An's Death

That little fatty was the city lord's son, Shen Yuan. Though he was considered one of the city's upper class, his reputation was truly terrible.

It was so terrible that even street urchins like Bai Xiao knew he was a natural-born failure at cultivation. At fourteen, his Soul Power was only level eight, and that was after his father had fed him who knew how many heavenly treasures. His Innate Soul Power must have been utterly dreadful!

This boy had endured no shortage of mockery and disdain since childhood. He had a terrible temper, but as his father's eldest son, and with some power on his mother's side of the family, his household had always indulged him.

He had always been tyrannical and overbearing. Every one of his younger brothers and sisters had been bullied by him, much less outsiders.

Bai Xiao had once seen an old storyteller setting up a stall. Just because the old man had said two or three things about him, somehow it reached Shen Yuan's ears.

The next day, the old storyteller's corpse lay in the street. It was barely recognizable as human; only his clothes revealed his identity.

After that, the fatty seemed to have developed a taste for killing. He would attack ordinary people at the slightest provocation, yet he never received even the slightest punishment afterward. Every incident was covered up by his father.

The fatty was not stupid, either. He only targeted ordinary people. If someone's Soul Power was even slightly higher, he generally kept his distance. Even if he formed a grudge with them, he would only use petty tricks to create small troubles.

The fatty was truly shrewd, displaying his habit of bullying the weak and fearing the strong to perfection. His little schemes were even more disgusting.

Logically, street urchins like Bai Xiao should never have crossed paths with a young master like the little fatty. Bai Xiao also did not understand why Shen Yuan had come to the slums where the street children gathered that day.

Bai Xiao still remembered the scene from that day, when the fatty had gone on a killing spree in the slums with an iron rod.

The fatty had led soldiers carrying standard-issue blades directly into the slum's narrow alleyways.

Most of the slum's inhabitants were gaunt children, along with a few crippled old people. How could they possibly stand against a young man with Soul Power?

The lame beggar at the alley entrance was cut down after only a few slashes. After killing the beggar, the fatty raised his blade and charged toward the remaining vagrants in the alley.

Like a wolf among sheep, he swung his blade at will, cutting down anyone he saw. In an instant, several more people lay on the ground, their blood staining the earth red.

Bai Xiao had stood there in a daze. Then, in an instant, a powerful force seized his hand and dragged him away. He looked over in panic and found An desperately pulling him.

Countless words could not describe how Bai Xiao had felt then. He only knew two things: survive! Survive with this girl!

There was only one exit from the alley, and the fatty was blocking it. To get out, they had to pass by him!

Watching the fatty butcher people, the two did not hesitate. Understanding each other without words, they clasped hands tightly and darted toward the space beside him.

Bai Xiao and An understood that they were gambling. But they also knew that neither of them was the kind of person who would place their life in someone else's hands.

Watching the increasingly close flashes of blade light, Bai Xiao shut his eyes, lowered his head, and charged forward. He felt a cold edge sweep past his body, then realized he had made it through. The path ahead was clear.

Bai Xiao felt the little hand in his still gripping tightly, and heard the small footsteps behind him. He knew she had escaped safely too.

Bai Xiao ran wildly with her. Halfway through their escape, he felt An's little hand loosen and slip out of his palm.

He did not understand why An, who usually had the best stamina, had collapsed.

Bai Xiao had no time to think. He bent down, scooped An into his arms, and ran.

Only when Bai Xiao lifted An did he understand how light she was. He could feel the bones beneath her tiny body. An was far too thin.

Bai Xiao thought of how An usually took care of him, giving him the relatively intact things, and often patting his head.

Bai Xiao's eyes stung. An usually wore rather loose clothing, so he had never realized she was this frail.

An in his arms was far too light, light as a cloud.

Bai Xiao ran toward the city gates as if his life depended on it. He knew that as long as they left the city, they would be safe.

Bai Xiao's arms grew increasingly sore, and his legs grew increasingly heavy.

Yet Bai Xiao never put An down, running with every ounce of strength in his body.

He could feel the strength inside his body beginning to run dry, nearly exhausted.

Bai Xiao kept running, even more desperately.

If he had no strength left, then he would keep running. He would create strength from his flesh and blood.

After Bai Xiao exhausted the very last trace of strength in his body, a strange power began surging from the depths of his flesh and blood.

Bai Xiao felt that he had lost something.

Blood?

Flesh?

Talent?

Bai Xiao could not say. He only knew that he could take An away from this hell.

When Bai Xiao staggered into the forest outside the city, he finally could not endure any longer and fell to his knees in the dirt.

He gasped for breath and looked at the girl in his arms.

In an instant, Bai Xiao's pupils contracted sharply!

An's face in his arms was deathly pale, long devoid of color.

Trembling, Bai Xiao reached out and touched An's dirty little face.

Feeling her somewhat cold body temperature, Bai Xiao's heart stopped for an instant.

He already knew the worst possibility, but he still held onto hope.

A powerful wave of drowsiness hit him, the side effect of his mad expenditure of strength.

At the very end, he clutched An's corpse tightly in his arms...

In his dream, he and An wandered along the seaside...

In his dream, he and An flew through the sky...

In another world, he and An became lost in a forest...

When Bai Xiao woke again, he found himself tightly holding An's corpse. He could feel her somewhat protruding bones, as well as her former gentleness...

Bai Xiao gently stroked the girl. He saw the hideous wound on her back, and An's tattered clothes, already stained red.

Bai Xiao understood. All his desperate efforts yesterday had been futile. An had already been slashed earlier. She had died from excessive blood loss...

Bai Xiao felt so calm, as though he had no emotions.

He set down An's corpse, turned around, and began frantically digging into the dirt with his fingers.

He could not let An's body be left exposed in the wilderness. He did not want wild beasts to gnaw on her corpse. Burying An deeper was the last tenderness Bai Xiao could offer her.

Bai Xiao did not know how long he dug. He only knew that he buried An deep, deep beneath the earth, so those wild beasts could no longer gnaw on her...