Li Changhe felt his vision blur. The young man suddenly tore open his tattered shirt, and a cold, sinister gleam flashed into existence. Those eyes were ferocious and sharp, like a hungry wolf in the wilderness, locking onto Li Changhe’s face unblinkingly.
The cold gleam was as fast as a thunderclap, heading straight for Li Changhe’s throat. Li Changhe was horrified; he instinctively took half a step back and raised his hand to block in a panic.
Too fast!
This thrust had been practiced repeatedly over countless days and nights, piercing through countless straw targets, fueled by a deep, pent-up hatred.
That cold gleam was as forceful as a silver lightning bolt, yet as agile as a swimming fish. It deftly avoided Li Changhe’s blocking arm and, with a soft thud, pierced into his throat.
Li Changhe only managed to let out a few turbid, gurgling sounds before his body fell heavily to the ground. His vision rapidly blurred, leaving only chaotic screams and angry shouts in his ears.
"Beast!!!"
Tian Shoushan, standing behind Li Changhe, let out a heart-wrenching roar. He was not tall to begin with and had been completely blocked by Li Changhe; only when his nephew fell did he realize what had happened.
Tian Shoushan’s eyes were bloodshot, the veins in his neck bulging. He reached out like a madman to grab the young man.
Having struck successfully, the young man abandoned the dagger without hesitation. Taking advantage of the panic as people rushed to help Li Changhe, he rolled on the ground, evading Tian Shoushan’s hand like a nimble wild rabbit, and plunged into the crowd of refugees.
Tian Shoushan immediately gave chase. The refugees scattered like a frightened flock of sheep. He only caught a glimpse of the young man diving into the reeds by the village; in the blink of an eye, he vanished into the night, fleeing into the distance.
"Son of a bitch!"
Tian Shoushan didn't look back. He followed the trail and plunged into the dense reeds, leaving behind a group of terrified refugees huddled together.
"Damn him! May he die a thousand deaths!"
Only then did the crowd come to their senses. The middle-aged steward was pinned to the corner of the wall by the villagers, wailing and cursing:
"It really wasn't my doing!! I don't know that young man; he mixed in with us on the road!"
"Shut up!"
Liu Yunfeng’s face was pale as he shouted sternly. Gritting his teeth, he helped Li Changhe up from the ground and glared fiercely at the middle-aged steward, his composure utterly shattered.
Seeing blood frothing from his nephew’s mouth, it was clear he would not survive. His mind buzzed: How could he explain this to his sister? How could he explain it to Li Gengye? His nephew had died tragically right before his eyes!
Ren Anping sat paralyzed on the ground, stunned. His daughter, Lin-shi, had just become pregnant after marrying Li Changhe, and now Li Changhe was gone. This was a child he had watched grow up!
The crowd was in chaos. On the ground, Li Changhe’s eyes were wide open, staring at the pitch-black night sky. Feeling the hot blood draining from his chest, his consciousness finally plunged into boundless darkness.
"I just wronged Yunping; I’ll have to turn his joy into a funeral."
Li Changhe’s lingering thoughts faded away; the agony and suffocation completely swallowed him.
Amidst the chaos, unseen by anyone, a silver gleam quietly flew up from his Dantian (the energy center of the body). Trailing a tail flame like a swallow returning to the forest, it shot into the night sky, circled once in the air, and flew straight toward the Li family’s backyard.
Not far away.
Old Man Xu stood hunched over, trembling in place. Watching helplessly as the young man stabbed through Li Changhe’s neck—the tip of the blade even protruding from the back—he felt a rush of blood to his head. His vision went black, and he nearly fainted.
"What a sin!"
Tears streamed down his face. He clutched tightly the string of grass grasshoppers he had originally intended to give to Li Changhe, pressing his hand painfully against his chest.
"Beast..."
Old Man Xu took a few deep, ragged breaths, wiped the tears from his face, and started running toward the back mountain, muttering to himself:
"This old man has outlived his wife and seen his master’s family wiped out. I’ve seen more people than the shit a wild wolf drops. You just wait! You just wait! This old man is coming for you!"
————
The Li Family.
In the ancestral hall, Lu Chenyuan sighed silently. He had been startled awake the moment Li Changhe was assassinated, but the village entrance was too far away; he was powerless to help and could only watch the tragedy unfold.
Gazing at the silver gleam hovering by the mirror’s edge like a fluttering butterfly, he knew that with a single thought, this Lingzhong (Spirit Seed (a core essence of spiritual power)) could transform into pure essence to nourish his soul.
However, since Li Changhe had not cultivated the Xuanguang Lun (Mysterious Light Wheel (a cultivation technique)), the depletion of the Lingzhong would bring little benefit. With a soft sigh, Lu Chenyuan reversed his spell formula. Utilizing the Xuanzhu Jiling Shu (Mysterious Pearl Spirit Offering Art), he activated the spiritual consciousness within the Lingzhong. Strands of magical power extracted from the Lingzhong manifested in the courtyard, extending toward the members of the Li family.
Li Gengye had lain in bed for a long time before finally drifting into a hazy sleep. Suddenly, he saw moonlight pouring in like water through the window lattice and cracks in the door. Outside, it was bright as day. His eldest son, Li Changhe, was standing quietly by the bedside, gazing deeply at him.
"What has happened?"
Li Gengye asked his son in a hoarse voice.
Li Changhe pursed his lips, silent. His gaze traced his father’s features carefully, as if trying to carve them into his memory.
"Cough, cough, cough."
Li Gengye coughed violently, frowning as he asked:
"Changhe, what exactly is going on?"
Li Changhe instead bowed respectfully to his father and said with a choked voice:
"Father, take care..."
Before the words had finished, Li Changhe’s figure scattered like sand in the wind. The watery moonlight slowly dimmed, and the courtyard, bright as day, returned to darkness.
Li Gengye’s heart was in turmoil. He reached out to grab him, calling out incessantly.
"Child, speak! Changhe! Li Changhe!"
He abruptly woke from his bed, staring blankly out the window.
————
Side Room.
"Can one dream while cultivating?"
In the side room, Li Chixi opened his eyes, his face covered in tears. He got up and walked outside, seeing Li Tongyan sitting by the wooden table.
Seeing his younger brother come out, Li Tongyan hurriedly wiped the tears from his face and forced a smile, asking:
"What’s wrong?"
Li Chixi stared blankly at his brother, then looked up and asked:
"Where is Big Brother?"
"Big Brother was called out early this morning by a Dianhu (Tenant farmer); probably something to do with the fields."
Li Tongyan forced a smile and answered.
Suddenly, the door creaked. Li Gengye stood in the doorway, looking panic-stricken as he called out:
"Tongyan! Go call your big brother back... never mind, I’ll go myself."
Li Gengye hurriedly put on his shoes and walked to the front courtyard. He pushed open the courtyard gate and froze.
Outside, a large circle of villagers had gathered, all holding torches and weeping. Below the stone steps knelt three people, and a body covered in white cloth lay before them.
Looking at the ashamed and sorrowful expressions of Tian Shoushan and Ren Anping, Li Gengye’s heart sank to the depths of unease. Trembling, he walked down the steps, pushed aside the weeping Liu Yunfeng who tried to support him, and gently lifted the white cloth.
Li Gengye’s vision went black, and he nearly fainted. The brothers who had followed him out also changed their expressions drastically. Li Chixi stepped forward to look, then fell to his knees with a thud, crying out in grief:
"Brother!"
Throwing himself onto Li Changhe’s body to check for breath, Li Chixi suddenly looked up. Sobbing and weeping, he shouted sternly at the crowd:
"Who! Who was it?! Who dares?!"
This stern shout was like the roar of a tiger, startling everyone into stepping back, trembling as they looked at him.