Unexpected Second Chance at Love

While Imperial remained immersed in sleep beneath the peak of darkness, an eerie stillness settled over the city, and Lu Tian’s black Maserati Levante Trofeo slowed to a stop near a cliff overlooking the sea.

The moment Yue Ling’s feet touched the snow-covered ground, chaos erupted in another part of Imperial.

The sound of multiple footsteps surrounded Red Militant.

Yue Ling calmly brushed a strand of hair away from her face.

At that exact moment, one of her team kicked down the front door of Red Militant.

Then another door.

And another.

The building erupted into panic.

Shouts and hurried footsteps echoed through Red Militant as her people stormed inside.

Yet Yue Ling remained unfazed where she was.

Her bluish-green eyes lifted toward the towering seven-story building before her, her expression eerily calm.

Whatever was happening inside Red Militant no longer concerned her.

The outcome had already been decided.

Fate stood tall against the night, its dark silhouette surrounded by an endless blanket of snow. Below the cliff, the sea stretched into the darkness, its normally restless waves unusually calm—as though even the ocean had fallen silent in anticipation of what was to come.

Without exchanging a word, the couple began walking toward Fate.

With every step Yue Ling took, a gunshot echoed from the direction of Red Militant.

A scream followed.

She continued walking.

Another footprint pressed into the untouched snow.

Another body fell inside Red Militant.

The sea softly crashed against the cliffs below.

Another wave rolled toward shore.

And somewhere in the distance, another scream pierced the night.

It was as though the sounds of the sea were keeping time with the destruction unfolding across Imperial.

By the time Yue Ling walked through the front of Fate, the snow behind her remained pristine beneath her feet, while far away, Red Militant was drowning in blood.

She walked up the front stairs without hesitation.

Liu Shan and Xu Long were already waiting.

Yue Ling gave Liu Shan a single nod before continuing toward the entrance.

The assistant immediately fell into step behind her.

”Is he here?”

”Already in that room.”

Yue Ling’s footsteps never faltered.

Neither did her expression.

”Good.”

Liu Shan emphasized the word ”that,” letting her know that Gui Tian Lan and Qi Li had already contacted him about her sudden change of plans.

He hadn’t had any trouble persuading Chief Ren that his boss no longer wanted Hung Woo behind bars.

The moment he mentioned that there had been a change of plans, Chief Ren knew it would be impossible to persuade Yue Ling otherwise and released Hung Woo.

From behind them, Lu Tian arched a brow, curious about how his wife planned to deal with Hung Woo. Meanwhile, Xu Long shivered at the memory of the room he had helped bring Hung Woo into.

It was a room that could make even men who had seen their fair share of blood tremble at the sight of it.

As Yue Ling entered through the door, a faint smile appeared on her lips when she spotted the elderly man standing beside the staircase.

”Steward Yang.”

She greeted him with a polite nod, and he returned it.

He walked toward her without hiding the glance he cast at Lu Tian before turning his attention back to her.

”Miss Han, it is good to see you.”

Yue Ling maintained her small smile.

”It is good to see you, too. Unfortunately, it has to be during a time like this again.”

The last time she had been here, it had been to let the Underworld know that Fate had returned.

She had hoped that the next time she came here, it would be of her own free will.

Steward Yang understood what she meant. He had cared for this place since her grandfather’s time and knew the significance of her return.

He gestured toward the area beyond the staircase and gave a slight bow.

”Everything is ready for you. If you need my assistance, please do call.”

Yue Ling nodded before heading in the direction the elderly man had pointed.

Lu Tian didn’t hesitate to follow his wife, though he didn’t forget to give Steward Yang a polite nod in greeting.

Behind them, Liu Shan remained behind to speak with Steward Yang while Xu Long followed the couple.

Yue Ling walked through a set of double doors toward the side of the building, which led into a dimly lit hallway lined with dark brick walls.

The hallway stretched into darkness, its old brick walls fading into shadow on either side. The bricks were uneven and weathered, their rough surfaces stained by years of grime and moisture. A few dim lights hung overhead, flickering intermittently and casting long, distorted shadows across the narrow passage.

The air was cold and stale, carrying the faint scent of damp earth and rust. Every sound seemed amplified—the distant drip of water, the quiet scrape of footsteps against the worn concrete floor, even the soft shift of clothing.

Further down, the hallway vanished into complete darkness, suggesting that whatever waited beyond the weak lights was meant to remain unseen.

Yue Ling had walked this path many times before.

For a moment, she had thought she would never have to walk it again.

Until now.

At the end of the hallway, a narrow staircase descended into darkness.

The old brick walls continued around the stairwell, their rough surfaces damp and stained beneath the faint glow of a flickering light overhead. Each step disappeared deeper into the shadows, leading somewhere the weak light could not reach.

A cold draft drifted upward from below, carrying with it the faint smell of damp stone and rust.

There was no indication of what waited at the bottom.

Only the darkness.

Descending the stairs, no one spoke a word.

Only the sound of their footsteps echoed against the walls until they reached another hallway, nearly identical to the one above. However, this corridor was lined with doors on either side, each one spaced several feet apart.

Lu Tian never took his eyes off his wife.

He didn’t need to know what lay behind the doors they passed.

His attention was solely on her.

Xu Long, however, felt differently.

Ever since arriving, curiosity had been gnawing at him. He remembered asking Liu Shan about the rooms, only for the man to shrug his shoulders and tell him that each one served a different purpose when it came to torture.

Xu Long still remembered one of the rooms he had been shown.

When he looked inside, he had seen a wooden chair bolted to the center of the floor, metal cuffs secured to both the armrests and legs. Beside it stood a table covered with an assortment of medical instruments.

One glance had been enough for him to know those tools weren’t meant to save a life.

They were meant to end one.

He could only pray that his boss wouldn’t enter any of these rooms, especially considering how much she preferred cleanliness.

Oblivious to the assistant’s thoughts, Yue Ling continued down the hallway until she stopped in front of the final door.

Just as she reached for the handle, Lu Tian beat her to it.

She looked up at him, one eyebrow arching in silent question.

A small smile was all he gave her.

Deciding not to call him out over something so minor, Yue Ling allowed him to open the door before stepping inside.

The sensor lights flickered on the moment the small group entered.

The room was almost entirely white, creating a stark contrast to the dark hallway outside. A massive floor-to-ceiling window occupied one side of the room, offering an unobstructed view of the ocean.

On the opposite side hung a set of chains connected to the ceiling by a heavy chain hoist.

In the center of the room was Hung Woo.

His back was turned toward them as he faced the window, bound tightly to a wooden chair that appeared to have been worn down by years of use.

Lu Tian immediately noticed the bandage wrapped around Hung Woo’s left hand, fresh blood still seeping through the gauze.

His gaze settled on it.

For a moment, he said nothing.

A faint displeasure passed through his eyes—not because Hung Woo had been injured, but because someone had bothered to treat him.

The wound deserved far less care than the man received.

Not after touching his wife.

Lu Tian’s expression remained perfectly calm as he turned his attention toward the ocean beyond the glass.

He had no intention of wasting his anger on words.

Hung Woo was a dead man whether his wife decided to spare him or not.

He slipped his hands into the pockets of his coat before walking toward the floor-to-ceiling window.

The night view of the ocean greeted him.

Dark water stretched endlessly beneath the night sky, gentle waves reflecting the moon’s faint glow.

It was beautiful.

The kind of view that could make someone believe they were standing inside a luxurious vacation retreat.

But Lu Tian knew better.

He understood exactly what this room was designed for.

The view wasn’t meant to provide comfort.

It was meant to create contrast.

Beauty outside.

Hell within.