Officer Li felt like he was playing house with a child. He closed his eyes, nodded, and pretended to take a drag from an imaginary cigarette before mimicking the motion of lighting it with his hand.
He clenched his right fist and brought it to his face, flicking his thumb slightly.
Yes, he really wanted a cigarette.
It had been four days now. For a seasoned smoker like him, each day without a cigarette was harder than the last. If he didn’t smoke soon, his nicotine cravings might just disappear altogether.
Officer Li closed his eyes and waited, as if letting the cigarette light. After a few seconds, he expertly “put away” the imaginary lighter into his pocket and took a deep breath.
But the moment he inhaled, something felt off.
A rich, slightly bitter, and spicy smoke filled his mouth. His eyes flew open in disbelief as he exhaled a pure white puff.
That’s when he realized—there was already a cigarette between his lips.
“Wha—?!”
Officer Li gasped in shock, nearly dropping the cigarette.
He caught it hastily and examined it closely. Sure enough, it was a fresh cigarette—his usual brand, Bai Jiangjun.
“This is insane…” he muttered under his breath before turning to Zhou Mo. “Girl, when did this cigarette appear in my mouth?”
Zhou Mo sighed and shook her head. “Tsk. You really don’t understand ‘Echoes’ at all, do you? From my perspective, this cigarette was always in your mouth—it never disappeared.”
Even so, Officer Li knew that wasn’t the case.
He had neither a cigarette pack nor a lighter on him. Yet here he was, with a lit cigarette dangling from his lips. It was utterly unbelievable. Was this the power of “Echoes”?
“I think I get it now…” Officer Li plucked the cigarette from his mouth and held it between his index and middle fingers. “I just need to stay calm… and imagine myself actually smoking, and the cigarette will appear…”
The commotion caught the attention of the group ahead. They turned and saw Officer Li standing in the middle of the road, casually smoking.
“Hey, Lao Li,” Chen Junnan teased with a smirk. “Our Zhou Mo here’s pretty fiery—not really your type, is she?”
“No, no,” Officer Li waved his hand, cigarette still in his fingers. “She was just teaching me how to… smoke. Wait, no—how to get a cigarette. Actually—”
“Tsk. I was teaching him about ‘Echoes,’” Zhou Mo snapped, glaring at Chen Junnan. “And who the hell’s ‘fiery’?”
“Alright, alright, my bad,” Chen Junnan chuckled, waving her off before turning back to the group and continuing forward.
Seeing Zhou Mo’s irritation, Officer Li tried to smooth things over. “Hey, don’t take it to heart. You know how Xiao Chen is—he’s got a sharp tongue, but he means well.”
“Tsk. You think I’m mad at him?” Zhou Mo shot him a cold glare, brows furrowed.
“Then…?”
“It’s my fault,” she scoffed. “If I’d known the only use for your ‘Echoes’ was to fetch yourself cigarettes, I wouldn’t have bothered helping you.”
“Huh?” Officer Li was caught off guard, stammering, “W-Wait, that’s not—”
“Tsk. Save it,” she cut him off icily. “I thought since Fifth Brother gave you the fourth seat, you’d at least be reliable. But I guess I was wrong. If I had the ability to ‘retrieve anything,’ I’d either grab a ton of ‘Dao’ or find a way to get food—anything to help the team. I’d never waste it just to smoke.”
Hearing this, Officer Li shook his head with a bitter smile and stayed silent.
There was no point getting upset over misunderstandings from someone who didn’t know him.
He thought back to his two deaths—now it felt like a waste. If he’d known how to activate “Echoes” sooner, he could’ve started practicing earlier.
Whether it was food or “Dao,” as long as he believed it, it would appear in his hands.
He looked down at his palm again.
“If possible… could I even take an enemy’s heart?” He slowly clenched his fist. Even after all his years as a cop, he’d never held a human heart in his hand before.
How heavy was a human heart?
Would it be hard or soft? Cold or warm?
“Do I really have to hold one to find out…?” His expression darkened, tinged with sorrow, but he muttered quietly, “Don’t worry… I promised. No one will get hurt. I’ll make sure everyone escapes safely… I’m the only one who needs to stay behind.”
He knew he wasn’t stronger than anyone here—just more tenacious. To achieve his goal, he’d have to push himself further than anyone else could.
With a deep breath, Officer Li steadied himself and followed the group.
—
Meanwhile, Jiang Ruoxue stood frozen in front of an abandoned warehouse.
A small, darkened corpse lay shriveled by the door, clutching a withered crimson flower in its arms—someone must have come to pay their respects.
Jiang Ruoxue crouched down and gently brushed the corpse’s hair with her slender fingers. Her eyes glistened with unshed tears.
Even though she’d known this day would come, the grief still hit hard.
The tiny body of Ren Shu lay there, cradling the dead flower—so beautiful, yet destined to perish in this hellscape.
That flower, Ren Shu… all things too beautiful would rot in this place, corroded by the foul air and decay. Death was the only end, something even “Causality” couldn’t reverse.
Xiao Xiao, muscular and imposing, stretched behind her before stepping closer. “Ruoxue, who’s this? Did you know them?”
“This was the last bit of innocence I entrusted to the ‘Land of Finality,’” Jiang Ruoxue murmured, wiping her eyes with a bittersweet smile.
“You seem… off,” Xiao Xiao said softly, concern in her voice. “Do we even have room for ‘innocence’ here?”
“Exactly,” Jiang Ruoxue nodded. “That year, at eighteen, I shouldn’t have run out of the college entrance exam hall so eagerly. Because the road ahead… was far too cruel.”
Xiao Xiao sighed deeply, her brow creasing.
“Let’s go,” Jiang Ruoxue said. “The ‘Pegasus Hour’ is coming.”
“Where to?”
“To inform our king,” she replied with a faint smile. “Yan Zhichun should be at ‘Paradise Gate’ by now.”
Tai Sui Yellow Amulet Paper FuLu Taoist Love Talisman Traditional Chinese Spiritual Charm Attracting Love Protecting Marriage