Zhou Yu didn't know much about literary allusions, but he also knew the general content of famous works like "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland". In fact, not only "Alice in Wonderland", he also knew about the sequel "Alice Through the Looking Glass" written by Lewis Carroll, although he couldn't remember where he read it.
In his understanding, what Hongye said was an allusion from "Through the Looking Glass". When Alice sees the sleeping Red King, she is told that the entire wonderland, and even Alice herself, is the dream of the Red King. Whether that is the truth in Wonderland or a fantasy in Alice's dream is probably an answer that will never be made public. In the final analysis, it is an open-ended literary creation and a poetic children's story.
But what Hongye said didn't seem like a casual expression. After saying this, she said nothing about the matter, and Zhou Yu had no choice but to ask other questions.
"The people you killed the night we last met..."
"Those are not humans...it should be said that they can no longer be considered living things. It is one of my responsibilities to clean them up. They should not be witnessed by ordinary people, but at that time, there were so many of them that I couldn't take care of them."
"Is it a ghost or something?"
Hongye showed another distressed look that she didn't know how to explain. She seemed to think about it for a long time before finally replying: "It's okay to understand it this way. They are not native to this city and will disappear directly after death."
"...disappeared directly without leaving any traces of blood?"
"They will also disappear. From the blood stains to the clothes, all the 'concepts' related to them do not exist, because they do not belong here in the first place."
Zhou Yu fell silent. Hongye looked at him strangely and asked, "Is there anything wrong with this?"
"No, it's nothing."
Zhou Yu did not tell the other party about the blood stains he saw in the disappearing alley. If what Hong Ye said is true, the blood stains there have another origin. From the current point of view, he doesn't think Hongye needs to lie about this kind of thing.
Thinking of what he saw in the disappearing alley, he immediately asked Hongye: "You know what's going on with that alley on Yongning Road that only appears at night?"
"...Have you discovered it yet?"
"I discovered it by chance. You also killed people there...killed something like that, right? You were also witnessed by a yellow-haired gangster."
Mentioning this matter, Hongye's expression suddenly became unnatural. She said with wandering eyes: "This is indeed the case. The young man with yellow hair... I wanted to ask him to stop and talk."
"...What are you going to talk to him about? Your experience in fighting ghosts?"
"Since he's caught me, there's no harm in telling him frankly. If he doesn't believe it, he'll know it just by looking at the dead bodies... Even though he planned to do so at the time, he ran too fast and it was inconvenient for me to chase him."
Zhou Yu stared at each other for a long time. Hongye's expression was very calm, and she didn't seem to be lying. Under the bright lights in the room, her face looked sharp and refined, and her beauty was so beautiful that it made people lose their mind.
"Hongye, please smile."
Hongye, who had always maintained a solemn expression after entering the room, tilted his head in surprise after hearing this, but still raised the corners of his lips and put on a smile with considerable effort.
"...The case has been solved."
Zhou Yu asked calmly: "Do you know how tiger-like your smile is?"
"What do you mean by this?"
"...I was praising you for your beautiful smile. I think the yellow-haired man thought so too. But don't worry about that. I just want to know what's going on in that alley?"
"That's a 'shortcut'. It was made by someone I know. But this person has been missing for a long time, and I am looking for him."
Zhou Yu still looked at the other party with questioning eyes. He once observed the shops and roads on both sides of the alley and determined that there were no traces of any mechanism. Therefore, the "shortcut" the other party talks about may not mean what is conventionally understood.
However, Hongye just shook his head: "This matter is a long story and has nothing to do with you. Zhou Yu, it's better for you not to get involved in these matters. I have important matters now and I have no time to take care of you for the time being. When I finish the matter, I will Try to get you back safely."
After saying these words, she stood up as if ready to leave. Zhou Yu immediately stopped her: "Wait a minute."
"What else do you want?"
"...Why do you think I was coerced by others to come here?"
Hongye tilted his head slightly and said somewhat puzzlingly: "You are not a villain, why do you come here voluntarily?"
"Did you see what I looked like that night? Even so, do you still think I'm not a villain?"
Hongye suddenly stopped talking. She hesitated for a while and finally said: "Zhou Yu, do you know why you didn't die that night?"
"Isn't it because your sword is special?"
"That's true. But the sword is a weapon and originally a murder weapon. The reason why you didn't die is yourself."
Hongye raised his right arm, and under Zhou Yu's gaze, the outline of the sword slowly appeared in the void. Like lines of light gradually emerging from the translucent water, within a few seconds, a long sword appeared in the opponent's hand.
The scabbard is wrapped with densely packed black silk ropes, like jade threads, making it impossible to see its true appearance. The moment the rope-tangled sword came into view, Zhou Yu's breathing became disordered. He subconsciously put his hand into his pocket.
The strong feeling of hatred began to burn from the depths of the bone marrow, and even the blood heated up and became hot.
In this way, the confusion when they first met was clarified. When he first met the other party, his hatred like a natural enemy was not directed at Hongye, but at this strange sword.
"This sword was given by a saint and can only hurt evil and evil things. Zhou Yu, you and Miss Zhang are fine because you are both people who are not guilty of great evil."
Hongye held the sword with both hands and explained solemnly. When she looked at Zhou Yu, who was trembling slightly, there seemed to be some pity in her eyes.
"--wrong."
Facing her gaze, Zhou Yu said, "I hate this sword. It can indeed hurt me."
The sword that penetrated his chest did not kill him, but his limbs that were struck by the sword that night were actually bleeding and injured.
"Zhou Yu, that's because..."
Hong Ye hesitated for a few seconds, and finally continued under Zhou Yu's gaze: "This sword can identify good and evil, but if the crime is not serious enough, it cannot be used to take human life. In the case of not killing people, Under the premise, Zhou Yu, what it recognizes is not you, but simply the good and evil of this body."
"Body..."
"A simple body can also be divided into good and evil. Opposite to the 'soul' of consciousness, it is the so-called 'body'. You who live in this body actually only have the soul part, and the soul part stays outside this world. . What this sword hurts is the soul of the body you are inhabiting."
This time, Zhou Yu understood what the other party meant. He was silent for a moment and then said: "If I leave from here, what will you do to the original owner of this body?"
Hongye shook his head slowly: "I won't do anything."
"Don't you plan to eliminate evil?"
"You misunderstood. Evil in the 'body' is very common in this city and is not something that cannot be tolerated. If this body had a crime that required death, it would have been killed by a sword that night."
After saying these words, Hongye put down the sword, and the scabbard wrapped with black rope dissolved in the air. She put her hands together and made a rather strange salute gesture towards Zhou Yu.
"That's all I can say. I'll take my leave today. I'll come to see you again when the things around me are settled. Before that, please take care of yourself and don't walk around easily at night."
Then, she nodded slightly, turned around and left from the door. Zhou Yu walked to the window and watched her disappear around the corner of the street.
Drops of water pattered on the windows, and it started to rain again in the city.
