The aura emanating from this young man at that moment was overbearing; the pressure from him nearly smothered Peach Red and Willow Green. With an enraged roar, Peach Red Grandma raised her cane and swung it at Zhou Zishu’s head. In the blink of an eye, Zhou Zishu was no longer where he had been. Sensing sudden danger, Peach Red Grandma scrounged her energy together, and rolled forward. At that same moment, she felt a chill down her back. A great force struck her. Her vision went black, and she spewed a mouthful of blood--she thought that her own intestines might have been ruptured by the impact.

Willow Green Grandpa's eyes were wide. He looked at Peach Red Grandma who had been sent flying, possibly dead, and looked at the young man who was turning towards him. Without further hesitation, he abandoned his old wife and fled alone.

Zhou Zishu did not give chase. He dropped his gaze, set down the short sword, and knelt next to Liu Qianqiao. He reached out, intending to seal the acupoints near her continuously-bleeding wound, but Liu Qianqiao raised her head to look at him and shook her head with the slightest tilt--she was going to die, she knew.

Wen Kexing walked out of their hiding place, and stood behind Zhou Zishu silently.

Zhou Zishu asked softly, “The Lapis Armour is actually with Yu Qiufeng, but he ran, and asked you to distract them, didn’t he?”

Liu Qianqiao glanced at him, but did not speak.

Zhou Zishu sighed. “I do not have any interest in the Lapis Armour. You’re about to die, what’s so difficult about nodding your head once?”

Wen Kexing laughed mockingly, and said from behind him, “Miss Liu, I told you early on that Yu Qiufeng isn’t anything good.”

Liu Qianqiao opened her mouth. Her voice was extremely weak; Zhou Zishu had to turn his ear to her slightly. He heard her murmur, “The willow is verdant in the serene surface of the lake; the flower keeps the distant moon company. Year after year, the same, same scene…”

Then the last spark of light in her eyes suddenly dissipated; her head lolled, and there was no life left in her. Without her permission, her mouth smiled, gentling her scary mien. Because of this flawed face, she had squirrelled her true appearance away for a lifetime. Yet, she was destined to come into this world bare-faced, and leave bare-faced.

At the very end, she did not manage to complete that half of the “Song of the Raw Hawthorne”.

Zhou Zishu sighed, and reached out a hand to close her eyes gently.