boqian said self-deprecatingly. "I can only occupy this body for a very short time."
He looked at Yan Qing, "Young lady, did my brother say anything?"
“Yes, he said he regretted it too.” Yan Qing repeated Xiao Zhonglin’s words, “But at the time he entrusted the task to the two of us, and another person named Yue Qi, who is a disciple of the Xuanmen sect.”
Xiao Boqian thought for a moment, "You mean that little guy with heterochromia? That's right, he should be someone my second brother would take a liking to, but he's not good enough for me."
Yan Qing gasped. This person had such arrogance! He actually looked down on the male lead, this chosen one!
Xiao Boqian smiled and said unexpectedly, "Little girl, how does it feel to be locked up in a pile of dead bodies?"
"What?!?!" It was him who did it!
Seeing Yan Qing's angry expression, Xiao Boqian's smile deepened. "If it weren't for that accident, would you have been able to get to the underground laboratory? This was just a test I gave you. But you did well, so—"
A red pebble was thrown in her direction. Yan Qing hurriedly caught it, and then she heard Xiao Boqian's voice.
"My time is running out, so I'm handing the key over to you. And I'll also bestow upon you an immense fortune. Young lady, how about we make a deal? Little Peach, come here—"
Xiao Tao walked to Xiao Boqian's side, still a little confused. He patted her head affectionately and said gently,
"Does Xiaotao like Sister Yanqing?"
"like!"
"Then you'll stay with Sister Yanqing from now on, okay?" Xiao Boqian asked with a smile, but tears welled up in his eyes.
"No, I want to take Uncle with me. Uncle, will you come with us?" Xiao Tao seemed to have a premonition of something and hugged Xiao Boqian's waist tightly.
"Uncle wants to, too, but Xiaotao, your uncle is dead, just like your parents. I'm just living in someone else's body now. Besides, I don't have much time left, so Xiaotao, don't be willful."
He took Xiao Tao's hand and solemnly placed it in Yan Qing's palm. Yan Qing felt the coldness and slipperiness of her hand, just like in the fire escape.
She blurted out in disbelief, "You're not Yue Qi's senior brother, are you? The source of the pollution in that fire escape?"
Xiao Boqian twitched his lips, "You still found out!"
"That's right, that's me, and all of it is me. Back then, I was ambushed and was about to die when I unexpectedly encountered someone who was also seriously injured. In order to survive, the two of us merged again to form this monster that is neither human nor ghost, which is the source of pollution you see."
"After all these years, I've been waiting. Now that you've appeared with Xiaotao, I can finally take a break."
He raised his hand slightly, and Yan Qing instantly felt a sharp pain in her wrist.
"Consider this my deposit. Also, here's a warning: you'd better get my treasure before that woman does, or you'll never get out of here."
"Who is that woman?" Yan Qing asked.
"Hahahaha—" Xiao Boqian actually laughed, his tone tinged with desolation. "My wife, the one who killed me, she came from the Xuanmen sect, after the ultimate evolution potion. Alas, I ultimately failed to recognize true character—"
Sticky liquid began to ooze from Xiao Boqian's entire body, and he seemed to be melting away like a deflated balloon.
With his last breath, he solemnly instructed her, "Remember, only one evolution potion was successful. It's the only one, so don't mistake it for something else!"
"Remember, the finish line is on the way here—" The voice grew fainter and fainter until it could no longer be heard at all.
Yan Qing covered Xiao Tao's eyes to prevent her from seeing the pile of seemingly melted flesh and blood on the ground.
The ring on her wrist flashed, and the small red pebble disappeared.
The next moment, the sound of the barrier shattering echoed through the space. The woman in white and Yue Qi and his two fellow disciples rushed over one after the other.
The woman in white had a cold, hard expression. "Tell me, where is it?"
Yan Qing pointed to a pile of minced meat on the ground, "There it is."
The woman in white conjured a long sword from who-knows-where, and after sifting through the viscous mass of flesh and blood for a long time, finally found a small, dark wooden box.
Upon opening the wooden box, an identical small red pebble lay inside. The woman in white's expression finally softened upon seeing this.
He turned to Mu Yang and said, "Let's go!" He didn't even glance at Yan Qing and the other person.
Seeing how arrogant this person was, Yan Qing finally felt a little relieved. It seemed that he didn't even consider her, a nobody.
Yue Qi walked over, his face filled with grief. "My senior brother has passed away."
Yan Qing had already guessed that Xiao Boqian would never have risked forcibly taking over "Director Xu's" body if he wasn't about to collapse.
He must have recognized Xiaotao from the beginning, which is why he tested me alone. In the end, he entrusted Xiaotao to me.
There's nothing left in the fire escape area now. Yan Qing had something to say to him.
"Yue Qi, let's go out. I need to talk to you about something."
She turned to leave, but found Yue Qi still standing there, which puzzled her.
"What’s wrong with you?"
Yue Qi looked up and said something she hadn't expected.
"Girl, I may be leaving soon."
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