The Pain

Finally, I left Tian Ruo City.

Since the day I caught the attention of Lu Gaosheng, I have finally escaped from that place where I was constantly monitored, damn it.

Snowflakes sparsely fell from the sky.

The mountains were covered in a hazy layer of white, obscuring the colors of the vegetation. The world appeared desolate.

Exhale...

The breath turned to frost.

Wang Xiaoer sat by the river, fetching water. After he finished, he rubbed his frozen hands together.

However, upon closer inspection, Wang Xiaoer wasn't in a good state at the moment, considering the bruise on his head.

But Wang Xiaoer didn't mind. Firstly, he was at fault this time, so it was only natural for his master to give him a beating. Secondly, ever since he became an apprentice, he had become quite adept at getting beaten up. These past few days without being beaten by his master, he strangely felt a little nostalgic.

"Master, that person knows about the Hei Shanke incident and has even seen your true face. Why don't you kill him?" Wang Xiaoer handed the water bag to his master while asking this.

Zhang San leaned against a snow cedar tree, focusing on his breathing exercises.

After killing Xu Guo, he was also seriously injured. Although his external injuries were manageable, the repeated impact of blades had caused significant internal injuries. Signs of instability in his inner energy emerged during the journey, so he decided to rest where he was.

Zhang San slowly opened his eyes, took the water bag, and said, "I can't kill him... How can I? This person is too cunning, killing him would be too troublesome."

"Can't you kill him?" Wang Xiaoer was puzzled.

"Let me ask you this: If you were Lu Gaosheng and you knew that a master like me was preparing to kill you, and you didn't have anyone capable of matching my skills, what would you do?"

Wang Xiaoer was also extremely clever and paced back and forth for a moment...

He wants to kill me.

I can't beat him.

So, he can only resort to threats.

Wang Xiaoer straightforwardly said, "I will definitely tell you, Master, that as soon as you kill me, your portrait and secrets will immediately spread throughout the martial world... I see! No wonder the owner of the Dark Building and Hei Shanhu have been looking for us all along."

"Yes, Lu Gaosheng not only knows how to say such things, but he will definitely do them. He has so many subordinates, arranging such matters would be too easy for him."

Leaving Lu Gaosheng alive was reasonable since Zhang San had the ability to kill him, and Lu Gaosheng couldn't stay with his one thousand guards all the time. Furthermore, Zhang San knew about Bai Fang, the smuggling activities on the sea, and the private army, among other things.

Lu Gaosheng wouldn't actively provoke Zhang San and do something foolish.

But if he didn't kill Lu Gaosheng, that person would be a threat in himself.

Yet, if he killed him, that threat would immediately escalate.

Caught in a dilemma.

Although Zhang San knew that this was Lu Gaosheng's intention, to make him hesitate and fear.

Can't win?

If he can't win, then he would drag him onto his own ship and tie their interests together.

If it weren't for his strong desire to kill Lu Gaosheng, Zhang San would have applauded him. After so many years, this was the first person who made him want to kill but couldn't.

So, for now...

Let it go.

"For now, keep an eye out for me while I sleep."

Zhang San had been exhausted for several days without getting a good night's sleep.

"Okay," Wang Xiaoer replied.

"Master, speaking of which, that Lu Gaosheng didn't even care about his own life and wanted you to help him kill someone. But things can't be that simple, right? What exactly is his ultimate goal?"

To be honest, during the days of being locked up, Wang Xiaoer had become extremely curious about this question.

Zhang San remained silent for a while and calmly said, "The grain that can save the starving people in the north. I don't know what he plans to do with it."

After saying that, Zhang San closed his eyes and rested in silence.

...

...

"Master, what happened here?"

"Oh, it seems to be a famine."

"Is it because of our last mission?"

"It seems so."

Eighteen-year-old Zhang San looked at the pile of corpses on the ground.

He was on a mission with his master, and they passed through this village filled with starving bodies, taking a short rest.

His master sat on a large rock, drinking water, appearing indifferent.

Meanwhile, eighteen-year-old Zhang San searched through the village.

His master asked, "What are you looking for?"

"Living people."

With each failed search, Zhang San's voice became more subdued.

His master looked at the child he had picked up and shook his head with disappointment, saying, "Xiao San, haven't I taught you?"

His master had taught him:

When you see others in misery, don't pity them.

Because when you recall your own life,

Aren't you more miserable than them?

"No..." Zhang San, who knew what his master wanted to say, replied, "At least I'm still alive."

His master helplessly said, "Why can't you be more ruthless? If you continue like this, it won't work, Xiao San. You can't go on like this..."

But Zhang San retorted, "Why can you always be so calm, Master? Why are you always so calm?"

"Because I am your master."

"?"

His master explained, "As an old master, I can't teach you to be cruel. After I die, how will you survive in this world?"

"..."

Zhang San fell into silence for a long time, then said, "But, Master, right there, in that small room, do you know what I saw?"

But his master replied, "You should think about those two words I mentioned earlier: cruelty. That's the last skill I can teach you."

...

...

Liu Qingming once asked Zhang San.

Although the question seemed nonsensical, at least at that time, Zhang San fully understood the significance of the question.

"What do you think is the most terrifying way to die?"

At that time, Zhang San said, starving to death.

Starving to death!

"Ah!"

A cry of alarm.

A nightmare.

Ten years had passed.

Can't they really escape it?

"Master..."

Looking at Wang Xiaoer by his side,

Zhang San was momentarily lost.

But Wang Xiaoer pointed his finger at Zhang San's cheek.

Zhang San looked at Wang Xiaoer in confusion.

Wang Xiaoer said, "Master, it looks like you have tears in your eyes."

Zhang San fell silent, then lowered his head and blinked, saying, "Don't talk nonsense. It's been over twenty years, and I've only cried twice."

Once was when I narrowly escaped death at the age of eight.

The other time was three years ago when my master passed away.

Standing up, Zhang San said, "It won't get better in a short while. Healing internal injuries requires time. Let's go first and completely leave the range of Tian Ruo City!"

Wang Xiaoer hesitated and asked, "But, Master..."

Zhang San turned around and exclaimed, "Stop the nonsense! The starving people of Hanwu Commandery have no grudges against us. We don't know any of them, so it doesn't matter how many people die. It has nothing to do with us."

Wang Xiaoer nodded cautiously.

However, deep down, Wang Xiaoer muttered to himself, "I just wanted to ask which way we should take next. Why did Master overreact like that..."

...

Night gradually fell.

On the main street where Tian Ruo City's Magistrate resided, the night was chilly and devoid of pedestrians.

The only person walking was a handsome middle-aged man dressed in a black and elegant robe, with a jade accessory adorning his right hand.

Lu Gaosheng's eyes gleamed with a hint of madness, but more prominently, excitement!

He was about to fulfill that promise!

So...

They would return.

Bai Fang.

Xiao Yu.

They would come back, and I have achieved it!

Song YanShi's downfall is imminent.

The day he ascends the execution platform is fast approaching.

How would Bai Fang react upon hearing this? She must be happy.

After all, many years ago, she cried so bitterly at her parents' graves.

Her mother died while being pursued.

Her father, with his cultivation crippled, lived a miserable life and eventually succumbed to illness.

Doesn't she bear any grudges? No, her heart has long been filled with boundless resentment.

And I, Lu Gaosheng, am the only person under the heavens who can avenge her!!

I have achieved it!

With a single step, Lu Gaosheng arrived at a side residence of the Ming Mansion, hidden in the deep night.

Lu Gaosheng knew about this place because of his previous request to Ming Qing.

In order to safely take Bai Fang away from Zhang San's vicinity, even if he was reluctant, he had to set aside his identity and arrogance to plead with Ming Qing.

Because if it was him or his subordinates trying to take Bai Fang away back then, Zhang San would have instantly become alert.

That's why the night of the attack on Zhang San happened afterward.

However, when Lu Gaosheng reached the front door of that house, he stopped in his tracks.

He didn't knock, nor did he enter the house.

He had incredibly keen ears by nature, so he could hear it.

There were people talking behind the door.

Those were the people he yearned for day and night.

...

...

"Cough... Ming... Big brother, there's no need to fetch them. You've already... cough... sought so many doctors... cough..."

"Alright! Alright! I won't go, I won't go. Quickly lie down. Here, the reclining chair is here."

The woman's voice was weak.

The man's voice was filled with anxiety.

"When I was young, my father once sought a medical genius known as the 'Ghost Doctor.' If he could cure this illness, he would have... cough... eradicated it for me long ago."

"Please don't say anymore. I understand. Rest quickly."

After a while, the woman's coughing subsided a bit.

"I'm sorry..." They both said simultaneously.

They exchanged perplexed glances.

The man said, "Actually, over these years... I've always thought, if I had passed the imperial examination, we wouldn't be like this today."

"..."

"It's my incompetence. I failed in my studies and the examinations. I couldn't become... the person you liked."

"..."

The woman fell silent for a long time.

She said, "Actually, it's me who should apologize. Until today, I was still thinking of asking for your help, but actually..."

In the end, she couldn't deceive this sincere man and conquer her own heart.

"Actually, that day when I said I would marry you, it was because I was about to..."

The woman's last words were barely audible.

After listening, Lu Gaosheng felt a mix of emotions.

The man inside the gate was weeping.

The man outside the gate had gone mad.

This time, he had completely lost his mind.