Lu A′cang had been in this business for too long. Many of the details had faded from her memory, but she still remembered her first client—a woman named Yang, whose beauty could bring down a kingdom. Lu A′cang took her pce, hanging herself at a pce called Mawei Slope. Then came the autopsy and the burial, and it wasn't until the group of fervent soldiers packed up and left that she leisurely crawled out of the earth.

  In a secluded chamber, where candlelight flickered gently, an elderly man in resplendent attire bowed deeply before her, thanking her for saving his greatest love in this life. A whole chest of priceless treasures y at her feet, dazzling in the light, a symbol of wealth and grandeur.

  But she remained silent, like a wooden puppet. She could neither see nor hear anything, only knowing that the old man who thanked her so sincerely was once an emperor. At that moment, the reward seemed less significant. What mattered more was that Lu A′cang had convinced herself she had taken the right path. Everything she had sacrificed before was worth it.

  She was the perfect repcement in history—able to repce not just appearances, but every inch of flesh, every drop of blood, even the DNA. Fwless, without a single crack, utterly impeccable.

  As a “formless” among yaokais, Lu A′cang could transform into any human being in the world. During the term of the contract, she would take the pce of her client and carry out all their tasks, even to the point of death. This was her “business.”

  (T/N: 无相; wú xiàng, literally means "without form" or "formless." In Chinese mythology and Daoist philosophy, it often refers to a state of transcendence or a being that is not bound by a physical form or fixed identity. In the context of this story, 无相 seems to refer to a type of yaokai or entity that has the ability to change shape or adopt any form, simir to a shapeshifter or someone without a fixed appearance. It could also suggest an ability to exist in multiple forms or identities simultaneously, transcending conventional limitations of the body or identity.)

  Over the years, she had "pyed" countless roles—ranging from ancient to modern times, from imperial rulers to common folk. She used her own body to help her employers achieve one goal after another while enjoying the privileges that came with the identities of those she impersonated. This kind of life suited her perfectly, like a fish in water.

  This time, she had repced a French girl named Charlotte Bérulle and had been kidnapped. The contract term was one month. It wasn′t her first time being used as a hostage for her employer, but the kidnappers this time were different—they weren′t human. She could smell the strong yaokai aura on them, and from the swirling, chaotic bck mist that moved faster than lightning, she saw a pair of sharp, curved horns glowing with a cold green light, as well as gleaming white beast fangs that did not belong to any human.

  Lu A′cang had limited knowledge of physics, but she had heard of Einstein's theory of retivity—how when an object's speed matches the speed of light, time would freeze. When this strange kidnapper whisked her away in front of a crowd, everything around her seemed to freeze in pce.

  She had never seen a youkai move with such speed—not even the vampires, who were renowned for their speed, could match this kind of skill.

  But the creature that had kidnapped her was just an ordinary, even somewhat foolish-looking wild boar yaokai. Although it appeared in the shape of a man, wearing an ill-fitting T-shirt, it couldn't even fully take human form. A crooked horn sprouted from its forehead, and thick, heavy lips stretched open to reveal two sharp fangs, with saliva occasionally dripping from them.

  Lu A′cang didn't know where she had been taken. The wild boar yokai's speed was so fast that by the time her vision and consciousness returned to normal, she found herself in a room with walls of silvery white, made of some special alloy. The interior was decorated opulently, with a Picasso painting hanging on the wall. In the corner, a rge refrigerator was stocked with half gourmet food and half Saint Geron mineral water. Chopin's Nocturnes were pyed softly from a high-quality sound system.

  Though it cked doors and windows, this room could rival any five-star hotel suite in luxury.

  After throwing her into the room, the wild boar yaokai turned and walked away, phasing through the wall as its body merged seamlessly with the special alloy.

  Lu A′cang walked to the wall and knocked on it. The sound echoed back, thunk-thunk, solid metal. With her current human body, there was no way to break through. This was the first time she'd encountered kidnappers who treated their hostage this well.

  "Welcome, dear Miss Charlotte." The beautiful Nocturne suddenly stopped, and the wall across from her shimmered with rippling light patterns. After a faint sound of electric currents, a rectangur area about two meters square lit up. In the center of it, a person wearing a smiling face mask appeared, sitting perfectly straight in a sharp suit. The camera zoomed in closely, revealing an old-fashioned pocket watch hanging conspicuously from the person's chest.

  The room echoed with an ancient, deep voice. As per her usual routine, Lu A′cang put on an expression of fear and shouted her cssic line at the wall: "Who are you? Where is this?"

  "Don't be afraid," the figure on the wall responded with an eerie ugh. "This pce is safer and better than anywhere else. Before I get what I want, Miss Charlotte will stay here, in peace. Three days from now, someone will come to take you to another pce. You just need to follow their instructions."

  "Let me out!" Lu A′cang, ever the professional, lunged at the wall, pounding it hard. "How much ransom do you want? My father will pay; just let me out!"

  "Shh!" The man raised his right hand, gloved in bck, making a motion as if to silence her. "Miss Charlotte, everyone has a different purpose. Other hostages are meant for ransom, but not you."

  The image on the wall quickly shrank into a single line and vanished.

  This job seemed rather interesting. Lu A′cang thought to herself as she leaned back against the wall and sat down, continuing her act as a helpless mb. A kidnapper who didn't want ransom—what could he possibly want from her in three days? She found herself, unexpectedly, a little curious.