Of course, he did not step forward, he just hid outside. He could see the elderly couple in the courtyard, but they could not see him.

According to the statement he later gave after being arrested by the police, much later.

At the time he did not know what was happening to him, his mind was muddled, his heart pounding, his brain no longer able to control his body, and he slowly raised the bow and arrow and shot toward the old man who was sitting in the yard shelling corn.

One arrow struck directly into the old man’s chest at the heart and pierced all the way through. The arrow remained lodged there.

Put in the city, if a young person had been shot through the heart by an arrow and it pierced through, even rushing them to the hospital in time might not save them. All the more so in a remote mountain forest, and the victim was an elderly man.

So at the moment he was hit, the old man let out a miserable scream and collapsed.

At that moment, his wife heard the commotion and hurried out of the house.

When she came out, she saw an arrow protruding from her husband’s chest. She ran to him, held him, and shouted for him to wake up, but he never regained consciousness.

While she helplessly clutched her husband’s corpse, crying and at a loss, whoosh—an arrow pierced through her throat.

It took her life as well, and her body fell rigidly beside her husband.

After shooting the elderly couple with arrows, Ding Dali finally emerged.

He came out, stood by the corpses, and stared blankly at them. Then, unbelievably, he proceeded to shoot several more arrows at the two bodies from close range.

Even worse, he treated the two corpses like living targets, tying them to fixed posts and propping them up so he could shoot at different distances and ranges.

He lost count of how many arrows he fired into those bodies; all he knew was that he kept shooting them over and over, and he spent an entire afternoon doing nothing but that.

Only afterward did he figure out how to dispose of the bodies without leaving traces.

It was after leaving that deep mountain forest that his path of killing truly began.

Of course, that elderly couple in the remote woods was a rare occurrence, something that only happened once in several years.

So he turned his attention to people who could serve as targets.

In the end, he chose vagrants and prostitutes as his victims.

Fairy Sister: “Huh, why choose those two types of victims? Isn’t killing them still illegal?”

Domineering Female CEO: “Of course killing them is illegal.”

It’s just that those two groups are at the bottom of society, vulnerable and ignored. Even if they go missing or are harmed, it’s difficult to ignite a large social response.

And when they disappear, investigations are more difficult.

Little Dragon Girl: “I get it. Is it like this—”

If a murder involves a female college student, the reaction is often greater, more sensational, and draws more sympathy than if the victim were a prostitute.

Little Aunt: “I just searched online, and actually it’s not just Ding Dali. Many serial killers worldwide target the homeless and prostitutes.”

Domineering Female CEO: “Yes, so Ding Dali choosing those two types of targets was a calculated decision.”

But even careful planning cannot outmatch fate.

Once, due to work he had to travel out of town on a business trip.

A few mischievous children were searching for secret hideouts and accidentally stumbled into the place where he had imprisoned those homeless people and prostitutes he planned to kill.

Those children saw horrific scenes, were badly frightened, and ran home to tell their parents. After the parents reported it, this serial killer was exposed to the public.

Middle-aged Uncle: “Yeah, pretty perverted, but his life won’t be long now. He’s unlucky—picked a fight with the wrong people.”

Middle-aged Uncle’s comment drew a lot of agreement.

But many people were confused or thought he was talking nonsense.

Those were newcomers who didn’t know, or barely knew, Jiang Ran.

One person posted: “You’re sounding way too certain. Although catching an arrow with your hand is pretty crazy.”

“But do you know which type of soldier was the strongest in ancient times?”

“I’ll tell you: archers!”

“In ancient times, archers were elite. If you weren’t elite, you couldn’t even draw the bow—let alone be an archer in battle. You don’t just fire one arrow and stop; you must keep shooting and keep drawing. Imagine the strength and endurance!”

“And archers—if you think they only shoot arrows and are terrible in close combat, you’re wrong. Put down the bow and pick up a sword, and they become iron-blooded warriors!”

“The most famous two are the mounted archer Guan Yu, and his third brother, the foot archer Zhang Fei!!!”

“Even crazier was Lü Bu, firing polearms from his chariot!”

“So Ding Dali won’t be so easy to deal with!”

Middle-aged Uncle sent a nose-picking emoji, looking down on that comment.

...

At Alice Apartment, Brother Jiang Ran caught that arrow, then the elder brother personality took control of the body and charged toward Building No. 2 like a released arrow.

Ding Dali, on the high-floor balcony of Building No. 2, recovered from his earlier shock.

A faint smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

It seemed he thought he’d finally found a good live target.

Whoosh whoosh whoosh!

Three arrows in succession.

But Brother Jiang Ran’s body was like a lightning rod.

All three arrows missed.

He had already stepped into the building.

This sight made Ding Dali frown deeply.

He had absolute confidence in his archery.

After all, it was a skill he had practiced for many years.

He had shot at both live and dead targets countless times.

So how could someone below him, still in the higher position, evade all three arrows?

Ding Dali stared at his hands in disbelief.

He wondered if his aim was unusually off today.

After Brother Jiang Ran entered Building No. 2, his mind kept replaying where that roughly forty-year-old man’s balcony had been.

Finally he confirmed that the man was on the 502 balcony.

Brother Jiang Ran took the stairs and soon arrived at the security door of 502.

He kicked the security door hard several times.

But his strength was insufficient; in front of that security door he was like an ant trying to shake a giant tree, overestimating himself.

“No good, this body is still too weak.”

Brother Jiang Ran frowned.

Previously, the complete main personality had kicked open the security door of the security team because he had used ten thousand points to boost the body’s physicality to match the one before the crossing.

“Want me to give it a try too?”