The Twelve Trials Starting from Zero

"All of you, get them separated!"

At this moment, Dao Run also joined in, waving his hand to shoot out talismans, driving the corpse guards to surround Su Qi and Dao Lian.

Chapter Five: Miss Daorun, Please Have Some Self-Respect

"Ouch, my clothes were almost slashed..."

Su Qi wore a mocking smile, his hands tucked into his sleeves, easily dodging and weaving through the flashes of sword light.

"Go to hell!!"

Dao Lian grew even angrier, wielding her crescent blade with even greater speed, cutting through the air and emitting a piercing whistle.

At this moment, the nearby zombie guards, under Dao Run's control, activated again and rushed in from all directions. His eyes were bloodshot with rage, and without pausing, he cleaved all the zombies that blocked his way in two.

No! We can't let Dao Lian continue like this, or Father will punish him severely. But ordinary zombies are no match for Dao Lian, who is possessed by Ma Sun. There's no other way...

Dao Run frowned as his gaze swept over the other people gathered at the alley entrance and the several dismembered corpses on the street. He immediately made up his mind, took out another talisman, and stuck it on the forehead of a tall zombie behind him.

"White Dragon, charge!"

Li Bailong, a kung fu superstar who was once famous worldwide, created a powerful boxing style called Missile Way. Later, due to his powerful fighting ability, he was noticed by the Taoists, who murdered him at the height of his acting career and turned him into a zombie, which was then given to the newborn Dao Run as a birth gift.

He is the zombie that Dao Run has been controlling since childhood, and also her trump card as a psychic.

"Stop Dao Lian!"

As the talisman took effect, Li Bailong, who was originally a burly man standing quietly like an iron tower, flashed a red light in his eyes, shattered the ground with one foot, and shot out like an arrow.

The next moment, Dao Lian, who was chasing and attacking Su Qi, suddenly felt the wind whistling behind him, and the voice of Ling Ma Sun rang in his mind, "Young Master, be careful! Someone is coming from behind!"

He was startled, and as soon as he turned around, a dark figure pounced in front of him.

boom! !

A sharp pain shot through his right hand as his crescent blade was kicked away. Immediately afterward, his neck tightened, and his back slumped as he was forcefully pinned to the ground. Although he was possessed by Ma Sun, a powerful general who had been undefeated on the battlefield five hundred years ago, Dao Lian's physical abilities were still those of a ten-year-old child. He was no match for Li Bailong, who had been turned into a zombie and whose physical abilities even surpassed those of a peak-age warrior.

"That must be Li Bailong, the zombie modeled after Bruce Lee. Because his soul is still sealed inside the corpse, he has basically inherited his skills from his life, making him far stronger than ordinary zombies. It's just... tragic. He was a world-renowned kung fu superstar, yet he was arbitrarily killed by the Taoists and turned into a zombie. In the original story, he wanted to take revenge on the Taoists who took his life, but was stopped by the protagonist, Asakura Yoh, and was forced to forgive the Taoists..."

Seeing that Dao Lian had been stopped, Su Qi also stopped and looked at the muscular, tall, and long-legged young zombie pressing down on him, his eyes narrowing slightly.

Previously, although he really liked the classic manga "Shaman King," what he liked was actually the world view and setting, and at most, the female protagonist Anna Kyoyama. He was quite dismissive of the protagonist Yoh Asakura's various attempts to stop others from taking revenge and to make them let go of their hatred, as well as the author Hiroyuki Takei's attempts to whitewash the villains.

Li Bailong, a kung fu superstar, was doing well when he was suddenly murdered, turned into a zombie, and sealed in a corpse for more than ten years. After regaining his senses, he was not allowed to take revenge and was forced to forgive his enemies. In the end, he even developed a romantic relationship with Daorun. What kind of operation is this?

Furthermore, there is another character named Li Selu, who is positioned as a companion of the protagonist, Yoh Asakura. His parents were killed by the big boss, Yoh. During the Shaman War, he encountered Yoh's accomplices and wanted to kill them to avenge them, but was forcibly stopped by the protagonist, Yoh Asakura.

Then, through a series of plot twists arranged by the author, he was brainwashed by the protagonist's idea that "when will the cycle of revenge end, and killing for revenge will only bring more hatred," and he put aside the hatred of killing his father and mother. In the end, he did not seek revenge against Ye Wang. What kind of operation is this?

To be killed at the best time of one's life, to be robbed of one's freedom and dreams, and to be turned into a tool worse than a slave to be used by others—can such hatred be easily resolved with a mere fight or a few words?

Even Confucius, who advocated benevolence and forgiveness, said, "Repay injustice with justice and kindness with kindness." As an outsider, what right does the protagonist, Yoh Asakura, have to stop others from avenging the murder of his father and mother? Even for the sake of friends, shouldn't he be able to see the most basic difference between good and evil?

In short, Su Qi does not agree with Asakura Yoh's approach, nor does he believe that he can influence the BOSS with words and protagonist halo like Yoh did. He will clear this world in his own way.

Of course, although this guy always calls himself a "partner of justice," he is not a true righteous messenger who hates evil and wants to turn the world into a kingdom of justice, because he knows that as long as people have selfish desires, the evil in this world can never be controlled.

So as long as you don't go too far, don't provoke him, and don't do anything in front of him, considering that a purely righteous character would lower his reputation, and that the Taoists could later redeem themselves, he can temporarily turn a blind eye. After all, the other party has already chosen to forgive; why should he be more concerned than the emperor and meddle in other people's business?

"Damn it!! Daorun, let me go!!"

Even though she was already pinned to the ground, Dao Lian continued to struggle, glaring at Su Qi with murderous intent in her eyes.

"Dao Lian, calm down. Do you want to be punished by your father for killing people indiscriminately in Dao City?"

Upon hearing the word "father," Dao Lian paused slightly, and the anger in her eyes subsided considerably, but she still stared intently at Su Qi and shouted, "I will kill him! I will kill him!"

Dao Run frowned slightly, stepped forward, looked down at Su Qi, and coldly questioned, "You are also a spirit child, right? What's your name? What did you do to Dao Lian?"

“My name is Daohe…” Su Qi met her gaze without backing down and smiled, “Actually, I didn’t do anything, I just taught him some manners.”

"Etiquette?"

Dao Run glanced back at Dao Lian, who had finally stopped yelling and was now lying on the ground, staring at him with murderous intent. His expression suddenly turned cold. "You hit Dao Lian!? You actually dared to hit Lian's face!?"

Upon discovering her younger brother's swollen left cheek, the fifteen-year-old girl, a doting brother, was instantly enraged. She raised her hand and slapped Su Qi hard across the face, but...

The latter easily dodged, and said in a serious tone, "Miss Daorun, please have some self-respect. As the saying goes, men and women should not touch each other. How could you suddenly touch my face?"

Completely ignoring Su Qi's nonsense, Dao Run stared at him and said coldly again, "You hit Dao Lian!?"

"Miss Daorun, I suspect you have been infected with the repeater virus and need to get treatment as soon as possible."

"Hmph, how dare you be so disrespectful and attack the next head of the Taoist family without cause? According to the rules, you know what your fate will be, don't you?"

"I know." Su Qi finally answered seriously, his face calm. "Tattooing, all five punishments, then turning into a zombie, sealing in its soul, even if it dies, it must work for the Taoists forever."

"Very well, since you know that, I won't waste any more words."

Dao Run pulled out the talisman and ordered the remaining corpse guards to press Su Qi into the Taoist dungeon.

The latter smiled contemptuously, turned his head, and said to Dao Lian not far away with a mocking look: "So, Dao Lian, you are ultimately just an incompetent young master who bullies others by relying on his power."

"What did you say!?"

Dao Lian's anger, which had been gradually subsiding, suddenly erupted again. She stared intently at Su Qi and said, "You piece of trash whose limbs I just broke, are you saying I'm a young master who can only rely on my family's power?!"

"Otherwise what? Don't you still need your sister to avenge those slaps for you?"

Dao Run's expression changed. "Dao Lian, don't fall for this guy's provocation."

"Let me go!"

"Dao Lian..."

"Dao Run..." Dao Lian was furious but remained calm. She simply turned her head and looked at her sister quietly, saying each word slowly and deliberately, "I said, let me go!"

Dao Run paused for a moment, remained silent, and finally cast a spell, causing Li Bailong to release Dao Lian.

The latter stood up, activated his spirit weapon, walked coldly to Su Qi, stared into his eyes and said, "You're saying I'm a spoiled young master who bullies others?"

"Aren't you one?"

"I will kill you with my own hands to avenge the insult you just gave me!"

Su Qi remained expressionless and said in a flat, monotone tone, "Waaah, I'm so scared."

"If I can beat you once, I can beat you twice... Just you wait, in the next assessment, I will personally tear you to pieces!"

"Dao Lian..." Dao Run frowned and said, "This is against the rules, Father will not agree!"

"I will explain it to him personally, and he will definitely agree!"

Dao Lian stood with her back to her, her eyes filled with chilling coldness as she stared at Su Qi, her tone unwavering. For someone as proud and arrogant as he was, being called a spoiled young master who abused his power was the thing he feared most.

"You... okay..."

Despite some concerns, Daorun ultimately couldn't resist his younger brother's insistence and had no choice but to agree to the plan.

"But before that, we still need to lock this guy in the dungeon, lest he escape."

As she spoke, she shifted her cold gaze to Su Qi, casually picked up a talisman, and was about to order the corpse guards to take Su Qi away.

"Wait a minute!" The latter suddenly raised his hand, signaling a pause.

"What? You want to resist?"

A cold smile curled at the corner of her lips; Dao Run secretly hoped Su Qi would resist. That way, she could kill him on the spot and reduce unpredictability. She had just witnessed how easily this guy could dodge Dao Lian's continuous attacks; he was definitely not someone to be trifled with.

"Of course not, I just want to save it first."

As Su Qi spoke, he walked to the small wildflower that had been trampled, squatted down, and carefully began to dig into the soil.

In his eyes, the faint spiritual fluctuations emanating from it, though weak, had not completely dissipated. Even though it appeared so fragile and insignificant, its life was surprisingly resilient. If the roots and leaves, which were not yet completely destroyed, were carefully protected, it might bloom again.

What are you doing?

Dao Run also came over, looking down at Su Qi digging in the soil, finding it hard to understand the guy's behavior.

Chapter Six: That's how confident I am

"I'm digging in the dirt."

As Su Qi carefully dug through the soil and removed the roots of the wildflower, he answered very "honestly".

Dao Run frowned slightly. "I know you're digging, but why are you doing this?"

"Of course, it's because it allows it to live."

At this moment, Dao Lian snorted coldly, leaving behind the words "Wash your neck clean and wait for me," before turning and leaving, walking quickly towards the city.

Dao Run glanced at him, thought for a moment, and remained where he was. He watched as Su Qi tore off a piece of his sleeve and placed the wildflower's stem along with some soil on it. He asked with a hint of surprise, "Are you just trying to fool me? I'm asking why you would go to such lengths for such an inconspicuous wildflower?"

“Why not?” Su Qi said as he wrapped the roots of the wildflower. “In my opinion, Dao Lian and your life are not necessarily more noble than this little wildflower.”

"Wait a minute..." Dao Run suddenly realized something and exclaimed in surprise, "The reason you slapped Dao Lian wasn't because he stepped on this flower, was it?"

"Ding-dong, congratulations, you got it right."

"Are you crazy?!" she exclaimed incredulously. "You slapped Lian and risked your life for something so trivial!"

"This flower is special to me." Su Qi, however, showed no sign of anything amiss, and calmly said, "Dao Run, having grown up in a Daoist family that casually plays with the dead, you certainly wouldn't understand the preciousness of life now, would you?"

"I don't understand what you're talking about at all."

Dao Run frowned slightly, then shook his head, no longer thinking about the other party's strange behavior, and said coldly, "So, have you finished your business now?"

"Please wait a moment."

After Su Qi finished speaking, he waved to the children gathered at the alley entrance and said with a hearty smile, "Daohe, my friend, come and lend a hand."

Immediately, everyone parted, revealing Daohe, who was rubbing his forehead with one hand and looking utterly helpless.

"You bastard, don't you feel comfortable unless you rip me off?"

He walked closer, complaining, "What if Young Master Daolian and Miss Daorun mistakenly think we have a close relationship, and I get implicated as well?"

"Hey, how can you say it's a misunderstanding? Aren't we best friends who would stand by each other through thick and thin? If I were to be killed on this trip, you would surely be furious and storm the Dan Yuan Palace to avenge me, right?"

Seeing Dao Run's gaze sweep over him, Dao He's expression changed slightly, and he hurriedly waved his hands, saying, "I didn't! I didn't! Don't give me that nonsense, you idiot!"

"Would he commit seppuku and go to the underworld with his best friend?"

"Please hurry up and die, don't cause trouble for others, thank you."