Dealing with one reanimated corpse was manageable; two was taxing. Now, facing a horde, each with murderous intent and eyes flushed crimson like a rabbit's, how to proceed became a truly thorny issue.

Xiao Shu and Hou Dayong retreated step by step; the reanimated ahead advanced just as measuredly. When Xiao Shu moved left, they tracked left; when she shifted right, they mirrored her to the right. Finally, the reanimated seemed bored with this cat-and-mouse play; in the blink of an eye, they formed a circle, completely encircling Xiao Shu and Hou Dayong.

Xiao Shu and Hou Dayong exchanged glances, their eyes filled only with despair. Surrender or fight to the bitter end—it was a stark, binary choice. Xiao Shu had always dreaded making multiple-choice decisions. In math exams, she never looked at the options; she would calculate solely based on the conditions provided in the prompt, and the result she derived was always the answer. This method was precisely why she became the undisputed math whiz of her class. Alas, she couldn't apply that method now, computing based on given conditions, because here, there were no conditions, only the choice between surrender or death in battle.

Glancing toward Yuan Qi’s skeletal remains, a strange sense of guilt welled up in Xiao Shu, as if her current predicament was retribution for some past act—Karma’s wheel had finally turned back upon her.

By this time, the reanimated had drawn out their brass-handled daggers; the gleaming edges, catching the last rays of the setting sun, lent a profoundly tragic air to the scene. She looked over at Hou Dayong beside her, and he nodded firmly toward her, conveying his intent to fight till the last breath.

Suddenly, an idea struck Xiao Shu, and she began to negotiate: "If I go with you, can you promise me one condition."

Li Bingyu folded her arms and stepped out from among the reanimated, offering a faint smile. "You’re cornered. You have no standing to dictate terms to us."

"That's not entirely true," Xiao Shu retorted, adopting an air of complete assurance. "I have faith in the bond between myself and Xiao Yu, and I trust the connection I share with Li Xiaohao. Neither of them would stand by and watch me die violently. Therefore, I still hold two trump cards." As she spoke, she raised her right index and middle fingers, offering Li Bingyu a gesture that carried a double meaning: it could signify 'two,' or it could be seen as a 'V.' If 'two,' it represented those two significant people; if 'V,' perhaps Xiao Shu truly didn't believe this group of the undead could do much to her.

"You are certainly a sharp individual," Li Bingyu conceded with a laugh. "But you know my style. That weak, bullied Li Bingyu of the past vanished with that corpse in the crematorium. What you see before you is merely a reanimated being carrying memories and hatred. Therefore…" She paused, then continued, "I see nothing in your hands!"

"Alas!" Xiao Shu let out a long sigh, suddenly thinking of Zhang Yuqiu, unable to comprehend the vast gulf between them despite both being women. "If one day you could soften, and set aside those devilish things, whether scythe or dagger, perhaps we could have been friends. Like when we first met—speaking kindly, chatting cheerfully, strolling through the square bathed in the sunset glow. It would have been a hundred times better than this." Xiao Shu spoke purely from the heart, recalling the moment Zhang Yuqiu stood behind her and Li Timing, clearly torn. Contrasting that memory with the scene before her, she inwardly sighed at the notion that 'Life would be perfect if only it remained as it was at the very beginning.'

However, what was said without thought was taken deeply to heart. Fantasizing about the beautiful evening scene Xiao Shu painted for the two of them, Li Bingyu felt a jolt, like a kite that had snapped its string, breaking free from the Puppet King’s control, flying higher and farther away. The dagger clattered to the ground.