Ye Jie pointed the torn page of the Book of Life and Death at the fierce-looking bandit Hengshan. Suddenly, the ink on the torn page appeared, and all his experiences in life emerged without reservation.
Taking in the contents of the torn page, Ye Jie read aloud:
"Jiang Xin, born in the spring of the eighth year of Daye, was born into a wandering family."
"In the summer of the seventh year of Wude, my martial arts companions were bullied. I stood up for them and injured four of them. I was deducted 360 Yin De."
"In the autumn of the third year of Zhenguan, he had an argument with someone and killed two people in anger. He was then exiled and had his 1,000 merit points deducted."
"In the summer of the fourth year of Zhenguan, I went into battle and killed five enemies, which deducted 2,500 Yin De."
"In the spring of the fifth year of Zhenguan, he went into battle and killed twelve enemies. He was rewarded for his bravery and had 6,000 merit points deducted."
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"In the winter of the ninth year of the Zhenguan reign, he achieved remarkable military success and was freed. He distributed the rewarded treasures among his comrades in the army and was awarded eighty merits."
"In the summer of the tenth year of the Zhenguan reign, I married and built a new house. During the hottest days of summer, I rewarded my servants with iced tea, earning forty merits."
"In the winter of the twelfth year of the Zhenguan reign, his wife and son died. He led an uprising in Hengshan, calling himself the Great King of Hengshan. He killed 656 people and was deducted 328,000 merits."
"In the winter of the twelfth year of the Zhenguan reign, he marched south to fight, plundering infants everywhere, killing 3,840 people and deducting 1.92 million in merit."
"In the winter of the twelfth year of the Zhenguan reign, he attacked Qingshi Town, was defeated in battle, and was beheaded at the age of twenty-six."
"In my life, I have always treated people and things in accordance with the Way of Heaven. From these trivial things, I have gained 27,000 Yin De. I have 1,000 Yin De left over from my previous life."
"A total of 2.47 million negative Yin De."
After reading the records in the Book of Life and Death, Ye Jie was slightly stunned: "So, you are really Jiang Xin... But this doesn't make sense."
Seeing Ye Jie's frown, Xia Wei asked in confusion, "Master, there's something wrong with you since a while ago. Is there something I don't know?"
Ye Jie thought for a moment and said, "I have something to ask him."
The bandit Hengshan curled his lips and had no intention of cooperating with Ye Jie at all. It seemed that no matter what Ye Jie asked, he would only get silence.
"Jiang Xin, do you know who she is?"
Ye Jie took out the soul-calling banner from his arms, clapped his hands, and a pale wandering soul came out from the banner.
"She..." The bandit Hengshan's eyes widened, unable to believe what he saw. A sob choked his throat, and then he let out a fierce roar: "She is my wife! You evil ghost, what on earth did you do to bring my wife here? Are you trying to use her to threaten me?"
As he said this, he tried to break free from the ropes on his body, but he was already unable to move due to the restraints of the soul-binding rope.
Ye Jie shook his head: "If I wanted to use her to threaten you, why would I wait until now?"
After being released from the soul-summoning banner, Luo Bei's expression froze. Looking at the bandit Hengshan, her eyes were filled with tears of longing for the long-awaited reunion. She clenched her teeth and dug her nails into her palms, as if questioning whether everything before her was real.
Time seemed to stand still. Finally, after getting a positive answer, she could no longer control her heart and ran towards the bandit Hengshan who was captured by the soul-binding rope. The two hugged each other and cried.
Luo Bei cried, "I thought I would never see you again... Where is our child?"
The bandit Hengshan was silent for a long time, then sighed, "I'm so sorry I couldn't protect you and the child. Our child was killed by soldiers. You must be very disappointed."
Luo Bei murmured, "So, our child is dead... I've always been hoping they wouldn't suffer the same fate as me, but... after seeing you, my heart is finally at ease. I hate those damn officers and soldiers. They killed my little child, so how could I be disappointed in you?"
Unlike the two people with tears in their eyes, Xia Wei crossed her arms, with a look of confusion between her brows. She didn't understand what was going on, but she believed in her master and stood patiently by and waited.
Watching this scene, Ye Jie secretly sighed: "So, Nan Linghe's arrow was not meant to guide me to find the baby, but to guide me to find the Hengshan bandit, but was interfered by the ghost messenger..."
Thinking of this, Ye Jie stepped forward and said to the two of them, "I still have some doubts, and I hope you can answer them truthfully."
Luo Bei wiped his tears and said to the determined bandit Hengshan: "It was thanks to the help of this ghost messenger that I was able to see you again along the way. If there is anything he wants to know, just tell him."
The bandit Hengshan let down his guard: "I, Jiang Xin, have always valued friendship and loyalty. Since you have helped my wife, if you have anything to ask, just ask."
Seeing that he had put aside his previous resentment, Ye Jie asked, "I read the manual on the Heart-Destroying Devil Palm, and it says that the power of this technique increases the more people kill. Are you kidnapping babies everywhere to practice that technique?"
The bandit Hengshan glared at Ye Jie. "Do you think I need to rely on babies to practice martial arts? Since you've read that book, you should know that no matter who you kill, as long as it's a human, the power of the martial arts will be improved the same way. If I wanted to use babies to increase the power of the Heart-Destroying Devil Palm, how could I have allowed them to live until now?"
Ye Jie nodded: "If that's the case, then why are you so reckless in plundering infants?"
The bandit Hengshan sighed deeply, "I wanted to save them, to prevent them from being killed like my children... I protected those babies and escorted them all the way south, finally reaching the banks of the Jing River. I was just one step away from saving them, but unfortunately, she ruined my plan... As for now, I'm afraid all those babies are dead."
As he spoke, the bandit Hengshan glared at Xia Wei, who glared back, "What nonsense are you talking about? With your hands stained with blood and filled with sin, how could you possibly be saving someone?"
Ye Jie waved his hand, signaling Xia Wei to stop, and then asked Hengshan Bandit and Luo Bei: "What happened to your children?"
Hearing this, Luo Bei looked sad and covered his face with tears. The bandit Hengshan also felt a little uncomfortable and sighed:
"Don't you know? Two months ago, the Lord Laojun in Heaven prophesied that the Great Sage Equaling Heaven, the King of All Demons who once wreaked havoc on the Three Realms, would return to Jambudvīpa in the thirteenth year of the Zhenguan reign, unleashing an unprecedented catastrophe. The current emperor was terrified, and to prevent future trouble, they ordered the execution of all babies born within the three years before and after, claiming that each one could be the reincarnation of the Great Sage Equaling Heaven."
"What..." Ye Jie was slightly stunned, and looked at Xia Wei, and both saw the surprise in each other's eyes.
After a pause, the bandit Hengshan continued, "My two children, barely born, died at the hands of those soldiers. My wife, eager to protect them, was also beaten to death. So I swore to kill all those evildoers! I acted righteously to save the babies and uphold justice, yet how come you have made me an unforgivable villain?"
Xia Wei gritted her teeth, her eyes blazing with flames. She raised her Mo Dao and demanded, "Every wrong has its perpetrator, every debt has its creditor. What did my father and brother, as well as the innocent people of Xia Village, do wrong? Didn't they all die at your hands?"
"Are you from Xia Village? All the babies in Xia Village were executed, but the people there remained indifferent, as if nothing had happened, and continued to live their lives with peace of mind. I hate those who executed my children, but I hate even more those who knew about this and remained indifferent. If only one person had stood up and stopped this, my wife and children wouldn't have ended up like this. In the face of injustice, your silence is the greatest evil. If that's the case, then all of you should die! If I kill them, isn't that enforcing justice for Heaven?"
The bandit Hengshan roared loudly with a ferocious look on his face, like an evil ghost crawling out from the depths of hell.
"You! That's totally unreasonable!"
Xia Wei shouted angrily, gripping the knife handle tightly with both hands, as if she was about to rush forward and completely kill the soul of the Hengshan bandit.
The bandit Hengshan shook his head and snorted coldly: "You haven't experienced my suffering, how can you understand my anger? It's useless to tell you! Even if you kill me now, it only proves that I am inferior to others in skills. If the heavens give me another chance, I will kill more people!"
Seeing that Xia Wei was once again angered by the words of the Hengshan Bandit, Ye Jie hurriedly stopped her and reminded her, "Okay, if what Jiang Xin said is true... those babies may be in danger."
At Ye Jie's reminder, Xia Wei's expression changed slightly: "Oh no, it's not just those babies, but also Aunt Wang..."
The sudden panic made Xia Wei's heart tremble. She didn't want to believe what Hengshan Bandit said, but various signs, whether it was the practice skills of the Heart-Destroying Demon Palm, the pale wandering souls released by her master, or the spearmen waiting for the birth of the child outside Aunt Wang's house, seemed to confirm to her that what Hengshan Bandit said was true.
Xia Wei didn't dare to wait any longer, and hurriedly said to Ye Jie: "Master, I'll go back to Qingshi Town first."
"Go ahead, I'll follow you later." Ye Jie also noticed Xia Wei's anxiety and nodded in agreement.
Xia Wei jumped on the horse and galloped towards Qingshi Town like an arrow.