Blizzard, Lu Chen, Killing

The eighth year of Yongping, winter.

Wen'an County, deep within Sheep Dung Alley.

Inside a tiled house, Lu Chen lay on the kang, wrapped in a stiff, cold, old cotton quilt. The room was dim, and the pathetic flicker of light and heat from the stove could not dispel the chill of the old house.

His face was tinged with a grey, deathly pallor as he cursed weakly:

"Damn the heavens..."

He hated this world, and he hated that lucky bastard Li Tianrui even more.

Ten years ago, he had just been a fresh college graduate. He hadn't hit the jackpot while crossing the street; instead, he'd been sent flying by an elderly man's electric scooter that had run a red light. When he opened his eyes again, he was already in this godforsaken place.

Just after he transmigrated, his parents died in an epidemic, leaving him an orphan.

To survive, he endured hunger and freezing cold, scavenged for spoiled food, and fought wild dogs for scraps. His life was worth less than the mud beneath his feet.

Fortunately, relying on a desperate, reckless grit and the crude fisticuffs he'd picked up while scraping by on the streets, he managed to carve out a patch of territory in this South City with his own fists and sweat.

Sheep Pen Street was named for the several sheep pens nearby. The name was lowly, and the place was just as wretched.

The street was packed with a dozen or so eateries, taverns, and shops—all bottom-tier establishments that didn't hang signs or banners. Those who came to drink and eat were all laborers and rickshaw pullers from the lowest rungs of society.

Lu Chen and a few of his brothers collected "peace money" on this street.

It sounded respectable, but in reality, it was just protection money.

Relying on this income, life was passably comfortable; there was food to eat and wine to drink.

Li Tianrui was not old—a year younger than Lu Chen—but he loved to engage in base, despicable acts. He would kick down widows' doors in the dead of night, peek over walls to watch unmarried girls bathe, and take goods from street vendors without ever paying a copper.

The entire street was kept in a state of constant turmoil by him.

Unable to bear the harassment any longer, the neighbors sought out Lu Chen to complain.

Since he collected peace money from them every month, he couldn't just sit by and watch this scoundrel ruin the entire street.

He stepped in to teach Li Tianrui a lesson twice, holding back his strength, hoping only to make him behave.

Who would have thought that this filthy wretch would have such blind luck? He caught the eye of a pugilist sect called the Green River Sect.

Just like that, Li Tianrui transformed into a disciple of the sect.

Disaster followed immediately.

Li Tianrui's senior sister came knocking to seek justice for her bullied, pathetic junior brother.

The few moves Lu Chen knew might have been enough to intimidate people on the street.

But in front of someone who had truly practiced martial arts, he was a joke.

He only remembered his vision going black and his bones crunching; he was tossed aside like a torn sack near a sewer. If it hadn't been for his subordinates dragging him back to this dilapidated house, he would have already gone to report to the King of Hell.

"Cough..."

Lu Chen coughed violently, spitting out a mouthful of stagnant blood, and collapsed back onto the kang, completely drained of strength.

"Boss, time to eat! There's pig head meat today, it smells so good!"

A sturdy youth with a face as black as the bottom of a pot burst through the door. He rubbed his frozen hands together while pulling an oil-paper parcel from his chest.

His name was Shuan Hu, and among Lu Chen's subordinates, he was the one with the quickest wits.

He tore open the oil paper, revealing two steamed buns and a small piece of pig head meat.

Lu Chen propped himself up halfway, pinched a slice of pig head meat, and chewed it slowly.

"Where's Blind Man? Haven't seen him all day."

"Han Lao Wu from Dog Urine Alley heard you were badly hurt, Boss, and wants to snatch our territory! Blind Man couldn't take it; he said he's going to go stab that old dog tonight!" Shuan Hu said.

Lu Chen chewed the bun in silence; the only sound in the room was his dry chewing.

A long time passed.

Lu Chen swallowed the bun and said hoarsely: "Go, tell Blind Man: if Han Lao Wu wants our territory, give it to him."

"What?"

Shuan Hu froze, thinking he had misheard.

"Boss, we're just giving it up? Then what the hell are we supposed to eat? Without the territory, where are we going to collect peace money? That's our only livelihood. It's our lifeline!"

Lu Chen sighed:

"You don't know this, but last month, Han Lao Wu's daughter became a concubine for Master Feng at the county office. With Master Feng backing him, we can't afford to provoke Han Lao Wu."

"No wonder that old dog suddenly got so arrogant. What are we going to do now? I still have my old mother to support..." Shuan Hu fretted.

Lu Chen gnawed on his bun, saying nothing more.

Lu Chen could no longer stay on this street; Li Tianrui's home was right here.

That bastard was narrow-minded and vengeful; when he returned, he wouldn't let him off easily.

After Lu Chen finished eating, Shuan Hu hung his head and left without another word.

Cold wind snuck in through the cracks in the door.

The last spark in the stove died out.

Lu Chen suddenly heard a noise outside.

Shuan Hu had just left, and the footsteps didn't sound like his brothers'; who could it be?

He pricked up his ears, staring fixedly at the paper window.

A muffled voice drifted up from the base of the courtyard wall.

It was Yao Dalong, who sold hot water next door, and his son, Nao Dan.

Nao Dan said, "Dad, let's come back tonight. It's broad daylight; if Boss Lu is awake, we're done for."

Yao Dalong spat on the ground.

"Coward. That little beast took a brutal beating and is barely hanging on to half a life. So what if he's awake? That little beast has been collecting protection money for so many years, his bed frame is probably stuffed full of copper coins. It's just right for us to take advantage of it. Strike while he's down. You block the door and stay sharp. Watch out for Shuan Hu and the Blind Man coming back..."

Lu Chen's expression turned grim instantly.

He lived on the streets, but he had his own code: he never bullied the weak, and he was especially lenient toward small vendors.

He was particularly helpful to destitute neighbors like Yao Dalong, lending rice and copper coins without a second thought.

Sheep Pen Street was only a palm-sized place.

Among the neighbors, who didn't praise Lu Chen for his righteousness to his face or behind his back?

Precisely because of this, when Lu Chen was injured and his brothers went out on business, they hadn't even left anyone to keep watch.

Who would have thought that such righteousness would be repaid with treachery?

Do you really think I'm easy to bully?

Lu Chen reached under his pillow and pulled out a cold, hard Bone-Cleaving Knife—thick-backed, thin-edged, with a wickedly sharp tip.

He slid off the kang and pressed his back tightly against the dark wall by the door.

There was a rustling sound outside the door.

Yao Dalong poked his head in first, his eyes darting around in the dim light, sweeping over the empty kang.

"Eh? No one?"

Muttering to himself, he stepped over the threshold.

The residual energy Lu Chen had been holding back in his body exploded, and the short blade in his hand plunged straight into the soft flesh at Yao Dalong's waist. The strike was both cunning and ruthless.

"Awoo—!"

Yao Dalong let out a soul-shattering scream, sounding just like a scalded stray dog, his hand instantly covered in blood as he clutched his waist.

Terrified out of his wits, he stumbled backward, crashing through the doorframe and tumbling out, howling as he scrambled away.

"Run! Nao Dan, run! This Sha is awake!"

Lu Chen leaned against the doorframe, gasping like a broken bellows.

Watching Yao Dalong flee, he wanted to give chase, but his legs were too weak to obey, and he collapsed to the ground.

Lu Chen's vision blurred, and a strange interface suddenly appeared before his eyes.

Chronicles of Jianghu Heroes

[Basic Card Pool: Entering the Jianghu]

[Single Draw: 150 copper; Ten-pull: 1350 copper]

[Lu Chen: Might 13, Vitality 8, Internal Energy 0, Critical 1, Agility 3, Constitution 2, Luck 1, Fist Technique 9, Leg Technique 2]

[Martial Arts: None]

Isn't this the martial arts gacha mobile game he played in his past life?

He had played it for a month back then, spent half a month's living expenses, and couldn't pull a gold card to save his life, which made him so angry he uninstalled it on the spot.

He never expected this thing to follow him through his transmigration.

Lu Chen leaned against the wall, trying to stand up.

But the energy he had been holding in his chest dissipated, his vision went black, and he collapsed, losing consciousness.