The old Daoist felt a chill down his spine.
He had taken the money that day and returned to his rented room with his disciple. His disciple, always flattering and eloquent, had even bought small wines and dishes to celebrate.
He hadn't thought much of it. After a couple of drinks, dizziness set in, and he realized something was amiss. He tried to get up, only to find his body unresponsive.
Before he lost consciousness, he saw his disciple licking his fingers with his tongue, counting the money in the chest.
When he woke up, his disciple was already dead.
After all, he had lived a life on the fringes. He immediately understood the money was problematic. Thinking about how he had also touched it, he belatedly discovered his fingertips and the corners of his eyes were turning black.
It was poisoning!
His disciple’s death was suspicious. Fearing he would die the same way, he dared to climb the mountain, hoping to get an antidote.
Truth be told, he still possessed some intimidating skills that had allowed him to survive this long.
But as soon as he set foot on the mountain, a drunkard appeared, scaring him into hiding.
He thought he would explain himself once the drunkard left. At worst, he would give up the money and be spared.
Who would have thought that the seemingly refined young man would dare to brutally kill the drunkard with his bare hands and then shove the corpse down the mountain cliff!
This truly terrified him.
He turned to flee but accidentally tripped over the chest, exposing himself.
"Spare my life!" the old Daoist trembled, "I'll give up everything. I'll leave now and never return. Tonight's events, I, I saw nothing. I promise I'll never speak of it in this lifetime!"
Teacher Song looked at the old Daoist with cold eyes, as if looking at a corpse. A slight smile touched his lips, "Oh, go on then. Run, as far as you can."
Upon hearing this, the old Daoist looked up, turned, and was about to flee. After only a few steps, he looked back at Teacher Song, stunned, and said, "What about my poison..."
"It's almost time," Teacher Song said softly.
As Teacher Song finished speaking, the old Daoist suddenly clutched his chest, his eyes wide open, and he fell straight down.
"Not even dying further away, how troublesome," Teacher Song muttered with displeasure.
At this moment, the gate of Teacher Song's courtyard was pushed open, and a woman emerged from within.
It was already dark. Xia Qingtian and Mobius could not see the woman's face clearly. However, upon hearing her voice, Mobius's entire body tensed up.
It seemed he recognized the owner of the voice.
"It seems this lousy place isn't as good as you reported it to be," the woman said disdainfully. "Two more people died in such a short time, plus the two from before. Song Qi, your hands are truly dirty."
"Instead of making sarcastic remarks, why don't you come and help?" Song Qi's voice was filled with cold displeasure.
"I don't want to touch dead bodies, my nails are newly done," the woman said with a slight snort. "Don't worry, I've sent for people from Nyx, they'll handle it."
Hearing the woman's words, Song Qi no longer dwelled on dealing with the bodies. Instead, he asked, "What is your purpose for coming today?"
"Just to tell you some news, Qin Mei is dead," the woman said. "There's now an opening in the organization. Stop researching your potted plants and come back with me."
"My experiment is showing promise," Song Qi said, clenching his fist at his side. "Once this medicine is successfully developed, I won't need to fill a vacancy to be recognized by the organization. I will obtain my own recognition seal!"
The woman crossed her arms and sneered, "Your experimental product just causes sudden cardiac arrest. I can achieve that lethal effect with a single bullet."
"These are just failures. There are still some issues with the formulation. Just give me some time..." Song Qi said. "I've already driven away the Xia Corporation's project team. For a long time, no one will disturb me. I will have ample time for formulation, and I will definitely be able to create an effective agent!"
"You are truly stubborn," the woman shook her head. "Seeing as we were both selected from the same orphanage, I'll kindly warn you, they're running out of patience with you. You'd best look after yourself."
As the woman walked away, she said to Song Qi as she passed, "Qin Mei is dead. I don't want you to follow in her footsteps."
"How did Qin Mei die?" Song Qi's gaze shifted slightly.
"Her identity was exposed. It's said to be related to a woman named Xia Qingtian," the woman sighed. "Live well... I don't have many friends left."
After saying this, the woman descended the mountain along the same path.
Under the moonlight, Mobius looked at the woman's face, his brow furrowed.
He never imagined that she, too, was part of that organization.
Their reach... was truly long!
If it weren't for using the Xia Corporation's matter to approach this project, he would never have guessed, even until his death.
From this conversation, Xia Qingtian understood the entire sequence of events and how the people before had died.
However, she had no recollection of anyone named Qin Mei. Was it fair to frame her like this?
All she wanted now was to safely descend the mountain with Mobius and report everything to the police.
Xia Qingtian looked back and exchanged a glance with Mobius. Mobius nodded subtly. Just as they were about to carefully withdraw, they saw the woman returning, carrying a "gift."
"Song Qi, look what fun I found," the woman said, walking back with a cold smile.
"Let me go! Let me go!" The little girl with pigtails struggled fiercely but couldn't break free.
"!" Seeing the little girl, Xia Qingtian and Mobius froze simultaneously.
"You said no one would disturb you, but why does it feel like it's quite lively here tonight?" The woman threw the little girl at Song Qi's feet. "You know what to do."
The trembling little girl cowered, looking at Song Qi timidly, "Teacher Song, Teacher Song... I'm scared..."
Hearing the little girl's words, a hint of pity flickered in Song Qi's eyes.
"The people from Nyx are arriving soon, you'd better hurry," the woman said before turning to leave.
This time, the woman did not return. Song Qi crouched down.
"Teacher Song... Don't kill me..." The little girl's voice trembled. "Don't..."
"Xiao Ni, don't be afraid," Song Qi reached out to cover Xiao Ni's eyes, his voice trembling slightly. "It'll be quick, don't worry... it won't hurt much."
He didn't want to. He truly didn't want to...
But he had no choice.
"Xiao Ni, don't blame me..."