THE GOD'S OF CHOSEN WARRIOR

"Move aside, loser!" barked a tall, burly young man.

He was Yung Fei, the son of the village chief and the heir to a martial arts school. Standing on either side of him, three young men his age grinned wickedly, clearly enjoying what their friend was about to do.

Without warning, Yung Fei launched a powerful kick straight into the young man's stomach.

Li Jie Soka Witjaksana, the unfortunate recipient of the kick, was sent stumbling several steps backward until he crashed into a vendor’s stall that had been closed for the day. The wooden stall collapsed under his weight, its fragile structure breaking apart from the impact.

"Pick that loser up! I'm not done with him yet!" Yung Fei ordered.

His three friends immediately rushed forward, grabbing Li Jie, who was still curled up on the ground, clutching his stomach in pain. His ribs ached terribly from the direct hit to his solar plexus.

Two of Yung Fei’s friends each held one of Li Jie’s arms, while the third grabbed his head, preventing him from moving.

"Li Jie Soka Witjaksana... What a fancy name for a beggar like you!" Yung Fei sneered, curling one side of his lip in contempt. "I've told you so many times—losers like you don’t belong here. You're nothing but filth in this village!"

Bugh!

Another brutal punch landed in Li Jie’s stomach. His arms, still restrained, rendered him defenseless. He had no choice but to endure the pain as Yung Fei struck him again.

"What have I ever done to you, Yung Fei? Every time you see me, you just want to beat me up," Li Jie asked weakly. The metallic taste of blood seeped into his mouth as a trickle of it dripped from the corner of his lips.

"Hahaha... What a pathetic loser! You're nothing but a piece of trash. How many times do I have to tell you? If you don’t want to be my punching bag, get out of this village!" Yung Fei shouted.

Another punch struck Li Jie, this time aimed at his face. Blood spilled from his lips as the impact tore the skin. Despite the searing pain, not a single groan of agony escaped his lips. He was used to pain—he had lived with it ever since his parents passed away.

Slowly, he lifted his bloodied face, locking eyes with Yung Fei in silent defiance.

His reaction only fueled Yung Fei’s fury. His anger boiled over.

"How dare you look at me like that? Have you forgotten who I am?"

To Yung Fei’s surprise, Li Jie let out a dry laugh. "Everyone in this village knows exactly who you are—the arrogant son of the village chief with no manners whatsoever!" he retorted firmly.

"You bastard! The three of you, beat him until he can’t move! Kill him if you have to!" Yung Fei roared.

"Kill him?" one of his friends hesitated.

"Don’t be scared. My father is the village chief! If he dies, no one will dare to come after us. He’s just a worthless loser who does nothing but taint this village!"

Emboldened by Yung Fei’s words, his three friends let go of Li Jie and began attacking him mercilessly. Punches and kicks rained down on him until the young man with the strong jawline could no longer move.

One of them picked up a wooden stool, preparing to smash it over Li Jie’s head, but suddenly, Yung Fei stopped him. He had changed his mind.

"Enough, enough! If he dies, we won’t have anyone left to beat up. When the stall owner sees his shop destroyed, he’ll assume this loser is responsible and beat him up anyway. Let’s go before anyone sees us!"

Laughing, the four young men walked away, leaving Li Jie unconscious on the ground. They seemed pleased, having once again made him suffer.

The next morning, Li Jie regained consciousness after a sudden splash of cold water hit his face. A moment later, a brutal kick struck his stomach.

Bugh!

His body curled in pain. He hadn’t expected his suffering to continue even after Yung Fei and his gang had finished with him.

Turning his head slightly, he saw the stall owner standing over him with his arms crossed, his face twisted in anger.

"You! You’re the one who destroyed my stall, weren’t you? Or were you trying to rob it?" the burly man shouted.

"It wasn’t me, Uncle… It was Yung Fei and his friends," Li Jie protested weakly, his voice barely above a whisper due to the pain coursing through his body.

"You dare accuse the village chief’s son? The only person I see here is you, you filthy thief!" The man continued to berate him, even though deep down, he knew the truth—he had seen Yung Fei and his gang beating Li Jie and wrecking his stall. But he needed someone to blame, someone to take his anger out on.

"Who are you calling a thief, Uncle?"

"Who else but you? Let me remind you—your parents were executed by the villagers because they were proven guilty of stealing from them. And like father, like son. A thief will always be a thief!"

Li Jie froze, the man’s words piercing his mind like daggers. Questions flooded his thoughts. Why were my parents accused of stealing? Were they really thieves, just as everyone claims?

Summoning what little strength he had left, Li Jie stood up and glared at the man. "My parents were not thieves!" he shouted defiantly.

"What do you know about them, you thief’s brat? You were just a child back then. And now, I’m going to teach you a lesson for trying to steal from my stall!"

The man suddenly swung his fist toward Li Jie’s head. But in an instant, Li Jie’s hand shot up, catching the incoming strike with surprising speed and strength.

The stall owner’s eyes widened in shock. His fury intensified—he felt humiliated, especially since a few villagers had witnessed Li Jie blocking his attack so effortlessly.

With his superior strength, the man managed to wrench his hand free and launched another punch.

This time, his fist landed squarely on Li Jie’s chest, forcing him to cough up fresh blood. His body, already battered from Yung Fei’s beatings, had now taken yet another brutal blow. His suffering was now complete.

The stall owner laughed in satisfaction, pleased with himself for making Li Jie spit blood.

Sensing an opportunity to escape, Li Jie suddenly turned and sprinted away without looking back.

But his actions only enraged the man further. He began shouting at the top of his lungs while chasing after him.

"Thief! Catch that thief!"