Wen Shu didn't fully understand what Qin Siyang meant, but she nodded anyway.
Qin Siyang returned the nod, came to a halt, and spun around—shoving Wen Shu gently to the side.
A few seconds later, five or six burly men armed with knives and iron rods rounded the corner.
The leader, a man with a thin braid down his back, sneered at Qin Siyang. "Why'd you stop running?! I thought you were fast!"
Qin Siyang scoffed. "We're already here. No need to run anymore."
"Here? What's so special about this place?"
The men glanced around, taking in the dilapidated, abandoned courtyard. Wooden shacks and a collapsed pigsty lay in ruins, leaving only crumbling walls.
In the center of the yard stood an overgrown stone mill and an old well—its depths hidden in darkness, no one knew if it still held water.
It was clear the place hadn't been inhabited in at least five or six years.
Dust-covered ground and cobwebs covering the courtyard gate confirmed it was not just unoccupied, but completely forgotten.
Perhaps it had been a rural farmhouse abandoned before the apocalypse, or maybe its owners had fled to another safe zone after the world fell apart.
The entire courtyard was shrouded in darkness, illuminated only by starlight filtering through the thick air-raid glass overhead—just enough to make out the rough outline of their surroundings.
Qin Siyang had carefully scanned the area as he ran, deliberately choosing this spot for their confrontation.
The braided man frowned. "What's the trick here?"
"Before I answer that—let me confirm. You're Li Jingwen's uncle, right?"
The braided man let out a cold laugh. "That's me. Jingwen's relationship with Zhou Yang is our family's last hope. We can't let a punk like you ruin it."
"You lied to Jingwen, said you sent a delayed email that would go out in a week. But my brothers and I took turns staking out the internet café for seven days straight—and not once did we see your face."
"Oh, I changed my mind. Internet cafes are too expensive, so I set the email to send in a month instead. Even if you stop me now, Zhou Yang will find out about him and Li Jingwen in thirty days. Your family's still not getting out of poverty."
"What?! A month?! Are you messing with me?!"
Qin Siyang smiled faintly. "Believe it or not."
The men stared at him in stunned silence.
They'd never imagined Qin Siyang would have altered the email's send time after visiting the café.
Wen Shu looked on in confusion, unsure what Qin Siyang was playing at.
The braided man snarled. "Cancel the email, and we'll pretend this never happened!"
"Do I look stupid? If I cancel it, you'll just kill us anyway."
"Then what do you want?"
One of the men beside the braided leader spoke up. "Brother Long, tie him up! Beat the email account and password out of him—we can cancel it ourselves!"
The braided man's eyes flickered with doubt. "Are you sure you can get it out of him?"
"I used to work as a debt collector. I've done this kind of thing plenty of times."
"Don't boast to me! This is our family's future on the line! If you fail, I'll never forgive you!"
"Brother Long, that's unfair. Nothing in life is guaranteed. If you don't trust me, fine—figure it out yourself."
Watching the men bicker, Qin Siyang grew impatient.
"Enough games. You're right—I never sent the damn email. Kill me, and Li Jingwen and Zhou Yang's little secret will be safe forever."
"What?!"
The men stared at him in disbelief, unable to comprehend why he'd willingly seal his own fate.
"Brother Long, this guy's asking to die! Let's grant his wish!"
"Yeah! Kill him first! As for the girl—we'll have some fun with her before finishing her off!"
The braided man hesitated. "Could this be a trick? What if he really did send the email, and now he just wants to die quickly instead of being captured?"
"That's possible…"
"Brother Long, you're right to be cautious. But this is your family's business—you make the call."
The men fell into uneasy silence again.
Qin Siyang sighed inwardly. It was absurd—they believed his lies, but refused to accept the truth.
"I'm not lying. No email. Never was."
"I don't believe you! Tie him up, boys! Whoever gets that password gets a thousand copper coins!"
The braided man gritted his teeth, deciding to splurge—he had to get his hands on that email account, no matter what.
"Hell yeah, Brother Long! You're the best!"
"A deal's a deal!"
"I really didn't send any email. Think about it—if I had, would I have led you here?"
The braided man scowled. "You keep going on about this place, but you never say why. I think you're just trying to scare me with nonsense!"
Qin Siyang smiled. "It's the perfect spot."
The men scanned the courtyard again, finding nothing out of the ordinary.
"Perfect for what?" the braided man demanded.
"Killing people."
The men froze for a split second, then burst into mocking laughter.
"Are you out of your mind?!"
"First time I've ever seen someone pick their own grave!"
"No wonder you dared to mess with our Jingwen—you're crazy!"
But before they could make a move, Qin Siyang blurred into a streak of motion.
"What the—?!"
*Boom!*
Qin Siyang launched a kick straight into one man's chest.
No one had time to react. One moment, Qin Siyang was standing in front of them—the next, he was beside their comrade, who went flying through the air.
The men spun around in panic.
The man who'd been kicked lay crumpled on the ground, his chest caved in like a deflated balloon.
His eyes bulged, his mouth hanging open as he tried to speak—but only a gush of blood escaped his lips before his head lolled to the side, lifeless.
Even in death, his face was twisted in shock and terror.
The darkness obscured his features, amplifying the sense of dread that washed over the remaining men.
At the sight of their fallen comrade, they finally realized the truth: Qin Siyang was a Sequence Ability user!
How was that possible?! How could a student at a dump like [Ju'an School] have awakened a Sequence Ability?!
Before they could recover from their shock, Qin Siyang threw a punch—fast as a cannonball—straight into another man's throat.
The man collapsed backward, his head lolling like a broken marionette.
"I'm s—"
A third man tried to beg for mercy, but Qin Siyang's fist slammed into his back. He went flying several meters, landing with a thud right in front of Wen Shu.
She let out a small scream and jumped back instinctively—though Qin Siyang couldn't help but notice her reaction seemed strangely calm for someone facing a corpse. Most people would have frozen in terror, not leaped back in such a coordinated way.
Shrugging off the oddity, he glanced at the body. A bowl-sized indentation marred the man's back; he lay motionless on the ground.
Qin Siyang shook his head. "Still can't control my strength. I held back, but he still flew that far."
The braided man's pupils trembled violently, cold sweat pouring down his forehead. He stood rooted to the spot, as if his soul had fled his body.
The only two survivors besides the braided leader fell to their knees, realizing they stood no chance against Qin Siyang—fighting was hopeless, and running was impossible.
"Spare us, boss! Please spare us!"
"We were stupid! We didn't know who you were! It was Kun Chenglong who made us do it—none of this was our idea!"
Qin Siyang ignored their pleas. With two swift kicks to their jaws, the men flew backward, their heads hitting the ground with dull cracks.
In an instant, they joined their comrades in death.
Whether they'd ended up in the underworld or Satan's hell, Qin Siyang didn't care.
Only the braided man remained—trembling uncontrollably, unable to speak.
Qin Siyang patted him lightly on the shoulder, his tone casual yet menacing. "You know about me and Li Jingwen, right? I could have called you 'uncle' once. What a shame."
Kun Chenglong's eyes widened. He forced a grotesque, ingratiating smile. "No! It's not too late! We can still be family! Jingwen's just young and foolish—I'll talk to her! I'll make her go back to you!"
Qin Siyang sighed, feigning regret. "What's done is done. As a Sequence Ability user, why would I grovel for someone like her? Didn't you say Li Jingwen is your family's hope?"
Kun Chenglong nodded numbly, confused by Qin Siyang's words.
"With me around, your family has no hope. But I'll give you a way out."
"Anything! We'll do anything you say!"
"Go to the next world—and rebuild your family there."
"Yes, yes! We will—wait, what?!"
Qin Siyang slammed his palm into Kun Chenglong's face. His head twisted a full 360 degrees before he crumpled to the ground, lifeless.
"Don't worry—you won't be lonely. When I have time later, I'll send your entire family to join you."
With all his enemies defeated, Qin Siyang let out a quiet breath.
Another batch of lives ended.
How many had it been now?
He couldn't remember. And it didn't matter.
He turned to Wen Shu, who stood at the edge of the courtyard, and walked toward her.
Wen Shu was trembling slightly, but her voice was steady as she asked, "You're really a Sequence Ability user?"
Qin Siyang smiled. "I am."
"T-then… have you figured out what to do with the bodies?"
Qin Siyang raised an eyebrow—he hadn't expected that question.
"Aren't you afraid I'll kill you too?"
Wen Shu blinked, looking genuinely confused. "Why would you kill me?"
"Because you saw me murder these men."
Wen Shu stared at him, perplexed. "If you wanted to kill me, you could have just let me go home. They would have done it for you—no need to go to all this trouble."
Qin Siyang nodded in approval. "You're smarter than you look. It's rare to see someone stay this calm after witnessing a massacre."
Wen Shu looked down at her feet, falling silent.
Qin Siyang dragged the bodies one by one to the old well, listening to the dull thuds as they hit the bottom.
To avoid leaving any clues, he didn't even bother searching their pockets for money.
It was a dry well.
He heaved a large stone over the井口, sealing it shut.
"That should do it. No one comes here anyway. Let's go."
Wen Shu shook her head. "This way, our scents will linger. If the police find the bodies, they might trace them back to us."
"What do you suggest? Burning the place down? It's abandoned—no one would notice. But a fire would draw attention for sure."
"You don't have to burn it to get rid of the scent."
Qin Siyang paused. "Then what?"
"The cafeteria food is really strong-smelling. You could pour your leftover lunch here—and into the well. In a while, the food's odor will cover up ours completely."
Qin Siyang nodded, then stared at her in curiosity. "Where did you learn all this?"
"I like reading. I picked it up from a book."
"They have books about that? What was it called?"
"100 Ways to Commit a Crime Without Being Detected by Sequence Users."
"Why would you read something like that?"
"I just like reading—all kinds of books. And it came in handy today, didn't it?"
Qin Siyang looked at the slender girl standing in front of him—her head barely reaching his chin—and smiled to himself. You really couldn't judge a book by its cover.
He followed Wen Shu's suggestion, then the two of them left the courtyard together.
They walked side by side through the dim alleyways, starlight guiding their path.
"You're really impressive," Qin Siyang said sincerely.
"Thank you. But I think you're more impressive."
"It's nothing. So—what's it like walking next to a murderer?"
"Actually… it's not that bad."
Wen Shu turned to him, her eyes lighting up like stars in the night sky.
"After all, we share a secret now."