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We go back to that fatal night when Luo Lang was involved in the ma.s.sacre of Jian Yi (Jian Yao"s father) and his parents and see the beginnings of our ‘b.u.t.terfly Killer". Could we call him a misguided young man? Do you think that he would have led a ‘normal" life if not for this life-changing event? Hmmm . . .

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Chapter 92

At first, Luo Lang only listened to those stories as harmless anecdotes. However, after that, they become more and more outrageous, and both the speaker and the audience became more riled up.

"That Jian Yi ah, he looks down on us who are part of the jianghu. He thinks we"re all garbage! He has no clue that we also believe in loyalty and self-sacrifice, what the h.e.l.l!"

"All crows are black, when has a police officer ever been any good? Whoever you are, if you commit a crime and make use of your connections, you"ll be let out eventually! If you have no money then it"s no use. Haha! No money!"

"Hey, you think Jian Yi will take a bribe?" "Of course!"

"That Jian Yi looks so pure and clean-cut; I heard that there was a female criminal who wanted to get together with him, so despicable! Who knows how many secret women he"s got!"

"How chilling! Sc.u.m!"

"Of course, these days, the people who are famous are not those with greater ability, or who are working sincerely on behalf of us common people. It"s those who are smart enough to have strategic ways of doing things who are vicious and merciless!"

"That"s right! Yes! Yes!"

To the degree that the gangs suffered at the hands of Jian Yi and the police, their descriptions would correspondingly contain elements of slander and self-abas.e.m.e.nt. At that time, Luo Lang was still young, so how would he know? After hearing all they said, his only reaction was that this Jian Yi was really just angling for fame, a reprehensible person, just like Yue Buqun in "The Wandering Swordsman"*, an out and out hypocrite and villain!

*T/N 笑傲江湖 (xiao ao jiang hu) – a novel by Jin Young (Louis Cha) serialised in the Hong Kong Ming Pao newspaper in the late 1960s, which gave rise to many film and television adaptations. Yue Buqun is the head of the Mount Hua Sect who is secretly conspiring against the novel"s protagonist, Linghu Chong. Read more about the novel here.

Thus, after they had finished speaking, Luo Lang banged his gla.s.s of beer on the table and said, "F**k, police sc.u.m!"

Thereafter, someone said, "Brothers, do you dare to teach this person a lesson?"

At first, everyone was rather taken aback. Then, one by one, their drunk faces flushed with blind emotion. "Go! Go! Go"

They were fortified by alcohol, and their numbers were many. They had already lost control to the raging fire within them; whether something was right or wrong was no longer important to them, they just needed an outlet. In truth, what they were venting was actually their dissatisfaction with themselves.

That day, a gang member had seen Jian Yi"s police car travel to his parents" residence. This was excellent; it was as if the heavens had destined Jian Yi to meet with this calamity. If he had returned to the police compound, they would not have had the guts to go there, and nothing would have transpired. The next day, after sobering up, the heady rush of bravado would have dissipated.

When they arrived outside Jian Yi"s parents" residence, they could hear the television running, as well as the sound of quiet and gentle dialogue. In the silent night, and compared to the chilly state that they were in, it felt like they were in two totally different worlds. A strange emotion, a combination of desolation and courage, infused the gang leader"s heart. He raised his knife and charged in with a fiercely determined look on his face . . . Emotions are contagious. Before, they had only talked about "teaching Jian Yi a lesson", but had no idea just what kind of "lesson" they wanted to teach him. Thus, when they rushed into Jian Yi"s home, when one person was overtaken by murderous rage, the others followed suit. In that split second, they faced not a solitary police officer and a pair of physically weak* elderly persons, but it was as if they were fighting with another gang, beating up the members and slashing them down, slash slash slash, go go go! After a period of time, they discovered they had hacked everyone to death.

*T/N 手无缚鸡之力 (shou wu fu ji zhi li) – literally, no strength to truss a chicken.

Luo Lang was confused as he walked into the Jian residence. He had thought that they were going to beat up that police officer, to "teach him a lesson". However, the second he walked in and saw the blood-covered floor, his thoughts were entirely in a muddle.

Everything happened in such a short s.p.a.ce of time.

Amidst the flashing blades and severed flesh that dominated the room, he suddenly felt a hand, on the ground, grab hold of his ankle. Shaking all over, he looked down. It turned out that Jian Yi, his body stabbed through with several knives, had managed to crawl over to Luo Lang"s legs and somehow grabbed his foot.

Luo Lang was rooted to the spot in shock, and he felt as if ants were crawling all over him. They were red ants, and climbed up from his ankle to cover his entire body.

It was then that Jian Yi raised his head and locked eyes with Luo Lang.

What kind of eyes were those? For all the years and months after that, Luo Lang was never able to forget that sight. Even when he shut his eyes, he could still see that criminal investigator sprawled on his legs.

Even in such a situation, those eyes were still dark and quiet. 16-year-old Luo Lang had never seen, nor would he ever see, another person whose eyes were so clear, because they were thoroughly pure and full of silent strength. However, at that moment, Luo Lang also saw that those pitch-black eyes bore a trace of sorrow, which was spreading. Because there was fresh blood dripping down from Jian Yi"s hair, dripping into his eyes.

Jian Yi was clearly taken aback the moment he saw Luo Lang. It was as if he had never imagined that a child like this would take part in the ma.s.sacre of his entire family. However, his expression impacted Luo Lang"s heart with a collision force. In an instant, he found it hard to maintain self-control, while his brain was completely incapable of functioning and his hands were trembling. Then, someone next to him yelled, "Slash them down! Slash them!"

He heard a hysterical shriek arising from deep within him, and when he had regained his senses, he had already made a move with the machete in his hand and slashed Jian Yi"s neck.

He completely severed Jian Yi"s neck.

Jian Yi was finally dead.

The fatal blow had been his.

Tears welled up in Luo Lang"s eyes, and he let them forth. Amidst crazed human nature and the blood-soaked ground, a youth wielding a machete stood, not knowing where to turn.

Out of the blue, he noticed that the locked door of the television cabinet was moving slightly. He seemed to see a pair of eyes hiding in the depths of the cabinet. A chill descended upon his heart – if there was someone in the cabinet, then the gang would not be able to flee unscathed.

However, if he spoke out, the person inside the cabinet would die, without question. That pair of eyes clearly belonged to a child. A child younger than himself.

Luo Lang stood for some time in this distracted state, although it seemed he had only been standing there for a few seconds. Then, he moved to stand in front of the television cabinet, blocking it from the view of anyone else, and blocking the view of that pair of eyes.

When he once again looked up, he caught sight of Jian Yi, lying on the ground. He had already been slashed so many times his body was in a terrible state and his head was drooping. Behind his body, the fresh blood continued to flow unceasingly. The pattern of blood flow was concentrated and hideous. Was it thus ordained by fate? The lines slowly formed a circle and Luo Lang kept watching attentively. In a flash, a thought came to him: it"s really like a b.u.t.terfly.

The dead criminal investigator was like a soul who had reached nirvana and been reborn as a b.u.t.terfly. Those eyes were darker and purer than the compound eyes of a b.u.t.terfly. From now onwards, those eyes, which gazed at him so calmly and mercifully, would be in each of his dreams, in his life which had collapsed from the time he was a youth.

After that day, Luo Lang neither went back to the Axe Gang, nor attended school. He hid in his room all day long. With Jian Yi"s tragically violent death, everything about this outstanding criminal investigator began to be reported repeatedly in the newspapers.

He was so honest and frugal, every month, out of his meagre salary, he would of his own volition buy rice and oil for the families of innocent victims.

He took his family responsibilities seriously, and was loyal and dependable. His wife was his first love, and once he met her, he never again looked at another woman. That female criminal who had served her sentence and was supposed to like him – he treated her as a younger sister, and never had any feelings for her. When she was released from prison, she had a hard life. Jian Yi allowed his wife to personally visit her and give her 500 renminbi. From that time, the girl felt ashamed of herself as well as grateful. She steadily worked hard at her job and was able to start her life afresh.

Translator: shl

Editor/ Proofreader: Anks