Chapter 1 Xie Wu Hua

Xie Wuhua had been standing outside the door for quite some time.

He wasn't in a hurry.

Even if he had to stand there for a day and a night, he wouldn't lose his patience.

Fortunately, the person inside didn't keep him waiting that long.

After that "quite some time," a slight footstep sound came from inside the room, and then the door was opened.

The one who opened the door was a man.

He was tall, handsome, with a cold gaze and an imposing presence.

His signature look was snow-white robes and a long sword at his waist.

An icy temperament and taciturn nature were the only impressions people had of him.

"Hmph... so you're finally willing to come out and see me?" Although the door was open, Xie Wuhua still stood three steps away from the threshold, not daring to venture forward rashly.

Leng Yuqiu heard this but didn't reply, simply gazing silently at the young man with a square face before him.

"What? Could it be... you didn't even realize someone was standing outside your room?" Seeing that the other party didn't respond, Xie Wuhua probed further.

"I noticed." After two seconds, Leng Yuqiu finally spoke, his tone cold and his words accompanied by some slightly discordant, fragmented pauses. "I noticed as soon as you arrived."

"Heh..." Xie Wuhua chuckled. "So, all this time I've been standing outside, you've been hesitating inside whether or not to open the door?"

"I wasn't." Leng Yuqiu replied.

"Oh?" Xie Wuhua didn't understand his meaning, so he used an interjection to signal him to continue.

"I didn't want to open the door, and I didn't want to bother with you." After a moment, Leng Yuqiu added.

"Ha!" Xie Wuhua laughed again... a cold laugh. "Then why did you open the door now?"

"I need to use the privy." Leng Yuqiu's reply was concise and to the point, and, more importantly... unquestionable.

Having said those five words, he stepped forward, walked out of the room, and casually closed the door behind him.

He calmly walked past Xie Wuhua, completely ignoring the latter, and strode towards the ground floor of the inn.

By the time his figure disappeared, Xie Wuhua was still standing there.

He naturally wouldn't chase after Leng Yuqiu to argue with him, because only rascals and fools would stop someone who needed to use the privy and engage in some kind of debate.

Xie Wuhua was neither a rascal nor a fool.

At that moment, Young Master Xie only felt insulted, insulted by something called "indifference."

Leng Yuqiu's reaction showed... he regarded Xie Wuhua as an insignificant person, which made the latter's waiting meaningless.

Xie Wuhua wanted to get angry, but he couldn't.

Because as he pondered how to erupt, he suddenly realized that, apart from the title of "scion of a prestigious family," he indeed had no other reason not to be ignored.

Although Xie Wuhua had been traveling the martial world for more than half a year, he had failed to leave any mark on it.

How could such a person possibly gain Leng Yuqiu's respect?

Of course, the Xie family's young master's "lack of accomplishment" wasn't due to his lack of ability... in fact, Xie Wuhua could be said to be accomplished in both literary and martial arts.

In terms of "literary" skills, even if he wasn't as adept at flowery language as a scholar, he could still be described as "knowledgeable and reasonable," which alone made him stand out like a crane among chickens in the martial world full of roughnecks.

And in terms of "martial" skills, as the eldest grandson of the Xie family, he had naturally inherited the true teachings of his ancestors. Looking at the entire martial world, it would be difficult to find someone among his peers who could compare to him.

However... having ability doesn't necessarily mean having achievements.

The martial world was a ridiculous place...

Here, the word "trouble" could almost be equated with "opportunity."

It could bring you all kinds of losses, such as property, reputation, family, friends, life, and so on, all of which could disappear with the appearance of this word.

But it could also bring you equal benefits...

In the martial world, a person who had never been approached by trouble or gone looking for trouble himself was definitely a failure...

And Xie Wuhua's awkward situation was this: due to the Xie family's name, many troublesome "people" and "matters" would actively avoid him. Moreover, because he was always accompanied by Liu Bo, an old hand in the martial world, many troublesome people and matters that didn't avoid him... were also blocked by Liu Bo.

This was what created the Xie family's young master, who had been wandering the martial world for more than half a year and still had no accomplishments.

"Young Master." Before long, Liu Bo's familiar voice interrupted Xie Wuhua's thoughts.

Liu Xilai's loyalty and affection for the Xie family were extremely deep. Having suffered a disability due to a crushing defeat in the past, he was destined to have no descendants physically. Furthermore, he had no living relatives; therefore, having watched the Xie family's young master grow up, he had long regarded him as his own grandson. This was also why... when Xie Wuhua asked his grandfather to let him "train" in the martial world, the old family head arranged for Liu Bo to accompany the young master.

"Are you alright?" Seeing that the young master didn't reply, Liu Bo asked with concern.

"Not very good." Xie Wuhua knew that Liu Bo had been watching him in secret, so he wasn't surprised by the latter's sudden appearance.

"You shouldn't have been so 'polite'." Liu Bo also knew that the young master had been wronged, but he would never try to comfort him in a way that one would comfort a child; he would point out the crux of the matter directly.

"Yes..." Xie Wuhua sighed. "I don't seem to be 'qualified' to be 'polite' to him."

"Indeed, you're not." Liu Bo said.

"You should have told me when I decided to come." Xie Wuhua said.

"If I had said it then, you probably wouldn't have understood what I meant." Liu Bo replied.

"Hmm..." Xie Wuhua pondered for half a second. "... That's right."

"However, it's not too late to understand now..." Liu Bo said.

"Heh..." Xie Wuhua's smile returned. "Right, it's not too late!"

…………

When Leng Yuqiu returned to his room, he still wore that indifferent expression.

He stepped inside and closed the door behind him.

He acted as if he didn't see that his door had been left open, or that there were two people sitting inside... he didn't react or comment in any way.

At this moment, Xie Wuhua and Liu Xilai were sitting in Leng Yuqiu's room, drinking tea.

The tea had just been brought up by the waiter, and the teapot and teacups were all new. Liu Bo had specifically ordered these, as he didn't want to use the tea set in someone else's room, because those things could very well have been poisoned.

"We have some questions for you." This time, Liu Bo spoke first.

Leng Yuqiu ignored him, simply returning silently to the bedside, sitting down, and assuming a meditative posture.

"You killed Ma Dahu, didn't you?" Even though the other party didn't respond, Xie Wuhua continued from Liu Bo's words and asked the question he wanted to ask.

Leng Yuqiu, who was meditating on the bed, simply closed his eyes at this point.

"It's no use pretending." Xie Wuhua persisted, continuing, "Even if you can fool the whole world, you can't fool me..." He paused for a moment. "From your sitting posture, standing posture, walking posture, and even the way you breathe... I can tell that in addition to swordsmanship, you're proficient in at least two types of palm techniques and a set of leg techniques, and that you possess superior internal energy cultivation methods."

"So what if I am?" At this moment, Leng Yuqiu finally spoke, but his eyes were still closed, and his tone was nonchalant.

"Ma Dahu's fatal wound, which was also the only point where he was struck, was half an inch below his ribs." Xie Wuhua continued. "In this town, no more than twenty people can see that that location is the weakness of the Double Form Life-Talisman Palm (Shuangxing Cuiming Zhang); no more than ten people can strike that spot with a single palm in actual combat; and you... are one of those ten people."

"Of course, that alone isn't enough to prove that you're the murderer." The next second, Liu Bo smoothly took over the conversation. "The real basis for our conclusion is... we're certain that the palm print on Ma Dahu's ribs was made by the hand of someone who uses a sword." He paused slightly. "Perhaps you yourself don't notice it, but the hands of people who practice different weapons and different martial arts will have various slight differences, such as the tiger's mouth of a swordsman..."

"Liu Xilai." Suddenly, Leng Yuqiu interrupted Liu Bo's words, and this was the first time he had joined the conversation with the two men in this way. "You don't need to tell me all the minute details of your deductions..." His tone was still calm, and his eyes were still closed. "I have never denied that 'I killed Ma Dahu'."

Hearing these words, both Liu Bo and Xie Wuhua were stunned. After quickly exchanging a glance, Xie Wuhua said again, "Hmph... you seem quite frank now. In that case, why did you use a palm instead of a sword when you killed him... why the cover-up?"

"Using a palm instead of a sword wasn't to cover up anything." Leng Yuqiu said.

"Oh? Then why?" Xie Wuhua asked again.

"Simply because he wasn't worthy of dying by my sword." That was Leng Yuqiu's answer.

The answer sounded like a sophism, but when those words came from Leng Yuqiu's mouth, Young Master Xie and Liu Bo were instantly convinced... he wasn't lying.

"So... he deserved to die?" Liu Bo didn't ask about the specific motives for the murder; he knew that such a question would be overstepping his bounds, so... he asked a question that sounded a bit like nonsense.

"Deserved to die." But Leng Yuqiu's forceful answer made the question itself meaningful.

"Why did you act at this time and in this place?" Liu Bo asked again.

"Where I act, when I act, and..." Leng Yuqiu paused at this point, "... who I kill..." Those five words were clearly directed at the two men in the room, "... are all my freedom."

"It seems... we're meddling in other people's business." Liu Bo was, after all, experienced; he had sensed that the atmosphere had changed and quickly looked for an excuse to leave with the young master.

"Indeed." Leng Yuqiu also understood the other party's meaning and replied coldly.

"Since that's the case... we shouldn't say any more..." Liu Bo stood up and made a bow. "We've disturbed you, Great Hero Leng. Please forgive us."

As he spoke and acted, he winked at the young master Xie beside him.

Xie Wuhua was also sensible and immediately stood up, cupping his fist in his other hand at Leng Yuqiu. "We've offended you."

The two men were polite on the surface, but their bodies and minds were already prepared to deal with an attack.

"We won't disturb your rest." Liu Bo then said, "We'll take our leave..."

"Don't be in such a hurry to leave." Unexpectedly, at this moment... Leng Yuqiu actually spoke up. "I have something else to say."

Those words, "I have something else to say," made Liu Bo and Young Master Xie break out in a cold sweat...

"Great Hero Leng... what else do you have to instruct us?" Liu Bo asked.

"Don't you want to know..." Leng Yuqiu continued, "Why Ma Dahu 'deserved to die'?"

Hearing those words, Liu Xilai's face turned pale, because his instincts had already told him what Leng Yuqiu wanted to do.

"We don't!" Liu Bo practically roared those two words.

"Because he disturbed my 'sword practice'." Leng Yuqiu, however, seemed not to have heard and continued calmly.

In that instant, Liu Xilai suddenly knelt down. His body was trembling, his voice was trembling, his soul... was undoubtedly trembling as well. "Great Hero Leng! This... this old man can hear it alone! Our young master is young and ignorant... he meant no offense. He has a bright future ahead of him..."

"That won't do." This was the second time Leng Yuqiu had interrupted Liu Bo's words, and it was also the last time. "I want him to hear it too."

Hearing that "won't do," Liu Bo despaired. When that despair was revealed on his face, he seemed to age several decades in an instant... transforming from a hale and hearty martial arts senior into an old man on the verge of death.

"Liu Bo! Why are you doing this?" Xie Wuhua didn't fully understand the situation yet. Although he had vaguely sensed something... he was, after all, too young. He had no experience of the truly cruel side of the martial world.

"People always think that if they do something wrong, as long as they discover it in time and admit their mistake, they can still make amends... they can have a second chance." As Leng Yuqiu spoke, he opened his eyes. "But I don't like giving people second chances, because I don't want people to think... they can 'make a mistake once' in front of me." His tone was icy, and his eyes were also icy. "I don't know why, but everyone seems to agree... as long as they kneel down, beg, and repent afterward, they can make up for their previous rudeness, offense, and harm...

"Because that's what most people acknowledge, so it becomes 'reason,' which can then become 'law'...

"But can things in this world really be so 'logical'?

"The world thinks that thieves don't deserve to die, so the victims can only accept it; the world thinks that rapists don't deserve to die, so the victims can only accept it; the world thinks that those who bully the weak and dominate the market don't deserve to die, so the oppressed can only accept it...

"But how many of those who make the decisions, those 'most people,' those who are full of morality and righteousness... have ever experienced the feeling of having something important or hard-earned stolen, how many have personally tasted the feeling of being raped, and how many know the feeling of suffering oppression for years without daring to speak out...

"Humiliation, sadness, despair, grievance, indescribable pressure... is there really a set of 'laws and principles' in this world that can accurately measure the pain of the victims and give corresponding punishments?

"At least in my opinion, there isn't.

"But I... have come up with a relatively fair method, a very simple method—let the victims decide how to deal with those who have done wrong.

"Of course, everyone's standards of judgment are different. Some people will kill the whole family of someone who bumps their shoulder on the street, while others will say it doesn't matter even if they are slapped and will even turn the other cheek.

"So I have to admit... my method is actually not as suitable as 'laws and principles.'

"It can only be applied to a small number of people...

"... such as people like me."

Before today, Xie Wuhua and Liu Xilai would never have dreamed that Leng Yuqiu would say so much at once.

No one in the martial world had ever heard Leng Yuqiu say so much, because... those who had heard it were already dead.

In fact, Leng Yuqiu wasn't a taciturn person.

He was just a strange person.

He was extremely introverted, to the point where he would get nervous if he spoke too much in front of people.

Therefore, he rarely spoke and almost never made friends.

Only in one situation would he completely relax, open the floodgates of his words, and chat eloquently with the person in front of him for a while.

And that "situation" was... when he was preparing to kill the other person.