The Duke had only briefly visited the head butlerās room to appease the pig but when he returned to his room, he noticed that something wasnāt right.
The sheets on the bed had extra wrinkles and even a corner of the black mattress under the sheets was now revealed.
This was his restricted area!
āAlyssa?ā The Duke slowly walked over and knelt down by the bed.
The space under the bed was empty. The crimson coffin was gone.
His Alyssa was gone!
āWho?!ā The Duke was furious. His eyes went red with anger.
A light chuckle suddenly sounded behind him.
The Duke violently turned his head back and saw that there was someone sitting on the windowsill.
āAhā¦ā¦ā¦Itās you. Youāre here again?ā The Duke tried to slow his breathing down and suppressed his tone to make it sound less disdainful, āThe guests this time really wonāt give up. Despite knowing that itās futile, you still keep trying again and again.ā
Qin Jiu said: āItās different this time.ā
āHow is it different?ā
āI went and found that witchdoctor and used some not so nice methods.ā Qin Jiu was not in a hurry to reveal his cards: āTry and guess. What do you think he told me?ā
āWhat?ā
The Dukeās expression changed. He stared at him with narrowed eyes.
Qin Jiu had gone to the dungeon and he had also found the priest separately to ask them about killing the Duke.
The answer he received from the two were surprisingly consistent.
One was cunning and sly, and the other was not in the right mind. Qin Jiu didnāt intend to believe in their words completely and came to get more information out from the Duke.
And so, he hid the wife that was hidden under the bed.
Qin Jiu tilted his head and hopped off the windowsill. He approached the Duke fearlessly: āWhat do you think?ā
The Dukeās eyes were fixed on him. He then sneered: āDonāt try and scare me. I canāt die. I will never die.ā
āOh, youāre so certain?ā Qin Jiu said.
He was confident and extremely calm. It was too convincing. The Duke once again started to doubt himself.
āIāve very certain.ā He furrowed his brows.
Qin Jiu smiled: āYou donāt think you have some sort of misunderstanding about the witchdoctorās character? Thatā¦ā¦ā¦lunatic who would teach other people evil arts?ā
āOf course, I know.ā The Duke smirked arrogantly, āDo you think Iām stupid? Stupid enough to let someone who is a threat to me to continue living? Of course, I have prepared some precautions. Everything he knows, I know. Everything he can do, I can too.ā
Qin Jiuās hand that was behind his back moved. He lifted up a book: āYouāre referring to this? You made a copy of his witchcraft book.ā
The Duke quickly glanced under the bed.
āSee? This was also something the witchdoctor told me.ā
In fact, he only vaguely guessed that the Duke may also have a book when he interrogated the witchdoctor and he inferred from that the most likely location it could be hidden in āāā Under Alyssaās coffin.
No one dared to touch the Duchess, so no one would know about the book.
The Duke sneered: āYou just got lucky.ā
His neck twitched twice. It was as if his head was being disobedient again.
āNot only that, he also told me that between you and himā¦ā¦.ā Qin Jiu stopped talking. He commented slowly: āYou seem very nervous.ā
He didnāt finish his sentence!
The Duke cursed at him inside, but it was undeniable that Qin Jiuās words indeed made him nervous.
The other party seemed to know a lot.
It was noisy outside. The Dukeās expression turned uglier.
Qin Jiu pointed to the door: āShould I tell the others outside about the circumstances between you and him? Maybe your servants or those interested would remember and thenāāāā
āShut up!ā The Dukeās expression turned icy.
Qin Jiu laughed. He waved the book in his hand and said, āSee? It looks like youāre not completely fearless. Why else would you hide this book?ā
The Dukeās mouth twitched. His expression became more and more unsightly.
In fact, everything just now was all nonsense made up by this Mr. Qin. Of course, those nonsense were also not baselessāāā
The Duke made a copy of the witchcraft book so that he could better understand the resurrection technique, but why didnāt he destroy it afterwards? Why didnāt he burn it like the witchdoctor? If he did, he wouldnāt need to worry about others seeing it.
Since he kept this book, it meant that he still needed it.
On one hand, it was just as he had said himself. The witchdoctorās existence could pose as a threat to him but why did he allow the other party to continue living? He was even minding his own business and leaving the other party alone.
The only possible explanation for this wasā¦ā¦ā¦For some reason, he either didnāt dare kill him or he couldnāt kill him.
He guessed that there must be a deep connection between the Duke and the witchdoctor; one where their lives were interlinked.
The witchdoctor helped the butler resurrect the Duke, but it was impossible for him to hand over the key to his life and death to another person for no reason.
And so, this connection was one-sided, or more specifically, the consequences were one-sided.
If the witchdoctor died, the Duke cannot live.
But if the Duke died, the witchdoctor would be fine.
āYou canāt kill me.ā The Duke continued to insist.
Qin Jiu slowly approached him: āWhy canāt I? The book is in my possession and I have read everything I needed to read.ā
The witchcraft book referred to the resurrected being as the host.
The method to kill the host was depicted in a picture. It was a picture of a person holding a knife up at the host with the tip only a few centimetres from their heart while the host didnāt display any signs of resistance.
Before the Duke returned, Qin Jiu had examined that picture numerous times. It was indeed similar to the witchdoctorās words.
The Dukeās reaction earlier also at least confirmed that the book was real.
It didnāt hurt to give it a try.
***
The dark clouds outside were heavy. Although it should be daytime, it looked no different from night.
Zhou Qiās fever had receded as dawn approached but she still looked unwell and was rather restless.
Zhao Jiatong couldnāt help but ask: āHad a nightmare?ā
Please read this from kk translates
Zhou Qi nodded: āYeah.ā
āI heard you sleeptalking.ā
āYeahā¦ā¦It was a chaotic nightmare.ā Zhou Qi said: āI dreamt of my boyfriend. He was dragging me running and running, like we were being pursued by something. He then suddenly fell and fell behind. When I turned to grab himā¦ā¦.A bunch of hands wielding knifes tried to cut us.ā
Zhou Qiās face turned even paler as she spoke: āHe tried to protect me. All those knivesā¦ā¦.they all slashed through him. Blood was everywhere. My hands were covered in his blood.ā
Zhao Jiatong hurriedly poured her a glass of water. She patted her back and comforted: āThere, there. That was just a dreamā¦ā¦ā
Gao Qi however looked out the window. His brows were furrowed, and he remained silent.
Suddenly, a mixture of cries rang in the corridor outside.
Zhou Qiās fingers shook, knocking the glass over in the process. She asked with confusion: āWhat is this sound?ā
Zhou Qi had been suffering from her fever the entire night, so she had not seen the wall shadows going amuck.
But there was no time to explain.
Gao Qi grunted as he also jumped up: āDidnāt you say that they will only appear when the Duke is weakened or dying?ā
āYeah!ā
āThen who killed the Duke?ā
Zhao Jiatong frowned: āThat canāt be. Everyone knows that the curse would fall onto A and 001 if they kill the Duke. How could anyone go up andāāāā
She suddenly stopped and exchanged looks with Gao Qi.
Gao Qi rubbed his face and immediately cursed: āFuck!ā
Others wouldnāt, but that didnāt exclude those two psychos.
They all rushed out.
They had originally wanted Yang Shu and Zhou Qi to stay in the room but they had followed them out before they could say anything.
The corridor was filled with examinees. They all held their phones and used the torch to chase away the shadows.
Gao Qi and Zhao Jiatong wanted to squeeze through this crowd and rush downstairs when they suddenly heard Zhou Qiās trembling voice: āSister Zhaoā¦ā¦..Sister Zhaoā¦ā¦.Iā¦ā¦.ā
Zhao Jiatong wanted to say something else when Gao Qi nudged her.
She turned to glare at Gao Qi but suddenly understood when she saw his eyes.
Several steps away, the stone wall suddenly started cracking.
Under the lights from a dozen phones, cracks stretched across the surface until a large piece finally fell.
When it fell to the ground, the people there finally realised that the stone wall was actually very thin. It covered the inner wall like a shell.
Gao Qi shouted: āGet away! Donāt get hit!ā
As soon as he said that, someone exclaimed: āMy god, what is this?!ā
Those shadows were still struggling, and the crying continued. At times it would intensify when the lights are gathered onto one spot.
That examinee took a few steps back. His voice cracked with fear: āThereās people in the wall! Look!ā
There really were people in the wall.
No, to be more precise, they werenāt people; they here human body parts.
Arms, legs, hands, feet, headsā¦ā¦ā¦All sorts of dismembered parts were embedded into the wall. As more and more of the outer stone shell broke off, these parts similarly broke free.
Everyone stood there petrified for a moment, unable to react. When they finally returned to their senses, they screamed and tried to avoid the falling objects.
Within just a few minutes, the entire corridor had turned chaotic.
Zhao Jiatong finally knew where the source of smell Zhou Qi had mentioned came from.
Despite her army upbringing, she also panicked as a head with wide open eyes rolled past her feet.
Everyone there, including both Zhao Jiatong and Gao Qi, retreated backwards instinctively.
The only exception was Zhou Qi.
Her eyes were firmly fixated on something as she stumbled closer.
āXiao Zhou, what are you doing?!ā Zhao Jiatong wanted to stop her, but she was too slow and her hand grabbed thin air.
Zhou Qi eventually tripped. She had fallen right before the thing she was looking at.
It was an upper torso. It wore a blue and grey plaid short-sleeved shirt that was stained with a large patch of blood along the neckline which ran down all the way to the chest. There was a shirt pocket on the left chest and the button there was very cheeky; it was a shiny bear head. It was clear that someone had changed it into that as a joke.
The arm that was exposed was extremely pale, like those of mannequins in a shopping mall.
Zhou Qi had forgotten to get back up. She sat there holding that arm in complete daze.
Zhao Jiatong and Yang Shu followed behind her. Their expressions were uncomfortable.
āXiao Zhouā¦ā¦..Xiao Zhou, donāt be like this. Many people wear shirts like this.ā Zhao Jiatongās voice was hoarse.
Zhou Ji didnāt speak. It was as if she didnāt hear her.
After a while, she suddenly got up. Holding that arm, she looked around like a headless fly while murmuring quietly: āWhat about the otherā¦ā¦..andā¦ā¦ā
She spun around the corridor like she was crazy until she spotted a pair of legs wearing jeans not far away.
ā¦ā¦ā¦
āWhat about the head? Sister Zhouā¦..please help me. Yang Shu, please help me find it.ā She couldnāt hold it up anymore, the torso and legs were about to fall. Tears streamed down from her eyes endlessly as she begged anxiously: āPlease help me find it. Please find the head!!ā
Gao Qi couldnāt take it anymore.
He gritted his teeth tightly and closed his eyes for a few seconds. He then patted Zhou Qiās shoulder: āYoung lass, donāt cry. I know where it is. Iāll take you thereā¦ā¦..ā
***
In the bedroom on the first floor of the west tower, Qin Jiu had his hand wrapped tightly around the Dukeās neck. The mask had fallen off amidst the struggle and the face that belonged to a young man finally had a bit of colour to it.
But the one speaking was still the Duke: āYouāreā¦wastingā¦..yourā¦ā¦..time. Youā¦ā¦canātā¦.kill me.ā
Suddenly, the door to the bedroom was pushed open.
When he turned to look, he saw Gao Qi, Zhao Jiatong and Yang Shu all standing at the door. In addition to themā¦ā¦ā¦there was also a very dazed young lady.
It was Zhou Qi.
Please read this from kk translates
This examinee was no longer wearing her mask. Her face that was reddened from crying was especially conspicuous.
Qin Jiu froze. His grip around the Dukeās neck subconsciously loosened.
Unexpectedly, the Duke didnāt use this opportunity to break free.
When he looked over, he saw that the Duke similarly had his head turned. He stared at the door with a hint of confusion in his eyes.
The next second, he turned his head in panic. Using his hands to cover his face, his cried out hoarsely: āDonāt lookā¦ā¦..donāt look. Send her out. Get out!ā
Although his voice was very quiet, it was still very clear in the quiet bedroom.
After a long pause, Zhou Qi asked quietly with a nasal voice: āJiang Yuan? Youā¦You can still talk? Youāre still alive?!ā
She rushed straight in. She stumbled and fell pitifully in front of the Duke.
The Duke used his arm to cover his face. His neck once again awkwardly twitched.
After the corner of his lips twitched for a few seconds, he finally said: āQi Qiā¦ā¦donāt lookā¦ā¦..ā
Zhou Qi sat before him and anxiously grabbed his hand. The hand however wasnāt the hand she rememberedā¦ā¦.
It was completely different.
She hastily rolled up the other partyās sleeves and pulled down his neckline. The moment she saw the red stitch-like marks on the skin, she collapsed weakly onto the ground.
After a long, long time, she hugged the Dukeās neck and started bawling.
āI dreamt of you. I had nightmares all night long. Lots of people were holding knifesā¦ā¦..they attacked you with it. You wouldnāt let me see. You kept on pushing me and covering my eyes. Even if I cried or cursed, you didnāt say anythingā¦ā¦..ā
ā¦ā¦ā¦..
Her cries filled the bedroom.
Faced with a situation like this, no one stepped forward to say āconvince him to be killed willinglyā.
Whatās more, Qin Jiu still held some doubts about this.
The Duke suddenly started writhing around strangely. The hands that were holding Zhou Qiās hand suddenly moved up to her neck and increased its strength.
Zhou Qiās eyes widened. Her tears had not yet stopped. She looked at him blankly.
Qin Jiu grabbed the Dukeās wrist.
āWhat a touching reunion. After all this time, you still canā¦..ā Before the Duke could finish ridiculing, his expression twisted into a miserable look and his fingers loosened.
He didnāt hesitate this time. He immediately pushed Zhou Qi away: āQi Qi, listen to meā¦ā¦..Donāt come any closer. Iā¦ā¦I probablyā¦ā¦.canāt last any longer. I donāt know how long I can last.ā
Zhou Qi was in panic. Zhao Jiatong and Yang Shu came over to pull her away.
The Duke suddenly grabbed Qin Jiu: āHelp meā¦ā¦help me, please. I donāt want to be like this.ā
āYouā¦ā¦..ā Qin Jiu frowned. He glanced over at Zhou Qi.
The Dukeās eyes were red. He appeared to be desperately trying not to look at Zhou Qiās face: āIf this continues, one day all of you will be killedā¦ā¦I donāt wantā¦ā¦donāt want to wake up one day and see myself holding someoneās headā¦ā¦.holdingā¦..Qi Qiās headā¦..Iām scared. Iām really scared.ā
āThe witchdoctor said that the curse will only be lifted if the Duke is willing to be killed. Once heās dead, everyone will be saved.ā Qin Jiu said in a low voice, āButā¦ā¦ā
āItās a lie.ā Jiang Yuan struggled with his body and said desperately: āI am him. I know himā¦ā¦.Itās a lie. He checked. I know it. The result of that is all his lifeā¦ā¦ā¦all the life that he had accumulatedā¦..all his eternal life would be given to voluntarily to the witchdoctor.ā
He gritted his teeth and emphasised: āThe real host isā¦.the witchdoctor! Only the Duke can kill the witchdoctor but once the witchdoctor is dead, the Duke cannot liveā¦ā¦ā
They needed to make the Duke throw his life away and kill the witchdoctor, and they also needed to make the witchdoctor die willinglyā¦ā¦
It was a deadly cycle. That was probably why they were in deadlock for so long.
Jiang Yan seemed to be trying to finish saying everything while he was still conscious.
He gasped and struggled against the Duke as he said: āā¦ā¦.I just know that the witchdoctorās life depends on the Duke. If the Duke is alive, the witchdoctor is healthy. If the duke is dead, as long as it wasnāt death from sacrificing, the witchdoctor will be very weak. Itās justā¦.Itās just, the Duke wouldnāt possibly do that.ā
It was seemingly another dead end.
Unfortunately, Jiang Yuan couldnāt hold on any longer.
He could no longer formulate any words and his body started twitching and writhing around more and more intensely.
The corners of his eyes were wet. Without turning his head, he squeezed out a few last words: āGoā¦..take herā¦ā¦..pleaseā¦ā¦..ā
Zhou Qi had cried too much. She had exhausted almost all the energy she had.
Zhao Jiatong and Yang Shu clenched their teeth and carried her out.
Gao Qi didnāt move. Qin Jiu grabbed the Duke by the neck again and used the curtain rope to tie him up. After he was done, he looked up and said to Gao Qi: āHelp me out.ā
āWhat do you want to do?ā Gao Qi was a little worried about him.
āRelax, I know what Iām doing.ā Qin Jiu reassured: āDo you trust me?ā
Gao Qi remained silent.
āWeāre wasting time standing around like this. Youāre not someone who likes to dawdle, right?ā
Gao Qi took a deep breath and finally forced out a word: āSpeak.ā
āGo to the kitchen. Get some people and prepare some firewood and oil. Get as much as you can.ā
āWhat for?ā
āBurning the castle.ā
Gao Qi froze: āWhen? Now?ā
Qin Jiu: āWait for my signal.ā
Gao Qi stared at him. He then said through gritted teeth: āYou said it. You must remain standing and give me a signal!ā
Qin Jiu said: āOkay, I got it. Iāll leave the rest to you.ā
He had thought of a method. It was a little risky, and a little crazy.
If You Huo knewā¦ā¦ā¦
He settled the Duke into his armchair and began to place candles around it.
If You Huo knewā¦ā¦
Would he feel refreshed and happy? Or would he give him a punch?
If it was the past, it would definitely be the former. But nowā¦ā¦.He was suddenly uncertain.
He didnāt know why he felt this.
But when he thought of You Huo, a smile crept onto his face.
In any case, it was better not to let him know for now.
Qin Jiu thought this.
He lit the candles and looked at the tacked together man in the armchair. From within his pocket, he pulled out a long-forgotten card.
He glanced out the window in a certain direction. He then looked back and stepped into the ring of candles.
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