Jing Hengbo hadn’t heard the gossips’ discussion.

She strode forward with majestic confidence, ready to solve this major trouble.

As she walked, she recalled the palace coup incident from before, remembering that face-to-face confrontation with Ming City that made her regret every time she thought about it. Back then, the sudden turn of events and Gong Yin’s severe injuries had left her completely stunned by Ming City’s torrential accusations. If it were today, she might not necessarily lose.

People always grow, and so do one’s verbal sparring and sophistry skills. She had already reached the point where despite feeling somewhat guilty inside, she could still be unyielding and aggressive on the surface. With a bit more cultivation, defeating that little bitch Ming City face-to-face would be just around the corner.

Turning past a moon gate, suddenly a figure approached with graceful, swaying steps.

Looking up, Jing Hengbo was stunned.

What a branch of snow tea condensed with dew, a delicate flower swaying in the wind.

Before her stood a young lady of only sixteen or seventeen, born with flawless snow-white skin, a pair of eyes like rippling spring water, and red lips lightly touched with spring’s essence. Her hair was loosely arranged without elaborate styling, adorned only with a pair of twin lotus flowers, their pink centers trembling in her dark hair, echoing the faint blush on her cheeks.

Her slightly surprised gaze carried both gentle warmth and abundant charm. Her posture, leaning against the moon gate with a slight tilt, was both dignified and graceful, refined and elegant.

It was hard to imagine someone harmoniously displaying both purity and allure simultaneously. Every frown and smile seemed carefully cultivated, perfectly measured, falling like feathers into one’s heart, making it itch yet forbidding any disrespect.

Jing Hengbo suddenly felt weathered, coarse, and… devastated.

What was happening? This precious flower still bearing snow, this delicate little beauty, was the daughter of that odd pair of parents from earlier?

How discordant!

The young lady suddenly let out a soft cry and rushed forward. Jing Hengbo was startled, wondering what kind of scene this was, when the girl rushed past her and grabbed Yélu Xunru’s hands, asking urgently: “Sister! Has there been any news of my fiancé?”

Jing Hengbo found this sentence extremely jarring.

“Ah ha, little sister,” Yélu Xunru laughed dryly while struggling to free her hands, “Ah, this… that… well, it’s like this…”

“It’s like this.” Jing Hengbo suddenly strode forward, thrusting her face between the two, saying to the young lady: “The person has been found, but he asked me to come and break off…”

Before she could finish, the girl cried out “Ah!” in joyful tears, suddenly swaying as if about to faint. Jing Hengbo was frightened and caught her. The girl in her arms blushed, looking up with longing eyes: “Thank you, sister. It’s nothing, I… I’m just too happy… What were you about to say?”

Jing Hengbo supported the feather-light body in her arms, seeing how the girl’s blush suddenly disappeared and her breathing became rapid. Clearly a fragile beauty like Sister Lin, she suddenly didn’t know how to speak.

Someone capable of saving Gong Yin while forcing marriage should be, in her imagination, a robust country girl. She had planned to speak bluntly and be done with it, ready to throw punches if the girl dared to persist. But now faced with such a delicate flower that seemed like it would shatter at the slightest touch – not the shrewish mother or pedantic father – she couldn’t scold or hit her. How should she proceed?

“Ah… what did sister want to say? It’s alright…” The girl urged, “I just have a little illness… only had it for fifteen or sixteen years… just some heart and lung problems… can’t handle shock… but even if shocked, it’s nothing… at most I’d be sick for three or four months… all these years I haven’t actually been shocked to death… Please speak freely…”

Jing Hengbo stared at her – What?! After saying all that, how can I still speak?

“Speak up, speak up.” Yélu Xunru nudged her. “Weren’t you here to resolve this romantic entanglement? You’ve already passed two challenges, what are you afraid of now?” Her face showed worry while her heart bloomed with joy.

Jing Hengbo’s fighting power was too fierce. She had almost worried the mission wouldn’t succeed, that she’d settle things in two or three moves. She hadn’t expected Xiao Dou to be so good at choosing people!

“Should someone else speak instead?” Jing Hengbo whispered in her ear. “If she dies from shock, I can’t bear the responsibility.”

“Where’s all that imposing spirit from before?” Yélu Xunru pouted. “Fine, good deeds should be done completely. I’ll do it.”

Jing Hengbo’s eyes filled with grateful tears – What a kindred spirit! Sister-in-law truly is a good person!

“Then I’ll speak!” Yélu Xunru said to the girl. “Miss Ji, this person has come to discuss breaking off your engagement. Your fiancé, well, cough cough, actually is…”

Jing Hengbo continued: “He is my man!”

Miss Ji stared fixedly at the two of them, seemingly not understanding, but her eyes gradually filled with crystalline tears, trembling as if they would fall but didn’t, looking truly pitiful. Yélu Xunru heard her labored breathing and praised her acting skills, while Jing Hengbo felt awkward and uncomfortable to death, feeling like a complete villain.

This scenario of repaying kindness with enmity and ruining someone’s life was truly difficult to perform…

“You… you…” Miss Ji looked ready to faint again, tremblingly clutching Jing Hengbo’s sleeve. “You… you’re lying, aren’t you… how… how could you be his fiancée? He… he has a fiancée so why did he agree to me? He… he wouldn’t deceive me like this!”

“Well,” Jing Hengbo looked skyward, “that was an emergency measure. He was anxious to save me at the time, so he had to agree to you. That… our engagement, uh, was just decided recently…”

Facing such a woman, she could no longer righteously lie about having a long-standing engagement with Gong Yin. An engagement? Who knew what that guy was thinking – he wouldn’t give a straight answer!

“I… I…” The rabbit-like Miss Ji bit her lip and stared blankly for a while, then suddenly dropped to her knees with a “thud”!

“Ah ah ah, what are you doing?” Jing Hengbo jumped in fright and quickly stepped back.

She was soft-hearted toward the gentle but tough against the aggressive. When faced with force, she’d charge forward like a lioness, but when faced with softness, she was helpless.

“Sister!” The little white rabbit stopped crying and fainting, looking up straight at her. “I… I… I know I’m not good… I… I shouldn’t have taken advantage of others’ difficulties… but I… I truly like him… I didn’t know he had a fiancée… I fell in love at first sight and won’t marry anyone but him… I don’t dare ask sister to break your engagement, don’t dare ask sister to step aside… I… I only beg to be ranked after sister… together… together to serve him…” She wept pitifully while kowtowing repeatedly.

What kind of melodramatic plot was this!

Jing Hengbo stared at the pitiful little white flower. She really couldn’t scold, hit, be harsh, or be soft with her. Now she had become the unreasonable evil woman who repaid kindness with enmity, while the other was the little white flower who bore grievances and endured humiliation with forbearance. Looking at the surrounding audience’s expressions – such disdain and sympathy – sympathy for the little white flower, disdain for her.

This was much more formidable than the shrewish mother and pedantic father.

“Sister…” That beauty with a face that could topple kingdoms but a body prone to melancholy reached out to grab her arm. That clinging-vine-like posture made her skin crawl. She quickly dodged away, saying: “Miss Ji, you should discuss the matter of three wives and four concubines with that someone yourself. As long as he’s willing…”

“Sister, would you be willing?” Miss Ji’s face lit up with surprise.

The Queen gave a sinister laugh: “I’ll castrate him!”

She leaped onto the rooftop, howled a few times, and dove into the adjacent courtyard, disappearing.

The fierce Queen who had passed two challenges finally met defeat at the hands of a soft, yielding little white rabbit.

She wasn’t afraid of fighting and competing, didn’t fear verbal battles, but one cry and faint made her faint too.

The people in the courtyard who had watched this fine drama felt as if they’d been watching an exciting play reach its climax when the actor suddenly said “I quit” and took their bow – truly frustrating. But with the main character gone, they could only disperse, discussing as they went how the first wife was fierce, unreasonable, and lacking propriety. Such a beautiful and gentle concubine should rightfully be accepted for the husband’s sake, they sighed all the way.

Someone in the crowd listened and sneered: “Just a bunch of lustful fools who wish such good fortune would fall upon themselves.” He laughed again: “Publicly threatening to castrate a man – this woman is truly fierce. That man who encounters her is truly unfortunate.”

A moment of silence. Then someone said lightly: “Whether it’s suffering or blessing, how would outsiders understand?”

…

Inside the Yi Kingdom palace, red brocade covered everything for the New Year celebrations, with clusters of flowers creating a scene of wealth and splendor. However, the atmosphere wasn’t very festive. People hurried to and fro with lowered eyes and restrained shoulders and steps, as if fearing that any large movement might trigger thunderous rage.

The thunderous rage naturally came from the palace’s highest ruler, Yi Kingdom’s Great King Yi Yiyi.

Yi Yiyi had received news a year ago, left the palace before New Year without celebrating, and only returned after the festivities. Everyone had thought the Great King must have resolved some important matter, but after returning from his traveling palace, his expression was gloomy. He shut himself in the palace refusing to see anyone, and everyone in the palace was silent as cicadas, no one daring to approach his bedchamber.

Therefore, no one knew that the supposedly moody Great King was actually receiving a guest in the secret chamber of his bedchamber.

The guest stood ramrod straight, with a sword-like figure and sword-like killing intent, but his presence was very weak, hidden in the shadows of the curtains. Anyone entering would definitely not notice him at first glance.

“I didn’t expect this time they’d send a master from the Heavenly Stems’ First Star.” Yi Yiyi personally poured tea for his guest. “Your master needs my help – that’s fine.” He raised his silver cup, gesturing to his guest.

The guest smiled and walked out from the curtain shadows, accepting the teacup. As he stepped into the lamplight, that shadow-like quality disappeared, and his entire being seemed to shine brilliantly, merging with the light itself, still making him hard to discern.

Yi Yiyi looked at him admiringly, sighing: “Truly worthy of being a top assassin from the Heavenly Stems’ First Star.” He added: “Actually, someone with your temperament would be most suited to learning disguise techniques.”

“I don’t need to learn.” The man smiled. “I just trouble the Great King to use his skillful hands. As for compensation, my master says his research into Yi Mountain Clay has made some progress, and he will later provide you with a rejuvenation balm, most suitable for tempering soldiers’ physiques.”

“Excellent, much obliged.” Yi Yiyi smiled. “Then who is your target this time?”

The guest pointed to a mask on his table: “May I borrow this mask?”

Yi Yiyi glanced over and said in surprise: “The Black Water Queen?”

The guest smiled without answering. Yi Yiyi shook his head: “You want to impersonate the Queen to deal with the Queen? Inappropriate, inappropriate. This king has used this trick before – using it again would be ineffective.”

“What does the Great King suggest?”

Yi Yiyi smiled at his guest, suddenly turned and brought out a box. The guest received it and opened it, his brow furrowing slightly.

Though this person was usually composed regardless of circumstances, he had maintained calm expressions throughout, but now seeing this box, he showed some surprise.

The treasure’s light in the box was dazzling.

He immediately closed the box and looked at Yi Yiyi: “May I ask the Great King’s intention?”

“You’ve accepted your master’s order to kill the Queen.” Yi Yiyi pointed to the box. “I can help you with disguise and assist you in accomplishing this. But I’d like to ask you not to kill the Queen immediately – hand her over to me first.”

The man frowned.

“Don’t worry, after I finish my business, I’ll naturally return her to you. How you handle her then, I won’t interfere.” Yi Yiyi quickly added: “This way, you haven’t violated your master’s instructions, and you gain this king’s friendship and assistance. Why not?”

The guest pondered for a moment and nodded slightly.

He was very professional and didn’t ask why Yi Yiyi wanted to temporarily keep the Queen.

Yi Yiyi smiled sincerely: “Excellent. With our combined efforts, capturing the Queen will be easy.”

The guest walked into the curtains, and layers of drapes descended.

After a while, a figure drifted away from the Yi King’s bedchamber.

Yi Yiyi rose from his chair, gently rubbing his brow.

He entered the inner chamber, opened seven or eight complex mechanisms, and in a slowly emerging drawer, gently touched the depression at the drawer’s bottom.

There should have been the Great King’s jade seal.

However, four years ago, after his uncle’s rebellion, that seal had disappeared.

Originally this wasn’t a big deal. His brothers had all died cleanly in that massive slaughter during his uncle’s rebellion, their blood cementing the foundation of his throne. Even without the seal, who could say anything?

But recently, he suddenly received a mysterious message of unknown origin, saying that during that battle, his uncle had colluded with one of his brothers, and that brother hadn’t died but had infiltrated his army, waiting for the opportunity to make a comeback.

This news might be true or false, and was impossible to verify. People in Yi Kingdom could change their faces at will – what certainty was there about hearts?

In Yi Kingdom, determining truth from falsehood was truly the most difficult thing. Including emotions.

Accustomed to changing faces, hearts also became confused.

Better to believe it exists than not. If there really was a surviving brother who also obtained the seal, his throne would truly be precarious.

With hundreds of thousands of troops nationwide, quickly screening them all was nearly impossible, so the urgent task was to find his uncle, get him to clarify what really happened during the rebellion, and determine who actually had the seal.

Of course, Jing Hengbo’s impersonation of his uncle hadn’t fooled him. People who grew up together – he’d know which flavor her sneeze was.

With a thorough examination, a disguise expert could determine real from fake face. He knew this was the genuine Black Water Queen, so he played along, wanting to capture Gong Yin and force those around him to hand over his uncle. Or force Gong Yin to act and drive his uncle out.

But the fake Queen hadn’t fooled Gong Yin. The Dahuang State Preceptor wasn’t so easily dealt with, and the water pavilion arrangement failed.

But he simultaneously saw the State Preceptor’s feelings for the Queen.

The storms of the Imperial Song were still far from Huan Capital. He wasn’t interested in the Imperial Song’s intrigues and schemes – he just wanted to secure his throne first. With the throne, there would be hope for more.

He decided to shift his target to the Black Water Queen.

Hold the Queen hostage, control Gong Yin, and there would be his uncle, the seal, the throne, and the world.

…

That night the group stayed at an inn. Jing Hengbo was still waiting for Gong Yin to meet up with them. As for that someone’s fiancée business, she’d thought it over – whoever made this mess should clean it up themselves.

But though she didn’t want to deal with it anymore, they wouldn’t let her go. The family of three stayed next door and changed tactics. The fat woman stopped making scenes, the pedantic scholar stopped cursing, the little white flower stopped kowtowing. The family of three stood hand in hand outside her window, pleading tearfully: “Willing to be madam’s concubine, together serving our good man. Please accept us, madam.” Every time Jing Hengbo opened her window, she could see the little white flower’s swaying figure, and every time she closed it, she could hear their pitiful pleading. This disturbed her so much she couldn’t eat dinner, sitting in her room fuming, waiting for Gong Yin to arrive so she could have it out with him properly.

Being harassed by “Gong Yin’s fiancée” left her dizzy and confused, completely forgetting about Yélu Tan. The Ziwei Master was someone who only loved playing and didn’t manage affairs, so he was too lazy to mention it. He had thrown Yélu Tan in his room with sealed acupoints and wandered off somewhere to play.

Xiao Dou’s room arrangements were cleverly done. Jing Hengbo was in the first row, while the Ziwei Master’s room was around a corner. The Yélu siblings and their people stayed across from or next to the Ziwei Master. In other words, only Jing Hengbo couldn’t see the activities in the others’ rooms. And at this moment, Jing Hengbo had no mind to worry about these activities.

So after dinner, as soon as the Ziwei Master left, Yélu Xunru casually walked into his room.

Her entering the Ziwei Master’s room was quite normal – no one paid attention.

In the room, Yélu Tan lay stiffly on the bed, eyes staring at the canopy. Hearing someone open the door and enter, he didn’t even blink.

The footsteps were steady but somewhat floating.

“How come you’re not dead yet?” Yélu Tan asked toward the canopy without looking at the person.

Yélu Xunru chuckled softly: “You’re not dead, so naturally I won’t die either.”

She crossed her arms “looking” at Yélu Tan, while he stubbornly refused to look at her. Suddenly he sneered: “What, still planning to serve me?”

Yélu Xunru laughed and reached out to press Yélu Tan’s chest, her fingers moving in succession with practiced technique. Yélu Tan suddenly said: “You know how to undo the Ziwei Master’s restrictions?”

Yélu Xunru didn’t answer, trying three different techniques in succession, all unsuccessfully. She couldn’t help but wonder “Eh?” in surprise.

Following the Ziwei Master around, that old fellow loved teaching others. For her health’s sake, he had taught her quite a lot. She had thought undoing the restrictions would be easy as pie – what was happening this time?

Suddenly Yélu Tan made an “Ah” sound, moving slightly. Yélu Xunru was pleased: “Success?”

“No.” After a pause, Yélu Tan answered: “I can barely move, but my internal energy is still locked.”

“Wrong method?” Yélu Xunru frowned. Being unable to see and lacking advanced martial arts skills, she couldn’t probe the internal energy flow.

“You have no martial arts, naturally you can’t undo internal energy restrictions.” He said lightly, his gaze finally falling on her face. Seeing her once-gaunt cheeks now slightly fuller with a faint blush, his lips curved slightly.

She looked well – was it because of that old fellow…

Yélu Xunru frowned: “Without recovering your martial arts, you can’t leave here smoothly. To get out you must pass by Jing Hengbo’s window. With lightness skills it wouldn’t be a problem, but without them, she’d definitely notice.”

He didn’t answer, suddenly asking: “Why do you want to save me?”

Yélu Xunru fell silent. After discovering the fake Gong Yin was Yélu Tan, she had fallen into deep thought. Her final decision to hide this from Jing Hengbo was because, having served beside Yélu Tan for years, she understood the sect behind him better than anyone.

In her view, it was a mad sect – arrogant, conceited, narcissistic, and selfish. This spiritual quality permeated everyone in the sect, causing each person to display uncontrollable madness. She had watched Yélu Tan transform from a gentle, kind youth into a cold, proud monster who disregarded life and death, seeing only the snow-white peaks of snowy mountains.

The dictator’s spiritual language influenced the entire Snow Mountain. She knew Snow Mountain never accepted any defeat.

If she hadn’t guessed wrong, after Snow Mountain’s repeated failures in sending disciples to “punish” transgressors, they had become truly enraged and set their sights on Jing Hengbo. As for why they targeted Jing Hengbo, she thought it might be related to Gong Yin. Yélu Qi had previously conducted detailed investigations into Gong Yin’s background, suspecting he had quite deep connections with the Nine Heavens Gate, and possibly not very good relations at that.

In that case, killing Yélu Tan would be useless. Snow Mountain would become more vigilant and send even more formidable assassins, wave after wave, keeping Jing Hengbo constantly on guard. The Black Water Queen’s power hadn’t fully matured yet – too much interference too early would affect her progress.

Better to keep Yélu Tan alive. At least she knew this youth wasn’t native to Snow Mountain and was less influenced. At least she was familiar with Yélu Tan and could minimize his threat to Jing Hengbo.

Both rationally and emotionally, she didn’t want him discovered now, leading to the most decisive battle and death, causing Snow Mountain to mobilize in full force.

After a long while, she smiled lightly: “Third Young Master, do you understand the four words ‘clear about gratitude and grudges’? You once poisoned me but also saved my life. Let me count… she counted on her fingers, “One, two, three… In those ten years, you probably saved me three times. I’m someone who repays kindness first, then seeks revenge. You needn’t take it too seriously.”

“However,” she paused, “saving you can’t be for nothing. You intended to harm Jing Hengbo before, didn’t you? I deceived her today, so I must compensate her somehow. Therefore, you must promise me you won’t try to harm her again.”

Yélu Tan didn’t answer. Yélu Xunru said lightly: “Otherwise we become enemies.”

After long silence, Yélu Tan said: “I can’t promise to give up killing her. But I can promise that if she doesn’t die, should she need help in the future, I can assist her once regardless of any cost.”

Yélu Xunru calculated carefully, feeling that Yélu Tan killing Jing Hengbo was quite unlikely, and exchanging it for helping her once wasn’t bad. She nodded: “Deal.”

Only then did Yélu Tan sneer: “Since you’re saving me, why not save me completely?”

She turned her head to “look” at him.

He met her gaze. During those years, those times together in the study, she had been quietly by his side like this, her eyes unfocused yet clear and pure. He watched her come and go, spreading ink and preparing paper like an ordinary person, “secretly reading” family secrets like an ordinary person, then passing them to her brother. He knew perfectly well but never mentioned it. She was beside him like someone with keen hearing and sharp sight, while he preferred to be blind.

Then one day she finally left, on that snowy windy night, after letting her brother stab him, she departed resolutely.

What she owed him was more than just three life-saving favors? Some debts lay in the unreachable horizons deep in one’s heart.

He was the family’s hope, their elite youth. From childhood he left his parents to receive the family’s full cultivation. Though seemingly envied by all his cousins, he had actually tasted life’s loneliness and coldness early on.

From age six, he never spent New Year with his parents, let alone played with siblings and cousins. Only once a year during ancestral worship could he see his parents from afar across the crowd. On the rare occasions his father could speak with him, it was all lectures about practicing martial arts well, developing his foundation, so he could serve the family in the future and give their branch a chance to rise.

While other courtyards rang with laughter and play, spreading festive joy into his lonely courtyard, he silently looked up from between blue tiles and white walls, seeing that spring light couldn’t penetrate this ice and snow.

He was selected early by the sect for special cultivation. Beginning to practice ice and snow internal energy, he suffered greatly. Unable to control the cold energy throughout his body, he froze many servants to death. For a time, even his eyebrows and hair began turning white. Wandering the courtyard at midnight like a white-haired ghost.

No one dared approach him then – half respect, half fear.

Until that year, the little girl who had made mistakes, the blind little girl, was sent in half as punishment to specially tend his writing materials.

During those shivering nights, she had embraced him, using her body warmth to melt the ice and snow in his hair.

She was his sister, his maid, his silent and warm companion during those bitter, enduring nights.

Even if she were to wither, she could only wither in his snowy realm.

He lowered his eyes: “To leave safely, I have a method.”

…

Following Yélu Xunru’s instructions, the “family of three” spent half an hour nagging at Jing Hengbo’s place, then returned to rest, planning to plead again later until Yélu Xunru signaled they could stop.

Acting was also very tiring. The courtesan Miss Ji, upon entering the room, immediately plopped down, wiping sweat and panting: “Exhausted me to death…”

She suddenly stopped, slowly widening her eyes, seeing that the old madam and pedantic scholar playing her parents were slowly collapsing.

Someone walked out from behind their chairs. She didn’t know how such a tall figure had managed not to be blocked by the chairs before. Having rolled in the dusty world for years, Miss Ji watched his cloud-light, snow-floating steps, then saw his bearing that couldn’t be concealed even by his common cloth disguise, and determined this person must be one of the world’s rare outstanding figures.

This man with such elegance, yet wearing common clothes with a towel draped over his shoulder – such an incongruous appearance – walked before her. Only then did Miss Ji come to her senses, trembling: “Young master, spare my life…”

The man wrapped his finger with a cloth towel, lifted her up with one finger, saying lightly: “Won’t kill you. Just don’t disturb her.”

Miss Ji didn’t understand at first, but seeing him look toward Jing Hengbo’s room with gentle eyes, she suddenly understood: “You… you… rest assured… we… we meant no harm…”

The man had no reaction, using the snow-white towel to cushion his hand, seemingly too disdainful to answer such boring words.

Miss Ji had seen many people and was familiar with important figures’ bearing. Seeing this person’s expression and reaction, she knew he was a big catch. Having grown tired of the welcoming and farewell life in brothels for years, she was just constrained by her madam’s tight control. Usually crafty little maids followed her every step, but today she had rare freedom after heavy money moved her madam’s heart, allowing her to come out alone for this performance. Unexpectedly encountering such an outstanding figure, she thought if she didn’t seize this opportunity, when would she get another chance? She quickly leaned forward slightly, embracing his hand, using her most melodious voice to say sweetly: “Young master, there are other complications to this matter. Please listen to this humble woman…”

As she embraced him, she deliberately let her full chest brush against his arm, intentionally or not…

The next instant her body felt light, and she watched the surrounding scenery fly up before her, then realized she was the one flying. With a whoosh she passed through the window and crashed into the grove behind the building.

In that moment of being thrown, she only managed to reach out her hand, tremulously saying: “Why…”

The person in the room ignored her, throwing the other two out as well. With two bangs they landed on Miss Ji, pressing her until she made an “Ugh” sound and fainted.

He remained unmoved, slowly cleaning his hands with the cloth towel, saying lightly: “Because I’m afraid of being castrated.”

…

The “family of three” lay stacked like arhats in the flower bushes, unable to get up for a while.

Gong Yin wouldn’t personally kill such people, just giving them a small punishment. After lying there for half a day, they would naturally get up, and by then naturally wouldn’t dare continue impersonating his fiancée to harass Jing Hengbo.

He never concerned himself with minor characters’ subsequent situations, walking away without even a glance.

After he left.

Outside the window gradually grew quiet.

Suddenly footsteps slowly approached.

A pair of boots stopped before the “family of three.”

The person crouched down, killed the fat woman on top with one palm, stripped off her colorful dress and threw aside her corpse, then dragged away the other two.