ON THE ROOF
The assassin, his Black Aura now undeniable, held my leg in an iron grip, his masked gaze boring into mine. The air crackled with a palpable threat, the very atmosphere seeming to vibrate with his power. My heart pounded, not in fear, but in a surge of adrenaline and profound shock. A Black Aura? This man... he has a Black Aura!
The realization was a cold slap. This wasn't merely a skilled guard or even a powerful cultivator; this was a martial grandmaster, a figure of immense strength, the kind one rarely encountered outside the absolute pinnacle of the Murim world. My own green aura felt like a flickering candle next to his abyssal darkness. I have to calm down. I can't let him see any weakness in me. My facade, however, was already cracking. One thing was now terrifyingly clear: he was no ordinary assassin; he was someone with a truly formidable, world-shaking power. What should I do now? My mind, usually so sharp, momentarily whirled in a desperate search for an exit strategy.
With a swift, desperate burst of energy, I quickly yanked back three steps, twisting my body and releasing my leg from his crushing grasp. The move was instinctive, fueled by survival. The assassin, though surprised, recovered instantly, a low chuckle rumbling from beneath his hood.
"Kid, you sure you wanna fight me?" he taunted, the small, inky black aura in his hand expanding slightly, swirling like a miniature vortex of destruction. The sheer power radiating from it was oppressive, a suffocating weight on my senses.
Before he could press his advantage, I moved. I utilized the step technique – the very same ethereal footwork my father had demonstrated during our spar, now ingrained in my muscle memory by the System – and blurred across the rooftop, attempting to evade the deadly confrontation. I wasn't running; I was buying time, assessing, strategizing.
But he was too fast. The man, a true master of stealth and speed, simply disappeared from my sight. A moment later, a chilling gust of wind brushed my cheek. He reappeared beside me, a dark, menacing phantom. Before I could fully react, his leg shot out, a swift, powerful kick aimed directly at my face. Time seemed to slow. I saw the blow coming, felt the rush of air, but my body couldn't quite keep up with the speed of a Black Aura master.
Just as his leg reached near my face, a blur of motion, even faster than the assassin's, materialized. A hand, strong and unyielding, shot out and stopped his leg mid-air. I looked back, my eyes widening further in disbelief and a strange sense of relief.
My father. Ryu Yong. He stood there, his presence radiating an aura of absolute dominance that made even the air itself tremble. Why is he so late? The thought was a fleeting spark of irritation amidst the shock. He must have sensed the intrusion, but allowed the fight to proceed, observing. Is this part of his 'test' for me too?
My father's gaze, cold and piercing, swept over the assassin, then to me, then back to the assassin. "Huh," he rumbled, his voice a low thunderclap that seemed to shake the very tiles beneath our feet. "I thought I recognized that unusual aura. I didn't expect you to be here, Xiao Feng. And fighting with my son? I didn't know the Head of the Xiao family had stooped this low, to ambush an eleven-year-old child on my own rooftops."
The world tilted. The person in front of me... is Xiao Feng? The Head of the Xiao family?! My mind reeled, replaying the assassin's identity. What? Why is he here? It wasn't him in my past life! He never personally ambushed me! Something must have changed. My actions... I must be changing the future! The implications crashed down on me, a wave of exhilarating terror. My actions were already diverging the timeline, creating ripples I hadn't foreseen.
Xiao Feng, now revealed as the esteemed Clan Head of the Xiao family, immediately jumped back a step, releasing Ryu Yong's grip on his leg. His demeanor, which moments ago had been that of a ruthless killer, shifted, though a glint of defiance remained in his eyes. "Ryu Yong," he said, his voice now formal, yet still tinged with a subtle challenge. "It's been so long since I saw you. You're not even welcoming a guest?"
My father's lips curled into a disdainful smile, a harsh, dismissive sound escaping him. "You were attacking my son moments ago, Feng, and now you want to be welcomed? Hahah! I think you've gone mad." The laughter held no humor, only cold, powerful mockery.
Xiao Feng ignored the insult, his dark eyes, no longer hidden, flickered to me for a brief, assessing moment, before returning to my father. "I was just checking how capable my 'son-in-law' is," he explained, a smirk playing on his own lips. His tone held a backhanded compliment that acknowledged my power, while still framing me as a potential tool. "But he is far beyond what I imagined. So, I guess the rumor about your son was indeed true, Yong." The implication was clear: I was far more than the 'mediocre' boy he'd been led to believe.
My father's expression hardened. His eyes narrowed, focusing directly on Xiao Feng. "Tell me why you are actually here, Feng." His voice was low, laced with a dangerous command that brooked no further pretense.
"Okay, okay," Xiao Feng said, raising his hands in a placating gesture, though his gaze remained sharp. His expression, which had been playful moments ago, now turned serious, the full weight of a Clan Head settling upon his features. "I also wanted to talk to you about something important."
My father, as if understanding the gravity of the situation, nodded slowly. "Very well. Let's go." He then looked at me, his gaze lingering for a moment, a silent assessment passing between us, before he made a surprising decision. "Jin, you come too."
Xiao Feng's head snapped towards me, a genuine flicker of surprise in his eyes. "Oh," he said, a new layer of grudging respect in his voice. "So, you're going to tell your son too? It means that this will be your successor, then. Well, I figured it out already." He then glared pointedly at me, a mixture of annoyance and respect. "You kid, you were hiding him this well. Even my spies didn't tell anything like this about him. I think it's time to change them." His final words were a threat, not to me, but to his own network of intelligence.
With that, Xiao Feng turned and started moving towards the castle, his previous attempt to kill me seemingly forgotten, replaced by a more pressing political agenda. My father followed, his imposing figure radiating silent power. I, still reeling from the multiple revelations, followed them from behind, my mind racing. Xiao Feng, a Black Aura master, here personally. The timeline is already changing. And 'she'... that could only be Xiao Ling. This game just got infinitely more dangerous, and infinitely more exhilarating.