Wu Family Village, located within the territory of Jiangzhou, boasted fertile soil, abundant water resources, and vast expanses of cultivated farmland ideal for agriculture. Under normal circumstances, this single village alone could sustain thousands. Yet now, only a hundred or so inhabitants remained - all employed by a local landlord.
This ambitious landlord had once offered his daughter to the prefectural governor as a concubine, securing unshakable influence across Jiangzhou. From magistrates to constables, every official showed deference to "Lord Wu." Through collusion with authorities, he seized all village lands by force. Those who resisted faced imprisonment or worse: hardliners were executed under "clan traditions" - drowned in pig cages or hanged from crooked trees. Over time, he became the undisputed tyrant of his fiefdom, even boastfully declaring: "With ten thousand acres of fertile fields, even the emperor dares not rival me."
On this fateful day, an official messenger arrived at Wu Manor with an invitation: "Lord Wu, Prefect Chen is taking another concubine in ten days. Your presence would honor the occasion."
Clacking two walnuts in his palm, the landlord frowned. "Is this new concubine fairer than my daughter?"
The messenger replied: "Pales in comparison to your daughter's beauty. But her snow-white complexion may have piqued the Prefect's curiosity."
Relieved, Lord Wu nodded. Had a superior rival emerged, his privileged connection to the Prefect might have crumbled.
As he began to respond, chaos erupted outside. "What's that racket?" he snapped, his aged face darkening. When the commotion continued, he stood stiffly. "My apologies. Servants forget their place."
The uneasy messenger suggested: "Perhaps you should investigate, my lord? I hear screaming."
His cheeks twitching with suppressed rage, Lord Wu strode out - only to freeze in terror.
His eldest son, who took visceral pleasure in drowning dissenters, now stared sightlessly from a tree branch, severed head still etched with panic. The second son, notorious for ravishing wives, lay with his skull smashed to crimson pulp. Dozens of armed retainers - once invincible bullies - sprawled dead across the courtyard.
Staggering as if thunderstruck, the ashen-faced landlord realized: his lineage had been extinguished.
Three strangers stood amidst the carnage. A youth gripped a golden vajra in one hand and a four-foot sword in the other, methodically stabbing fallen guards through heart and throat. The once-radiant vajra now dimmed to dormancy.
"Friend," whispered the pale-faced monk Shou Qing, "is this slaughter... excessive?" Compared to Jiangliu'er's previous sin of killing an old abbot, these dozen fresh corpses marked horrific escalation. Blood dripped from the blade, pooling around rolling heads.
"My vajra discerns karmic burdens," Jiangliu'er flicked gore from his sword, "but I verified with villagers. These wretches committed atrocities beyond reckoning - crimes that would sink them through eighteen hells. By ending them now," his voice softened, "I spare them deeper torment. Perhaps they'll only taste the first hell's flames."
Shou Qing frowned at the twisted logic, yet found disturbing coherence.
"Young Master speaks wisdom!" The fox demon Hu Yuyu clapped eagerly. "By stopping their evil, you save future victims and the sinners themselves! Slaughter becomes salvation - severing karma through blade!"
"Exactly!" Jiangliu'er brightened.
Lord Wu nearly spat blood. Through tear-blurred vision, he shrieked at the youth: "Monster! What have you done?!" His plump finger trembled toward the perpetrator. "My sons! My only heirs!"
The petrified messenger watched as Jiangliu'er's vajra suddenly blazed golden. "Astounding!" The youth stared at the weeping landlord. "Such brilliant radiance - your sins must outnumber ox hairs! You're the 'Demon Wu' villagers cursed!"
Snot mingled with tears on Lord Wu's jowls. "Touch me and die! My daughter is Prefect Chen's concubine! Chen Guangrui himself!"
Jiangliu'er froze, then roared: "Thieving Liu! After murdering my father, you steal his name?! Abetting this scum?!" With a thought, his sword flashed. A kick from Hu Yuyu sent the flying head sailing over the wall.
Outside, gathered villagers gasped: "A giant hog's head!" "Fool! That's the landlord!" "The young master did it!" "No ordinary boy - a living bodhisattva!"
Hu Yuyu giggled: "They praise your mercy, Young Master. By killing dozens, you saved hundreds!" She flashed a thumbs-up. "Supreme merit!"
As the vajra's glow faded, Jiangliu'er sighed: "Under Liu's rule, Jiangzhou drowns in human wickedness. How many demons fester here unseen? My sworn brother Emperor Li Shimin remains ignorant across distant mountains. As his adopted kin, I must cleanse this rot."
The golden weapon pulsed faintly - perhaps acknowledging the slaughter, perhaps mourning the bloodshed yet to come.
