She stood at the entrance with Xiong Juan by her side, her face pale but resolute. In her hand, she clutched a heavy purse, which she threw onto the ground, letting it skid to Purple Rogue's feet. "Take the money," she said, her voice trembling. "I'm taking him away."
Purple Rogue laughed, a cruel, mocking sound. "Too late for that," he said dismissively.
"Then fight me," Xiong Juan growled, drawing his weapon and charging forward. Two mercenaries intercepted him, and a chaotic battle ensued.
Jinjing took the opportunity to run to me. She slipped my arm over her shoulders and tried to drag me away. "Let's go," she urged, her voice choked with urgency.
Before we could get far, a sharp cry of warning rang out. I spun instinctively, thrusting my stick at the attacker. The blow connected, sending the man stumbling back. But when I turned to check on Jinjing, my blood ran cold. The spear he had been wielding was lodged in her chest, the sharp tip protruding from her back.
"No," I whispered, cradling Jinjing's fragile form in my arms as I lowered her carefully to the ground.
Jinjing's lips trembled as blood trickled from her mouth. She reached up to touch my face. "Forgive me," she said weakly. "They told me… they only wanted… talk. They promised… not… kill you."
"It's alright," I said, tears streaming down my face. "I forgive you. Just hold on. Stay with me. You promised we'd get married. Don't leave me now."
A tear slipped from her eye and trailed down her cheek. "I'm afraid… I can… not..." Her hand fell limp, and the light in her eyes vanished, leaving only emptiness.
"No!" My cry tore through the silence like a wounded beast. I cupped her cheek, patting it gently as though I could coax her back. But her body was still. Her warmth faded by the second.
Grief consumed me, swallowing every other thought and feeling. Then, it came—a surge of energy, raw and unrelenting, erupting from within.
My dark core awakened with a ferocity I had never felt before. A torrent of power coursed through my veins, searing my meridians with pain so intense it was almost blinding. My second core flared to life, the two forces clashing violently inside me, but my grief dulled the agony. Nothing mattered except the fire in my chest, a singular, consuming hunger for vengeance.
With a guttural roar, I rose to my feet, dark energy spiraling around me in an ominous haze. I barely noticed the transformation, my body moving as though possessed. My gaze locked onto Purple Rogue, his laughter still echoing in the recesses of my mind. Fury drove my every step as I seized the bloodied knives left behind by the fallen.
I launched myself at him with reckless abandon. My strikes were wild, unrelenting, each swing powered by a force far beyond my normal capabilities. Purple Rogue's expression shifted from amusement to shock as he struggled to defend himself. My movements were unpredictable, a storm he could not weather. His blade intercepted one of my knives, but I used the other to carve a jagged line across his hand, severing two fingers in a clean arc. They fell to the ground with a sickening thud.
His scream of agony was a balm to my grief. Without hesitation, I crushed the severed fingers beneath my boot, ensuring he could not reconnect them. Purple Rogue's glare burned with murderous intent, but his injury rendered him incapable of wielding his sword.
"Kill him!" he roared, his command laced with desperation. His men hesitated, eyes flickering between me and their wounded leader. They had seen my power, felt the weight of the dark aura that surrounded me. Still, one stepped forward—the man who had killed Jinjing. He approached cautiously, his confidence shaken.
But my energy had waned. The aura around me flickered and faded, leaving me drained. My legs gave out, and I collapsed to the ground, powerless. Even so, I refused to let go of Jinjing. Using the last of my strength, I crawled to her side, grasping her lifeless hand.
"Kill him now!" Purple Rogue bellowed again, his voice trembling with rage.
I closed my eyes, resigned to my fate. The tip of a spear gleamed in the dim light, aimed straight for my heart. I braced for the end, clinging to Jinjing's hand as if it could tether me to her one last time.
Then, a blinding wave of energy swept across the battlefield, shaking the very earth beneath us. The spear never reached me. I felt the force like a tempest, fierce and unyielding, though it did not harm me. When I opened my eyes, I saw him—Ruan Yanjun. His form descended gracefully from the heavens, his robes billowing as he landed with the authority of a deity.
In an instant, he was at my side, pulling me away from Jinjing. I struggled against his grip, desperation clawing at me. "No! Don't take me from her! Please!"
"Silence," he commanded, his voice like steel. With a deft motion, he pressed a pressure point on my neck, and darkness overtook me.
The last thing I saw before succumbing was Jinjing, her form bathed in the fading light of dusk. I vowed, even in that final moment, that this was not the end. Not for her. Not for me. And certainly not for the ones who had taken her from me.