The narrow alley lay shrouded in a bone-chilling drizzle. It was already past midnight, and the entire neighborhood had nearly fallen asleep. Only a few old streetlights flickered weakly in the wind. Their dim yellow glow pierced through the rain, casting pale patches of light across the uneven concrete ground. Rainwater streamed down the weathered walls, carrying mud, trash, and dark-red trails of blood that slowly spread across the ground. The stench of blood mingled with the damp, musty smell of the old walls, making the air thick and suffocating.
In the middle of the alley, Lin Zhan stood alone, surrounded by more than a dozen thugs. His black shirt was torn in several places. One shoulder had been slashed open, blood soaking through the fabric before dripping onto the ground. His left arm was badly wounded as well, blood continuously seeping from the deep cut. The corner of his lips was split, and a streak of blood ran from his forehead all the way down to his temple. Yet Lin Zhan remained standing tall, his posture unyielding.
The men surrounding him were armed with knives, iron rods, and gleaming machetes that flashed coldly beneath the streetlights. Their leader, Han Fei, was in his early thirties. A skull tattoo covered his neck, and he held a long saber in one hand. He stared at Lin Zhan with a mixture of viciousness and caution. Everyone present knew one thing: the man standing before them was not someone they could easily deal with.
Ten minutes earlier, there had been more than twenty of them. Now, only a little over a dozen remained. Half of their men were already sprawled helplessly across the ground.
Lin Zhan raised a hand and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. He glanced at his bloodstained palm before letting out a low laugh. That smile sent an instinctive shiver through the men facing him.
"Come at me. You cowards."
Han Fei gritted his teeth and stepped forward.
"Let's see how long you can keep running your mouth."
Lin Zhan said nothing. He merely tilted his head slightly, his gaze calm enough to be terrifying.
"If you want to kill me, come at me yourself."
His words instantly ignited Han Fei's fury. He roared,
"Kill him!"
The moment his order rang out, more than a dozen figures charged forward at once. Blades tore through the rain. A knife came crashing down toward Lin Zhan's head. He tilted his body and dodged it by a hair's breadth. The blade struck the concrete, sending sparks flying. Lin Zhan immediately spun around and drove his elbow hard into the attacker's face. A dry crack rang out as the man cried out and staggered backward. Lin Zhan snatched the iron rod from his hand and swung it sideways. Another man was sent crashing into the wall. Before he could stop, Lin Zhan drove his foot into another thug's stomach, sending him flying backward into a motorcycle parked by the roadside. The motorcycle toppled to the ground with a sharp metallic crash.
But the next instant, a blade suddenly came slashing toward him from behind. Lin Zhan caught the whistle of the wind beside his ear and immediately ducked. The blade grazed his hair. He spun around, seized the attacker's wrist, and twisted hard. The man screamed as the knife slipped from his hand. Lin Zhan snatched it up and struck him directly at the temple with the hilt. Another figure rushed toward him, followed by yet another. Lin Zhan continued dodging and counterattacking, but his strength was rapidly running out. The fight had dragged on for too long, he had already lost too much blood, and his breathing was growing increasingly heavy.
For just one second, his attention slipped.
A machete slashed across his shoulder.
Blood immediately gushed from the wound.
Han Fei saw it and burst into laughter.
"Finally, the day has come when you'll die by my hand!"
Lin Zhan lowered his head and glanced at the wound on his shoulder. After a few seconds, he raised his eyes again, the coldness in his gaze growing even more chilling.
"That's all you've got, and you think you can kill me?"
Lin Zhan tightened his grip around the iron rod. But just then, a panicked voice suddenly rang out from the far end of the alley.
"Lin Zhan!"
His entire body froze.
That voice...
Lin Zhan whipped his head around.
Through the curtain of rain, a young woman was running toward him. Her long hair was soaked through, clinging to both sides of her face. Her white sweater was drenched, and her shoes were covered in mud. The gentle expression she usually wore was nowhere to be seen. Her face was filled with panic.
"Fang Yu?"
Lin Zhan stared at her in shock.
"What are you doing here?"
Fang Yu didn't answer. The moment she saw the blood covering him, she hurried toward him even faster.
"Lin Zhan!"
At the instant he turned toward her, a figure quietly approached from behind. It was the same man Lin Zhan had knocked down earlier. He pushed himself to his feet, his eyes burning with hatred. Seeing that Lin Zhan's attention had shifted, he picked up the knife lying on the ground, gritted his teeth, and charged forward.
"Lin Zhan! Die!"
The blade tore through the rain, aimed straight at his back.
Lin Zhan heard the wind behind him. He had only just turned around when it was already too late.
In that moment, Fang Yu acted without thinking. She rushed forward and used all her strength to shove Lin Zhan aside.
"Thud!"
The sound was barely audible. But to Lin Zhan, it was like thunder exploding in the middle of the night.
He was knocked aside by Fang Yu. The young woman in front of him stood completely still. The knife had plunged deep into her chest. One second passed, then another. Fang Yu lowered her head and stared at the blade buried in her body, her eyes wide with disbelief. Blood immediately seeped through her white sweater, spreading into a shocking crimson stain.
She staggered backward.
"Lin Zhan..."
Her voice was barely a whisper. Then her body went limp and collapsed.
"Fang Yu!"
Lin Zhan rushed forward and caught her. He held her tightly in his arms, his hands trembling violently.
"No... No! No!"
Even the man who had wielded the knife was stunned. He had only wanted to kill Lin Zhan. He had never expected a young woman to take the blow instead. But Lin Zhan no longer cared about him. At that moment, the only thing that existed in his world was the woman lying in his arms.
He lowered Fang Yu to the ground, tore off his jacket, and pressed it tightly against her wound in an attempt to stop the bleeding. But blood continued to seep through his fingers. There was simply too much of it. Far more than he could ever stop.
"It's okay. It's okay..." Lin Zhan spoke through his trembling voice. "I'll take you to the hospital."
"I..."
Lin Zhan almost shouted.
"Don't say anything!"
Fang Yu looked at his blood-covered hands, her eyes slowly reddening. She tried to raise her hand, her trembling fingertips gently brushing against his face.
"Don't cry..."
Lin Zhan clasped her hand tightly.
"I'm not crying."
Fang Yu was breathing with difficulty. Every breath caused such pain in her chest that her entire body trembled, yet her gaze remained as gentle as ever.
"Lin Zhan..."
"I'm here."
"If... one day..." Fang Yu had to stop and catch her breath before continuing, "...I'm no longer by your side..."
"There won't be such a day."
Lin Zhan immediately cut her off.
"I won't allow it."
Fang Yu looked at him for a long time. A drop of water fell onto her face. She couldn't tell whether it was rain or his tears.
"You have to live... well, okay?"
"Fang Yu..."
"Don't let what happened to me... turn you into someone else."
Lin Zhan shook his head frantically.
"No! You won't die. You'll be fine..."
"I'm sorry..."
She gently touched the scar at the corner of his eye.
"This time... I made you worry about me again."
Her hand slowly slipped from his face and fell onto the ground.
Lin Zhan froze.
"Fang Yu?"
Fang Yu gave no response.
Lin Zhan lowered his head and pressed his forehead against hers. He closed his eyes, his voice hoarse with pain.
"You can't die..."
A long silence followed.
"I haven't even had the chance to tell you..."
He choked on his words for a long moment before finally forcing out the words that had remained buried in his heart.
"...I love you."
There was no answer.
Only the sound of rain.
The rain continued to fall in a soft, endless drizzle. Water streamed down Lin Zhan's face, mingling with his tears. The men who had surrounded him had quietly fled at some point. No one dared to stay. Because the man before them now looked like a beast that had just lost the most precious thing in the world.
Lin Zhan tightened his arms around Fang Yu. Her body still retained a trace of warmth, but he could feel that warmth slowly slipping away from him. The man who had never known fear was now so utterly panicked that he no longer knew what to do. He pressed his hand firmly against the wound in her chest, but blood still seeped between his fingers, mixing with the rainwater as it streamed onto the cold concrete.
"Wake up..."
His voice was hoarse.
"I'll take you to the hospital. You'll be fine. You have to be. Can you hear me?"
Fang Yu remained silent.
In that moment, it felt as though Lin Zhan's entire world had collapsed.
Lin Zhan raised his head, his bloodshot eyes fixed on the woman in his arms. He wanted to say something, but his throat was too tight. All the words he wanted to say, all the words he had never had the chance to say, were trapped inside his chest.
Lin Zhan took Fang Yu's hand and pressed it against his face. A tear fell onto the back of her hand. Then another.
He lowered his head, his shoulders trembling violently. The man who had made countless people tremble in fear could no longer withstand the pain of losing her.
"Fang Yu..."
He called her name again. This time, his voice broke completely.
Outside the alley, the rain continued to fall without end. The flickering streetlights illuminated two figures—one alive, one dead—standing alone in the cold darkness.
Lin Zhan held her lifeless body tightly in his arms, then raised his face toward the night sky and let out a roar filled with all the pain and despair buried deep within his chest.
"FANG YU!"
His cry tore through the rain, echoing through the dark alley before slowly fading into the endless night.
