On the twenty-second day of the first month in the sixth year of Emperor Qian Yuan’s reign, in the Battle of Yan-Liang, Xiliang’s grand army had successfully completed the encirclement, trapping Eastern Yan within their formations. Just as victory was within reach, a shocking change occurred – Xiliang’s Great Emperor Xiao Jue lost his composure on the battlefield, was struck by a flying arrow, and died midway through the campaign at Yu City.

Xiliang was shocked. The entire world was shocked.

The Xiliang army in battle fell into complete disarray, and Eastern Yan counterattacked with full force. Four hundred thousand troops suffered devastating casualties – Xiliang suffered its first major defeat since the Battle of Greenfield.

The four seas trembled with furious winds and clouds. An empire that had been on the verge of rising was suddenly dealt a crushing blow at the moment before its ascension. In an instant, heaven and earth overturned. Would it fall broken and never rise again, or would it struggle up and shine once more?

At this moment, there was no longer any powerful force in the world capable of examining and assessing the situation to analyze future changes in the war. Only Princess Jianxi Chu Fengyao, separated by distant seas and mountains in her remote maritime kingdom, said one simple sentence:

“She will be reborn.”

When she said this, she was kneeling with closed eyes, quietly burning incense. Before her, on the royal ancestral shrine tablets, several rows of golden characters glittered in the dim light. The final characters read: “Spirit Tablet of Late Elder Brother Chu Feihuan.”

In the faint smoke, Princess Jianxi kept her eyes closed, her expression solemn and dignified, her gaze slightly sorrowful.

The world was strange, changing in an instant. At the moment when Xiliang’s grand army was most dejected, grieved, helpless, and panicked, the legendary Empress Ruiyi, who had long been in seclusion recovering from injuries and hadn’t appeared before the world, suddenly miraculously appeared in the main camp. On the high hill, the white-robed woman’s angry shouts for revenge echoed continuously across the endless wilderness, striking against layered clouds and distant mountains, producing resonant echoes.

The phoenix underwent nirvana, soaring upward with golden wings spread wide, sheltering and leading the Xiliang army that had been bewildered and lost, not knowing where to turn.

Mournfully grasping her sword and pointing southeast, ten thousand troops in white mourning marched against the enemy.

Almost immediately, Qin Chang Ge, having just finished organizing her troops, took no rest, no pause, completely ignoring that the enemy had just won a battle and their morale was high like a rainbow. She immediately launched an assault on the Eastern Yan army.

Qin Chang Ge wore only light clothing throughout, not even donning armor. She personally took sword in hand and fearlessly charged into battle. Behind her, the Sky-Flying Phoenix banner once again unfurled beneath the clouds, fluttering fiercely. Under the banner, four hundred thousand Xiliang troops spread across mountains and valleys in formation, their expressions coldly solemn with murderous intent. Their vast military might was majestic as mountains. More striking still was their white clothes and snow-white armor gleaming coldly – the entire army wore mourning, all frost-white. From a distance, it looked like vast plains covered with unmelted snow had received another blanket of boundless fresh snowfall.

That day, under the long sky’s flying frost, the silent Qin Chang Ge’s long sword struck down fiercely, tracing a smooth and snow-bright arc. With one resolute motion, she opened the curtain on this final battle. Xiliang’s iron cavalry almost immediately clashed with Eastern Yan’s battle formations!

It was a battle so brutal as to be tragic. The first deployed mounted archers charged forward with high battle cries for revenge and murderous intent, using dense arrow rain to cut down Eastern Yan’s frontline defenders like harvesting grain. Then the Empress led her troops personally, bringing her guards straight at the enemy army like a sharp blade, ruthlessly crashing into the awaiting enemy formation with complete disregard for consequences. The great banner bore an angry dancing phoenix, and wherever the Empress’s long sword pointed, great splashes of blood erupted. Her subordinates were all fierce as tigers – for every wound they suffered, they demanded dozens or even hundreds of enemy heads in exchange. The following light cavalry drove their horses in long charges, fearlessly penetrating deep. Each spear thrust used their entire body’s strength, each thrust had to pierce two enemies. Even when pulled from their horses, they would certainly grab an Eastern Yan soldier and bite through his throat with their teeth. The infantry, after being surrounded, rolled and hacked in the mud of accumulated snow and blood, using their own chests and flesh to meet enemy blades and spears, then in that instant when those weapons were caught by muscle and bone or clogged with blood and flesh, they would sever their opponents’ heads.

Avenge His Majesty! Avenge His Majesty!

This silent slogan rang in everyone’s heart, gradually echoing into a mighty roar. Everyone’s mind held only the word “revenge,” using it to support their brave will as they fought desperately forward.

The Xiliang Great Emperor, who had reigned for nine years, was wise and benevolent, light in taxes and corvée, loving his people like his children, upright and brilliant. He was deeply loved by Xiliang’s military and civilians, who took pride in him. Yet in one sudden change, he died midway through the campaign. For the War God to perish on the battlefield was something no one could accept.

Yet reality was so coldly harsh, forcing people to shed tears turned to blood. When men’s hearts are iron unto death, they should try their hand at mending heaven’s cracks. Rising from the mire, singing wildly at midnight, tragic winds rising greatly, long swords unsheathed, the quiet night’s war horns blown through with mighty, vast sounds – those endless sounds, revolving and returning, amounted to nothing more than the word “revenge.”

The great battle continued for three full days and nights, fought until blood filled the sky and sun and moon lost their light. Finally, the wilderness gradually filled with corpses, white clothes and yellow clothes woven together, mixed with infinite streams of blood color, silently falling down as sun rose and moon set. That patch of black earth under snow was saturated with fresh blood – every clod of dirt showed a slight red tinge.

Facing such fierce, fearless morale that fought desperately to the death, the Yan army finally began to lose heart and retreat step by step. Originally the two armies had been evenly matched in victories and troop strength. Now Xiliang’s army morale had not fallen – they were fierce as mad tigers, their fighting spirit even higher than before. On Eastern Yan’s side, there were vague rumors that the Queen had fallen ill and Minister Bai was treating her, unable to attend to military affairs. Lacking strong generals for command, Eastern Yan began to fear.

Troops fighting with grief are certain to win.

On the third night, Xiliang forces had already broken through the enemy’s defenses. At the same time, Eastern Yan’s generals suddenly discovered in horror that the Minister and Queen, along with a portion of the Minister’s most trusted troops, had all disappeared.

So that scene of Xiliang’s great defeat was soon reenacted among Eastern Yan’s army like a cycle. Having simultaneously lost both Queen and Minister, the Eastern Yan army immediately fell into panic and chaos, instantly becoming a routed force.

When troops are defeated, they fall like a collapsing mountain.

The Eastern Yan army was also considered fierce. They knew that having killed Xiliang’s Emperor and massacred Xiliang’s Yunzhou, they were viewed as mortal enemies by Xiliang. Even surrendering wouldn’t save their lives, so they all fought to the death. Qin Chang Ge’s orders were equally simple and harsh:

“Leave not one alive.”

Xiliang soldiers carried out this order quite thoroughly.

It’s said that Eastern Yan’s Deputy Marshal Gong Yang led the remnant army in fighting retreat, finally surrounded by Xiliang forces on a hill. In despair, he raised his blade to commit suicide. Before dying, he bowed toward the east and sighed: “Eastern Yan’s fate is unfortunate, encountering Empress Ruiyi’s rebirth.”

Beside him, a small unit captain who was a clear-sighted man stabbed a Xiliang soldier to death and coldly replied: “Eastern Yan’s destruction likely wasn’t at Xiliang’s hands, but buried by petty private ambitions.”

He was then hacked to death by random blades.

Three days later, exhausted Xiliang soldiers began clearing the battlefield, counting casualties, resting in place, and handling arrangements to escort His Majesty’s coffin back to the country.

The snow on the plains hadn’t melted yet. Those flesh and bones buried under snow would eventually become fertile black soil for next year’s spring grass, supporting new green growth across the fields, swaying in the wind.

And those thousands of departed souls would step back to their homeland under the guidance of the long soul-summoning banners of Xiliang custom.

Only Qin Chang Ge didn’t set foot on the return journey. She took all the Phoenix Alliance guards and left the main army, once again embarking on a pursuit to kill.

Until this revenge was complete, she would never return.

Long winds howling, phoenix banners rolling, the woman still in mourning dress bowed deeply to Su Xuan. That white-robed man returned her bow slightly. The two remained throughout without speaking a word.

Qin Chang Ge thanked Su Xuan for arriving in time during that day’s chaos to retrieve Xiao Jue’s body; thanked him for personally guarding those two ice coffins for days, looking after the entire army for her without rest; thanked him for standing silently yet firmly by her side at the most painful, tragic, lonely, and helpless moment of her life.

Su Xuan only looked at her deeply. At this moment, words of comfort were useless – everything was understood without speaking.

Qin Chang Ge bowed, turned around, and heard the man behind her ask softly, “You… truly won’t look at him again?”

Standing silently without turning back, the white-robed woman raised her head to gaze at the snowy mountains ahead. Her straight, slender figure looked so desolate at this moment.

After a long time, she said: “…No… I’m afraid…”

Su Xuan’s eyebrows moved slightly, shock appearing in his eyes. In his entire life, he had never imagined the word “afraid” would come from her lips. One light sentence carried heavy wounds, infinite sorrow rushing toward him, choking his breath.

So that when that figure strode down the hillside, heading forward without looking back, gradually disappearing from his view, only after a long time could he softly speak that sentence:

“Take care.”

A long, fight-to-the-death hunt began from this moment.

For a very long time, Qin Chang Ge and Bai Yuan, this pair of equally matched supreme talents of the world, traveled across the territories of various nations, wielding sharp deadly weapons, using pursuit and probing, hiding and circling, spying and disguise, counter-intelligence and trap-setting – every assassination and tracking method humans could devise – in endless contests and clashes.

Initially, after Bai Yuan disappeared from the battlefield, for a full month he completely vanished without trace. No matter what methods Qin Chang Ge used, she couldn’t find his whereabouts. During that month, Qin Chang Ge couldn’t taste food or sleep peacefully. She knew that the longer time dragged on, the harder Bai Yuan would be to find. And once she let her enemy escape like a wild goose into the vast sky, how could she have the face to continue living?

It wasn’t until March of that year, when Feng Ziguang’s army attacking Eastern Yan broke into the Eastern Yan royal palace and captured the King Consort painting in Cloud Tower Palace, that matters took a turn.

This King Consort was said to be extremely calm. When Xiliang’s grand army broke into the palace, all the palace servants cried and fled, yet he continued painting with unmoved expression, his hand never trembling as he completed the final brushstroke just as soldiers viciously kicked open the palace doors.

On the paper was an orchid growing beside a rock, that final dot of pistil trembling pitifully in the wind.

An extremely exquisite painting, but unfortunately the Xiliang soldiers who couldn’t tell orchids from weeds didn’t appreciate art. They grabbed the King Consort and were about to execute him.

The man looked down at the snow-bright blade light without fear, saying calmly: “I am Eastern Yan’s King Consort Sikong Hen. Take me to see your leader.”

His voice wasn’t loud yet his bearing was extraordinary. Though the blade light was like snow, it wasn’t as pure as his divine countenance. The soldiers stared at him blankly – whether awed by his peerless radiance or supreme demeanor, they unconsciously loosened their blades and nodded.

When he saw Deputy General Li Ji, he shook his head: “I said I want to see the leader.”

Then when Feng Ziguang met him, he still shook head: “The leader.”

Feng Ziguang didn’t waste words with him, directly assigning a group to escort this “calamity-level” King Consort to find Qin Chang Ge.

Extremely irritated, Qin Chang Ge received this King Consort with a smile. Sikong Hen sat before her, looked her up and down once, and without a single wasted word, went straight to the point:

“I’ll help you find your enemy, you help me kill that tyrant.”

“Wrong,” Qin Chang Ge gently corrected him. “I’m the one who will kill him. It’s none of your business.”

“Eastern Yan’s destruction was due to Bai Yuan – how is it none of my business? Though now I don’t care anymore. From beginning to end, he and I both wanted only one person.”

Qin Chang Ge stared at Sikong Hen in amazement. Wasn’t this King Consort said to stay secluded and not concern himself with politics? Wasn’t he said to only love music, chess, calligraphy and painting, not understanding politics? Could this fellow with features like a painting and full of elegance not be just an embroidered pillow? Then why did he allow Bai Yuan to control court politics?

Meeting her gaze, Sikong Hen smiled. At this moment, this man who appeared refined and elegant to his bones, as if he wished his muscles were made of jade and his spirit of ice and snow, finally revealed a trace of helplessness.

“She trusts him, even… perhaps loves him.”

Qin Chang Ge looked at him with sudden understanding, vaguely grasping that Eastern Yan’s highest levels were also caught in a love triangle – not even a stable iron triangle, but a tottering, creaking one that could collapse at any moment.

She smiled lightly.

“Sikong Hen, help me find him, and I promise not to kill the Queen, giving you couple true freedom.”

The smoke of war across thousands of li couldn’t reach the jade towers and pearl pavilions, or the Crown Prince’s bedside.

In the inner palace of Guantang Palace, the Crown Prince slept deeply, yet for some unknown reason, faint tear tracks hung at the corners of his eyes.

Little eunuch Youtiao’er held clothes, looking with heartache at the Crown Prince’s sleeping face, thinking that being Crown Prince was actually quite pitiful. This small child of seven years, since becoming Crown Prince, seemed to see his parents less often than he handled state affairs. Though compared to others he should be considered a carefree and free Crown Prince, still felt pitiful.

Look, those tears again – probably thinking about having to endlessly draw circles on memorials later. Too tragic.

Youtiao’er shook his head, thinking he had it better. The Crown Prince always shared his food and toys, everyone in the palace fawned over him. Except for having one less piece of flesh than the Crown Prince, but that didn’t seem like a big deal.

Youtiao’er touched his crotch, considered for three seconds, and decided not to wake the Crown Prince. Let old Jia wait – that gentleman with “self-restraint and righteousness” always on his lips wouldn’t bully us lower-class people.

“Something’s wrong! Something’s wrong!!”

Before Youtiao’er could fully turn around, he heard the Crown Prince suddenly burst out with these words. Looking back, the Crown Prince had suddenly sat up, staring straight ahead at the wall in a daze.

What’s wrong? Sleepwalking? Youtiao’er carefully approached, when suddenly Baozi thrust out his arm horizontally, pressing his paw against his small black face and shoving him away.

…What dream did he just have? Seemed like godfather? Or father? Why couldn’t he remember clearly? Who had just gently stroked his face, saying: “Rong’er, you must grow up happily”?

Why wouldn’t I be happy? Of course I’m very happy. Except for occasionally being abandoned by parents which is rather tragic, I have no reason not to be happy… Really a strange dream.

Baozi stared blankly, desperately trying to remember but couldn’t recall what he’d dreamed. He only remembered the dream had faint flower fragrance and some strange scents. Suddenly feeling his eyes were a bit wet, he dabbed with his finger and stared at that water mark on his finger in amazement. Tears? I cried in my sleep? What am I doing?

Hugging his bedding, Baozi asked Youtiao’er with vacant eyes: “Hey, what did I just say?”

“You said… something’s wrong.”

“Ah?” Baozi continued staring vacantly as he turned his head. “I said that? Why did I say that?”

“This servant doesn’t know.”

Baozi frowned thinking for a long time, then suddenly patted his heart: “Youtiao’er, this Crown Prince feels unwell today.”

Youtiao’er glanced sideways at the Crown Prince – you seem to say you feel unwell every day, right? So you don’t have to go to the study?

“I really feel stuffy,” Baozi stared blankly at the dragon and phoenix decorated ceiling, suddenly saying: “Youtiao, have the recent military reports arrived?”

“Yes, didn’t they just report yesterday?” Youtiao’er had good memory. “You said – great victory at Yu City, main army resting and resupplying at Chihuo City, then sweeping clean to strike Eastern Yan directly. Our territory will add a large chunk.”

“Sounds really wonderful, but why haven’t those two fathers, one mother, and one master sent me a single word?”

Youtiao’er rolled his eyes. Crown Prince, are you having early menopause? Why so strange and nagging today? Those are military reports – do you want His Majesty to write in military reports: “Great victory at Yu City, Rong’er I miss you”?

What would that look like?

“His Majesty will naturally return once Eastern Yan is pacified. With our Xiliang’s divine might, it’s only a matter of one or two months before you can see His Majesty and the others.” Youtiao’er patiently consoled, reaching out to help Baozi dress.

Baozi’s face suddenly changed, his palm flipped to grab Youtiao’er’s palm.

Then he closed his eyes as if listening to something.

Youtiao’er was startled by his master’s strange behavior. Oh my, what is the Crown Prince doing? That… that… molesting? No… I don’t want to be a catamite!

Youtiao’er’s small black paw trembled. Baozi impatiently slapped it: “Don’t move!”

Youtiao’er shuddered… what comes next? That thing master mentioned before about training? Ah ah ah no…

“You’re about to get splashed.” Baozi suddenly released his hand, saying strangely: “I saw it.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I don’t know what I’m talking about either.” Baozi stared with his already large eyes, his gaze full of anxiety and confusion about his suddenly appearing mystical phenomena. “When you just touched my hand, I seemed to see something, so I grabbed your hand wanting to see more clearly.”

“What did you see?” Youtiao’er shrank his neck, looking at Baozi with mysterious eyes… has master been possessed? What is all this talk?

Should he get monks to exorcise master?

“I saw…” Baozi suddenly stopped: “Go get my morning meal.”

Youtiao’er said “oh” and obediently went out, seeing a eunuch in the front corridor carrying a food tray. He happily rushed to meet him.

His figure turned past the long window. Baozi couldn’t see outside but suddenly smiled mischievously, saying low: “One, two, three… drop!”

“Wah!”

Youtiao’er’s scream echoed through the corridor. He’d just gone to receive the food tray when that eunuch’s hands had oil that hadn’t been wiped clean. Touching the tray’s edge, it slipped and tilted, and that bowl of scalding ginseng chicken congee splashed all over his small black head.

The screams reached Guantang Palace’s inner chamber. The amused expression just rising on Baozi’s face instantly froze.

He suddenly fell backward, forcefully pulling the covers over his head and moaning.

“What is all this… Mother, where are you? Give me answers!”

Nanmin’s climate was always warm and humid, as damp as eternal gloom – like the heart of one who no longer knew worldly joy.

Qin Chang Ge stood with hands behind her back at the window, quietly watching the bustling harbor ahead.

Following Sikong Hen’s directions, she had pursued Bai Yuan all the way to Yan City in former Nanmin territory. It was a small city near the Heng River bank. From here one could buy passage downstream, stopping at Mai City, where ships to Li Kingdom were available for direct sea passage south.

According to Sikong Hen, when the Queen played chess with him, she had spoken longingly of Li Kingdom’s warm climate, unlike Eastern Yan’s cold, very suitable for her health recovery. The Queen, who rarely spoke due to her speech impediment, communicated mainly with him and Bai Yuan. This comment was mostly something Bai Yuan had mentioned to her.

Qin Chang Ge immediately rushed there without stopping, silently beginning searches in Yan City. She indeed discovered vague traces of Bai Yuan, but this person was as cunning as a swimming fish. Several times when she was about to track him down, he escaped, also taking out some hidden agents in the process.

Sikong Hen had been following Qin Chang Ge in disguise. After several clashes and escapes, he couldn’t help sighing. Seeing his hesitant expression and apparent worries, Qin Chang Ge didn’t waste words but negotiated directly: “If you want to completely recover your wife, you must cooperate with me wholeheartedly. Otherwise, once Bai Yuan sets sail, you’ll never see Liu Wanlan again in this lifetime.”

Sikong Hen was moved. After a while he said: “Wanlan has lung disease. Wanlan likes eating crucian carp. Though Bai Yuan’s knowledge is extensive, for years he’s specialized in political balance and the dark arts of human psychology – he’s not very skilled in medical principles.”

This one sentence was enough for Qin Chang Ge.

She immediately issued orders for all Phoenix Alliance subordinates to immediately control all medicine shops. By whatever means necessary, they must ensure that when someone came to buy lung disease medicine, they added ophiopogon to the medicine packet.

Ophiopogon eaten together with crucian carp would certainly cause poisoning.

Phoenix Alliance subordinates all mobilized – every packet contained ophiopogon.

Now they were waiting for news to conduct the capture. The people following her all showed slight tension, but only Qin Chang Ge remained coldly calm, unmoved as a mountain.

Since that night, since she had struggled to rise, lifted the tent flap, and in the flying snow stepped onto the high hill to face four hundred thousand troops in mourning white, gentle and cunning Ming Shuang had died, lively and carefree Zhao Moyan had died. Now she was the returned Qin Chang Ge, that Empress Ruiyi perhaps destined for legend and therefore destined for solitude.

This was the responsibility she had to bear – family, country, great revenge, young child – not allowing her to indulge in grief. Even that night, when she so wanted to sleep forever beside them, never having to face this world’s bleakness and fate’s cruelty.

Yet she could only struggle to rise and move forward wounded. This was her destiny – unable to be Ming Shuang, unable to be Zhao Moyan, unable to be the ordinary peasant woman whose husband fished while she wove. She could only be Ruiyi.

This identity seemed to become fate’s malicious prophecy – she possessed, she lost.

She stood under the moon, at the window, making her figure into a silhouette written with loneliness.

Hand pressed to her heart – her heart had become empty.

Hand pressed to her heart – not put down for a long time.

That place still hid something. After so long, she still lacked courage to open it. Just as she dared not look at Xiao Jue, she also feared that the moment she saw Feihuan’s final letter, the mental defenses she’d worked so hard to build would completely collapse in an instant.

Yet tonight she might directly face Bai Yuan – who knew what would happen? If she didn’t look now, perhaps there’d be no chance to look later.

Slowly drawing out the letter, she saw at the top “Chang Ge Personal” in familiar elegant handwriting. She’d seen it countless times on Phoenix Alliance intelligence reports. Feihuan would always first read all secret reports, underlining information he considered important or useful and noting his opinions. She found it very convenient to read and benefited greatly.

In the future, who else would help me analyze those secret reports? Who else would always support my shoulders from behind…

Qin Chang Ge’s fingers trembled slightly. She first closed her eyes, working to steady her breathing before forcing down the impulse to cry and slowly reading downward.

“Chang Ge, are you well at Tiger’s Mouth Cliff at this moment?”

“His Majesty just asked Brother Su to go assist you – there should be no problems. His Majesty is currently inspecting the camp. Taking this opportunity, I have words for you.”

“When you see this letter, I likely can no longer accompany you. Chang Ge, forgive me, and please take good care of yourself. Causing you pain was never my intention – I only hope everything goes well for you hereafter.”

“That night at the People’s Celebration Festival, you asked if I was hiding anything from you. I didn’t tell you honestly then – I had no choice but to conceal it. Now I’ll tell you everything. That night I asked Brother Su to help me transfer my Chu clan’s divine pearl to Rong’er.”

“My Chu royal clan is traditionally descended from deep sea dragons. Direct descendants often have mystical qualities – actually due to divine pearls within our bodies, supposedly formed from our dragon ancestor’s inner core, passed down through generations with power to part water and avoid disasters. Except for our direct Chu royal bloodline, this isn’t known to the world. Since birth I differed from other brothers – my divine pearl lay beneath the birthmark, the golden carp dazzling, with greater mind-reading and precognition abilities than others, thus especially envied by various brothers. This time, knowing my days were numbered, I asked Brother Su to help transfer the divine pearl into Rong’er’s body. Rong’er once said he wanted to go to Li Kingdom in the future. Thinking of his nature, this journey will likely be fraught with difficulty. Leaving this thing to him, he becomes one of my Chu royal clan. For Rong’er this identity naturally can’t be real or amount to much, but if he wants to accomplish things in Li Kingdom in the future, it should be quite convenient.”

“There’s another matter. Chang Ge, I think perhaps there’s no need to specifically mention it. That matter – you and I both know, and both know the other knows. Chang Ge, if you return to the palace, destroy the hidden wall in that carved peony wall in Changshou Palace’s inner chamber. Don’t look at the box inside anymore – let it disappear forever. This is good for both you and His Majesty.”

“The night Rong’er went to Youzhou, you and I went to the palace seeking him. I accidentally discovered that box in Changshou Palace. Afterward I tried to take you away, but later I understood – His Majesty is very good. He treats you with complete sincerity. So those unintentional mistakes caused by others’ manipulation – since you pretend not to know, why should I worry? Chang Ge, I’m very happy someone can love you like this, no less than I do. In this life I can finally leave with peace of mind.”

“The night I transferred the divine pearl to Rong’er, I tried one last time to see your enemy clearly, but the future was vast as entering fog, difficult to trace. I think with my meager power, I cannot oppose greater forces. Master Shi Yi of Huguo Temple should have such divine abilities – I once asked him for answers but he seemed to have difficulties. Chang Ge, if you return to the capital, you might try again.”

“Please tell Rong’er that godfather will always remember him and wishes him to walk forward bravely and happily.”

“Finally, I wish you couple eventual reunion and lifelong peace.”

“Feihuan, final letter on the twentieth night of the first month.”

The letter fluttered to the ground.

Qin Chang Ge slowly raised her hand and pressed it to her heart. Though it was clearly empty there, why did it still hurt so much?

Feihuan, Feihuan…

I enjoyed a lifetime of your care and blessings yet couldn’t give you any return.

You spoke so lightly of eternal farewell yet didn’t dare easily write the word “death.” You were so afraid of touching my sorrow, yet my sorrow was already like tide, bursting its banks because of you.

You worried so for Rong’er before departing, transferring all your supernatural abilities to him, yet I was too careless to notice your changes. Otherwise that night at the unnamed ruined town, I should have realized – with your precognitive abilities, why didn’t you sense Shui Jingchen’s ambush at all?

You so sincerely understood Xiao Jue, understood my selfish heart, smiling as you prayed for and blessed us before leaving.

Only you could never know that such wishes would be difficult to fulfill in this life.

Feihuan, great evil like me, great love like you, ultimately both fell into fate’s bloody trap, watching dark sky press down from above.

The world’s cruelty reaches such extremes!

A pale moon shone through the long window, onto the lightly clothed, cold-hearted woman at the window, onto her eyes that had long since shed all tears. There lay deep loneliness, infinite sorrow.

This night was the seventh day of the third month.

The sky was overcast, black clouds floating. Occasionally revealing a trace of moonlight, but its color was pale and tragic.

Qin Chang Ge still stood at the window, listening to Phoenix Alliance guards’ reports. The city had eleven medicine shops. Today 117 people bought lung medicine, five showed poisoning symptoms. The most likely were two households.

One was a resident who’d lived there many years – their young son was poisoned, moaning severely. An old man came out to dig for detoxifying earth syrup water. The other was a woman staying at an inn who was poisoned. A middle-aged man who appeared to be the woman’s husband rushed straight to the medicine shop, but naturally the shop was closed. Having no choice, he also went back to dig for water.

Qin Chang Ge let out a cold laugh: “Go to both houses.”

She ordered Phoenix Alliance subordinates to quietly surround that inn first, using signal flares if there was movement. Qin Chang Ge herself took people to that ordinary resident’s house.

Her figure like water grass flew through the night air carrying the slightly fishy scent of sea breeze. Wind passed by her ears, surrounding scenery rapidly retreating, fast as flowing light dancing.

In her flight, those fleeting pasts, bygone events, once-vivid male faces – scene after scene passed by.

Qin Chang Ge bit her black hair between her teeth, her gaze piercing darkness sharp as a blade.

Bai Yuan.

Tonight, I come to kill you.