Blind Man

Brother Blind's namesake was not derived from any blight of blindness. In fact, his vision far exceeded the capabilities of most.

He was called Brother Blind, however, because of how much he sought money. As long as there was money on offer, he'd take whatever job or task he could. He would commit any sordid deed, even murder, due to his blindness in the presence of money.

But Brother Blind was powerful, make no mistake. And he could easily kill sacred-blood creatures. Even in the royal shelter, no one would dare offend him.

Liu Kuang wouldn't underestimate someone who could present a sacred-blood beast soul, so he extended an invitation for Brother Blind to come here.

As this was occurring, Liu Kuang went to observe Han Sen and Lin Beifeng. He couldn't discern much about Han Sen and hadn't the clue what his reputation was. If Han Sen did hail from a big family, he figured he'd have been able to easily recognize the man. Lacking smarts and cultural attention, he did not even realize that he was looking at the son-in-law of the president.

Han Sen's appearance was just as Liu Jie described. He looked to be twenty years old at the most, and could best be described as another typical "pretty boy." It didn't look as if he'd endured a single hardship. Seeing the kid now, he thought Liu Jie had indeed made a fair and correct judgement of him.

Liu Kuang was a patient person, however. He was in no rush to strike, and he was happy to wait for Brother Blind's arrival.

"Brother Kuang, they have now left the shelter. When is our time to strike?" After keeping tabs on them for half a day, Liu Jie hastened to report their exit from the shelter to Liu Kuang.

"Patience. There is no need to rush. Brother Blind is en route. They must be heading to a royal shelter, so we'll take a detour, meet up with Brother Blind, and set a roadblock for them." After saying this, Liu Kuang assembled a group and left the shelter to enact their plan.

They walked through a woodland for ten whole miles, before meeting up with Brother Blind. They hid along the veiling thickets that skirted the sides of the road that led to the royal shelter.

Not long after, two people came into sight. They rode on two beasts, and just as expected, they were indeed Han Sen and Lin Beifeng.

"Brother Blind, that's them!" Liu Jie put away his binoculars and spoke, while pointing towards their sought-after prey.

Brother Blind did not need to use binoculars, and as he watched the two people from afar, a queer look came upon him.

"These are the people you have tasked me to deal with?" Brother Blind asked Brother Kuang and Liu Jie, to confirm.

"Yes, that is them," Liu Jie said.

Slash!

A soft sword, very much like a ribbon, was drawn by Brother Blind's hands. Blood coated the sword as Liu Jie's head was suddenly flung from his shoulders and into the sky. The eyes of the severed head were open wide, in a sudden fright and confusion.

"Brother Blind, what was that for?" Liu Kuang and the rest were all aghast at the sudden turn of events. In response, they all drew their weapons and faced Brother Blind warily.

Brother Blind coldly laughed and said, "I may pursue coin blindly, but even I won't throw my life away for it. If you have sought to task me with a suicide run, then I have no choice but to kill you."

Liu Kuang's face changed. With shock, he asked, "Are you saying that guy is quite something?"

Han Sen's presence had unknowingly unblinded Brother Blind. For this to suddenly happen, a bad feeling crept over Liu Kuang's mind.

"He is not just 'something.' That guy is everything! Even your boss could end up working as a grunt below him. And you want to finger him for assassination? I admire your boldness and courage." Brother Blind cackled creepily.

Liu Kuang was taken aback. He did not expect a young man such as that to possess such a frightening background. He gritted his teeth and said, "Brother Blind, this was our mistake. We almost got you killed. Keep the money we were to offer you, but this was Liu Jie's fault. How about we let sleeping dogs lie and move past this? There is no need to upset our relationship."

"If that was anybody else, I would take you up on your offer. But that person is someone I would give my life to defend. Wanting to kill him is worse than wanting to kill me. I cannot spare your lives." After Brother Blind said that, he moved his soft sword.

What hurt the most was not the blade, but the sensations it imparted. Brother Blind's swordskills were soft and gentle. Every time the blade moved, a separate scream would emanate from the woods.

Not long after, half of Liu Kuang's men were dead. They rest were trembling in fear, feeling deep regret over what they had proposed to do.

Liu Kuang was terrified, most of all. He tried to run away but could not. He ran five hundred meters before the soft sword pierced through his heart.

You could almost sympathize with Liu Kuang, with the look of anguish that came upon his face. He wasn't given a chance to say anything more before being mercilessly slain. He coughed up blood from his agape mouth, then he fell down to the earth with his eyes wide open.

None of the group were spared. Each person there was either beheaded or staked through the heart. One hit, one kill, for each of them. It was a cruel and brutal sight.

Han Sen and Lin Beifeng heard some noises coming from the woods as they passed by. Looking to scope it out, Han Sen stumbled across a clearing that was strewn with bodies. In their midst, Brother Blind stood wiping his sword clean.

"It's Liu Kuang and Liu Jie! Liu Kuang is Liu Jie's boss in the royal shelter; how could they..." Lin Beifeng was shocked upon seeing the corpses all about.

Han Sen quickly understood what Liu Kuang had sought to do, but what he did not know was the identity of the lone man before them. And why he had killed them all.

"Thank you for the help, friend. What is your name?" Han Sen asked.

"I don't consider this aid. I was just sparing you the trouble." Brother Blind let out his signature cackle. It was creepy. "Call me Blind."

"Do we know each other?" But Han Sen couldn't help but frown and ponder the reason for his name. He clearly wasn't blind, so why did he wish to be called that?

"Yes, of course. We do indeed." Brother Blind nodded but did not explain any further.

Han Sen was a little puzzled by this curious encounter, so he asked another question. "Where are you from?"

"It does not matter where I come from. What does matter, is something important you ought to know," Brother Blind said.

"What?" Han Sen frowned, thinking this "Blind" was quite the strange fellow.

"Do not join the Luo family." Brother Blind said these words slowly, with a grave tone.

"Is this a warning or a friendly reminder?" Han Sen asked the Blindman.

"How you discern my words is up to you." Blindman did not explain. Instead, he pulled out a bag and tossed it over to Han Sen.

Han Sen caught it, and it felt like there was a book or something inside, but he wasn't entirely sure. The bag was composed of highly-advanced cloth.

"Practice this when you find the time; it should help." After that, Blindman turned around and left. He moved quickly, and within a second, he disappeared from sight.

Han Sen just stood there, watching the Blindman disappear into the woods. He wasn't quite sure what he had just been witness to.