You're Strong But Now You're Mine-Chapter 70: Forget It

Over a decade ago, in Skyrim... yes, the very Skyrim now plunged into utter chaos. But Rome was not built in a day, and a glacier doesn’t freeze overnight; the Skyrim rebellion, too, had its deep roots among the people—those too poor to go on living.

"A bitter land breeds heroes who sing both of passion and tragedy," and Skyrim was no exception. As the northeastern governing region of Glorious, Skyrim’s people were fierce, warlike, and known for valuing death over life, keeping their word with unwavering honor, their ancestral faith ever strengthening their resolve. Naturally, such common folk were not easy to rule, and Skyrim’s history was always a lesson in compromise—sometimes Glorious sent men to brutally crush the region, sometimes the Skyrim natives governed and built peace. One way or another, it never knew true calm, but overall, things remained relatively stable.

But decades ago, Glorious abandoned its ’gentle’ policy toward Skyrim. Successive governors became hardliners, destroying the Skyrim people’s ancestral shrines and stoking conflict among local clans. Most significantly, using river diversion and hydraulic projects as a pretext, they forcibly relocated the populace.

In hindsight, Glorious’s strategy was not entirely flawed. Destroying shrines suppressed clan power, stoking local feuds weakened family houses, and forced migration spread the wealth—which was, after all, Skyrim had too many strong young men; wouldn’t sending them to help build other regions be ideal? Why keep them in this barren wasteland to fight and drink?

"But a plan can be perfect, reality is always cruel." With their ancestral temples ruined and expelled from their homes, the people’s longing for their homeland erupted; they would rather become wanderers than leave Skyrim. They turned to banditry and savagery, worsening public order, triggering even harsher crackdowns from Glorious’s central authority—a vicious cycle.

Natural disasters were simply the fuse; the true root of the warfare was decades of human calamity.

Over a decade ago, a boy with "Yin" in his name, in a village targeted by an Imperial Court relocation. It really had nothing to do with him or his family, but a few hot-blooded youths couldn’t swallow the injustice, rallied some others to confront—maybe even fight—the officials. In the end, they died, dragging the whole village down with them; the army slaughtered them all.

Sometimes you didn’t need to do anything wrong; "you didn’t even need to be seen." As long as you had the same label, "you’d be ravaged by fate."

The boy dragged out a bottom-feeder existence as a refugee for years, doing anything for a bite to eat, honing a killer’s skills with surgical precision. A passing assassin sensed his talent, bringing him into the organization.

"Black Robe House," Yin Yinyin said, "That’s not its real name; an Assassin Organization doesn’t need a name. Regular people won’t know us at all—only those who qualify and wish to hire us will ever get our price sheet... Usually, the intended target’s name and the fee are right on it."

"That said, most of us favor black clothes to hide our white hair and lurk in the dark, so I call us Black Robe House."

Leyu wanted to turn back and look at Yin Yinyin, but even that movement felt rusted and slow to him. "White... hair?"

"Exactly, all of us practice the Hidden Sword Technique," Yin Yinyin said, "You can reason this out easily. The Hidden Sword Technique is a forbidden battle technique with a terribly short life—if not for an organized legacy, how could it have survived to today? Even if someone kept it, it would be lost the moment their descendants tried it... Besides, the Glorious Imperial Court hunts white-haired people relentlessly; only an Assassin Organization would dare keep it."

"A little over a year ago, the organization received a very special order."

What made it special? Besides targeting Ding Yi, the powerful governor of Star Engraving County, it came with an extra requirement: Ding Yi must be killed under the guise of a Backlight Particle rebel, and the Backlight Particle identity must be widely accepted—ideally, the kill should happen by next autumn.

The target was too dangerous, the requirements too high, and there was a time limit. Nearly the whole organization rejected the order—except the boy who’d survived the chaos for years. He had researched Divine Weapon rumors, knew a Saint’s Relic likely resided with the Ding Family, so he took the order, joined the White Night Organization over a year ago, and, by his record, became one of Star Engraving’s White Night leaders.

He contacted the order’s sponsor, Lv Zhong, understood his motives, and realized the "unrest" he orchestrated would serve Lv Zhong’s needs even better than a plain assassination—so Lv Zhong gave him support.

Leyu could no longer stand, collapsing weakly to his knees and forcing a name out with his last breath,

"Lan Yan."

"Yes," Yin Yinyin nodded, "Lan Yan always used you to smooth the way for White Night—building branches, bringing firearms inside the city, routine checks... Without you, White Night wouldn’t have lasted this long. You’re the point of agreement between Lan Yan and me."

"So we all got what we wanted. Lan Yan prepared thoroughly for tonight’s uprising—come morning, he’ll be the hero of Star Engraving County. Ding Yi is dead—Lv Zhong, with Lan Yan’s backing, can claim Star Engraving and command the Linghai Army without resistance. And I, I got what I wanted... the Saint’s Relic."

"Meteor, I’m sure you have a lot of questions—your biggest must be, why go to such pains just for an Extreme Divine Weapon?"

"They say thinking can delay brain death for those at death’s door. So, use your common sense: for Black Robe House, a den of assassins living on borrowed time—how does the organization even control them? How do they make them risk their lives at a word?"

Yeah.

Listening, Leyu already sensed something terribly off: an order of assassins who wouldn’t live long anyway, but were all night-fighting experts—why did the organization command such loyalty?

Money? They didn’t have long to live anyway, so what use was money? Even if they earned for family, not all assassins had families. Someone like Yin Yinyin, whose whole family was wiped out, could easily survive as a lone thief. So why obey the organization at all?

"...Life," Leyu bowed his head toward the sword tip at his chest, "Black Robe House has a way to extend your lives."

"Correct," Yin Yinyin said quietly, "But more precisely, it’s a weapon."

"Illusion Divine Weapon: Soul Purification, Devil’s Sword. It has many abilities, but the most important for us is this—it can store life force through killing, and then, at the wielder’s will, transfer that life to others."

"Only by completing missions could we receive life from the leader’s sword."

"That, precisely, is why I’d go to any lengths for the Saint’s Relic."

Swish.

Yin Yinyin pulled away his sword. Leyu’s body seemed to lose all support, collapsing limply onto the cold ground.

"I’ve touched the Soul Purification, Devil’s Sword before," Yin Yinyin leveled his blade, admiring the bright red pattern on it, "Now, by means of the Saint’s Relic, I’ve forged a replica... even though it’s a weakened fake, it has the same power."

"From now on, I will no longer be Black Robe House’s prisoner."

"From now on, I won’t wake up each day wondering how many days I have left."

"Meteor, can you understand what it’s like for someone like me—knowing with each sunrise exactly how long I have, watching the days tick down toward death? ’What am I even living for each day?’"

"Yes..."

"No, you can’t possibly understand." Yin Yinyin pressed his hand to his heart. "Someone with your gifts, your easy life, a born-achiever... how could you understand? Just to stand before you like this, I’ve given everything I had."

"You think I fear death? No, I do not fear death. What I fear is leaving this world before I could do anything."

"Death itself isn’t worth fearing. What’s truly terrifying is having no hope."

Leyu gave a start, smiling bitterly. "You... you’ve said... that before."

Yin Yinyin stood half in shadow, half in light, staring silently at Leyu before asking, "Anything else you want to ask?"

There was another half to that thought, "Better ask quick, or you’ll be dead."

Leyu felt his body turning into a rotten coffin—unable to move, trapped, all he could do was wait for death. The Soul Purification, Devil’s Sword, besides draining life, seemed to possess more mysterious powers.

"Why do you want to kill me?"

It sounded almost ridiculous; did you need a reason to kill him? But Leyu truly couldn’t understand: he and Yin Yinyin were not enemies, and he wasn’t competing for the Saint’s Relic. Now that Yin Yinyin had what he wanted, why not just leave and enjoy life, why kill a helpless cripple?

Yin Yinyin stayed quiet for a long while; just as Leyu thought his end had come, Yin Yinyin finally said, "I want to keep serving White Night."

Leyu was so shocked his soul almost reentered his body.

"Strange, isn’t it? An assassin wanting to work for a revolutionary organization... But in this past year, cleaning up after you clueless Backlight Particles, patching your messes—those were the happiest days I ever had."

"Every one of you shone like the sun. Yes, you all had your flaws, but also dazzlingly bright convictions. Working beside you, I felt I’d become a great man—a man of meaning—a... good man."

"But if I want to return to White Night, I have to kill every witness. Only then can I control the story in Star Engraving. An Qian’s side—Lan Yan will see to that. My only task is you, Meteor."

Leyu’s expression grew terribly complex. He barely had strength to speak now, only frowning at Yin Yinyin.

Yet Yin Yinyin read his look. "You want to ask, why don’t I betray Lv Zhong and help White Night take Star Engraving, use that credit for the Saint’s Relic... Or why not tell White Night up front what I want, and let them help me?"

Leyu nodded.

"Yeah, why didn’t I?"

Yin Yinyin’s half-lit face broke into a gentle smile. "Actually, Lin Jinyao didn’t have to die—only, his fame was too great; if he lived, I’d never get to lead the city-capture plan. Lin Xue’en didn’t have to die either, only without a dead ’traitor,’ White Night’s headquarters wouldn’t dare back Star Engraving..."

"And you, too."

Yin Yinyin looked at Leyu, still smiling, even as tears streaked down his cheeks. "I didn’t want you to die either, which is why I had Lan Yan give you a train ticket, and I gave you one too—hoping you and your sister would go to Yanjing, and leave Star Engraving behind you."

"But when I saw you, why could I still kill you without a moment’s hesitation?"

Yin Yinyin’s mask finally broke, his lips twitching, body trembling, his grief so thick it felt suffocating. "Why?"

He drew a deep breath, letting it out in helpless resignation.

"The side of me you saw, full of rhetoric, devoted to White Night—’Yin Yinyin’—that was a mask."

"The side you never saw—a ruthless killer, willing to do anything for an Extreme Divine Weapon, instigating chaos, trusting only myself—’Yin’—was also a mask."

"Some masks, once worn too long, you can never take off."

"So, I wanted to serve White Night, but didn’t trust them to win me the Saint’s Relic. I longed to be brave and kind like you all, yet for my own ends I was ruthless and cold."

"My heart turned toward the light, but twisted as dust."

"The real me probably died that night thirteen years ago, hiding beneath my parents’ corpses, too afraid to move."

"All that lives now is a man with two faces... a double-faced man."

The night wind howled. Distant fires dimmed, the once-faint shouting now vanished altogether.

"It’s all over."

Yin Yinyin looked at Leyu, whose breath faded to a whisper. "You’ll die as well."

"I heard when the Soul Purification, Devil’s Sword drains your life, you don’t feel any pain... Do you?"

Leyu turned his head, glancing from the corner of his eye at Chen Fu’s corpse in the distance, and sighed softly. "Yes."

The body did not hurt.

But something else did.

"It hurt so much he almost wanted to just die."

"I wasn’t trying to make this sentimental, but... you’re the only one who ever knew everything I’ve been through... my friend."

Yin Yinyin’s face turned strange as he asked, "Will you forgive me?"

No sooner were the words spoken than Yin Yinyin broke down—his lips curled in a half-crazed grin as he shook his head, tears streaming, half-laughing, half-crying.

Leyu laughed too. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com

He summoned his last strength and whispered, "I won’t..."

"But..."

Before he could finish, Leyu felt his strength ebb away, his eyelids heavy as he slipped into darkness.

He had no idea how much time had passed.

Maybe an entire lifetime.

Maybe just an instant.

Leyu opened his eyes.

He saw Qian Yuliu, battered and broken, lying on the ground.

Outside, the full moon hung high, corpses strewn everywhere.

Leyu glanced down at the Soul Purification, Devil’s Sword in his hand. It was beautiful—the blood-red runes glowed, yet the blade stayed clean, and the life energy pulsing from within made Leyu feel full of vigor at every moment.

He parted his lips, as if to speak.

But in the slaughterhouse now, he was the only living soul left.

At last, Leyu could only sigh in helpless resignation.

"A thousand words and endless sorrow all vanished into that sigh."

"Forget it."

(End of Volume One)