The wind stirred the dust along the road.

  Ling Yun whispered in a low voice.

  "Do you know about them?"

  The way the bandit leader had announced their name—confident, almost proud—suggested they were not ordinary roadside thieves.

  Chen Yinying's gaze lingered on the men surrounding them.

  “Yes,” she said quietly. “They’re called the Chivalrous Bandits. A notorious group that preys on travelers outside the gates of Blue Moon City.”

  As the mistress of the Thousand Fragrance Palace, she had access to countless whispers and rumors flowing through the city. From merchants, courtesans, drunk officials—information always found its way to her.

  And the Chivalrous Bandits were… peculiar.

  Most bandits killed. Sometimes out of cruelty, sometimes out of fear that their victims might return with vengeance.

  But the Chivalrous Bandits did not.

  They only robbed those of low status, stripping them of every coin and possession before letting them leave with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

  It was a calculated strategy.

  By avoiding wealthy clans and sects, they stayed beneath the notice of powerful forces. A few hot-headed victims had once tried to retaliate, but every attempt ended the same way—the avengers returned beaten black and blue.

  No one died.

  And because no lives were lost, grudges never ran deep enough to provoke a true hunt.

  In time, travelers reached an unspoken consensus:

  If you encountered the Chivalrous Bandits, surrender.

  Resisting only meant pain.

  The leader stepped forward, resting a metallic bo staff against his shoulder.

  “Friends,” he said pleasantly, “please don’t make things difficult.”

  His aura surged outward like a sudden pressure in the air. Dust trembled rippled across the road.

  The metal of his staff gleamed under the sunlight, silently warning them not to cause any trouble.

  “What use is wealth if you’re dead?” he continued calmly. “Leave everything behind and you’re free to go.”

  Then he pointed the staff at the middle-aged merchant.

  “You’re the eldest here. You first.”

  The man’s face turned pale. Sweat gathered on his forehead.

  He glanced desperately at his servant, who could only shake his head with a helpless sigh.

  The merchant clicked his tongue.

  “Damn scoundrels…”

  Reluctantly, he ordered the servant to unload the crates from the carriage. One by one, the valuables were handed over to the bandits.

  The leader heard the muttering but pretended not to.

  When his men finished collecting the goods, he stepped forward and slapped the merchant’s back in a friendly manner.

  "You made a wise choice, elder. Feel free to leave but-" the leader leaned closer and his voice turned cold.

  "If you try to come after us, next time you will lose more than your wealth."

  The merchant wasted no time. He scrambled back into the carriage and shouted for his servant to drive.

  The wheels rattled away down the road.

  Only when the carriage disappeared into the distance did the leader turn toward Ling Yun and Chen Yinying.

  “Well then.”

  His gaze swept over them.

  “Young folks, follow the elder’s example.”

  He tilted his staff toward Yinying.

  “Miss, you first.”

  Chen Yinying’s brows knitted together.

  Reluctantly, she tossed her spatial pouch onto the ground.

  There was nothing particularly valuable inside—just some silver and supplies—but parting with it still irritated her.

  What she truly feared losing was the zither. A gift from her mother, it had been her trusted companion for a long time.

  We were about to reach the city. Why did we have to come across them.

  Her nails dug into her palms but she forced herself to keep still as she watched a bandit take it all away.

  The leader looked at her in scrutiny.

  "Is that all, young miss?"

  Momentarily losing her composure, she snapped at the leader.

  "How much more do you want, you scoundrels?!"

  "Why, you bit-" One of the bandits was about to step forward but the leader stopped him with a glance.

  "Bring out the treasure light stick."

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  A short man shuffled forward and took out a small rod. When he held it close to Yinying, the rod lit up.

  Her heart sank as she was caught lying but instead of getting angry, the leader simply sighed.

  "Young miss," he said calmly ."Please don't make this difficult."

  His eyes flickered briefly at the glowing stick, before turning back to her.

  "If you think you can hide something from us, you're mistaken."

  He raised his staff slightly.

  "As I said before, leave everything. Otherwise-"

  BOOM-

  The staff smashed on the ground, cracking the earth.

  "Yinying"

  Ling Yin's voice came quietly beside her, giving her a pleading look.

  "Just give it to them."

  Surrounded by the bandits, they had no chance of fighting and escaping. Dying here for some treasure would be meaningless.

  Slowly, her hands reached her neck. The bandits exclaimed as she drew out a pearl necklace hidden beneath her robes. The pearls shimmered softly under the sunlight.

  With her voice shaking, she began to speak

  "This belonged to my late mother. It is the only thing I have left of her."

  Throwing away her pride, she bowed deeply to the bandit leader.

  "I beg you, please don't take this from me."

  A flicker of hesitation crossed the leader's face. He closed his eyes as if rethinking his decision.

  The other bandits looked at each other awkwardly. "Is the boss taking pity because of her pretty face?"

  "Maybe you're onto something. With a beautiful girl like this, I know I would."

  "Shut up both of your traps, you idiots!"

  Another bandit hissed, "Do you think boss is the kind of man who can be charmed so easily? He is a man of resolve, that's why we all follow him."

  Hearing their leader's long sigh, they went silent. When his eyes opened, his gaze had hardened. The hesitation from before was gone.

  "I have already snatched countless treasures from the hands of others, ignoring their pleas and tears. If I let you go, it would be unfair to them."

  The bo staff tapped on the ground.

  "You can curse me all you want, but the only thing you are leaving with are the clothes you're wearing."

  Upon his signal, the short man stretched his hand towards Yinying with a crooked grin.

  "You heard the leader, young miss. Hand it over."

  She looked into his eyes for a split second, then her lips pressed into a thin line.

  "Like hell I will!"

  Petals of plum blossoms bloomed inside her eyes as her voice rang out like an imperial decree.

  "Kill all of them!"

  The short bandit froze and then to the surprise of his comrades, he unsheathed his sword and lunged at the leader.

  Quick on his feet, the leader ducked under the blow before leaping over him to dodge the following strike.

  "She must have charmed him."

  His eyes sharpened, the leader spun his bo staff in a sharp arc.

  CRACK

  The metallic staff collided with the side of his head, knocking the short bandit unconscious instantly. Then his gaze turned to Yinying and before she could react, the staff drove into her abdomen.

  "Aaah-!"

  All the air left her lungs. Reeling from the pain, she bent down clutching her stomach.

  "Yinying!"

  Ling Yun jumped in to help but quickly found himself surrounded by two men on both sides with a sword dangerously close to his neck.

  "Don't try to be a hero, lover boy."

  He could only watch helplessly as the leader chopped her on the back of her neck, knocking Yinying out. Then the leader turned to him.

  "Don't make me hurt you too. Just leave your stuff, take your girl and leave."

  He shot them a glance and both men slowly stepped away from Ling Yun. But the grips on their swords remained reminding him that a wrong move would end his life.

  No need to fight them, Yinying comes first.

  Without any words, he threw his spatial bracelet towards the leader before scooping up Yinying in his arms and running away from here.

  The leader watched his figure fade away before commanding his men to retreat with their haul in the opposite direction.

  Both the leader and Ling Yun never wanted to see each other again but fate had different plans in store. They never could have imagined that their reunion would happen so soon and it would be the last time they meet.

  ***

  "How long you are going to play with it?"

  "But mother, it's so pretty."

  Little Yinying pouted as her mother snatched it from her small hands.

  "So unfair! I want one too."

  The mother giggled at her daughter's antics. "You don't have to worry about it. In the future, hordes of men will be lining up to give my beautiful Ying'er their necklace. At that time, think carefully before accepting one."

  "Hehe. I will definitely pick the strongest and most handsome one."

  Her mother flicked her on the forehead. "Ying'er, you are treating this too lightly. For us at the Joyous Harmony sect, marriage is something sacred."

  Her fingers lightly stroked the pearls.

  "Accepting a man's necklace means forming an eternal bond with him, walking towards the Great Dao together for the rest of your life.

  "So listen to your mother's advice. Instead of appearances or strength, I hope you only accept the necklace from someone who genuinely cares a lot about you. One who is willing to go any lengths for your sake."

  "Then what should I do when I find such a person?"

  The memories started to fade as Chen Yinying woke up. Opening her eyes, the orange sky filled her vision.

  "Thank the heavens you are awake."

  She turned her head and saw Ling Yun sitting by her side.

  "Ling Yun, where-"

  "Don't try to get up."

  He immediately grabbed her shoulder stopping her movement. "You took a heavy blow on the stomach. Don't make any sudden movements."

  Hit hard...?

  Memories resurfaced in her mind as her hand quickly reached for her throat. Finding it empty, she hesitantly looked towards Ling Yun. Before she could ask, he told her with his head bowed in apology.

  "It's gone. They took everything with them."

  "I see."

  Her fingers tightened against her robes.

  "The sun is about to set. We should hurry before the gates are closed."

  "Yinying, I'm sorry."

  She lightly shook her head.

  "I will be sad if you blame yourself for it."

  A weak smile appeared on her face.

  Instead, I was the one who acted stupidly and tried to fight. They could have killed us in anger."

  Her voice started to break.

  "All that for ... a necklace."

  Tears started to well up in her eyes. Ling Yun placed a hand on her shoulders, silently urging her to let everything out.

  "Why does this happen, Ling Yun? Why does the Heavens send such storms our way? Taking things we love one after another while we helplessly watch. We were just traveling peacefully, not looking to cause anyone trouble."

  She had gotten too familiar with loss. Normally surrounded by the girls, she would try to stay strong to maintain her image as their leader. But this time, there was no one else except him.

  Pulling him closer, she buried her face in his chest to muffle her sobs.

  "Why are things so unfair?"

  She felt his arms enclose her small figure and tears started falling freely. Her grip on his robes tightened as she let everything out.

  After a few minutes passed, she discreetly wiped away her tears, before lifting her head. Except her moist eyes, no one could have guessed from her brave smile that just moments before, this girl was crying her heart out.

  "How embarassing! Please erase this from your mind."

  She forced a lighter tone.

  "Let's put this behind. Actually, I should take the opportunity to learn from this setback and follow your example in the future."

  "Me?"

  "Yes. Instead of acting recklessly with the bandits, I should've maintained my composure and done things rationally. Just like when you faced your uncle."

  Ling Yun stiffened but she continued on. "You knew you couldn't win so instead of pointlessly fighting, you gave up your inheritance and left the clan. Even after your cousin poisoned your father, you still let it go."

  She smiled teasingly.

  "Maybe you should teach me how to stay calm and focus on the big picture."

  But Ling Yun wasn't smiling. With a grave expression on his face, he said, "Yinying, you should get some rest. We will go to the city after I return. Wait for me here."

  Without waiting for her reply, he got up and started walking towards the forest.

  "Wait! Ling Yun, where are you going?"

  She tried to get up but her wounds started to hurt, forcing her to lie back. Hearing her words, he turned around for a brief moment.

  "I lost something in the forest. I will return when I take it back."

  He flashed her a small smile before disappearing among the trees.

  ***

  Yinying, you are wrong.

  It wasn't that I couldn't fight against my uncle, I chose not to.

  Unlike you, I had the strength to crush them but I didn't. I let them do whatever they want, take whatever they desired.

  I ran away from the clan and today, I ran away from the bandits.

  I'm sorry

  For the tears you shed.

  For the fake smile you forced yourself to put on.

  But from now on, I promise-

  As long as I have the necessary strength, no one will take anything from you again.

  Your necklace, your sect, I'll be taking everything back.

  Whatever it takes.