Chapter 309: 安魂谣

"Dad... Brother Jian... when will he arrive?"

Inside the narrow room, thick quilts blocked all windows and door cracks. Three figures huddled around a basin of charcoal embers that were about to die out, their eyelashes and hair tips covered in frost.

"...It's so freezing outside, Little Jian might..." The aunt-in-law on the side trailed off, shaking her head in silence.

The uncle exhaled a trembling puff of white mist, his gaze fixed on the tightly shut main door, filled with worry and bitterness.

In his mind, the image of Jian Changsheng, standing amidst flying playing cards on Century Avenue, reappeared. Although he knew Jian Changsheng's current status was extraordinary, the thought of the deadly cold weather outside still made him worried for his nephew.

Ding—dong—ding!!The resonant sound of a bell echoed from outside. The three people trembled and looked towards the blocked windows.

"Outside now... there shouldn't be anyone alive, right?" The aunt-in-law huddled, muttering to herself, "Then... who is ringing the bell?"

"Could it be the Enforcers taking action?" Hope gleamed in the boy's eyes.

The uncle didn't answer. After much internal struggle, he slowly rose...

"Where are you going??""I'm going out to check.""It's so cold outside, you...""Stay in the house. Don't go out, understand?"

The uncle opened the bedroom door and walked into the living room, closing the bedroom door behind him. Then, he carefully pushed open a corner of the main door to prevent the cold wind from reaching the bedroom. As he stepped out into the street, extreme low temperatures suddenly descended.

He saw black snowflakes fluttering everywhere and the aurora rising from the ground. He stood frozen, his eyes filled with shock and bewilderment.

Only when the icy wind cut like a knife across his cheek did he snap back to reality. He gritted his teeth and walked step by step towards the bell tower. Only those people could ring the bell in Aurora City now, and Little Jian should be among them.

But after just two steps, an even colder wave swept in from beyond the city walls, like a death wind blowing from the underworld, painting the sky a chilling deep blue.

The uncle's pupils constricted suddenly, as if his heart had stopped. His legs gave out, and he collapsed into the snow.

In such low temperatures, his consciousness began to blur. Life was slowly being drained by the cold snap, like a dying ember flickering in the icy wind of a grotto. With a gentle puff, only faint ashes remained, quickly fading...

Just as he was about to close his eyes, four dark figures slowly walked from the end of the street.

"...Uncle?"Jian Changsheng saw the person, his pupils constricting slightly. He immediately ran forward to check his uncle's breath, only to find it was barely there...

"Li...ttle Jian..." A faint, mosquito-like whisper escaped him as his uncle's heart completely stopped beating.

The wailing cold wind echoed in his ears.Jian Changsheng squatted there, motionless as a statue.

He had never imagined that human life could be so fragile. Even a gust of wind blowing from the Forbidden Sea was enough to effortlessly fell the pillar of any family...

"Uncle... Uncle?!" Jian Changsheng suddenly picked him up. The black umbrella in his hand rolled onto the snow, gently tumbling with the cold wind until it rested beside a pair of black leather shoes.

Chen Ling and the other two stood a short distance away, holding their umbrellas, their expressions complex as they watched Jian Changsheng kneeling before his uncle.

The boy's cries echoed through the silent street.

"This is your first experience with a Boundary Funeral... but it won't be your last," Chu Muyun said slowly. "In this era, human fragility far exceeds your imagination. Even the Twilight Society cannot save everyone. Therefore, we don't recommend forming deep connections with ordinary people."

"This is also why the Twilight Society usually only recruits new members who are either mad or cold-blooded... because only those who don't easily empathize can maintain their sanity and clarity through repeated witnessing."

"Otherwise... repeated despair and pain will drag you into the abyss."

Jian Changsheng's fists clenched tightly. He held his uncle's body, tears already frozen on his cheeks...

Black snowflakes fell on the corpse's shoulders. A faint aurora, like a kite, wavered up from within his body, slowly ascending towards the aurora-filled sky.

At that moment, Jian Changsheng seemed to see a blurry figure waving at him within the aurora. He knelt there numbly, his eyes bloodshot.

Meanwhile, several streets away, a young woman also dressed in a suit parted her lips. Her ethereal and clear voice, with a certain rhythm, echoed beneath the silent sky.

"I see the sky weeping,I hear your voice;I smell longing blossoming among thorns,I come from the direction of the sunset..."

The moment he heard this voice, Chen Ling paused, slightly surprised.

It was like a poem, like a ballad, echoing clearly and melodiously through every corner of the city in an ethereal, crystal-like female voice. This voice seemed to possess a special magic; the auroras fluttering into the sky appeared to be soothed by an invisible hand, becoming tranquil and serene.

If Lord Aurora were here, he would find that the previously chaotic roars of souls had completely vanished, replaced by a dreamlike calm.

Even Jian Changsheng, who was still kneeling, felt his pain lessen slightly. Wiping away the frozen tears from the corners of his eyes, he looked blankly in the direction of the voice.

"This is..." Chen Ling began, confused.

"It's a Requiem," Chu Muyun said, looking complexly in the direction of the voice. "This is an essential part of a Boundary Funeral. The Requiem chanted by her can soothe the resentful spirits of those who died in the disaster, allowing them to rest in peace."

"These three million people died in such agony. Without the Requiem, even if their images were etched into the sky, most would remain frozen in pain and despair..."

"This is considered a unique skill of our Twilight Society. Unfortunately, only four people know it so far."

Chu Muyun sighed deeply and said no more.

Bai Ye also slowly closed her eyes, as if listening intently.

The ethereal female voice continued to sing:

"The earth and rose red are your warm bed,Frost and the setting sun are your rich makeup;I will weave hope into flying kapok flowers,Until the rocks remember the fragrance..."

Jian Changsheng listened to the ballad and slowly stood up.

He bent down, picked up the black umbrella at his feet, opened it, and slowly placed it over the cold body... as if shielding the figure from the final wind and snow.

At the same time, in the house the uncle had left, a mother and son also closed their eyes forever under the cold wave.

Jian Changsheng closed his eyes, silently praying for something in his heart.

More and more auroras silently flew into the sky with the song. The auroras that had completely dissipated unexpectedly gathered again, with green and red lights flowing like rivers above the city, brilliantly beautiful.

"O weeping ones,Please gently close your eyes;Until twilight falls in the darkest age,I will promise you dawn and blue skies."