Jiang Fu, who hadn’t been thrown to her death, remained on the rooftop the entire time. Only after Jiang Fu left with Zhang Tong and the investigators had withdrawn did she finally come down.
By the time she walked out of the inpatient building, she had already used resentment energy to alter her appearance. Even the cut and color of her clothes had changed.
She left the hospital smoothly. Her previous false identity could no longer be used, so she found an empty apartment in a residential complex to stay in temporarily.
On the bare wooden bed, she sat cross-legged, eyes closed, sensing the changes in the evil bone and her internal organs. Wisps of resentment seeped from her skin from time to time, making her look as though she were shrouded in black miasma.
The black cat stayed beside her—lying down, then crouching, then standing to circle her—unable to settle for even a moment.
She sat like that from dawn until the moon rose high overhead before Jiang Fu finally opened her eyes.
The black cat hurriedly asked, “Well? Well?”
Jiang Fu stretched her limbs, then stood up and flexed her legs. “A piece of the evil bone was bitten off, and it’s become much more docile. But because that piece is missing, the malice within it is constantly spilling out like leaking energy…”
“What will that do?”
Seeing the cat’s anxious look, Jiang Fu didn’t keep it in suspense. “Most of that energy has been absorbed by my body. My internal organs have recovered well. My body isn’t as fragile as before. Even my sense of taste and smell have returned. My resentment energy is also recovering faster. I’m fine now.”
The black cat grew excited. “That’s great! If I’d known, I would’ve bitten it earlier.”
Jiang Fu smiled faintly. It was nothing more than drinking poison to quench thirst.
The black cat was truly relieved and even started joking. “The way you were sitting cross-legged just now—you really looked like some demonic cultivator meditating in seclusion.”
“When ability users meditate, they basically use this posture. It’s the optimal position countless people have concluded—upright body, steady breath, mind guarded inward… There’s reasoning behind it.”
The black cat huffed. “But you were surrounded by black energy.”
“Really? Then that’s pretty cool.”
Jiang Fu stepped onto the balcony, bathing in the moonlight. The moon tonight was especially full. Gazing at it, she asked, “Aren’t you afraid that I’ll use up all the malice? What will you eat then?”
The black cat leapt onto the railing. “There’s so much malice. How could you possibly use it all?”
“What if I do? You could actually devour the evil bone inside me at any time, couldn’t you? Why don’t you?”
The black cat glanced at her, then turned its head away awkwardly. “Once you die, the evil bone will naturally be mine. But without it, you’d collapse immediately. You’re harboring such deep hatred. If I let you die with grievances unresolved, what if you haunt me for eternity—or curse me or something? I couldn’t handle that.”
“Even evil spirits fear curses?”
“That depends on whose curse it is. Who wouldn’t fear yours?”
Jiang Fu raised a brow. “So I’m quite formidable, it seems. But I suppose I really am born with a sacred curse physique. After this incident, I’ve roughly grasped the techniques of cursing. My control over resentment energy has also strengthened. I can proceed to the next step.”
Thinking about what she would curse next, she couldn’t help but feel a flicker of anticipation.
“Really? That’s great!” The black cat’s tail swished happily, then it frowned. “Back at the hospital, you threatened this version of yourself so bluntly. She must be furious and probably won’t cooperate with you. You could’ve talked things through and built a good relationship instead.”
Jiang Fu tilted her head, looking at the bright, flawless moon. “Because that was the fastest and easiest way.”
At this point in time, Jiang Fu regarded protecting the base and safeguarding those around her as her most important responsibility. Coupled with how easily she had named the characteristics and weaknesses of Jiang Shiyue’s ability—strengthening her credibility—Jiang Fu would definitely grow deeply wary and immediately back down.
Any other tactic—even directly threatening Jiang Fu herself—would not have worked as effectively.
She knew herself too well.
She reached out as if to catch the moonlight, but it slipped through her fingers. She lightly rubbed her fingertips together, savoring the much clearer sensation of touch. “I don’t need her cooperation. I have plenty of ways to make her listen to me.”
…
Beneath the same night sky, in the courtyard of the Research Institute’s affiliated medical department, Jiang Fu was also gazing at the full moon.
Though called a “medical department,” the place was practically a small hospital. The equipment was state-of-the-art, and the doctors there were highly skilled—most of them were ability users.
By day, they were trustworthy senior physicians in ordinary hospitals. By night, they walked the edge like unorthodox cultivators.
Zhang Tong had been transferred here for treatment.
Jiang Shiyue approached briskly from behind.
Without turning around, Jiang Fu asked, “Has he confessed anything?”
Jiang Shiyue replied, “No. Zhang Tong is still unable to communicate. However, we’ve made a new discovery.”
Jiang Fu turned to look at her.
Jiang Shiyue handed over a freshly compiled report. “I reorganized the Zhang Biao case and asked the officer who handled it yesterday to assist. They provided a lead.”
Jiang Fu flipped through the brief material. “Where is the person?”
Thus, Han Xiaofei saw the base’s new leader for the first time. She looked even younger in person than on television—but far more imposing.
Respectfully, she said, “When I saw that woman at the breakfast stall, I felt something was off. I investigated her today. I used official authority without authorization—that was my mistake.”
Jiang Fu had already read the findings: a thirty-year-old woman named Li Qing had entered the base with a convoy three days ago.
There were photos. She picked one up and examined it carefully: a woman in a gray windbreaker, wearing a mask and hat, with a small black kitten perched on her shoulder.
The registration photo at the base gate and the hotel check-in photo were both bareheaded shots. Medium-length hair, ordinary features—the kind of face that would vanish into a crowd.
Yet her eyes were distinctive. They seemed calm, but like a blade hidden in its sheath—its sharpness restrained. When unsheathed, it would wound anyone who met its gaze.
Jiang Fu picked up several more images: a composite sketch drawn from the recollections of Ms. Zhu from the Charity Orphanage and others; and a still from hospital corridor surveillance—the image left behind by the so-called “Investigator Deng Fang.”
This Deng Fang looked completely different from Li Qing. Only the eyes and build were the same.
She set the photos down and asked Han Xiaofei, “You only saw her once. Why did you think something was wrong?”
Han Xiaofei hesitated before answering, “It was intuition. I felt she carried a very unusual presence.”
“What kind of presence?”
Han Xiaofei looked up at her. “The presence of death. If she hadn’t been moving, in that moment I almost thought she was a corpse standing there.”
Jiang Fu raised an eyebrow. That sounded rather exaggerated.
But then she recalled the dark, cold presence in the hospital building that had blocked her path. Yes—there had indeed been an overwhelming stench of death, even heavier than that of a zombie.
Good. That connected the dots.
The person Han Xiaofei saw and the person she herself had indirectly encountered were the same. Li Qing, Deng Fang—just false identities. Whoever this was, they were highly skilled at disguise.
As they spoke, Jiang Shiyue came in again, phone still in hand. “I had someone track down the bus driver and passengers from three days ago. They said that ‘Li Qing’ boarded midway through the trip. They were already within Teyun State at the time. She stood in the middle of the road to flag them down, and the driver had no choice but to stop. Normally he wouldn’t dare let a stranger on, but she immediately offered several crystal cores. That tempted him. Other than that, no one knows where she came from.”
Without pausing, she continued, “I also questioned the hotel staff. ‘Li Qing’ didn’t do anything particularly unusual. The only thing was that although the hotel provided breakfast, she insisted on going out to eat.”
“And the breakfast shop owner said that yesterday morning there were still empty seats inside, but ‘Li Qing’ chose to sit right at the entrance. Because she deliberately bought a tea egg for a cat, the owner paid extra attention to her and noticed she seemed to be waiting for something.”
“When Zhang Tong and his father showed up, everyone else was surprised. Only ‘Li Qing’ wasn’t. She didn’t look surprised at all—almost as if she had known it would happen.”
Jiang Fu understood. This person had gone to the breakfast shop on purpose, had deliberately waited for Zhang Tong. Combined with how she had intentionally targeted Zhang Tong and his father today, that much was beyond doubt.
But someone who had only arrived at Fu’an Base three days ago—how did she know about the Zhang family? How did she know Zhang Tong would appear at that exact location yesterday morning?
Just like how she herself had known the research institute so well upon arrival, and had known where her mother’s remains were kept—what exactly was this person’s information source?
Jiang Fu rubbed her bracelet, an unconscious habit whenever she was deep in thought. Jiang Shiyue gestured for Han Xiaofei to step outside with her.
The moment they exited, Han Xiaofei visibly let out a breath of relief. The Base Commander’s presence was simply too overwhelming—she hadn’t even dared to breathe loudly in front of her.
Jiang Shiyue, on the other hand, quite admired the girl. Sharp intuition, bold yet meticulous, and highly proactive.
Now, and for some time to come, Jiang Fu would be in desperate need of loyal and capable people. While gathering intelligence, the Intelligence Department also had the duty of identifying promising talent. This one was worth cultivating.
So Jiang Shiyue warmly praised her. Han Xiaofei was so flustered by the praise that she practically floated away on unsteady feet.
Just as Jiang Shiyue was about to return to the office, she saw Jiang Fu already coming out.
“Where are you going?”
Jiang Fu replied, “This person’s first target after entering the base was my mother. The second was Zhang Tong. My mother can no longer give me answers. So we’ll have to start with Zhang Tong.”
Jiang Shiyue followed her, but Zhang Tong was still incapable of normal communication.
Yes, he was still shrieking nonstop. Even when his head was covered, he continued babbling endlessly, spilling his darkest, most malicious thoughts.
The doctor’s explanation was: “He seems to be relieving his physical pain by confessing his sins out loud. If we block his mouth, he quickly descends into mania. Even high doses of sedatives can’t calm him. Even if we knock him unconscious physically, he’ll convulse from the pain and wake up again shortly.”
Jiang Fu looked at the figure bound to the bed, hooded, muttering nonstop. His voice was already hoarse, yet he still couldn’t stop.
“So he’s in constant torment?”
“Yes,” the doctor said. “What’s strange is that most people subjected to this level of pain would have gone insane by now. He hasn’t. He may look deranged, but he’s actually very lucid. It’s as if some force is sustaining his sanity.”
And that only made the suffering worse.
Jiang Fu fell silent. This was torture with no solution.
But when she thought of the cruelty and malice ingrained in Zhang Tong’s bones, she felt this was exactly how someone like him should be treated. She almost wanted to applaud.
She wouldn’t spare him just because he was a child.
A person who could treat his own mother with such cold brutality and disguise himself so well was rotten to the core. If allowed to grow, who knew what monstrous evils he would commit?
She asked, “Can we find out what happened before he became like this?”
The doctor shook his head. “He’s completely unable to communicate normally. Hypnosis doesn’t work. Even probing his brain with psychic power reveals nothing.”
Jiang Fu raised a hand. Someone removed the black cloth from Zhang Tong’s face, revealing a face that looked even more aged and haggard than during the day. Jiang Fu stared at him expressionlessly.
“Zhang Tong, you dared to deceive even me. You dared to exploit my mother. You’re quite bold.”
As if catching a familiar voice through the haze, Zhang Tong froze and turned toward Jiang Fu. When he saw her face clearly, he abruptly snapped out of his frenzy.
“It’s you! Why aren’t you dead yet?!”
Jiang Fu: “…”
She glanced at the doctor. Hadn’t he said the boy still had his rationality?
Would a rational person say something like that?
It was perfectly normal for Zhang Tong to recognize Jiang Fu. As the designated heir of the base, Jiang Fu had never kept a low profile. She frequently appeared at various public events, was featured in the news, and her photographs and portraits could be found in many places.
But even if someone recognized Jiang Fu, how could they open with, “Why aren’t you dead yet?”
What about her made it seem as though she ought to be dead?
Or had Zhang Tong already come to hate her to that extent?
In the next instant, Zhang Tong suddenly exploded into motion. No one knew where such explosive strength came from in his small body, but he tore the restraints apart in one swift movement.
Everyone was shocked and rushed forward to shield Jiang Fu, but she raised a hand to stop them. She wanted to see just how this Zhang Tong intended to kill her.
Yet after breaking free, Zhang Tong did not attack Jiang Fu. Instead, he dropped to his knees with a loud thud and began banging his head against the floor. “Spare me! I was wrong! I shouldn’t have—I shouldn’t have… I was wrong! Forgive me! Please let me go!”
Jiang Fu: “…”
The terror radiating from him was so intense and genuine that even she was momentarily at a loss.
Hatred toward her was understandable. Many people—old and young, strong and weak—hated her. Many men, in particular, loathed her to the bone.
But this level of fear was strange.
It was as if Jiang Fu had once cast an incomparably dreadful shadow over him.
A suspicion surfaced in her mind. Could that person who was skilled at disguise have impersonated her to torment Zhang Tong?
Jiang Fu crouched down and looked at Zhang Tong’s face—painfully unpleasant to the eye—and met his gaze. “Who are you?”
“Zhang Tong. I’m Zhang Tong.”
“And who am I?”
Zhang Tong trembled. “You’re Jiang—Jiang Fu!”
His cognition was normal. He hadn’t mistaken her for someone else.
Jiang Fu asked again, “You want me to forgive you?”
Zhang Tong looked at her pleadingly. “Yes. Forgive me! Please let me go!”
Jiang Fu: “Then tell me—what exactly should I forgive you for?”
As he stared at the person before him, fragments flashed through his mind. In one moment, it was her standing over him in the hospital room, looking down at him as if he were a dog. In another, it was many years later, when she was being besieged, casting him an incredulous glance.
Then the scene shifted again—she was coughing up blood, so much blood it seemed endless. In broken breaths she said, “You want my crystal core? Fine. I have only one condition. The base must transition peacefully. Not one more person is to be killed… Otherwise, in the name of a tenth-tier ability user, I curse you…”
Another turn—and countless nights when he dreamed she had come to claim his life, nightmares that left him sleepless, restless, tormented day after day.
His memories jumped chaotically between his twelve-year-old self and his future self, across fractured timelines.
He wanted to say, I shouldn’t have betrayed you. I shouldn’t have slaughtered so many people after your death. But I had no choice—if I didn’t kill them, they would have rebelled! And besides, I wasn’t the one who killed the most. I didn’t even take the largest share of the crystal cores. Go find someone else!
He also wanted to say, I shouldn’t have let your body be separated from your head. But there was no other way! That curse you uttered before you died—who wouldn’t be afraid? So afraid that even grinding you to ashes wouldn’t bring peace of mind. That’s why everyone agreed to cast you into a bronze statue. I wasn’t even the one who did it with my own hands!
But he couldn’t utter a single word of it. The power of the curse gripped his throat, preventing him from speaking any related term.
All he could do was repeat, “I was wrong! I was wrong!”
Then, as if deranged, he laughed and cried at the same time. “I knew it—you would come back for revenge! Everyone’s afraid. Everyone’s been waiting. Even if… even if it couldn’t be stopped… This day has finally come! Kill me! Just kill me!”
Jiang Fu frowned, her expression growing increasingly grave. Zhang Tong’s demeanor, his gaze, his tone—none of it resembled that of a child.
Especially the information revealed in his words—it demanded careful thought.
She stood up and looked at Jiang Shiyue. “This seems more complicated than we imagined.”
Author’s note:
Little Jiang: Why didn’t she just fall to her death!
Big Jiang: I have plenty of ways to make her listen to me.
Neither of them is a pushover, haha.