11: The little beggar was full of anger.

A light cough suddenly echoed.

The few hooligans who were frolicking in the alley froze, then twisted their heads sharply.

Unbeknownst to them, a young man had appeared behind them. He simply stood there, his gaze calm and unruffled, as if watching a farce that had nothing to do with him.

“Damn it, where did this nobody come from? Are you looking to die?”

Lu Yuchen didn't even lift his eyelids.

His gaze, bypassing these Trash, fell upon the little girl huddled on the ground, trembling into a ball.

The little girl was a bit dazed from the beating, only able to hug her head and let out soft, broken sobs.

“Scram.”

Lu Yuchen’s lips moved, and he uttered a single word.

His voice wasn't loud, in fact, it was rather light.

But this single word, falling into the ears of the few, was no less than a thunderous explosion!

Their hearts felt as if an invisible hand had gripped them, giving a sharp squeeze. That inexplicable dread made their hands and feet turn cold, and they couldn't move an inch.

Among them, one of the leaders, unable to save face under everyone's gaze, blustered.

Putting on a brave front while being cowardly inside was the only skill people like him possessed.

“What kind of thing are you! Giving you face, are we? Brothers, give this old man a…”

The word “beat” was still stuck in his throat.

A pressure ten times more terrifying than before, like a mountain collapsing, descended with a roar!

“Gah!”

His neck felt as if it had been clamped by iron tongs, his eyeballs bulged, and the rest of his words, along with the air, were all choked back.

He saw it.

The young man finally looked at him directly.

Just that one glance, and his soul almost flew away.

That wasn't a human's gaze; it was the gaze of a god who regarded all things as mere straw dogs—indifferent, cold, without a trace of emotion.

“Scram.”

It was still the same word.

This time, the voice was steeped in Killing Intent potent enough to freeze marrow.

“Oh my god!”

Their defenses completely collapsed.

They didn't dare to utter another sound, scrambling and crawling, wishing their parents had given them two more legs, and fled from the alley in utter disarray, dragging their weak-kneed subordinates with them.

Inside the alley, silence returned.

Lu Yuchen withdrew his gaze, and the Evil Qi, which had almost solidified, vanished into thin air.

He walked up to the little girl, slowly squatted down, and softened his voice slightly: “It’s alright now.”

The little girl slowly lifted her head.

Her face was like a smudged kitten, streaked with tears and dirt, but only her large eyes, at this moment, were filled with terror and bewilderment.

She looked at Lu Yuchen, her lips trembling, not daring to speak.

Lu Yuchen sighed almost imperceptibly in his heart.

Such a bother.

He took out a relatively clean cloth from hisPregnant and wanted to wipe her face.

Unexpectedly, the little girl flinched back sharply, like a startled wildcat.

Lu Yuchen's hand paused in mid-air, then he withdrew it.

Just now, he had actually had a thought: with a sweep of his Divine Sense, he wanted to see how her bone structure was. If she had even a little bit of potential, taking on a disciple to pass the time wouldn't be out of the question.

The result…

Her Meridians were blocked, her Spiritual Root was impure, and her talent was shockingly poor.

A pure Trash, with no affinity for the Immortal Dao.

Forget it.

A chance encounter, a small favor, and that's the end of it.

He stood up and turned to leave.

Just as he turned around.

“Big… big brother…”

A voice like a mosquito's hum, trembling, came from behind him.

“I… I’m hungry…”

Lu Yuchen’s steps halted.

He turned back, meeting the little girl's watery eyes, which were timid but held a glimmer of hope that was almost extinguished.

For some reason, his heart, which had been unmoving for eons, actually softened a little.

It wasn't an overflow of sympathy.

He just recalled the feeling of being alone and rootless, with the world vast and unknown, when he first arrived, and it bore a slight resemblance to the girl's helplessness at this moment.

“Wait.”

Before his words finished, he had already vanished from the spot.

In less than ten breaths.

Lu Yuchen returned.

In his hand was a steaming hot meat bun, plus a small, heavy bag of copper coins.

“Eat.” He handed over the bun.

The little girl stared intently at the meat bun, her throat bobbing as she swallowed, but she didn't dare to take it.

“For… for me?”

“Mm.”

Upon receiving confirmation, she trembled as she took the bun, disregarding its heat, and ravenously stuffed it into her mouth, as if she were going to swallow her own tongue.

Lu Yuchen placed the money bag beside her: “Take this, buy some food and clothes.”

The little girl paused her bun-eating.

She looked up, her eyes instantly reddening, and large tears rolled down, mixing with the grease at the corners of her mouth, full of gratitude.

“Thank you… thank you, big brother…” Her voice was muffled and choked with sobs.

“No need.”

Lu Yuchen waved his hand, turning away again.

He had done his utmost; theirFate was over.

However, he had barely walked three steps out of the alley.

“Ah—!”

A shrill, agonizing scream, mixed with the heartbreaking wails of a child, suddenly erupted from within the alley!

Lu Yuchen’s heart sank, his gaze abruptly turned cold, and his figure flickered, transforming into an afterimage as he rushed back.

Inside the alley.

A richly dressed young man, with a cruel expression on his face, was firmly stepping on the little girl's back!

“Crack!”

A faint but clear sound of bone cracking rang out.

Half of the little girl's body was pressed into the muddy ground, blood spilled from her mouth, and she let out an extremely painful groan.

The half-eaten meat bun rolled onto the ground, and a wild dog darted out like lightning, snatched it, and ran off.

The bag of copper coins was now in the hands of the richly dressed young man, who was proudly tossing it up and down.

“Where did this little bastard come from, stealing money from me, young master! And daring to eat in front of me, you're tired of living!”

The young man sneered, pressing down harder with his foot.

“It… it wasn’t stolen… big brother… gave it to me…” The little girl used all her strength to explain, her voice broken and desperate.

“Still daring to talk back!”

“Young master, these little beggars are the dirtiest, just beat her to death!”

A few lackeys fanned the flames from the side.

Only fear remained in the little girl's eyes, and she desperately shook her head: “The money… I don’t want the money… please let me go…”

She saw her bun being snatched by the dog, and disregarding the sharp pain in her back, she struggled to reach out, wanting to snatch it back.

The wild dog, startled by her movement, thought she was trying to take its food, turned sharply, and bit her thin little hand!

“Waaah—!”

The pain in her fingers connected to her heart, and the little girl convulsed with pain, crying loudly, blood instantly staining the back of her hand.

“Hahaha! Look at her stupidity! Fighting with a dog for food!”

The richly dressed young man and his group of cronies, watching this human tragedy, not only showed no pity but pointed at the little girl and burst into unrestrained, wild laughter.

Their laughter was sharp and piercing, sounding exceptionally cruel in this dirty alley.

At the alley entrance.

Lu Yuchen stood quietly, watching this scene.

His gaze, little by little, deepened.

The Killing Intent that had just dissipated, silently, condensed once more.

It was ten, a hundred times colder than before!

The air, it seemed, was frozen inch by inch under his gaze.