"Don't hate me." Xue Shen whispered. "Death should be celebrated… It's the only way to be freed from existence's grasp after all.." he bowed deeply, to the three, as if what he had done was not cruel, but a mercy.
"Stats."
[Name: Xue Shen]
[Level: 4 | EXP: 6 | 40]
[Gender: Male]
[Age: 22 | Lifespan: 70]
[Race: Human]
[Cultivation: Mortal]
[Bloodline: None]
[Physique: None]
[Spiritual Roots: 1 | Status: Rootless]
[Talents: None]
[Unspent Stat Points: 2]
[Constitution: 0.4 +^]
[Strength: 3.5 +^]
[Dexterity: 1.8 +^]
[Intelligence: 1 +^]
[Endurance: 2.8 +^]
[Perception: 0.9 +^]
[Charisma: 2 +^]
[Luck: 0]
[Skills: Blade Mastery: Level 0 | 6.5/10]
[Techniques: None]
"Hmmm… Let's go with two points into Dexterity."
[Dexterity: 1.8 -> 3.8]
Xue Shen felt lighter and more flexible. Swinging the sword, it moved effortlessly.
After a few minutes, he stopped and looted the three bodies. He found pouches of silver, gold, and wooden IDs, which he discarded.
Grabbing the three swords and a torch, he walked toward the wagon.
Till suddenly he felt like he was being watched. Xue Shen instantly turned his head but saw nothing.
"Hah… Not this again." he muttered. The hairs on his arms prickled, and shadowy figures seemed to shift at the edges of the tree lines. A faint whisper brushed past his ear, maybe real, maybe not..
Then he realized something:
"System, can you see what's happening?"
[? I don't understand what you mean, Host. If you mean how you killed those three, then yes, I saw.]
"Nothing else?"
[I cannot see everything the Host does or thinks.]
[Only when you call for me, or when you kill and I need to convert that Lifeforce into EXP. For the most part, I cannot observe much.]
Xue Shen confirmed it. What he was seeing was hallucinations, so he tried ignoring the feeling and stepped closer to the wagon, but every snap of a twig and rustle of leaves made his eyes glance a little to his side. Even though he knew there was nothing there, he couldn't help himself from checking something.
Finally, he reached the back of the wagon and climbed onto it, trying to shake off the unease crawling up his spine.
On the back, he saw barrels, crates, and a chest. He opened the chest first and found a note.
"Qan Liu… dear, come back home to Lin City. Your son misses you deeply. He is about to take the civil service exam to become a scholar, and he wishes more than anything to see you and Ning Hua before then. Please, come home soon."
"Son…?" Xue Shen muttered, a dark thought forming in his mind. 'Should I liberate him as well? So they can at least reunite with their parents in death's embrace…' He thought, after all, he wasn't a monster who took pleasure in tearing families apart, but not knowing the son's name made the task difficult. At least he knew the parents, which might help.
Beside it was a map showing Lin City and the forest surrounding it was labeled "The Blighted Wilds." He also saw several cities around it, the closest one to Lin City being Baiyan, and Caisheng City.
"What an ominous name…" Xue Shen muttered. He also found jewelry and gold. Finally, a paper stating: "This wagon was acquired by Qian Liu on the 9th day of March in the year 130,892 of the Imperial Jin calendar." He assumed it was the ownership certificate.
"Qian Liu, huh? Hmm.. Perhaps I could use that name…"
He returned everything to the chest, checked barrels and crates, but only found food and water, after checking everything he closed them. Climbing onto the driver's seat of the wagon, he grabbed the reins, maneuvered around the collapsed wagon, and headed straight toward the road to Lin City.
Ten minutes later, the feeling of being watched still lingered, a constant, invisible presence. Shadowy figures seemed to appear and disappear at the edges of the tree lines, and every passing shadow made him question what was real… And what was only in his mind.
He forced himself to ignore it, focusing solely on reaching Lin City.
He couldn't help but sighed, as he ignored it all.
One and half days later…
Xue Shen finally arrived at Lin City after a little under 2 days. The night had given way to day. Somewhere along the way, the dirt road had turned into a paved path, making the ride much smoother. He ate and drank from the supplies in the wagon as he traveled.
Lin City was surrounded by an unending wall that seemed to completely surround the city.
The walls looked to be about 130 feet tall, with multiple massive gates and two huge towers next to the gate looking to be about 160 feet tall. Just as Xue Shen was approaching the city gates, someone suddenly yelled from front of the gate
"Halt! Where's your ID?!" A guard called out.
'Shit! I don't have an ID' Xue Shen thought frantically, trying to come up with a lie.
"Apologies, sirs, I lost my ID while traveling here," he said.
"Then you can't enter!" the guard replied sternly.
"Come on, friend, surely you'll let it slide just this once…" Xue Shen said, holding up a silver coin.
"Well, it's not like you're entirely forbidden.." the guard said, wavering.
One silver coin clearly wasn't enough.
'Greed… one of the worst corruptions of existence..' Xue Shen thought, his eyes narrowing as a guard demanded payment just to enter the town.
"Ah, my apologies." Xue Shen said, holding up two silver coins and tossing both to the guard.
"Alright, you may enter," the guard said, gesturing for him to come inside.
Xue Shen tugged the reins to move forward. Inside the city walls, he saw ancient-looking houses.
'All useless..' he thought. Looking at the city that was bustling with activity, people lined the streets, and stalls lined along the road.
He saw men atop wooden beams, hammers in hand, while others carried wooden planks. They were clearly building something.
"Oi! Come on, we don't have all day! This has to be finished by nightfall! Put your backs into it!" a man yelled. He looked like he hadn't lifted a finger himself, only barking orders at everyone else.
"Hey, watch out! There's a wagon!" a woman shouted, her voice filled with panic as she rushed forward and pulled the boy out of the street—he had been blocking Xue Shen's path.
"Sorry about that, sir!" she said, still catching her breath.
"It's alright," Xue Shen said with a smile. "Kids will be kids."
He kept riding and eventually the stalls that lined the streets disappeared and he only saw shops with large board signs.
He rode around with his wagon and eventually stopped at a shop displaying a picture of jewelry. He grabbed some pieces of jewelry from the chest, and stopped his wagon near the shop, and hopped down.
He entered the shop and inside, necklaces, pendants, rings, and shiny jewels hung on display behind glass.
The lady behind the counter stared at the poor-looking man with a blade at his side.
"Is there… Something I can help you with?" she asked in a rude tone, glancing at him suspiciously.
"Yes, there is. I'm here to sell these." Xue Shen said, dangling the jewels from his pouch in front of the lady.
The lady's eyes glinted. "Oh, my apologies, sir. How much would you like for these?" she asked, now in a more pleasant tone.
"Name your price, and I'll decide," Xue Shen replied.
"16 gold coins for all?" she suggested.
"Hmm… Let's do 22," Xue Shen said, dangling the one piece.
"18?" she countered.
"20 is the lowest I'll go," Xue Shen said firmly.
"You've got yourself a deal." she said, smiling widely.
'Did I just get ripped off?' Xue Shen thought, but it didn't bother him, he had stolen these jewels anyway.
The lady went to the back and returned with a pouch. "The coins are all in there." she said, placing it on the table.
"Thank you.."
Xue Shen opened it and counted exactly twenty coins. He was about to leave but remembered something and turned back to ask the lady a question.
"Actually, ma'am, I'm new to Lin City. Do you happen to have any good recommendations for a place to rest? And are there any good-paying jobs that involve… Killing specifically?" he asked.
"Hmm… There's a tavern down the street called the Golden Lantern Inn. They charge 10 bronze coins per night. The rooms and service there are good."
"Hmm…" she paused, thinking of any jobs that involved killing. "As for the kind of work you specifically asked about, you could try applying to the Monster Hunters Guild. With the sudden increase of monsters coming from the Blighted Wilds, the guild has been desperate for recruits. Or you could enlist in the military. With the ongoing wars against the Wei Kingdom and the southern city-states, the Lord of Baiyan City is frantically recruiting soldiers," she explained.
"I see… Ah, one more question," Xue Shen said. "How many bronze coins make a silver? And how many silver coins make a gold coin?"
"It's obvious, isn't it? 100 bronze coins make 1 silver coin, and 100 silver coins make 1 gold coin?" she said, looking at Xue Shen suspiciously at his seemingly idiotic question.
I see. Thank you for your help, ma'am. If I ever need to sell more jewelry, you'll be the first shop I come to!" Xue Shen said, forming his hands in a respectful gesture and smiling.
As he left the store, the smile instantly disappeared from his face. He mounted his wagon and drove around, keeping an eye out for the Golden Lantern Inn.
Ten minutes later…
"Is this it?" he muttered as he spotted a yellow sign. Then he saw the sign read "Golden Lantern Inn", and he knew he had arrived. The building stood about six stories tall.
He opened the door and inside, multiple tables were filled with food, and the chairs around them were occupied by people chatting, laughing, and enjoying their meals.
The air was rich with the aroma of roasted meat, fresh bread, and warm stew. Loud music being played by musicians and female dancers performing on the stage give the place a vibrant atmosphere, their lively tunes blending with the sounds of conversations.
A huge staircase led upstairs, where more guests could be heard moving about. Xue Shen stepped inside and walked toward the receptionist, taking in the bustling, vibrant atmosphere.
"Hello, sir. What can we do for you today?" the male receptionist asked politely.
"Could I book a one-person room for a month?" Xue Shen asked.
"Of course, sir! What tier would you like?"
"Tier? I'm not following," Xue Shen asked, tilting his head.
"Our tiers are bronze, silver, and gold, based on room quality," the receptionist explained.
"I'll take the bronze tier," Xue Shen said.
"Understood, sir. That'll cost approximately three silver coins and I'll also need your name sir." the receptionist said.
Xue Shen opened a pouch, took out three silver coins, and handed them over. "My name is Qian Liu." The receptionist wrote down Xue Shen's fake name and apartment number. "Follow me, sir." the receptionist said, leading Xue Shen upstairs to his room.
Xue Shen followed the receptionist until they stopped at a room. He opened the door and saw a bed with a small drawer beside it. In the other corner stood a large drawer and a sizable chest. A table with a single chair completed the sparse furnishings.
"Here's your key, sir," the receptionist said, handing him a bronze key. "Just let us know if there's anything we can do, sir!" he added before leaving the room.
"Hah…" Xue Shen said, closing the door, sitting on the bed, and counting his coins.
'38 gold coins and 58 silver coins… I can stay in this inn for 107 years and 2 months..' he thought, smiling.
Xue Shen thought back on his journey in Yunluo. He had been hunted by everyone—he couldn't even enter cities without being attacked. But it wasn't like he didn't deserve it; after all, he used to go to cities to "liberate" lives.
He felt strange being able to enter towns without being feared or attacked. But he knew this feeling wouldn't last long—as he grew stronger, he would soon be capable of wiping out entire cities. And when that day came, he already knew exactly what he intended to do…
After finishing his reminiscing, he began thinking about his next move. Joining the so-called Monster Hunters Guild didn't sound like a bad idea—it could earn him both experience and money from killing monsters, allowing him to grow stronger without suspicion or the consequences that came with killing people. Eventually, when he was stronger, he could safely "liberate" lives again.
But before all of that, he wanted to sleep. The long road had taken its toll on him, and he was exhausted.
Xue Shen then placed the pouches in the drawer next to him, laid down on his bed, and closed his eyes, going to sleep at the break of day.
"Brother! Stop! Please… Stop! Stop! Stop!"
The words echoed in Xue Shen's mind, repeating over and over and over.
He saw a room drenched in blood, a massacre laid bare before him. An old man, perhaps in his fifties, lay lifeless on the floor, his body covered in wounds.
Blood streamed from his head, and multiple stab marks pierced his flesh. Nearby, a young old boy screaming, begging for it all to end.
"Sleeping so soon?" a shadowy voice whispered from behind.
Xue Shen immediately spun around, nothing. Only the wall met his eyes. He turned back, but the room had changed. The two bodies were gone, and now everything was drowned in blood, the roof, the table, the chest, the door. Every surface dripped with blood.
He looked down and saw his hands, dripping with blood as well.
Before him stood a figure, eerily similar to himself.
"DIE, YOU MONSTER! ABOMINATION! YOU CUR-SED THING!" Suddenly, a shadowy figure lunged, grabbing his throat as if trying to kill him.
"Brother…" Xue Shen whispered, his eyes fixed on the shadowy figure, not resisting, understanding it was only an illusion.
"Don't call me brother, you cur-sed creature…" the figure said in disdain before vanishing.
"Haa!" Xue Shen jolted awake, drenched in sweat.
"Hah…" He pressed a hand to his face, peeking through the gaps between his fingers. Everything in the room appeared normal.
Then he realized something. "I haven't taken my medication in days…"
He got out of bed, grabbed his pouch, and sat at the chair. From the pouch, he grabbed a vial, and took a single tablet from the vial, he stared at the tablet contemplating on whether he should shallowing it or not.. Eventually he swallowed it dry.
For three long minutes, he stared at the table, still and unmoving, before he finally slumped forward, resting his head on his arms and closing his eyes.