Luoyun City

The night wind poured through the hole Xuanyuan had punched in the wall, carrying the chill of early autumn. It blew against Su Mei's soaked clothes, making her shiver.

The chill did not come from the wind. It seeped endlessly from the depths of her soul, from the invisible rune between her brows that she could nevertheless sense so clearly. It froze her blood and numbed her nerves.

She lay sprawled on the floor like a snake with its spine ripped out, holding that utterly submissive pose, not daring to move for a long, long time.

Time seemed to have lost all meaning. A breath, the time it took an incense stick to burn, or an entire watch?

She had no idea.

She only knew that though the man's presence had vanished beyond the door, the shadow he had cast remained like a tangible prison, confining this lavish room—and her heart along with it.

After an unknown length of time, a sharp stab of pain suddenly shot through the space between her brows, like a red-hot needle plunging into her mind.

"Ah!"

Su Mei let out a short, stifled scream and clutched her head with both hands.

The pain came and went quickly, but the terror it left behind grew exponentially.

She understood.

This was no warning. It was a reminder.

The "Obedience Talisman" that demon had left behind was reminding her that her time was not meant to be wasted in dazed fear. It was meant for carrying out his orders.

"...Clean it up...report back...wait patiently..."

Xuanyuan's calm yet unquestionable voice echoed through her mind again and again.

Struggling, she summoned all her strength just to push herself upright, her body trembling like a leaf in the wind.

First she knelt, then she clung to a nearby low table