"Hck... hck..."
Han the Eighth opened his mouth and spat out a mouthful of crimson blood. He slowly lowered his head to look at the sharp blade still trembling in his chest. His expression was blank for a moment before sudden realization dawned on him.
'Li Chang'an never intended to let him live!'
All that nonsense talk just now was merely to prepare for this one surprise attack.
But his realization came too late.
If it had only been an eye injury, Han the Eighth might have been able to put up some resistance using his Combat Intuition.
But as it was, the angle of Li Chang'an's strike was wickedly precise. It had slipped between his ribs and pierced his heart. In just a few moments, he could feel the strength draining from his entire body.
[With Heaven-defying Comprehension, you focused on combat with a long blade and successfully comprehended the Martial Arts Technique, Ghost Gate Thirteen Blades!]
[With Heaven-defying Comprehension, you experienced killing for the first time. Your heart was moved, and you successfully comprehended the Mental Method, Purifying Heart Technique!]
During the fight, Li Chang'an had comprehended another Cultivation Technique and a Mental Method. The Ghost Gate Thirteen Blades was something his Heaven-defying Comprehension talent had learned by observing the stances of the few Clerks and Han the Eighth as they held their blades.
The Purifying Heart Technique, on the other hand, was born from the violent and ferocious emotions that arose in Li Chang'an's heart after he had killed.
The Sword Technique, needless to say, was a set of combat moves.
The Purifying Heart Technique was rather special; circulating it could help Li Chang'an maintain his inner peace.
'I can't believe my Heaven-defying Comprehension managed to whip up two pretty useful techniques for me in the middle of a fierce battle. Having a built-in cheat is awesome!'
[Defying Fate successful!]
[At two and a half years old, you flew into a rage and killed several clerks who came to collect grain, successfully avoiding the fate of being extorted and starving!]
[Rebirth evaluation has increased. Received an additional 500 Rebirth Points!]
Watching Han the Eighth, his heart filled with resentment but powerless to do anything but fall in indignation, Li Chang'an let out a long sigh of relief.
High-intensity combat took a terrifying toll on both his mind and body.
He had managed to smoothly dispose of these beasts not only because of his own formidable strength, but mainly because he had used his 'harmless' appearance to mislead Han the Eighth and the others in their judgment of him.
Strictly speaking, it was like dancing back and forth on a tightrope.
The slightest mistake, and this rebirth would have ended prematurely.
Fortunately, the final result was acceptable. Setting aside the techniques he'd comprehended with his Heaven-defying Comprehension, just by killing these beasts, he had at least rewritten the fate of one established node.
Five hundred Rebirth Points wasn't much, but if used to buy ordinary daily necessities, its purchasing power was equivalent to five thousand yuan in his previous life.
And this was just from rewriting the tiniest of fate nodes.
There were so many more nodes to change in the future...
Of course, all of this was contingent on him properly handling the current situation.
Six black-clothed Clerks had gone missing in Li Family Village, and among them was Han the Eighth, one of Magistrate Chai's dogs.
If he didn't handle this well, in a few days, even the ants at the Li Family's doorstep would be scalded with boiling water.
Looking at the corpses lying haphazardly at his feet, still bleeding, Li Chang'an took a deep breath to suppress the churning in his stomach. He turned to Li Dashan and Huang Xiaoru and asked, "Father, Mother, are you two all right?!"
Li Dashan and Huang Xiaoru were already dumbfounded, frozen in place for a long while before they could snap out of it.
Now, as Li Chang'an's gaze fell upon them, their eyes held a trace of disbelief... and wisps of an unconcealable fear!
It couldn't be helped. The methods Li Chang'an had just displayed were simply too terrifying. Even his own parents, Huang Xiaoru and Li Dashan, couldn't accept it right away.
In the end, it was Li Dashan, the head of the family, who mustered his courage and asked with a trembling voice, "We're fine. Ch... Child, are you hurt?"
Li Chang'an shook his head and stretched his body a bit to show he was completely fine.
Seeing this, Li Dashan sighed in relief. After a moment's hesitation, as if he had thrown all caution to the wind, he asked through gritted teeth, "Th... that just now... how did you do it?"
At this, Li Chang'an could only give a wry smile. After thinking for a moment, he said, "I learned those techniques from a passing Daoist. He taught me many Cultivation Methods for the Martial Dao!"
He didn't elaborate.
It was a lie, but not entirely.
After all, he really had learned a Cultivation Method from that passing Daoist.
As for the means by which he learned it...
Was that really important?
Hearing Li Chang'an's answer, Li Dashan still found it somewhat hard to believe, but he felt a deep sense of relief. His anxious, pounding heart began to calm.
After all, there was a world of difference between something having an explanation and having no explanation at all.
Li Dashan knew that Extraordinary Martial Artists existed in this world. Perhaps his son had just been lucky enough to receive some guidance from a great figure. There was nothing wrong with that.
With his limited knowledge, he would never have imagined that the combat prowess Li Chang'an had displayed at his age was explosive enough to be considered astonishing, even among other Martial Artists.
Once the burden was lifted from his heart, Li Dashan's mind finally started working again. He looked at the bodies strewn across the ground and said, at a complete loss, "Wh... what do we do now? Should we pack up and run away tonight?"
Li Chang'an shook his head. "We can't run. If we run now, we'd be taking all the blame. We have a family to look after; we wouldn't get far before we're caught and beheaded!"
Hearing this, Li Dashan knew his son was right, and his expression grew even paler.
Ignoring his panicking parents, Li Chang'an had already thought of how to handle the aftermath before he even made his move. So, he immediately said, "Father, go get the village chief now!"
Li Dashan, upon hearing this, did as he was told, even though he doubted the village chief could help. He didn't have the time or energy to dwell on why his son, not yet three years old, knew so much.
The village chief of Li Family Village was named Li Xiao, a stooped old man nearly sixty years of age. In terms of seniority, Li Chang'an would have to call him great-uncle.
When he saw the yard full of corpses, Li Xiao's withered, bark-like face couldn't help but tremble.
After managing to steady himself, Li Xiao's gaze fell on Li Dashan. "What happened here?"
In this chaotic world where the average life expectancy was only thirty or forty, for Li Xiao to have lived to nearly sixty, outlasting almost all his peers in the village, meant he was certainly capable.
A single glance at the scene was enough for him to grasp the severity of the situation.
Under what could only be described as Li Xiao's death glare, the pressure on Li Dashan doubled. He stammered for a good while but couldn't get a word out, finally turning a pleading gaze toward Li Chang'an.
...