Sighing at the fleeting moments like a horse in a crack, a spark in a stone, a body in a dream...
In the midst of an inexplicable echo, Chen Ji didn't know how long he had been wandering in the darkness.
It felt like he had been trudging through an icy river for a century, unable to clear the fog before his eyes.
Yet, this darkness seemed to last only an instant, as brief as the spark when stones collide.
Chen Ji couldn't control his body; he could only listen.
The sound of wind, rain, and even the oars slicing through water, as if someone was ferrying him across a sea of black clouds in a small boat.
Chen Ji wanted to break free from the darkness, but everything around him was as sticky as glue, making it impossible to escape.
Outside the darkness, someone suddenly spoke in a relaxed tone: "Lord Zhou, we wouldn't have come personally if we weren't certain. The moment you see us, you either cooperate fully and help us catch the Jing Dynasty spy in Luocheng, or we make your life a living hell. There's no other choice."
An enraged middle-aged man retorted, "I don't know what crime I've committed to warrant such a massacre in my own home. I don't know any spies from the Jing Dynasty!"
The relaxed voice continued, "On the 27th of last month, you hosted a banquet for Master Li from the Ministry of Works at the famous Bamboo Garden in the East Market's White Robe Alley. During the banquet, you redeemed Miss Cui Huan and gifted her to him. However, Miss Cui Huan happens to be a spy from the Jing Dynasty, and she has already implicated you... Need I say more?"
"What does Miss Cui Huan being a spy have to do with me? I've never had any dealings with her before!"
"You want evidence?"
"Yes!"
In the room, a girl laughed, "Since when does our Secret Spy Bureau need evidence to kill a spy?"
The interrogated Lord Zhou fell silent, and the room quieted down, leaving only heavy breathing.
The room was in shambles, with shattered porcelain and a broken antique shelf, resembling a ruin.
Amidst the ruins, seven or eight corpses lay twisted, with only a disheveled middle-aged man sitting on the floor, looking utterly defeated.
Opposite him, a young man in a sleek black outfit stood with a relaxed and amused demeanor.
Not far away, a slender black-clad girl squatted on a grand chair, watching the scene unfold.
These two black-clad youths, seemingly no older than twenty, had just slaughtered an entire room of people.
In the darkness, Chen Ji suddenly felt as if these voices were a hand, grabbing him as he sank into the abyss, dragging him back from hell to the mortal world.
"Lord Zhou, who else in Luocheng is your accomplice? It's fine if you don't want to talk now; we have the whole night to spend," the young man said with a smile.
"Wait a moment, we'll bring your family hidden in Firewood Alley, and then see if you're willing to talk..."
The next moment.
A corpse in the room suddenly sat up!
Gasp!
Chen Ji took a deep breath, like a drowning man given a new lease on life, greedily inhaling air.
His breathing was loud and piercing in the silence, breaking the heavy atmosphere.
Chen Ji sat up from the floor, feeling dazed.
He instinctively reached for the knife wound on his waist, but there was nothing there.
The girl squatting on the grand chair suddenly turned her head, "Huh, Yun Yang, your skills are getting rusty. How come you can't even kill someone properly?"
Yun Yang defended himself, "Impossible, his heart must be in the wrong place!"
"Failed is failed, can't admit it?"
"What should we do?"
"Kill him again."
At this moment, Chen Ji had too many questions: Why had he been reborn? Where had he been reborn? Could he still find his way home? If something as miraculous as rebirth could happen, could he see his loved ones again?
He opened his eyes, "Wait, I have something to say..."
As soon as he spoke, footsteps sounded outside, drawing everyone's attention.
A dozen men in the same black outfits entered the courtyard, escorting seven or eight people, including two children, a boy and a girl, around eight or nine years old.
Seizing the moment, Chen Ji quickly surveyed his surroundings: the room wasn't large, with a redwood desk on the left, and in the center, two grand chairs and a table.
Books, brushes, ink, and paper were scattered everywhere, a complete mess.
Had he traveled through time?
Was this the dream world Li Qingniao had mentioned?
It seemed he had traveled into the body of someone who had just died, but he had no idea who this person was before.
Chen Ji really wanted to stop and think about his situation, but the crisis before him was unfolding too quickly, leaving him no time to ponder.
As he thought, the dozen black-clad men forced Lord Zhou's family to kneel on the ground.
One of them reported with a fist salute, "We've brought all of Zhou Chengyi's hidden family. This woman was redeemed from White Robe Alley ten years ago, and these two children are their offspring, a boy and a girl. The others are the butler and maids."
These dozen black-clad men had resolute expressions, with sheathed long knives hanging at their waists.
Yun Yang squatted in front of the woman with a smile, "Madam, do you know about Lord Zhou being a spy for the Jing Dynasty?"
The woman clutched the little boy tightly, shaking her head in terror, "No, we know nothing!"
Yun Yang pulled out a slender silver needle from his sleeve and swiftly stabbed it into the woman's chest.
She made no sound, collapsing to the ground.
Dead.
Cries and wails filled the room.
The butler shouted hoarsely, "Master, what's going on?!" Zhou Chengyi didn't answer, just watched with a grim expression.
Yun Yang glanced at him, then squatted in front of a maid, "Is there anything you want to tell me?"
The maid stammered, "My... my master only comes two or three times a month. We... we hardly ever see him."
Yun Yang thrust the silver needle toward her.
The maid tried to dodge, but the needle was too fast.
She could only watch as it pierced her chest.
Chen Ji instinctively touched his own chest.
Yun Yang continued his killing spree until he reached the little boy.
He squatted down with a smile, not looking at the boy but staring straight at Zhou Chengyi, "Kid, did your father tell you anything?"
Zhou Chengyi's face twitched, "Your Ning Dynasty prides itself on literature and etiquette, yet you would torture and kill a child?"
Yun Yang sneered, "This spring, the Jing Dynasty cavalry marched south, killing countless innocent people of Ning. Should I discuss poetry and etiquette with you? Besides, last year you bought a ten-year-old girl and later gifted her to the Luocheng prefect. Was she not a child? Lord Zhou, if you don't confess, your child will die."
"Dad, save me!"
Yet, Zhou Chengyi merely turned his head slightly, ignoring his child's pleas.
Yun Yang whistled, "So heartless. It seems we've caught a spy of the Sea Eagle level or higher. To have you lurking under our noses for so many years is truly shameful."
Stab.
The boy fell dead.
Chen Ji silently watched as the boy's eyes remained wide open, staring at him.
Zhou Chengyi's forehead veins bulged.
At this moment, the girl named Jiao Tu approached the little girl, squatting down and speaking softly, "Your mother only held your brother just now. Did you see that?"
The little girl nodded in terror.
Jiao Tu continued, "If you're willing to come with me and call me sister, I won't kill you."
But the little girl didn't respond, only looking at her father in confusion and fear.
"In this world, weak girls suffer a lot," Jiao Tu smiled, pulling the little girl into her arms, "Don't be afraid, it'll be quick."
She pulled out a silver needle identical to Yun Yang's from her hair and gently inserted it into the back of the little girl's neck.
The girl instantly went limp in Jiao Tu's arms, lifeless.
Chen Ji's pupils contracted.
Yun Yang watched indifferently, then approached the remaining butler and Chen Ji, "Young man, you were lucky to survive just now. Since you've been given a second chance, let's play a game. Whoever gives us information first gets to live."
The butler immediately crawled forward, crying and snotting, "My lords, I'll talk! I'll tell you everything you want to know! Let me live!"
Yun Yang chuckled, "I love this kind of betrayal for survival!"
Chen Ji also spoke up, "I don't have any information, but give me two quarters of an hour, and I'll find the information for you."
The butler hurriedly explained, "He's just a medical apprentice, what could he possibly know? Listen to me!"
Yun Yang looked at Chen Ji with a sincere expression, "I'd have to wait two quarters of an hour for your information, and I'm not even sure if it exists, so I'm very sorry... Ah, you!"
As he teased, Chen Ji suddenly lunged at the butler, pinning him to the ground.
In an instant, a shard of porcelain Chen Ji had hidden in his hand slashed across the butler's neck.
Unfortunately, he lacked experience in killing, and the first cut missed the artery.
Yun Yang and Jiao Tu didn't intervene.
Panicked, the butler lay on the ground, punching Chen Ji's face with all his might.
But Chen Ji didn't dodge, gripping the shard tightly and slashing again.
This time, the butler's carotid artery was severed, and blood gushed out like a fountain.
The butler was dead.
Chen Ji slowly stood up, his eye corner bruised from the butler's punches, and his palm cut from gripping the shard too tightly, blood dripping to the ground.
Jiao Tu's eyes lit up.
Yun Yang also became interested, "You really want to live?"
Chen Ji panted, "I don't have any information, but give me two quarters of an hour, and I'll find it for you."
"Oh?" Yun Yang raised an eyebrow, "Deal, but I'll only give you one quarter of an hour."
(End of Chapter)