Along the southern road of Louyang, Jin Yu and his companions rode like thunder.
Their horses galloped down the paved street, their hooves pounding like war drums.
People hurriedly stepped aside, lest they be trampled by the monstrous steeds that charged forward with terrifying momentum.
As they rounded a corner, Jin Yu suddenly yanked the reins. His horse reared up with a loud, defiant neigh before smming its hooves down, sending cracks through the stone beneath.
Jin Yu’s gaze darkened as his eyes locked onto the scene ahead.
“What the hell is going on here?” he muttered.
A group of armed men were ruthlessly stomping on a young boy who shielded a smaller girl with his body. The boy's arms wrapped protectively around her, taking every brutal kick without letting her go. Blood pooled beneath him, but he refused to cry out.
Meanwhile, seated inside a luxurious carriage with the curtain casually parted, a young noblewoman reclined with a cup of tea, watching the beating with disinterested eyes.
A dagger shot out swiftly from Min Li’s hand, whistling through the air like a death omen.
“You seek death!” Min Li said, his voice cold and steady, not shouting this time. “How dare you lowlives disgrace my master’s eyes with your gutter filth?!”
The thugs reacted instantly, Some dodged, one batted the dagger aside. Another caught it, only to drop to his knees, screaming. Bck veins surged across his skin as poison overtook him. He colpsed, twitching... and then stopped moving entirely.
Gasps echoed, then Silence....
The spectators who had gathered quickly scattered like frightened rats.
The remaining men growled, turning toward the trio with deadly intent. Their muscles tensed, bdes drawn.
Ding!
Influence +2,500
Ding!
Influence +2,000
Ding!
Influence +2,500
Ding!
Influence +3,000
(Emotion provoked: Killing intent)
A chorus of dings echoed in Jin Yu’s ears.
Then, from the carriage, the dy descended with narrowed eyes and an irritated scowl. Every step she took reeked of arrogance.
Ding!
Influence +3,000
Ding!
Influence +3,000
Ding!
Influence +3,000
Ding!
Influence +3,000
Ding!
Influence +3,000
(Emotion provoked: killing intent)
The system sang with rage.
Jin Yu heart turned cold.
No matter what today, your fate has already been sealed, such killing intent, I won't forgive you all!.
He vowed in his heart.
"You dare harm my men? I don't care who you are, you’ll die here today!" the dy spat, her voice dripping with venom.
Jin Yu didn’t respond.
Whizz!
A dagger whistled through the air toward her from Min Li. With a swift, practiced motion, she parried it, and the bde cttered harmlessly to the ground.
"Bring me his head!" she commanded coldly, her eyes fshing with ruthless intent.
"Very good, very good…" Min Li dismounted calmly, a sword appearing in his hand. “You dare attack my revered master? Not even your entire cn’s worthless lives are enough to pay for that sin.”
He walked forward slowly, a terrifying smile on his lips.
Haozi followed, his steps light yet sharp, his recent forest training evident in every movement.
Jin Yu remained mounted, eyes narrowed.
With a flick of his finger, a burst of Qi erupted and smmed into the incoming men with a thunderous boom.
Bodies flew like rag dolls, crashing into walls and shattering crates, groaning as they crumpled.
The dy’s face darkened. Seeing Jin Yu interfere, she yanked a jagged whip from her spatial pouch.
With a loud crack, she shed it at the ground. Dust shot up, the stone splitting from the force. Then, without hesitation, she shed it at Jin Yu.
Whizz!
Her movements were precise and violent, showing that this wasn’t her first time using the whip on people.
But Jin Yu raised his hand.
Snap!
The whip coiled around his palm.
His face remained expressionless.
A faint red flicker danced in his eyes. The coldness in his gaze was enough to freeze bone.
The whip trembled.
With one pull, he yanked it from her grip. The barbed edges grazed his skin,but they didn’t even leave a mark.
The dy took an involuntary step back. For the first time, her heart trembled. There was something wrong with this man.
Still, she refused to show weakness. She retrieved a sword and, with two fingers, sent it flying toward Jin Yu's head.
Crack!
A simple flick of the whip, and the sword spun off-course, cnging against a wall.
Her breath hitched.
Jin Yu sat silently, still holding the whip. The calm in his eyes was unnatural, it was the kind of stillness that made the soul shudder. That red glow in his eyes pulsed again, faint but steady.
In desperation, she unleashed a flurry of small, glittering daggers from her pouch, each one was razor-sharp and infused with Qi.
They shot through the air toward Jin Yu.
but the whip spun in his grasp like a storm, spping every single bde out of the air.
Cng! Cng! Cng! Cng!
Now pale and desperate, the dy backed away, gasping. Sweat trickled down her neck. Fear cwed its way into her heart.
Still trying to resist, she pulled a silver locket from her pouch and poured her Qi into it. The locket began to glow, trembling with awakening power.
But Jin Yu didn’t let her finish.
Snap!
The whip shed across her wrist, drawing blood and severing her grip on the locket.
With a sharp yank, she was dragged through the air like a broken doll and smmed into the ground near Jin Yu’s horse.
BAM!
"ARRGH!" she screamed, curling in on herself. Pain exploded in her body as her wrist throbbed and bled.
Jin Yu loomed above her like a god gazing down at an insect.
PAH!
The whip struck her back, unching her into the air and then....
BAM!
She hit the ground hard, dust and blood scattering.
"ARRRGH!"
PAH!
The whip shed across her back again
BAM!
She crashed into the ground, again.
“Arrrrgh!”
PAH!
BAM!
PAH!
BAM!
PAH!
BAM!
Jin Yu’s strikes were merciless and unrelenting. Fury fueled every of his hit, clouding his judgment.
“You want my head, right?” he muttered coldly. “Let’s see whose head rolls first.”
Min Li and Haozi stood off to the side, stunned into silence. Despite having followed Jin Yu for some time, they still found themselves shaken.
Young Master… is terrifying.
Screams echoed down the street. Whip cracks thundered like war drums.
The once-bustling road had turned into a ghost town. Doors were bolted shut, curtains drawn. No one dared peek out.
Even the boy from earlier trembled. Though he had shown bravery before, now holding his sister tightly, his body shivered uncontrolbly. He didn’t dare make a sound.
After what felt like an eternity, the beating stopped. The whip nded on the ground with a heavy thud, ominous and final.
Jin Yu approached the woman’s bloodied body and then looked at the boy.
"You," he called coldly.
The boy flinched, slowly raising his head, still cradling his sister.
"Why were you beaten?"
His voice wasn’t warm. There was no soothing tone of justice, only rage.
The boy swallowed hard. "S-she w-wanted to t-take my s-sister… as a… s-sve…”
"Is that it?"
“Y-Yes…”
“Good.”
Jin Yu turned to the quivering men still alive on the ground. His eyes glinted red.
“No one will take your sister. No one will seek revenge. Because…”
He stared at the boy, voice like ice.
“…I’ll remove the weeds from the root.”
He raised his voice slightly, but it wasn’t a shout.
“Finish them.”
He hadn’t directed the command at anyone in particur, but Min Li stepped forward instantly. His bde gleamed, and then fshed.
Swish!
One by one, the men colpsed, their throats opened cleanly.
The whip cracked again.
This time it wrapped around the dy’s body and stuck there firmly. The jagged edges dug deep, drawing fresh blood.
"You,” Jin Yu pointed to a trembling civilian hiding behind a pilr. “Lead the way. To her family.”
The man froze, then scurried forward, not daring to hesitate. He moved to the front of Jin Yu’s horse, shaking with every step.
With a thunderous neigh, the horse began to move.
It stepped over the groaning woman on the ground, and the whip still embedded in her dragged her behind like refuse.
Haozi and Min Li mounted their horses and followed, solemn.
Minutes ter, civilians cautiously emerged and watched the retreating figures in stunned silence. Some followed at a distance, keeping their heads low and their footsteps soft.
Something in Louyang had changed.
And it had a name.
Jin Yu.