This Slash

A gust of wind blew by, making the trees the Su Family had planted outside their gate rustle.

Dressed in black night clothes and wearing a Peach Blossom Mask, Zeng Xiaofan lightly leaped onto the crown of an old tree. He looked down at the Su Family residence ahead, and a wicked smile crept onto his ugly face beneath the mask.

Mingzhu City had been plagued by strange turmoil some time ago, forcing him to restrain himself lest he get inexplicably swept into it. But over the past few days, the situation seemed to have improved, and he could no longer suppress the burning depravity in his heart. He was preparing to make a move on the Su Family's young lady.

"I heard long ago that the Su Family's young lady has a full, luscious figure, skin as white as cream, and breathtaking beauty. Tonight, I'll have the first taste and see whether she's really as succulent as everyone says." Zeng Xiaofan licked his lips, then lightly hopped down into the courtyard without making the slightest sound.

He closed his eyes and tilted his head back to sniff the scent in the air. Excitement immediately appeared on his face. He had caught the scent of the Su Family's young lady. Sure enough, she smelled wonderfully fragrant and succulent.

But at that moment, his heart suddenly pounded with unease, his limbs went weak, and the symptoms only grew worse.

"What's going on?"

Alarmed and uncertain, Zeng Xiaofan hurriedly took out three pills and swallowed them.

These pills were all top-grade medicinal treasures, combining detoxification and purification. In the past, whenever he preyed on women, no matter what traps the household had prepared, three pills had always allowed him to escape unscathed after getting what he wanted.

Yet after swallowing the three pills, his condition did not improve. Instead, he felt increasingly terrified.

He did not know where this fear came from. It was as though a demon's hand had seized his heart, leaving him unable to breathe.

"This is bad. Could it be a barrier? The Su Family can afford a barrier?"

Zeng Xiaofan immediately realized things had gone wrong, and the urge to flee swiftly rose in his heart.

In Mingzhu City, Barrier Masters were unquestionably the rarest high-end talents, and the overwhelming majority had been recruited by the Big Three. Being able to hire a Barrier Master to set up a barrier around one's residence was absolutely a symbol of wealth and power.

He had originally thought the Su Family was merely a small-to-medium family selling potions, but now it seemed they had other hidden strength.

"I can't stay here any longer. I need to get out!"

He looked at the darkened residence ahead, as though it concealed some monstrous predator, and could not help thinking to himself.

But the moment he turned around, everything before his eyes became black and white.

At the same time, he saw rolling black mist churning across the ground.

His eyes widened. He swallowed hard before slowly raising his head.

A black cloak. A dim gray lantern in the left hand. An enormous scythe resting on the right shoulder. Higher still, beneath the hood, was a constantly changing skeletal face.

Just one glance made every hair on his body stand on end, while an icy chill shot from the soles of his feet straight to his scalp.

Zeng Xiaofan collapsed onto the ground, supporting himself with both hands to keep from falling completely. But golden liquid gradually flowed from between his legs, and a nauseating smell of urine spread through the air.

"Zeng Xiaofan, known as Short-Legged Teddy. One and a half meters tall. Lewd, ugly, and contemptible-looking. Unpopular with women, so your mind gradually twisted into something perverse. Over the past ten years, you harmed hundreds of women and murdered sixty-five people to silence them. Have I said anything wrong?" Zhang Ping asked coldly as he looked down at the disgusting sexual predator before him.

That morning, he had heard Zeng Xiaofan muttering to himself while scouting out the Su Family through the Wind Whisperer, and he had remembered the matter.

At first, however, he did not know Zeng Xiaofan was Short-Legged Teddy. He merely thought some Awakened man had been bold enough to set his filthy hands on the Su Family's young lady.

He had come specifically to cut off that man's dog paws.

But after arriving and seeing Zeng Xiaofan skillfully scale the wall and break into the house, he sensed something was off.

This did not look like the work of a novice. It looked like the work of a veteran.

So he silently used Appraisal on Zeng Xiaofan.

After obtaining Zeng Xiaofan's basic information, he used Appraisal on Zeng Xiaofan's equipment as well, just to be safe.

When he appraised Zeng Xiaofan's Peach Blossom Mask, he saw countless scenes that filled him with towering rage.

That was why he was now standing behind Zeng Xiaofan.

The autumn wind whistled bleakly.

Leaves drifted one after another over the courtyard wall, finally landing softly beside Zeng Xiaofan's feet.

He slowly shuffled backward. His walnut-sized brain had been completely cowed by the Reaper's Mask, and coupled with the effect of the Fear War Scythe, he could not summon even the courage to resist.

Zhang Ping was furious, yet calm. He had seen far too many tragic scenes during this time and had developed some resistance to such misery. No matter how enraged he was, he could still think clearly and would not act impulsively.

"This slash is in memory of that young woman who would rather die than submit."

With a gentle swing of his hand, Zhang Ping sent the Fear War Scythe slicing across Zeng Xiaofan's ankle.

Pain made Zeng Xiaofan shuffle backward much faster.

"This slash is in memory of the young woman you forced into the water, who still tried to reveal your true identity to the world!"

Zhang Ping swung the Fear War Scythe through Zeng Xiaofan's knee. Zeng Xiaofan instantly let out a miserable howl, rolled over, and crawled frantically forward with his back to Zhang Ping.

"This slash is in memory of the mother who fed herself to dogs and used her life to protect her daughter."

Zhang Ping's voice was hollow and sinister. His hand rose and fell, and the scythe passed directly beneath Zeng Xiaofan's crotch. Zeng Xiaofan threw his head back, opened his mouth, yet could not make a sound. His entire face turned red from holding it in as great beads of sweat streamed down his face.

In truth, Zeng Xiaofan desperately wanted to beg for mercy, but Zhang Ping clearly had no desire to speak with him. He also wanted to resist, even kill Zhang Ping in return, but he could not muster any courage at all. He did not even dare meet Zhang Ping's eyes.

"This slash is in memory of that Patrol Team hero."

That Patrol Team member had gotten drunk and collapsed by the roadside. In the middle of the night, he heard a woman crying for help and followed the sound into a residence, only to find that everyone in the household, young and old, had been killed.

He rushed into the room from which the woman's cries had come, only to be ambushed by Zeng Xiaofan. A trap pierced through his knee.

Even so, the Patrol Team member fought Zeng Xiaofan to the death. He even found a chance to let the woman escape the house, fighting until his dying breath without ever showing fear.

Unfortunately, the woman had been poisoned by Zeng Xiaofan. She collapsed not far after escaping, and ultimately still fell victim to him.

"This slash is in memory of that pitiful father."

To avenge his daughter, that father hid in the streets of Mingzhu City night after night, watching and waiting. One day, he finally encountered Zeng Xiaofan. The two fought fiercely, but he was no match for Zeng Xiaofan.

So that night, Zeng Xiaofan brought the father, whose limbs had been broken, back to the place where he had committed his crimes before...

"This slash is in memory of that righteous detective."

"This slash is in memory of that nameless adventurer."

Slash after slash, Zeng Xiaofan's height shrank from one and a half meters to one meter. The ground was covered in the trail of blood and body parts he had left while crawling.

He no longer had the strength to run. He lay on the ground waiting to die, but the fatal slash did not fall for a long time. "I won't kill you. There are many medicines in this world. Your injuries may not be beyond treatment."

"How about this? If you can crawl to the main gate and get out through it, I'll spare your life."

Standing beside Zeng Xiaofan, Zhang Ping looked at the exhausted man as his hollow voice slowly rang out.

Death could be easy, but sometimes it could also be painful.

Zhang Ping did not want Zeng Xiaofan to die too easily. He did not deserve such an easy death.

Sure enough, the light called "hope" appeared once more in Zeng Xiaofan's eyes. He did not want to die. Countless young and beautiful women were still waiting for him to enjoy. How could he die in a place like this?

Enduring the agonizing pain, he gritted his teeth and continued crawling forward. Sure enough, that terrifying Reaper did not attack him again.

It was possible!

He could survive!

Driven by his overwhelming desire to live, he slowly crawled toward the gate. The mere few meters of road felt unbearably long, and he even had the illusion that a century had passed.

Every movement scraped his wounds against the ground and caused unbearable pain. He was even afraid to move, but he had no choice if he wanted to live.

Gradually, he drew close. Gradually, he reached the gate. But when he raised his blood-covered hand to push it open, he discovered that it was barred.

The bolt was roughly a meter above the ground.

The problem was that his legs had practically been cut away. He could not reach the bolt at all.

"No!"

He slammed his fists against the gate with all his strength.

But the gate was extremely sturdy. Even though he was a High-Level Awakened, he still could not shake it.

Zhang Ping's voice drifted over. "The wood used for this gate was found outside the city by adventurers Su Cheng hired. It came from a Mutated Iron Pear Tree. Its wood was seventy percent harder than refined iron. Though Su Cheng knew this gate could not stop Awakened or Mutated Beasts, it was still the finest material he could find through every effort. It carried his conviction to protect his entire family."

"Ahhhhhh!!!"

Hearing Zhang Ping's sinister, terrifying voice, Zeng Xiaofan screamed in despair and pounded frantically at the gate, leaving blotches of blood on it.

"Zeng Xiaofan, you failed!"

"Then I hereby pronounce that your time of death has come!"

Zhang Ping slowly raised the scythe with both hands, then spoke in a ghostly tone.

At that moment, Zeng Xiaofan turned around. Terror, hatred, and unwillingness filled his eyes as he stared at Zhang Ping and shrieked hysterically, "What right do you have to sentence me to death? I'm willing to turn myself in! Even if there's to be a trial, the City Lord should be the one to judge me!"

Zhang Ping remained expressionless. His hand rose and fell.

"I was just making a meme reference."

Zhang Ping lightly flicked the scythe, scattering every drop of blood from its blade.

He turned and walked back two steps, then looked up at the bright moon in the sky and sighed softly. What was the use of killing him? Those who had died could never come back.

"Oh, right. Loot the body!"

Zhang Ping fell silent for a moment, then suddenly remembered that Zeng Xiaofan had quite a few good things on him. He turned back, walked to the corpse, and crouched down to remove the equipment piece by piece.

Finally, wearing a look of disgust, he pinched Zeng Xiaofan's hair and lifted his head before removing the mask with his other hand.

Beneath the mask was an ugly face, with a rat-like expression and beady eyes. Just as lecherous as expected.

Zhang Ping put away the mask and tossed the head back onto the ground. He then glanced at the Su Family residence, hoping the Su Family would not be too frightened tomorrow.

He had already helped the Su Family avert disaster. It was only right for the Su Family to help him dispose of the "trash."