"He"s dead," San Wu said.
The mosaic in front of everyone"s eyes was so tragic. It was difficult to fall down from a 20-storey residential building and die with dignity. The descendant of the Li family disintegrated into a ma.s.s of mud on the ground. His intestines and viscera were exposed to the air. Many stubbles pierced the skin, his skull was cracked and his brain juice splattered several meters. No one could have survived in this situation, not even G.o.d. Although demon descendants had extraordinary abilities, special lineages and an unbelievably strong vitality, the current situation was beyond even their comprehension
"He"s dead," San Wu repeated.
Great-Grandma stared blankly at the remains of her great-grandson, her eyes empty.
San Wu whipped out her mobile phone, took a picture, and then called the Lightning King. "Mission failed."
The Lightning King, having been woken up in the middle of the night, said blankly, "What?"
San Wu calmly said, "Li Xianyu is dead."
From beginning to end, her tone was flat and calm, not happy or sad.
"What did you say?!" The tone of the voice on the other end of the phone suddenly changed.
"Li Xianyu is dead," San Wu repeated again.
"Didn"t I ask you to protect him? What did you do this time?" The Lightning King roared.
"There"s no protection. A brick smashed into him and crippled him. I can kill the enemy, but I can"t protect an ordinary person," San Wu replied seriously.
"I sent you a photo," she said. "King, the mission failed, can I come back?"
There was no response on the phone. The Lightning King was probably opening up the photos.
Then, Great-Grandma whispered, "Aren"t you sad? You"ve known each other for a few days, and he was good to you.
"Sadness." San Wu suddenly realized the need to be hypocritical. She replied with a solemn conscience, "It"s sad, it"s sad..."
"Oh, how can you be sad? You are not qualified to be sad for him." Great-Grandma"s voice was numb. "A man without his parents, who will mourn for his death? Just like when the Li family was executed that year, who mourned for us?"
The night breeze whistled. A drizzle ensued, before transforming into a torrential downpour. They stood alone in the heavy rain, their shadows being slowly blurred.
Great-Grandma raised her head, and the cold rain fell on her face, dripping down her sharp jaw. "At the age of 18, the whole country was flooded due to heavy rain. At night, the sounds of cannons, screams, horseshoes, the grievances of the civilians descended upon the city. Tragic cries. With their guns, the foreigners taught us a lesson we would remember for life. When I was transformed into a war spirit, everyone had high expectations of me. I also felt that I was a family hero, a national hero. At that time, despite the storm, I still had my family and something to defend..."
"The unsuccessful hero is not a hero, but a sinner amongst the people. The Li family was also prominent at that time. From my generation onwards, every descendant struggled to survive. Every great-grandson died in disgrace. This is karma. In the past, I abandoned everything for my people, but now, today, my family line has been broken."
"It"s broken," she said. "The only connection I have with the world... it"s broken."
At this time, San Wu heard the anxious tone of the Lightning King. "Where are you, where is War Spirit Wushuang?"
San Wu answered, "She"s beside me."
After a moment of silence, there was a thunderous roar over the phone. "Leave her, leave her!"
As soon as the voice fell, San Wu was knocked off her feet by a powerful force that could not be stopped. This force turned into ripples. Wherever it pa.s.sed, the gla.s.s shattered and the trees broke.
Amidst the storm, the war spirit rose into the sky, like Asura, and the G.o.d of Death.
San Wu developed gooseb.u.mps all over her body, as the war spirit"s blood-red pupils locked onto her.
"You all have to bury him!" Her pupils shot out two blood rays.
In the two hundred years of recent history, she was ranked amongst the top five. War Spirit Wushuang, famous even to today. Finally, she showed her true colours.
Smoke and rain were flying about. A ten-year-old child sat outside his yard, idly fiddling with a caterpillar that had landed on a stone step. The drizzle condensed into small white droplets which landed on his hair.
On the muddy road outside the village, a woman approached him with an oil-paper umbrella. She was wearing an old-fas.h.i.+oned outfit with tinkling rings, skirts and embroidered shoes covered with mud.
"Your name is Li Erdan?" She stopped in front of the little boy, revealing her snow-white, delicate jaw under her umbrella.
The little boy raised his head and stared at the beautiful lady. After a long while, he wiped the mucus off his nose and nodded his head.
"Your mother"s name is Zhang Xiu"er?" she asked.
The little boy nodded again.
"And your father"s name is Li Jianguo, right?" she asked again.
The little boy nodded again.
The young woman breathed a sigh of relief and muttered, "At last, I"ve found the right one."
"Sister, who are you?" The little boy summoned up the courage to look straight at the woman"s face.
"Call me Great-Grandma," the woman said softly, pressing her hand on the boy"s head. "Your father"s name is ugly. You"re uglier. From today on, your name is Li Wuxiang. By the way, go back and tell your mother to not wait any longer. Your father is dead."
Li Wuxiang… Great-Grandma? Why am I seeing this? Who am I? Li Xianyu thought to himself, confused.
Suddenly, the scenery changed, the little boy disappeared along with Great-Grandma.The rainy village shattered into pieces and was replaced by a running river.
The Huangpu River was muddy and torrential. In the distance was the half-built Oriental Pearl Radio and TV Tower. There was no global financial hub, no world trade center, and no more high-rise, densely cl.u.s.tered central buildings.
There were no flouris.h.i.+ng buildings and commercial streets around either.
The man stood by the Huangpu River and looked at the moving water. Behind him stood a young girl in a floral dress.
"Did you succeed?" the girl asked.
"Well, it worked. I found a way to solve the family"s kidney problem, but… the Great Deities Palace"s harvest is so great this time, that it"s terrifying." The man crowded out a bitter smile and said in an astringent voice, "We brought out a terrible thing, like a thief who entered the palace and stole the emperor"s ancestral seal."
The girl saw despair in his eyes and frowned, "What is it?"
"Don"t ask, Great-Grandma, please... Don"t ask, you can"t get involved any more," the man said.
"You scoundrel, you think you have wings now?" The girl raised her eyebrows and scolded him.
"The news has been leaked. I will soon be pursued by everyone in this world, but I can"t hand over that thing, even if I die. It will set off the greatest storm in the history of the demon descendants community. Even you will cease to exist after. I don"t trust anyone now. I don"t dare to trust anyone now. I regret it. I regret going inside there. It"s a cursed place. Mankind shouldn"t step there."
The man knelt down beside the river and looked at her. "Great-Grandma, I know I"m doomed. I only ask for one thing. After my death, I ask you to seal yourself for twenty years. Fortunately, I have given birth to a son. I will let Master keep the black pearl. In twenty years" time, Master will give the beads to my son."
The girl was silent, and her face was frosty.
"I know you have a killer"s mace. You are invincible, but in that way, you will be completely cut off. By that time, the Li family would really be in decline. I"m dead, while you seal yourself for 20 years, and that"s all. This matter will pa.s.s. Anyway, as far as you are concerned, I am just one of the many promising descendants among many generations. While you are used to life and death, don"t act on impulse."
The man kowtowed and said, "Please protect my only son, the only descendant of the Li family."