Chapter One Hundred Twenty: The Rift Between Siblings

Yan Ruying’s voice grew somewhat low and heavy. “It seems you’ve met that man as well.”

“You once mentioned she had an older brother, so I remembered it. But I never imagined... her brother would be an Abyss Walker.”

Cheng Feng recalled that Yan Ruying had once said Liu Shiyu had a cold personality since childhood and harbored an intense hatred for monsters. The Association and the outside world even called her an emotionless killing machine.

She always kept her distance from everyone. Before Cheng Feng appeared, she had always operated alone.

At first, it was at the leader’s request; otherwise, Liu Shiyu wouldn’t have worked alongside Cheng Feng to train the newcomer. Now that they were familiar with each other, there was naturally no sense of rejection.

The root cause of her isolated and cold nature wasn’t the shadow cast by the catastrophe ten years ago, nor the influence of the monsters, but her brother.

Liu Mochen’s harm had been too profound, a wound that had lasted since she was eight and still could not be let go of, nor could she release her hatred for him.

“Ah...” Yan Ruying suddenly grew restless, finishing off her cigarette in one breath. “If I had known that man would show up, I should have joined the Black Night Raid battle a few days ago. Then I could have faced that bastard. What a pity... to miss such a good opportunity.”

Hearing that, Cheng Feng immediately asked, “You know Liu Mochen too?”

This time, Yan Ruying did not answer but bent down to pick up a wooden sword from the ground and threw it to Cheng Feng. “Weren’t you here to train?”

Cheng Feng caught the wooden sword casually but had no intention of training. “I’m just curious about Liu Shiyu’s situation.”

“Curious for what? Even if you knew, you couldn’t do anything about it.”

Yan Ruying raised the wooden sword calmly. “After all, that’s a grudge between siblings. If you have time to care about this, you might as well spend it practicing a bit more.”

Cheng Feng was silent for a moment before saying, “Liu Shiyu has helped me so many times. I want to share her burden.”

“...” Seeing the earnestness in his expression, Yan Ruying lost interest in training and put away the wooden sword. “Alright, since you want to know, I’ll tell you what really happened to her.”

...

In the restroom.

Liu Shiyu stood at the sink, turned on the faucet, cupped her hands under the cascading water, and closed her eyes, splashing her face forcefully.

The clear, cold water brought an immediate chill to her skin.

Her heart was in turmoil.

Since the ‘Black Night Raid’ battle a few days ago, after encountering Liu Mochen, she had been unable to calm her heart.

For nearly ten years, Liu Shiyu had longed to see this man. Almost no one knew, but deep within her cold heart burned a flame of vengeance, waiting for the day to unleash it upon him.

She had joined the Disaster Association and worked hard to grow stronger, all for the eventual confrontation with Liu Mochen in the Night Parade battle—to kill this man who had fallen to monstrosity.

Just two days ago, this man she had waited for so long appeared ahead of time. It should have been good news, a perfect chance to kill him.

But she lost...

The vast gap in strength struck Liu Shiyu like never before, delivering the first severe blow in her life.

She knew well that she was still too weak, unable to keep up with Liu Mochen. An elite-level combatant could never match an abyss-level monster and could not exact revenge.

Determined to grow stronger, she had set aside her tasks recently to come to the sword hall and continue training under Yan Ruying.

Just now, Yan Ruying’s criticism was not unfounded; her strength had weakened, even below what it was before training.

The reason was simple: her mind was unsettled.

Her heart, troubled by thoughts of revenge, made her swordsmanship chaotic, slowed her reflexes, and weakened her combat ability, allowing Yan Ruying to defeat her easily.

The greatest taboo on the battlefield was one’s mindset.

If the fight just now on the stage had been a real life-or-death battle rather than training, she would have died already.

She had once taught Cheng Feng about the importance of mindset in battle, yet now she had become like this herself—a cruel irony.

Liu Shiyu opened her eyes and gazed coldly into her reflection.

For a moment, she had an illusion that she was looking at her younger self.

Her mind involuntarily recalled childhood memories with her brother.

On scorching summer days, she was like a little bean, playing beside her brother. Liu Mochen held her small hand as they wandered the bustling food street.

Her brother loved her dearly. Although he was often on missions and had little time to spend with her, he always brought her delicious treats when he returned.

She faintly remembered that twelve years ago, in the dead of night during a heavy storm, she had a severe fever, dangerously high.

Her parents hurriedly called for an ambulance, but the downpour was too heavy, and the streets were clogged with traffic. The ambulance never arrived.

Without hesitation, Liu Mochen grabbed an umbrella, carried her on his back, and braved the raging storm all the way to the hospital.

In the pouring rain, Liu Mochen was drenched, but beneath the small umbrella, not a drop touched Liu Shiyu on his back.

When they reached the hospital, he waited outside her room until her fever subsided, finally at ease.

Protected by her brother since childhood, she sincerely revered him. Those days had been so beautiful...

But all of that was shattered ten years ago.

The human catastrophe began. Four terrifying Abyss Walkers descended upon the world, wreaking havoc in the city with massive explosions. Humans suffered heavy casualties; smoke and destruction filled the air.

The army and the Disaster Association mobilized, fighting back the Abyss Walkers, but outside the world was chaos.

Liu Shiyu was still in elementary school. The entire capital was on the brink of destruction; schools were dismissed.

She ran home, worried her family would be attacked by monsters.

But upon entering, she saw a horrifying scene engraved in her memory to this day:

Her parents’ bodies lay on the ground, surrounded by a shocking pool of bright red blood, like spilled paint.

The killer stood before the corpses, expressionless, holding a black-purple long sword dripping with blood.

When she saw the killer's face, it shattered her world view.

“Brother, why...?”

Liu Shiyu was stunned, unable to tell if it was a nightmare or reality, unable to accept the truth.

Why had her gentle brother killed their parents?

“Brother Shen!”

“Hmm!”

Shen Changqing walked down the street, greeting acquaintances with nods or brief salutations.

But no matter who, everyone wore a blank expression, as if indifferent to everything.

Shen Changqing had grown accustomed to this.

This was the Demon Suppression Division, an institution dedicated to maintaining stability in the Qin Dynasty, primarily tasked with slaying demons and monsters, though there were other secondary duties.

In the Demon Suppression Division, everyone’s hands were stained with blood.

When one becomes accustomed to life and death, many things lose their significance.

When Shen Changqing first arrived in this world, he was somewhat unsettled, but over time, he adapted.

The Demon Suppression Division was vast.

Only those with formidable strength or potential could stay.

Shen Changqing belonged to the latter.

The Division was divided into two roles: the Guardian and the Demon Slayer.

Everyone started as a novice Demon Slayer, rising through ranks with the hope of becoming a Guardian.

Shen Changqing’s previous self was an apprentice Demon Slayer, the lowest rank.

With memories of his past life, he was very familiar with the Division’s environment.

Soon, Shen Changqing stopped before a pavilion.

Unlike the other grim and blood-stained places in the Division, this pavilion stood out like a crane among chickens, radiating a unique tranquility amidst the carnage.

The pavilion’s doors were open, with occasional people coming and going.

After a brief hesitation, Shen Changqing stepped inside.

Upon entering, the atmosphere changed completely.

A waft of ink fragrance mingled faintly with the scent of blood greeted him, causing a reflexive frown that soon relaxed.

The blood scent on each person in the Demon Suppression Division was nearly impossible to wash away.