Bloodstains on the Note, Xiahou Ying's Choice

The air-raid shelter was dark and damp, with a musty smell permeating the air.

With her eyesight at the Seventh Level of Blood Nourishing, Xiahou Ying quickly spotted a patch of soil that had clearly been disturbed.

She stepped forward and, without using any weapons, simply used her bare hands to dig away the soft soil covering her.

"This is..."

A moment later, a metal box wrapped tightly in a waterproof cloth appeared before her eyes.

The tin box is very heavy.

Xiahou Ying's heartbeat quickened involuntarily.

She carried the tin box out of the air-raid shelter, and by the faint moonlight, took a deep breath and slowly opened the lid.

"Profound Grade Blood Refining Method?"

What came into view were several jade slips containing cultivation techniques, each emitting a faint glow.

In addition, there were more than a dozen exquisite medicine bottles filled with various precious pills for the Blood Nourishing Realm and assisting in breaking through to the Blood Refining Realm.

At the very bottom of the box, there were neatly stacked 100,000 federal dollars in cash!

"This... this is my brother's savings?"

Xiahou Ying was completely stunned.

Why did he bury these things here?

Why should I tell you?

Just as she was racking her brains trying to figure it out, her gaze fell on a folded piece of paper that was pressed under the jade slip.

Xiahou Ying's hand trembled slightly as an extremely ominous premonition welled up in her heart.

She carefully unfolded the note.

The handwriting on the note was extremely chaotic, as if it had been written by someone in extreme fear and pain:

"Sakura! By the time I read this letter, I may no longer be myself!"

"Don't go back to the Xiahou Family! Absolutely do not go back!"

"That's a Demon Cave! They're not human! They eat people!!!"

At the end of the note was a powerful last message:

"Take these things! Go! Go as far away as possible! Change your name and never come back!"

"Boom--!"

The moment Xiahou Ying finished reading the note, she felt as if she had been struck by lightning, and her mind went completely blank!

"This... this is impossible!"

"Brother, you're joking with me, right? The Xiahou Family is a pillar of Jinling City... how could it be Demon Cave?"

"What do you mean 'not human'? What do you mean 'cannibalism'? That's absurd!"

She shook her head frantically, trying to deny the chilling words on the note. However, her brother's usually calm personality and his recent unusual behavior kept flashing through her mind like a revolving lantern.

"Yes! I'll call him! I need to call and ask him!"

Xiahou Ying frantically pulled her communicator from her pocket and dialed that familiar number with trembling fingers.

"Beep... beep..."

A monotonous waiting tone came from the communicator.

Each sound felt like a blow to her fragile nerves.

In that very instant!

Xiahou Ying's movements suddenly froze!

A strange remark her brother had made to her the day before he left home suddenly flashed through her mind:

"Sakura, if one day you find that I've become like a different person..."

"Smack!"

Xiahou Ying abruptly hung up the call; the communicator slipped from her hand and fell to the ground.

He's become a different person...

"Not human..."

She felt as if all her strength had been drained away, and collapsed to the ground, clutching her knees tightly with both hands, burying her face in her arms, her delicate body trembling violently.

She's not stupid.

For even the proudest brother to leave such a desperate last message, all to leave her a way out...

The Xiahou Family harbors an unimaginable terror!

"Brother... what exactly happened to you...?"

What should I do? What should I do?

escape?

Leaving the Xiahou Family meant losing all protection and resources, and facing unknown persecution.

Not escape?

That means returning to the place her brother called "the Demon Cave," and awaiting the same tragic fate as her brother.

a long time.

Xiahou Ying slowly raised her head. Her once clear and proud eyes were now bloodshot, but also held a hint of... determination.

She silently packed all the resources, techniques, and cash from the iron box into her tactical backpack.

I cannot die.

"I need to find out what secret the Xiahou Family is hiding!"

"I want... to avenge my brother!"

She stood up, took a deep look in the direction of Jinling City, then turned around and disappeared into the wilderness without looking back.

at the same time.

Dongfang Yueming was sitting on a broken tree stump, holding a communicator in his hand, his brows slightly furrowed.

He had just sent Xiahou Ying a message asking for her location, but it was like throwing a stone into the sea; there was no response.

"Strangeness."

Dongfang Yueming stroked his chin.

"With her Seventh Level of Blood Nourishing Realm strength, dealing with a few first-tier Wind Blade Wolf shouldn't be a problem. How could she have lost contact?"

To cover it up, he pretended to send a message to Zhu Hao's account.

"Zhu Hao, how are things on your end? I'm lost. Please reply if you receive this."

"Sent successfully."

Looking at the lone green bubble on the screen, Dongfang Yueming's lips curled into a cold smile.

Zhu Hao is probably nothing but ashes by now; there's no way he could possibly recover.

"But this Xiahou Ying..."

"Was it an accident, or... is she simply unwilling to respond?"

Dongfang Yueming put away the communicator, stood up, and gazed intently into the depths of the wilderness.

"These two siblings seem to be quite something."

"Forget about her. The field training will end after dawn."

"Getting those 10 credits is the real priority."