The Oriole Stalks from Behind
Lu Chen was genuinely tempted.
He hid in a corner, watching Wang Bao run past him and into the distance, with Li Mantun pursuing him with a staff.
The two soon disappeared from sight.
Lu Chen turned his attention to the lackeys.
A dozen or so men from the Black Pole Gang were beating down the few remaining members of the Green Bamboo Gang.
Li Mantun had already killed two of them. The rest had no chance of survival.
Lu Chen immediately pulled a strip of black cloth from his pocket and tied it on as he ran forward.
By the time he had tied it on, an iron pellet had appeared in his hand.
"Whoosh!"
He aimed at the back of one man's head and threw it straight at him.
The iron pellet was immensely heavy. Propelled by Lu Chen's powerful arm, it became a brutal weapon carrying terrifying kinetic force and slammed into the back of the man's skull.
"Crack!"
His skull caved straight in. The man, who had been fighting a Green Bamboo Gang member just a moment ago, suddenly pitched forward, twitched once, and died.
The commotion left everyone else dumbfounded.
Lu Chen wasn't about to wait. The iron pellets in his hand flew like a storm of pear blossoms, each one finding its target with uncanny precision.
"Bang!"
"Bang!"
Several sounds rang out in succession, the sound of heads striking iron pellets crisp and clear.
Like the first unlucky fellow, several men died thoroughly.
The only two Green Bamboo Gang members left were covered in wounds and drenched in blood, some of their injuries deep enough to expose bone.
They had already despaired, never expecting the situation to turn around.
Someone's here to save us!
Their spirits rose.
Several Black Pole Gang members had spotted Lu Chen, their faces filled with murderous intent.
"Kill him!"
Brandishing gleaming steel sabers, several men charged at him with a murderous air.
After using up the iron pellets in his hand, Lu Chen switched to throwing knives.
"Whoosh!"
One knife plunged into a thug's eye socket, its tip emerging from the back of his skull.
Another knife flew straight into a throat. The thug let out a desperate, rasping howl and clutched his neck as blood streamed through his fingers. He fell, unwilling to accept his death.
The last man had already charged up to Lu Chen and raised his long saber high.
Cold light glinted off the smooth blade.
Lu Chen's expression did not change. He stepped back, dodging the blow aimed at his head, then drove a fist into the swordsman's chest.
"Crack!"
The ferocious force sent the swordsman flying back several meters, breaking who knew how many bones in his chest.
Pink blood and fragments of internal organs spilled from the corners of his mouth. His limbs struggled and twitched, then his head lolled to one side, and he died with his eyes open.
Having dealt with all the Black Pole Gang members, Lu Chen looked at the two Green Bamboo Gang men and took out two iron pellets.
The two Green Bamboo Gang members were overjoyed.
They had never imagined that, when they had thought themselves doomed, they could still survive!
With tears in their eyes, they said, "Brother, thank you for saving our—"
"Pfft! Pfft!"
Two soft sounds rang out.
The iron pellets from Lu Chen's hand were already embedded in the eye sockets of the two remaining Green Bamboo Gang members, like a pair of black gemstones.
In the end, neither man finished his thanks.
"You're welcome!"
Lu Chen looked around the street. Apart from him, no one was left standing.
Moving quickly, he searched the corpses from one end to the other, retrieved all his throwing knives and iron pellets, and casually wiped them clean on the clothes of a corpse on the ground. Then he picked up a saber and raced off in the direction Wang Bao and Li Mantun had gone.
As he ran, he checked his gains this time.
[Through the host's actions, the fates of Li San, Wang Chen, and eight others have changed] [Green Bamboo Gang members dead, Fate Value +180] [Eight Black Pole Gang members dead, Fate Value +640, Luck Value +8] [Total: 820]
The corners of his mouth could not help curling upward.
I hit the jackpot!
Moreover, the Black Pole Gang taking advantage of this moment to strike at the Green Bamboo Gang was clearly no sudden whim, but something they had planned well in advance.
Maybe something's happened at the Green Bamboo Gang's headquarters too!
As he thought, he followed the traces Li Mantun had left behind.
Along the way, he allocated some points to himself.
Ox-Cleaving Saber Technique, Organ Refining perfected!
Fate Value -800.
Since the Ox-Cleaving Saber Technique could only be cultivated to the Organ Refining stage to begin with, allocating points this time had only raised him to perfected Organ Refining.
If he wanted to advance further, he would need to use Luck Value.
"I have nine Luck Value now. I wonder if that's enough to break the limit?"
He tried using Luck Value to break the upper limit of the Ox-Cleaving Saber Technique.
The system indicated that it had failed.
It took at least ten points to break the limit.
Just one point short!
"Black Pole Gang members all seem to give Luck Value. In that case, I have to kill Li Mantun!"
Murderous intent flashed in Lu Chen's eyes.
Up ahead, the traces had vanished.
But Lu Chen could already hear voices.
"Li Mantun, if you dare kill me, my brother will never let you off!"
"Ah!"
A scream came from Wang Bao.
Lu Chen hurried over.
Wang Bao was in the Iron Bone Realm. Killing him would earn a good deal of Fate Value!
He couldn't let it go to waste!
If someone stole this kill, he wouldn't be able to eat for the whole day!
He could already see Wang Bao in his miserable state.
His legs seemed to have been broken, and he was crawling along the ground.
A trail of blood dragged behind him.
Li Mantun followed Wang Bao with a sinister grin, gripping his staff in both hands. He raised it high and brought it down on Wang Bao's ankle again.
The blow smashed it straight into pulp.
Bone splinters and shredded flesh flew out, splattering the surroundings with bright red blood and white fragments of bone.
Even Lu Chen found the sight a little chilling.
Li Mantun truly was the cruel, vicious pervert Qian Gui had described.
A satisfied smile hung on Li Mantun's face, his grin nearly stretching to his ears. He half-closed his eyes, tilted his face toward the sky, and took a deep breath.
"That's the smell! Blood! Terror! Fear! Hatred! Hahahaha! Crawl! Keep crawling for me!"
His face was wild with madness.
Wang Bao seemed to have grown numb to the pain. His arms trembled as he dragged himself forward bit by bit, his face as pale as gold paper, the sweat on his forehead mingling with blood. He looked utterly miserable.
Lu Chen couldn't bear to watch any longer.
Is Li Mantun some kind of supermale?!
Such torture.
He took out a throwing knife.
"Who's there?!"
Li Mantun suddenly turned his head, his triangular eyes gleaming with a chilling light that made one tremble.
The knife in Lu Chen's hand had already flown out like a bullet from a gun, its blade piercing flesh.
Li Mantun was extremely fast. His Ripe-Copper Staff struck the tail of the throwing knife, but it still lodged in his arm.
He instantly flew into a rage and pulled the knife from his arm, blood streaming from the wound.
"You're courting death!"
With a furious roar, he gripped his staff and, like a giant bear, swung it viciously at Lu Chen.
Lu Chen's Nimble Footwork Trait kicked in. He nimbly stepped back, then sidestepped and sliced downward along the staff with his steel saber, intending to cut off Li Mantun's hand.
Li Mantun's eyes widened. He pulled his arm back, and the tip of his staff darted toward Lu Chen's head again.
The sound of the staff cutting through the air made Lu Chen narrow his eyes. He turned his wrist and used the eighth move, Tendon-Lifting, flicking and tapping the staff to disperse the tremendous force. Then he changed moves again, gathering the strength of his entire body and using the sixth move, Spine-Breaking, to slash at the staff.
Li Mantun was only at the middle stage of the Organ Tempering Realm. Though naturally strong and powerfully built, he was still no match for Lu Chen with his cheat: perfected Organ Refining, a strong and sturdy body, and Robust Strength. With the tremendous brute force he now possessed, Lu Chen knocked the staff straight out of his hands.
The webs between Li Mantun's thumbs and forefingers were torn open by the immense force, and blood flowed freely down his hands.
He screamed, his hands trembling, and at last a trace of fear appeared on his hideous face.
He couldn't beat this man!
Without a second thought, he spun around and fled.
Expressionless, Lu Chen darted forward in a single stride. His saber technique changed again, the slash becoming a thrust as he stabbed fiercely forward with the fourth move, Heart-Piercing.
"Puchi!"
Li Mantun spat out a mouthful of blood and looked down at the saber tip protruding from his chest.
Lu Chen pulled the saber out and struck again with the second move, Neck-Slashing.
"Pfft!"
The massive head fell.
A single move had severed it.
[Through the host's actions, Li Mantun's fate has changed] [Fate Value +240] [Luck Value +3]
Lu Chen stared at the three points of Luck Value, somewhat surprised.
What on earth did Li Mantun do? Everyone else only gave one point, but he gave three!
He walked over to Wang Bao.
"You... how do you know the Ox-Splitting Saber... you're that person? You killed Cheng Datou, and you're the one who's been causing trouble these past few days?"
Wang Bao was extremely weak. Looking at Lu Chen, he simply couldn't understand how the Green Bamboo Gang had offended him enough for him to do this to them.
"How did we offend you?"
He lay on the ground, his lips pale and utterly bloodless, and asked in a low voice.
"Because of ten taels—oh, fifteen taels of silver, your Green Bamboo Gang wanted to sell my ancestral home and my younger sister. Isn't it only natural that I came after you?"
Lu Chen spoke with the saber in his hand.
Blood was still dripping from its tip.
Wang Bao's eyes suddenly widened.
He understood everything!
So that's how it was!
All because of fifteen taels of silver?
Heh, heh!
A mocking smile appeared on his face, and he closed his eyes.
Lu Chen plunged his saber into him.
[Through the host's actions, Wang Bao's fate has changed] [Fate Value +180]
After searching him, Lu Chen found that Wang Bao didn't have a single coin on him.
"If you don't have money, why are you visiting a brothel? Oh, your family owns it? Never mind, then!"
With blood all over one hand, Lu Chen went over to Li Mantun and searched him too, but he had nothing either.
"Fine, you don't carry secret manuals on you, but don't you carry money either?"
He wiped his bloodstained hands on Li Mantun, threw the saber on the ground, then picked up his throwing knife and wiped it clean before turning to leave.
This time, he had made an absolute killing.