In the morning, the motel's cheap curtains failed to block the glaring sunlight, and Dean was woken by the sparrows chattering outside. He rolled over and habitually tried to kick the neighboring bed, ready to curse, "Sam, you lazy bastard, get up and check the leads," but his foot hit nothing.
Dean sat up and scanned the room. Sam's bed was neatly made, nothing like his rough-edged older brother's style. On the nightstand, Sam's black backpack, dead phone, half-used bag of salt, and kraft paper bearing a tracking sigil all lay undisturbed. Only the demon-hunting dagger he always carried was missing.
The door stood ajar, creaking softly as the wind pushed it.
Dean rushed over and pulled it open. An oily black feather lay on the threshold, like a marker someone had deliberately left behind. He crouched and picked it up. His fingertips brushed something cold and slimy, and a faint stench of decay drifted into his nose-the smell found only on monsters.
"Fuck!" Dean growled. He grabbed his jacket, rushed downstairs, and kicked open the door to the motel's front desk.
In the surveillance room, the old monitor crackled. The footage from two in the morning showed Sam leaving the motel in a black hoodie, his steps a little unsteady, and heading out of town along the highway. He walked slowly, occasionally glancing back toward the motel as though hesitating over something. But when he reached the junction three kilometers away, dazzling static suddenly erupted across the screen. Electricity crackled, and then the picture went completely black.
"Strong magnetic interference." Bai Haorui's voice came from behind him. He had followed at some point, holding three Five Emperor Coins, their edges gleaming dark gold.
Dean whipped around, his eyes bloodshot. "What can you tell?"
Bai Haorui said nothing. He crouched and scattered the Five Emperor Coins across the surveillance room floor. The instant they landed, they began trembling violently with a faint humming, the divination pattern a complete mess. He pressed a hand onto one burning-hot coin, his brows tightly knitted. "The reading's chaotic. I can only establish two things: Sam's alive, and he's completely entangled in sinister yin energy. Whatever it is, it isn't an ordinary ghost. There's a vicious baleful energy mixed into its yin energy."
He picked up the black feather and sniffed it, his gaze grave. "This feather bears a demon's mark."
Dean's fists clenched hard enough to crack, his knuckles white. He stared in the direction Sam had vanished on the footage. It felt as though a lump of red-hot coal had lodged in his throat, burning and painful.
For the next three days, Dean acted like a madman.
He drove the Impala day and night, visiting every police station in five surrounding towns and combing through all the missing-person files from the past three months. Four files, four missing people, all of whom had vanished from highways late at night. The scenes were absurdly clean-no signs of a struggle, no lingering traces of monsters, not even a footprint.
At every disappearance site, Dean scattered salt and splashed holy water like a madman, muttering as though offering a prayer. But the salt landed soundlessly, and not even a wisp of white smoke rose from the holy water on the ground.
The sun scorched the highway, and the car was as hot as a steamer. Blue-black stubble covered Dean's chin, and the bloodshot veins in his eyes had spread to their corners. Leaning against the seat, he gulped down cold coffee. The bitter liquid caught in his throat, sending him into a violent coughing fit.
Bai Haorui sat in the passenger seat, leafing through notes, their pages covered in dense annotations. He looked at Dean's reddened eyes and sighed. "Dean, take a break. Its concealment ability is too strong. It's hidden Sam's energy signature. Searching blindly like this will only exhaust you."
"A break?" Dean jerked his head around, his voice as rough as sandpaper. "Sammy's God knows where, and you expect me to take a break?!"
He slammed a fist into the steering wheel, and the Impala gave a dull moan.
Bai Haorui fell silent. He took a bottle of water from his backpack and pushed it toward Dean. The Five Emperor Coins in his palm were still faintly hot, a constant warning of the yin energy surrounding Sam. What he did not say was that the danger in the readings grew stronger every day, so thick it seemed ready to drip black ink.
Late that night, they returned to the motel. Dean slumped in a chair, staring silently at Sam's empty bed. Bai Haorui sat opposite him, the Five Emperor Coins spinning rapidly between his fingers.
"I know you're anxious," Bai Haorui said softly. "But we have to follow heaven's timing to break this deadlock. We need to wait until that thing exposes a weakness."
Dean raised his head, his eyes bloodshot. "Wait? Until that thing devours Sam?"
Bai Haorui said nothing, merely pushing the warm water closer to Dean again.
Only their heavy breathing and the faint hum of the Five Emperor Coins remained in the air.
On the fifth morning, Dean seemed to make up his mind and drove back to the Lincoln town police station. He refused to give up and insisted on checking those files again.
Sunlight streamed through the station windows onto the filing cabinets, stirring a fine layer of dust. Dean crouched on the floor, running his fingers over a thick stack of files. Suddenly, a file buried at the bottom caught his attention-a supplementary report on the fourth missing person, with a crime scene photograph attached.
In one corner of the photograph was a small pile of black ash, like scraps of burned paper.
Dean's heart jolted. He picked up the photograph and examined it carefully.
Sulfur ash. Either a demon or a Soul Eater.
His hands began trembling with both excitement and fear. Excitement because they finally had a lead; fear because, if it was a Soul Eater, their methods were brutal. If Sam had fallen into their hands, the consequences were unthinkable.
"Bai! Get over here, I found something!" Dean shouted into the phone.
Bai Haorui soon arrived. He took the photograph, then picked up the small pile of ash. Taking out the Five Emperor Coins, he sprinkled the ash over them.
The instant the ash touched the coins, they began vibrating violently, as though trying to escape Bai Haorui's palm. Their temperature shot up, burning his fingertips red.
"The yin energy comes from the same source!" A barely perceptible trace of excitement entered Bai Haorui's voice. "The yin energy in this ash is identical to what's on Sam! He definitely got involved with this thing!"
He paused, then frowned again. "But the Five Emperor Coins can't determine exactly what kind of monster it is. All I can establish is that the source is northwest."
Northwest.
Dean and Bai Haorui exchanged a look, each seeing hope in the other's eyes.
They immediately drove northwest. Two hours later, an abandoned sawmill came into view. Its buildings were dilapidated, rust-covered machinery lay askew, and weeds half a person's height filled the yard.
In daylight, the sawmill was frighteningly quiet.
Dean cautiously entered the building with his gun raised. Bai Haorui followed, gripping a peachwood sword and scanning their surroundings warily.
The yin energy was so faint it had almost vanished, as though it had never existed.
Bai Haorui crouched in the center of the building and scattered the Five Emperor Coins on the ground. This time, they did not move at all, as though asleep.
"We might have been misled." Bai Haorui stood and dusted off his hands. "Yin energy is strongest around midnight. We'll have to come back tonight."
Dean looked around the empty building and gritted his teeth. "Fine."
The setting sun stretched their shadows long. They sat on the Impala's roof, watching the sawmill without speaking.
Night was slowly falling.
Having found nothing late that night, they had just returned to the motel to rest when Dean's phone rang at three in the morning.
A name flashed on the screen-Sam.
An invisible hand seemed to clench around Dean's heart. He answered with a trembling hand.
"Dean..."
On the other end, Sam's voice was unbearably hoarse, thick with tears, with a jumble of noise in the background.
"Sam! Where are you?!" Dean shot to his feet, excitement nearly spilling from his voice.
"Twin Lakes... Lakeside Rest Motel... Room 307..." Sam's voice came in fragments, as though it might cut off at any moment. "Dean... help me..."
"Hang on! I'm coming!"
Dean hung up, grabbed his jacket, and rushed out. Bai Haorui immediately got up as well, grabbed his backpack, and followed.
The Impala's engine roared, and the car tore through the heavy darkness like a bolt of black lightning.
An hour later, the Impala stopped outside the Lakeside Rest Motel.
The motel's lights were dim yellow, like the eyes of someone dying. Room 307's door stood ajar. A heavy smell of blood mixed with cigarettes seeped through the gap and assaulted their noses.
Dean kicked open the door, aiming his gun into the room.
Then he froze.
Sam huddled in a corner, his black hoodie soaked in blood, dark red stains congealing into stiff patches on the fabric. His hair was a mess, his face smeared with blood, dried blood caked beneath his nails. He raised his head, his eyes as hollow as a dried-up well, utterly unfocused.
The instant he saw Dean, Sam flinched violently, as though terrified. He kept murmuring, his voice as faint as a mosquito's hum. "Blood... not mine... I can't remember anything... really..."
An iron clamp seemed to seize Dean's heart, squeezing so painfully he could barely breathe. He slowly lowered his gun and approached Sam cautiously, reaching out to touch his shoulder. The moment his fingertips touched Sam's clothes, he felt his body trembling violently.
"Sam..." Dean's voice was terribly hoarse. "It's okay. Your big brother's here."
Bai Haorui crouched, took three Five Emperor Coins from his backpack, and gently pressed them against Sam's forehead.
Scorching hot.
The coins were like red-hot branding irons. Sam gave a muffled whimper at the burning heat, his body shaking even harder.
"The yin energy has burrowed into his soul apertures." Bai Haorui frowned, alarmed by the scorching heat against his fingertips. "Sam's most likely possessed. Be careful."
Dean's pupils contracted sharply. "Then what do we do?"
Bai Haorui said nothing. His gaze swept across the nightstand. On it lay a pack of Camel cigarettes-Sam never smoked-a military dagger with dark red blood on its blade, and a receipt from Greenfield Service Station dated early that morning.
He picked up the receipt and handed it to Dean. "Here's a lead. Sam definitely went here. Check around the service station. We might find something."
Dean took the receipt, his knuckles whitening around it. Looking into Sam's empty eyes felt like a knife cutting into his heart. John's final words flashed through his mind. Those prophecies about Sam stabbed him like a thorn. But none of that mattered now.
What mattered was finding out what had happened and saving Sam.
Sam huddled in the corner, his muddled consciousness filled with nothing but the smell of blood and endless fear. He did not know what he had done. He only remembered a cold voice constantly shouting in his ear, calling him a monster, calling him a jinx. The instant he saw Dean and Bai Haorui, he wanted to rush over and hide behind Dean, but he did not dare.
He was afraid he would hurt them.
That fear was harder to bear than the pain in his body.
Bai Haorui took out a yellow Soul-Subduing Talisman, dabbed his fingertip in cinnabar, and quickly drew a sigil on the paper. Then he carefully pressed the talisman to Sam's chest.
"Steady your mind first. Don't let the demon swallow your consciousness." Bai Haorui's voice was soft, as though soothing a frightened little animal. "Hold on, Sam."
The instant the Soul-Subduing Talisman touched him, Sam's trembling eased slightly. He raised his head, and at last a faint glimmer appeared in his eyes.
The private garage outside Greenfield Service Station had its rolling shutter half lowered, like a gaping mouth waiting to devour someone.
Dean told Bai Haorui to wait in the car with Sam. Holding his gun, he crouched and cautiously approached. His footsteps were light, almost soundless.
As soon as he reached the garage entrance, a heavy stench of blood hit him, stronger and sharper than the smell at the motel.
Dean's heartbeat instantly quickened. He took a deep breath and shoved the rolling shutter open.
The sight inside nearly froze his blood.
Steve Wandell lay on the floor, a hideous gunshot wound in his chest, his face bearing shock and disbelief. Blood had stained the concrete beneath him red. He still clutched a bag of salt, with a demon-hunting dagger and holy water scattered beside him.
"Shit! Son of a bitch!" Dean growled, rushing over.
Just then, Bai Haorui came in with Sam. He was worried about leaving Dean alone, and even more worried about leaving Sam in the car.
Bai Haorui's gaze swept to a corner of the garage, where an old surveillance camera pointed at the center of the room. He hurried over, took a laptop from his backpack, and quickly connected it to the camera.
"There's surveillance footage," Bai Haorui said.
Dean immediately turned toward the laptop screen.
The moment the screen lit up, Dean froze, his blood seeming to congeal in his veins.
In the footage, Sam stood before Steve with an expressionless face and cold eyes. Steve had his back to him, wiping a gun, clearly unsuspecting. Then Sam slowly raised his handgun, aimed at Steve's chest, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.
The gunshot rang out. Steve spun around, his eyes full of disbelief. He fell to the floor and stubbornly raised his head to look at Sam, as though asking why. Then he twitched a few times and went still.
On the screen, Sam stood beside Steve's body, put away his gun without expression, then turned and left the garage.
Dean stared fixedly at the screen, his fingers trembling slightly. He could not believe that the killer was his little brother.
Standing behind Dean, Sam saw the footage too.
In an instant, his whole body began shaking violently. Tears rolled down his blood-smeared face. He stared at himself on the screen, his eyes filled with despair and fear.
"No... it wasn't me..." Sam's voice was terribly hoarse, like shattered glass. "I didn't... I didn't kill him..."
He suddenly raised his head to look at Dean, his eyes pleading. Then he snatched the gun from Dean's waist and pressed it to his own temple.
Just as he was about to pull the trigger, Bai Haorui grabbed his arm and yanked it down.
"Kill me, Dean!" Sam screamed, tears pouring out. "I'm a monster! I'm a jinx! I'll get you all killed! Kill me!"
"Sam!" Dean's heart felt as though it were being torn apart. He lunged forward, snatched the gun from Sam's hand, and held him tight. "Bullshit! You didn't do this! It was a demon! That demon possessed you and did it! I can save you! I will save you!"
Sam struggled violently in Dean's arms, his sobs agonizing. "I'm a monster... I'm a jinx..."
Then, suddenly, Sam stopped struggling.
His body went rigid. Then he slowly raised his head.
The despair and fear in his eyes disappeared, replaced by a cold, mocking amusement.
His lips curled into an uncanny smile, and he spoke in a rough, unfamiliar voice. "Save him?"
Dean's pupils contracted sharply. Instinctively, he tried to push Sam away, but it was already too late.
Sam suddenly raised his hand and slammed a fist into the back of Dean's head.
Caught completely off guard, Dean felt a burst of searing pain at the back of his head. His vision went black, and he crashed to the floor.
"You can't save him, Winchester." Sam's voice dripped with mockery as he looked down at Dean, his eyes full of venom.
Bai Haorui reacted swiftly. The moment he saw Meg strike, he drew his peachwood sword and thrust it at Sam. Coated with cinnabar and holy water, the sword was a powerful weapon against sinister entities.
But he dared not put his strength into it.
Meg clearly saw through his hesitation. She sneered, sidestepped the peachwood sword, then raised her foot and kicked Bai Haorui hard in the lower abdomen.
Bai Haorui grunted and flew backward, slamming heavily into the garage wall. A sweet taste rose in his throat as blood surged into his mouth, but he forced it back down.
Without even looking at him, Meg turned and walked out of the garage. Her steps were steady, bearing the air of a victor.
Bai Haorui struggled to his feet. He watched Meg's retreating figure disappear, then looked at Dean on the floor, his brows tightly knitted. He took out his phone and called Bobby.
"Bobby, something's happened." There was a trace of exhaustion in Bai Haorui's voice. "Sam's possessed, and he killed Steve. We need to figure out an exorcism fast."
He crouched and helped Dean up, his gaze grave. "Hunters' rules demand blood for blood. Steve's friends will come looking soon. We need to find Sam quickly, or we're in serious trouble."
Dean slowly opened his eyes, grimacing at the severe pain in the back of his head. He looked in the direction Meg had vanished, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes.
"I'm getting Sam back." Dean's voice was hoarse, his determination beyond question.
At Harvelle's Roadhouse in Duluth City, the lighting was dim yellow and the heavy metal music deafening.
Following the GPS location on Sam's phone, Dean and Bai Haorui had tracked him here. Dean quickly got out of the car, ran to the entrance, and pushed open the door. Music and shouting instantly surged out.
Then Dean froze.
At the bar, Sam held a hunting knife against Joe's throat. Joe's back was pressed against the liquor shelves, her face deathly pale, but she gritted her teeth stubbornly without begging for mercy. She clutched a bag of salt, clearly resisting.
"Look at your little brother now, Winchester." Sam sneered, staring fixedly at Dean, his eyes full of mockery. "He's completely out of control. Kill him, Dean. It's the only way. Otherwise, she dies next."
The hunting knife's blade pressed against Joe's throat, its cold touch making him shiver involuntarily.
Dean slowly raised both hands to show he meant no harm. His eyes stayed fixed on Sam's, his voice calm but firm. "Sam, I know this isn't you. Think about when we were kids, everything we went through together. Think about Dad taking us fishing. You caught a fish bigger than you and almost got dragged into the water. We hauled it out together and jumped for joy."
He paused, his voice catching slightly. "You're not a monster. You're my little brother. You're my family."
A flicker of panic crossed Sam's eyes, and the hand holding the hunting knife trembled slightly.
Those memories were like a key, prying open Sam's sealed consciousness.
"Shut up!" Sam roared, pressing the knife closer to Joe's throat. The sharp blade cut Joe's skin, drawing a bead of bright red blood. "As if you Winchesters don't have enough blood on your hands!"
She turned toward Joe, her eyes filled with malice. "Have you forgotten how your dad died? It was John Winchester! He used your dad as bait and threw him into a monster's nest! He got your dad killed!"
Joe's body jolted, and tears instantly welled up.
She looked at Dean, her eyes filled with complicated emotions.
"Don't worry about me," Joe said through gritted teeth, his voice thick with tears. "Kill this demon!"
Dean went deathly pale. John's past was a thorn in his heart, one he could not pull out. He knew that in the hunters' world, there was no absolute right or wrong, only survival. But facing Joe, he could offer no defense.
Gritting his teeth, he suddenly took a bottle of holy water from his backpack and hurled its contents at Sam.
"Bitch! Come at me if you've got the guts! Stop hiding in Sam's body!" Dean roared, his eyes bloodshot.
The holy water struck Sam's face, instantly raising a cloud of white smoke.
"Aah!" Meg let out a piercing scream. Instinctively, she released Joe and covered her face.
Joe seized the chance to break free. She grabbed a silver dagger from the bar and thrust it at Sam. Silver could burn a demon's skin, making it an effective weapon against monsters.
Sam staggered backward. She dodged the silver dagger, then raised her handgun, aimed at Dean's shoulder, and pulled the trigger without hesitation.
Bang!
The gunshot rang out. Dean grunted, blood pouring from his shoulder and staining his jacket red.
Just then, Bai Haorui rushed in. He had been treating his wounds outside, which had delayed him a little. His pupils contracted sharply at the sight.
Without the slightest hesitation, Bai Haorui accelerated, charging like a cannonball and slamming his body into Sam.
Thud!
They collided heavily. Sam was knocked through the doorway and fell to the ground. Bai Haorui fared little better. A sharp pain tore through his lower abdomen as his earlier wound reopened, blood soaking his clothes.
Enduring the intense pain, he pulled a Home Protection Talisman from his backpack and shouted to Joe, "Joe! Stick it on the door! Quick!"
Joe reacted instantly. She picked up the Home Protection Talisman and quickly stuck it to the tavern door. Its runes flashed, giving off a faint golden glow that could temporarily keep demons out.
Sam climbed to his feet and stared at the tavern door, his eyes brimming with venom. She knew this was no time for a fight to the death. He sneered, then turned and disappeared into the night.
The tavern storeroom was dimly lit.
Joe took out a first aid kit and bandaged the wound in Bai Haorui's lower abdomen first, then removed the bullet from Dean and stitched up his wound.
The smell of disinfectant filled the air. Dean grimaced in pain but made no sound.
Joe looked at the wound on Dean's shoulder, recalling what Sam had just said, her gaze conflicted. "I know you're not like your dad. Sam's innocent too."
She handed Dean a silver dagger, several packets of salt, and a bottle of holy water. "If he came looking for me, he'll definitely go after Bobby too. We have to get over there. Bobby will know what to do."
Bai Haorui stood by the window, looking in the direction Sam had disappeared. He held an emperor chart and a Five Emperor Coin stained with Sam's blood. The copper coin trembled slightly in his palm, pointing toward South Dakota.
"He went toward South Dakota," Bai Haorui said gravely. "His target is Bobby. He's trying to destroy every ally the Winchesters have."
Dean tightened his grip on the silver dagger, a flash of ruthlessness crossing his eyes.
"Let's go." Dean stood, his voice hoarse. "To Bobby's. We're getting Sam back."
Late that night, Bobby's cabin was brightly lit.
A thick ring of salt lay at the entrance, exorcism symbols covered the windows, and all manner of demon-repelling objects hung beneath the eaves. The entire cabin had been fortified like a stronghold.
Bobby sat in a chair with a bottle of beer in his hand, his expression grave. He had just received Dean's call and learned that the demon possessing Sam was now targeting him. He stared into the night outside, his brow tightly furrowed.
Suddenly, the door was pushed open.
Sam walked in, his expression eerily calm, a hint of a cold smile in his eyes.
Bobby set down his beer without betraying anything, then pushed a bottle laced with holy water toward Sam. "Have a drink. You must be thirsty after coming all this way."
Sam hesitated, looking at Bobby, then at the beer. He knew Bobby was an experienced hunter, but still felt he posed little threat.
He picked up the beer and took a sip.
The next second, her throat felt as though it were on fire, and she began coughing violently. Black instantly filled her eyes, and strange growls rose from her throat.
"Now!" Bobby shouted, lunging forward.
Dean, Bai Haorui, and Joe, who had just finished messaging Bobby to tell him they had arrived, immediately rushed in.
Dean and Bobby pinned Sam's arms from either side. Joe lunged over and held down his legs. Holding hemp rope soaked in holy water and an ink-line cord, Bai Haorui quickly wound them around Sam.
Together, the four dragged Sam to the center of the Devil's Trap drawn on the ceiling.
Dean immediately pulled an exorcism incantation from his backpack. He took a deep breath and began reciting it.
The ancient incantation echoed through the cabin, carrying sacred power.
But Sam showed no pain at all. Instead, he burst into wild laughter, shrill and piercing. "It's useless! Idiots! I used a Demon-Sealing Spell to bind my soul to his! If you kill me, he dies too!"
"A normal exorcism won't work!" Bobby panted, looking at the bound Sam. "The Demon-Sealing Spell has locked his soul to Meg's-unless we break it, exorcising her will kill Sam too!"
As Sam roared, cracks began to spread through the Devil's Trap on the ceiling. Its runes flickered dimly, then shattered completely.
The hemp rope and ink-line cord binding Sam snapped at once as well.
Freed from his bonds, Sam sprang up, grabbed Dean by the throat, and slammed him against the wall.
Bang!
Dean's back struck the wall with a dull thud. The grip on his throat was crushing, breathing grew harder and harder, and his vision began to darken.
"Remember me, Dean?" Sam's voice dripped with venom. He brought his face close to Dean's, hatred filling his black eyes. "I'm Meg! You sent me to Hell yourself! Do you know what Hell is like?! It's a prison built from bones, flesh, and fear! Do you know how many days and nights I endured in there?!"
Her hand tightened further. Dean's face flushed red, and his consciousness began to blur.
"I crawled out just to make you taste what it's like to lose everything!" Meg roared, her eyes filled with madness.
Just then, Bai Haorui moved.
He drew his peachwood sword, its tip coated in cinnabar and holy water, gleaming with a faint golden light. He aimed at Sam's left arm-right where the Demon-Sealing Spell was.
Without the slightest hesitation, Bai Haorui charged forward and drove the peachwood sword hard into Sam's left arm.
Shhk-
The instant the peachwood sword pierced his skin, black smoke rose from Sam's arm.
"Aah-!" Meg let out an agonized scream, her grip on Dean loosening.
Dean seized the chance to break free, gulping down air, his throat burning with pain.
Bobby seized the opportunity. He had already prepared a branding iron. He heated it red-hot in the stove, then abruptly raised it, aimed at the Demon-Sealing Spell's mark on Sam's left arm, and pressed down hard.
Sss-!
The instant the branding iron touched skin, an acrid smell of burning filled the air.
Sam's body convulsed violently. Demonic roars alternated with pained groans from his mouth. "Dean... help me... big brother... help me..."
That was Sam's voice.
Dean's heart shuddered. Looking at Sam's suffering, tears instantly welled in his eyes. He rushed over, grabbed Sam's shoulders, and shook him hard, his voice choked with tears. "Sam! Hold on! Think about our promise! Think about all the monsters we hunted together! Think about the farm in Kansas! Think about the fish Dad took us out to catch! You're not a monster! You're my brother! You're Sam Winchester!"
Those memories were like a key, unlocking Sam's sealed consciousness.
Sam's eyes shifted repeatedly between clarity and confusion. He looked at the bruises on Dean's neck, the blood seeping from Bai Haorui's lower abdomen, Bobby's exhausted face, and the worry in Joe's eyes.
Tears poured out.
He couldn't let them get hurt because of him anymore.
Using every ounce of strength, Sam pulled a small knife from his pocket. Ignoring the terrible pain in his left arm, he gripped the knife with a trembling hand and slowly carved the symbol of a Devil's Trap into his other arm.
One cut, then another.
Blood flowed down his arm and dripped onto the ground, staining the concrete red.
Meg's roars grew fainter and fainter, her consciousness rapidly dissipating.
As the final stroke of the symbol was completed, Meg let out a defiant roar.
A cloud of black smoke surged from the top of Sam's head, shattered the window, and disappeared into the night.
Sam's body went limp, and he collapsed into a sitting position on the floor. His eyes were clear again, but filled with guilt and pain.
He looked at Dean, then at the blood on the floor, his tears flowing harder. "I remember... I killed Steve... I threatened Joe... and I hurt you... I'm sorry, Dean... I'm so sorry..."
Dean crouched and hugged Sam tightly, finally unable to hold back his own tears.
"It's over," Dean said hoarsely. "It's over, Sam. You're back."
Bai Haorui let out a breath of relief and leaned against the wall, the severe pain in his lower abdomen making it almost impossible to stand. Watching the brothers embrace, he gave a faint smile.
Exorcism was for saving lives; reaching the heart came first.
In the end, what saved Sam wasn't a talisman or a branding iron, but Dean's calls, Sam's will to live, and the bond between brothers whose blood ran thicker than water.
Morning sunlight spilled through the windows of Bobby's cabin onto the floor.
Bobby handed each of the three a cup of warm water, his expression grave. "Steve was a good hunter. His friends won't let this go. You need to leave now. Stay out of sight for a while and lie low."
He took three pure silver amulets from a drawer. Exorcism runes were engraved on them, and they still carried a faint scent of holy water. Bobby hung the amulets around their necks. "They've been soaked in holy water. They'll protect you from possession. But if Meg could crawl back out of Hell, that means the demons aren't going to stop. You need to be careful."
Dean accepted the amulet and nodded. He patted Sam's shoulder, his voice quiet. "This wasn't your fault. We'll face it together, just like before."
Sam nodded, his fingers rubbing the two scars on his arms-one left by the Demon-Sealing Spell, the other by the Devil's Trap he had carved himself.
Those two scars were like brands, etched into his arms and into his heart.
They were a nightmare, and a redemption.
The black Impala returned to the highway. The darkness had not yet fully faded, and the woods on either side of the road loomed in and out of the morning mist like monsters baring their fangs and claws.
Inside the car, all was silent.
Sam gazed out the window, his eyes red. Watching the trees fly past, his heart overflowed with guilt and gratitude. He knew he had caused Dean and Bai Haorui far too much trouble, yet they had never given up on him.
Bai Haorui leaned back in the rear seat. The Five Emperor Coin in his hand had regained its original color and was no longer hot. Looking at the road ahead, he suddenly spoke. "Meg mentioned Yellow Eyes-her revenge was only part of his plan. Those children who were fed demon blood will be targeted soon."
Dean's lips twisted into a bitter smile. He said nothing, only turned up the car radio.
Old rock classics echoed through the car, drowning out the silence inside and the unease in their hearts.
None of them knew that Steve's hunter friends had already found a lead and were driving to Wisconsin.
Still less did anyone know that Meg stood on a distant hillside, looking in the direction the Impala had disappeared. She held a black feather in her hand, a cold smile curling her lips.
A greater storm was brewing.