Chapter 46: The Shared Dream

Outside the door, Guan Sheng, who had walked several meters away, still caught every word clearly. This was not because the house lacked sound insulation, but because Guan Sheng's hearing was exceptionally acute.

Remembering when he first began to follow his master in learning the assassin's craft, he always mastered every technique of killing faster than anyone else.

Whether it was reaction time, endurance, eyesight, or the perception of murderous intent, he far surpassed ordinary assassins.

While those assassins would be considered terrifying existences among ordinary folk, Guan Sheng's strength far exceeded theirs, making it easy to imagine just how terrifying the talent he displayed back then truly was.

Hearing these words from the lips of the renowned national physician, Guan Sheng also realized that his own lineage seemed rather convoluted.

A top-tier genius in martial cultivation?
A martial artist?
The martial world?

This was not the first time Guan Sheng had heard these terms.

What kind of existence were the martial artists of the Dragon Kingdom, anyway?

Recalling the old man he had killed yesterday, he seemed to be a very powerful martial artist who claimed to be one of the people of the so-called Young Master Qi.

Could the tiger tattoo on his body also be a method left behind by a martial artist from the martial world?

"It looks like I need to find some time to capture a few martial artists and interrogate them," Guan Sheng muttered to himself. His impression of Elder Ji had improved significantly; the old man's care for him was... simply excessive.

With these thoughts, Guan Sheng walked toward the front entrance, preparing to leave.

Over on the other side, after giving his instructions to Li Yuxue, Qi Xiaohu waved his hand and said in a deep voice, "Just do as I say! You may leave now."

"Understood, Young Master Hu." Li Yuxue's eyes shone with unusual excitement, flickering with a rapturous glow. After bowing to Qi Xiaohu, she turned and left.

The moment she walked away, the physician who had just been inside rushed out to invite Qi Xiaohu in for treatment.

All the way back, Li Yuxue kept repeating Qi Xiaohu's instructions, her mind even conjuring up fantasies of Li Yuyan kneeling before her and begging for mercy.

"You damned bitch, see if I don't finish you off this time. With Young Master Hu's help, just wait!"
"I'll ruin your reputation completely and make you understand what cruelty truly means."
"How dare you compete with Young Master Qi for my affections? Are you even worthy?"

Cursing and muttering under her breath, Li Yuxue quickened her pace.

As a result, not paying attention, she smashed right into someone with a loud "bang."

A sharp pain on her forehead made her gasp sharply, and she immediately flew into a rage: "Who is this? Can't you watch where you're going? Are you blind?"

Holding her forehead, she looked up, and the face that came into view instantly brought a sneer of disdain to her lips.

"Who did I think it was? Isn't this Guan Sheng?"
"Oh? What are you doing here instead of staying put in the Li family estate?"
"Could it be that my second uncle and second aunt can't stand the sight of you anymore?"
Li Yuxue taunted with a sarcastic tone.

Guan Sheng glanced sideways at Li Yuxue, thoroughly exasperated. How was it that this shrew turned up everywhere? Besides, it wasn't even as if he had wanted to come here.

Guan Sheng said coldly, "Does it concern you?"

Li Yuxue put her hands on her hips. "Of course it concerns me! You are now a member of the Li family, and your words and actions represent our family's dignity."
"This is the renowned Mu King Hall, one of the top ten sacred grounds for traditional medicine in the Dragon Kingdom, which only receives ten patients a month."
"Everyone who comes here is a figure of towering influence. If you offend one of them, our Li family will have to clean up your mess."
"Just look at yourself and see what you really are. Don't forget your status—you're merely the head of the security department."
"Just a guard dog keeping watch at our Li family's door."

*Thwack!*

A sharp slap landed squarely across Li Yuxue's face.

Enjoy running that foul mouth of yours?
Take this!

Feeling the burning pain on her cheek, Li Yuxue's brain buzzed with a dull roar. She glared at Guan Sheng, incredulous: "You dare hit me?"

Enduring the lingering, dull ache in his head, Guan Sheng stared at Li Yuxue with eyes as cold as frost. "I told you last time, if you provoke me again, I will cripple you."

With that, he stepped toward her, and a large hand clamped directly onto her shoulder.

"No... Don't..." Li Yuxue's expression twisted in terror as if she suddenly realized what was happening.
"Damn you, Guan Sheng! I'm Li Yuyan's cousin! I'm a member of the Li family!"
"How dare you cripple me?"

"Why wouldn't I dare?" Guan Sheng snorted coldly, his five fingers contracting inward.

*Crack!*

With a crisp sound of fracturing bone, Li Yuxue's shoulder blade shattered.

A wave of excruciating pain surged like a torrent, instantly enveloping her entire body. Having never experienced such agony before, the young miss of the Li family let out a shrill, piercing scream.

"Ahhhhh—!"

Yet her screams did nothing to stop Guan Sheng from taking his next step.

Since he intended to cripple her, he would follow through to the end. Principles were either nonexistent, but once established, they had to be strictly observed.

Guan Sheng raised his foot and delivered another kick straight to Li Yuxue's leg.

It was as effortless as a fierce wind snapping a branch.

*Crack—!*

Li Yuxue's lower leg twisted outward at a ninety-degree angle, and she lost her balance, collapsing onto the ground on the spot.

Her face turned deathly pale, still unable to comprehend that Guan Sheng had actually dared to lay a hand on her. She seemed to have forgotten that Guan Sheng was someone who wouldn't hesitate to lop off the head of Master Xu Tao from the prestigious Xu family.

Having finished, Guan Sheng looked down at Li Yuxue, who was twitching on the ground like a dead dog, his expression utterly indifferent. "Next time you see me, keep your dog mouth shut."
"If I hear a single other unpleasant word from you..."
"Bear the consequences yourself!"

Without another word, Guan Sheng turned and left.

***

Returning to the Li family estate, twilight had unconsciously descended.

The persistent, throbbing ache in his head made Guan Sheng desperately yearn for rest. However, upon entering the room and seeing Li Yuyan fast asleep, he instinctively pulled back the blanket, intending to strip off his clothes.

After a moment's thought, he pulled the blanket back over her and quietly kept his clothes on.

"I'll save that for when you wake up!"
"Otherwise, you'll feel unsatisfied again and complain about me."

He walked out onto the balcony and sat down on a chair. The blood-red hues of the sunset washed over him, and he slowly closed his eyes. Imperceptibly, he drifted into a deep sleep, and the surging fragments of memory caused beads of sweat to form once more upon his brow.

*(It was amidst a vast and boundless fog, where a group of older children walked ahead of him, holding wooden sticks to clear a path forward for him.)*

*"You are the youngest among us, and the one most likely to survive. You must remember, if we die one day, you must grow up well, become strong, and go back to take revenge!"*
*"Stupid brat, hurry and hide! Those people are searching again. You mustn't make a sound."*
*"We live so that you may live, and you live so that more people may survive."*
*(...)*

The night wind blew softly against Guan Sheng's body, causing him to tremble involuntarily as he muttered in his sleep.

*"Don't leave..."*
*"No!"*
*"They're all dead..."*
*"Why are they all dead!"*

*(From today onward, your name is Guan Sheng...)*

At the same time, inside the room, Li Yuyan was caught in a similar dream, dragged back into the recurring nightmare that she had relived countless times.

She had tumbled down a cliff, her arm caught by a wild-haired little boy whose strength was preternaturally immense, unlike that of a normal child.

Then, she was rescued by a group of children of roughly the same age. Together, they arrived at a desolate mountain village, eating roasted fish, sleeping in thatched huts, and drinking morning dew.

Until one day, a band of masked men wielding machetes stormed into the desolate mountain village, throwing those children into a boiling vat of oil right before her eyes.

The screams ringing in her ears echoed like tolling bells through the mountains and valleys, and the flashes of lightning etched agonizing scars deep into her heart.

*"No... Don't..."*

She wanted to rush out and die alongside those children, but the oldest child glared at her from her hiding spot in a wall cavity, their eyes seeming to convey a single message:

*"Live!"*
*"Take care of him."*

Take care of whom?

Reaching this critical juncture in the dream, Li Yuyan desperately turned her head to look back at the child who had saved her.

That child was shivering, covered in cold sweat, curled into a tight ball, his body burning with intense heat—just as she was about to make out the child's face...

*Hum!*

The dream shattered, and Li Yuyan bolted awake.

It was precisely at that moment that she caught sight of Guan Sheng outside on the balcony, hearing his mumbled words in sleep.

*"Don't..."*
*"Don't..."*

Li Yuyan frowned slightly. Unsure of when Guan Sheng had returned, she lifted the quilt and walked over. Catching sight of Guan Sheng's appearance, she instantly linked it to the dream she had just experienced.

Guan Sheng at this very moment looked so much—so very much—like the child from her dream.

Li Yuyan's eyes widened in disbelief: *"Could it be..."*

Hesitating for a brief moment, Li Yuyan reached out toward Guan Sheng's chest.

Before her fingers could even brush the hem of his clothes—

*Thud.*

Her wrist was seized in a tight grip.

Guan Sheng opened his eyes, his gaze freezing to an absolute, chilling frost.

He raised his head and glared at Li Yuyan.

*"What are you trying to do?"*