One person: Starting with the Snow Drinking Blade

The phone rang abruptly, as if it had been muted.

The deathly silence lasted for about three seconds.

"...Xiao Feng?" Xu Si's voice rang out again, noticeably more awake, but still nasal and wary. "What happened? Why are you calling at this hour?"

"I've found Chen Duo." Nie Lingfeng got straight to the point without any preamble.

There was another brief silence, but this time a rustling sound could be heard from the other side, as if Xu Si had sat up in bed and perhaps lit a cigarette.

"...Where?" Xu Si's voice fell silent, completely wide awake.

"Biyou Village, the backyard of the ancestral hall," Nie Lingfeng reported the exact location.

"You... you've been in contact with her?" Xu Si's tone was filled with disbelief and a hint of worry.

"We've made contact." Nie Lingfeng paused, deciding to be clear from the start. "Moreover, I'm prepared to help her. To help her control, or at least remove, the original Gu poison from her body. So, Fourth Brother, this time... I can't bring her back as the company requires."

"What?!?!"

Even across the phone and from a great distance, Nie Lingfeng could picture Xu Si jumping out of bed, his eyes wide as saucers. A loud bang came from the receiver, like something (probably the bedside table) being slapped hard.

"Nie Lingfeng! Do you even know what you're saying?!" Xu Si's roar almost shattered the receiver. Every word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth, filled with anger and shock. "Chen Duo! She killed Liao Zhong! The head of the South China region! The company's board of directors gave a death order! They want her alive or dead! You're protecting her? What makes you think you can protect her?! What gives you the right to do so?!"

"I'll risk my life for it." Nie Lingfeng's answer was surprisingly calm, a stark contrast to Xu Si's fury. "I'll also risk all my future achievements, reputation, and everything my life can buy in the company."

The phone call came through heavy, bellows-like breathing and the cracking sound of knuckles being clenched. Xu Si was clearly trying his best to suppress his anger.

"...Xiao Feng," Xu Si's voice rang out again after a long silence, hoarse and weary, carrying the helplessness and sternness of an elder facing a rebellious junior, "Don't be foolish, don't be impulsive. Who is Chen Duo? She's a 'Gu Body Saint Child' created by the Medicine Immortal Society! Even those old monsters in the company's research institute are helpless against the original Gu poison in her body! In the past few years, she's barely been kept stable thanks to specially made protective suits, inhibitors, and the little bit of 'warmth' Liao Zhong risked his life for! You want to help her? How can you help her? What can you use to help her? What if you can't control her, and the Gu poison erupts and spreads when she's emotionally agitated... What will Biyou Village, no, the entire Qianzhong mountain area become?! How many people will die?! Have you thought about that?!"

"I've thought about it." Nie Lingfeng's tone remained calm, but beneath that calm, an undercurrent of suppressed emotion began to surge. "Fourth Brother, I've considered all of what you've said. But I want to ask you something more—have you thought about Chen Duo?"

"She killed someone! That's an undeniable fact!" Xu Si roared.

"Yes, she killed Liao Zhong. That's a fact, undeniable." Nie Lingfeng took a deep breath, the Qilin tattoo on his chest beginning to heat up, but he forced his voice to remain steady. "But Fourth Brother, from the moment she was stolen from some unknown Miao village by the Medicine Immortal Society and stuffed with that damned 'Gu Body,' did she ever have a single 'choice'?!"

His speech quickened, his voice tinged with barely suppressed agitation: "She was stripped of her emotions, stripped of her understanding, and cultivated as a mere 'venomous vessel'! She didn't even know what 'herself' was! The company and Liao Zhong rescued her, yes, giving her 'freedom,' but then, under the guise of 'protection,' 'treatment,' and 'social adaptation,' they shackled her with another set of constraints—what clothes to wear, what food to eat, who to see, what to do, even what 'emotions' to have at what time… She was like a top-tier puppet, the Medicine Fairy pulling the strings, the company taking over and continuing to pull them! Did she ever, even once, truly decide something according to her own 'thoughts'?!"

"Liao Zhong did give her a choice in the end," Nie Lingfeng's voice trembled slightly, "but what was that choice? 'Kill me, and you'll be free'—is that what you call a choice?! That's a desperate binary choice! It's pushing someone to the edge of a cliff and then asking them whether to jump left or right!"

"Now, the strings are completely broken. The puppet wants to stand up on her own, to walk on her own. But she doesn't even know the way, she doesn't even know how to take a step! She just instinctively wants to 'choose,' wants to 'decide for herself.' Now, she chooses to believe me, to believe in me, the person she's only met once who said he could help her. Fourth Brother, this is the first time in her life that she has truly and completely made a choice about her future destiny!"

Nie Lingfeng's voice echoed in the empty courtyard, carrying a power that was almost one of grief and indignation:

"Do we really have to force her to her death? Do we have to watch her, like those failed 'creations' of the Medicine Immortal Society, turn into a pool of pus and blood in endless pain and confusion, or... like they plan, 'sublimate' into a beautiful pile of ashes in the sunlight, before you're satisfied?! Is this the 'result' the company wants? Is this 'justice' and 'order'?!"

After shouting out the last few words, Nie Lingfeng felt a great relief from the pent-up emotions in his chest, but this was followed by an even deeper exhaustion. He stopped, panting, and waited for a response from the other end of the phone.

All that could be heard through the receiver was Xu Si's heavy, suppressed breathing.

For a long time, there was no word spoken.

Nie Lingfeng could hear the crisp "click" of a lighter igniting on the other side, followed by a deep drag of his cigarette, the faint "hissing" sound of the burning tobacco, and then a long, slow sigh as he exhaled a puff of smoke.

Xu Si seemed to have finished the cigarette in just a few puffs.

The sound of a cigarette butt being extinguished could be heard.

Then, Xu Si spoke, his voice hoarse like sandpaper rubbing against rusty iron, weary and heavy, yet carrying an undeniable resolve:

"Three months."

Nie Lingfeng was taken aback: "...What?"

"Third Brother and I, using all our connections, favors, and leverage, can at most... buy you three months." Xu Si spoke slowly, each word carrying immense weight. "During these three months, the company's overt large-scale manhunt will be suspended, and the arrest warrant will be temporarily 'technically shelved.' But the covert searches and surveillance will not stop, and we can only delay the board of directors for this long."

He paused, his tone heavy as iron: "Within three months, if you can help her completely remove the original Gu poison from her body, or at least... make her completely self-controlled, no longer a 'biological weapon' that could explode at any time, no longer posing an 'uncontrollable threat' to public safety... then, the rest, my third brother and I will talk to the board of directors, haggle with those old guys, and try to get her a... 'observation period' or 'restricted freedom'."

Nie Lingfeng gripped his phone tightly, the cold plastic casing almost cracking under his pressure. He didn't speak, just listened quietly.

"But, Xiaofeng, listen carefully—" Xu Si's voice suddenly rose, carrying a stern warning, "If you haven't managed to do it by the three-month deadline... then you must personally return Chen Duo to the company unharmed. This is the last line of defense that Third Brother and I can fight for you. Otherwise, we won't be able to protect you either, and we might even lose our own lives."

Nie Lingfeng was silent for a few seconds. The morning breeze rustled through the courtyard, carrying the leaves of the old locust tree. He looked up and glanced at Chen Duo, who stood quietly not far away, watching him intently. The girl's emerald eyes were clear in the morning light, reflecting the light mist and his own silhouette.

"Okay." He finally spoke, his voice calm and firm. "Three months."

"Furthermore," Xu Si added, his tone still stern, "during these three months, Chen Duo absolutely cannot harm anyone, absolutely cannot cause any new trouble, and absolutely cannot attract widespread social attention or panic. Otherwise, even if there's only one day left before the deadline, my third brother and I won't be able to withstand the pressure and must take immediate action. Understand?"

"I understand," Nie Lingfeng nodded.

"Also..." Xu Si's voice suddenly lowered, revealing a deep weariness and a hint of...pleading, "Xiao Feng, if...I mean, if you still can't solve her problem in three months...then, don't try to tough it out. Hand her over properly. Third Brother and I will find a way, using all available resources, to try our best...to save her life. At least, let her...leave with some dignity, in a peaceful way."

Xu Si spoke his last few words very softly and slowly, as if he had used up all his strength.

Nie Lingfeng felt as if his heart had been gripped tightly by an icy hand, a sharp pain shooting through him. He clenched his fists, his nails digging deep into his palms, causing a distinct stinging sensation.

But he said nothing, only managing to squeeze out two dry words from his throat:

"Thanks, Fourth Brother. If..."

"No ifs!" Xu Si abruptly interrupted him, his voice turning stern and resolute again, as if the momentary softness just moments before had been an illusion. "Three months! Ninety days! Two thousand one hundred and sixty hours! When the time is up, there must be a clear result! Either you succeed, and we'll negotiate new terms with her; or you fail, and we'll wrap things up! Do you understand?!"

"...Understood."

"That's settled then. Keep in touch, but not too often. Bye."

"Beep—beep—beep—"

A busy signal rang out, cold and urgent.

Nie Lingfeng slowly lowered his arm, his fingers turning slightly white from the force. He stood under the old locust tree, letting the cool morning breeze caress his cheeks and hair. He stood there for a long time until the intense emotions surging in his chest gradually subsided, replaced by a heavier and more resolute sense of responsibility.

Three months.

Time is tight, and the future is uncertain.

But... that's enough.

He turned around and walked back to Chen Duo's side.

The girl remained standing there quietly, her small schoolbag on her back, her bright green eyes watching him intently, as if asking for an answer.

Nie Lingfeng gave her a gentle, reassuring smile, walked over, and naturally took her left hand, which was wearing a black glove, again.

"All done," he said. "We can go now. Let's get out of here, find a quiet, safe place, and then... we'll begin."

Chen Duo nodded, letting him lead her. The two walked out of the small gate in the backyard of the ancestral hall, one after the other, and disappeared into the thick morning fog of Biyou Village.