My game even includes ancient times

The young man turned his horse around and rode back, kicking up a trail of dust, just as he had done when he rode there.

Stopping where he had just brushed past He Yu, the man dismounted and looked around at the empty surroundings, asking in surprise, "What happened? Where is everyone?"

No one answered his question; only the empty sound of the wind swept past his ears.

This place was nothing but fields and wilderness, flat and unobstructed, offering a panoramic view. The man looked into the distance, but could not find the man in black he had just seen in any direction.

For some unknown reason, his expression suddenly turned serious. After standing still for a moment, he decisively mounted his horse and galloped towards the manor.

When people had run far enough away that they could only be seen as a black dot, He Yu's figure slowly emerged in the air beside the road.

She gazed at the other person's retreating figure, which was almost out of sight, and clicked her tongue enviously.

Having a horse is great, unlike her, who had to struggle for half a day to walk just over two kilometers.

He Yu walked for almost half an hour, and finally saw the large stone tablet engraved with "Chu Clan".

Just behind the stone tablet, a very familiar wooden door stood alone on the ground, looking quite out of place.

Is this [Home]?

He Yu thought for a moment, then turned on stealth mode, walked to the door, reached out and grasped the doorknob, paused, and slowly pulled it open.

The empty room appeared in the doorway.

He Yu took a step back, stuck his head out from behind the door frame and looked around. There was nothing there. Then he looked back at the front, and there was the room behind the door.

What a magical dream, but it should come to an end now.

Without much hesitation, He Yu stepped into the room, and the door behind him closed automatically.

She looked around, lay back down on the bunk bed, closed her eyes, and almost instantly lost consciousness.

……

When I opened my eyes again, the familiar white ceiling was at the end of my line of sight.

He Yu blinked, somewhat belatedly realizing that she had woken up from her dream.

The alarm clock showed it was 7:30 in the morning. She stretched a little in bed, reluctant to get out of bed.

Reaching out to pick up her phone from the bedside table, He Yu looked at the 'low battery' warning and exclaimed in surprise.

Last night before I went to bed, the battery was still over 80% charged. How come it dropped to 9% overnight? This phone is only a year old, and the battery is already failing?

She casually plugged in the charger, pulled her hand back under the covers, and lay there lost in thought, lingering in her mind as she recalled last night's dream, remembering every single detail clearly.

After lying there for a while, He Yu reluctantly got up.

We're reopening tomorrow, so I need to get ready early today.

After washing up, He Yu made herself a simple breakfast and started playing the game while eating.

The game time was 8:45 PM, and He Yuxian went to see He Shi as usual.

The child had just finished showering and was lying on the bed, shirtless, while a short old man was massaging his shoulders.

When He Yu arrived, the massage had just finished. The old man applied several plasters to his arms, shoulders, and back, and then he stood up.

[Dr. Zhang: You need to rest for two days, tomorrow and the day after. Avoid putting any strain on your arms and shoulders.]

He Shi lifted his head from the pillow, his little face looking listless.

[He Shi: I understand, Dr. Zhang, thank you for your hard work.]

Doctor Zhang waved his hand, slung the packed medicine box over his shoulder, and bowed to He Shi.

[Physician Zhang: No need to be so polite. It's getting late, so I'll take my leave now. Young master, please get some rest.]

Looking at He Shi's disheveled appearance, with his upper body covered in plasters, He Yu realized that he had strained his few remaining muscles from practicing archery too hard.

After Dr. Zhang left, He Shi sat up in bed and stretched his arms slightly.

[He Shi: Hiss...]

He slowly lowered his arms, sat on the bed for a while, somewhat dejected, then blew out the candle and went to sleep.

Seeing this, He Yu prepared to skillfully use the time acceleration technique, but then suddenly realized that it had been a long time since he had visited Chu Zheng and the others. The "Shining Debut" mission had not been completed, and he didn't know who was to blame.

After leaving He Shi's room, He Yu shrunk the game screen and looked down at the entire manor from above.

People in ancient times went to bed early. It's only 9 o'clock now, and the lights in the villa buildings are mostly off. Only the bright red lanterns hanging by the roadside and in various corners barely illuminate most of the villa.

He Yu slowly moved the game screen and suddenly saw a building with warm yellow candlelight shining inside.

She zoomed in on the image and realized it was Chu Zheng's yard.

Upon clicking through, it was still in that semi-open corridor, where Chu Zheng, Xia Yuan, Chu He, and Bai Yushen were sitting around a small wooden table drinking tea, with two braziers burning charcoal next to them.

[Chu Zheng: What did the coachman say?]

He Yu's spirits lifted. She realized that the reason these people were still awake in the middle of the night was because they were holding a high-level meeting of their sect!

She put down her milk glass and began to watch intently.

[Xia Yuan: He said the man found him directly at the carriage shop in the south of the city, only saying he wanted to go to the Chu family manor. He asked for 100 coins, and the man got into the carriage without saying a word. During the more than one hour of travel, he stayed in the carriage without moving. When they arrived at their destination, the man got out of the carriage, didn't say anything, and readily paid the fare, even giving an extra 10 coins.]

He Yu, watching from outside the screen: "?"

Xia Yuan's words sound strangely familiar...

Chu Zheng frowned and thought for a moment before looking at Bai Yushen.

[Chu Zheng: Has the portrait been completed yet?]

[Bai Yushen: The letter just mentioned it, and I've already had it delivered to the door.]

[Chu Zheng: Let me take a look.]

Bai Yushen got up, put on his shoes, walked to the gate, opened it, took a white scroll from the waiting crowd outside, returned to his original spot, sat down, and handed it to Chu Zheng.

Chu Zheng untied the ribbon on the scroll and slowly unrolled it.

The other three couldn't help but lean over to look. He Yu, filled with curiosity, also turned her view to the painting. The moment she saw the image on the screen, she was shocked. Her eyes widened, and her mouth opened involuntarily, almost choking on her own saliva.

On the snow-white drawing paper is a woman dressed in black, tall and slender, wearing a cone-shaped hat and a long black veil that completely covers her face and neck.

He Yu stared blankly at the painting, feeling like his CPU was about to burn out.

Bai Yushen was still talking over there, with word bubbles popping up one after another above his head.

[Bai Yushen: This was drawn by Mr. Gu after he heard the detailed descriptions from the coachman and Wu Feng. After it was finished, he confirmed with them that it was at least nine-tenths similar.]

[Bai Yushen: Senior Sister, do you and Master suspect that this person is the mysterious person who delivered the Eight-Sided Box?]

[Bai Yushen: But why would such a master come to the manor by carriage? And why leave such a huge opening, allowing us to discover her?]

Xia Yuan turned her gaze away from the painting and glanced at Bai Yushen.

[Xia Yuan: Experts all have their own personalities; perhaps she simply enjoys traveling around in a carriage. The most crucial thing now is that this person has mysteriously disappeared very close to the manor, and no one knows where she is now. This puts us in a very passive position.]

Chu Zheng put down the painting and looked at his three apprentices.

[Chu Zheng: Don't make this public yet. Yuan'er, find an excuse to increase the guards in the manor. You guys need to be on high alert at all times. Regardless of whether she is the mysterious person from before, don't let your guard down. If you happen to run into her, try to be friendly first and don't make enemies unnecessarily. If she is hostile, send a signal immediately. Don't try to fight back on your own!]

Everyone agreed and began discussing the details of how to deploy defenses.

But He Yu couldn't concentrate anymore. Her mind kept replaying last night's dream, Xia Yuan's words, and that portrait. She stood there dumbfounded, trying to figure out the connection between them.