Chapter 32

Outside the window, the night grew heavy.

A few windows in the building flickered with dim lamplight.

The silhouettes of guests were occasionally cast upon them.

Under the gaze of Sun Ping and several young women, Chen Ju climbed to the second floor, reeking of alcohol.

"Qingmei, come out and welcome your guest! I've paid a high price to book you for the night, so you'd better serve your brother well!"

Drunkenly rambling, Chen Ju walked into the corridor and entered Qingmei's room.

Inside the room, a dim, yellowish light flickered to life.

"Is this necessary? Paying to get things done?"

"Of course it's necessary. Tonight, you just keep the lamps lit. I'll slip out the window in a moment, and I'll be back before dawn."

Chen Ju sat by the table, sipping tea with a calm expression on his face.

Looking at his state, there was no trace of drunkenness left.

"Going to fetch that brat's blood?"

Qingmei sat before the vanity, painting her nails a bright red as she turned to ask.

"Hmph, if it were in the past, there would be no need for such trouble. This time, it's mainly because that brat has lost too much blood over the past few days. I'm afraid that drawing blood tonight might cost him his life, and it would be troublesome if the investigation led back to me."

In the backyard, all was silent.

"Creak..."

After an unknown amount of time, the wooden door of a certain room slowly opened.

Wang Long poked his head out, looked left and right for a moment, and then quietly beckoned to the person behind him.

The two brothers emerged from the room together.

"Did you bring everything?"

"Don't worry, I have it all."

Crouching low and limping, the two quickly arrived in front of Luo Qingchen's door.

"This time we enter through the door. Don't lift your feet when you walk; look carefully before you step. We must not fall for that brat's tricks again."

Wang Long whispered a reminder.

Wang Hu nodded and took out a blade as thin as a cicada's wing, slowly inserting it into the gap of the door.

The latch was slowly pushed aside.

Wang Hu began to push the door, only to find that it still wouldn't budge.

"Huh, what a cunning brat!"

He inspected it carefully and discovered that there were sturdy latches at both the very top and the very bottom of the wooden door!

Instead of being alarmed, he was pleased and continued to fiddle with the blade.

The more cautious the opponent was, the more it indicated that someone was inside.

"Hurry up!"

Wang Long stood guard behind him, his eyes vigilantly scanning the surrounding darkness as he urged in a low voice.

Both brothers were still suffering from unhealed injuries; if someone were to break the rules and try to snatch their prize now, they would both likely suffer for it.

"Click!"

At that moment, Wang Hu disengaged the final latch and gave a gentle push, opening the door.

"Brother, it's done!"

He immediately drew his dagger and entered first.

"Careful!"

Fearing his recklessness might lead them into another one of the brat's traps, Wang Long quickly followed him in and gently closed the door behind them.

"Light the fire first, and don't lift your feet!"

"Right."

Wang Hu immediately stopped, took out a tinderstick, lowered his head, and cautiously scanned the floor.

The floor covered in iron nails that night had become the deepest shadow in the brothers' hearts.

The dim light soon illuminated the ground.

"The floor is safe."

Wang Hu breathed a sigh of relief. Holding the tinderstick in one hand and the dagger in the other, he walked toward the bed.

Wang Long followed behind, still not daring to be careless. He held his breath and observed his surroundings.

Once the two safely reached the bedside, Wang Long finally relaxed slightly. He took out a blood bowl and whispered, "Knock him out first, then draw the blood. Make it quick."

Wang Hu was about to agree when the faint light in his hand suddenly shone upon the bed.

"Huh? Something's wrong!"

The quilt on the bed was puffed up, yet no head was visible.

His heart skipped a beat, and he immediately reached out to grab the quilt, yanking it open.

"Snap!"

At that very moment, a terrifying, crisp sound rang out!

The hand he used to grab the edge of the quilt was caught completely off guard as a massive animal trap hidden beneath the bedding bit down hard!

The trap acted like a starving beast; as its teeth slammed shut, it even gave a vicious jerk! Two rows of sharp iron teeth, like daggers, ferociously pierced through his palm.

"Ah—"

A miserable, shrill scream echoed through the room.

Wang Long, who had been following close behind with his nerves frayed, was so startled that he leaped straight up and jumped backward.

Yet, the moment his feet touched the ground, a piercing and familiar sting shot up from his soles.

"Ah—"

He let out a shrill scream of his own and jumped up involuntarily, only to land on several more iron nails!

"Ah..."

The brothers' screams rose and fell, immediately sending the figure hiding outside into a fit of shivering.

"Go! Run!"

Enduring the agonizing pain, Wang Long scrambled onto the floor and crawled toward the door.

Wang Hu gritted his teeth, bearing the excruciating pain as he desperately pried the trap off his hand. Cursing through tears, he limped after his brother, blood streaming from his hand.

"Whoever dares to target us brothers today, we'll fight them to the death!"

Reaching the doorway, Wang Long raised the dagger in his hand and threatened the darkness outside with a vicious glare.

If things went like that night, where they were bled dry one by one after being injured, the two brothers would likely meet their end here tonight.

Wang Hu roared as well, putting on a desperate display of defiance.

The figure hiding in the darkness seemed intimidated by the brothers' momentum, or perhaps had other targets in mind, for they did not reveal themselves.

The two dared not linger any longer; they hurriedly covered each other as they fled back to their own room, locking the doors and windows tight.

The backyard returned to silence.

"Not in the second room? How cunning!"

The shadow behind the large tree remained motionless.

"Creak..."

Just then, the window of the first room suddenly opened.

"Who was making all that noise outside just now?"

Luo Qingchen's weak voice drifted from inside the window.

He then poked his head out, looked left and right, and seeing no one, pulled his head back in and shut the window once more.

"So he's in the first room!"

A cold glint flickered in the eyes of the shadow behind the tree.

However, he did not let his guard down. He hid behind the tree for a full hour more, and seeing nothing unusual, he cautiously stepped out and approached the door of the first room.

He turned sideways, pressing his ear against the door to listen carefully for any movement inside.

The room was deathly silent.

Yet, he still hesitated; after all, the Wang brothers had just fallen for a trap.

"That kid is craftier than a fox and more sinister than a jackal!"

He could not afford to be careless!

He waited outside the door for another half-hour or so. Seeing the eastern horizon begin to pale, he knew he could wait no longer.

Opportunities were fleeting!

The kid was weak now; aside from setting traps, he had almost no power to fight back.

He had to strike decisively!

Having made up his mind, he pulled out a blade and slowly inserted it into the door gap.

As he nudged the latch, he kept his nerves taut, vigilantly watching for any movement in his surroundings.

He was truly keeping his eyes on all six directions and his ears on all eight.

It was this extreme caution that had kept him alive until now.

"Click..."

The door latch was quickly slid aside.

He glanced back into the darkness a few more times before gently pushing the door open and stepping inside.

"Brother Luo..."

Closing the door softly behind him, he called out in a low voice directly toward the bed.

However, no one on the bed responded.

He stood at the doorway, motionless, not daring to take a step forward immediately.

The wooden bed was tucked away in the innermost corner of the room.

It was pitch black there; nothing could be seen.

He felt something was wrong, his heart rate accelerating and his breathing quickening, but the arrow was already on the string—he had no choice but to fire!

"Brother Luo, are you alright? I couldn't sleep, so I came to check on you."

He called out in a low voice once more.

Still, there was no response from the bed.

Time was of the essence!

He hesitated no longer, immediately pulling out a tinderstick to illuminate the pitch-black floor. With one hand gripping a dagger tightly, he walked toward the wooden bed, step by step.

"Brother Luo, don't be afraid. I really am just here to visit you."

As he walked cautiously, he spoke in a low voice while vigilantly observing his surroundings, his cunning eyes darting incessantly through the darkness.

"Brother Luo, I brought you something delicious..."

Finally, he reached the bedside safely. He extended the hand holding the dagger, a sinister grin spreading across his lips.