The alley fell silent again.
Moonlight slanted through a gap in the high walls, casting three charred human-shaped marks across the ground.
On the bluestone slabs scorched by the Chaos Green Flame,
cracked patterns remained, left by the alternating erosion of extreme cold and heat.
The air was thick with an indescribable burnt stench.
Dugu Yan started toward the depths of the alley to check on the pink-haired girl.
She had barely taken half a step
when a warm hand closed around her arm.
Ye Qing shook his head at her.
Dugu Yan froze.
She opened her mouth to ask why,
but saw a hint of caution in Ye Qing's eyes that she couldn't quite understand.
She didn't ask. Instead, she drew her foot back.
Their months together had taught her to trust Ye Qing instinctively.
The guy might talk a load of nonsense most of the time, but whenever he got serious, he never spoke without reason.
Ye Qing released her arm and nodded toward the depths of the alley.
"Miss, go home as soon as you can. It's not safe outside at night."
His voice was neither loud nor soft, just enough for the people in the alley to hear.
After speaking, he took Dugu Yan's hand and turned to leave.
Dugu Yan glanced back.
Deep in the alley,
the pink-haired girl was still standing quietly where she had been.
Moonlight fell upon her, stretching her slender figure into a long shadow.
Her eyes quietly watched them leave through the darkness.
Only after the two of them had vanished from the alley's entrance did the pink-haired girl look away.
She slowly walked to the three charred marks in the middle of the alley and looked down.
The scar-faced man's grotesque ice sculpture glimmered with a chilling blue light beneath the moon.
Inside the ice, the charred remains held the same terrified, twisted posture they'd had at the moment of death, clearly visible through the crystalline surface.
The girl raised her sleeve to cover the tip of her nose. Her brows furrowed, and a barely concealed look of disgust crossed her pale face.
"Come."
Her voice was soft, yet carried an air of unquestionable authority.
As soon as she spoke,
a shadow soundlessly appeared behind her.
It was a middle-aged man dressed in black fitted clothes.
He dropped to one knee,
bowed his head,
and lowered his eyes,
his posture utterly respectful.
"Please give your orders, young miss," the black-clad guard replied in a low voice.
The girl didn't turn around.
Her gaze swept back and forth over the three charred marks.
A complicated emotion flickered in her eyes,
then she hid it away.
"Look into those two people from earlier."
She paused, then added, "Especially the black-haired one. His Martial Soul... is very unusual."
"To kill three Soul Ancestors in an instant without releasing a Soul Ring, he can't be some nobody."
"Understood."
A night breeze swept through the alley, stirring the girl's short pink hair.
She turned to leave.
The guard hesitated, then asked, "Young miss, are we still going to Lantern Street?"
The girl stopped.
"We're not going."
Her voice was muffled, with a faint hint of irritation.
"Back to the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect."
"Yes."
The black-clad guard's figure melted into the shadows once more, as if he had never appeared.
The girl gave the alley's entrance one last look.
A strange emotion flickered in her eyes. Then she turned and disappeared into the depths of the night.
Hand in hand, Ye Qing and Dugu Yan made their way through several small alleys and returned to the brightly lit main street.
The crowds still bustled.
The night market's noise did much to dispel the chill of what had just happened in the alley.
Dugu Yan finally couldn't hold back.
She tugged on Ye Qing's sleeve, her emerald-green eyes full of confusion.
"What was that all about?"
"Why wouldn't you let me go check on that girl?"
"She'd just been through something like that. She must've been terrified."
"Terrified?"
Ye Qing couldn't help laughing.
"Did she look terrified to you?"
Dugu Yan opened her mouth, then thought back carefully to the pink-haired girl's appearance.
From beginning to end, the girl had quietly stood at the far end of the alley.
Her expression had been so calm that she might as well have been watching a street brawl that had nothing to do with her.
It was only after people died that her face had turned a little pale.
But that pallor was clearly a physical reaction to seeing charred bodies, not fear.
"Someone in the alley was watching us," Ye Qing said.
"Huh?"
Dugu Yan stopped and looked up at Ye Qing.
He didn't look like he was joking.
"While I was dealing with them, I could feel an aura locked onto us the whole time."
"It was strong. The other person had to be at least a Soul Emperor."
Ye Qing released her hand and stroked his chin, mulling it over.
"That aura wasn't focused on those three thugs. It was focused on the girl."
"And it wasn't hostile. It was just wary and protective."
"I didn't release a single Soul Ring the whole time, either. I was testing them."
"But that aura stayed as steady as an old dog, with absolutely no intention of interfering."
Dugu Yan caught on, her brows shooting up.
"You mean... the girl had a guard with her? A guard at least as strong as a Soul Emperor?"
"Almost certainly."
"Then why didn't she have her guard step in sooner?"
Dugu Yan sounded rather annoyed.
"She made me worry for nothing, and you ended up killing people because of her!"
"Maybe she was fishing for criminals."
Ye Qing shrugged.
Dugu Yan paused. "Fishing?"
"Using herself as bait on purpose, waiting for those shortsighted thugs to come sniffing around, then catching them all in one go."
Ye Qing grinned, his voice tinged with amusement.
"Think about it. A young woman walks alone at night and turns into a dark alley, and she doesn't bat an eye the whole time."
"Either she's unbelievably brave, or she has nothing to fear and did it on purpose."
"She was obviously the latter."
Dugu Yan rolled her eyes with perfect precision.
"Who has that much free time?"
"She has a Soul Emperor guard, but instead of keeping them close, she goes out fishing?"
"There are all kinds of people in this big world."
"Especially in the circles of the great sects and aristocrats. There's never a shortage of people with strange hobbies."
Ye Qing spread his hands, his smile taking on a deeper meaning.
"Maybe some young miss from a rich family ate too much and came out to experience the hardships of ordinary life."
Dugu Yan thought about it and decided that it did seem possible.
She'd seen plenty of aristocratic brats at Heaven Dou Royal Academy with nothing better to do.
"So what do we do?"
Ye Qing shrugged. "What else? Eat and drink as usual."
"We didn't do anything outrageous. We just took out a few criminal hooligans."
"Oh, right. Should we ask Grandpa to handle the fact that we killed people inside the city?"
"Uh... probably not."
After hearing Ye Qing's explanation, Dugu Yan relaxed too.
"There's no need to make a special effort over those three. If anyone traces it back to me, that means they'll have to deal with Grandpa, and they wouldn't dare do anything to him."
With that, the two of them stopped worrying. They weren't afraid of making trouble, either.
After all, Dugu Yan's grandfather was a Titled Douluo.
She tightened her hold on Ye Qing's arm, about to drag him off to try the old-famous grilled fish shop she'd mentioned earlier.
Suddenly, a sinister voice came from behind them.
"What are you talking about?"
"Whoa!"
Dugu Yan jumped in fright and instinctively ducked half a step behind Ye Qing.
When she turned around,
Dugu Bo was standing behind them. Who knew when he'd gotten there?
His black robe blended into the night, and his green eyes stared eerily at the two of them.
"Grandpa!"
Dugu Yan patted her chest, still shaken.
"Why are you sneaking around?"
"You walk without making a sound. You scared me to death!"
Dugu Bo's face instantly darkened.
His precious granddaughter was actually annoyed with him?
Yanyan, you weren't like this before!
No matter how suddenly he appeared in the past,
Yanyan's eyes would light up, and she'd sweetly call, "Grandpa!" before rushing over to take his arm.
But now?
Now her expression actually held both "impatience" and "disdain"!
Dugu Bo felt like crying but had no tears.
In the space of three seconds, his expression went through three distinct stages: shock, wounded feelings, and finally resentment.
So, could love really fade away?
No, love only changed hands!
At the thought, Dugu Bo glared daggers at Ye Qing.
It was all that bastard's fault!
Ever since the kid showed up, Yanyan only had eyes for him.
Even her own grandfather had been pushed to the sidelines.
This was bad. This was very bad!
Ye Qing suddenly felt a chill run down his back.
The old man's resentful glare looked like it could bury him alive.
"Senior."
Ye Qing cleared his throat and swiftly changed the subject.
He'd gotten this trick down to a fine art in front of Dugu Bo,
"Was my enrollment taken care of?"
Dugu Bo snorted.
He pulled an admission certificate stamped with the royal seal from his robes and casually tossed it to Ye Qing.
The thin slip of paper made a sharp whoosh as it flew from his hand.
Ye Qing hurriedly caught it with both hands. The impact left his palms tingling.
Well, the old man was seriously resentful.
He lowered his head and looked.
Fine golden patterns were woven into the edges of the paper.
The seal of Heaven Dou Royal Academy was clearly visible by the signature.
It bore Prince Xue Xing's personal seal. The certificate was quite high-ranking.
"Take this to the academy yourself tomorrow and register."
Dugu Bo's tone was cool.
He'd originally been wondering whether to go with Ye Qing tomorrow and show everyone he had his backing.
But now—
Heh. As punishment for running off with his granddaughter, Ye Qing could forget about that.
Dugu Bo turned his gaze from Ye Qing to Dugu Yan.
"Yanyan, it's about time you went back to class too."
"You've been on leave for over three months. If you don't return soon, the academy will send someone to look for you."
"Got it, Grandpa." Dugu Yan nodded.
Dugu Bo gave Ye Qing one last look.
The message in his eyes was clear: If you dare bully Yanyan, you'll pay for it!
Then he swept his sleeve—
His whole body turned into a streak of green and shot into the night sky, vanishing without a trace.
Ye Qing's mouth twitched. "Grandpa... was he just about to hit me?"
"Not just about to."
Dugu Yan said seriously, "He almost couldn't hold back."
"Then he's actually a pretty nice guy."
"My grandpa is obviously a good person!" Dugu Yan said proudly.
"By the way, are you nervous about enrolling tomorrow?"
"What would I be nervous about?"
"Yu Tianheng."
A hint of anticipation crept into Dugu Yan's voice.
"Weren't you going to help me deal with him?"
Ye Qing tilted his head to look at her, a glimmer of amusement in his dark eyes.
"He's the one who should be nervous."
"What's there to fear about a guy who can't even be a proper simp?"