Chapter 46: Paying Back the Debt with Interest

(Jing Xiao)

I walked through the streets of an ancient city's slums, where ordinary people resided. Typically, such neighborhoods wouldn't have any martial artists at all, but that wasn't the case here. Some filthy and cowardly martial artists feared the strong and bullied the weak purely for amusement.

The time was midnight. The streets were dark, with only rats and insects moving around. I walked without a care in the world because tonight was the most important night of my life—the night I would finally exact my revenge.

…

I arrived at a lit building amid dark ones on the street. There were many strong men and beautiful women at the entrance. I looked up at the sign on the building, reading the name "Rock Security Company." I immediately remembered what happened to me four years ago at the hands of these hypocrites!

"Tonight is going to be a thrilling night!"

I approached the building with full confidence. As I neared, one of the guards noticed me, but he didn't do anything. As I focused on his face, I immediately recognized him as one of the criminals from four years ago!

"Who are you? State your intentions quickly!" (Guard)

"I am nothing more than a Revenge Ghost, coming from the past to exact my revenge on you!"

Before the guard could comprehend anything, I moved my hand incredibly fast. A black mist appeared on my right hand, and with a swift motion, I grabbed him by the throat. Before he could react, the black mist seeped into his body, and in a flash, his body withered before my eyes. In just a few seconds, he was nothing more than a dried-up mummy!

Thud!

"Murderer! Help!!!!" (One of the women)

"We're under attack!!!" (Another guard)

…

Chaos erupted as everyone saw the first guard's body collapse to the ground like garbage. I relished the sight and sounds, moving forward with joy. The guards at the entrance tried to stop me, but they were just as weak as the first one. Taking care of them was very easy, despite their numbers and weapons, the outcome remained unchanged!

Thud, thud, thud...

In less than ten seconds, five corpses had turned into dried-up mummies on the ground. As the black mist, which carried the life essence of these men, flowed into my body, I felt power surging through me as if my body had been thirsting for water and was drinking for the first time in ages. The feeling was indescribable—it truly made one addicted.

I entered the building through the main gate. As soon as I stepped inside, I was met with two swords coming at me from the right and left, and three arrows from the front. If I were an ordinary person, I would have been doomed by such a carefully set trap. But it was nothing to me. I simply released a small amount of mist that covered my hands, allowing me to catch the swords from both sides.

Before the arrows could reach me, I ducked down, pulling the swords simultaneously. Because their wielders held onto the swords, I dragged them along, causing them to stab each other with their own weapons. Then, the mist seeped into their bodies, and in the blink of an eye, they turned into dried-up mummies, losing their lives.

Thud, thud...

"Monster! Who are you, and what do you want?" (One of the men)

"I'm just a ghost from your past victims, and I have only one goal—revenge. I am the Revenge!"

I didn't give him a chance to respond and quickly attacked. He had no strength to counter, so he died in one swift move, following the fate of his comrades. Everyone in the place tried to kill me by using their numbers, but that supposed advantage turned out to be their biggest weakness. The more I killed, the more life essence I absorbed through the black mist, and the stronger I became.

…

Finally, I had finished off all the men. Fifty corpses, dried up like mummies, were scattered across the ground beneath me. The place was in utter chaos after the battle. Anyone looking at the scene would think it was over and that I had completely annihilated this organization. But that was far from the truth. I knew well that the leader of these cowards was hiding somewhere, waiting for an opportunity to either escape or kill me when I let my guard down.

Attack!

The moment I lowered my guard, a shadow lunged at me from a nearby corner, aiming for a blind spot—or so it seemed. But that wasn't the case at all!

With ease, I controlled the black mist around my legs, allowing me to move at an incredible speed. I spun my body quickly, leaving my attacker stunned by the speed of my repositioning. But it was too late for him to change his attack's direction, so he continued with a desperate hope of defeating me somehow. I didn't allow it at all and delivered a crushing blow to shatter his dreams right before his eyes.

Boom, whoosh, boom!

My fist struck his chest, and I felt his ribs shatter completely. Not only that, but due to the force of my punch, his body flew back at great speed, crashing into the wall behind him, creating an explosion and a cloud of dust. The sensation was the best in the world—I couldn't get enough of it!

"Huff, huff, huff...

Who are you, and why are you attacking Rock Security Company? How can we make amends?" (Attacker)

"Why do you dare ask such a question as if you've done nothing wrong at all? Have you forgotten? Let me remind you—four years ago, you found a man in his twenties outside the ancient city. You and your men offered to protect him until he reached the city, and he agreed. But instead of protecting him, you raped his wife, kidnapped his young daughter, killed his wife, and the man barely escaped your filthy hands!"

Every word that came out of my mouth was as difficult to utter as climbing a steep, thousand-mile mountain. These emotions had been swirling in my heart for four whole years. I never forgot my wife and daughter's screams. I blamed myself every day for my weakness, for not being able to protect them at all!

"Impossible! There's no way you could be that man! He was over twenty years old and definitely not a martial artist. It's impossible to become a martial artist after the age of twenty!" (Leader)

"That's true. But I made a pact with a Revenge Ghost to get a chance at revenge against you. It seems I made the right decision!"

"A Revenge Ghost!" (Leader)

I walked toward him slowly. His reaction was to try crawling away to escape—a pathetic attempt by a pathetic man. I grabbed him effortlessly and pinned him against the wall. Our eyes met, and when I saw the fear and terror in his eyes, it filled me with immense satisfaction. I had waited impatiently for this moment. Now that he was in my hands, I would make him wish for death, but he wouldn't get it!

"Now, it's time to play!"

"Hahaha, do you think torturing me will change anything? You're wrong! And another thing—your wife was truly amazing, man. Hahaha!"

Boom!

With one punch, I shattered his mouth, silencing him. Then began the real revenge: the torture!

…

After two hours of torment, the man finally died. At that moment, I looked at my blood-stained hands, then at the mangled corpse before me. I looked around, seeing dozens of dried-up bodies scattered everywhere. The stench of blood filled the entire place, and the sound of insects and the walls feeding on the remains echoed around. It was a gruesome scene, but unlike the burdens I had carried for the past four years, they had completely vanished.

"My dear wife, my only daughter, you may not approve of what I did for you, nor agree with it, but I know you both share this belief: if these scumbags were left free, your tragedy would repeat itself over and over, and thousands of innocent people would die at the hands of these criminals!

And because no one was there to stop them, I had to do it myself."

The images of my daughter and wife appeared before me, smiling at me and giving me one last look before our eternal farewell. The desire to embrace them burned in my heart, but I didn't move. I let them go, watching them disappear entirely. How painful it was, but I had to be strong and move past this stage, for I was sure my wife and daughter wouldn't want me trapped in the illusion of the past.

"Tonight, I've paid all my debts with interest, delivering tenfold what they gave me. From this moment on, I will start a new chapter in my life!"

Suddenly, I heard a sound behind one of the tables. Someone was there? No, that was impossible. I possessed the black mist, which made my senses very sensitive to auras, allowing me to detect even the smallest insects on the ground. So when it came to humans, it was impossible for anyone to escape my notice. That left only one possibility:

Someone who could hide their aura from me must be stronger than me!