Pick Up the Blade and Kill It

The lead on the Ghost Face Society came faster than Bai Jin had expected.

At dusk the next day, Luo Wenshan hurried back to Shrek Academy with fresh intelligence. He spread a rough hand-drawn map across the wooden table and pointed straight to a mark in Suotuo City's Old City District.

"The North City Abandoned Well. It used to be an entrance to the Old Waterway, but it's been abandoned for years. Our people found that the assassin stopped nearby last night. The traces are fresh."

Flender sat to one side, his expression unusually grave. Shrek Academy might have been poor, but he couldn't pretend not to see an Evil Soul Master targeting a student right under his nose. Zhao Wuji leaned against the wall with his arms folded. "I'll go."

Bai Jin shook his head.

"You'd make too much noise."

Zhao Wuji glared. "And you wouldn't?"

"I can choose whether to make a lot of noise or a little." Bai Jin's matter-of-fact tone left Zhao Wuji momentarily speechless.

It was an infuriating thing to hear, but he couldn't argue with it.

Tang San sat nearby, studying the map with a slight frown. Xiao Wu sat pressed close to him, her displeasure written all over her face. Ning Rongrong had been about to say something, but when she saw Bai Jin's expression, she silently swallowed her words.

This time, Bai Jin wore none of his usual smile.

"Tonight, I'm taking Tang San, Dai Mubai, Zhu Zhuqing, and Ning Rongrong. Everyone else stays at the academy."

Xiao Wu shot to her feet. "I'm going too!"

"No."

"Why not?" Xiao Wu's voice rose sharply.

"You're too worked up." Bai Jin looked at her calmly.

Xiao Wu gritted her teeth. "Someone wants to kill Xiao San. How could I not be?"

Bai Jin didn't answer at once. He only watched her in silence. His gaze made her chest feel tight, yet she couldn't find a word to say against him. Tang San gently tugged at her sleeve.

"Xiao Wu."

His voice was quiet, but Xiao Wu fell silent at once. Her eyes reddened slightly, and at last she sat back down. She could be willful and angry, but she would never hold Tang San back when he was serious.

Bai Jin's gaze softened a little at the sight.

These children had never been perfect. Proud, impulsive, playful, stubborn—each had a heap of faults. But when it mattered, they stepped forward for the people beside them. That was enough.

Late that night, the four followed Bai Jin silently into the Old City District.

Suotuo City's Old City District was even more dilapidated than they had imagined. The streets were narrow and damp, rainwater pooled between the stones, and great patches of plaster had peeled from the walls. Wind passed through abandoned houses with a low moan, like someone breathing in the dark. Their feet occasionally made faint sounds on the slick flagstones, each one startlingly clear in the still night.

The abandoned well stood at the end of a blind alley. A few broken planks covered its mouth, fresh scratches along their edges glaring in the dim light.

Bai Jin crouched and lightly ran a finger over the scratches.

"Quite a crowd down there."

Tang San spoke softly. "There are people below."

"Mm."

"How many?"

"Seven living, three nearly dead, and one that doesn't look human."

Ning Rongrong's face went several shades paler. She gripped the hem of her clothes without a sound. Dai Mubai frowned. "What do you mean, doesn't look human?"

Bai Jin didn't explain. He simply lifted the planks. A thick stench of rot surged out, mingled with blood and damp mold, almost too foul to breathe.

"Go down and you'll see."

The bottom of the well connected to the Old Waterway. Moss coated the surrounding walls, and water dripped steadily. The deeper they went, the stronger the smell of blood became. The stagnant air pressed against every chest like a wet cloth.

Zhu Zhuqing moved along the front flank, her figure almost entirely swallowed by the darkness, a soundless shadow. Suddenly, she stopped and raised a hand.

"Ahead."

At the end of the waterway lay a hidden underground stone chamber. A black iron cage stood at its center, several unconscious Soul Masters curled inside it. Seven black-robed figures stood around a floating blood-red crystal, murmuring an incantation. Behind the crystal crouched something shapeless.

It had limbs like a human's, but they bent at horribly unnatural angles. Black-and-red scales covered its back, and a pale ghost mask hid its face. It twitched faintly, a muffled growl rising from its throat.

One glance sent Ning Rongrong's stomach churning. She fought back the urge to vomit, though her fingers trembled. Dai Mubai muttered a curse. "What the hell is that thing?"

"A half-finished product Evil Soul Masters made by refining people." Bai Jin spoke as though it were the most ordinary thing in the world.

Tang San's eyes went utterly cold. He had seen cruelty before, but refining a living person into a monster like this still chilled him to the bone. The thing retained a human outline, yet had been stripped of all human dignity.

The black-robed figures quickly spotted them. "Who's there?" one barked.

Bai Jin raised a hand. His voice was calm. "Class is in session."

Dai Mubai charged first. His White Tiger Martial Soul possessed him in an instant, and he slammed into two black-robed figures with savage force, sending them sprawling. Zhu Zhuqing swept in from the side. Her Hell Stab flashed across a throat—not deep enough to kill, but enough to leave her opponent unable to fight and collapsed on the ground.

Ning Rongrong took a position where she could see everyone. The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda shone, and her clear voice rang out. "Seven Treasures Have Names: First: Strength! Second: Speed!"

The empowering light landed precisely on her teammates.

Tang San's Blue Silver Grass spread without a sound. First, he pulled the unconscious Soul Masters in the cage to safety, then swiftly sealed off the black-robed figures' retreat. His choices were steady and decisive, without a wasted movement.

Bai Jin stood at the entrance, watching quietly without intervening.

Until the Ghost Mask monster suddenly moved.

It was terrifyingly fast, almost skimming the ground as it raked a claw toward Tang San's back. As if he had sensed it coming, Tang San sent Blue Silver Grass springing up from beneath his feet to block it. The grass held for only half a heartbeat. The claw still swept toward him on a foul wind.

Bai Jin flickered and appeared beside Tang San. The monster's claw stopped three inches from his face, unable to advance another inch.

Limitless.

Bai Jin looked into the monster's clouded, agonized eyes, and for the first time, his expression turned utterly cold. The thing was still alive. It could still feel pain.

"Tang San."

Tang San looked up at him.

"Take out your blade."

Tang San froze.

Bai Jin did not turn around. His voice was calm but left no room for argument. "It can't be saved."

The stone chamber fell silent. Dai Mubai and Zhu Zhuqing both faltered for half a beat. Ning Rongrong went pale, but she bit her lip and said nothing.

Tang San looked at the struggling monster. A muddled sound rose from its throat, less an angry roar than a moan of pain held in until it could be contained no longer. It burrowed into his ears and weighed on his chest.

Tang San slowly clenched his hand. It wasn't that he had never killed before, but this thing seemed less like an enemy than a victim tormented until only instinct remained.

Bai Jin spoke again. "Sometimes mercy doesn't mean letting it suffer longer."

Tang San closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his gaze was steady enough to be frightening. He drew an ordinary Short Blade from his waist—not one of his intricate Hidden Weapons, just a common weapon.

Blue Silver Grass bound the Ghost Mask monster's limbs. Dai Mubai pinned its back, and Zhu Zhuqing severed the last two Blood Vines. Ning Rongrong's empowering light fell over Tang San once more.

Tang San stepped forward.

The Short Blade pierced its heart.

The Ghost Mask monster convulsed violently a few times, then slowly went still. With a sharp crack, the blood-red crystal shattered completely.

The black-robed figures' faces drained of color.

Bai Jin raised his hand, and his third Soul Ring lit up. The black ring looked especially heavy in the dim waterway, like a silent moon. Third Soul Skill—He.

Crimson light gathered at his fingertips. The next instant, a violent repulsive force swept outward. Every black-robed figure was blasted away and slammed into the walls, the sounds of breaking bones following one after another. None died, but not one could escape.

Bai Jin walked over to Tang San.

Tang San still held the short blade, his knuckles white. Blood dripped slowly from its edge.

"Feel awful?"

"Yeah." Tang San's voice was low.

"Remember this." Bai Jin patted his shoulder. "Feeling awful means you're still human."

Tang San was silent for a long time before giving a slight nod.

By the time they rescued the Soul Masters from the cage, the horizon had begun to pale. Before leaving the Old Waterway, Bai Jin searched one of the black-robed figures and found a secret order. Only four words stood at its end: Blue Silver Emperor blood.

Bai Jin glanced at it and tucked it away.

Tang San noticed, but asked nothing.

Bai Jin looked up at the dawn sky. The air after the rain carried a trace of freshness.

"Let's head back."

Dai Mubai asked, "Are we still training?"

Bai Jin smiled. "Of course."

Ning Rongrong nearly lost her footing.

Bai Jin looked at the boys and girls, all of whom had grown much quieter over the course of one night. His tone turned light again. "Today's lesson is simple."

Everyone looked at him.

"Sleep."

If Ma Hongjun had been there, he probably would have been moved to tears. Tang San didn't smile, though. He merely tightened his grip on the short blade, then slowly let go.

That morning, he finally understood that Bai Jin was teaching them more than how to win a fight. He was teaching them how to keep moving forward afterward.

No one spoke on the way back. In the morning light, the rain-washed Old City District seemed especially quiet. Only their footsteps and the occasional drip of water echoed around them. Something weighed on each of their hearts, though none could quite put it into words.

Ning Rongrong stole several glances at Tang San, wanting to comfort him but not knowing what to say. Dai Mubai clenched his fists, while Zhu Zhuqing remained silent as always. Only Bai Jin walked at the front. His back looked as lazy as ever, yet somehow it put them all at ease.

Back at the academy, Bai Jin sent everyone off to rest. He sat on a stone beside the training ground, watching the sky grow brighter, a piece of candy in his mouth again.

Luo Wenshan approached and asked quietly, "Sir, that secret order..."

"Keep it quiet for now," Bai Jin said. "There are things they don't need to know yet."

Luo Wenshan nodded and withdrew.

Bai Jin chewed his candy, his gaze gradually deepening. Blue Silver Emperor blood... Things were more complicated than he had first thought. But whatever lay ahead, these children had begun to take their first steps.

In a dormitory in the distance, Xiao Wu quietly pushed open a window and watched Tang San return. Her eyes were full of worry, but in the end, she did not run out to him. She knew there were paths he had to walk on his own.

And so Shrek's morning slowly began, heavy yet filled with hope.