Want to Kill Me?

In the cinema, Zhong Guoshu, a fifth-tier Combatant, pressed a knife against Xiao Zhenggong's ribs. Xiao Zhenggong wore an uncaring expression. He didn't call for help or strike back, merely watching him in silence. Zhong Guoshu applied a bit more force with his hand. He wanted to draw some blood from Xiao Zhenggong, but nothing lethal—as a fifth-tier Martial Cultivator, he had plenty of control over his strikes. Yet even as he increased the pressure on the dagger, it failed to break the skin. Zhong Guoshu looked at Xiao Zhenggong in astonishment. According to the Dark Star Bureau's files, Xiao Zhenggong was only a third-tier Combatant; there was no way he could withstand the force of a fifth-tier Combatant. Was he wearing armor? Or was he carrying some sort of artifact? Xiao Zhenggong smiled and abruptly seized Zhong Guoshu's wrist. Zhong Guoshu took fright and yanked his hand back with all his might. But pressing down with his palm and lifting with his fingers, Xiao Zhenggong exerted a deft twist of force, snapping Zhong Guoshu's wrist. Xiao Zhenggong's strike was swift, precise, and fluid. Zhong Guoshu hadn't been able to react at all. The dagger clattered to the floor. Enduring the searing pain, Zhong Guoshu didn't make a sound. He knew he was no match for Xiao Zhenggong. Scrambling up, he moved to flee. Xiao Zhenggong grabbed Zhong Guoshu casually by the collar and hurled him straight into the wooden seats. The wooden bench shattered on impact, and the iron frame beneath crumpled. As Zhong Guoshu tried to get back up, Xiao Zhenggong stepped forward and stomped him down onto the floor. *Snap! Crack!* A succession of sharp sounds rang out as several of Zhong Guoshu's ribs broke. Hearing the commotion, Lightbulb and Mingxing rushed over. The two of them merely watched, neither making a move to assist. Mingxing was a man who treasured his own life. In situations like this, he generally wouldn't charge in, though he shouted at the top of his lungs, "What happened? Who is this guy?" Lightbulb didn't charge in either, nor did he speak. Having suffered at Xiao Zhenggong's hands before, he just watched quietly from the side. "Speak. Who sent you?" Xiao Zhenggong looked down at Zhong Guoshu, pressing harder with his foot. Zhong Guoshu's body trembled as he gasped for breath, yet he didn't utter a single word. Xiao Zhenggong said to Mingxing and Lightbulb, "Cuff him!" The vice captain had given an order, so seeing this, Mingxing had no choice but to step forward. Lightbulb, however, still stood motionless. He was right not to move. He was only a first-tier Lubricator (an Oil Cultivator) who had just advanced to his tier the previous month. Zhong Guoshu was a fifth-tier Combatant. If anything went awry, Lightbulb would lose his life in a heartbeat. Sure enough, something did go awry. Just as Mingxing was about to put the cuffs on, a man suddenly surged out from beneath the seats and kicked Mingxing squarely to the floor. Mingxing instantly went into shock, knocked unconscious. Lightbulb broke out into a sheen of oil all over his body and scrambled into the distance. Duan Xiangwen, a fifth-tier Recluse, had made his move. Using the Recluse's trait of being easily overlooked, Duan Xiangwen had secured an opportunity to close in. With a flick of his hand, he scattered a packet of powder. Assuming it was poison, Xiao Zhenggong quickly held his breath. He hadn't expected it to be a corrosive powder. As it dusted over him, a burning agony flared across his skin. What kind of tactic was this? Wouldn't Duan Xiangwen himself be harmed by the powder? He would. However, a Recluse's recovery capability was superior to that of an ordinary dark energy user of the same tier. This packet of corrosive powder was specially concocted by Duan Xiangwen. Its purpose was to injure both his opponent and himself, and then wear the enemy down using his formidable healing power. In a desperate battle, this was a decent tactic—provided his opponent was of a similar tier. Xiao Zhenggong was not on the same tier as Duan Xiangwen. The powder only caused him mild discomfort. Tearing a piece of cloth from Mingxing's clothes, Xiao Zhenggong wiped the powder from his face. Taking advantage of this brief window, Duan Xiangwen grabbed Zhong Guoshu and bolted toward the door. Xiao Zhenggong was still wiping his face, thoroughly unhurried. Seeing Duan Xiangwen reach the doorway, Xiao Zhenggong picked up a splinter of wood from the ground and hurled it. The wooden shard pierced cleanly into Duan Xiangwen's spine. Duan Xiangwen stumbled and collapsed to the floor along with Zhong Guoshu. In the hands of a high-tier Martial Cultivator, any object was a lethal weapon. Xiao Zhenggong walked toward them step by step. Paralyzed from the waist down, Duan Xiangwen pulled a clay doll from his robes and threw it at Xiao Zhenggong. The clay doll hovered midair and spewed a sheet of blazing fire at Xiao Zhenggong. Xiao Zhenggong walked forward straight through the flames. Not only was he unharmed, but even his clothes weren't singed. Such was the resistance of a high-tier Martial Cultivator; whether blades or fire and water, attacks of this caliber were useless against him. He snatched the midair clay doll into his fist, glanced at it, and chuckled. "Golden House Conceals a Beauty? Gotta say, it's pretty well-made." Xiao Zhenggong crushed the clay doll in his grip and tossed the remnants to the floor. Duan Xiangwen shouted at him, "I can't walk anymore! You shouldn't lay a hand on someone who can't fight back!" Xiao Zhenggong paused, then nodded. "Sprawling Compound—so this is your dwelling spirit's ability. What a pity. Your dwelling spirit is a Virtue Cultivator, and nothing disgusts me more than a Virtue Cultivator." As he spoke, Xiao Zhenggong was already standing right in front of them. Zhong Guoshu suddenly sprang up, tackled Xiao Zhenggong tightly in a bear hug, and turned his head to yell at Duan Xiangwen, "Go!" Duan Xiangwen didn't go. He couldn't go anyway, and in his mind he still wanted to fight Xiao Zhenggong to the bitter end. "Quite loyal, aren't you!" Xiao Zhenggong kicked Zhong Guoshu away, scooped up a pebble from the floor, and flicked it toward Duan Xiangwen's head. Like a bullet, the pebble punched clean through Duan Xiangwen's skull, killing him on the spot. Xiao Zhenggong turned around, grabbed Zhong Guoshu by the hair, and hauled him up from the ground. "Who sent you? Tell me!" Zhong Guoshu's expression stiffened. He stared at Xiao Zhenggong, twitched a few times, and went still. He had swallowed poison and committed suicide. ... Xiao Zhenggong walked back into the cinema, looked at Mingxing lying on the floor, and asked Lightbulb, "Is he still alive?" Lightbulb pulled back the layer of grease coating his skin, glanced at Mingxing, and said, "Can't tell for sure yet." "Then find out fast! If he's alive, call an ambulance. If he's dead, send him to the funeral home!" Xiao Zhenggong turned and walked straight out of the cinema. As he drove, a single question weighed on Xiao Zhenggong's mind. Who on earth had sent those two? He knew he had plenty of enemies. A long string of names surfaced in his mind. The ringing of his phone broke his train of thought. It was Captain Chen calling. After such a major incident, Xiao Zhenggong should have reported back to the bureau. Instead, Xiao Zhenggong crushed the phone into a twisted mess, tossed it onto the passenger seat, stepped on the gas, and drove straight back to his home. ... The next day, Xiao Zhenggong went to the bureau for a meeting. The topic was still what had happened at the Cultural Palace the night before. Mingxing was still alive; after a night of emergency surgery, he was out of danger. Even though none of the bureau's agents had died, the incident had caused quite a stir. After a night's sleep, Xiao Zhenggong had calmed down somewhat and offered a reasonable explanation for the previous night's events. He claimed he had gone to investigate the black market and was ambushed, judging it to be an act of retaliation by black market dealers. Because he was injured, he had gone to a hospital for treatment, and his phone had been broken during the fight, which was why he hadn't answered Captain Chen's call. Every part of the explanation was plausible and sound. Even when asked which hospital he had visited, Xiao Zhenggong gave a clear answer, having prepared his story in advance. Captain Chen asked about his injuries, which Xiao Zhenggong brushed off. After the meeting adjourned, Xiao Zhenggong said he planned to inspect the crime scene again to see if any clues had been missed, and Captain Chen approved. Not long after Xiao Zhenggong left, Chen Changrui suddenly furrowed his brows. Just now, Xiao Zhenggong's excuse had sounded reasonable, but on closer thought, there was a glaring flaw in it. If the black market dealers truly wanted to retaliate against the Dark Star Bureau, they wouldn't have gone after Xiao Zhenggong. From the day he entered the bureau until now, Xiao Zhenggong had never lifted a finger regarding the black market operations. He hadn't offended the black market dealers in the slightest! After a moment of thought, Captain Chen summoned Big Head and instructed him in a low voice, "Head over to the Cultural Palace and see what Xiao Zhenggong is really up to. No matter what he does, keep quiet about it. Just come back and report to me." ... Big Head drove to the Cultural Palace. The crime scene had already been cordoned off, but he didn't see Xiao Zhenggong anywhere. Where did he go? After considering it for a moment, Big Head started the car again and left the Cultural Palace. ... At Yuezhou Third Hospital, the orderly had just finished changing the bedsheets and helped He Jiaqing back onto the bed. Xiao Zhenggong pushed open the door and stepped inside, smiling faintly at the orderly. "You, step outside." The orderly looked bewildered. "How can I do that? The patient is still here." Xiao Zhenggong kept smiling, though his tone deepened slightly. "I told you to get out." The orderly shuddered, feeling her whole body crushed under an invisible pressure, making even breathing exceedingly difficult. Daring not delay for a single second, she hurried out of the ward at once. Xiao Zhenggong pulled up a chair and sat by He Jiaqing's bedside. After a long silence, Xiao Zhenggong asked softly, "Want to kill me?" He Jiaqing lay motionless on the bed. Xiao Zhenggong patted He Jiaqing's cheek. "If you want to kill me, go ahead and make your move. I'm standing right here. Don't play dead with me." He Jiaqing still didn't move. Xiao Zhenggong stood up and said, "This is over Zhao Xiaowan, isn't it? You're bitter about it, aren't you? Let me tell you the truth: Zhao Xiaowan is in my hands. If you want her, come and take her! Stand up and fight me. As long as you have the guts to strike, I'll hand Zhao Xiaowan over to you. Won't move, huh? Then don't blame me for being ruthless. Since you like lying down so much, I'll make sure you lie here for the rest of your life." Xiao Zhenggong took a coin from his pocket and was just about to flick it at He Jiaqing's forehead when someone spoke from outside the doorway: "Vice Captain Xiao, what brings you here?" Xiao Zhenggong turned his head and saw Big Head standing in the doorway. "You're here too," Xiao Zhenggong said without the slightest surprise. "I was about to ask you the same thing. What are you doing here?" Big Head said calmly, "I came to check on He Jiaqing's condition. I've been following this case all along." "Right, you've been following it. Seems to me you've been following it a bit too long." Xiao Zhenggong rubbed the coin between his fingers, looking as though he might flick it into Big Head's face at any moment. Big Head took half a step back and said, "Captain Xiao, calm down. Captain Chen sent me here." "Captain Chen told you to run to the hospital every single day? Aren't you diligent! I wasn't nearly as diligent as you. Yesterday, I only went to the black market just to go through the motions and get by, yet it ended up causing such a massive commotion. All night long, I couldn't stop wondering: how did He Jiaqing know I was going to the black market? Why was he able to lay an ambush in the cinema beforehand? Who leaked the news? Big Head, what did He Jiaqing give you? You actually dared to sell me out?"