Whilst the first part was expected, the last part terrified them.
"They are your new sparring buddies. Your goal… will be to kill them."
****
"I'm sorry, come again?" Feng Yu asked Long Di to repeat himself, thinking she must have misheard.
"Your goal during this exercise will be to kill them, seems pretty straightforward," said Long Di while taking a couple of steps back, wanting to give them space to do what needed to be done.
"When you say kill, you mean for us to just beat them, right?" Tie Lang was the one who asked this time around, his figure shuddering every now and again. The joy of advancing a realm and attaining a cauldron was now absent.
"If by beat them, you mean to unalive them, then yes," Long Di reiterated expressionlessly.
He saw that there was a big problem with this group, and the Destiny Scale saw it too.
These children weren't psychopaths. Now that might seem like a good thing, but in a cultivation novel, that was a death sentence.
They never killed anyone before. They somehow just focused on cultivating while retaining their innocence.
Even though he wanted to discuss the traumatic effects that would manifest from forcing a young child to kill in detail, this was not the time. The moment they chose to cultivate meant that this was a hurdle they needed to overcome at some point.
It almost cost him his life when he had planned for Shen Ling to be the one to launch the killing blow to the Bronze Seat he had fought in the forest. Her hesitation was something that could cause irreparable damage in the future, and this needed to be fixed now.
He had thought that all kids in cultivation novels were natural-born psychopaths, but it seemed that some had to go through the same messed-up overcoming of trauma that normal kids in a normal world had to go through. Who knew!?
"Senior brother Long do we really have to—"
"They call you Boss Bao, right?" Long Di asked the larger Yan Demon, ignoring the disciples' plight.
Boss Bao was a bit surprised at being called out again. "Y-Yeah?"
"Good, you're not gonna interfere. This will be between my people and your people," advised Long Di.
"But that's not what you sai—"
"In addition," Long Di continued. "Three of you will be fighting against one bandit."
Bos Bao was incensed! "You can't—!"
"You're fighting against children. So, as very little as there may be, have some class." Long Di only gave him a side-eyed glance before he turned his attention back to the collective group.
"Begin." Long Di didn't give them a chance to bicker anymore. It was time to nip this problem in the bud.
The group of bandits looked at their boss with a questioning gaze. He nodded at them to just go with it for now. Hesitation wasn't going to be of much help here. Best-case scenario, they could make a lot of money and leave.
Worst-case scenario… well, these kids wouldn't be able to kill them, so there was no danger as long as the dead-faced devil didn't interfere, so they would just leave and not offend the boy again.
After all, the difference of an extra cauldron under normal circumstances was immense. So these subordinates were not necessarily worried that they would be outclassed by a bunch of wet-eared brats.
The first bandit stepped out from Boss Bao's side. There were three bandits in total under him.
It wasn't a large group; it was big enough to murder and pillage with, but small enough to connect with emotionally. After all, the bandits that rob and kill together, stay together.
This bandit had a large scar that ran across the length of his face diagonally. This face was, for most of today, filled with fear. Now, however, it was filled with apprehension, but knowing he had no choice, he got started.
Boom!
He shot toward the disciples, leaving a small crater in the ground to close the distance!
Feng Yu and the others immediately got flustered. This was different from hunting some weak beasts in the forest. This was a person that was coming towards them to hurt them!
As a result, they ran in different directions to escape instead of erecting a proper defence.
"Oi…" mumbled Long Di under his breath, shaking his head and rubbing his nose bridge.
When the bandit arrived, due to them not reaching far, he had his pick of whom to attack. With no particular preference, he chose one by random and landed a strong blow in his victim's back!
Bam!
His body twisted from the punch, which sent it careening into a boulder a few feet away!
"Tie Lang!" Jia Yan and Feng Yu both screamed in panic. Tie Lang lay covered under a pile of splintered rocks. He lay there unmoving, his life and death unknown.
"Long Di!"
"You're going to die if you don't pay attention." Long Di's apathetic tone rang out.
Feng Yu paled in horror when she heard this. Was he really not going to do anything!?
Before anyone could react, the bandit appeared in front of her and without reservation fired a punch to her gut that caused her to bend in a U before it sent her flying as well.
Boom!
Her body destroyed the smooth face of a cliff-side in the distance!
"Pwah!"
A mouthful of blood erupted from her mouth. Her eyes were unsteady, and she was dazed.
The bandit made no further movements. He didn't even go after Jia Yan whom he had yet to attack. He silently looked at his boss, nervousness pervaded his features.
Boss Bao's eyes were locked on Long Di the entire time. He didn't even see a flinch coming from him. Realising that Long Di was truly going to stay his hand throughout the entire ordeal, he subtly nodded to his subordinate with a cruel smile.
When the bandit facing off against the kids saw this, the anxiety and tension that withheld him disappeared. His face twisted into a venomous sneer. The scar that marred his face only amplified his maliciousness.
Shu!
He disappeared from his spot and reappeared in front of Jia Yan. The young demon was caught off guard due to the pause from before and didn't expect the sudden change.
The bandit whipped around with a powerful kick that landed on the side of his head.
Bang!
Coincidentally, he flew and landed where Feng Yu and Tie Lang were earlier. The two were now getting up.
Long Di observed everything with callous indifference as always. However, his muscles were tense as he tried to move, but was unable to.
'Calm yourself, Keyholder! You need to rein yourself in! You set the conditions yourself and that is akin to giving your word!'
The divine intent raged in Long Di's head as the Destiny Scale restrained him!
This was the only reason the bandit saw no movement from Long Di himself. It was because he was confined by the steel stele.
'Release me!' Long Di's calm reply rang out, but the Destiny Scale didn't dare to relent.
'No! You will see that they are fi—'
Before the Destiny Scale could finish what it was saying, a surge of spiritual force was building up around Long Di!
Not only that, an aura was leaking, as if something was rearing to get out but was stopped by something divine.
[I will take action if necessary!] the Destiny Scale stated. It was wary of something bad happening. It didn't know what, but it felt like if Long Di exploded here, it would be far from good.
'You will?' asked Long Di.
[Yes! They won't die while I'm here. However, they do need to feel the threat of death to help overcome their own mental blockade. Please believe me. This is for their own good.]
When the Destiny Scale felt the spiritual force that was being built up, dying down, it relaxed in relief. After that, both it and Long Di watched everything with none the wiser.
Dum!
The fighting bandit's cauldrons exploded in existence behind him. They were seven in total and just like his boss, they were all bronze as well.
Seeing that there was no interference from Long Di to be afraid, he was about to go all out.
…
"Are you okay!?" A startled cry rang out.
Mina Tempesta, the suspended goddess of reincarnation, was releasing a dim glow that intensified before dying down in rapid alternation.
"I-I'm not sure!" Mina cried out.
It came without warning whilst she and Yaomu Shou were having a meal. Before long, the light died down, before even the dim glow was absent.
Mina looked all over her body with a worried expression whilst Yaomu Shou did the same.
"What was that!?" Yaomu Shou finally asked.
Mina remained silent for a beat before answering. "… I don't know."
Yaomu Shou heard the hesitation and knew that this wasn't the truth, but everyone had their own secrets and it was taboo to probe such things.
Dum!
A powerful pressure bore down around the carriage they were in before one of the old men who visited Yaomu Shou's room a few nights ago appeared beside them
"Young miss! Are you okay!?"
"Yes! Yes! I'm fine. Now leave!" Yaomu Shou waved him away without reserve since it got a little cramped in here with him just barging in.
They were both inside an elegant carriage at the moment on their way to Yaomu Shou's home. The old man stared at Mina with a profound look in his eyes before he heeded his young miss's request and retreated.
"I-If you're sick. I can hel—"
"It's not anything relating to sickness." Mina didn't want her to worry. "It's something both good… and bad."
Yaomu Shou didn't say anything else after this. The food that was in front of them both remained untouched going forward since the mood became sombre.
Mina looked out the window of the carriage as it rode along when a single question came to mind.
'Long Di, what just happened to you?'
…
Long Di stared at the kids without moving, not because of the Destiny Scale's restriction, but because he was now at ease knowing that it would intervene on his behalf if necessary.
All three disciples got up on unsteady legs. They stared at the criminal before them with undisguised fear.
They finally understood that this person meant to kill them.
Feng Yu and the others looked at Long Di once more and could see that he was making true on his promise to not help them.
Realising this was the case, they fixed their gazes back at the enemy before them and took up stances, including Jia Yan.
Their cauldrons burst into existence behind them as well. It was time for them to fight!