On the other side—
Su Yi and Su Liumeng were still in the midst of their conversation.
“She often likes to disguise herself as me, and she delights in using my appearance to do bad things.”
“This time, I came here specifically to track her movements—I intend to bring her back to Kunlun to face punishment.”
Su Liumeng was stunned for a second, then sneered again.
“You think… I’m actually going to believe that nonsense?”
“If you really had a twin sister, how come I’ve never heard even a whiff of that?”
Su Yi sighed slightly, her expression helpless.
“She’s been locked in the basement since birth. She only escaped a year ago.”
As she spoke, a flicker of guilt passed through her eyes.
“She did terrible things the moment she was born—that’s why we had to restrict her movements.”
Then Su Yi’s expression turned grave.
“She despises anything beautiful. She takes pleasure in destroying all things good and pure.”
“That’s why she targeted you in the secret realm.”
Su Liumeng frowned and muttered to herself, “You just said… you came here by tracking her?”
Su Yi’s explanation had already started to convince her.
Thinking back carefully, the expression on that other girl’s face did differ slightly from Su Yi’s—no matter how much someone disguises themselves, even if they look alike, they can’t be the same person.
Beautiful things?
A jolt ran through Su Liumeng’s heart.
A terrifying thought struck her.
She dropped the bottles of water she had just bought into the trash without a second glance and broke into a full sprint toward the recruitment area.
Su Yi, seeing her reaction, also picked up her pace and ran after her.
In the recruitment area, many people stood behind placards, each listing their detailed resumes.
Su Liumeng scanned the area frantically, but there was no sign of Si Xinyan.
Her anxiety peaked, and disregarding her usual young lady persona, she began shouting, “Si Xinyan! Where are you?!”
Her nerves on edge, she grabbed the nearest bystander and growled, “There was a girl standing here just now—where did she go?”
The person trembled under her intense gaze and couldn’t resist her strength.
“She… she left with another girl.”
Si Xinyan had made quite an impression, so multiple people had noticed her.
The bystander tried hard to recall and then, upon spotting Su Yi walking up from behind, suddenly pointed and exclaimed, “That’s her! She left with someone who looked exactly like her! They went that way!”
“Damn it!”
Su Liumeng shoved a wad of cash into the person’s hands, yanked off her bracelet, and dashed off in the indicated direction.
Su Yi, realizing something was very wrong, no longer hesitated.
She pulled out a talisman shaped like a bagua (eight trigrams array), crouched down, and began performing a divination right there on the ground.
“She and I were born of the same womb, like twin lotus blossoms blooming from the same root—but we have utterly opposite natures. I represent the kind-hearted bloom, and she is the embodiment of pure evil. That’s why I can always sense where she is… no matter when or where.”
Su Yi put away the formation diagram on the ground and pointed in a more precise direction.
Meanwhile, Su Liumeng had already made countless voice calls, but all she got in return was silence.
Frustrated to the point of wanting to smash her phone to the ground, she forcefully restrained herself—what if someone finally responded later?
Clutching her phone, Su Liumeng dashed off in the direction Su Yi had indicated, moving with a speed no ordinary person could comprehend.
*****
“Where exactly are you taking me?”
There were fewer and fewer pedestrians around, and the two of us were straying farther and farther from the main roads.
I began to grow wary and hesitated mid-step.
Ahead of me, the girl’s silent back felt increasingly ominous.
“Didn’t I tell you just now? There’s a great job opportunity waiting—but it’s in the villa district, so we’ll need to walk a bit more.”
Her smile was warm and genuine, carrying a calming aura, just like the impression she’d left on me during our brief encounter on the high-speed train.
“Mm, thank you.”
I let my guard down slightly, lifting the hem of my skirt and quickening my pace to catch up.
“The hourly pay is a hundred yuan, right?” I recalled what she’d said earlier.
“I’m really grateful. I really need this job.”
The girl’s smile widened, her eyes narrowing into happy slits.
“Of course! Why would I lie to you?”
She hadn’t sensed the ghost fetus inside me at all, only treating it as an ordinary unborn human child.
As the number of passersby dwindled even further, a strange gleam flashed in her eyes.
She was barely able to restrain her desire, licking her lips repeatedly.
She hadn’t made a move yet—because of my unusual condition, she couldn’t rule out the possibility that I had ties to the cultivation world.
Even though she couldn’t sense a single trace of inner energy from me, she still instinctively chose to proceed with utmost caution.
After walking another five minutes, we arrived at a villa complex.
Any last doubts I had completely vanished.
Su Yi truly seemed to be a thoroughly good person.
It was so rare to meet someone this pure.
I sighed softly to myself.
After being let through by the security at the gate, the roads grew quieter and emptier, with only the occasional chirping of birds in the distance.
The girl, who had been leading the way up until now, suddenly stopped.
I could see her shoulders trembling uncontrollably.
“You…”
“What’s wrong?” I hesitated a moment, then stepped forward.
The next thing I heard was laughter—growing louder and more unrestrained with each passing second.
Her shoulders were shaking violently now, as if she were barely able to contain herself.
“Hahaha.”
The girl finally lost control, throwing her head back in laughter—wild, unhinged, euphoric.
There was something deeply off about it.
Alarmed, I instinctively took a step back.
She abruptly stopped laughing, tears from the hysterics still clinging to the corners of her eyes.
She stared at me, watching my cautious backward steps like a predator eyeing long-awaited prey.
“You’re lovely.”
“And delicious.”
“I must eat you!!”
She came toward me step by step like a ravenous beast, her tongue uncontrollably flicking upward.
Greed slid across her lips.
The cold elegance in her voice had completely vanished—replaced by a hoarse, crow-like rasp that grated on the ears.
My expression changed as realization dawned.
“You’re not Su Yi. Who the hell are you?”
I wasn’t stupid—being stupid wouldn’t have let me survive until now.
“If I’m not Su Yi… then who else could I be?”
The girl’s laughter grew more and more manic, her voice like a clanging gong echoing in madness.
Suddenly, her irises split into dual pupils.
The bizarre transformation in her eyes had an almost hypnotic power, and I felt my mind gradually dulling—my body freezing as though held in place by invisible chains.
Her gaze slithered over my face like a cold-blooded serpent, dripping with hunger.
Just then, the fetus in my belly twisted uncomfortably, ready to respond—but abruptly went still again.
And in that moment of life-or-death tension, a furious voice exploded into the air.
“You filthy thing.”
“You dare lay a hand on my person—are you looking to die?!”
The shout roared with such force it echoed like a true dragon’s cry or a tiger’s roar.
A dark shadow, like the silhouette of a black dragon, streaked through the air.
The very next instant—
Bang!
The girl was kicked squarely in the chest and sent flying backward in a pathetic arc.
Su Liumeng stood tall, her entire body pulsing with raging blood and qi.
Her left eye gleamed with noble golden light; her right eye had turned pitch-black.
Within each eye, the shadows of two dragons—one dark, one bright—coiled and danced ominously.
“Wah—!”
The girl scrambled to her feet, spitting a mouthful of blood.
Her body was riddled with injuries, yet her laughter remained wild and frenzied.
“It was such a pity I didn’t get to taste your flavor last time…”
“Fortunately, I’ve found an even better prize.”
“To devour both of you in one go… must be so satisfying…”
Her sighing voice was utterly nauseating.
Su Liumeng let out a cold laugh.
“Heh. Just you?”
Where did this girl get the courage from?
Even after suffering a serious blow, she still regarded Su Liumeng as her prey.
Suddenly, she seemed to sense something. Her expression changed drastically.
No longer daring to linger, she threw out a talisman—and vanished from the villa district in a flash.
Upon seeing Xi Xinyan’s face, Su Yi’s former concern and pity for her tragic fate resurfaced.
Without even thinking, she said:
“Take care of her. Don’t let anything happen to her.”
Her anxious and protective tone made Su Liumeng’s expression grow a little strange.
You… who even are you? Why do you sound more worried than I am?
“I’m going after her.”
Without another word, Su Yi disappeared just as quickly as she’d come.
Su Liumeng knew chasing them was likely futile.
The cultivation world had far too many bizarre tricks.
Even among those at the same level, it was often hard to land a killing blow.
The double-pupil’s spell was broken, and Xi Xinyan’s body went limp—falling right into Su Liumeng’s arms.
Holding the soft, fragrant girl in her arms and confirming she was unharmed, Su Liumeng finally felt the heavy weight in her chest ease.
She had sharp eyes and quickly spotted a black card sticking out of Xi Xinyan’s pocket.
Something she guarded so closely that she carried it with her even while going out—Su Liumeng immediately took note.
She instinctively pulled out the exquisite card.
Just one glance made it clear this wasn’t some cheap trinket.
It was crafted from the rarest black gold stone, and printed boldly across its surface were two characters: (Su Yi).
Thinking of Su Yi’s earlier behavior, Su Liumeng’s grip on the card tightened until she crumpled it into a ball.
Suddenly, a flood of thoughts surged through her mind—including Su Yi’s long-standing preference for androgynous clothing.
So now she had to ask herself:
Is Su Yi… really a girl?