The Kind Death God

After returning to the hut, Ah Dai sat cross-legged on the largest chair and told the white-robed man, “Uncle, I am going to meditate. You should rest early too.”

“Ah Dai, wait a minute, uncle still has something to tell you.”

Ah Dai was shocked and asked hurriedly, “Uncle, is anything wrong? Your complexion is so bad! Did the Matchless Holy Water’s poison spread again?”

The white-robed man shook his head and sighed, “No, it’s not the poison. Ah Dai, this uncle’s name is Owen, you must remember it. The Fruit of Rebirth that you have eaten is very important to uncle. But since you have already eaten it, uncle hopes that you are willing to be my disciple. The fruit has a large effect of increasing the cultivation of my school’s martial arts. Are you willing to leave here with me? Uncle has many things that he wishes to accomplish, but as you know, a large part of my energy is used to suppress the poison, so I am unable to do those things. Therefore, uncle hopes that you can inherit my abilities and help uncle accomplish those things in the future. Are you willing?” 

Shaking his head, Ah Dai replied, “No Uncle, I cannot leave with you. If I leave, teacher will be all alone! Unfortunately I’ve already eaten the fruit, and can’t spit it out. How about we go to the fruit forest tomorrow again, and search for it, maybe there might be more?”

Owen smiled bitterly in his heart, if such precious treasures like the Fruit of Rebirth appeared so easily, then how could they be so valuable. Unexpectedly, Ah Dai had rejected his offer to be his disciple. There were so many people who wanted to be his disciple but did not even have the opportunity! However, he had already placed his hopes on the child in front of him. If Ah Dai did not follow even though he would live, he would not be able to accomplish his wishes. “Ah Dai, can’t you consider it again?”

“No, I don’t need to reconsider. Uncle, I will definitely not leave teacher Gliss. Teacher has been so good to me, how can I leave him?” Ah Dai replied without hesitation.  Although he had a good impression of the man named Owen, he would definitely not leave his teacher just because of that.  

A frosty expression appeared on Owen’s face, “Ah Dai, let me ask you a question. Do you think I’m stronger, or your teacher Gliss is stronger?”

Ah Dai hesitated, the scene of the two black-robed men being killed flashed across his mind and he could not stop himself from shuddering. “Uhhh… I think, um… You are stronger.”

Owen cold hmpf-ed, “Let me tell you frankly, I didn’t get the nickname “King of h.e.l.l” for nothing. The number of people who have died by my hands have almost reached a thousand. Although I cannot use my full strength now, it won’t be too hard for me to deal with people like Gliss who are not very strong at magic. Do you believe me?” He waved his hand, white colored DouQi flashed across the room, and a corner of the chair disappeared without a sound.

Ah Dai stood up immediately, staring wide-eyed at Owen who seemed to have changed drastically. He stepped back, his voice quavering as he spoke, “Un-, Uncle, wha-, what are you doing?”

Owen gently rubbed his chest, replying, “I’m not doing anything. But, if you don’t go with me, I’m afraid that your teacher Gliss will soon become like M6 and M10. Ah Dai, you better think carefully, either leave with me or see your teacher Gliss perish.” Owen could see that Gliss held great importance in Ah Dai’s heart and he had no choice but to use Gliss to threaten Ah Dai. This child was simply too important to him.

Ah Dai was shocked, and his eyes became red. With a thump, he knelt on the floor, pleading, “Uncle, uncle, you mustn’t kill teacher Gliss. Ah Dai begs you, Ah Dai will do whatever you ask, just don’t kill teacher, okay?” With Ah Dai’s pure and honest character, how could he argue against Owen, “the King of h.e.l.l”.

Secretly pleased, Owen relaxed his expression, saying, “Ah Dai, uncle will definitely not harm you, nor kill your teacher Gliss. As long as you follow me, uncle promises, that your teacher Gliss will safely live on. Although you can’t be with Gliss now, after you have learned all my skills you can still return to see him!”

Ah Dai slowly lowered his head, how could he bear to part with Gliss. After a while, he reluctantly cried out, “Uncle, I will follow you, but you must not harm Teacher, okay?”

Looking at Ah Dai, Owen felt a sliver of guilt. He really could not understand how Ah Dai was so attached to Gliss with his typical character of an alchemist. However, he did not realise that Ah Dai had suffered too much as he grew up, as long as someone treats him well he would always remember it deeply in his heart. Nodding, Owen rea.s.sured, “I have never made empty promises, you can trust me. Furthermore, you just have to follow me, there’s nothing to worry about if we are always together. However, I have to warn you first, if you sneak away halfway, I’ll immediately return here. As for what happens to your teacher Gliss, I won’t go into details.”

“I, I surely won’t run away. Uncle, after I learn everything you teach me, can I really come back?”

gently, Owen replied, “En, I’ve already said that you can, I don’t have a habit of telling lies. But as for when you can meet my expectations, that will depend on how hard you work.”

Ah Dai nodded, “I, I will definitely study hard. I … …” Thinking of the long period that he was going to be away from Gliss, he could not help but burst out crying.

Owen did not console Ah Dai, and just let him sit on the ground venting his emotions. After G.o.d knows how long, Ah Dai seemed to have gotten tired from all the crying and fell asleep as he leaned against the wall. Crystal droplets of tears were still visible on his face. Owen sighed, and carried Ah Dai onto the bed. Letting out a self-deprecating smile, he thought to himself, Ah, to think that I, “the King of h.e.l.l”, would actually have to act in such a manner and threaten little kids. Master*, this is all because of you! Just you wait. The day that my disciple steps into the society, is the day that you will die! Lily, you rest in peace, big brother will definitely avenge you!

[TN: The master that he is talking about here is the one he wants to kill, not the master from his school x.x]

The next morning, Ah Dai did not continue crying after he woke up. Under Owen’s watchful gaze, he silently packed some of the clothes that Gliss had bought for him into a small bag. Inside the bag he had also placed the remaining eleven silver beads that he refined the day before. After that, he picked a basket of fruits, and quietly started eating in a corner.

Owen broke the silence and asked Ah Dai, “Was it very hard for you, for you to leave with me?”

Ah Dai glanced at Owen, shaking his head. He spoke in a low voice, “Uncle, when are we leaving?”

Letting out a deep sigh, Owen hung his broadsword over his back and said, “Let’s go now then. I know you hate me for ruining your life, but I really have no choice.”

Ah Dai looked towards Owen, in his young heart, the positive image of Owen that he once had was replaced by a feeling of animosity, similar to how he viewed Uncle Li. “Uncle, can you let me leave a letter for Teacher?”

Owen nodded, “Yes, I’ll leave a letter for him too. Bring me the pen and paper.”

Although Ah Dai was confused, he still brought the pen and paper to Owen. After that, he started writing his letter to Gliss.

Owen pondered for a while and started writing his letter to Gliss. Once he was done, he picked up a stone from outside, using it as a paperweight and placed the letter beside the bed. “Ah Dai, are you done with writing? We should go soon, your teacher will know that you are safe after reading this letter. If you are fast, you should be able to reunite with him after a few years.”

Ah Dai lowered his head, kept quiet, and placed his letter underneath the stone as well. A few drops of tears rolled down, staining the paper. He then carried his bag and walked out of the room. Owen followed behind, only to see Ah Dai staring blankly at the wooden hut. While silently observing Ah Dai, he could not help but pity the child. However, the long years of training had caused him to be firm in his convictions. He would definitely not make a wrong decision due to a moment of soft-heartedness. “Okay, Ah Dai, let’s go while it’s still early.”

“En” muttered Ah Dai as gently caressed the silver-tin covered steam bun. Facing the wooden hut, he spoke, “Teacher, Ah Dai is going to leave, you must take good care of yourself! Ah Dai will definitely hurry back to see you as soon as possible.” He kneeled on the ground and respectfully kowtowed three times before standing.

“Uncle, I, I don’t know how to leave the forest. After I came here, I have never left.”

Owen let out a smile and replied, “As long as you bring me to the place where you saved me, I will know how to bring you out.”

The last remaining hope of Ah Dai was gone, he could only hope that Gliss would return sooner and rescue him. However, he was also afraid that Gliss would be killed by Owen when he returned. Filled with mixed feelings, he brought Owen into the dense mist. He would never have thought that, from this point onwards, he would never see his teacher — Alchemist Gliss, ever again.

[TN: *gasp, spoilers?!*]

Only after walking out of the mist did Ah Dai realise how much he could not bear to part with this place. He did not have to ‘catch fish’ anymore, he ate fresh fruits every day, and the “care” that Gliss gave him; all of these were deeply etched within his mind.

Just as he had said, Owen was able to recognise the direction immediately after Ah Dai brought him to the place where he had fought with the black-robed men. He then proceeded to lead Ah Dai out of the illusionary forest. After walking for almost half a day, they were finally out of the forest. Ah Dai was able to see the sunlight once again but strong light made him slightly uncomfortable; his heart remained cold, despite the warm rays from the sun.

On the fifth day after Owen and Ah Dai left.

It was a dark gloomy room, the light was abnormally dim, making it difficult for people to see things further than one metre away. In the middle of the room, stood nine men, they were precisely the nine men who had unsuccessfully chased “the King of h.e.l.l”, yet still surviving. They stood silently in the middle of the room with their heads lowered, not daring to make a single sound. The whole room was filled with a strange atmosphere.

An illusory voice seemed to come from every direction, “M1, did you finish your mission? Have M6, M10 and M11 perished?”

M1 gravely replied, “Your Highness, the mission has failed. Although “the King of h.e.l.l” was poisoned by the Matchless Holy Water, he could still execute the h.e.l.l’s Sword, and we were no match for him.”

“Hmm? Since you were no match for him, how are you able to return alive? Under the h.e.l.l’s Sword, no one has lived to tell the tale.”

The tone of the illusory voice was calm, but M1’s back was already wet with cold sweat. He tried his best to control his trembling voice, “Your Highness, “the King of h.e.l.l” was after all our leaders in the past. He showed us mercy on account of the past, so we were able to return alive.”

“Is that the case? Tell me everything that has happened.”

“Yes, Your Highness. Originally we had chased “the King of h.e.l.l” into a large forest in the Valian Province. We had gained the upper hand but just as we were about to succeed, … …” M1 recounted the whole incident. “That is how it happened, M6, M10 and M11’s corpses are currently outside.”

“Eh—, M1, you have been in the organization for quite some time, this doesn’t seem like the usual you! As an a.s.sa.s.sin, calmly a.n.a.lysing the situation is most important. I understand your thoughts, pointless sacrifices are meaningless. However, have you thought that with “the King of h.e.l.l’s” personality, he would let you live and come back to report? If he really had the ability to kill you then, you would have long became a corpse. The phrase that “Once h.e.l.l’s sword is drawn, nothing will survive” is not for naught. Don’t you know the effects of the Matchless Holy Water? Although he has profound strength, once the poison penetrates his body, will he still be able to deal with all of you so easily? Don’t forget, you are the elites of the M a.s.sa.s.sination group. Perhaps after you left, he would not be have been able to resist the poison and fainted. If you had just persisted for a while more, you could have captured him. M1, your blunder this time is too great.”

Sweat continuously flowed down from his forehead and M1 only replied after a long while, “Your Highness, I, I know my mistakes. Please give us a chance to make up for our mistake. Let us return to that forest, and we will surely bring “the King of h.e.l.l” back.” They had seen the ruthless methods of their master, and it caused even them, who were not afraid of death, to be filled with a deep fear.