Hidden Shadow – CH 001

Chapter One: Twin Souls

The night was deep.

A thick fog hung in the air, and hurried footsteps echoed through the grass.

A dozen or so girls in pink dresses ran aimlessly across the open field. Their hair was disheveled, sweat clinging to their faces, and their skirts were torn by dry branches.

A frail girl lagged behind, panting heavily. Her breath mingled with the thick fog, and her eyes were filled with fear and despair.

Another girl rushed back and grabbed her. “Run! Run! Ah Jiu, they will catch up!”

“Ah Shun…” the girl called Ah Jiu gasped for breath, tears streaming uncontrollably. “I… I cannot go on. You have to go.”

Ah Shun pursed her lips and pulled her along, running as fast as she could.

Ah Jiu was already at her limit, her legs weak, and the sudden tug caused her to collapse to the ground, too exhausted to get up.

“Ah! There’s a house! There’s a house!” The group of girls could no longer be seen ahead; only their joyful shouts could be heard.

Ah Shun pulled Ah Jiu up from the ground with all her might. “Did you hear that? There’s a house ahead! Hold on a little longer.”

Ah Jiu’s tears flowed like a broken dam; her body was limp, and she could not take a single step.

Ah Shun saw the flickering lights in the thick fog behind them, knowing their pursuers were close. She gritted her teeth, hoisted Ah Jiu onto her back, and ran as fast as she could.

They had been brought from Yangzhou by human traffickers. The traffickers had tricked them into believing they were being sold to wealthy families as maids, but instead, they had been sold to the Xingxiang Brothel!

Xingxiang Brothel was the most famous brothel in Bianjing, its reputation so great that even these young girls from faraway Yangzhou had heard of it.

It was unclear who egged them on, but they seized the opportunity to escape en masse, without even considering what to do afterward.

Ah Shun had been sold into a brothel in Yangzhou at the age of five and raised there for seven years. Initially, she did menial work in the kitchen, but the Mama noticed her growing beauty and raised her as a young lady. Therefore, she was more worldly and stronger than the other girls.

Wealthy families would not want a maid bought from a brothel like her. From the beginning, she only saw this resale as an opportunity to escape, but she needed a backup plan—Ah Jiu was already very beautiful at a young age, and the Mama would definitely value her highly. If she could win Ah Jiu’s favor, even if she were unfortunately caught and taken back, as long as Ah Jiu pleaded for her, she would not be carelessly dismissed.

Seeing the thatched hut, Ah Shun rushed inside in one breath, put Ah Jiu down, and breathed a long sigh of relief.

By the dim light, Ah Shun saw the girls lying haphazardly and asked, “Is no one here?”

One of the girls replied, “No, it seems to be a hunter’s resting place.” Were they waiting to be captured?

Ah Shun glanced down at Ah Jiu, who lay sprawled like a rag doll, her eyes flickering.

She turned and saw a bow and arrow hanging on the wall near the door, so she picked it up. “I will go see if anyone’s chasing us.”

Ah Jiu lay sprawled on the ground, her violent chest heaving until it gradually calmed, but her gaze grew increasingly unfocused.

“Ah—” The piercing scream from afar abruptly stopped halfway through, and Ah Shun’s outstretched foot retracted.

The girls huddled together like a group of frightened animals, their faces filled with terror.

The despair, pain, and fear in that scream were so clear; it smelled of death.

Ah Shun, pale-faced, remained silent for a moment, then rushed out, followed by the girls scrambling to their feet and running away.

A dozen dark figures silently landed around the courtyard in the thick fog.

“Who is Mei Jiu?” a black-clad man asked, standing before the dilapidated door.

These men exuded a murderous aura; they were definitely not the guards of the brothel. Ah Shun hurriedly slipped inside.

“Hand over Mei Jiu, and I will spare your lives,” a cold, harsh voice rang out again.

One of the bolder girls lowered her voice hesitantly. “Mei Jiu… could it be Ah Jiu they are talking about?”

Ah Jiu—no one knew her surname.

The people outside had no patience. Through the hazy fog, the leader of the black-clad men slightly raised his chin. A black-clad man to his right leaped into the courtyard like an eagle.

Like an arrow, he darted into the house, a cold blade gleaming. He shouted at the remaining girls, “If you do not want to die by my sword, get out!”

He clearly pointed in only one direction, yet everyone felt he was threatening their lives. The girls’ minds went blank; all they knew was to cry out.

Without hesitation, the black-clad man swung his sword and killed the girl closest to him. Finally, someone could not bear the sight and ran out in panic.

With one person leading the way, the rest followed in a daze.

Seeing that only a few people remained inside, Ah Shun, holding a bow and arrow, stood out. She tightened her grip on the bow, gritted her teeth, dropped her only weapon, and ran out as well.

The black-clad man with the sword saw a girl lying on the ground inside, her eyes wide open, pupils dilated, her chest no longer rising and falling. Out of habit, he bent down to check her pulse.

His fingers touched the girl’s delicate skin, as if touching cool silk.

She was indeed dead.

He strode out.

Outside, in the pitch-black night, a group of girls huddled together, trembling and making shivering sobs.

“Who is Mei Jiu?” the leader of the black-clad men demanded.

No one answered.

Ah Shun’s face was pale, and she bit her lip tightly.

A nearby black-clad man easily killed a girl with a single sword stroke.

“Who is Mei Jiu?” the man asked again.

The girls looked at each other in terror, trying to see if Ah Jiu was nearby so they could push her out.

In that brief moment of hesitation, two more girls fell.

How could they remain calm seeing the person they had spent months with splattered with blood, especially since they were just teenagers!

In an instant, they scattered like frightened birds, crying and screaming, creating chaos.

…

“She’s inside!” Ah Shun shouted, crouching down beside the unconscious girl.

She thought she was being discreet, but she had not escaped their eyes. The leader of the black-clad men asked, “Is there anyone else inside?” The man who had been ordered to enter the house bowed slightly and said, “Yes, but dead.”

“Drag her out,” the leader of the black-clad men ordered.

The man turned to obey.

Suddenly!

With a whoosh.

He watched helplessly as an ordinary arrow pierced his heart, leaving him no time to react.

The leader of the black-clad men standing at the door slightly opened his eyes.

A spray of blood.

Inside the room, Ah Jiu lay quietly by the window, her dark eyes calm and unwavering, showing no sign of fear, her entire being blending into the darkness.

Sweat trickled down her temples, and the splitting pain in her head made her furrow her brow slightly.

She was a lingering soul, imprisoned in a certain place since death, unable to wander or reincarnate. As time passed, her consciousness grew increasingly blurred, but now, the overwhelming killing intent around her had fully awakened her.

She did not know what was happening before her, but she had an instinctive sense of danger. She discovered she could control this body, but it was severely exhausted, and she was only holding on by sheer willpower.

Fortunately, a bamboo bow hung on the wall. Bows had once been her passion; before becoming a sniper, she had been a competitive archer.

Unfortunately, she only had five arrows…

In this situation, escape was impossible!

Having been imprisoned for too long, this moment of freedom, this touch of something so familiar before death, was enough.

With the mindset of “I will take down as many as I can,” she silently assessed the wind speed and humidity. With such poor visibility and equipment, it was unlikely she could kill two people with one arrow. Moreover, she could only roughly estimate the bow’s rate of fire and range. The only loophole was that her opponents did not know how many arrows she had.

Thinking, she released the bowstring, accurately shooting down the black-clad figure near the window.

The leader of the black-clad figures shouted, “Come out! Or I will kill them!”

She recognized the girls and had no intention of accepting the threat, but just as she was about to release the arrow, she suddenly found her fingers out of control.

“I want to save Ah Shun, I want to save Ah Shun…” A weak yet stubborn voice suddenly appeared in her mind. She was stunned. Could it be that she had not been reborn but was merely a ghost possessing another body?!

A moment of surprise caused her to completely lose control of her body, but this time she did not lose consciousness as usual; instead, she could clearly see everything happening before her.

Mei Jiu seemed to also sense the abnormality within her body, but she had no time to ponder it. She immediately dropped her bow and arrows and prepared to rush out.