Chapter Two: The Boy's Invitation

In a small town inn, Liu Ru was taken back to a room by the young man who called himself Su Ziye.

“Why did you save me?” As the door closed, Liu Ru, still lost in confusion, couldn’t help but ask.

“Take off your clothes.” Su Ziye’s tone was utterly devoid of hesitation; he spoke as if he were inviting Liu Ru to breakfast.

Liu Ru stared at him in surprise. Though young, she was not so innocent as to misunderstand his meaning. If he had bought her for such purposes, wasn’t that a bit too much? She knew she wasn’t unattractive, but now she was covered in scars and blood, hadn’t even bathed, her hair tangled, her body gaunt—he didn’t look much older than her. Was he truly a pervert?

“Take off your clothes,” Su Ziye repeated coolly, his gaze on her unwavering, as if explanations were beneath him.

The way he looked at her made Liu Ru feel like a piece of pork on a butcher’s block.

After a moment’s silence, Liu Ru stripped off her tattered, colorless outer garment.

Su Ziye nodded, then extended a finger. At its tip, a dazzling golden flame flared to life before her eyes.

He held out the flame as if it were a candle, bringing it close to Liu Ru as though to ignite her. And indeed, the flame did ignite upon her body. It set her blood and scars alight, burning them into the same golden radiance. Liu Ru did not feel searing pain; instead, the relentless agony that had tormented her nerves began to fade, replaced by a tingling sensation as gentle as a feather’s caress.

Staring at him in astonishment, Liu Ru finally understood that he had asked her to undress in order to heal her. Yet the power and means he displayed were beyond anything she could have imagined.

“Are you a celestial being?” she couldn’t help but ask.

“No.” Su Ziye dismissed the notion without a second thought. As he moved his finger above her skin, igniting more flames, he asked indifferently, “Why did you become a slave?”

The air grew heavy with silence.

“I…” Liu Ru struggled to explain, finally squeezing out a few words: “I was captured.”

“By whom?” Su Ziye pressed on.

“Soldiers,” she forced out through clenched teeth.

“Why?” he asked, utterly unsurprised.

“I don’t know,” Liu Ru shook her head in bewilderment. “My family lived in Willow Village. My father was the village doctor; we were all farmers, and broke no laws. But one day, a squad of soldiers surrounded the village, slaughtered many people—my parents died before my eyes. I tried to fight back with a knife, but I was knocked down in a matter of moments.”

She spoke of her tragedy without trembling or tears. Perhaps because what followed had been even more hellish than death, the horror had lost its sting.

“I see.” Su Ziye nodded, never ceasing his work, and then asked coolly, “I’ve seen many who have fallen into slavery, but even a bug clings to life. Why are you so eager to die?”

Liu Ru gave a bitter little smile. “Is there anything in this world worth holding on to?” Everything she cared for had been destroyed, the future was shrouded in darkness. She had resisted ceaselessly all along, wanting only a swift death.

“But you still took my hand,” Su Ziye said quietly.

“Didn’t you just ask me why I saved you?” As he continued to heal her, he explained, “I simply found you interesting. In my eyes, you screamed for death while at the same time you wailed for someone to save you. I thought it amusing, so I saved you.”

With that, he withdrew his finger and blew gently, extinguishing the sacred golden flame.

“Check your body,” he said calmly.

Liu Ru hesitated, then looked down at herself. She had suffered endlessly along the way, beaten for her constant resistance, her body covered in new wounds and old, tormented to the point of sleeplessness and delirium. But now, after the cleansing of those flames, every scar and stain was gone, leaving only smooth, pale skin—renewed as if untouched.

All her fatigue and pain had been burned away, leaving only a shell brimming with vitality.

“This…” Liu Ru murmured in disbelief.

Her eyes brimmed with astonishment. Moments ago, she’d asked if he were a celestial being, and though he’d denied it, now he seemed no different from one.

“Your body was too weak, so I provided all the energy needed for your recovery,” Su Ziye said evenly. At that moment, Liu Ru was like a newborn. If before she’d been a filthy, bloodstained bun rolled in mud, now she was clean and fresh—almost alluring.

Yet Su Ziye still looked at her as if she were a piece of pork.

“There’s a hot bath in the room—you can wash yourself. I’ll prepare clean clothes for you,” he gestured inside.

Liu Ru didn’t move.

She looked at Su Ziye and repeated the question that still had not been answered.

“Why?”

There had been so many slaves at the market, yet Su Ziye had saved only her.

She had witnessed the world’s darkest hell, yet still could not fathom his purpose.

She didn’t even know if Su Ziye was his real name.

“At the very least, it’s not because I like you,” Su Ziye smiled at her. “But I do have somewhere I need to go. If you have nowhere else, you can come with me.”

“Is it far?” Liu Ru asked.

“Very far. Across ice fields and snowy mountains, past lakes and rivers, all the way to another distant land.” Su Ziye smiled faintly.

“Then why take me?” Liu Ru couldn’t help but ask. She was so ordinary, so lowly; even she did not know what use she could be. Could it really be for her looks? Any fool would know better.

“Because I need a shadow,” Su Ziye replied with a smile. “I hadn’t decided who would fill that role, and in my original plan, it could have been anyone. But now I think I’d be very pleased if you were to be my shadow.”

“Me?” Liu Ru asked, lacking confidence.

“Yes, I want you to become me,” Su Ziye nodded.

Liu Ru pursed her lips, then, unable to help herself, let out a soft laugh. “It’s not like I have anything left to lose.”

“You’re quite right,” Su Ziye laughed as well. “The place I’m headed is called Nightleaf Academy. I intend to study there. But before that, I have some matters to settle here.”

“The bath is ready; you can wash up now. I’ll make you something to eat.”