Chapter 62: Punishment

A few minutes later, Xiao Yan slowly got up and took out a handkerchief from his pocket. He wiped the blood off his fists, casting a cold glance at the bald bandit lying motionless on the ground. The bandit's mouth was missing several teeth, and blood flowed from his seven facial orifices. He had lost consciousness, with only his body twitching involuntarily.

Well, despite the sorry state he was in, at least he was still breathing.

Xiao Yan's intention was not to kill them, but to administer punishment to these bandits.

At least, for now.

If persuasion could bring someone back to the right path, then he would use words.

If words failed to sway them, then he would resort to force, although it was the method Xiao Yan least wanted to employ.

It meant that despite adhering to his own righteous beliefs, the means of resolving issues still relied on the principle of survival of the fittest, which he despised.

Meanwhile, the pill inside his ring wrinkled slightly, sensing the black aura gradually retracting from Xiao Yan's body.

Not again... this thing...

Ever since Xiao Yan learned about the failed abduction of Xiao Yu made by the Jia Lie Family, the same black aura emerged behind him, formed by the aggregation of negative emotions.

Yao Chen couldn't comprehend it. The level of negative emotions that could infiltrate the soul was impossible for even those on the same level as her to reach.

Yao Chen, merely an observer, felt a chill in her heart when confronted with that black aura.

To put it bluntly, even if she were still alive, her soul would have gone insane if it had been infected with negative emotions to such an extent.

But Xiao Yan hadn't, even when the black aura manifested, he still retained a certain level of rationality.

What puzzled Yao Chen the most was that this negative emotion only appeared when Xiao Yan was determined to take ruthless action, and it dissipated immediately after the incident, leaving no trace of its existence behind. Xiao Yan's own soul seemed to be as pure and untainted as ever, as if the black aura had never existed.

'I need to find some time to study this carefully...'

Yao Chen furrowed her brows, thinking to herself.

So far, it seemed to have no effect on Xiao Yan, and she even hoped that Xiao Yan could maintain this decisive and resolute character.

However, the negative emotions contained within the black aura were just too intense, so intense that Yao Chen couldn't simply ignore them.

Everything was fine for now, but there was no guarantee it would remain that way in the future.

With this thought in mind, Xiao Yan looked at the blood-stained handkerchief in his hand, a slight disgust flickering in his dark eyes.

Is this really the only way to communicate in this world?

Xiao Yan put the handkerchief back into his storage ring, which still contained several other blood-stained handkerchiefs.

These were his evidence, evidence of resolving conflicts through the law of the jungle, where the weak were preyed upon by the strong.

Xiao Yan was afraid, genuinely afraid. He feared that during his journey, he would fail to perfect his own righteous path and gradually drift towards the path of the strong dominating the weak.

Every night when he rested, Xiao Yan would take out these blood-stained handkerchiefs and stare at them intently, using them as a reminder to himself to never forget his original intentions.

But for now, there were other matters to attend to.

Xiao Yan looked at the barely conscious bald bandit beneath him and then turned his gaze towards the two other bandits lying motionless on the ground, who had been knocked away by him from the beginning and hadn't moved since. He spoke in a cold voice.

"If you don't get up now, neither of you will ever get up again."

Just as Xiao Yan's cold words fell, the two seemingly unconscious bandits instantly jumped up, looking at Xiao Yan with fear and shaking their heads repeatedly.

"Spare us! Spare us! We won't dare to do this anymore!!!"

Xiao Yan raised an eyebrow, a hint of coldness appearing in his eyes.

The previous bandits he encountered also said the same thing after he defeated them.

However...

Xiao Yan breathed a sigh of relief and lightly beckoned his finger at the two men.

"Come here."

The two bandits' faces were filled with fear, but they had witnessed Xiao Yan's speed just moments ago. There was no way they could escape!

Have we committed too many sins? We actually encountered this monster!

Since they couldn't escape, the two men could only timidly approach Xiao Yan, keeping their heads low and stealing frightened glances at Xiao Yan, who was even shorter than them. They trembled and asked hesitantly.

"Sir, what are your orders?"

"Hand over your storage rings and all your belongings," Xiao Yan said coldly, his words full of threats. "If you dare to keep even one item, you won't leave here alive."

Xiao Yan's words made the two men tremble, and they felt an infinite sense of sorrow deep in their hearts.

They had been robbing others all along, but today, they were the ones being robbed.

At this moment, the two of them finally understood the feelings of those they had robbed.

Then, the two men handed over all their belongings. They wanted to give them directly to Xiao Yan, but he pointed to the ground beside him.

"Put the belongings over there and give me the storage rings."

With Xiao Yan's instructions, the two men could only comply.

After searching their own bodies and gathering everything, Xiao Yan squatted down and began rummaging through the clothes of the bald bandit lying on the ground. He even stripped off his pants to make sure there was no hidden treasure. After confirming that there was nothing left, he stood up.

Looking at the storage ring in his hand, Xiao Yan furrowed his brows and glared at the two men, questioning them.

"Only this one?"

"Yes, yes, yes! There's really only that one!"

The two men nodded repeatedly, afraid of giving a slow response. Meanwhile, they inwardly cursed themselves.

They were just a group of bandits who didn't even have the strength of a Dou Fighter. They only dared to rob on this mountainous road. The storage ring they had was obtained from a lucky robbery, and most of their belongings were stored inside it.

After getting their answer, Xiao Yan lowered his head and examined the storage ring in his hand. He took out two bottles of healing medicine and tossed them to the two bandits, then pointed at the bald man on the ground.

"Administer medicine to him and wake him up. I'll wait here."

???

Xiao Yan's actions left the two men with question marks filling their minds.

Shouldn't the normal course of action be to take the items and leave? And why would you, after displaying such ruthlessness, leave behind two bottles of healing medicine?

Despite their doubts, the two men obediently followed Xiao Yan's orders. Xiao Yan continued to stand there, waiting patiently.

After the two men administered the medicine to the bald bandit and managed to awaken him, several minutes had passed. The bald bandit sat up, grimacing in pain, and as he recalled what had happened just moments ago, he instinctively muttered a curse.

"Damn it, We ran into trouble today..."

Before he could finish his sentence, the bald bandit suddenly froze. He looked at the pants in front of him that seemed familiar, then slowly raised his gaze, only to be met with the face of Xiao Yan, which he considered to be that of a demon.

Oh my god! This monster hasn't left yet?!

The bald bandit's body began to tremble incessantly, his heart pounding violently. The pain that had just subsided intensified once again, and his mind became chaotic.

Normally, shouldn't he have left already? Why is this monster not killing me and instead waiting here?

"You are awake?"

Xiao Yan tilted his head slightly, presenting the storage ring in front of the bald bandit. He immediately recognized it—it was his!

More accurately, it was the one he had previously robbed from a passerby!

"Sir-" The bald bandit immediately knelt down, pleading with Xiao Yan. "Take everything! Take everything! I only beg for my life! I have an elderly mother and a three-year-old child..."

"Hey, you still have an elderly mother and a three-year-old child?" Xiao Yan sneered, looking coldly at the bald bandit. "But have you ever thought about those ordinary people who were robbed by you? They are just like you."

"I-"

The bald bandit instantly choked up, but Xiao Yan no longer paid him any attention. He took a torch and a tinderbox from the storage ring and lit them. In the astonished gaze of the three bandits, he threw them directly onto the pile of belongings they had placed on the ground.

This scene caused the three men's brains to temporarily malfunction.

"Sir... What are you doing..."

The bald bandit stared blankly at the burning belongings, his heart bleeding.

Those were his hard-earned money!

No! I accepted being robbed by you, but why are you burning it???

Seeing what the bald bandit was thinking, Xiao Yan calmly said, "Don't take me for one of you."

As he spoke, Xiao Yan threw the storage ring to the ground. With one hand, he slowly grasped the heavy Black Heavy Ruler on his back and removed it. In the dazed gaze of the bald bandit, he aimed it at the storage ring and coldly declared.

"This is your punishment."

Boom!

As Xiao Yan released his grip, the weighty Black Heavy Ruler slammed forcefully into the ground, deeply embedding itself into the soil.

And the hearts of the three bandits shattered alongside the storage ring.

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