Encounter Battle

Fang Mo quietly put some distance between himself and them, then picked up his pace. Even a minute's delay could allow them to catch up.

At this hour, the city was at its liveliest.

Once he reached the main street, those thugs would not dare stop people so openly.

He passed through two alleys and hurried toward the main road of Chenghuang Street. Ahead, he could see cars and pedestrians flowing along the brightly lit street.

Delighted, he quickened his steps. He was just about to reach the street.

Suddenly, his eyes narrowed. Two men stood at the mouth of the alley, short batons tucked at their waists as they smoked and chatted.

His steps paused slightly. Then he lowered his cap and prepared to walk past them.

The two men looked up at Fang Mo but did not stop him, much to his delight. Still, he did not speed up, maintaining a casual stride as he left.

He was within ten paces of them when the walkie-talkie on one of the burly men crackled.

"Seal off every intersection!"

"Look for a dark, burly young man wearing a Martial Hall uniform!"

"He has long hair and is in his twenties!"

Fang Mo heard every word clearly in the narrow alley. His heart tightened, and his pace involuntarily quickened.

"Stop him!"

The burly man holding the radio suddenly raised a hand and pointed at Fang Mo. The other man grabbed for the short baton at his waist and shouted.

"Stop!"

Fang Mo abruptly lifted his gaze and exploded forward.

"Courting death!"

The burly man roared, drawing his baton and smashing it toward Fang Mo.

Tiger Pounce Stance!

Fang Mo snarled inwardly. The strength of his entire body seemed to gather at one point before erupting in an instant, like a fierce tiger striking from the mountains, swift and unmatched.

His figure tore through the night, carrying an irresistible momentum as he pounced straight at the baton-wielding man.

Fang Mo's left arm lashed out like a whip, knocking aside the whistling baton. His right palm followed at once, its explosive force slamming into the man's chest. The blow was so fierce that the man flew like a kite with its string cut, crashing heavily into the wall with a dull thud.

"Damn it!"

The other man's expression changed drastically. He tossed away his cigarette butt, stepped forward, and swept out with a flying kick. The kick was fast and vicious, cutting through the air with a howl.

Fang Mo assumed the Standing Tiger Form. Agile as a tiger, his hands formed claws as he steadily blocked the sweeping kick.

His legs were rooted to the earth. Even under the powerful impact, he remained solid as a rock, revealing the deep foundation of his stance training.

Fang Mo seized the chance to switch techniques, changing his palms into claws and gripping the man's lower leg. He then drove a straight kick into the shin of the man's supporting leg, his foot striking like an axe felling a tree.

With Fang Mo's current strength, he could kick through a tree as thick as an arm. Let alone a man's leg.

Yet the burly man was also a trained fighter. He spun and kicked at Fang Mo's head.

Fang Mo hurriedly released him and retreated. If he had not, that kick could have blown his head apart.

The man landed and shouted urgently.

"This one's tough! Call for backup!"

Then he sprang from the ground again, pouncing at Fang Mo and driving a fist at his face.

Fang Mo gritted his teeth, shook his body sharply, and met the punch with one of his own. Their fists collided with a dull boom.

The immense force even knocked Fang Mo's cap away. His fist felt ready to split apart, and the impact forced him back two steps. The burly man also retreated two steps. They were evenly matched.

"Good kid, take another punch from me!"

The man bellowed and stepped forward to pounce on Fang Mo again.

Toot! Toot!

At that moment, the man Fang Mo had injured blew his whistle.

I have to go all out!

Fang Mo's eyes turned cold. If he did not deal with them, he would not be getting away today.

Facing the man's renewed charge, he did not retreat. Instead, he chose to meet him head-on.

He was utterly calm. With a shift of his feet, he slipped through a gap in the man's attacks. His body spun sharply like a whirlwind, both palms slicing out horizontally to deftly deflect the man's fists. Then, with the speed of lightning, his hands rose from below in a diagonal thrust, like Guan Gong lifting something overhead, striking straight at the man's chin.

The strike was clean and decisive. With a dull impact, the man was hurled backward by the tremendous force, stumbling several steps before crashing into a streetlamp.

The dim streetlamp swayed, and shadows writhed wildly.

Blood sprayed from the man's nose and mouth. He clutched his mouth with both hands, unable to make more than muffled whimpers, his eyes filled with horror.

Heart-Piercing Elbow!

Fang Mo shouted deeply and stepped forward, driving the point of his elbow into the man's chest. The sound of bones snapping came from within his chest as he crashed heavily into the streetlamp again.

The streetlamp bent, its bulb burst, and darkness instantly swallowed the alley.

The whistling man was so frightened that his whistle fell straight to the ground. He scrambled up in terror, trying to flee.

Fang Mo's gaze was ruthless. He caught up in two steps and kicked the man to the ground. Following through, he drove a fist into the back of his neck. His neck snapped at once. Without even managing a scream, he slammed heavily to the ground and convulsed.

Only then did Fang Mo begin breathing hard, his back soaked through with sweat.

It sounded slow, but it had all happened in mere seconds.

Both men were trained fighters with real skill. If not for his combat experience from his previous life, he would have fallen here today. Even so, it had been extremely perilous. Fortunately, the Tiger Subduing Fist was truly ferocious when unleashed.

Without stopping to rest, he glanced both ways, picked up his cap, and turned to leave.

He could already hear hurried footsteps coming from the alley.

As soon as he ran out of the alley, he immediately regained his composure. He quickly walked several steps, flagged down a taxi, and slipped inside.

Just as the car sped away, Huang Jun rushed into the alley with several men.

Huang Jun's eyes instantly turned red. The two corpses looked especially horrifying beneath the dim light.

"Leave two men behind to investigate. The rest of you, come with me!"

Huang Jun darted forward and chased straight toward the street, several burly men following close behind. But once they reached the street, they were all dumbfounded. With cars and pedestrians coming and going, how could they know which one was Fang Mo?

"Search along both sides! Gather everyone we have! We must catch him today!"

Huang Jun cursed through gritted teeth. He had been humiliated beyond measure today. Two of his men had died, and the target had still escaped.

But it was all futile. They chased for several miles and questioned many people, yet found no trace of Fang Mo. The two men Fang Mo had injured were dead as well.

"Bastard!"

"Bastard!"

In fury, Huang Jun kicked the bent streetlamp clean in two, making Granny Wang jump in fright.

Suddenly, Huang Jun's gaze fell on Granny Wang. He strode over, grabbed her by the hair, and said coldly, "Talk. Which Martial Hall is that brat from? Tell me, and I'll spare you today. Otherwise, tell your family to prepare for your corpse!"

"I... I don't know! I really don't know!"

Granny Wang was so terrified that urine ran down her legs.

"Didn't you see him? Didn't you see the words on his clothes?"

"I... can't read!"

Granny Wang pleaded.

"Then what use are you!"

Huang Jun suddenly raised his hand, intending to kill Granny Wang with a single palm strike. In his rage, he no longer cared whether he killed someone.

"I know someone who definitely knows!"

Granny Wang suddenly cried out. Huang Jun's palm was less than an inch from her forehead, almost about to strike her head.

"Speak! Who knows? If you dare deceive me, I'll make you wish you were dead!"

Huang Jun's voice was as cold and harsh as ice in the tenth lunar month.

Granny Wang trembled at his words. Her eyes closed in despair, tears streaming down her face. "The owner of the Liu Family Steamed Bun Shop definitely knows!"