Icy cold, darkness, and death traveled together.

Just let it end like this, just sink into deep sleep and never wake up again!

“You fool, what’s wrong with you… Didn’t you promise you would save me and take me away? You’ve already let me down once—are you going to disappoint me a second time? Fool, I hate you!”

—No, I will keep my promise and save you, Rou’er.

“Hey, you want to die? Who gave you permission to die? Father, Mother, and Cun’er—their revenge hasn’t been avenged yet. The grievances between you and I are still unresolved. If you dare to die, I’ll dare to drag you back from hell!”

—That’s Wei Duming.

“Big Brother Li, Zhenzhu is waiting for you. We agreed, remember? You’re going to take me to the most beautiful island to watch the sunset, and the sunrise too.”

—Zhenzhu, before you turn into an old woman, I’ll accompany you to watch the sunrise.

“Come, this Soul-Returning Soup made specially from human flesh just for you. There’s only one pot of this in the entire world—hurry up and drink a mouthful. Hehehe…”

—Lao Sitou, who wants to drink your corpse soup? You keep it for yourself.

So many people, so many attachments, so many promises—how can I possibly die!

Just as he was about to plunge into the deepest darkness, Li Si suddenly opened both eyes wide. His body was wrapped tightly by more than ten tentacles. Li Si lowered his head and bit down on one tentacle! He bit fiercely, tearing and gnawing until one tentacle was severed.

Li Si jerked his head aside and bit down on a second one.

After biting off five tentacles, Huilin burst out with a piercing shriek and released its tentacles. Li Si, freed from his restraints, vaguely glimpsed a patch of fluorescent light in the darkest depths of the water, not far away.

“Whew!” Li Si burst through the water surface and looked around in all directions.

He had drilled through the bottom of the water pool into another space—a secret hold he had never discovered before.

Beside the hold’s water pool, a sturdy wooden frame was nailed in place, upon which sat more than ten enormous blocks of white ice. The fluorescent light he had seen underwater earlier came from this white ice.

Where is this place?

Li Si climbed out of the water pool. In the next instant, his entire body froze in place, his pupils completely frozen by the massive ice blocks.

In the center of the ice… there was an unimaginable scene!

In the swaying ship’s hold, Li Si had returned. Behind him came a gust of cold wind, mixed with some abnormal sense of being watched.

Turning his head back, a mysterious black shadow stood in the ship hold’s corridor. He was very likely the murderer or evil ghost who had killed Xiao Lu, Ji Ming, and Shan Jie.

The black shadow gripped a steel blade dripping with blood—whose blood, Li Si had no time to find out. His clenched fist swung out. The black shadow gave a sinister laugh, turned, and fled.

“Where do you think you’re going!”

After narrowly escaping death, it was as if some unknown energy was driving Li Si to pursue madly. Just as he was about to catch up with the black shadow, the shadow suddenly rushed into the hall where Shan Jie had been killed. There was a round hole in the partition board, and the black shadow dove through it without hesitation.

Li Si likewise did not hesitate. Even if it were a rat hole, this time he absolutely could not let him escape.

Inside the hole were collapsed pits everywhere. The black shadow’s speed slowed, and Li Si pounced forward.

The black-clothed figure was actually Xiao Lu… Xiao Lu who had already died! This was impossible. Li Si had witnessed Xiao Lu’s death with his own eyes. He had personally extracted the long needle from within Xiao Lu’s skull. He was definitely dead.

Could the Xiao Lu before his eyes be an evil ghost?

Taking advantage of Li Si’s moment of distraction, Xiao Lu moved forward. Li Si grabbed his left foot from behind. The boot was kicked off, but Li Si still held on tightly. Something seemed not quite right!

Xiao Lu struck back with his blade. This time Li Si released his grip.

The two men crawled into a large hold where the damp, yin-laden air had completely corroded the floorboards. Xiao Lu unleashed fierce and forceful blade techniques intending to kill Li Si. Li Si’s body moved like a slippery eel, maneuvering around Xiao Lu. Suddenly there was a cracking sound beneath his feet—the wooden planks shattered.

Both men fell into the dark pit.

At the same time Li Si was fighting desperately with Xiao Lu, in the cargo hold—

Yue Tianhong’s face was ashen as he walked forward step by step: “Hui Ling, you’ve come out, haven’t you? I know it’s you. You hate me for breaking faith and abandoning righteousness. I wronged you, Hui Ling!”

A ghostly white shadow floated into the center of the hold—it was that brocade-clad skeleton that had frightened Yue Tianhong away earlier.

The brocade-clad skeleton had its back to Yue Tianhong and remained silent for a long while. Yue Tianhong said in a trembling voice, “Hui Ling… is it really you?”

His trembling hand pressed onto the brocade-clad skeleton’s shoulder and slowly turned it around. Yue Tianhong’s mouth gaped open in astonishment as he said, “How can it be you, Xue’er?!”

Beneath the long black hair and within the white brocade garment was unmistakably Yue Tianhong’s goddaughter, Jin Xue’er.

Jin Xue’er’s eyes were slightly closed, serene as if she were sleeping.

“Xue’er, wake up!” Yue Tianhong shook Jin Xue’er’s arms. Jin Xue’er awoke, her gaze looking blankly at Yue Tianhong before lighting up with delight: “Father, I finally found you. There’s a terrifying ghost on the ship. He made everyone disappear, leaving only Xue’er alone. I’m so scared, Father.”

“Don’t be afraid, Xue’er. Father is here, Father is here.” Yue Tianhong embraced Jin Xue’er.

“Father…”

A moment later, Yue Tianhong could no longer hear any sound from Jin Xue’er. Looking down, the Jin Xue’er in his arms was staring at him with a pair of bloodshot eyes full of vicious fury. Her teeth ground together with a squeaking sound, as if she were about to open her mouth and bite.

“Xue’er, what’s wrong with you?”

“Let go of your hands!” Jin Xue’er’s snarling, teeth-baring appearance startled Yue Tianhong. He released his grip and stepped back, watching Jin Xue’er.

“Yue Tianhong, you ungrateful wretch! How many years have I been a lonely, wandering ghost, searching only for you, to drink your blood, eat your flesh, and gnaw your bones! Haha, after drifting for twenty years, I’ve finally found you.”

Jin Xue’er’s expression was hideously terrifying. Yue Tianhong’s heart jolted: “You, you’re Hui Ling?”

“If not me, then who? Hmph, you heartless, ungrateful scoundrel—have you already forgotten me?”

“No.” Yue Tianhong said, “I’ve always kept you in my thoughts, Hui Ling.”

“If you had said this twenty years ago, I might have believed you. But now, even ghosts wouldn’t believe your lies.” Jin Xue’er had become Hui Ling, saying with deep resentment, “Back then, I supported you through your studies by weaving clothes, helped you leap through the dragon gate to success. But not only did you not marry me, you climbed up the social ladder by marrying a daughter from a prestigious family.”

“Pitifully, I was already pregnant at that time. I went alone to the Holy City to find you, but you heartlessly drove me away, causing me to accumulate blood in my abdomen and give birth to a pair of sickly twin daughters.” Hui Ling said, her body trembling with rage.

“What? You gave birth to twin daughters… my daughters. How did I know nothing about this?” Yue Tianhong said in shock.

“Didn’t know? What a joke! After giving birth to our daughters, I repeatedly sent relatives to the Holy City to find you, but you drove them all away.” Hui Ling said miserably, “The two daughters were born with serious illnesses. Those poor little lives had just arrived in this world only to suffer the torment of disease.”

“What happened to the daughters later?”

“They are my daughters—what right do you have to know their news?!”

Yue Tianhong said regretfully, “You’re right. After failing the imperial examinations that year, I didn’t want to live in poverty anymore, so I had a friend introduce me to Miss Pei, and later won her heart. But the Pei family elders somehow learned that I still had a woman I was devoted to back in my hometown, so they threatened me to break up with you. To demonstrate my loyalty, I drove you away. It was my selfish desire.”

“But I can swear to you, Hui Ling.” Yue Tianhong said earnestly, “Regarding the matter of our daughters, I truly knew nothing at all. It must have been the clan elders secretly interfering, hiding the news from me.”

“You want to know what became of your daughters? Fine, I’ll tell you.” Hui Ling said shrilly, “Both daughters were born with heart disease. When they were five years old, I sold our ancestral home and fields to treat them, but even so, there was only enough to save one person. I cried for three days and three nights—both daughters were the flesh of my heart. How could I abandon one!”

“I chose to send the younger daughter for treatment while I cared for the elder daughter myself. Three months later, the younger daughter’s heart condition improved greatly, but the elder daughter didn’t survive that winter. She quietly… left in my arms. When she was dying, she still held my hand and said to me: ‘Mother, don’t be sad. I don’t hurt!'” Hui Ling’s icy tears rolled down her cheeks in torrents, her gaze filled with blood-deep hatred piercing toward Yue Tianhong, “This is all because of you!”

Yue Tianhong wept rivers of tears: “My daughter… Father wronged you! Hui Ling, kill me!”

Yue Tianhong closed both eyes, stretching his neck to await death.

“Good, I’ll fulfill your wish.” Hui Ling drew out a dagger and slashed toward Yue Tianhong’s neck.

“Stop!” A sharp rebuke came from outside the hold.

Hui Ling’s icy gaze looked over. Li Si entered the hold, his eyes deep and resolute.

“Lord Li…” Yue Tianhong said, “Don’t stop her. I’m the one who wronged their mother and daughters. Now Hui Ling has possessed Xue’er just to find me for revenge, to claim my life.”

“Although Hui Ling’s story is moving, evil spirit possession is truly an absurd fallacy.” Li Si looked directly at Hui Ling. “Stop pretending to be ghosts and spirits, Miss Xue’er.”

Hui Ling let out a cold laugh.

“Since Xiao Lu’s death, I’ve always had doubts.” Li Si took a breath and said, “When Xiao Lu died, his expression was peaceful, like a sleeping child. I considered that perhaps the killer struck while he was asleep, but Xiao Lu still had his boots on his feet, which meant he hadn’t gone to sleep when he died.”

“For a conscious person to allow someone to pierce a needle through his brain without any resistance, the only explanation is that the killer was someone he was extremely familiar with.” Li Si shook his head and said, “The only person on the ship who fits these conditions is you, Miss Xue’er. Xiao Lu was deeply infatuated with you. Only you could deliver a fatal needle strike when he was completely unguarded.”

Hui Ling’s expression changed slightly.

“Killing Xiao Lu was just the beginning of your terrifying murder scheme.” Li Si continued, “Afterward, you pretended to faint. After Yue Tianhong, Shan Jie, Ji Ming, Su Qin, and I boarded the ghost ship, you also followed aboard.”

“Lord Li, how could Xue’er, a young woman, possibly kill so many people in succession?” Yue Tianhong couldn’t believe it.

“Valid point, but in fact, Xue’er only killed Xiao Lu. The one who killed Shan Jie and Ji Ming is someone else.” Li Si said calmly, “It’s the mysterious person with three moles on his left hand.”

“The mysterious person was hiding in some corner of the ship before we boarded, waiting for the best opportunity to slaughter his prey. Then the storm raged in, and the mysterious person got his first chance to kill. Taking advantage of when everyone was separated, he killed Shan Jie.” Li Si closed his eyes slightly. “Then, after Ji Ming went mad and wandered off, he killed Ji Ming too.”

“The mysterious person is Miss Xue’er’s accomplice, or rather, he’s an assassin you hired with a large sum of money.” Li Si said abruptly.

The corners of Hui Ling’s mouth twitched with a ghostly smile, but she neither admitted nor refuted.

“Before the storm arrived, we saw Xue’er on the opposite side. The floating ladder had already broken—how could she have come over? And if it wasn’t Hui Ling’s power, how did all the people on the opposite side disappear?” Yue Tianhong was bewitched by supernatural forces.

“The floating ladder was cut by the assassin. After we returned to the hold, he threw another hidden ladder across to the opposite side, letting Xue’er come over. As for everyone on the ship disappearing, I think that was Miss Xue’er’s masterpiece. One only needs to add something to the fresh water to make everyone on the ship sleep unconscious.” Li Si said.

“I can’t believe Xue’er would be so cruel—killing Xiao Lu and hiring an assassin to kill others! Why would she do this?” Yue Tianhong said in bewilderment.

“I still have the most important ironclad evidence pointing to Miss Xue’er.” Li Si walked back outside the hold. When he returned, there was another person beside him, dressed entirely in black—it was Xiao Lu, who had fought with Li Si.

After the two fought and fell into the pit, Xiao Lu was captured by Li Si.

“He’s Xiao Lu?” Yue Tianhong said in terror.

“Xiao Lu is already dead. This is Xiao Lu’s twin brother, Xiao Chuan.” Li Si raised the man’s hand—his left hand indeed had three black moles.

“Xiao Chuan is the assassin Xue’er hired.”

Li Si gazed at Xiao Chuan and said, “You can speak now.”

Xiao Chuan’s hands were bound, so he could only speak honestly: “Jin Xue’er gave me thirty thousand taels of silver—ten thousand taels to buy one life, thirty thousand taels for three lives.”

“Three lives—so besides killing Shan Jie and Ji Ming, who else was to be killed?” Yue Tianhong looked at Xiao Chuan.

Xiao Chuan gave a cold laugh: “Hehe, who else could it be? You.”

“No, it can’t be. I’m Xue’er’s father. Why would she want to kill me? You’re lying!” Yue Tianhong felt as if a giant boulder had been dropped on his heart. He had doted on Jin Xue’er in every way, treasured her like a pearl in his palm—how could Xue’er possibly have the heart to kill him?

“True or false, you can ask Jin Xue’er behind you.” Xiao Chuan said disdainfully.

Yue Tianhong’s body trembled. That sinisterly laughing Hui Ling gradually changed her expression, transforming back into the normal-looking Jin Xue’er. The young woman gazed at Yue Tianhong with crystalline eyes and said in a clear voice, “What he said is correct. I’m the one who wants to kill you.”

Yue Tianhong felt the world spinning around him. He steadied himself with difficulty and said, “Why would you do this?”

“Because Hui Ling is my mother.”