Shackles of Humanity

The skinny man’s face hardened. He turned to the man who had previously abducted Erya and asked, ”You didn’t leave a note?”

”I did, Boss. I’d say the old man has no intention of complying. Let’s just make our move!”

The skinny man closed his eyes in thought for a moment, then sneered. ”Fine. This old man is more stubborn than I thought. In that case, don’t blame me for what happens next. Go wake that girl up, cut off one of her arms, and send it to him.”

Luo Kai had just pushed three huge boulders to the edge of the valley. As he was preparing to continue, he suddenly heard the faint sound of a girl crying from within. A jolt of alarm went through him. ’Are they making their move now?’ He couldn’t spare a moment to push more boulders and quickly and quietly scrambled down into the valley.

Down in the valley, the man with the headscarf dragged Erya out. He doused her with a pot of cold water to wake her up, then pulled a sharp knife from his waist. He grinned. ”...A little dark, but you’re not bad-looking. Don’t worry, my knife is fast. It won’t hurt a bit.”

When Erya woke up, she saw a group of men who looked like Evil Gods surrounding her. She was only twelve or thirteen years old; she had never experienced a scene like this. All she could do was cry and cry.

Luo Kai saw the scene unfold as he descended. Just as the sharp knife was about to fall, he quickly picked up a rock and hurled it at the forehead of the man with the headscarf.

”AHH!” Every tooth in the man’s mouth was shattered. He screamed and collapsed, knocked unconscious by a single rock.

”Who’s there!”

Luo Kai felt a slight sense of regret. ’If I’d hit his forehead, I probably would have killed him. But his teeth absorbed most of the force.’ Seeing several men with guns rushing toward him, he immediately ducked back and fled.

Under the moonlight, a dark figure vanished into the night with the uncanny speed of a phantom, impossible to catch.

”Was that a man or a ghost?”

The men rubbed their eyes, a chill running down their spines.

The skinny man’s face was grim. ”It’s a man, and a master at that. We’re in trouble. We can’t stay here. Pack up, we’re leaving!”

”What about the girl?”

”Take her with us.”

The men hastily packed their tents and belongings. Just then, a sound like rolling thunder echoed from above as several massive boulders came crashing down. The valley was funnel-shaped, amplifying the sound immensely. Though there were only a few boulders, the roar was like that of a charging army.

It was as if their eyes were playing tricks on them, but there seemed to be a figure on the massive boulders, constantly dodging and weaving as he rode the cascade of rock downward!

The boulders kicked up clouds of dust, resembling several gray dragons tumbling down the mountain. In an instant, they were already halfway down.

The skinny man’s face paled. He knew their campsite was in a narrow spot; once the boulders landed, they would all be dead!

”Run!”

”What about our guy?”

No one answered. In the face of a life-and-death crisis, any notion of brotherhood was thrown to the Nine Heavens. They abandoned the man with the headscarf without hesitation and ran for their lives.

Luo Kai had expected the thugs to chase him, giving him a chance to pick them off one by one. He never imagined they would be so cowardly. In his haste, his only option was to release the boulders early. Then, forcing his heart to pound, he descended with them. He knew this would likely fail to save Erya and cost him his own life. But wasn’t living about finding peace for one’s Mind Spirit? Even if the hope was slim, he had to take the chance.

By fully activating his Qi and Blood Surge, time itself seemed to slow down. Every minute change in his surroundings fed into his brain. Countless pieces of information were processed in a hundred-millionth of a second, allowing him to deduce and execute the optimal course of action.

Luo Kai moved like an incredibly agile monkey, constantly finding the best footholds, dodging rocks as he plunged downward. His speed was no slower than the boulders themselves. This made the unthinkable possible: leaping down with the rockslide. He had to save Erya before the boulders hit the ground!

As he descended, he caught sight of the skinny leader’s back. A surge of fury rose within him. He snatched a piece of falling debris and hurled it at the man.

The men were so focused on fleeing for their lives that they forgot all about defense. Luo Kai watched the skinny man fall with a flash of satisfaction and continued to hurl rocks at the others.

Time seemed to move both quickly and slowly. Blood trickled from Luo Kai’s ears and nose, a sign that his body couldn’t handle the strain. Yet his consciousness was incredibly clear. The boulders were about to land. Several people were still on the ground below, and Erya’s slender figure was easy to spot among them. She looked utterly terrified, staring blankly up at the sky.

Just as the boulders were about to crush her, at the last possible second, Luo Kai let out an explosive roar. The muscles in his legs bulged, ripping his pants as he accelerated once more. He snatched Erya up an instant before the boulders landed.

BOOM! RUMBLE! The giant boulders crashed down, sending countless fragments flying as a massive cloud of dust filled the valley.

Outside the valley, two men turned and stared blankly back.

”Wha... Where’s the boss?”

”I think I saw the boss fall.”

”Should we go back and check? Maybe he’s not dead.”

The two returned to the valley as the dust began to settle. The ground was covered in shattered rocks and dismembered limbs. Clearly, no one could have survived. With grim faces, the two began digging through the rubble, searching for their boss’s body.

Suddenly, a figure stood up from within the rubble, completely covered in dust, its features obscured.

The two men jumped in fright and shouted in unison, ”Who’s there!”

The figure didn’t answer. Its blood-red eyes stared intently at them, like an Evil Ghost straight from Hell.

The two could no longer suppress the Fear in their hearts. They turned and ran.

The figure was, of course, Luo Kai. He glanced down at the silent Erya in his arms, and a blazing rage ignited within him. With a furious roar, he lunged forward. His fist tore through the air with an audible rip as he threw a straight punch, instantly knocking one of the men to the ground.

The other man heard his companion’s dying scream and fell flat on his face. His will was crushed by the formless Fear; he didn’t even dare to look back.

Luo Kai walked over and killed him without hesitation. He looked at his blood-soaked fists, then at the carnage in the valley. His heart rate slowly returned to normal, and the crimson glow in his pupils faded. This was the first time he had deliberately killed, and so many at once. His Heart Spirit was shaken, and he fell into a daze. The rage that had filled him dissipated. ’Can the ugliness of humanity only be washed away with blood?’

He stood there in a daze until the sound of intermittent sobbing from behind snapped him out of it. He turned to see Erya’s small, dust-covered face staring at him, filled with Fear.

...

By the time he returned home, the sky was already growing light. Old Huang immediately ran up to greet him. Smelling the blood on him, the dog barked nonstop, as if asking what had happened.

Exhausted, Luo Kai patted the dog’s head, quickly washed the blood from his body, and went inside to fall into a deep sleep.