Chapter Seventy: A Story (2)

Update Time: July 3, 2013

After leaving that hellish room, the group was taken to another chamber, where more than twenty children stood, each as disheveled and numb as themselves. Similar scenes were unfolding in several other places at the same time.

In the end, fewer than seventy people gathered in that room, and only then did they learn where they were: the Demon Hall.

The man who stood above them, gazing down upon the seventy, told them everything. Though he wore a mask, the boy recognized his voice—it was his father. From beginning to end, the man did not spare his son even a glance.

In that moment, the boy had no doubt: if he had not survived to the end, but lay among the fallen, his father would not have cared for his corpse, for it would have been a disgrace.

Lian Yue was deeply shocked. No wonder the Demon Hall, though few in number, had never had its position shaken. It was because of this. And this man, An Ming's father, was truly ruthless. She even doubted whether An Ming was his own flesh and blood.

"If we could, I think all of us would have chosen to die in that melee. Compared to what we endured later, it was child's play. Do you still wish to hear more?" Yu Wen Lingxi asked again.

What he was telling her had far surpassed Lian Yue's understanding. Though she longed to know how the man before her had ascended step by step to his current position, she spoke sincerely, "If you don't wish to recall it, you don't need to force yourself."

The night was deep, and Lian Yue's eyes, illuminated by the flames, were exceptionally sincere and beautiful. Looking into those eyes, the pain Yu Wen Lingxi felt from his memories gradually faded, and he chose to continue.

"That was only the preliminary selection. For the next three years, under the guidance of specialists, they learned every skill and knowledge related to assassination, undergoing periodic assessments. The group was once abandoned alone in deep mountain forests, on sheer cliffs, forced to survive on their own, and constantly carried out solo missions. When the boy turned nine, those in his cohort finally passed the last assessment, leaving only thirty-nine survivors."

"The day the assessment ended was the boy's next encounter with his father. Only then did he learn that his father was in fact the master of the Demon Hall. That day, a boy not yet ten was announced as the successor. An Ming was the name he chose for himself."

Lian Yue looked at him in disbelief. Out of a thousand, only thirty-nine remained, and the master of this formidable force had been a mere child for years. It was utterly incredible. What had she been doing at ten? Likely, running wild under her father's indulgent gaze, causing havoc among those around her.

"You're amazing!"

Lian Yue's exclamation made Yu Wen Lingxi smile wryly; he saw right through her thoughts. "Naturally, it's not only up to me. The Demon Hall has its rules—each generation of the master has their own loyal subordinates. As long as the previous master lives, the previous generation of assassins still obey him. Only when the old master dies do they follow the current master. So the outside world always says the Demon Hall has only a hundred people, but to be precise, each generation has a hundred."

"I see! I was wondering how the numbers could be so few. So, how many people are there in the Demon Hall now?" As soon as Lian Yue asked, she realized she was overstepping, but since the words had already left her mouth, she quickly explained, "I was just asking casually, you don't have to answer."

"I can tell you that my generation currently has eighty-six," Yu Wen Lingxi said, always wishing to share his life with Lian Yue.

She was surprised he would tell her; this must be a secret. The more she knew, the closer she must be to death. Now she had listened to his story—surely that meant she was a step closer to dying.

The worry Lian Yue had temporarily set aside while listening to his tale returned, and she spoke timidly, "I didn't ask you to answer. You said it yourself. I didn't hear anything."

Seeing that, after all he had shared, Lian Yue still feared for her life, Yu Wen Lingxi felt truly helpless. Moreover, he still could not reveal his true identity to her—it was vexing.

Suddenly, Yu Wen Lingxi thought of a good reason. "Do you know about the Demon Hall's Red List and Black List?"

Don't say any more, please don't! I know enough already, I beg you, spare me! Lian Yue looked at An Ming with pleading eyes so clear anyone but the blind could see her distress.

"I need not explain; you know already. Your name is on the Red List," Yu Wen Lingxi tossed aside the wooden stick in his hand. "So, Miss Yue, you need not worry about your life. Since I am the master of the Demon Hall, I must uphold its rules."

Lian Yue's eyes lit up; the weight in her heart was finally lifted. The Demon Hall's Red List was its calling card. Lian Yue now believed An Ming would never harm her.

"If you'd said that earlier, it would have saved me so much anxiety and hard labor," she immediately complained, emboldened by relief.

She shuffled her feet closer to An Ming, pressing her advantage, "You see, we've shared life and death together, we're bonded by fate. So, can I ask you a few questions?"

Yu Wen Lingxi watched Lian Yue's quick change of mood, feeling deeply defeated. So all his careful efforts paled in comparison to a single Red List. "Ask."

Lian Yue rubbed her hands together, asking ingratiatingly, "I want to know, besides me and the Yue family, who else is on the Black List?"

Now it touched on secrets, and Yu Wen Lingxi truly couldn't answer. Though he had just revealed one name, Lian Yue was his fiancée and half a member of the Demon Hall, so that hardly mattered. But for others, even those close to her, he could not tell.

The Red List had another function: anyone on it could have their life protected by the Demon Hall. If someone were to exploit this, he would have no way to explain it to his father.

"Well..." Yu Wen Lingxi looked at Lian Yue's radiant face in the firelight, unsure how to refuse. "I can't tell you, and you can only ask about one person."

Lian Yue pouted inwardly—so stingy! But something was better than nothing. Now, whom should she ask about? She was stumped.

Seeing her dilemma, Yu Wen Lingxi said, "You can think it over. It's late now, you should sleep."

"Sleep? Where?" Lian Yue looked around, finding nowhere suitable for rest. Surely not on the grass... Could she even sleep there?

Yu Wen Lingxi nearly forgot that Lian Yue had been pampered all her life; no one in the Yue family would let her suffer the slightest hardship, let alone sleep outdoors like this. He recalled seeing some broad-leaved plants along the way and rose to gather leaves.

Seeing him stand, Lian Yue thought he had misunderstood her words as asking him to leave, so she hurriedly explained, "I wasn't asking you to go!"

Yu Wen Lingxi was a bit flustered, having been misunderstood again. "I'm just going to get some leaves to spread on the ground for you."

"Oh! I'll go with you!" Lian Yue glanced at the pitch-dark woods around them. She'd rather be killed than left alone here. She jumped to her feet and quickly followed Yu Wen Lingxi, naturally grabbing his sleeve.

This small gesture pleased Yu Wen Lingxi greatly. Perhaps it meant she had accepted his identity and begun to trust him.

In the time that followed, Yu Wen Lingxi happily led Lian Yue to gather a heap of leaves. Because she kept holding his sleeve, he carried them all himself.

Then, not far from the fire, he made a comfortable bed of leaves for Lian Yue. Overwhelmed by the day's shocks, she soon fell asleep.

Yu Wen Lingxi watched her sleeping face, his brows furrowing beneath the mask. If, by morning, his father's men had not arrived, he would take her deeper into the woods. In the end, he would have to follow his father's will. Things above must be lively now!