No Mercy

Dahua Republic, year ten. Yinshan County.

Dusk was like ink, slowly staining the sky.

The air was thick with the choking smell of coal ash and the homely warmth of cooking smoke.

Yet mingled with it was a faint, sweet fragrance of gardenias.

The contrast was strange.

Across the street, in front of Shen's Tailor Shop,

an old Phonograph was warbling out the soft, lilting tunes of Shen Opera.

Its melody drifted aimlessly through the deepening night.

A young schoolgirl in a faded Indanthrene qipao

hurried along the bluestone street with her head bowed.

Perhaps the singing had caught her attention, or she had sensed movement up ahead. She instinctively looked up.

A group of people was coming toward her.

At their head was a strikingly handsome young man.

He wore a finely tailored suit.

Even his buttons gleamed with a hint of golden splendor in the fading light.

His tall, straight figure and handsome features were almost too beautiful to be real.

The schoolgirl's gaze stuck to him at once.

Two blushes crept across her cheeks, and her steps unconsciously slowed.

But when her eyes fell on the two squads of Security Officers beside him, armed to the teeth and dressed in Security Station uniforms,

the girlish feelings that had just begun to stir were instantly replaced by fear.

Like a startled fawn, she lowered her head.

Clutching her schoolbag strap, she stumbled aside, nearly tripping over the uneven stones.

After hurrying several steps away, she couldn't help herself.

She turned back in a panic and stole another glance at the young gentleman.

Her eyes held both lingering awe and unmistakable fear.

Lu Jing'an took in the schoolgirl's reaction.

He felt no particular stirrings.

He only thought that this Republic of China era, romanticized and mythologized by countless people in later generations,

was nothing special when experienced firsthand.

Everything in sight was drab, mostly black, white, and gray. Bright colors were a rare sight.

Even the schoolgirl was too thin.

Not the slenderness some people favored at the time,

but the gauntness of someone sallow and underfed for a long time.

She had long since lost the youthful fullness and beauty she should have had.

That was hardly surprising.

The world was in chaos. North and south were at odds, warlords fought one another, and government orders couldn't travel a hundred miles.

Rumors abounded among the common folk: mountain spirits, strange beasts, demons, and monsters.

Various cults also seized the chance to stir up trouble and mislead the people.

In such a chaotic age, simply staying alive and in one piece was no small feat. Few could afford to eat their fill.

This setting was far from what Lu Jing'an, a transmigrator, had hoped for.

The world here differed too much from what he knew.

The "foreknowledge" he had prepared for his "transmigration"

was almost entirely useless here.

The place looked like the Republic of China, but beneath the surface it was bizarre and fantastical, overturning all expectations.

Its cities

were more like refuges

barely carved out amid boundless absurdity and danger.

Still, Lu Jing'an was quite pleased with his current identity.

The only son of the Yinshan County Security Station's Bureau Chief.

In this era, when the banner changed hands from one warlord to another, county magistrates might come and go like lanterns on a revolving stand.

But his father, the Bureau Chief with real power in his hands, was as immovable as a mountain.

Every new county magistrate had to pay him a personal visit.

They relied on the Lu Family's assistance.

As the only heir, Lu Jing'an had been spoiled rotten. He was the undisputed "crown prince" of Yinshan County.

And yet this very crown prince had nearly died half a month ago.

A meticulously planned assassination had nearly sent him to meet the King of Hell.

The entire Security Station had mobilized and searched every inch of the county.

The gangs, large and small, had scrambled to disavow any connection.

The city's merchants had all trembled with fear as they cooperated with the search.

Even the county magistrate had personally brought Lamp Cultivators from the Peacekeeping Bureau to summon his soul and heal his injuries.

Fortunately, Lu Jing'an had ultimately clawed his way back from death.

Otherwise, Yinshan County might truly have been turned upside down.

"Young Master, the Lamp Cultivator's residence is just ahead."

A Security Officer carrying a Hanyang Rifle stopped beside him.

He pointed at a nearby courtyard and reported respectfully.

Lu Jing'an raised his head at the sound.

Before him stood a ring of blue-gray courtyard walls, taller than a man.

It looked to be a three-courtyard residence, quite imposing for this neighborhood.

Most eye-catching were the enormous lanterns hanging in front of the gate.

They were more than two meters in diameter.

The light inside was exceptionally bright, though it was unclear what special fuel they burned.

It illuminated a dozen or so meters in front of the gate as brightly as day.

Even the patterns in the paving stones were clearly visible.

There wasn't a single shadow.

Lu Jing'an knew this was the Lamp Cultivator's doing.

He had been gravely wounded and on the brink of death.

They said the Lamp Cultivator had simply lifted a lantern and shone its light on him.

His body had turned almost translucent.

His internal injuries, blood clots, and the bullets lodged between his bones had all shown up clearly.

That had allowed the doctors to treat him with precision.

He had been unconscious at the time and hadn't seen it himself,

but the story had always made him curious.

Now, seeing the pair of miraculous lanterns,

he believed it seven or eight parts.

"Let's go." Lu Jing'an withdrew his gaze and ordered coolly.

As soon as he spoke, the two squads of Security Officers closed ranks.

They surrounded him tightly, protecting him at the center.

Each man watched both sides of the street with sharp eyes, ready for anything.

The assassination half a month ago had left the Security Officers unwilling to slacken their guard for even a moment.

The passersby had already moved aside, too frightened to make a sound.

Lu Jing'an was perfectly at ease with such a grand escort.

After all, he was the one who had been attacked.

It was only right to be cautious.

Besides, he had always been a showy sort.

The closer they came to the courtyard,

the more the lantern light made them feel as though they had nowhere to hide.

Just then,

an elderly man in a dark blue long gown, who had been following silently behind Lu Jing'an's left shoulder,

suddenly stepped forward and quietly placed himself in front of him.

"There's a smell of blood!"

Lu Jing'an's pupils contracted, his nerves instantly tightening.

Chen Xuan had already moved to shield Lu Jing'an completely.

His body seemed not to have moved, yet he was in the perfect defensive stance.

His eyes flashed as he quickly surveyed the courtyard. He issued his orders in a clear, rapid voice:

"Xiao Wu, Xiao Liu, climb over the wall from the side and search carefully.

Da Lin, Xiao Li, hurry to the back gate and guard it. Don't let anyone in or out.

Zhang He, take your rifle up to the roof across the street. Secure the high ground and keep watch over the whole courtyard..."

The men followed orders and silently dispersed into the night.

Time passed slowly in oppressive silence.

About a quarter of an hour later, the tightly shut vermilion gate creaked open a crack from within.

Xiao Wu and Xiao Liu peered out. Their faces were grave as they spoke quietly to the people outside:

"Someone's dead. Looks like poison.

They haven't been dead long.

Both hands were chopped off at the wrists.

The cuts are smooth as mirrors, and there's blood everywhere.

Not a single person in the courtyard is alive. They were all wiped out."

As Lu Jing'an listened, a chill shot from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head.

They hadn't just killed people. They'd done it for him, Lu Jing'an, to see!

It was an open warning to everyone who dared to help him.

This would be their fate!

Who was behind this?

What kind of deep-seated hatred did they have for me?

Why were they so determined to kill me?

Lu Jing'an rapidly searched through the original owner's memories.

He had certainly been a spoiled, overbearing wastrel, and he'd done plenty of bullying with his family's influence.

But when it came to a mortal feud serious enough to make someone want him dead, he couldn't think of anyone.

When news of his assassination spread,

there had been little grief on the streets,

but it was nowhere near enough to make people cheer.

He desperately wanted to go inside and see for himself.

Perhaps his modern perspective and powers of observation

could help him find clues that people of this era might overlook.

Until he dragged the person hiding in the shadows into the open, he wouldn't be able to eat or sleep in peace.

Lu Jing'an unconsciously took a step forward.

"Young Master."

Chen Xuan's arm came steadily across his path.

Lu Jing'an came to his senses and realized how rash he'd been.

He took a deep breath and said apologetically, "Sorry, Uncle Xuan.

I didn't think it through.

We don't know what's happening inside. I shouldn't take the risk."

A flicker of surprise crossed Chen Xuan's eyes.

But he said nothing, only giving a slight nod.

After a brush with death, people were bound to change somewhat.

He continued instructing his men to search more thoroughly.

He also ordered them to bring out the main bodies for examination, taking care not to disturb any evidence.

Soon, the body of the Lamp Cultivator who had once saved Lu Jing'an's life was carried out and laid beneath the glow of the lanterns by the gate.

This was the first time Lu Jing'an had seen a corpse from such close range.

And it was a corpse in such a horrific state.

His stomach lurched, and his face turned slightly pale.

"Young master, why don't you go back to the manor and rest? I'll handle things here," Chen Xuan suggested again.

Lu Jing'an forced down his discomfort and shook his head. His voice was a little tight. "Uncle Xuan, we should hurry up and examine the body. If we delay too long, some clues might disappear."

Chen Xuan stopped trying to persuade him, stepped forward, crouched down, and began carefully examining the corpse.

Lu Jing'an's gaze fell on the corpse again, and he forced himself to look.

He didn't understand the signs of poisoning.

But the hands, severed cleanly at the wrists with cuts so unnaturally smooth, were a truly horrifying sight.

No ordinary weapon or human strength could have done this.

Just as he was about to look away and steady himself, something strange happened.

A translucent interface resembling a video game's character status panel appeared before his eyes without warning:

[Name: Lu Jing'an]

[Attack: 1]

[Defense: 1]

[Agility: 1]

[Spirit: 1]

[Techniques: None]

[Affixes: None]

[Harvestable affix detected. Harvest?]

Beneath the panel hovered the faint image of an ancient-looking Eight-Trigrams Furnace.

It had appeared in Lu Jing'an's consciousness the day he regained it.

He never expected it to react to the corpse before him today!

Harvest!

With a thought, Lu Jing'an harvested his first affix.

Clear as Fire!