MASTER OF NONE

Chapter 1:

"Please, I am begging you. Please stop. I'll give you anything, just stop, please!"

Ye Feng writhed against the cold stone floor, forced onto his knees by two heavy-handed guards. He was a youth of thin build and dark hair, his clothes tattered and his face pale with helplessness. His eyes were wide with horror as he locked them on his half-brother, Ye Cheng, who stood over their bound mother.

"Ye Feng, it’s not that I refuse to stop," Ye Cheng replied, his tone dripping with mock pity. He casually wiped fresh blood off the short knife in his hand. "It is your mother who refuses to reveal where she hid the clan's spirit stones

It's her you should beg. Those stones are crucial to our clan survival. My hands are tied here."

Bloody liar, Ye Feng snarled in his mind. Ye Cheng and his mother, Ye Shuyin, have always plotted to cast us out. My father used to stand up for us, but ever since the Spirit Root Awakening Ceremony, he treats us like garbage. Now they've framed my mother for stealing just to punish her with a hundred blade slices in public!

"Nonsense!" Ye Feng shouted aloud, his voice cracking. "My mother never stole any spirit stones! She was with me all night!"

"Oh? So you admit it, then," Ye Cheng smirked.

Ye Feng blinked, confused by the sudden trap. Before he could process the words, Ye Cheng lunged forward and kicked him squarely in the stomach. The force sent Ye Feng flying across the courtyard. Before he could recover, Ye Cheng's heavy boot slammed down onto his head, pinning him to the dirt.

"So it was you useless mother and son who conspired to steal the stones, eh?"

"Nonsense... I didn't..." Ye Feng gasped, trying to push himself up.

Ye Cheng didn't let him finish. He channeled spiritual energy into his leg and kicked Ye Feng dead in the chest. Ribs shattered upon impact. Ye Feng flew backward again, coughing up a thick spray of blood.

"We can't have thieves running around," Ye Cheng said, idly twisting his wrists to warm them up. "If word gets out, the shame could ruin us. Seems I have to clean house myself."

Spiritual energy flared around Ye Cheng's body as he rushed toward the defenseless youth.

"That's enough."

A deep, commanding voice echoed through the courtyard. Out from the hall walked Ye Tian, Ye Feng's father. He was a middle-aged man with sharp, stern features and a cold aura, holding the imposing air of a mid-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator.

"But Dad—" Ye Cheng protested, halting his strike.

"I said enough," Ye Tian cut him short.

Ye Cheng reluctantly drew his hand back, his fingers having been mere inches from Ye Feng’s face.

Ye Tian looked down at his broken son, his expression unreadable. I knew this day would come, I just didn't expect it to be this fast Ye Tian thought to himself, a wave of irritation washing over him. If it weren't for this useless boy, I would still... forget it.

Ye Tian turned his cold gaze toward Lin Xue, Ye Feng’s mother. She was tied tightly to a wooden post, bleeding profusely from the agonizing cuts inflicted by Ye Cheng's blade.

"If you admit to your crimes, I will grant you and your useless son a lighter punishment," Ye Tian stated.

Lin Xue weakly raised her head. She muttered something under her breath. As Ye Tian leaned in to hear, she gathered the last of her strength and spat blood directly onto his face.

Ye Tian's expression darkened with rage. He retaliated with a brutal slap that cracked across her face.

"Don't touch her!" Ye Feng screamed, trying to scramble forward, but Ye Cheng instantly caught him by the throat, choking out his air.

"Don't you dare touch her, you bastard," Ye Feng screamed.

Ye Tian wiped his face, letting out a heavy sigh. "Why do you even bother?"

"I trusted you," Lin Xue rasped, her voice trembling but defiant. "I left my family for you, yet you treat us like this..."

"What family?" a mocking voice interrupted from the shadows.

Ye Shuyin, the first lady of the house and Ye Cheng’s mother, stepped into the light. "You keep mentioning this mystery family, yet I haven't seen a single soul come looking for you, since you came to this clan."

Lin Xue smirked through the blood on her lips. "If it isn't the lady of the house. I didn't think a woman of your advanced age would be wandering out so late at night."

Ye Shuyin’s face contorted with anger. Let's see if you can still talk like that once you're thrown out to rot, she thought viciously. Aloud, she smoothed her robes and smiled mockingly. "It seems my son didn't interrogate you thoroughly enough. I apologize on his behalf."

Nearby, the clan elders who had remained silent finally spoke up. "Patriarch, if word spreads that your wife is a thief, the clan's dignity will be ruined."

Ye Tian nodded coldly. "Since she refuses to confess, I have no choice. I hereby expel her and her son from the Ye family. From now On we are strangers to them." He looked at Ye Feng, who was still turning blue under Ye Cheng’s choking grip. "Let them go."

Ye Cheng tossed Ye Feng aside like trash, and the guards quickly untied Lin Xue from the post.

Ye Feng dragged his broken body forward, catching his mother in his arms as she collapsed. "But Dad, we didn't do it! Why are you—"

"Shut up!" Ye Tian roared.

An immense wave of spiritual pressure erupted from the Foundation Establishment cultivator. Ye Feng instinctively threw his body over his mother to shield her. The crushing weight caused blood vessels to pop in his eyes, and blood began to trickle from his ears.

Ye Tian looked at the bleeding boy with utter disgust. "Useless thing. Pack your things and get out. I don't want to see you or this bitch ever again."

With a sweep of his sleeves, Ye Tian turned and walked away. The elders followed him one by one. Ye Shuyin shot the pair a triumphant smirk before disappearing into the dark.

Only Ye Cheng remained for a moment. He drew his knife across his own throat in a clear death threat. "See you soon, brother," he laughed mockingly, turning on his heel to leave.

Ye Feng clutched his chest, staring at their retreating backs. Bastards. When I get strong enough, I'll—

"Feng'er..." a weak gasp interrupted his thoughts.

"Mom! Mom, don't worry, you're going to be okay!" Ye Feng panicked, holding her gently. But blood was pouring from her wounds too fast. Moving her would kill her instantly. He could do nothing but hold her as tears streamed down his face. "It's all my fault. If only I had awakened a spirit root, Dad wouldn't have..."

"It is okay, my child," Lin Xue interrupted, her voice a dying whisper. "It is okay. I have always believed in you. I know that one day, you will stand at the pinnacle of this realm. So do not feel sorry for anyone. If there is one thing I have learned, it is that if you live to please others, you will only end up with regrets. My cute little Feng'er... Always please yourself first, before anyone else."

"Don't worry, Mom. I'll get strong," Ye Feng sobbed, squeezing her hand. "I'll get so strong that the Ye clan will never be able to reach me. Just wait."

"Take this," Lin Xue murmured, pressing something into his palm. It was a piece of ancient jade, carved beautifully in the shape of a phoenix. "Hold onto it. It will save you in times of trouble..."

Before she could finish the sentence, her hand went limp. Her eyes lost their light.

"Mom? Mom!"

Ye Feng screamed, the sound tearing from his lungs. As if answering his grief, rain began to pour from the dark sky, washing the blood away into the dirt.

"Just because I don't have a spirit root... just because I'm not strong enough..." Ye Feng whispered, his voice shaking with a terrifying, sudden calmness. He looked up at the sky, his eyes burning with pure hatred. "You people killed the only person who ever truly loved me. Ye Cheng. Ye Shuyin. Ye Tian. You better pray I die. Because if I don't, I will tear you limb from limb. I'll rip your skin from your bones. I swear it!"

As his vow echoed into the storm, a cold, mechanical voice resonated directly inside his mind:

[Supreme System awakened. Choose to bind?]