Not only was his reaction slower and his strength completely gone, but even his legs seemed to have gotten shorter. Ryan Carter shook his head slightly—looks like the illness is serious, he’s even starting to hallucinate. Before he could make any further assessment, the three assassins lunged at him again. Ryan Carter swung himself out with a move like an old ox flicking its tail.

Taking advantage of the momentum from rolling to the side, Ryan Carter propped himself up with his left hand, executed a beautiful “swallow skimming the water” move, and sprang up. In that split second, he had already decided what technique to use against these thugs—though it was a bit embarrassing, it was the most suitable for his current physical condition.

The assassins surrounded him in a fan shape. Ryan Carter guarded his chest with his left hand and his kidney with his right, taking up a defensive stance. The assassins attacked simultaneously. The one on the left, wielding a knife, struck first. Ryan Carter sidestepped, charged along the left assassin’s arm into his embrace, threw a left punch, raised his left elbow, and unleashed a move called “Waving Sleeves Against the Wind”—instantly knocking down the burly man, who collapsed limply to the ground, writhing like a snail.

To onlookers, this “Waving Sleeves Against the Wind” move was truly vicious: first a punch to the groin, then an elbow to the ribs—even an iron man would be ruined by that.

Having dealt with one, Ryan Carter didn’t press the attack—he simply didn’t have the strength! His body was so weak that after just a few moves, he was already close to collapse. The other two assassins, seeing how ruthless he was—always aiming to cripple—couldn’t help but slow their assault, and the two sides faced off.

At this moment, the giant man had already gotten up and was holding off the remaining assassins. Seeing his master alive, he was overjoyed and fought with renewed vigor, barely managing to hold back the other four assassins.

Whenever the assassins thought they had the upper hand and the kill was certain, Ryan Carter would use some strange move to narrowly escape, often even gaining a slight advantage. His strength wasn’t great, but he always targeted the groin, nose, and soft ribs—places that couldn’t be toughened—making him a real headache. For a while, the assassins couldn’t do anything to him.

The fight outside the window continued. The black-clad defenders gradually got used to fighting at night. Just like inside the house, they were in a sorry state but held on with incredible tenacity. On the roof, the man in white frowned slightly and was about to say something to the old man beside him, but the old man listened intently for a moment, then slowly shook his head at the man in white.

The man in white snorted softly, put his hand to his lips, and whistled, then disappeared into the rain with the old man.

Hearing the whistle, the assassins launched a few fierce attacks, then retreated like a receding tide, vanishing in the blink of an eye. The black-clad defenders also left silently, as if they had never been there.

The whole courtyard was left with only the heavy, bellows-like breathing of two men, one big and one small...

A moment later, the sound of dense footsteps and the clatter of armor and weapons rang out. Ryan Carter saw a large group of soldiers pouring in, each holding a torch, dressed in leather armor, with bows and knives at their sides, their faces full of murderous intent...

Even though Ryan Carter had undergone hellish training, his thick nerves were about to snap—was this a movie set? Was I too ruthless just now? I don’t think I’m an actor, am I?

Countless question marks flooded his mind, turning his brain into mush, with a constant buzzing in his ears...

A bearded man in armor came over to speak, but he didn’t hear a word. It was the giant man beside him who answered for him.

Slowly, his consciousness returned. Ryan Carter only heard the giant man saying things like “Your Highness,” “no harm done,” and “please return” to the bearded man. Then he saw the bearded man give him a gloating look before swaggering off with his troops. As he left, he said something to the giant man, making the giant’s face turn black with anger.

The room returned to silence, with only the crackling of a torch the soldiers had stuck in the wall.

Ryan Carter’s physical condition was now terrible—aching and weak, with a splitting headache. He struggled to get himself onto the bed and lay down, adjusting his position a few times to get comfortable. Only then did he look at the other person in the room, noticing that the man was staring at him with a strange expression, as if wanting to say something but holding back. Ryan Carter slowly closed his eyes and said softly, “Do you have something to say?”

The giant man nodded, just about to speak, when the half-dead man on the bed groaned, “We’re all tired, let’s talk tomorrow...”

The words died on his lips, and the giant nearly choked, grumbling inwardly. He cupped his fists and said in a deep voice, “I take my leave,” pulled the torch from the window frame, tiptoed out of the room, and gently closed the door.

Darkness once again enveloped the room. Ryan Carter focused on the sound of the rain outside the window, not opening his eyes again.

……

Volume One: Grass on the Plain

Chapter Two: A Dragon in Shallow Waters Is Mocked by Shrimp, The Fallen Prince’s Difficult Situation

No one knew when the rain had stopped, but the sky was growing brighter.

Ryan Carter opened his eyes, his expression strange.

He was still lying in the same position as before, but his mind was anything but calm. Last night, he had already realized that he was no longer himself.

It was just that the realization was so absurd that he needed a whole night to convince himself to accept it—he, a twenty-nine-year-old special forces instructor, had become a kid of at most fifteen or sixteen.

Once he accepted this fact, things like being much shorter and being in an environment that looked like ancient China weren’t so hard to accept.

Ryan Carter raised his right arm and looked at the slender, fair little hand, then thought of his original bear-paw-sized hands. The corner of his mouth twitched into a bitter smile, and he muttered softly, “Even most women can’t compare to this...”