Xu Mu slipped his hands into his pockets and walked toward the car.
But before he could reach it, Fan Shiyu had already stepped out.
She was still wearing the mask covered with acne scars.
"So it's you! Why are you following my brother? What's your intention?"
Dai Xingluo coldly demanded from the side.
But Fan Shiyu didn't even glance at her—she went straight to Xu Mu.
Looking up at him, she said softly, "I want to talk to you."
"Let's go into the park."
Xu Mu also wanted to have a conversation.
If she refused to abandon her mission and insisted on attacking him, he certainly wouldn't hold back.
Dai Xingluo quickly followed, wrapping her arm around Xu Mu's, placing herself between him and Fan Shiyu.
"All your fault, Brother. You made me stay in bed all day yesterday."
Dai Xingluo leaned her face against Xu Mu's shoulder, sneaking a glance at Fan Shiyu as she spoke.
"Stop ruining my reputation," Xu Mu glared at her.
"Heh, men."
Dai Xingluo pouted.
It wasn't even a lie—she had been bedridden all day from her injuries after saving him.
Fan Shiyu remained silent the whole time. She'd been struggling with this for a day already.
She had planned to go to Jiang City to find Xu Mu today, but by coincidence, saw his car on the way—and followed him.
Inside the park.
At an empty bench, the three of them sat down together.
With Dai Xingluo present, Xu Mu naturally didn't sit between them—she made sure to separate him from Fan Shiyu.
"What did you want to say?" Xu Mu asked.
"I'll be direct—I'm an assassin."
Fan Shiyu looked toward the artificial lake, her voice calm. "This time, my mission is to kill two people—Dai Xiao and you."
At that, Dai Xingluo's eyes widened. Her hand slipped into her Hanfu, ready to draw her dagger.
But Xu Mu caught her wrist. "Xingluo, she told us herself—she means no harm."
"That's right. If I wanted to kill you, I would've done it yesterday."
Fan Shiyu met his gaze. "I've been to your house."
"Good thing you didn't act," Xu Mu murmured.
Otherwise, she'd be dead.
"Even though I'm an assassin, I still have my code."
After learning her target was Xu Mu, Fan Shiyu had checked with the intel division to see if there'd been a mistake.
Because Xu Mu's real-life behavior was completely unlike the cold-blooded profile in her briefing.
But the information confirmed it—Xu Mu wasn't considered a good person, and was within the valid kill range.
"So, what do you plan to do?" Xu Mu asked.
"You saved my life once—I won't strike against you. I plan to give up the mission."
She looked at him firmly.
Xu Mu leaned back, hands behind his head, gazing into the distance. "If you give up, that means you won't get paid, right?"
"This isn't about money. Even if I refuse, someone else will come."
Fan Shiyu sighed deeply. "Forget it—I'll tell you everything."
According to her, money was never the real concern.
If she worked alone, upon learning Xu Mu was the target, she'd have contacted him right away—refused the job, even warned him who wanted him dead.
She'd refund the commission without a second thought.
But she wasn't a lone wolf—she belonged to an assassin organization.
On the Hundred Ghosts Night Parade platform, the key to an organization wasn't wealth, but aptitude.
Aptitude, simply put, was mission success rate.
The higher the success rate, the more aptitude points gained.
And the more aptitude a group had, the higher their ranking.
For example, the leader of Moonlit Dancer, though ranked fifth on the Death List, had her organization ranked fourth overall.
They valued high success rates above all else. Even if Fan Shiyu backed out, to keep that perfect record, the organization would send another assassin.
That was what worried her.
"Is this aptitude thing really that important?" Xu Mu asked, puzzled.
"When there's ranking, there's competition," Fan Shiyu explained softly. "Even in games, people spend money just to climb the board. In Hundred Ghosts Night Parade, organizations with high aptitude get special privileges. And I know my eldest sister—she'll never let our group drop."
"Your eldest sister? The one called Moonlit Dancer, ranked fifth on the Death List?" Dai Xingluo asked.
"Yes."
Fan Shiyu wasn't surprised—someone like Dai Xingluo, strong as she was, would know of top assassins.
Xu Mu rested his chin on his hand, recalling what he'd read in the novel's storyline.
The fifth-ranked Moonlit Dancer wasn't described as much as the top three—but there had been a short segment.
If memory served, that woman was…
Bai He (White Lily).
Xu Mu drew in a sharp breath. Not an easy one.
Facing her, his charm probably wouldn't work—and he wasn't sure he could even "turn her straight."
"Although I call her big sister, she's more like my mentor. Her strength is terrifying. You wouldn't stand a chance," Fan Shiyu said, glancing at Dai Xingluo.
"Relax. I'll be fine," Xu Mu smiled. "Just tell her you couldn't beat me—let your big sister come herself."
"Xu Mu! I'm not joking!" Fan Shiyu raised her voice.
"Go home," Dai Xingluo added coldly. "You don't really think my brother is an ordinary man, do you?"
Then she turned to Xu Mu with a teasing smile. "Brother is strong—in every sense."
Fan Shiyu froze, looking at Xu Mu in surprise.
Was he actually… powerful?
Come to think of it, during the ruins incident, he hadn't looked the least bit flustered.
"In any case, you should stay cautious. All I can say is, my eldest sister's strength is unfathomable."
She stood up after saying that.
"Unfathomable? I'm not exactly weak myself," Xu Mu smiled at her. "Don't worry—I can handle it."
"Let's exchange contacts. If you're still alive later, message me," Fan Shiyu said, taking out her phone. "And if you ever need someone eliminated, come to me—I'll give you a discount."
"You're even advertising to me now?" Xu Mu chuckled, shaking his head.
After Fan Shiyu left, Dai Xingluo took out her phone too. "I haven't added you yet."
"Go ahead."
Xu Mu pulled out his phone, and they exchanged contacts on both WeChat and messages.
He noticed her avatar was a chibi-style ancient girl holding a sword—pretty cute.
Too bad the real one was a yandere.
Whoever married her would probably get poisoned if they upset her.
"Brother, pin me to the top," Dai Xingluo said, snatching his phone.
But when she saw his chat list, her body froze.
Her half-squinted eyes flickered with a dangerous glint—then she curved them into a crescent and smiled sweetly.
"Brother~ who's this woman you marked as 'Wife'?"
Xu Mu's heart skipped a beat. He hadn't expected her to see Ye Tong.
Originally, the "villain Xu Mu" hadn't set that note—it was he who added it himself.
But since it was discovered, there was no point hiding it. She'd find out sooner or later.
"She's my wife," Xu Mu said, taking his phone back. "Xingluo, remember what I told you before—I'm married."