Stronger by Killing

Heavy snow was falling, like goose feathers, like white blossoms, like drifting smoke, like willow catkins, swirling down to blanket the lonely city, and shroud a blood-soaked little courtyard.

In the rear courtyard of the Prefecture Government,

Ji Hanzheng burst into maniacal laughter, yet tears rolled ceaselessly down his face. Before him lay a heap of mangled flesh,

His entire body was drenched in fresh blood,

Still furiously hacking apart those corpses that could no longer be recognized, only the torn hunks of flesh attesting to the torment these people endured before death,

The watching Embroidered Uniform Guards felt their scalps prickle at Ji Hanzheng’s insanity,

A few quickly bundled the corpses and left in a hurry,

In the courtyard, only Ji Hanzheng remained, slumped on the blood-soaked ground,

After a long time, he wailed in heartbreaking sobs,

His cries were so hoarse and desperate, as if his heart were being carved apart,

"Madam, Rong’Er...I was wrong..."

"I was wrong!"

"It’s me who failed you, it’s me who failed you both!"

"This world, this world is doomed, it’s all my fault, it’s all because of me, I’ve ruined you!"

"..."

Ji Hanzheng lay prone, smashing his head violently against the ground until he knocked himself unconscious.

The blizzard whirled on,

No one knew how much time had passed,

Ji Hanzheng awoke in the cold, drenched through, slowly crawling up from the floor, a sliver of clarity appearing in his dull eyes,

He staggered forward,

Step by step, inching into the house,

He rummaged furiously through the drawers and cupboards,

At last, after a long search, he fished out a faded ancient book from a dust-covered trunk,

Looking at that book, blood mixed with tears streamed down his face,

He seemed possessed,

"I was wrong, it’s me who’s wrong..."

"This world was lost long ago, this world should never have existed, good people...good people don’t deserve to live..."

"Madam, Rong’Er...wait for me. After I have my revenge, I’ll come find you. I swear I’ll avenge you..."

"Prince Jing’an, Prince Jing’an, I swear I’ll bury his whole clan with you! The Emperor...he deserves death, deserves death!"

Ji Hanzheng gently caressed that ancient book, his blood tears splashing onto the pages,

He put the book away, sat down on a chair, a dagger in hand, staring into the swirling white snow beyond the window,

"Gu Zhan..."

"If fate gives me the chance, I will return your great kindness one day..."

Ji Hanzheng opened all the bottles and jars of medicine, lined them up on the table, stuffed a cloth into his mouth, and slowly picked up the dagger.

His mind flashed with countless memories,

Back when he served as County Magistrate in Qingzhou, he once met an old beggar,

It was another snowstorm then,

He’d taken pity on the beggar, and gifted him food and silver taels,

He remembered it clearly,

The old beggar looked him over and said:

"The dragon endures for ten thousand years, but you have nine thousand years,"

"Your destiny lies in the Imperial Palace!"

Ji Hanzheng had only thought the beggar was raving from hunger, so he paid little heed and merely smiled,

Suddenly, a gust of flying snow hit him in the face,

Ji Hanzheng closed his eyes just a moment,

And when he opened them, the beggar had vanished,

Leaving only a yellowed book on the ground,

The very first page read in bold:

To master this art, you must first become a eunuch.

...

In a daze, Ji Hanzheng remembered that snowy year, the strange old beggar,

"If you were a divine being, then let this be my fate!"

A cold glint of the blade sliced by,

Blood sprayed,

Ji Hanzheng collapsed in the chair, his expression twisted, cold sweat beading on his brow, ferociously biting down on the cloth, hands shaking as he grabbed bottle after bottle, pouring the medicines madly onto his mutilated lower body.

The wind howled and snow roared,

Pingyang City lay buried under the blizzard, as if submerged, trapping not only a city but also a single soul,

Yet this city, was truly imprisoned in the hearts of a few.

Time slipped quickly by in the blizzard,

And soon a month had passed,

That morning,

In the back courtyard of the Prefecture Government, the dead, silent little yard,

Ji Hanzheng left the door with a bundle on his back, looking like a stray dog about to freeze to death in the cold night, every step a struggle for survival,

But his gaze was unwavering,

Into the snowy night, he slowly disappeared.

...

When Ji Hanzheng left Pingyang City,

Gu Zhan had already received word,

These days, it was hard for any movement in Pingyang City to escape his notice,

He didn’t stop Ji Hanzheng, but sent people in secret to guard him for part of the way.

Ji Hanzheng’s plight—very few in this world could endure such torment.

For Ji Hanzheng, Pingyang City

Was nothing but a nightmare,

His leaving had been expected by Gu Zhan,

Previously, Ji Hanzheng could not leave, because with Luo Huaiyang and his men about, the slightest misstep would have meant instant death.

Of course, as for this matter,

Gu Zhan did not concern himself much either, because with the Martial Arts Tournament approaching, the once quiet Pingyang City had in the past few days filled with a great many people, returning to boisterous life,

All of them flocked here from across Pingyang Prefecture to attend the tournament.

Though the Martial World People of Yunxi Land cared little for the Embroidered Uniform Guard, the situation was unusual in present-day Pingyang Prefecture. Not only was the "God of Slaughter" Thousand Households Gu Zhan causing waves, but now also the Sixth Young Master, Mo Beiyan.

All the major Sects and Families dispatched their elders and some disciples to participate in the tournament, mainly to honor Mo Beiyan, after all, as one of the Six Young Masters of Canglan City, to slight him would be to slight Canglan City’s Beidou Bang itself.

The Beidou Bang was the absolute overlord of Canglan Dao,

Even aside from the formidable Nu River Dragon King, the numerous Beidou Bang Sub-Branches scattered all across Canglan Dao made the regional Martial World Influence tremble in fear.

Even in Pingyang Prefecture, there were some Beidou Bang Sub-Branches at work, though mostly on their own business, rarely meddling in Pingyang Martial World affairs. Yet, no one dared guarantee that should this Sixth Young Master go to a Sub-Branch and throw a fit, the Beidou Bang wouldn’t intervene.

Thus, for Mo Beiyan’s sake,

All Martial World Influences in Pingyang gave proper respect,

The top Sects—Lingxi Sword Sect, Changfeng Valley, Mountain Moving Sect—all sent elders and high-ranking disciples to attend,

The four foremost Families—Longmen Chen Family, Lingyang Gu Family, Xiushan Lu Family, and Pengshui Ma Family—all dispatched clan elders and young disciples as well,

These seven giants, the top-tier Martial World Powers spanning numerous County Mansions, were all present; the lesser, second- and third-rate local forces were naturally in full attendance as long as they received an invitation.

The tournament was held in a mountain villa in Pingyang City,

On the day itself, people arrived one after another. The villa was packed and lively, and the Embroidered Uniform Guard was well-prepared to keep order.

Gu Zhan and Mo Beiyan had both arrived at the villa early.

Until after the noon meal,

The representatives of each power brought their entourages into the main hall.