The Pleasure of Murder

Huan Liwei was the first to attack. He thrust his sword forward. Huan Wei easily parried it with his own sword. It was a very simple move. So simple that Huan Wei didn't even feel the need to counterattack.

Huan Liwei was staggering because he could not step on his injured leg. He was also demoralized by the ease with which his attack had been parried. Huan Wei looked at him. "Are you serious, Liwei? All you need to do is make a proper attack. You can't even do that. Weren't you the one who talked about unrealized dreams when you intercepted me? You should at least be able to fight enough to survive."

"You trapped me! If my leg wasn't injured, I would have killed you already!"

"Stop fooling yourself. Even if you hadn't stepped into the trap, you couldn't have touched me. You're not so tough without Huan Quon by your side, are you?"

Huan Wei stabbed the tip of his sword into the ground and lifted it up, throwing dirt in Huan Liwei's face. He shielded his eyes with his arm. He didn't expect this loser to plan such a trap. No one would have, but now he was here and he had to live.

"Come on, Liwei... I was expecting this to be a bit more exciting. Just because your leg hurts a bit, you can't have lost that much strength, can you?"

Huan Liwei swung his sword swiftly. When his sword collided with Huan Wei's sword, there was a thin sound. The metals clashed for several more moves. Even Huan Wei's shadow training was more difficult. This boosted his self-confidence. Maybe he was too good to fight these guys.

He swung his sword and hit Huan Liwei's sword hard. The wounded youth, his sword knocked back, prepared to strike again, but his opponent was faster than him and plunged his sword into his stomach. The sword traveling through his organs caused him to feel a twinge of pain that caused his whole body to spasm. When Huan Wei stepped back, the wounded youth could no longer stand and fell to his knees. His desperate eyes stared at Huan Wei.

"Huan Wei..." he said pleadingly. "Look, I know I've done bad things, but it was Huan Quon who forced us to do it. We didn't bully you of our own free will. We had to do it because he did. Let me go. I promise I will never show my face to you again. Just let me live."

Huan Wei lifted his foot and kicked Huan Liwei in the face, knocking him to the ground. "Ah, sorry, brother Liwei. Were you saying something?"

"That's enough!" Huan Liwei stood up, ignoring the pain in his leg, and attacked repeatedly with his sword. Huan Wei used his own sword to block. The attacks of someone with the fear of death in his soul were powerful. However, he was still far from being able to defeat Huan Wei. It had been a long time since he had been able to raise his cultivation level, which allowed him to improve his swordsmanship. The enemies he used in his daydreams were far superior to Huan Liwei.

Huan Liwei, on the other hand, seemed very confident in his own moves. Every time he swung the sword, he swung it with the will to survive, fueled by fear. Still, it was far from good enough. Huan Wei struck his sword hard, causing it to impale on a tree. When the wounded youth tried to pull his sword out, a quick thrust to his wrist severed his hand.

Huan Liwei's scream spread far and wide. He screamed as he pulled back, clutching his bloodied wrist. His severed hand was on the ground in a small puddle of blood. "You cut off my hand!" he shouted. He was trying to stop the blood flowing from his wrist. He was not succeeding.

Huan Wei rubbed the tip of his sword on the ground and started walking towards him. Huan Liwei was terrified. As he retreated, he tripped over a branch and fell to the ground. He crawled until he reached the edge of the cliff. When he could go no further, he stopped and held out his hand to Huan Wei. "Wait, wait," he said hurriedly. "I'll give you whatever you want. Huan Quon gave me some pills. They might help your cultivation. I will give them to you. I can even give you 20 silver coins if you want."

Huan Wei raised his sword again and pointed it at him. He didn't seem interested in his offer. "I already know you have the pills. After I kill you, they will all be mine. As for the money... 20 silver coins won't be such a big sum when I enter the Traveler stage."

"Are you kidding? That's enough to support you for four months."

Huan Wei came right up to him. He put his sword to his throat. Huan Liwei was sweating profusely. "Stop..." he said again. "If you're so good with a sword, why didn't you show us? Then no one would bully you. We would even respect you."

Huan Wei shook his head from side to side. "You want me to become one of Huan Quon's minions? No. If I'm going to suck up to someone, it should at least be someone who deserves it. Not worthless losers like you."

"My family will not let this go. This town is not a lawless place. People will be looking for me and sooner or later they'll get to you. You can't get away with this. Let me go."

"You know, Liwei, I learned to read people. Years of standing back and observing people taught me the meaning of gestures, words, looks." Huan Wei spoke calmly. It was certain that no one else would come to such deep parts of the forest. Even people who met their bad fate here did not frequent this area. "When I look at you, I see a wretch desperate to get rid of the sword at his throat. You would do anything to make me let you go, but you are lucky. I will give you a chance."

"What luck?"

Huan Wei looked towards the cliff. "Staying here and certain death. Or jump off the cliff and the possibility of life. Make your choice. Do you think you are strong enough to make such a choice to survive? I don't think you are." He looked at him with an innocent smile.

Huan Liwei turned his head and looked into the cliff. This seemed to be the final end. If he jumped off this side, even if he fell into the sea, it would be like hitting concrete. Moreover, the water stream was in the opposite direction. His body would drift too far away for the fishermen to find it. On the other hand, if he stayed here, it was certain that Huan Wei would kill him. Would he have the strength to jump off this hundred-meter cliff? Was he a loser, as Huan Wei had said? Turning to the swordsman, he saw that he was amused by his dilemma. He was watching him contentedly. Huan Wei's disdainful gaze ignited something in his soul. He did not want to die. He was ready to strive for it.

He started crawling towards the cliff. He used his elbows to pull himself forward. When he came to the edge, he heard a voice behind him. "Your fate is laughing at you, Huan Liwei."

As the wounded youth was about to let himself down, a sword blow from the wind severed his head. The severed head fell off the cliff into the water. "But not with his mouth."

Huan Wei cleaned his sword on the corpse. Then he rummaged in his pockets and found the pill pouch. He gladly took it and hid it in his own clothes. Then he threw Huan Liwei's body off the cliff. He did not forget to throw away the hand he had severed during the battle. He also took out the sword stuck in the tree and sent it after him.

"All that remains is to clear the evidence," he said to himself. One by one, he picked up the traps he had set in the area. People would not believe he had made it this far. Having the traps here could spoil things. He didn't want to leave anything suspicious behind. He also checked himself. He had made his movements so clean that even his clothes were not dirty. Not even a drop of blood. Now that his sword was clean, he could turn back. He put the traps on his back and started walking. He had a happy expression on his face. It was the pride of success. "One down, two to go. Once I kill you two, there will be nothing in my way to move to the Traveler stage. Then you will see that you are inferior to me."