Chapter 44: Take One Step, and Try It

Chapter 44: Take a Step, See What Happens

But he wasn't afraid; instead, he laughed even more wildly and arrogantly: "What, surviving by selling your ass, is it good? Can my good-for-nothing brother satisfy you? Huh?"

"Killing me for that useless brother? I'll kill you first. Let me see just how tempting that face of yours really is—whether messing with you feels better than with a woman."

"Oh right, the Crown Prince is going to dump me. Do you know why?"

"So you're the Emperor's bastard. The Crown Prince fears you and wants to push me out to take the blame and die. Why, why me?!"

He went on and on, growing increasingly unhinged, more excited with each word, his words getting dirtier.

"That slut of a mother of yours is something else, huh—clothes off, ass up, sleeping with her own nephew, the Emperor, and also our Emperor. You bastard, no one even knows whose bastard you are. You're just like your whore of a mother now, and... ah..."

Li Zhixing was abruptly slammed to the ground.

The ground itself seemed to shake.

He had martial arts training and was agile, scrambling right back up. He pulled out a short blade from out of nowhere and charged at Sang Yu again.

But Sang Yu, as if hit where it hurt, had eyes that were bloodshot and terrifying, a guttural roar ripping from his throat as he impaled him against the wall with his sword.

The sound hit his ears.

Li Zhiming, lying on the ground, flinched.

BANG.

The door was pushed open—it was Li Ruoyao. She was back, but this time she didn't call out for her brother, perhaps because she hadn't spotted Li Zhiming coming to her.

The scene was a bit better than last time—at least Li Zhixing was still breathing.

But the little girl was still scared.

Sang Yu's brow started twitching with that excited gleam again, exactly like when he'd gone mad before. Li Zhiming's heart dropped, and he shouted at Li Ruoyao: "Ruoyao, get out of here!"

Only then did Li Ruoyao notice Li Zhiming huddled in the corner and began running toward him.

"Run! Don't come here! Run!"

He yelled, but the girl stubbornly insisted on getting to him: "Brother, brother, are you okay? Brother Sang Yu, why are you hurting my brother?"

With her help, he managed to struggle to his feet, pulling her behind him to protect her.

Sang Yu watched them with a smile, his hands shaking.

Maybe from excitement.

"Go, Ruoyao, hurry, go find someone."

Li Zhiming whispered in Li Ruoyao's ear. This time, she hadn't seen the horror of a dead body, and after the initial shock, she came to her senses and obediently prepared to run.

She made it out the door without a problem.

Li Zhiming was just about to let out a sigh of relief when he heard a whoosh—the girl didn't even have time to scream before she dropped, right in the doorway, blocking the exit.

"You..."

"Take a step, see what happens."

Li Zhiming's foot, already in mid-step, immediately pulled back.

Sang Yu didn't even look at him, calmly walking over to open a box in the room and pulling out a small dagger.

He pressed a button, and the blade shot out to twice its length—almost a full sword.

Li Zhixing's breathing grew heavier and more labored, but he stayed defiant.

"Bastard, I'm gonna die sooner or later anyway, and you won't escape either. The whole world will despise you. You and your whore of a mother will be damned for eternity, and... ugh..."

One of his arms was severed.

It rolled on the ground, coming to rest at Sang Yu's feet. He stood there nonchalantly, flicking it with the tip of his shoe, sending the arm rolling to Li Zhiming's feet.

"!!!"

Holy shit!

Li Zhiming's throat felt like it was on fire, his heart pounding up into his throat. Nausea, revulsion, and terror gnawed at his nerves, threatening to break him.

He didn't dare move, standing rigid as a statue, playing the role of a bystander.

"Oh dear, the blade is dirty."

Sang Yu lamented, stroking his blade regretfully, then pressed it against Li Zhixing's face, slowly rubbing and grinding until most of the blood was wiped clean.

With a flick of his wrist, a gash over ten centimeters long appeared on Li Zhixing's handsome face.

"Ah... just kill me... I'm not afraid to die... ah..."

Li Zhixing finally couldn't hold it in anymore, bursting into agonized wails.

Sang Yu paid him no mind, maintaining his detached, playful demeanor, torturing him bit by bit, making his life worse than death, like a fish on a chopping block.

The screams soon drew many people from the Prime Minister's estate.

Blame it on Li Zhixing's own foresight—he had deployed people away from this area, which was why it took so long for anyone to notice.

Sang Yu's courtyard was surrounded on all sides.

He wasn't afraid in the least. Another slash, and he severed Li Zhixing's leg.

"Ah..."

The tearing scream sent chills through everyone's hearts.

People burst into the courtyard, and a large crowd clashed in chaotic combat.

Li Zhiming's legs had long gone numb, nearly immobile, forced to watch their back-and-forth helplessly.

Sang Yu seemed wounded, gradually losing ground, but he refused to relent, obsessively tormenting Li Zhixing until he had tortured him to death, only then stopping with satisfaction.

"Damn it..."

Li Zhiming's consciousness grew hazier, and in his daze, he thought he saw Sang Yu collapse among the crowd.

He, too, crashed to the ground.

*

What the hell.

This time, he had no idea who had killed him, or even how he died, before he was sent back to that same point in time again.

It was clear that having Feng Yin guard Li Zhixing wasn't going to work.

This time, he had Feng Yin quietly arrange for many people to surround the second young master's courtyard, making sure not even a fly could get in, and also posted people to guard Li Ruoyao, keeping her confined to her room.

After making the arrangements, he went next door again and brought Feng Yin back to his own room.

He wondered if changing the location for the night watch would make any difference.

With many more people stationed, there was some effect.

However, the effect wasn't very noticeable, because Li Zhixing still managed to sneak in—just a bit later, probably because he'd been delayed.

Other than that, nothing else changed.

But with so many people stationed, it inevitably caused a stir, and even the Prime Minister found out—total chaos in the middle of the night.

Li Zhixing, with that sharp tongue and his death-wish attitude, naturally died a miserable death.

This time, Li Ruoyao didn't interfere, and after the reckless second young master died, Li Zhiming became the next target—Sang Yu pinned him right next to Li Zhixing.

Fuck.

He looked at Sang Yu's crazed, unhinged face, in too much pain to speak.

Sang Yu didn't treat him as brutally as he had Li Zhixing. Instead, he caressed his face and sighed, "Li Zhiming, Li Zhiming, why are you so naughty? Why did you team up with him?"

"???"

I didn't!

But he couldn't say it.

"I thought you were good to me, but is that what you really thought too? You knew all along? You wanted me dead?"

No, I didn't!

Ah, it hurts so much.

"You took me back, tried to please me, treated me well—was it all just to make me yours? To get me into your bed? Fine, I'll give you that. You go take care of my mother for me, alright?"

His blood-stained hand slowly trailed down, lingering on his collarbone.

By then, a crowd of guards had already surrounded the place.