The night was clear with a bright moon and sparse stars when suddenly a streak of red lightning tore across the sky like a blood-stained blade, followed immediately by thunder so loud it made eardrums ache.
Crack!
Wu Qi fell down the stone steps, medicine bowl and all, the shattered porcelain scraping his left cheek and making him hiss in pain twice.
Zhang Defu scolded Wu Qi harshly,
“Clumsy fool!
“Butler, this thunder is terrifying!”
“Stop making a fuss and hurry up to brew another batch for Young Master.”
“Yes.”
Wu Qi hastily wiped the blood from his face and scrambled away in a rush.
Junlan Courtyard was nestled on the east side of the Shen Residence, with corridors winding gracefully and fragrant paths meandering— the most elegant and poetic garden in the entire estate.
Wu Qi, carrying a freshly prepared medicine bowl, cautiously approached the front of the main house and knocked again and again, but there was no response from inside.
“Young Master? Young Master?”
Not daring to barge in, Wu Qi knocked once more.
Still no reply.
His voice grew louder as he called out to the door.
Inside, the candlelight flickered softly with a barely audible crackling.
On a Huangli wood daybed carved with the motifs of a horned tiger, a boy lay slumped in thin clothing.
His skin was as pale as paper, his features delicate and refined like a beautifully crafted doll carved by a divine artisan, possessing a beauty beyond mortal standards—but utterly lifeless, devoid of any sign of vitality.
Scattered messily on the floor were six corpses—four women and two men— their chests and buttocks slashed into bloody ruins.
Bright red blood pooled in circles around the bodies and continued to spread outward.
The large patches of blood stained the jade-green bricks of the floor, filling the room with an increasingly pungent metallic stench.
As the final streak of red lightning flashed across the sky, the paper-doll-like boy on the daybed suddenly opened his eyes!
His gaze swept across the room.
The ancient, elegant furnishings were refined and tasteful, quite pleasant.
A pot of Tianmu Pine bonsai sat on the windowsill, its sparse shadows and lush, twisting branches verdant.
Shen Weimu stepped barefoot onto the floor, each footfall pressing heavily into the sticky blood.
He glanced into the bronze mirror and paused momentarily at the striking resemblance—then quickly regained composure.
He had transmigrated again.
“Young Master? Is everything alright? May I come in?”
The voice outside grew more anxious.
Shen Weimu seemed not to hear it, focused instead on the reflection.
His hand gripped the hem of his garment and ripped it open, revealing a large bluish-purple palm print emblazoned across his chest.
This was the cause of the original body’s death.
Poison coursed through the veins, blocking the heart’s pulse; combined with that blow, his internal organs were shattered, leading to his demise.
As the Demonic Lord, Shen Weimu’s soul was immortal; even though he inhabited a broken body, it would heal automatically at his command.
But after the Celestial-Demon War, cursed by the Soul-Devouring Curse, and worn out by two previous transmigrations, with the current world’s Lingqi so sparse, he was unable to immediately restore this body.
Cough.
Shen Weimu suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood, the crimson staining his pale lips, giving him an eerie allure.
“Did I hear Young Master cough? Please open the door, Young Master, it’s time for your medicine.”
Wu Qi knocked desperately once more.
Wiping the blood from his mouth with torn fabric, Shen Weimu calmly approached the wardrobe and chose a clean white robe to wear.
[Ding—Homicide detected. Ba Gua Clues Interface activated!]
[In the Shen Residence’s Junlan Courtyard, Young Master Shen Weimu’s bedroom: four senior maids and two servants found dead, bodies scattered on the floor with slashed chests and buttocks, blood flowing like a river. Young Master was struck by a palm attack, soul departed but body still alive. The room is sealed from inside, windows and doors barred, items neatly intact. The entire room resembles a locked chamber.]
[Ba Gua Clue 1: Chief Maid Qingqiu is the top assassin ranked first in the Shadow Pavilion.]
[Ba Gua Clue 2: Qingqiu is admired by many, including the murderer, but her true love has always been Young Master. Half a month ago, Qingqiu poisoned Young Master in hopes that by sacrificing herself to find the antidote, she would move him. Unexpectedly, the Imperial Physician cured the poison.]
[Ba Gua Clue 3: The servant Qingfeng has long coveted Young Master’s beauty. During the day, he asked how Young Master viewed him. Young Master only gave polite praise, but Qingfeng got overly excited and secretly drugged Young Master’s soup, intending to make a move that night while guarding the room.]
[Ba Gua Clue 4: The murderer, scorned in love, resolved to sever all ties and seek revenge. He deceived Qingfeng and Qingqiu and used his long-hidden ultimate skill, Heart-Shattering Palm, to slaughter Junlan Courtyard at night.]
Shen Weimu thought:
So, the original body attracted quite a few twisted admirers; even the maids and servants couldn’t resist attacking him.
But why is this Ba Gua Clues Interface following me through transmigration?
At birth, Shen Weimu was marked by a celestial omen and branded by the Three Realms as a world-ending demon lord who must be exterminated.
For a hundred thousand years, he fought the Three Realms, triggering the Celestial-Demon War, ultimately facing three hundred enemies alone and wiping out all the High Immortals and Gods of War hunting him, but suffering grievous wounds.
His body was burned to ashes, and his soul transmigrated into an NPC providing Ba Gua clues in another world’s reasoning game.
Cultivators in that world loved such games, and the abundant spiritual energy there nourished his damaged soul.
But just now, the game was struck by a fatal virus, triggering his protective transmigration mantra again and sending him into this body.
A salty, bloody taste rose in his throat, and Shen Weimu spat blood again.
Pressing his tongue to the roof of his mouth, he belatedly savored the residual flavor and smiled with delight.
He actually had taste now.
Whether by nature or because he was burned in the Lianhua Fire as an infant, Shen Weimu had never experienced taste since he gained consciousness—no matter how many bodies he changed.
But this time was different.
“Young Master—”
Bang!
The door was thrown open.
Wu Qi appeared with six guards.
Seeing Shen Weimu standing there, Wu Qi’s hands trembled, nearly dropping the tray, but it was caught by the nearby guard Kang Anyun just in time.
The young master stood tall and pale at the doorway, his bare feet stained with thick, fresh blood.
Bloody footprints stretched from his feet deep into the inner room, filling the entire space with a heavy metallic stench.
“Young Master, what happened?”
Kang Anyun stared at the blood in shock and was the first to rush inside.
He soon returned to order the servants to attend to Shen Weimu.
“Hurry, prepare hot water for the Young Master’s bath and change of clothes!”
After bathing and dressing, Shen Weimu noticed the tray Wu Qi held: a bowl of dark medicine and two plates of candied fruits.
Medicine—what did it taste like?
He lifted the bowl and drank it all at once, immediately frowning as he tossed the bowl aside and popped a piece of the candied fruit into his mouth.
Sugared kumquats and candied lotus seeds—both sweet but distinctly different.
One was sweet with a fruity chew, the other sweet and glutinous with a faint fragrance.
In no time, both plates were emptied by Shen Weimu.
Seeing his appetite, Wu Qi hurriedly said,
“Today, the estate purchased many snacks from Fanlou. I’ll go get some more.”
Lanxiang.
“Yes.”
Just now, the Young Master had been silent, barely responding to Kang Anyun, but now he actually answered!
Wu Qi breathed a sigh of relief and dashed out like the wind to fetch more.
When Shen Weimu returned to the bedroom, the room was spotless—floor clean without a trace of blood, the air carrying a faint fragrance.
Kang Anyun anxiously asked,
“Young Master, were you also struck by the palm?”
He had assumed the six dead servants had displeased Young Master, prompting him to strike them down, and wondered when the Young Master learned Heart-Shattering Palm.
Only after hearing the servants’ report about attending the Young Master’s bath did Kang Anyun realize that Shen Weimu had also been hit.
What on earth happened?
Why was there no sound?
With their people everywhere in Junlan Courtyard, who could have harmed the Young Master right under their noses?
“I will fetch Physician Wu to examine the Young Master.”
“No need.”
“Then what exactly happened? Who’s the coward who tried to assassinate the Young Master? I’ll tear him to pieces!”
Kang Anyun growled fiercely.
“I have my own arrangements. You don’t need to ask.”
Though uncertain of the culprit’s identity, Shen Weimu knew anyone who could act without detection must be someone close who understood the situation.
Most likely, they were all drugged; otherwise, there would have been some disturbance.
“Yes.”
Despite a thousand doubts, Kang Anyun obediently accepted the order before his Young Master.
“Young Master, the snacks have arrived!”
Wu Qi happily ran in with a towering plate of delicacies, placing it before Shen Weimu.
The pastries were of various shapes, emitting a faint honeyed sweetness that made one’s mouth water.
A bead of cold sweat rolled down Shen Weimu’s pale forehead, sliding across his cheek.
Suddenly, he coughed violently, blood splattering onto the cream-colored pastries, his frail body collapsing toward the floor.
“Young Master!”
Kang Anyun was quick, catching Shen Weimu in time.
Late at night, the wind shifted violently, and a heavy rainstorm broke out.
The east wind howled, tearing apart the early spring blossoms.
Before dawn, the storm ceased, and the entire Jingcheng city lay in the silence before daybreak.
The first wisp of smoke from the eastern part of the city rose from Great Xiangguo Temple.
Passing the temple’s Siqiao Bridge and heading north along Taibiao Street, the first right turn led to Yulin Alley in the city’s east.
“Dead… dead people? Ah—dead people!”
“Dead! Someone come quickly!”
A piercing scream shattered the quiet morning in Yulin Alley.
Zhao Erlang had just stepped out to go to work and, hearing the shouting, ran straight to the Pang Family.
Pang Pin and his wife looked pale as they rushed to the door.
Seeing Zhao Erlang, they immediately grabbed him and pointed toward the back of the house.
Zhao Erlang hurried back and was shocked.
Under the north wall’s thick white pear blossoms lay a cocoon-like bundle.
Taking a few steps closer, he saw exposed hairpins and bare feet, realizing with horror that two people were wrapped beneath the blossoms.
Motionless, they looked nothing like living beings—eerily so.
No wonder Pang Dalang and his wife were so terrified.
“I’ll report this to the authorities. You stay here, don’t let anyone near, and protect the scene.”
Premium Chapter
Login to buy access to this Chapter.