Chapter 4: Face Swap

Indeed, how should one repay a life-saving grace?

Lanling was momentarily at a loss for words. It wasn't appropriate to say something like "I'll owe you for now and repay you a hundredfold in the future." That would be too insincere.

The lady in black continued, "Moreover, I don't need money, I don't need anything. What I want is for the Suo Family's legacy to continue."

Lanling said, "Do you mean if I don't agree, the Suo Family's legacy will perish?"

"Yes," said the lady in black. "Mrs. Suo Lun is the only heir. The royal family has been coveting the Tianshui City Territory for many years, always intending to reclaim it and directly govern it as a county. If Mrs. Suo Lun dies, Tianshui City will be without an heir, and the royal family will have sufficient reason to take back the Tianshui City Territory."

Suddenly, Lanling fell silent.

The lady in black said, "If you agree to my request, you'll not only be repaying my life-saving grace but also saving a family legacy that has been passed down for two hundred years."

Lanling said, "I really want to repay you for saving my life, but I truly want to be myself."

"How about three years?" the lady in black said. "You just need to impersonate Suo Lun for three years and help the Suo Family through this crisis. After three years, if you wish, you can return to being yourself."

...

After a long quarter of an hour, Lanling nodded his head with difficulty and said, "Alright, I agree to impersonate Suo Lun for three years, just three years!"

"It's a deal," the lady in black breathed a sigh of relief.

The twin sister by her side seemed to want to say something but was stopped by her cold gaze.

"My name is Ye Jingyu, and my sister is named Ye Jingfeng. After you've recovered, we'll immediately take you to a place for a face change," said the lady in black, Ye Jingyu.

"A face change?" When he heard these words, Lanling was taken aback.

"Don't worry, there's no danger, and you can change it back later," Jingyu assured. "You have a good rest. We'll continue on our way to find a place to stay."

After speaking, Jingyu took her sister out of the carriage and drove the horses onward.

"Sister, Miss Suo hasn't agreed to this. How could you make this decision on your own?" Jing Feng whispered to her sister.

Jingyu replied, "Miss Suo will agree. What I'm doing is for her sake, for the sake of the Suo Family."

...

In the following days, Lanling continued to recover inside the carriage while Jingyu took him to a mysterious Magician's place for a face change.

By now, his recovery seemed miraculous. He had just been saved from the brink of death not long ago, and in just a few days, he was completely healed. One could only wonder what mysterious energy he had in his body.

The trio continued their journey, traveling for five days and over a thousand miles. As they moved on, the signs of habitation became sparse, the places more secluded and remote.

One day, they finally reached their destination, the secret castle manor of a certain Magician.

This manor, situated in the midst of desolate mountains, was a marvel as to how it was built.

The manor wasn't large, but it was exquisitely beautiful.

The castle was entirely black, while the garden was vibrant with color, presenting a stark contrast.

It seems this Magician is very wealthy indeed. The manor is built deep in the mountains, far away from civilization, and yet he managed to construct it here.

Jingyu and Jing Feng dismounted their horses, and along with Lanling, who got out of the carriage, they walked into the manor.

The entire manor was deserted, like a ghost town. However, the trees in the garden were meticulously trimmed.

Upon entering the castle, Lanling distinctly felt the temperature drop several degrees.

The interior of the castle was lavishly decorated, but the lighting was very dim. The luxurious yet oppressive atmosphere made Lanling feel like he was in a vampire castle from a horror game.

Inside the castle, there was still no one to be seen. Each piece of furniture, every inch of carpet was immaculate.

Although Jing Feng was highly skilled in martial arts, she was rather timid and found the atmosphere unsettling. She secretly wanted to hold her sister's hand. This was her first visit to the place.

Jingyu led the two up the staircase, not knowing how many floors they climbed until they finally reached the top floor of the castle.

There was a large door ahead, a black door inlaid with gold thread. Jingyu knocked on the door, but there was no response. As if a gust of wind blew, the door opened.

Behind the door, the scene that unfolded gave Lanling quite a fright.

The entire castle was luxurious and refined, except for this top-floor room, which was like hell itself. Lanling's first glance took in countless severed heads, eyes, limbs, and various colored liquids. Smoke filled the air, along with a strange and eerie scent.

Also, some of the severed heads, both human and of various creatures, still had eyes that moved.

This was a laboratory; behind a massive table sat a gaunt individual, robed in a large black cloak with a pointed hat. At first glance, he looked as if no one was inside the cloak, just a wooden frame. This person was extremely thin, with long, spindly hands like tree branches.

This must be the owner of the manor, some mysterious Magician.

"What do you want?" the Magician asked, his voice as dry as dead wood, indistinguishable between male or female.

"A face change," Jingyu said.

...

"The two people must look very similar, almost identical facial bones, for the swap to be possible," the Magician said.

"Very similar," Ye Jingyu said, and then she opened the coffin.

As if a gust of wind had passed, the gaunt magician appeared instantly in front of Lanling. It was only then that Lanling could see her face beneath the black cloak.

This was a woman, so old that her age could not be discerned, her face so emaciated it was practically just skin. The reason it was apparent that she was a woman was that her lips were painted a very bright shade. Moreover, she was blind, her eye sockets empty, like dried-up wells.

She extended a hand resembling a chicken's claw, touching Lanling's face. Instantly, all the hairs on his body stood on end, as if truly touched by a ghost.

She felt his face very carefully, as if not missing a single millimeter. Then, she reached to touch the face of Suo Lun's corpse within the coffin.

After a quarter of an hour, she said, "The swap can be done, one thousand Gold Coins."

Lanling, unfamiliar with the economy of this world, did not know if one thousand Gold Coins was a lot or a little. However, his sister Ye Jingfeng let out a low gasp.

"We do not have that many Gold Coins with us, is it possible to go ahead with the swap and pay the deficit after a month?" Ye Jingyu said.

"No," the Magician said.

"Then we might go back to get the money and come back for the face swap," Lanling said.

Ye Jingyu shook her head and said, "There's not enough time."

"Either we do it now, or I will never swap it again," the Magician said.

"But we really didn't bring that many Gold Coins," Ye Jingyu said.

"How many do you have," the Magician asked.

"We only brought ninety-eight," Ye Jingyu said.

Ninety-eight and one thousand were just too far apart. Moreover, the Magician seemed to have no room for negotiation. For a moment, Lanling was unsure whether to feel relief or disappointment for the sisters.

"Is there really no other way? The face-swap is very important to us," Ye Jingyu said.

"That's irrelevant to me; I only want money," the mysterious Magician said.

Lanling finally understood why her manor was so opulent and luxurious; she truly was wealthy.

"There is one other way," the mysterious Magician suddenly said.

Ye Jingyu, eagerly, said, "Tell us."

Pointing at her sister Ye Jingfeng, the mysterious Magician said, "I am quite fond of her. If she stays to accompany me for three years, I will waive the 902 Gold Coins you owe."

Upon hearing this, Lanling and Ye Jingyu almost simultaneously said, "That's not possible."

Through the days of acquaintance, Lanling had grown very fond of Ye Jingfeng. Her martial arts skills were higher than her sister's, but she was very naïve and romantic and quite timid, always utterly loyal to her sister.

For Ye Jingyu, her sister had been inseparable from her since childhood, almost like conjoined twins. Even though her sister's martial arts skills were better than hers, she had always been the one looking after and protecting her sister.

Asking her to be apart from her sister for three years felt like cutting them apart while they were still alive. And to leave her sister in this dreadful castle was completely unacceptable to her, considering how innocent and timid Ye Jingfeng was.

"If you do not agree, then leave," the mysterious Magician said coldly.

For a moment, Ye Jingyu stood rooted to the spot, unsure of what to do, while Lanling was extremely reluctant.

"All right, I agree," Ye Jingfeng suddenly stood up and said resolutely.

"Sister," Ye Jingyu exclaimed in shock.

"Sister, our Master raised us, and the Mistress treated us like her own sisters. I can't just watch the family end like this. To continue our family's legacy, what is this little sacrifice of mine?" Ye Jingfeng said.

With eyes red, Ye Jingyu said, "Can you really do it? You have never left my side."

"How will I know if I don't try?" Ye Jingfeng said. "Sister, you've taken too good care of me, and now I'm like a child."

Ye Jingyu closed her eyes, overcome with sadness, took a deep breath, then opened her eyes and said, "Alright, I agree. Let my sister stay here with you for three years. You won't make her do terrible things, right?"

"Of course..." the mysterious Magician let out a sly laugh, then said, "Alright, I'm about to craft the face. You should leave now."

The mysterious Magician opened a box and took out a living creature from inside. The creature was completely transparent, like a glob of water. When brought out, it let out a fearful scream. They were going to make a face with this living thing?

That was all they could see; after that, Ye Jingyu and the others left the laboratory.

...

Barely four hours later, the doors of the laboratory slowly opened.

At first glance, Lanling saw Suo Lun's corpse, now beyond recognition. Not only was the entire face gone, but all the skin on the body had disappeared.

And on the table's stand, there was a new mask.

It was nothing like what Lanling had imagined, not a mask made of human skin, but rather like a thin, semi-liquid crystal about two to three millimeters thick. It had the contours of a human face but was completely transparent and continuously flowing, as if alive.

"Lie down, it's time to swap faces," the Magician said.