In a high-level martial arts game, a wife is given to you at the start.

She didn't finish her sentence. She stood up, walked to the door, then stopped. "I've already sent people to investigate the Zhenyuan Seal. Blood Raven couldn't have stolen it all these years just to keep it as a keepsake. That thing might be one of the keys they used to break the seal."

After she finished speaking, she pushed open the door and walked out.

The sound of footsteps gradually faded into the night.

Lin Qiye sat in the main room, looking at the lamp that flickered on and off, his gaze calm.

key.

He recalled a line from his ancestor's notes: "The chains rust not because they are old, but because someone keeps watering them."

Blood Raven is looking for the key, and someone is pouring water on the chains.

This line is deeper than he thought.

For the next few days, Ironwall City remained calm and peaceful.

Blood Raven didn't come. After their camp at Falling Star Beach was wiped out, they seemed frightened and never showed their faces again. Gu Qingshuang sent people to keep an eye on the main roads outside the city, and the reports were all "no abnormalities".

But Lin Qiye knew that this was just the calm before the storm.

He settled down at the Gu residence, spending his days wandering around the city with Gu Qingshuang and his evenings reading the notes of the Gu family ancestors. Gu Ruolan would occasionally come to his room to sit for a while, not to discuss anything important, but simply to ask him how far he had gotten in the notes, or to bring a pot of tea, which they would drink together before parting ways.

Gu Qingshuang saw it all, but said nothing, though she felt a mix of emotions she couldn't quite put into words.

She knew her aunt best. Ever since her parents passed away, her aunt had single-handedly supported the Gu family. She was polite to everyone, but there was always a layer of distance between her politeness and that politeness. She had never seen her aunt take the initiative to invite any outsider for tea.

That evening, Gu Qingshuang finally couldn't hold back any longer.

She stood blocking Lin Qiye's doorway, sword in hand: "What exactly happened between you and my aunt?"

"What's going on?" Lin Qiye looked at her.

"She comes to see you for tea every day."

"The tea is good tea your aunt brought," Lin Qiye said. "I won't drink it; it would be a waste."

"Stop interrupting me." Gu Qingshuang glared at him, twirling the sword sheath in her hand. "I'm asking you, do you... have feelings for my aunt?"

"You..." Gu Qingshuang's voice trailed off, "You wouldn't be thinking of marrying my aunt, would you?"

Gu Qingshuang stood at the door, moonlight falling on her face, her expression complex.

She remained silent for a long time, then suddenly whispered, "My aunt...it's not that no one has proposed to her over the years. The men who wanted to marry her in Ironwall City could stretch from West Street to East Street. She turned them all down."

Why?

"She said the burden of the Gu family rested on her shoulders, and she didn't have time to think about those things," Gu Qingshuang said, her voice carrying a hint of indescribable emotion. "But I know she can't let me go. She's afraid that if she gets married, the Gu family will fall apart, and I'll be left without anyone to care for me."

Lin Qiye remained silent.

"You..." Gu Qing Shuang raised her head, looking at him with a seriousness in her eyes that she herself didn't even realize, "If you really treat my aunt well, then I... I'll acknowledge you as my uncle."

After she finished speaking, she turned and ran, her footsteps thumping loudly under the eaves.

Lin Qiye stood at the door, watching her figure disappear into the night. He remained silent for a moment, then gently shook his head and closed the door.

……

Three days later, the Blood Raven arrived.

They're not here to attack the city.

It was a letter, tied to an arrow, that was shot into the gate of the Gu residence.

The letter contained only one sentence: "Come back in three days to collect the Zhenyuan Seal. If you don't come, burn down the Gu family's grain shop on West Street of Iron Wall City."

After reading the letter, Gu Ruolan remained calm, placed it on the table, and lightly tapped the paper with her fingers: "It really came."

"They dare not enter Iron Wall City," Gu Qingshuang said, "but the grain shop is on West Street outside the city walls; once you cross the city wall, it's their territory."

"We can't lose the grain store," Gu Ruolan said. "If we lose it, the Gu family will lose face."

"Then let's defend." Gu Qingshuang picked up her sword. "I'll take some men to West Street."

"Going alone is suicide," Gu Ruolan said. "Since Blood Raven dared to make such a statement, they wouldn't just send a few people."

"I'll go," Lin Qiye said.

The main room fell silent for a moment.

Gu Ruolan looked at him: "Are you alone?"

"I'll go alone," Lin Qiye said. "Don't they want the Zhenyuan Seal? I'll take it with me."

"Are you crazy?" Gu Qingshuang exclaimed urgently, "Blood Raven wants the Zhenyuan Seal, and you're just delivering yourself to its doorstep—"

Lin Qiye looked at Gu Ruolan: "Trust me this once."

Gu Ruolan looked at him and remained silent for a long time.

The lamplight flickered in her eyes, reflecting the unfathomable thoughts beneath her gentle face. In the end, she didn't stop her, only saying, "Come back alive."

"Um."

Three days later, at dusk, on the west street of Iron Wall City.

At the entrance of the Gu family's grain shop, Lin Qiye stood in the middle of the street, carrying a cloth bag. The setting sun cast a long shadow over him, and the street was deserted—after Blood Raven's words, the shops on West Street had long since closed, and even the cats and dogs had vanished.

He waited for fifteen minutes.

Then, a person emerged from the shadows at the street corner.

He was a middle-aged man in his forties, wearing a dark red robe. He had a thin face and long, narrow eyes, like snakes. Behind him were seven or eight men, each carrying a knife. Their steps were leisurely, yet they subtly formed an encirclement.

"Did the Gu family send you?" the middle-aged man asked in a shrill voice. "Did they bring the Zhenyuan Seal?"

Lin Qiye held up the cloth bag in his hand: "Here it is."

The middle-aged man narrowed his eyes, not immediately stepping forward. He sized up Lin Qiye, as if weighing something: "Just you alone?"

"Just me."

"Quite bold," the middle-aged man chuckled. "I thought the Gu family would send that Miss Gu. Looks like her aunt couldn't bear to see her take the risk, so she found a scapegoat."

Lin Qiye did not respond.

"Throw the Zhenyuan Seal over here," the middle-aged man said. "I've verified its authenticity; I'll spare your life."

Lin Qiye looked down at the cloth bag in his hand, then suddenly smiled: "If you want it, come and take it yourself."

The middle-aged man's smile vanished.

The man behind him slowly drew his knife, and the atmosphere on the street suddenly became tense.

"If you won't listen to reason, you'll have to suffer the consequences." The middle-aged man waved his hand, "Go!"

Seven or eight people moved at the same time.

They were no rabble. From drawing their swords to closing in, their movements were almost identical—three men in the front charged forward, two on each side flanking him, and the last, carrying a short crossbow, retreated to the eaves, the bolt already strung and aimed at Lin Qiye's back. This was the kind of coordination only those accustomed to killing could achieve; every step blocked any escape route.

Lin Qiye stood still, without retreating.

He put the cloth bag down at his feet, without even looking at the people rushing towards him. He raised his right hand, palm facing forward, fingers slightly spread.

The dark gold emblem lit up.

The three men at the forefront had just raised their knives above their heads—and then they exploded. Not from being struck by something, but from within their bodies disintegrating. Their flesh, bones, and internal organs silently crumbled in the dark golden light, turning into three fine dust particles that were scattered on the bluestone pavement by the evening breeze.

The four men flanking from the left and right paused in their tracks.

They stared at the three plumes of ash still drifting in the distance, their faces ashen, their knives raised in mid-air, unsure whether to strike or sheathe. Lin Qiye gave them no time to hesitate—he gently clenched his fist.

All four of them froze simultaneously.

Then, it exploded silently, turning into four piles of ash.