At that time, the streets of Yisang were still bustling, and the alleys away from the downtown area were silent. The moon climbed the ridge of the house, the cold night light reflected the moss between the cracks in the wall, the water droplets dripped down the green tiles, fell on the sheep's tooth fern under the eaves, and rolled down the grass stalks, and the sound of water droplets hitting the bluestone slabs echoed in the courtyard. The old man lit a dim candle, set up a chessboard on the table, and played against himself according to the game. In the small room, a one-man tall stone sword leaned against the corner.

"How did you come to me today?" said the old man, playing chess on his own, and suddenly spoke.

As soon as the words fell, there was a "squeak", and the door was pushed open by an armoured arm. The visitor walked in, sat down at the table, picked up a sunspot directly, and put it on the chessboard: "I'm afraid that you are too boring to play chess alone." ”

The old man raised his head, shocked, and said, "Who are you?"

No devil's claw patted his face that seemed to be made of minced meat, and Xi sneered: "The small injury back then is not in the way. I'm here today to ask you a question. ”

"You say. ”

"There was a girl who was chased and killed by a group of gangsters in the village. The girl sneaks out of the village, and the gangsters have found out and are about to chase her out and kill her. There is a river in the village, and at the moment you are standing on a dam upstream of the river and watching everything. It's the rainy season, and if you blow the dam open, the river will swell, and the village will be swept away with the gangsters in it, and the girl will be saved. However, innocent villagers will be buried. You, to save or not to save?"

"No, I don't save it. ”

"Are you just going to watch the girl die?"

"But I can't sacrifice other innocent lives. ”

"It's really righteous. What if that girl is your lover?"

"I'm willing to sacrifice myself to save her if I could, but I can't sacrifice anyone else. ”

"If, you have nothing to do with that girl, and that girl's lover is preparing to blow up the dam. You're standing at a distance with a bow and a poisoned arrow in your hand, will you stop him, that is, kill him?"

"Yes. ”

"What if that girl was your daughter? Would you still kill the person who loved your daughter?"

"Why are you asking me this?" a drop of cold sweat oozed from Shan Chenggang's forehead.

"Will you?" Xi pressed closer, his ugly face like an underworld's ghost.

“······ Yes. Shan Chenggang replied with difficulty.

"It's amazing. Xi sneered, "You'd rather kill your daughter for the sake of those irrelevant people, right?"

"I didn't kill her. ”

"You just didn't kill her with your own hands, don't talk about hypocritical justice. You could have saved her, but you didn't, so what's the difference between you and the murderer? You even killed the person who saved her, and you just wanted her to die! I know what you're trying to say, the villagers are innocent, and it's not fair to them. Isn't that girl innocent? Is this fair to her? Is this fair to the guy who went to save your daughter? If you don't do anything, they can live, they should live. ”

Xi suddenly became excited and slapped her palm on the table, "If it weren't for you, she would be alive!"

"What do you mean?"

"It's not interesting. I've been wanting to talk to you since then. Xi calmed down for a moment, and then fell again.

"I'm really responsible. I didn't even notice the breath of your lover, and I can't accept the old age. ”

"If you retire with peace of mind, this matter has nothing to do with you. I am the envoy of the Charm Ministry, I know the darkness of the night of the empire better than you, and no one knows how many people will die after the night. All kinds of people are fighting for their lives, and if they don't kill others, someone else will come and kill them. Everyone is innocent, everyone has blood on their hands. Either they are all guilty or they are all innocent, how should this justice be defined? What kind of guardian do you have to be, how can you protect it? You will become a stumbling block for everybody, because the person you protect is the murderer. ”

"The night may seem unbreakable, but if everyone is willing to sink in the darkness, then the dawn will never come. ”

"It's a pity that there is no wine, otherwise I should have given you a glass. But don't worry, you're not old. Do you know why you didn't notice her breath on the other side?"

"Why. ”

"Because, the people who were there at that time were really not people. ”

"What?"

"It's a pity, it's a pity. You don't have wine here, so how can you listen to stories without wine? Do you know the soul puppet technique? It's the kind of secret technique that can attach people's souls to puppets. The puppet is exactly the same as the master, so to speak, when the soul is connected to the puppet's body, the puppet is the owner himself, but the master can withdraw the soul at any time. ”

"You mean, that dancer ······"

"Her name is Ling Chuyi. ”

"You mean, Ling Chuyi, who is with you, has always been a puppet. ”

"This kind of soul puppet technique has basically been lost, and the only place where there is any reservation is the Shan clan royal family in Xiling. There is a tower in the southwest of Yisang that is similar in shape to the Meita Tower, which is heavily guarded, and no one can approach it without the emperor's hand. This is supposed to be the place where the puppet's master is imprisoned. Imprisoned in the tower, they manipulate puppets from the outside world on top-secret missions. They are threatened with death, and even if the mission is completed, it will probably be a dead end, because only the dead will not reveal secrets. There shouldn't be a lot of them, Ling Chuyi is one of them, and her task is to get close to me and turn me against the Wu clan. But then I ran away with her. Shan Huai and Hu, they wanted to cut down the grass and eradicate the roots, so they temporarily spared her life, in order to find me. ”

"How do you know?"

"Look at my face, such a serious injury should have cost me my life, a doctor saved me, and he also saw that Ling Chuyi was a soul puppet. At that time, my mind was blank, and it turned out that the girl next to me had been trying to harm me. I should have hated her, but whenever I thought that Ling Chuyi was being held in a place waiting to die, I couldn't help it, especially when I knew that she was coerced, and I couldn't hate her. The range of the soul puppet technique is limited, and it can't go beyond Yisang City, otherwise the puppet will lose control and look like it's unconscious. I was out of bounds at the time, and I knew I had to take her back immediately, or they would lose patience and kill her. The first thing I did when I went back was to pretend not to know and join the charm department to prove that she still had use value so that she could live. ”

"I didn't expect you······ But how long can you last? What is the charm department, and how long can you use it?"

"I swore in front of the Mirage King that I would let her live, and I would save her. I'm pretty much done with my plan, and now I need you to do me a favor?"

"What?"

"I need you to die. Xi took out the ghost mask from her bosom and put it on her face.

Shan Chenggang frowned, grabbed his right hand, and the stone sword in the corner immediately flew into his hand, and said, "Is this your purpose? You don't have to look down on me so much, right?"

"He didn't underestimate you. On the contrary, he knew it wasn't your match, so he came to me. ”

A sound like the collision of iron and stone sounded from outside the door, and Qian Ying pushed the door with a trident on his shoulder. He was so tall that he had to half-bend over when he entered the door.

Seeing Qianying, Shan Chenggang's pupils shrank suddenly.

"When we were just talking, I secretly planted a shadow barrier in the room to prevent too much movement from being noticed by outsiders. Maybe you're too focused on the story, or maybe you're confused by the previous question and you didn't notice it. Xi stood up, "Goodbye, saint." ”

"Huh. Shan Chenggang smiled bitterly, "I have lived for so long, and I don't lose anything when I die." However, if you want my life, you have to show your strength. Regarding the question you asked me earlier, I forgot to tell you that while I wouldn't do that, I understand the people who do. ”

"Thank you. Xi's finger bones made a terrible sound, and a dark shadow surrounded her.

"To you. "Poor Ying is holding a trident.

Before the time, Ying Yanshu left Miyagi, chose a secluded and uninhabited route, and prepared to leave Yisang. The moonlight was cold, the alleys were damp, the walls were covered with thick moss, water dripping from the eaves onto his shoulders, and the sheep's tooth ferns by the side of the road were full of water droplets, wetting his trouser legs.

Tonight's Yisang is very quiet.

Just as Ying Yanshu was passing by a private house, he vaguely smelled a smell, which seemed to be the smell of blood mixed with moisture. He stopped and looked at the wooden door beside him. Suddenly, the wooden door in front of him seemed to turn into the huge mouth of a monster, biting at him. This feeling was very strange, Ying Yanshu instantly felt extremely frightened, and wanted to escape, but he couldn't take a step. The pupils shrank like the tip of a needle, and a bean-sized cold sweat slid down his face. A metal arm burst out of the wooden door, grabbed Ying Yanshu's neck, and lifted it into the air. The speed of the attacker was very fast, but in Ying Yanshu's eyes, all this was very clear, and the palm of the god of death slowly came to the front, and he didn't dare to move.

The feeling of suffocation blurred Ying Yanshu's eyes, and he struggled in vain, powerless to resist death.

Suddenly, as soon as the metal palm was released, Ying Yanshu fell to the ground, panting heavily. Before he could escape, the wooden door opened its mouth like a monster, and another metal arm stretched out, dragging him into the courtyard. Ying Yanshu's eyes were full of stars, and the feeling of suffocation had not yet dissipated, and he could not see people clearly, nor could he speak.

"It's really him, I'll leave this matter to you, you can go. Don't forget what I said. ”

"Clean hands and feet, follow the matter of Fengcheng, find a suitable substitute for the dead ghost. ”

A familiar voice came from Ying Yanshu's ear. He forced himself to cheer up, and his vision gradually became clearer, and he saw an iron man leave the courtyard, and when he looked back, he fell into Xi's arms.

"Up, Envoy!" Ying Yanshu hurriedly got up.

"What are you doing here?"

"I, I ······"

"Forget it, you picked up a life this time, count yourself lucky. ”

"Envoy Xie, just now, what was that?"

"Poor Ying. ”

"Poor Ying, but why can't I move?"

"That's the murderous spirit of Qianying. How's it going, do you feel the pressure of the strongest?"

"It's scary. It's just that why is Qianying in Yisang. Ying Yanshu felt palpitations, and sniffed the faint smell of blood in the air, "This, is this a mission?

"That's what I meant. You said you owed me a favor, remember?"

"Of course, if you are in need, I will never mention half a word in the book of Yan Yan. ”

"Well, since you're here now, I won't have to go to you later. Let me tell you a story first······"

"What should I do?"

"I want you to ······ that night"