No One Who Should Not Be Killed

With his qinggong in motion, Gu Shaoan moved incredibly fast. In just a few blinks, he had already crossed a distance of fifteen feet.

By contrast, the two guards at the stronghold entrance only saw a blur flash past before a powerful gust of wind struck their faces!

The bandit on the left was horrified beyond words. Acting on instinct, he swung his broadsword down in a vicious slash! Amid the howling wind, the blade gleamed with razor-sharp force.

Gu Shaoan did not slow his charge. Facing the deadly blade, he suddenly twisted his wrist!

The longsword was like a tender willow in spring, nimble and supple as it "clung" to the side of the broadsword.

At the instant they touched, a flexible, adhesive force erupted from the sword.

As that force surged, the burly bandit felt his broadsword suddenly become incredibly heavy, as if it had sunk into a thick mire.

It was precisely the second move of the Willow Catkin Sword Technique.

"Willow Silk Brushes Lightly."

His powerful, weighty slash was suddenly "drawn" aside by that strange, yielding force, and its trajectory immediately veered off course.

With a loud clang, the broadsword slammed viciously into the wooden pillar on the right.

Gu Shaoan used the momentum to spin around, raised his qi from his Dantian, channeled force into his left palm, and struck the burly bandit directly in the kidney with a palm that seemed to push rolling waves.

The big man's forceful slash had not yet run out when Gu Shaoan's palm struck his kidney. In his pain, his center of gravity completely collapsed.

With a muffled thud, the bandit tumbled heavily down the stone steps like a rolling gourd, landing on the back of his head and immediately passing out.

The entire process had been too fast. From start to finish, it had taken no more than a few blinks, and Gu Shaoan had already dealt with the first bandit.

Only then did the other bandit nearby, tall and thin, react. He roared and raised his blade, bringing it down at Gu Shaoan.

Having been on guard from the start, Gu Shaoan slid aside like a ghost. His sword turned with his body as he once again used Willow Silk Brushes Lightly. The ridge of the sword moved like a living snake flicking its tongue, and with a sharp slap, it once again pressed precisely against the descending blade.

The yielding force struck in succession. His wrist shook three times with the speed of a spirit snake, leaving several afterimages, before the tip of Gu Shaoan's sword trembled downward like a venomous snake.

Hiss! Hiss!

Two nearly inaudible cutting sounds rang out.

The cold blade had flashed twice across the inside of the tall, thin bandit's right wrist. Blood sprayed instantly!

"Ah—!"

The tall man's heart-rending howl had only begun when—

Gu Shaoan took another step with the Three Manifestations of the Divine Dragon footwork, following him like a shadow! A point of sword light flickered, a cold star shooting toward the ankle of his supporting foot! Precise! Vicious!

Hiss!

The sword tip pierced through the tendons of his right ankle without the slightest resistance.

His scream rose to a shrill peak.

The tall man immediately rolled to the ground. Blood poured from his wrist and ankle, and he completely lost the ability to move.

In an instant, only the two bandits remained before the stronghold—one unconscious and one screaming—along with Gu Shaoan, standing with his sword in hand, his features still youthful and his small body seeming almost childlike.

Yet a careful observer would certainly have noticed that Gu Shaoan's chest was heaving unevenly.

After all, this was the first time he had faced enemies alone, and his opponents were bandits guilty of countless crimes.

At this moment, Gu Shaoan felt his heart pounding loudly. It was as if hot blood were constantly surging chaotically through his body, leaving him inexplicably exhilarated.

From the moment Gu Shaoan attacked until the battle was over, the entire process had taken no more than ten breaths.

Looking at Gu Shaoan standing with his sword in hand, Zhou Zhiruo's eyes fluttered.

"Junior Brother is amazing!"

In Miejue's eyes, Gu Shaoan's battle had just now appeared to rely on the sword blade, but when facing his enemies, he had not been constrained by the weapon in his hand. At the appropriate moment, he had also used the Golden Summit Cotton Palm in coordination.

The combination of the three martial arts was quite commendable.

Only Ding Minjun, standing beside Miejue, remained silent, her gaze lowered.

"Phew!"

Before the stronghold entrance, after several deep breaths, the exhilaration in Gu Shaoan's body gradually subsided.

He lowered his head and looked at the bandit before him, whose hands and feet he had severed and who was rolling around and screaming. Gu Shaoan's gaze sharpened.

The next second, Gu Shaoan tightened all five fingers around the sword hilt. A flash of cold light swept up a gentle breeze as it passed across the bandit's throat.

The blade broke through flesh, and thin streams of blood immediately welled from the bandit's throat, abruptly cutting off his wails.

Miejue, who was about to step forward, saw this and a trace of surprise flashed through her eyes.

Then, as if she had thought of something, Miejue drew back the foot she had raised and quietly watched Gu Shaoan's next move.

Nearby, Zhou Zhiruo could not help shivering when she saw what Gu Shaoan had done. Her small face immediately paled.

When she looked toward Gu Shaoan, her face was full of shock and confusion.

After successfully killing the first bandit, a notification suddenly appeared before Gu Shaoan.

[Congratulations, player, on killing a bandit. Achievement Points +10.]

Glancing at the notification before him, Gu Shaoan said nothing. Holding his breath, he quickly walked to the burly bandit who had passed out below the steps. With a slight flick of his wrist, he likewise cut open the man's throat.

Only after the bandit had also stopped breathing did Gu Shaoan let out a long breath, turn around, and walk back to Miejue.

"Master."

Looking at Gu Shaoan, whose right hand still gripped the sword hilt tightly and whose face had grown somewhat solemn, Miejue pondered briefly before slowly speaking.

"Why did you kill them?"

Gu Shaoan answered without hesitation, "Because these people deserved to die."

Miejue seemed interested. "These two were merely guarding the stronghold entrance. Perhaps they were not truly heinous criminals. You killed them without investigating what they had done. Aren't you worried that your conscience will trouble you?"

Gu Shaoan said solemnly, "According to what Martial Aunt Juechen investigated yesterday, the bandits on Heimu Mountain have committed every kind of evil. There may be people in the stronghold who did not participate every time they went out to rob and kill passing merchants and travelers, but they lived inside the stronghold, and everything they ate, wore, and used came from murder, arson, and robbery."

"The people in the stronghold enjoyed those benefits and conveniences. Naturally, they each share in the vengeance of those who were killed and harmed."

"If that is the case, then there is no one in this stronghold who should not be killed."

Hearing Gu Shaoan's answer, Zhou Zhiruo fell into thought.

Miejue, however, laughed heartily. "Good! I never expected that although you are so young, Shaoan, you would have such insight into matters."

"Excellent! All the bandits on Heimu Mountain enjoy themselves every day through ill-gotten wealth gained from murder and robbery. Their riches are stained with blood; they are vile sinners."

"There truly is not a single innocent bandit in this stronghold. They deserve to die. Shaoan, you did well—very well."

Miejue did not hide her praise for Gu Shaoan in the slightest.

In the martial world, people fought every day. Every day, some people killed, while others were killed.

But as disciples of the Emei Sect, a righteous and orthodox sect, they could not kill merely for the sake of killing. They had to understand why they were killing.

Otherwise, how were they any different from those fiends of the Demonic Cult?

A few breaths later, Miejue led Zhou Zhiruo and Ding Minjun over to Gu Shaoan.

Miejue had always been exceptionally attentive. When she approached, she noticed that Gu Shaoan was still gripping the Chengxin Sword tightly in his right hand, and understood that his emotions were not as simple as he made them appear.

With that, Miejue raised her hand and gently stroked Gu Shaoan's head.

Her tone was gentler than ever as she said, "Killing is not a good thing. But as you told Zhiruo earlier, killing those who should be killed is an act of kindness, while sparing those who should be killed is an act of evil."

"Since you have done a good deed, take some comfort in it. What you did today was meritorious, not wrong."

Gu Shaoan, on the other hand, stared at Miejue in astonishment when he heard this.

"Master, you were eavesdropping on your disciple's private conversation?"

Miejue: "..."