The Iron Scale Gang's headquarters was not hard to find.
Lu Chen sprinted all the way out, speeding through alley after alley.
Before long, he spotted the tall flagpole bearing a black banner.
Embroidered on the banner was a large silver scale weight.
It stood out quite clearly beneath the hazy firelight.
Yet the Iron Scale Gang was anything but peaceful at the moment. Several horse carriages were parked outside its gates.
More than a dozen gang members were carrying large burlap sacks and stuffing them into the carriages. Struggles occasionally came from within the sacks, accompanied by muffled whimpers.
It was as if living creatures were inside. Lu Chen's heart stirred as he pondered.
Could they be people? Was the Iron Scale Gang trafficking humans?
That would explain why those two gang members had tried to seize Sister-in-law Zhang Rong's daughter the moment they met.
"Sure enough, your crimes are heinous beyond measure. Wiping you out will just happen to earn me a huge amount of Merit Points."
Lu Chen's eyes flickered. With a whoosh, he charged out.
The stronger he became, the more he discovered the darkness lurking within this city.
Perhaps this was the true portrait of ancient society!
The reason he had failed to notice it before was simply because the original owner's life had always been confined to that porcelain shop.
Did he think escaping the porcelain shop would bring freedom?
But reality proved that no matter where one went, it was merely leaping from one pit of fire into another.
"Who goes there?" A burly man suddenly noticed someone approaching. He hurriedly turned around and shouted.
But Lu Chen was too fast. Without saying a word, he opened with a punch.
Whoosh!
Bang!
A thunderous boom rang out.
The man's corpse flew backward on the spot like a broken sack, smashing heavily into the distance as blood splattered everywhere.
[You killed an utterly evil lackey. Merit Points +5!]
"Fifth Brother!"
"This is bad! Someone's causing trouble!"
The others' expressions changed as they cried out in alarm.
But Lu Chen moved too quickly. His body shot forward like an arrow released from the bowstring, tendons drawn tight and muscles exploding with force. Punch after punch, palm after palm, he did nothing but bombard the Iron Scale Gang members.
The gang members hurriedly tried to grab weapons to defend themselves.
But in the eyes of Lu Chen, who possessed second-rank cultivation, their speed was as slow as crawling turtles.
This was the gap between martial artists and ordinary people.
A barrage of bangs rang out as people were continually beaten to death, their bodies flying backward.
Line after line of text rapidly appeared before his eyes.
[You killed an utterly evil lackey. Merit Points +5!] [You killed... Merit Points +5] [...+5] [+5]
More than a dozen gang members were all blasted to death by Lu Chen in the blink of an eye.
He picked up a long saber and sliced open one of the sacks. Sure enough, inside was a girl of fifteen or sixteen, her face filled with terror. Her mouth was gagged, tears covering her face, while her hands and feet were tightly bound.
Lu Chen removed the white cloth from her mouth, cut apart the ropes binding her hands and feet, and said, "You're safe now. Leave quickly."
"Y-You... what's your name? Thank you for saving me. I'll remember you."
The young girl's face was streaked with tears.
"Go!"
Lu Chen ignored her and swiftly cut open the other sacks.
He released every person inside.
[You saved thirteen girls about to fall into depravity. Your good deed is worthy of praise. Merit Points +20]
Just then—
The Iron Scale Gang was finally alerted from within.
A mass of hurried footsteps rushed over. "You damned thing! Who dares run wild in my Iron Scale Gang? Are you blind? Didn't you ask around about the prestige of my Iron Scale Gang in the South City?!"
An angry roar rang out. Gang Leader Yang Tiecheng, tall and powerfully built like a young bull, led a group of people charging out from the courtyard.
The moment he rushed out, he saw Lu Chen's face.
At the same time, he saw Lu Chen releasing all the girls they had just stuffed into the carriages. Shocked and enraged, he shouted sharply, "Bastard! You dare ruin my business? I'll have your dog life!"
Crash!
His body lunged forward like a hunting leopard, pouncing over in an instant.
He was unbelievably fast.
As his clothes sliced through the air, they let out sharp, urgent whistles.
His five fingers were like tiger claws, sharp and powerful as they viciously raked toward Lu Chen's face.
He really was a martial artist!
Lu Chen's eyes flashed. Fearless, a gleam shone in his gaze as he charged forward and met him with a punch.
He was just about to test the new talent he had obtained: [Bronze Skin Iron Bones].
Dong!
Bang!
A deafening crash erupted between them.
After only one exchange, Yang Tiecheng's body flew backward like a broken sack, slamming heavily into the courtyard. He spat out a mouthful of blood, utterly shocked and horrified.
As for Lu Chen, nothing happened to him at all.
His body did not even sway.
"A horizontal-training expert?"
Yang Tiecheng's face filled with terror. The impact had spasmed his palm, and he hurriedly roared, "Loose the arrows!" The remaining gang members paled and immediately began firing.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
Dense arrows sliced through the air like rain, shrieking sharply as they blanketed the area in an instant.
Lu Chen frowned. He grabbed a corpse from the ground, held it before himself as a shield, and charged forward, rapidly closing in on the crowd.
Puff, puff, puff!
The corpse in front of him became a hedgehog in the blink of an eye.
Quite a few arrows even passed through gaps between the corpse and Lu Chen, striking his body. Yet when they hit, they rang out with clangs. Other than tearing his clothes and leaving pale marks across his skin, they did nothing at all.
"Bronze Skin Iron Bones truly lives up to its name."
A blazing gleam flashed through Lu Chen's eyes.
Boom!
He threw aside the corpse and pounced into the crowd like a starving tiger devouring prey, beginning a bloody slaughter.
Bang!
Crack!
One gang member was immediately struck across the chest by his palm. Blood sprayed wildly from his mouth, his eyes nearly bulging out as his body flew backward on the spot.
Bang bang bang bang...
A chain of dull impacts rang out as people continually spat blood and flew away.
Their bodies looked as though they had been rammed by wild bulls—those struck head-on died, while those merely grazed were injured.
For a moment, the crowd fell into chaos.
The remaining people no longer dared fire arrows. They turned and fled instead.
"Run!"
"Spare us..."
[You killed an utterly evil lackey. Merit Points +5!]] [... Merit Points +4] [... Merit Points +5] [...+4]
Lines of text continually appeared.
Yang Tiecheng's eyes split with rage. Unable to believe what he was seeing, he hurriedly turned and fled.
Damn it!
Who exactly was this person?
He had barged into the Iron Scale Gang and started slaughtering people without a word!
The Iron Scale Gang had always acted cautiously. They would never casually provoke martial artists, much less anyone with a background.
Why had this man come to kill him?
Whoosh!
As terror filled his mind, Lu Chen stamped his foot and shot over from behind like an arrow.
Puff!
Yang Tiecheng suddenly turned and flung out his hand.
A great cloud of lime powder instantly burst forth.
But Lu Chen reacted with incredible speed, covering his eyes in an instant.
"Die!"
Seizing the opportunity, Yang Tiecheng threw out countless hidden weapons at once.
Each hidden weapon glimmered with cold light, all of them coated in deadly poison.
After throwing the hidden weapons, a dagger appeared in his hand. His body flickered, and he appeared beside Lu Chen, immediately stabbing wildly toward him.
Clang clang clang clang...
Lu Chen swiftly caught every hidden weapon, sparks flying.
The instant the other man's dagger was about to stab out, Lu Chen dodged it in a flash. Then he seized Yang Tiecheng's wrist, his powerful hand like an iron vise that squeezed the wrist bone until it ached fiercely, forcing a pained scream from Yang Tiecheng's mouth.
"Hero, spare my life..."
"Fine. Sparing you is simple—hand over your martial arts."
Lu Chen stared at Yang Tiecheng.
Bronze Skin Iron Bones coupled with second-rank cultivation was truly unstoppable!
"Martial arts?"
Yang Tiecheng revealed a horrified expression as he looked at Lu Chen. Though he did not understand why someone so powerful still wanted his martial arts, he hurriedly said, "Fine, I'm willing to give you my martial arts..."
Grabbing his body, Lu Chen rushed straight toward the room ahead.
The commotion here inevitably alerted the surrounding residents.
Many people looked terrified and hurriedly shut their doors, afraid of being caught in the fallout.
Before you continue