Dawn's first frost. The sunlight after the snow was exceptionally clear and piercing, carrying with it a cold purity. It offered no warmth on the skin, yet it was utterly pure.
The sunlight slanted across Xiao Ruoching's face, seeming to penetrate her very being and casting a long shadow.
Xiao Ruoching's eyelashes fluttered. It was as if she were waking from a long dream, countless past scenes emerging in her mind—images of her previous life.
In her dreams, she hugged her knees, shivering and hiding in a corner, watching as her kinsfolk fell into pools of blood.
The shouts of battle, the savage roars, echoed relentlessly in her ears.
She could see her mother's eyes, wide in death, and her tightly pursed lips. Her mother was gently shaking her head at her, signaling her not to come out.
The burly man was only a few meters away. She could see the savage teeth his grin revealed and the cold glint of his longsword in the sunlight.
