Empty City, A Déjà Vu Scene

In the Ye family’s house in the Iron City.

As the night deepened, the bright moon gradually sank into the west, and the moonlight shone through the window on the ground also dimmed.

Lin Ran lay on the bed and snored like thunder, but his eyes were wide open. At the same time, he pricked up his ears to listen to the commotion outside because ever since he entered the room and lay down, he had not heard Ye Jin go upstairs.

“Could it be that she noticed it?”

!!

Lin Ran thought to himself, but he felt that it was impossible. After all, his acting just now could be described as perfect. How could he not be able to fool a teenage girl?

He waited patiently for another fifteen minutes, but there was still no sound of anyone going upstairs. However, Lin Ran couldn’t wait any longer. It wasn’t that he was impatient, but if he waited any longer, it would be dawn!

Lin Ran guessed that Ye Jin was afraid of disturbing his rest, so she walked very softly when she went upstairs. As he maintained his thunderous snoring, he nimbly got off the bed and walked towards the back window.

Creak—

When the window fan opened, it made a strange sound, but it was unnoticeable under the cover of Lin Ran’s snoring.

Therefore, Lin Ran didn’t mind. He pushed open the window fan completely with the sound of snoring and was about to jump out when he suddenly heard Ye Jin ask from behind, “Where are you going so late at night?”

Lin Ran was shocked. He turned around and saw that the door had opened at some point. Ye Jin was standing at the door in a loose coat and staring at him expressionlessly.

“I—”

Caught red-handed, Lin Ran, who had always been glib-tongued, couldn’t help but feel speechless. He held the window with one hand and lifted his clothes with the other. He stood by the window for a long time, but he couldn’t say anything.

“Hmph! I knew you were fooling me.”

Ye Jin rolled her eyes at Lin Ran and walked in to sit by the bed. “Tell me, are you going to leave me behind?”

“No, I…” Lin Ran subconsciously wanted to deny it, but after thinking about it carefully, he nodded. “I want to go out alone to do something, but I’ll be back! I promise!”

Ye Jin glanced at the back window that was pushed open. “Do you think I’ll still believe you?”

When Lin Ran heard this, he immediately felt aggrieved, but he was indeed in the wrong this time. He couldn’t say anything else and could only sigh helplessly. “How about this? I’ll bring you along, but you’re very tired today. Sleep for a while before we set off.”

“I’m not tired! Let’s go now!”

Ye Jin took a deep breath and shook her head. Her voice sounded energetic, but her eyes were clearly unfocused.

Lin Ran smiled bitterly. After closing the window, he cut off a piece of cloth and tied one end to his wrist. Then, he placed the other end in Ye Jin’s hand. “You can sleep here while I meditate beside you. With this rope, you don’t have to worry about me sneaking away.”

Ye Jin looked at the cloth that connected the two of them.

“If you lie to me again, I’ll ignore you forever!”

Ye Jin looked at Lin Ran and said seriously.

Lin Ran nodded solemnly and sat cross-legged on the ground beside the bed.

Ye Jin pulled the rope and lay on the bed. At first, she would occasionally open her eyes to see if Lin Ran was around, but after a few minutes, she fell asleep.

Hearing Ye Jin’s increasingly calm breathing, Lin Ran looked at the cloth on his wrist and smiled helplessly before slowly closing his eyes.

In the blink of an eye, the sky lit up.

A rooster crowed from somewhere in the city. Lin Ran slowly let out a breath and opened his eyes. He raised his hand and patted Ye Jin, who was still sleeping soundly. “Wake up. We’re leaving.”

“Huh? Leaving? Where are we going?”

Ye Jin opened her eyes in a daze and was stunned when she saw Lin Ran in front of her. Then, she suddenly picked up a pillow and threw it at him. “You lecher! How dare you barge into a girl’s room!”

“Are you crazy?”

Lin Ran dodged the pillow and looked at the furious Ye Jin. “Open your eyes and take a good look! Who’s bedroom is this?” historical Ye Jin looked around suspiciously before remembering what happened last night. A hint of embarrassment immediately appeared on her childish face.

Seeing Ye Jin’s reaction, Lin Ran knew that she was completely awake. He untied the cloth on his wrist and said, “I’m going to the magistrate’s office later. You can continue sleeping if you want. I’ll come back to pick you up after I’m done.”

“No need. I’ll go with you!”

When Ye Jin heard this, she quickly shook her head. Then, she patted her face to wake herself up. However, how could the tiredness and haggardness she had been experiencing for the past few days be so easily concealed?

Lin Ran saw how haggard Ye Jin was, but he didn’t say anything. He stood up, tidied up his clothes, and turned to leave. After a while, Ye Jin, who was dressed neatly, followed him out.

On the empty street, Lin Ran and Ye Jin walked side by side.

The thin morning fog condensed into a thin layer of dew on the metal ground. Lin Ran had to focus all his attention to prevent himself from slipping. On the other hand, Ye Jin, who was at the side, walked lightly. It was obvious that she was already used to walking on the slippery ground.

As they walked, Ye Jin suddenly asked in confusion, “That’s a little strange. Why isn’t there anyone on the street?”

“Maybe it’s too early?”

Lin Ran replied casually. Suddenly, he slipped and almost embarrassed himself.

Fortunately, Ye Jin’s attention was not on him. She looked around and frowned. “But usually at this hour, there are already people coming out to sell food. There’s no one on the street today. Something must have happened.”

Seeing that Ye Jin was so certain, Lin Ran couldn’t help but be suspicious. Then, he stopped in his tracks and released his divine sense. Then, his expression changed.

“I think you’re right…”

Lin Ran frowned and said softly. With a flash of white light, the Yin-Yang Sword appeared in his hand. “I used my divine sense to scan the surroundings just now. There are only the two of us within 150 meters.”

When Ye Jin heard this, she became nervous. “How did this happen? Did something happen in the city?”

“I don’t think so.”

Lin Ran shook his head. After thinking for a moment, he pulled Ye Jin behind him and pushed open the door of the nearest house.

When the door opened, a spacious living room came into view. There were tea and snacks on the metal table. It looked like they were prepared for guests, but there was no one in the house.

Seeing this scene, Lin Ran couldn’t help but recall the scene on the Eight Directional Mountain. At that time, the people from the Eight Directional Mountain Sect also mysteriously disappeared. Later on, he found out that it was Liu Hongshan and Xiao Huai who did it.

However, Liu Hongshan and Xiao Huai were not here. Who else could’ve done it?

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