"Old Zhou, what brings you here?"
Shen Bai was lounging in his chair and had just taken a sip of tea. He set his cup down upon seeing Zhou Qing and asked the question.
Zhou Qing would often drop by when things were quiet, but Shen Bai had never seen him this agitated before.
Zhou Qing walked over, catching his breath. Making himself at home, he grabbed the tea on the table and chugged several large gulps.
Only after he was done drinking did Zhou Qing speak.
"Lao Shen, something's happened."
Shen Bai was taken aback. "Something happened? Is it that Five-Heart Sect again?"
'If anything's been going on lately,' Shen Bai figured, 'it has to be related to the Five-Heart Sect.'
Zhou Qing nodded. "That's what I'm here to investigate. I'm just stopping by to let you know. They say someone found two bodies on Yangliu Street. The scene was gruesome."
"A middle-aged man with both arms cut off, and a five or six-year-old girl, tortured to death."
"The man's arms were severed cleanly. It's very likely related to the Five-Heart Sect."
Hearing this, the hand Shen Bai was raising to his lips froze.
Zhou Qing and Shen Bai went way back; they were good friends. Noticing his reaction, he asked, "Lao Shen, what is it? Have you run into trouble recently? You could always lie low at the Government Office for a bit."
Shen Bai snapped out of it and shook his head. "It's nothing, Old Zhou. Can I go with you to take a look?"
Zhou Qing gave him an odd look. "Lao Shen, I thought you hated getting involved in this kind of thing?"
"For something this major, of course I have to go see," Shen Bai said, putting down his teacup and standing up.
A short while later, Zhang Chaofeng entered the room.
Shen Bai left Zhang Chaofeng in charge of the pawnshop, then he and Zhou Qing left and headed for Yangliu Street.
...
Even for Shengyun County, Yangliu Street was a remote and dilapidated area. Barely any families lived there.
At this moment, a huge crowd of onlookers was packed tightly around a house on Yangliu Street.
Some constables were maintaining order, trying to disperse the crowd.
Zhou Qing led Shen Bai through the throng. Once they were clear, Shen Bai saw the scene in the clearing ahead.
A gaunt man, his arms missing, stared wide-eyed with an expression of one who had not died in peace.
Beside him, a five-year-old girl's entire skeleton was shattered, her limbs twisted at unnatural angles.
In the little girl's left hand, she was clutching a money pouch made of coarse cloth as if it were a priceless treasure. Even in death, she held it tightly.
Shen Bai took a deep breath, his hand subconsciously grasping the longsword at his waist, his face serene.
Zhou Qing didn't notice anything unusual about Shen Bai. He told him to watch from a distance and quickly joined the other constables to begin the investigation of the scene.
Shen Bai's face was calm, but the hand gripping his sword hilt grew tighter and tighter.
'He never expected Yaya to be dead.'
'And to have died with all her bones shattered.'
'The pain she must have suffered was unimaginable.'
The sight of her hand clutching the money pouch, in particular, made the fire in Shen Bai's eyes burn hotter.
"Old Zhou, I'm heading back."
'I can't stay here any longer,' Shen Bai thought.
'If I stay any longer, I won't be able to contain my rage.'
Zhou Qing was busy and didn't pay him any mind, just giving a casual grunt of acknowledgment.
Shen Bai turned and silently walked back toward the pawnshop.
On the way back, Shen Bai's mind was in turmoil.
He could accept the cruelty of life-and-death struggles in the Jianghu.
But to prey on the helpless—especially an innocent child—was simply monstrous in his eyes.
Shen Bai still remembered the way Yaya had clutched the money pouch, her eyes full of gratitude for him.
"Fuck. I've never been this angry."
When Shen Bai returned to the pawnshop, even Zhang Chaofeng could sense that something was off about his master's mood.
Once in the backyard, Shen Bai began grinding the Blood Sword Dance, the images of the corpses replaying in his mind.
A murderous intent began to stir in his heart.
...
「Nightfall.」
While practicing the Liver Blood Sword Dance, Shen Bai drank some Qi Blood Medicine, and his Skill Level progressed significantly.
Zhang Chaofeng had already left. People are always eager to get off work.
After dinner, his Blood Sword Dance Skill Level saw another significant jump, approaching 1300.
Shen Bai didn't let up for a second. He was like a tireless Gan Di, grinding away with grim pleasure.
The day's events had brought him a moment of stark clarity.
'This world is a chaotic mess. You could lose your life at any moment.'
'To live a good life, the only way is to get stronger.'
'Only when my strength is unrivaled can I truly begin to enjoy life.'
The night was as cool as water. The figure of Shen Bai practicing the Liver Blood Sword Dance continued to move, tireless.
In the stove nearby, the Qi Blood Medicine bubbled away.
After grinding for a while longer, his Blood Sword Dance Skill Level finally hit 1300.
Shen Bai took a short break, downed another dose of Qi Blood Medicine, and prepared to resume grinding once his Qi and blood had completed their Recovery.
But just then, something strange happened.
A knock came from the door.
Shen Bai's brows furrowed. He picked up his rusty longsword and walked toward the entrance.
'Who could be looking for me at this hour?'
With this thought in mind, Shen Bai reached the door.
Just then, a sudden chill blew through the crack under the door.
As the chill filled the room, Shen Bai felt as if he had been plunged into an icehouse.
Through the crack of the door, Shen Bai thought he saw a pair of deathly pale eyes.
Before Shen Bai could draw his longsword, the door suddenly swung open.
Outside the door stood two figures, one large and one small.
The gaunt man's arms were gone, his empty sleeves fluttering in the wind.
Yaya held one of the sleeves, tilting her head as she sized up Shen Bai.
Her eyes were deathly pale, her face was bloodless white, and her limbs were twisted like withered branches.
'An aberration.'
Shen Bai understood with a single glance.
Yaya and her father had been tortured to death during the day. Now, their resentment had festered and turned them into these twisted things.
"Sir... money..."
In Yaya's right hand, she held a bag of blood-stained money.
The cold, sinister words came from Yaya's mouth.
Just then, with a calm gaze, Shen Bai's rusty longsword flared with a brilliant, righteous aura as it slashed across the necks of Yaya and her father.
The Blood Sword Dance stirred his Qi and blood. As the terrifying power surged, the gaunt man's head was the first to fall.
Beside him, Yaya seemed to be provoked and started screaming madly.
Her twisted limbs hit the ground, and she crawled toward Shen Bai, her deathly pale eyes filled with a bloodthirsty desire.
Shen Bai swung his longsword back around in a single slash.
With a whoosh of air, a bloody gash appeared on Yaya's chest.
As the gash widened, Yaya and the gaunt man both dissolved into two plumes of black smoke.
[Acquired two wisps of Evil Qi]
Before his eyes, words formed from smoke appeared and quickly vanished.
This time, upon acquiring the Evil Qi, Shen Bai felt none of his usual excitement. Instead, there was only the calm before a storm.
Looking at the spot where the father and daughter had vanished into black smoke, Shen Bai sheathed his rusty longsword.
"This debt of vengeance for you both... I've put it on my books."
On the dark street, Shen Bai's voice echoed.