Chapter 15 - Desperately clinging on

Kui watched in horror as the blood-soaked cleaver fell on him, hurriedly he tried to shield his face with his arm. His mind was racing thinking about his grandma and he didn't care even if he lost his arm.

"DIE!!" the clever lashes his wrist hard.

But a hard thing stopped it from hitting his skin.

"Fuck!" Dai Zu yanked the clever out with force.

Wide eyes Kui watched a brush flop out of his sleeve. The beautiful wooden handle was broken in two, close to the bristles of the brush.

Kui shot up and punched Dai Zu's face. While Dai Zu was stunned momentarily, he pushed past him and ran to the door in a hurry.

"Grandma!" his heart was racing. 'No, he is lying… she can't be hurt… it can't be true…'

But when he got close to the glass door he froze. Warm red blood was gushing into the gallery right from under the door. And right in front of the door laid an aging woman bleeding from her back. Her finger tips were slightly twitching trying to reach the door.

"Grandma!!!" he tried to push the door open but since she was right outside, he was not able to open it without hurting it. "I... I'll save you. Just wait a bit okay..." fumbling around he tried to find something heavy to smash the door open.

It was a gallery. He couldn't find anything that was useful to break out of there.

Sobbing, he hurriedly tore his clothes off his body and wrapped them around his fist. He started to punch the glass doors. "it's going to be okay... it's all going to be okay," sobbing he punched with all his strength.

All of a sudden, a sharp attack hit the back of his head. The sharp knife sliced through his skin and bones, leaving behind a strange heat and pounding pain.

Kui gazed back in shock. His cloth-wrapped hand tightly gripped his new wound on the back of his head.

Dai Zu spat out the blood from his mouth "say, how many pieces do you want to be?"

His taunting laugh echoes in his ears. "Or do you want to be like your family's old lady…"

That was his breaking point.

"ahhh!!!" Kui charged at him. But his disoriented self was not able to keep up with Dai Zu's attacks.

Slashes after slashes appeared on his arm and his face.

Every time a new wound appeared Dai Zu's grin became brilliant. "You thought you could go scot-free after what you did to me, ah? You destroyed my life. it's natural I'll destroy you." He said, laughing out in glee.

Blood-soaked Kui gazed up at him. "Sa-save her…she… she didn't do anything... save her…" he whispered with difficulty.

"ah? What? I didn't get you?" Dai Zu squatted down tapping the clever on his forehead.

"Save her." Kui sobbingly gazed at the door.

His grandmother lost too much blood. If he didn't get help soon, she would not make it.

Desperate he clung to Dai Zu's pant legs. "Please... I beg of you. Save her. you... You can do anything to me. Cut me, kill me. Anything, please. Spare her..."

His body was losing strength. He could do nothing but beg.

Loud sobs raked out of his body as he hugged the wretched man's legs. 'Why… why did she come here? if she didn't come to visit me, she could have been healthy and alive. Why… is this karma for what I did… gods please... don't implicate her…' he prayed in his heart.

"Please…"

Dai Zu let out a loud laugh. grabbing him by his hair he started to drag him to one of the paintings. He pulled him up and shoved his face into the painting. "I can do anything to you?"

"Yes anything… save her," he glanced back desperately. His trembling hand gently touched his pocket. In his struggle, his phone had fallen out of his shallow pocket.

Cussing at himself, he gazed back at Dai Zu. "Anything…"

"Hmmm, let me see… what do I want to do with you?" Dai Zu suddenly let go of him, letting his tired body slide down to the ground.

Kui clung to the wall, trying his best to stand up.

Dai Zu's bloodshot eyes suddenly fell on his hand with a nauseating grin.

Kui knew what was coming.

He hurriedly kicked Dai's legs pushing him down successfully. He could not lose his life here.

Kui quickly unwound his shirt grabbed Dai Zu's flinging hand and wrapped it around his wrist tightly. He jumped on him and used all his strength to tie him up.

Did Dai Zu go down without a fight? Of course not. The man kicked him in the nuts and rolled over, pushing him forcefully to the cold ground.

His head banged loudly on the ground.

White flashes appeared in his sight. the blood loss was too much, he couldn't hold on any longer.

His body was numb and getting cold.

'Is… is this the end?' he turned to the left looking at the door.

He could no longer see his grandma properly.

'I have to save her…' he started to crawl to the door.

"You thought you could easily leave? I know you inch by inch Kui," Dai Zu jumped on him, and in the next second his cleaver chopped his fingers.

"AHHHHH!!!!!"

Blood splashed on the walls, coating the beautiful merman painting.

"Hahaha cry, louder." Dai Zu picked up his bloody fingers. "These beautiful fingers produced such art. Tsk, too bad. If you had only listened to me Kui we could have worked so well!" he rolled him over and grabbed his chin. "We were perfect, but you had to ruin it like this."

Kui's barely opened eyes glazed ahead at the painting behind them.

He did not know why but he could see the painting shine.

A soft sob escaped his mouth. 'This… this might be the price for using the brush…'

Slowly his tired eyes closed down on their own.

"don't die so soon..." Dai Zu sat on his chest patting his face with the clever. "Come on wakie wakie…"

A sudden bright light shone brightly behind him.

Fearing that someone might have entered, Dai Zu vigilantly looked back.

To his surprise, he watched the painting light up like a bulb.

"What…."

Soon the light disappeared and a black hold swirled around pulling everything and anything inside.