"Fu'er, listen to me, it's not me. These people were called here by my elder brother. I tried to persuade him several times, but he wouldn't listen."
Xu Fu's uncle knelt on the ground, knocking his head against the floor repeatedly. Xu Fu trembled, trying to stand, but staggered, his legs weak. He angrily pounded his thighs a few times before the shaking finally stopped.
"Is that so? Heh, Uncle, how much money do you have on you?"
Xu Fu's uncle immediately fumbled out a money pouch and handed it to Xu Fu. Then, wearing a forced smile, he tried to get up and leave, but a hand grabbed the back of his collar.
What do you intend to do, my employer?
Wu, the Heartless swordsman, said coldly.
"Kill."
With a slicing sound, Xu Fu's uncle had his throat slit. His eyes widened, and with a thud, he collapsed to the ground. Xu Fu sprang up mechanically, pressing himself against the wall. No matter how many times he saw it, he was still terrified.
Wu walked over step by step and extended a hand. Xu Fu placed his own hand on it.
"We should leave quickly, Xu Fu."
It was already late at night, and after killing thirty-one people, it would be hard for them to escape tomorrow. Once outside, Xu Fu covered his mouth, staring at the corpses scattered across the floor from the second to the first floor. Most had been killed instantly, with fatal wounds to the neck, chest, or abdomen.
"If we don't leave soon, there will be trouble."
After bribing the city guards, Xu Fu and Wu managed to leave Linzi City safely.
By the light of the campfire, Wu expressionlessly wiped his twin swords. Xu Fu stared into the flames. Neither spoke a word.
With a snap, Xu Fu took out the money he had just received from his uncle and tossed the bag over. Wu caught it and began counting.
"Sixty gold in total."
At that moment, Xu Fu looked at the main road. This road led to the village where he and Serena Zheng had lived together for almost two years. He hesitated. All night long, Xu Fu pondered whether he should go back.
Early the next morning, Xu Fu got up.
"Let's go."
At a roadside relay station, Xu Fu and the others bought a horse. The two rode together, and after a day, arrived at the village. But Xu Fu soon noticed that many villagers had brightly colored strips tied to their bodies.
Upon asking around, he learned that Master Bernard Zheng was now regarded as an immortal here, and soon, he was to ascend to immortality.
In an instant, all of Xu Fu's memories of Serena Zheng erupted within him. Ignoring people's attempts to stop him and under Wu's threats, he entered the courtyard where Master Bernard Zheng lived, pushed open the door, and covered his mouth.
Fragments of memories with Serena Zheng surfaced in his mind. Tears streamed endlessly from Xu Fu's eyes.
"Ah, Fu'er, you've come back. Heh, your master is about to ascend to immortality. Xuan'er has already gone ahead of me..."
With a guttural scream, Xu Fu lunged forward, seizing Master Bernard Zheng by the collar. On the bed lay a corpse, already putrid and leaking fluids, the stench suffocating. Serena Zheng's face was so swollen and distorted, she was no longer recognizable.
"Ascend to immortality? Cultivation? It's all bullshit, all bullshit!"
Xu Fu kept shaking the frail Master Bernard Zheng.
"Heh, I knew you'd come back one day. So, as your master, I've already written down the methods and effects of some unique alchemy pills in a book. Take it."
Master Bernard Zheng's eyes were hazy, his breath extremely weak, his body completely emaciated. In the corner lay a large roll of sheepskin. Xu Fu choked up, his tears falling like broken beads, pattering to the floor.
"She was your daughter. She was your daughter!"
Xu Fu screamed, but Master Bernard Zheng pushed him away, staggering outside and coughing up blood. With a shout, the villagers immediately lit their torches. Only then did Xu Fu see that the courtyard and house were filled with the same black powder he'd seen before.
Wu walked over. Xu Fu covered his mouth, whimpering as he looked at Serena Zheng.
"Let's go. Don't look. There's nothing worth seeing about the dead."
Crackling filled the air as the house was engulfed in flames. Xu Fu dropped to his knees, pounding the ground, his mouth open in a wail as the villagers chanted their prayers and rituals around him.
"Eat something."
Late at night, Wu handed Xu Fu a steaming bowl of meat soup and some dried food. Xu Fu moved his mouth, but something seemed stuck inside him, and he couldn't eat. He shook his head.
"Not eating?"
Wu said, eating by himself. The two stayed in a villager's home; the room was small, with only one bed. Xu Fu silently watched the lively scene outside the window. The villagers were still celebrating. On the table lay Master Bernard Zheng's notes on alchemy.
The chill outside was nothing compared to the cold inside Xu Fu. He shivered uncontrollably.
At this moment, Xu Fu looked at Wu and asked a question.
"You don't feel anything at all?"
Wu sneered and stared at Xu Fu.
"I am of the Heartless School. Heartless means no self. The blade is sharp because it is emotionless, and I am nothing, so naturally I feel nothing."
"How can one achieve that?"
Xu Fu asked.
"You can't. Humans fear death, and once you fear death, you freeze up. Do you fear death?"
"Yes."
This was the second time Wu had asked Xu Fu this question. Then Wu burst out laughing.
"Since you fear death, how can you become nothing?"
Xu Fu's expression darkened. Wu closed the window, leaned against the corner, hugged his longsword to his chest, sat cross-legged, pulled up a blanket, and closed his eyes.
Xu Fu had never asked about Wu's origins. He knew that even if he did, Wu probably wouldn't say a word.
It was bright outside. Xu Fu walked out alone. The cold wind blew as he reached the house that had been burned to ruins. Inside, only charred remains were left.
"Why are people so stubborn, refusing to repent even in death? Why?"
Xu Fu muttered to himself. After a long while, he sat down, grief settling in his heart, and tears welled up again.
To become like Wu, Xu Fu understood that even if he spent his whole life, he might never achieve it.
Early the next morning, Xu Fu ate something and set out with Wu on horseback. He planned to go to Jimo, the nearest city to Linzi.
On the road, whenever they rested, Xu Fu would read the large sheepskin scroll left by Master Bernard Zheng. It described many alchemy methods and effects that he had never seen before. Most were for curing illnesses.
After five days, Xu Fu finished reading. The only pill without any noted effect was the Celestial Path Pill. Many of the ingredients were things Xu Fu had never heard of, and one was virgin's blood.