Chapter Three: First Act of Kindness
"Tie Han?"
Upon seeing this name, Hao Tian pictured a burly yet honest and simple figure.
Tie Han was a low-level disciple of the outer door, just like him, and even worse off. This guy was a bit stubborn and inflexible. Although he was naturally strong, he was often teased and bullied by other disciples because of his poor cultivation aptitude.
There was a time when Hao Tian was being bullied, and Tie Han had stepped forward to help him without hesitation. He always remembered that act of kindness. It can be said that Tie Han is his only true friend in the outer door.
But now... someone is bullying Tie Han!
"At the foot of the mountain?"
A cold glint flashed in Hao Tian's eyes.
This was not only for the reward of 30 Karmic Points, but also because he had just experienced the despair of being trampled underfoot and wantonly humiliated.
He knew all too well the pain of having no one to turn to for help.
What's more, the person is his only friend, Tie Han, who had saved him before; no matter what, he must go.
Previously, he lacked the ability and could only choose to cowardly endure.
But now that God has given him this system and this power, he must change his way of life!
"Tie Han, hang in there. You had helped me before, and I still owe it to you, and today... I will pay back this debt!"
Hao Tian picked up a rusty long iron sword from the corner; it was his only weapon.
He casually wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, straightened his tattered clothes, then pushed open the rickety wooden door and strode out fiercely.
If we're going to do good deeds and accumulate merit, let's start by beating up the bad guys!
...
"Beat him! Beat him until he spits out the information of the treasure's location!"
Before Hao Tian even got close, a string of harsh insults reached Hao Tian's ears.
Hao Tian's gaze sharpened as he saw two young men dressed in outer sect disciple robes punching and kicking a burly figure curled up on the ground.
The burly figure was none other than Tie Han. His face was covered in dirt, and blood trickled from the corner of his mouth. Despite his massive size, he was curled up in a ball. He endured the rain of punches and kicks falling down on his back without uttering a sound, but his honest eyes were filled with stubbornness and pain.
Hao Tian recognized the two perpetrators; they were the two lackeys often following Zhang Hu and bullying others in the outer door. One had a pointed and monkey-like face and was named Wang Yinghu, while the other had a face full of pockmarks and was named Zhao Yan. Both of them were at the peak of the third level of the Martial Origin Realm and usually bullied the weak.
Upon seeing Tie Han's miserable state, Hao Tan's anger was instantly ignited.
Just hours earlier, he himself had been trampled and humiliated in the same way. Now, seeing Tie Han suffering the same fate, old and new grudges surged into his heart, transforming into a boundless killing intent.
"Stop!!!"
A loud shout, like a thunderclap, exploded across the open ground.
The two thugs, who were in the middle of a fierce beating, were startled by the shout and instinctively stopped. They turned around and saw a figure walking towards them holding a sword in his hand; his eyes were red, seemingly spitting fire.
Both of them were surprised, wondering who dared to stop their good business; however, when they saw the figure coming towards them, their lips simultaneously curled into a sinister smile.
"Oh, who do we have here with such a loud voice?" Wang Yinghu's disciple sneered, looking Haotian up and down, who was dressed in rags and covered in blood. "So it's that good-for-nothing Hao Tian who's only at the third level of Martial Origin."
"Hahaha, that's hilarious." The pockmarked disciple also joined in with a strange laugh, saying mockingly, "What? You yourself were beaten like a dead dog by Boss Jian Hong, and now you want to play the hero... oh, what a good match, a hero and a pig! Hahahaha!"
Zhao Yan was out laughing, clutching his stomach so hard he could barely breathe.
"Hao Tian, if you know what's good for you, quickly kneel down and apologize! How dare you, a piece of trash who hasn't made a breakthrough in three years, meddle in our affairs? If you don't apologize today, we will cripple you too!" Wang Yinghu said disdainfully. He naturally didn't take Hao Tian seriously at all. In his eyes, Hao Tian was a notorious pushover who would usually avoid them like the plague. Today, he actually dared to rush out and yell, as if he had a death wish.
Hearing the sound, Tie Han on the ground struggled to lift his head. Seeing it was Hao Tian, a flicker of anxiety flashed in his previously dim eyes, and he called out in a muffled voice, "Brother Tian... run! Don't... don't worry about me! These two are very strong..."
"Leave? Nobody's leaving!" Seeing Hao Tian still standing, a ruthless glint flashed in the eyes of Zhao Yan as he rubbed his hands together and walked toward Hao Tian. "Since this piece of trash wants to show off, then I'll use him as practice!"
Hao Tian ignored Tie Han's advice and did not respond to their taunts.
He simply stared coldly at the two reckless fools, his right hand slowly gripping the hilt of the chopped iron longsword behind him.
"Both of you, come at once. Don't waste my time!"
If it were before, Hao Tian naturally wouldn't have dared to say this even if he had been given a hundred guts, but now he has broken through to the middle stage of the fourth level of the Martial Origin realm, while his opponents are only at the early stage of the fourth level.
Although they have the advantage in number, the huge gap in strength cannot be filled with just numbers.
"Court death!"
Upon seeing that Hao Tian dared to look down upon them, a universally acknowledged good-for-nothing, the duo instantly became enraged.
"Bastard, I will let you be a hero."
Wang Yinghu was the first to attack. He pushed off with his feet, circulating his Martial Origin Level 3 spiritual power, and unleashed a strike straight at Hao Tian's chest. The wind from his punch was howling, clearly indicating that he was serious.
Zhao Yan followed closely behind, flanking from the side and kicking Hao Tian in the lower body with remarkable coordination.
Faced with the two attacking him, Hao Tian would probably have been flustered and even turned to run away in the past.
But now...
In Hao Tian's eyes, who had just broken through to the fourth level of Martial Origin and had experienced a baptism of enlightenment, the two people's strength was extremely weak, not worth his attention.
"Too weak."
A cold glint flashed in Haotian's eyes.
Clang—!
A clear, sharp sword cry suddenly rang out.
Hao Tian drew his sword.
There was no fancy move, only a lightning-fast sword strike.
The longsword, covered in rust, suddenly slashed with a speed much faster than Wang Yinghu and Zhao Yan. He infused it with the powerful martial energy of the fourth level of the Martial Origin realm.
Whoosh!
The sword flashed, slashing first despite being struck later.
"Ah!!!"
A piercing scream rang out in the sky.
Wang Yinghu at the forefront hadn't even touched Hao Tian's clothes when he felt a chill on his right leg, followed by excruciating pain. Hao Tian's sword had struck his shinbone hard, and the burst of martial energy had shattered the bone.
He lost his balance and fell heavily to the ground, clutching his legs and rolling around on the floor.
"What?!"
Zhao Yan on the other side was shocked. Before he could retract his kicking leg, he saw a dark shadow looming in front of him.
Hao Tian didn't give Zhao Yan any time to react; he flicked his wrist and changed the longsword from a slash to a chop.
Puff!
Another sound of piercing the flesh!
The rusty sword spine struck Zhao Yan's shoulder with perfect precision.
"Ah—my hand!"
Zhao Yan screamed in agony as he hastily stepped back only to trip back in a sorry state and land squarely on top of Wang Yinghu. The two rolled around in a heap, groaning in pain.
From start to end, everything happened in a flash.
Two outer sect disciples at the early stage of the fourth level of Martial Origin were completely defeated without putting up any strength to fight back.
This wasn't a battle at all; it was a complete and utter crushing defeat!
At this moment, Hao Tian looked coldly at both of them, holding a rusty sword.
"This...this... When did you break through to the fourth stage of the Martial Origin realm?"
Both Wang Yinghu and Zhao Yan on the ground stared at Hao Tian in terror, as if they had seen a ghost. The burst of martial energy just now and the sword speed that was too fast to see were definitely not something that someone at the third level of Martial Origin was capable of doing!
Hao Tian slowly lowered his longsword, the tip pointing to the ground, and coldly looked at the two of them:
"Hand over all spirit stones you have on yourself and then scram!" Hao Tian spoke coldly.
Immediately, Wang Yinghu and Zhao Yan's faces turned visibly pale; they had been the ones to always rob others, but they did not expect a day to come when they would be the ones to be robbed instead.
"Hao Tian, don't go too far..." Zhao Yan was planning to threaten Hao Tian, but looking at Hao Tian's cold gaze, Zhao Yan quickly swallowed the words he was going to utter.
With a heart as heavy as stone, they took out thirty spirit stones from their sack and handed it over to Hao Tian with a shit-eating ugly expression.
Hao Tian didn't care about their feelings at all; if they dared to bully and rob others, then they must be ready to face the same treatment.
He grabbed the thirty spirit stones and said indifferently as he put them away, "Aren't you going to get lost? Do you want me to break your other leg too?"
Upon hearing this, the two felt a chill run straight to the top of their heads.
"Go! Go quickly!"
The two dared not linger any longer. Enduring the excruciating pain, they helped each other to their feet, not daring to utter a single harsh word. They limped off and fled in panic, fearing that Hao Tian might change his mind and strike them again.
Only after the two figures completely disappeared did the open space return to tranquility.
Hao Tian's murderous eyes finally returned to calm after the duo left his line of sight.
It wasn't that Hao Tian was merciful, and so he spared their lives; on the contrary, he wanted to kill both of them to calm his rage, but he knew if he killed them, he would be in big trouble.
White Star Sect has a strict rule that clearly says that killing a fellow disciple is prohibited, and if someone is caught, the very least punishment will be destruction of one's cultivation, and it's highly possible that you will be killed on the spot.
That's why, even though Hao Tian wanted to kill both Wang Yinghu and Zhao Yan, he ultimately dropped this plan.
It wasn't worth taking the risk.
"Ding! Congratulations to the host for completing the monthly mission, and 30 Karmic Points have been awarded as a reward."