Yi Dao was an outlaw from the western regions, hated and scorned by nearly everyone in jianghu. People called him Killerblade, a name whispered with fear. Yet within that rough exterior, only one thing mattered to him: honor.
[spoiler]When Yi Dao was ten years old, his parents were killed. They did not die because of enemies, but because they chose to uphold a promise. With their final breaths, they taught him a truth he carried for the rest of his life: in life, never break your word. From that day, Yi Dao believed there was no such thing as justice in this world.
After his older brother's death, Yi Dao carried the ashes everywhere, speaking to them as though his brother were still alive. He learned to fight by challenging disciples from other sects, stealing techniques with his eyes, studying their strengths and crafting counters. He feared neither injury nor death, and his body became a map of scars.
When he perfected his own blade style, he needed a weapon worthy of it. He placed his brother's ashes into a forge and tempered them into steel. From that fire, Killer Blade was born. He cut his own flesh and stained the blade with his blood, vowing to never forget his family. Then he hunted down Master Bai of the Northern Vow, the man who murdered his brother, and cleaved a mountain in two to reach him.
The Twelve Calamities, a band of bandits, declared him their thirteenth brother. But Yi Dao was a man of honor who could not coexist with thieves and murderers. They set a trap at a banquet. His blade left eleven dead. The twelfth, Zhong Wangshu, had once gifted him the dark iron used to forge Killer Blade. Because of that debt, Yi Dao refused to raise his weapon against him and fought bare-handed instead. He nearly died, saved only by the sudden arrival of Chu Qingquan.
Chu Qingquan, a disciple of the Well of Heaven, had been hunting Yi Dao for killing Master Bai. Yet in that moment, he chose mercy. Yi Dao vowed to repay the debt. Chu Qingquan asked for only one thing: a drinking companion. From that night, Yi Dao walked alongside Chu Qingquan and Aunt Han.
Years later, when Chu Qingquan was trapped at Blackwater City, Yi Dao fought his way through waves of enemies to reach him. Chu Qingquan asked him to deliver a message to Aunt Han and retrieve a secret from Jiang Yan. Then Chu Qingquan let himself fall into the river. Yi Dao crossed the Qinghe border alone, defying the enormous bounty on his head, and found you: the young master of Blissful Retreat.
He saw in you the reflection of his younger self. When the flames consumed Blissful Retreat, Yi Dao lifted his dark iron blade and stood beside you before an unbeatable enemy. In his final moments, he remembered the jar of wine once shared with Chu Qingquan. He knocked you out of the room with a peaceful expression, threw a fire lantern toward the wine jars, and triggered a series of explosions that buried the enemy.
The world called him a villain. But Yi Dao died the way his parents lived: keeping his word, no matter the cost.[/spoiler]
*Based on analysis by [WWM Girl (Goose Girl Stories)](https://www.youtube.com/@GooseGirlStories).*
