Ye Chen's scream vanished beneath the roar of the flames.
For a long moment, he could neither hear nor think. The world before him had become a blur of smoke, fire, and grief so overwhelming that his mind refused to accept what his eyes had witnessed.
His father...
The man who had taught him how to plant rice without damaging the roots, who had patiently repaired broken tools instead of throwing them away, who had always placed the largest portion of food into his son's bowl while pretending he was not hungry...
Had fallen.
His knees buckled.
He wanted to run to him.
He wanted to believe he was only unconscious.
He wanted this to be another terrible dream from which he would soon awaken.
Instead, a firm hand seized his shoulder.
"Chen'er!"
Lin Yue reached him, tears streaming down her soot-covered face. She wrapped both arms around him and pulled him back with all the strength she possessed.
"You must live!"
Her voice trembled, yet her grip never weakened.
Ye Chen struggled desperately.
"We can't leave him!"
His words broke into sobs.
"We can't..."
Lin Yue closed her eyes.
Every step away from her husband felt like tearing away a part of her own soul.
Yet she knew something Ye Chen did not.
Ye Shan had not fought to save himself.
He had fought to save them.
If they died here...
His sacrifice would become meaningless.
She forced herself to keep moving.
The narrow path leading toward the southern forest lay only a few hundred steps away. Beyond those trees stretched rugged hills where horses could not easily follow.
Hope still existed.
It was fragile.
But it existed.
Behind them, the surviving bandit slowly rose from the ground, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. His face had lost every trace of amusement.
He looked at the motionless body of his companion.
Then at the farmer who had refused to yield until his final breath.
Rage twisted his features.
"A filthy peasant..."
He spat onto the ground.
"...actually killed one of us."
His gaze shifted toward Ye Chen and Lin Yue.
"They don't leave this village alive."
He mounted his horse and spurred it forward.
The pounding of hooves grew louder with every heartbeat.
Lin Yue heard it.
She did not look back.
Instead, she pushed Ye Chen ahead of her.
"Run!"
They reached the edge of the forest just as the horse burst from the smoke.
The bandit's curved blade caught the morning light.
With a cruel grin, he swung it toward Lin Yue's back.
Ye Chen turned instinctively.
Everything seemed to slow.
His mother's eyes widened.
She had no time to dodge.
Without thinking, Ye Chen threw himself toward her.
The two tumbled down a grassy slope as the blade sliced through the air where they had stood only a heartbeat earlier.
The horse thundered past.
The bandit cursed and sharply pulled on the reins, turning for another attack.
Lin Yue struggled to her feet despite the pain in her twisted ankle.
She glanced around desperately.
There was nowhere to hide.
No one to help them.
Only trees.
Rocks.
And the approaching horse.
The bandit laughed.
"Run."
His voice echoed through the forest.
"I enjoy hunting."
He urged the horse forward once more.
Ye Chen's breathing became ragged.
His heart pounded so violently that it felt ready to burst from his chest.
He had never fought anyone.
In his previous life, he had avoided conflict whenever possible.
In this life, he had known only the quiet rhythm of farming.
He was a child.
Against an armed killer.
His eyes searched wildly for anything they could use.
A branch.
A stone.
Anything.
Then he saw it.
Half-hidden beneath fallen leaves lay the broken iron head of an old woodcutting axe, long separated from its handle. Time had rusted its surface, but its edge remained jagged enough to cut.
Without hesitation, he snatched it from the ground.
The bandit laughed even harder.
"You think that toy can save you?"
He raised his blade.
His horse closed the distance in an instant.
Ye Chen stood frozen.
Fear consumed every part of him.
His hands trembled.
His legs refused to move.
The image of his father smiling beneath the willow tree flashed through his mind.
"If there comes a day when the people you love can survive only if you are strong enough to protect them..."
The words echoed like thunder.
Something inside him changed.
The fear did not disappear.
He simply chose to move despite it.
As the horse reached him, Ye Chen stepped sideways with every ounce of courage he possessed.
The bandit's blade swept harmlessly past his shoulder.
The horse's momentum carried rider and mount forward.
In that single fleeting instant...
Ye Chen drove the jagged axe head upward with both hands.
The rusted iron pierced beneath the bandit's ribs.
The man's eyes widened.
Not with pain.
With disbelief.
His body stiffened as the horse continued running several more steps before finally collapsing to the ground.
Silence descended upon the forest.
Ye Chen remained standing exactly where he was.
His hands were still gripping the bloodstained iron.
The bandit stared at him, struggling to breathe.
He opened his mouth as though trying to speak.
No words came.
A few moments later...
His eyes lost all light.
Ye Chen did not celebrate.
He did not feel victorious.
He simply looked at the lifeless man before him, unable to comprehend what had happened.
This was the first life he had ever taken.
His stomach churned violently.
The rusted iron slipped from his trembling fingers.
He fell to his knees and began to vomit.
Lin Yue rushed forward, embracing him tightly as tears streamed down her face.
She knew this moment would remain with her son forever.
Some scars never healed.
Far above the forest canopy, hidden behind drifting clouds, an unseen presence silently observed the blood-soaked clearing.
Then...
It disappeared without leaving the slightest trace.
The path of the ordinary farmer's son had ended.
A far crueler journey had just begun.