Ending

Just then, a thunderous crash shattered the silence. A figure burst out like a wild beast breaking its chains.

Li Zhiqiang’s clothes were in tatters and stained with blood; his once slightly stout frame had withered into a gaunt, unrecognizable shadow in such a short time. He collapsed to the floor, his eyes vacant yet filled with a twisted, sudden realization. He muttered incessantly, "I remember now... the mission, the mission... We are trapped in this place! Everything... everything is fake!"

His hoarse voice was swallowed by the silence of the hall, clear enough for everyone to hear.

Upon hearing this, the bride froze in place. Her expression solidified instantly, followed by a dazed look in her eyes. She subconsciously reached up to touch her face, then looked down at her own body, and collapsed emotionally.

A shrill scream pierced the air. With a dull thud, blood splattered, and the bride’s body slumped limply beside the wedding table.

Yun Xian’s pupils dilated. Her gaze darted between the bride’s corpse and Li Zhiqiang, her lips trembling. Only now did she dare to confirm that this bride was, in fact, the introverted boy from the elevator.

Zhang Jingyi remained standing where she was, her expression blank, as if she were deaf to everything happening around her.

The old woman’s face turned so dark it seemed as though ink were dripping from it. Her eyes bulged, flickering with a terrifying light. She gripped her cane tightly and roared in a low, thunderous voice, "You! You have ruined everything I meticulously planned!"

"I finally created the perfect couple—a son without the base nature or betrayal of a man, and a daughter-in-law without the weakness of a woman—and you’ve just destroyed it!"

Before the words had even faded, the old woman’s hands underwent a grotesque transformation; her fingers rapidly elongated and sharpened. Her face began to twist and warp, her features pulled by an invisible hand into a hideous, demonic mask. Her height surged by two feet, and a frigid, ghostly aura emanated from her as she lunged at Li Zhiqiang like a phantom.

Seeing this, Yun Xian instinctively tried to rush forward to stop her, but before she could take a single step, Song Ran blocked her path. In that split second, the old woman’s sharp claws descended.

Li Zhiqiang had no power to resist. The razor-sharp talons instantly tore through his throat. Blood gushed out, staining the floorboards red. After a few spasms, his body collapsed limply, his eyes quickly losing focus until they settled into the stillness of death.

Yun Xian watched it all, powerless to intervene. Her knuckles turned white, her clenched fists trembled, and she glared at Song Ran.

"You didn't lose your memories?" she demanded loudly. "Then why did you help the villain?"

Song Ran remained calm and said softly, "I was merely advancing the mission’s progress."

"Did you turn Zhang Jingyi and that boy into this?"

Song Ran frowned and shook his head. "I was brought here as a doctor when I woke up. I don't know how to mix medicine; I just threw things together randomly. Who knew they would end up like this?"

The old woman, upon hearing this, realized she had been played. She turned toward Song Ran, a flash of cruelty in her eyes.

Song Ran’s expression shifted violently. He stumbled backward, looking around in a panic, desperate for an escape route. Yun Xian, sensing the danger, instinctively retreated as well.

The next second, the old woman roared and lunged at Song Ran.

At the brink of life and death, a ruthless look flickered in Song Ran’s eyes. He swung his arm and, without hesitation, grabbed the little girl who had appeared beside him, dragging her in front of himself.

"No—" Yun Xian screamed in despair, but it all happened too fast. The old woman’s claws pierced the girl’s body mercilessly. She slumped to the ground, her eyes strangely peaceful.

Overcome with grief and with tears welling in her eyes, Yun Xian lunged forward, grabbed Song Ran as he tried to hide, and shoved him toward the old woman with all her might.

Caught off guard, Song Ran was sent flying by the immense force, stumbling forward and landing right in front of the old woman.

The old woman, eyes ablaze with rage, lunged at him again. Song Ran dodged to the side, and a fierce struggle ensued. Though, in truth, it was less of a struggle and more of Song Ran desperately evading the old woman’s attacks, his face pale with terror as beads of sweat rolled down his forehead.

Just then, the ragdoll the little girl had dropped moved. It slowly stood up, took stiff, clumsy steps, and ran into the little girl’s arms. Then, the shocking happened: the little girl’s body began to show signs of life. She slowly opened her eyes and pushed herself up from the floor.

Yun Xian could not believe her eyes, staring blankly at the resurrected girl.

Meanwhile, under the old woman’s torrential assault, Song Ran lost his ability to defend himself. Finally, the old woman’s claws slashed his throat. Blood sprayed, and he collapsed, his eyes filled with resentment and regret.

Yun Xian looked at Song Ran’s corpse with indifference. She shifted her gaze from the cooling body to the old woman, who was roaring frantically and spiraling further out of control.

Yin energy churned in the room, and the candlelight flickered, casting shadows on the old woman’s twisted, terrifying face.

Yun Xian took a deep breath, forcing herself to stay calm as she pieced the clues together in her mind. Her lips moved slightly as she recited the mission name: "Find the Zhang couple..." She looked at Zhang Jingyi, the girl who had been transformed into the "young master," now standing there vacantly. A bold hypothesis formed in her mind—could the key to completing the mission be to have Zhang Jingyi complete this wedding as the "young master"? Perhaps the mission didn't just mean finding them, but facilitating the ceremony...

No longer hesitant, she rushed forward and grabbed the dazed Zhang Jingyi. Zhang Jingyi’s body stiffened, but she did not resist, allowing Yun Xian to pull her step by step toward the center of the hall.

All the noise and chaos were shut out at that moment. Yun Xian and Zhang Jingyi stood face to face. Her hands trembled, but she firmly guided Zhang Jingyi through the bowing ceremony.

First bow to heaven and earth, second bow to the parents, bow to each other... The moment the final gesture was completed, a striking line of text appeared above Yun Xian’s field of vision: Mission Successful.

Almost simultaneously, the once-rampaging old woman seemed to have all her strength drained away. Her knees buckled, and she collapsed heavily to the ground. Her eyes were hollow and confused, and she kept muttering, "Why do you always defy me? Why..."

Her body gradually turned transparent until she dissipated entirely.

As the old woman vanished, the others’ eyes slowly cleared. They looked at their surroundings in a daze, their faces etched with horror and confusion.

Zhang Jingyi slowly reverted to her female appearance, looking at her wedding attire with bewilderment.

Yun Xian stood still, watching it all, her heart filled with complex emotions. So, this had all been an illusion born of the old woman’s obsession. Those seemingly real scenes were merely a nightmare woven from the intense resentment of a woman who refused to accept reality.

She had intertwined her past regrets, pain, and madness, re-enacting her desired ending in this mansion over and over again.

Fragments of memory, glowing with a ghostly light, drifted down like snowflakes. Yun Xian reached out and caught one. On it, she saw a sixteen-year-old girl, her features youthful and timid, being married into the Zhang family.