Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the clouds across the battlefield, casting its light upon the long spear in Xu Lin's hand. With a single thrust and pull, that spear sealed Li Xin's fate. The cold, gleaming tip flashed like an agile silver snake, striking straight into Li Xin's vital spot and rapidly extinguishing his life force. The blood on the spear tip glowed with a harsh, dazzling red under the sunlight, serving as a silent witness to the fierce battle that had just transpired. Xu Lin raised the spear, planted the butt into the ground beside him, and simply stood there gazing at Li Xin.
The battle between Xu Lin and Li Xin moments ago had been nothing short of thrilling. Xu Lin brandished his long spear like a dragon plunging out to sea, radiating an imposing momentum. Wherever the tip of his spear pointed, the air seemed to be torn apart, emitting a sharp, piercing howl. Li Xin, grasping a long sword, moved with the agility and versatility of a clever monkey. His sword technique was fierce and ruthless, his offensive akin to a torrential storm as he relentlessly pressed his attack against Xu Lin.
The two exchanged blows back and forth in an extraordinarily intense clash. Xu Lin's long spear met Li Xin's long sword again and again, ringing out with crisp clashes of metal. Sparks flew in all directions like fireworks blooming in the night sky. Their figures moved rapidly across the battlefield, dazzling to the eye. Every single attack carried immense power, as if determined to send the opponent to their death.
Yet, in terms of physical endurance, Li Xin ultimately fell short of Xu Lin. Xu Lin recovered swiftly from any injury, whereas an injury to Li Xin was a solid, real wound. Seizing an opportunity amidst their numerous fierce exchanges, Xu Lin thrust his spear forth like lightning, striking Li Xin squarely in the chest. A sharp pain wrung Li Xin's chest, and blood gushed from his mouth. He staggered back a few paces, dropped to one knee, and barely kept himself from collapsing by using his sword to prop up his body. But it was only for a moment; Li Xin slowly knelt on one knee, glaring with bitter hatred at Xu Lin.
Xu Lin stood tall, resembling a war god forged of steel. He gripped the long spear with both hands and slowly drove it into the ground. The shaft sank into the earth with a dull thud, as if proclaiming the conclusion of the battle.
"I still want to say this one more time: I truly have never taken the Immortal Pill. As for your claim that you took the Immortal Pill my father gave you and it had no effect whatsoever, I have no idea why that happened either. Whether you believe it or not is entirely up to you. Although it doesn't matter much anymore now, this is the truth." Xu Lin's voice was slightly low, sounding somewhat drifting and uncertain in the wind.
Only then did Xu Lin seem to slowly snap out of the recent battle, his body beginning to tremble uncontrollably. Until this day, Xu Lin had never killed a single person. As for the fierce battle just now, the situation was so critical that he had no choice but to fight hundreds of soldiers. At the time, his only thought was to protect his family behind him; he had no time to ponder anything else, fighting seemingly purely on instinct. Now that the fight was over and everything had settled into quiet, he realized he had killed so many people. A powerful wave of nausea surged up from the depths of his heart, nearly unbearable, and it felt as though something was about to erupt from his throat. He forcefully suppressed the urge. The physical shock he could endure, but the psychological revulsion would require a long time for him to slowly adapt to.
Opposite Xu Lin, Li Xin knelt on one knee, his body teetering. One hand tightly pressed against the relentless wound on his chest, crimson blood bubbling out between his fingers and soaking his garments. His other hand trembled as it propped him up against the ground, struggling to maintain his balance. Li Xin's face was as pale as paper, entirely devoid of color, resembling an old sheet of paper eroded by time. Upon hearing Xu Lin's words, his eyes bulged with rage, reigniting the fury within his heart, and another mouthful of blood spewed from his lips.
"At a time like this, are you still trying to deceive me? If you haven't taken the Immortal Pill, how do you explain the way you are right now? If the pill your father gave me was genuine, our positions right now should be exactly reversed. Still, you're right; it doesn't matter anymore. I'll just assume what you're saying is true." Li Xin's voice was weak yet laden with fury and helplessness. He refused to believe Xu Lin's defense; in his view, his present defeat was entirely due to being deceived by the father and son of the Xu Clan. They had made him believe that the pill Xu Fu gave him was the real one, while the genuine article remained hidden inside Xu Fu's robes all along. This deception had put him at ease and sent him down the mountain, giving Xu Fu the time to administer the true Immortal Pill to Xu Lin. Naturally, he assumed his own deduction was correct. However, splitting hairs over it now was pointless. Winner takes all, and a loser is a loser. Li Xin was willing to accept defeat, but the grievance burned deep.
Xu Lin opened his mouth, wanting to offer a few more words in defense, but the words died in his throat and he swallowed them back. He knew that in their current situation, no matter what he said, Li Xin would never believe him. Even he himself was starting to doubt: had he truly never taken the Immortal Pill? Otherwise, how could he explain all these changes in himself? Why had the pill Li Xin took proven ineffective? Everything about this felt like an unsolvable mystery.
Meanwhile, a series of scenes flashed rapidly through Li Xin's mind like a revolving lantern. His once-warm home, with its cascading roofs and serene courtyards. The loving smiles of his parents, like the warm sun of spring, comforting his soul. The sound of his siblings playing and laughing still seemed to echo in his ears—a time filled with innocence and joy. The cheerful laughter of his family members sounded like a wondrous melody, playing the sweet rhythm of life. Yet all of this had been turned into nothingness by a single decree from the Qin Emperor.
He hated. He hated the ruthless tyranny of the Qin Emperor. He hated how the Qin Emperor, in order to solidify his rule, had unprovokedly raised the butcher's knife against the Li family. He hated the Qin troops who had swarmed into the Li family estate like a tide. In a mere span of time, the entire Li family had suffered a horrific slaughter, running rivers of blood. Nearly a hundred members of the Li household, old and young, had barely a single survivor. From that very moment, the seed of hatred had been deeply planted in Li Xin's heart. He swore he would take revenge for his parents and his clan.
Yet reality was cruel. The Qin Emperor's violent suppression and harsh penal laws throughout the Qin State made everyone too terrified to question his authority or resist his tyranny. After a period of careful planning, Li Xin knew that confronting the power head-on was no different from throwing eggs at a rock. Thus, he changed his strategy, deciding to infiltrate the Qin army to bide his time. Relying on his own bravery and intellect within the ranks, he carved a path forward through countless hardships to build a military career. On the battlefield, he charged into the fray, fighting valiantly without fear of death. Every battle saw him rush forward like a fierce leopard, never backing down. His heroic performance won the appreciation of his superiors, allowing him to gradually make a name for himself in the Qin army. With immense difficulty, he finally attained the rank of general and earned the trust of the Qin Emperor.
For this mission, Li Xin had intended to seize the opportunity to sever the Qin Emperor's dream of immortality and avenge his family. Never did he expect, however, to be deceived by the Xu Clan father and son. Much less did he expect Xu Lin to be so formidable, turning everything he had meticulously planned into dust.
Now, looking into Xu Lin's pitying gaze and feeling the agonizing pain radiating from his chest, Li Xin knew his life was coming to an end. He was not reconciled—he was truly not reconciled! All those years of hard work, all those years of sacrifice, reduced to nothing just like that. He had yet to avenge his parents and his clan; how could he possibly die like this?
Li Xin raised his head to look up at the endless sky, as if trying to pierce through the boundless firmament to catch sight of his parents and family members. He cried out in his heart: "Father, Mother, your son has tried his best, but fate is fickle. Your son could not avenge you with his own hands, and now I don't even have the chance to watch our enemy die. Still, your son has managed to exact some vengeance for you—the Qin Emperor's dream of immortality has been severed by my own hands. If you have awareness in the netherworld, do not blame me. Forgive me, Father, Mother... forgive me, everyone..." Li Xin's gaze began to scatter. In his trance, he fancied he saw his parents and the members of the Li household walking toward him. He tried to raise a hand to reach out to them; his hand twitched upward just a fraction, then dropped limply, losing all life entirely.
He remained half-kneeling there, his eyes still fixed stubbornly straight ahead, though no one knew what he was looking at. In the end, he had to leave this world filled with endless regret and resentment.
Xu Lin stood quietly at the side, watching Li Xin, who had died with his eyes wide open with lingering grievances, a complex wave of emotions welling up in his heart. Li Xin had nearly killed him earlier—or rather, practically had killed him. But at this moment, facing a departed life, all grievances seemed trivial. He let out a heavy sigh, stepped forward, and slowly reached out his hand, attempting to close Li Xin's wide-open eyes. After several unsuccessful tries, he simply gave up.
Xu Lin bent down and gently laid Li Xin's body flat on the ground, his movements soft and cautious, as if afraid of disturbing the person who had just passed away. He squatted beside Li Xin, gazing fixedly at that pale face with a trace of sympathy in his eyes.
"Though you nearly killed me earlier and I shouldn't care about you, your determination to avenge your family is admirable. I think that if I were you and had experienced the exact same things, I might not have done as well as you did. Rest in peace on your journey, and I hope you will never experience such pain in your next life," Xu Lin murmured softly, his voice revealing a faint sorrow. He stood up, silently gazing at Li Xin's corpse, offering a silent prayer in his heart that Li Xin might rest in peace and that his family might find due solace. At the same time, he prayed for himself and his own clan. Having lived through all this, he had no idea what the future held for him and the Xu Clan, nor did he know whether he had truly taken the Immortal Pill, having had no time to discuss it in detail with his father beforehand. Whether he had taken the pill himself or his father had given it to Li Xin, the result was the same: the Immortal Pill was gone, and they had touched the Qin Emperor's fatal taboo—a grave crime sufficient to warrant the execution of their entire extended family.