The Wuyang City Gate stood tall like a marble giant basking in hypocrisy. Its pillars were carved with elegant dragons and phoenixes, symbolizing eternal prosperity, while the mosaic of gems on its walls formed a promising map of the city. However, in the shadow of the magnificent gate, shabby shacks made of used wooden planks and tattered tarpaulin were lined up. The sweet scent of sandalwood incense wafting from inside the city clashed with the stench of urine and overflowing sewage from the ditches below the wall. Rats scratched at piles of garbage, competing with skinny children wearing only torn rags to find leftover food.
On top of the wall, soldiers in clean silver uniforms and silk robes stood straight, their spears glistening as if newly forged. Below, in the ditch, a crowd of beggars with skin full of sores and scabs stretched out their thin hands, begging for mercy. Their eyes were empty, reflecting a defeat so profound that their souls seemed to have abandoned their frail bodies.
"Move! Move!" a soldier shouted loudly, chewing sunflower seeds with his mouth open and spitting them out carelessly. The long queue moved forward. In front of the gate, a round mirror the size of a cartwheel stood on a marble pillar—the "Mirror of Truth" that could detect dark energy and forbidden magic.
Li Xian's heart pounded. He felt a cold sensation creeping up his spine, a familiar yet terrifying feeling. The dark energy… it’s like a dark swamp ready to swallow me, he thought. Just one flash, and I’m done for. As he walked in front of the mirror, its surface remained clear. The soldier next to the mirror gave a short nod. "Passed."
He let out a sigh of relief, but his steps faltered. The stout soldier who had been chewing sunflower seeds blocked his way. His eyes narrowed cunningly. "There's an entrance fee, young man."
"But... I've already been inspected," Li Xian said, confused.
"That was the inspection fee," the soldier replied, pointing to a wooden box full of coins. "This is the entry permit fee. Five silver coins."
"But I only have three," Li Xian answered, fumbling in his pocket.
The soldier grunted, his laugh sounding cynical. "Three coins? That’s not even enough to buy a bottle of cheap liquor. Listen, kid, I'm being kind. Five coins, or you'll get 30 lashes at this gate as a warning to others." He gave him a sharp look, deliberately showing the scars on his forearm.
Li Xian swallowed hard. He didn't want to attract attention. He fumbled in his pocket, pulled out the three remaining coins, and added two more he had earned from odd jobs outside the city. The soldier smirked, snatching the coins quickly. "Welcome to Wuyang, the Pearl of the South."
Li Xian stepped inside, leaving behind the heartbreaking irony. In the middle of the road, the "Eternal Prosperity" festival parade was in full swing. A procession of god statues decorated with gold passed by, followed by dancers with cheerful masks. The deafening sound of trumpets accompanied the boisterous drumming. Fat city officials dressed in thick silk threw candies at the crowd. A red banner fluttered in the air, inscribed with, "No Starvation Under the God's Protection." Li Xian saw a skinny mother with a hollowed-out stomach scrambling for candy that had fallen in the mud to give to her scrawny child. Li Xian's teeth clenched, feeling the city's hypocrisy squeeze his heart.
The Wuyang market was a perfect representation of the city's duality. In the front area, along the Silk Road, luxury shops lined up, displaying handmade tapestries, jade jewelry, and rare herbs whose prices were equivalent to a plot of land. The sweet scent of sandalwood incense mingled with the fragrance of western spices, creating an intoxicating aroma. Hand-painted silk lanterns hung at every door, emitting a warm and inviting yellow light.
However, just a few steps from that luxury, Li Xian found the other side of the market: the back area. Narrow, muddy alleys filled with dirty puddles, where street vendors were crowded among piles of garbage. The sweet scent from the front vanished, replaced by the foul smell of sewage, vomit, and rotting meat that made his stomach churn. In the dark corners, illicit transactions took place. Whispers about the sale of organs and people sounded like a living ghost story.
In one of the dimly lit corners, Li Xian saw an old man with a lame leg, trying to balance his small cart. The man was named Chen Bo, selling traditional medicines. His face was full of wrinkles, and his eyes radiated a profound weariness. His lame left leg seemed deformed, as if it had been hit with a blunt object. Every time he tried to walk, he would wince in pain.
Li Xian approached, feeling a strange pull toward the old man. "Chen Bo? Why don't you sell in the front area? Your goods look very high quality."
Chen Bo gave a bitter smile, his wrinkled hands with bulging veins massaging his knee. "Young man, this place is designated. To be able to sell in the front, you have to pay a protection fee. A fee I can't even collect in a lifetime." He let out a long sigh, his tired eyes staring at the crowd in front. "This leg of mine... this is their 'gift' so I remember my place. It wasn't an accident, kid."
"Protection fee?" Li Xian asked, already guessing the answer.
"For the Bay Fang gang," Chen Bo replied in a whisper, as if afraid of being heard. "They are the rulers here. They say they protect the market, but they are actually blood-sucking leeches. I refused to pay, so they taught me a lesson." He then pointed to his granddaughter, who was hiding behind the cart, a pale-faced little girl. "That granddaughter of mine... is a victim of Hei Ye Ting. They say she is very suitable to be a 'bride'. I am hiding her here, in the shadow of this market. I can only pray they won't find her." The sound of festival drums from the front of the market, which should have brought joy, now sounded like cynical laughter covering the groans of slaves behind it.
A large, burly man emerged from the alley, followed by three grim-faced thugs. He had a black snake tattoo coiled around his neck, and his right hand was replaced by a large, rusty iron shackle. This was Bay Fang, the leader of the gang mentioned by Chen Bo.
"Hey, old Chen Bo!" Bay Fang smirked, his voice hoarse and rough. "Long time no see. Where is the 'offering money' for the temple of the God of Protection?" He spat, showing his rusty teeth.
Chen Bo swallowed, his face pale. "Bay Fang... I told you, I don't have any money."
"Don't have any? Do you think I'm stupid?" Bay Fang pointed at Chen Bo's cart with his thick index finger. "You've sold a lot of herbs today! Fine, if there's no money, I'll take your goods instead."
Without warning, Bay Fang kicked Chen Bo's cart with a powerful kick. The cart toppled, and dried herbs and traditional medicines spilled onto the ground, making a heartbreaking crisp sound. Chen Bo was shocked, trying to pick up his medicines, but Bay Fang stepped on them, crushing the fragile herbs into powder.
"Wait!" Li Xian shouted, stepping forward. "Don't hurt him. I'll pay for it."
Bay Fang turned, staring at Li Xian from head to toe. "Who are you, kid? His new friend?"
Li Xian fumbled in his pocket, pulling out the last two coins he had. "This... is all I have."
Bay Fang burst out laughing. He took the coins, spun them between his large fingers, then threw them into a muddy puddle. "Two silver coins? Garbage money from a beggar! Do you think this is enough to cover your debt, Chen Bo?" He kicked one of the destroyed herbs. "If you can't pay, I'll take your collateral. That little girl will work for me from now on!"
Chen Bo's eyes widened. "Don't touch my granddaughter! What debt are you talking about? I don't owe anything!"
"You say you don't have a debt?" Bay Fang sneered. "Last year, you owed 50 silver coins for not paying the protection fee. Since then, the interest has kept growing, to 500 coins! If you don't pay, your granddaughter will be mine. Hei Ye Ting has a lot of work for young girls like her."
Li Xian felt his blood boil. He didn't know what Hei Ye Ting was, but the tone of Bay Fang's voice made his stomach churn. Chen Bo's granddaughter hid behind the cart, her body trembling with fear. Li Xian tried to calm himself. "This is a scam! I'll report you to the city guards!"
Bay Fang grunted. "Report? Go ahead. The city guards are my friends. Who do you think leaked Hei Ye Ting's secrets to us? If you don't want to get beaten up, get out of here!"
Bay Fang ignored Li Xian and kicked Chen Bo. The sound of the old man's body hitting the ground was loud, and Chen Bo groaned in pain, then fainted. A flash of anger crossed Li Xian's eyes.
"You... you've crossed the line," Li Xian hissed, his voice cold and deadly.
Five thugs, including Bay Fang, surrounded Li Xian. "Stupid kid. Do you think you can fight all of us?"
The fight began. Without a weapon, Li Xian had to rely on his instincts. As one of the thugs lunged forward, Li Xian grabbed a wine jug on a nearby cart. He shattered it on the edge of the cart, not with his hand, but with a quick side kick, sending ceramic shards flying like hailstones. Without hesitation, he stabbed a sharp shard into one of the thugs' eyes.
"Aaaarrghhh!" The thug screamed in pain, clutching his bleeding eye.
Li Xian was cornered. He felt a burning cold creep up his spine. That dark energy... it's time. He felt his bones become denser, his muscles swelling. The world seemed to slow down, and every enemy movement became predictable.
"What... what is that?" another thug who backed away in fear shouted. "His face... his face is changing!"
They saw a terrifying illusion on Li Xian's face. Black lines like tattoos crept across his skin, his eyes glowed with a faint red light, and a cynical grin was etched on his lips. They no longer saw a young man, but a terrifying demonic form.
Bay Fang attacked with his iron shackle. "Do you think you can scare me, kid?!"
Li Xian dodged, grabbing Bay Fang's twisting arm, pressing it against a loose brick on the road. With a roar that didn't sound like his own, he lifted a large stone and slammed it onto Bay Fang's hand. There was a sickening cracking sound and a painful gasp.
"You... you're more savage than Hei Ye Ting!" Bay Fang screamed, writhing on the ground, clutching his crushed hand.
Li Xian was no longer thinking clearly. He felt an intoxicating wave of power. He grabbed the iron shackle that had come loose from Bay Fang's hand and lifted it, ready to smash Bay Fang's head.
Suddenly, a smoke bomb was thrown, creating a thick green smoke that filled the alley. Li Xian snapped out of his rage. Chen Bo, who had regained consciousness, stood there, panting.
"Fool! Run!" Chen Bo shouted, his voice hoarse. "They will hunt us to the ends of hell! Go through the Rat Alley behind the funeral home! Quick!"
Li Xian hesitated for a moment. "What about you?"
"I've lived longer than I should have. A young man's fate like yours is in your own hands." Chen Bo pulled out a broken piece of jade from inside his shirt. He placed it in Li Xian's hand. "Take this. This is part of a secret map. This symbol... you will find an ally at the Blind Inn. Ask about the 'lost gatekeeper'."
The sound of the guards' footsteps was getting closer. "Chen Bo... you..."
"Go! Save yourself!"
Li Xian ran, following Chen Bo's instructions. As he turned a corner, he saw Chen Bo's granddaughter. The little girl was not trembling. Her lips, which had been trembling with fear, now curled into a cold smile. Her eyes were no longer innocent, but filled with a terrifying intelligence and cunning.
"Clever girl! You didn't disappoint me," Bay Fang shouted from behind. It turned out the girl was a spy. Chen Bo had sacrificed himself.
Li Xian jumped from roof to roof, landing with the sound of cracking tiles. Below, the streets were crowded, and every time he made a sound, gazes from below would be directed at him. He bumped into a clothesline, and the clothes flew into the air like waving flags. Behind him, shouts and footsteps grew closer.
"He's there! On the roof! Don't let him escape!"
He jumped onto the ridge of a temple, but he miscalculated and slipped. Suddenly, a small stone was thrown from the darkness below, hitting the temple bell and creating a loud sound that distracted the pursuers. On the stone, there was a small piece of paper. The handwriting was elegant, a contrast to the squalid conditions around it. "Use the sewer behind the statue of the war god."
Li Xian looked down, seeing the large statue of the war god. Behind it, there was a foul-smelling sewer hole. He didn't hesitate. He jumped down, entering the sewer.
As he crawled, he found something that shocked him. Soaked in the puddle of water, there were black uniforms, the symbol of Hei Ye Ting, stained with blood. Not just one uniform, but three. In one of the pockets, there was a silver medal with the Hei Ye Ting symbol. And next to the medal... a rotting human finger.
The sewer led him to a dark and damp underground tunnel. A rank and stale smell filled the air. Li Xian covered his mouth and nose with his robe.
When he lit a small flame, he saw a horrifying sight. The bodies of merchants were hanging from the ceiling, their faces frozen in expressions of shock. The bodies had been skinned and some of their organs were missing. A jade necklace hung from the neck of one of the corpses, making it feel so personal.
Li Xian sat down weakly, his eyes empty. "What... what is all this?" he monologued in the darkness. "Who did this? Are they still human?"
Suddenly, he heard a whisper in his head, a voice that was not his own. "They are just parasites! Discard your mercy! You are stronger than all of them! Don't mind the things that hold you back!"
Li Xian clenched his hands, rejecting the whisper. Suddenly, the sound of footsteps came from above.
"Hurry! He can't be far! He must still be around here!" the voice shouted. "Search until you find him! Someone saw his eyes glowing red! His head is worth 50 silver coins... or more if Hei Ye Ting wants it!"
Li Xian picked up a ceramic shard nearby. He began to sharpen it, making it as sharp as a knife. His eyes flickered red in the darkness, waiting.
Would he surrender to the darkness or fight it?