Only the child had vanished.
This was already the rearmost carriage of the train.
Beyond it, the rails stretched into the endless distance, finally disappearing into boundless darkness, extending silently through the night.
Cui Jiuyang looked calm as he strolled to the rear of the carriage.
He breathed on the rear window, wiped the dust off it, and looked out into the ink-black night.
When he calmly turned his gaze back, he caught sight of the child fleeing in panic down the other side of the carriage, his movements frantic, as though some terrible beast were chasing him.
The child even instinctively glanced back, his eyes full of terror, like a startled little animal sensing a hunter on its trail. His gaze met Cui Jiuyang's.
He had clearly realized that this man with such an unusual bearing was pursuing him.
Young as the child was, he was already a seasoned hand who had spent several years making his way in the jianghu.
He had watched the excitement in this carriage during the day and eaten two of those crisp jujubes himself.
He had seen plenty of conjurers over the years, but never anyone who could produce so many jujubes out of thin air.
As the saying went, "On the road, fear no strength; the stronger they are, the better the trade. In the jianghu, fear the uncanny, for it hides a blade." He had to steer clear of someone so uncanny!
He had only just stolen a few silver dollars, and this man had followed him from the front carriages to the rear. Whether the man was after him or not, he had to get away first!
Yet when he turned to look back, he plainly saw the conjurer standing at the rear of the carriage, still some distance away.