Jia Kui of Fierce Tiger Martial Arts Hall

Xiang Yang charged into Anjia Manor at the head of the pack, with the Green Wolf Gang members close behind, surging in like fish leaping through a gate.

Scattered sparsely across the courtyard were a dozen or so burly men. Like the three who had opened the gate earlier, they were bare-chested. Some were building strength with stone locks, some waved sabers and swords in their hands, while others lay resting in rattan chairs.

Seeing Xiang Yang's group barge in armed with weapons, they reacted swiftly as well. They shouted and gathered together, while blowing whistles to alert the Little Knife Society members in the rear.

Xiang Yang's expression was cold. His long boots struck the ground as he rushed forward, accelerating from slow to fast. A gasping brute suddenly hurled the heavy stone lock in his hand at Xiang Yang. If it hit solidly, it would probably smash a whole man into pulp.

Yet Xiang Yang did not panic in the slightest. His feet maintained their original pace, and his body neither dodged nor evaded. As the stone lock came whistling toward him, the Wild Goose Feather Saber in his hand slipped through. Its edge grazed the bottom of the stone lock; he pivoted on his toes and exerted force sharply, cleaving down the stone lock, which weighed no less than thirty pounds. The exquisite finesse of the Hu Family Saber Technique was fully revealed.

"Kill."

Having knocked down the stone lock, Xiang Yang's momentum surged. His originally refined phoenix eyes widened as he shouted and charged toward the brute with astonishing killing intent.

His hand rose and the saber fell. The man tried to retreat and evade, but before he could react, his head was already soaring into the sky. Blood gushed like a spring, stoking the killing intent of the Green Wolf Gang members behind Xiang Yang—and the vicious green wolves they held on leashes. With howls, they charged at the remaining brutes.

After cutting off one man's head, Xiang Yang did not pause for even a moment and continued his slaughter. His footwork was nimble, his enormous strength forged through the Iron Crotch Technique combined with the exquisite Hu Family Saber Technique. Clanging rang out without cease. Like a tiger entering a flock of sheep, he began a wholesale massacre. Before long, his body and face were drenched in blood, sticky and reeking of slaughter.

In that brief span, seven Little Knife Society members had died at Xiang Yang's hands, and he himself had charged to the front gate in the middle of the courtyard.

His purpose was clear: to charge directly into the rear courtyard and rescue the hostages hidden within before the people inside could react. Most important of all was Young Master Lan, who might—or might not—be in there.

Leaning his body back, he blocked a chopping saber. Then, with a kick of his right foot, he sent the man before him sprawling. Amid that man's terrified gaze, Xiang Yang viciously drove his long saber down. Another man died by Xiang Yang's hand.

To be honest, Xiang Yang was no longer the soft-handed, soft-footed Earth homebody he had once been. Killing was not exactly commonplace to him, but neither did it make him soften his heart in the least. His growth lay not only in the martial arts granted to him by the Wordless Book, but even more in the character and mentality that allowed him to live better in this unfamiliar world.

"You've got some nerve! Has your Green Wolf Gang grown tired of living, daring to come here and make trouble?"

Just as the Green Wolf Gang members, led by the tiger-fierce Xiang Yang, were massacring the Little Knife Society members, a thunderous shout came from the front gate, full of vigor like a muffled thunderclap exploding.

Huang Peng, who had been uselessly hanging about in the rear ever since losing his whip, changed expression at the sound. Panic, anxiety, and fear flashed across his face. His gaze flickered as he hurried to Xiang Yang's side and whispered in his ear.

"This is bad—it's Jia Kui. He's an instructor at Fierce Tiger Martial Arts Hall, as well as Old Hero Qian's third disciple. His martial arts are second only to the current hall master, Qian Fu. Why is he here? Constable Xiang, if things truly go wrong, we should withdraw."

It was Xiang Yang's first time hearing Jia Kui's name, but to gang members like Huang Peng, he was a ruthless, fearsome figure they knew all too well. His reputation even overshadowed Xiong Da and Xiong Er of the Giant Bear Gang. He was one of the county town's foremost experts.

No sooner had Huang Peng finished speaking than a medium-built, dark-skinned man stepped out from the gate. He wore thousand-layer cloth shoes and was bare-chested as well, but his muscles were lean and streamlined, brimming with explosive force. He somewhat resembled Bruce Lee, the kung fu superstar of a generation from Earth.

What Xiang Yang focused on, however, was not how developed the man's muscles were or how great his explosive power might be, but the gloves woven from black iron-colored wire mesh on his hands. Fierce Tiger Martial Arts Hall had not earned its name for nothing; Xiang Yang had long known the great reputation of the Tiger Subduing Fist.

As for why an instructor from Fierce Tiger Martial Arts Hall was at Anjia Manor, or why he had thrown in his lot with the Little Knife Society, Xiang Yang did not care. The man was already here. Investigating such trivialities would only waste time. Better to knock him flat first—then wouldn't everything become clear?

Jia Kui's rage was overflowing. Seeing the front courtyard drenched in blood, with more than a dozen Little Knife Society members lying in pools of it, he looked at the blood-covered youth holding a long saber, his long hair drifting around his temples. A flash of killing intent passed through his eyes.

Behind Jia Kui, more than twenty Little Knife Society members carrying weapons gradually emerged and lined up along both sides. They were all enraged at the sight, yet beneath their anger was a hint of alarm. Wrecking a place usually did not lead to deaths, but not a single living soul had been left among the Little Knife Society members in the front courtyard.

"I'm talking to you! Have you gone mute?"

Jia Kui roared again, but what answered him was a dazzling streak of saber light. The long saber cleaved down with the force of a towering mountain pressing from above. The wind howled, and even Jia Kui could not help but feel a trace of surprise at its sheer ferocity.

Clang! Jia Kui's hands wore black iron wire gloves. His right hand clenched into a fist and swung upward from below, colliding with the saber in a burst of sizzling sparks. As he caught Xiang Yang's descending strike, Jia Kui's left fist shot straight toward Xiang Yang's heart, only for Xiang Yang to twist aside and evade it.

Both men staggered back several steps at the same time, watching each other warily. Compared to Xiang Yang, however, Jia Kui's expression held an added measure of gravity and apprehension.

Ever since Qian Fu had taken over the martial arts hall, Jia Kui had learned quite a few things from this senior brother of his. Beyond the Tiger Subduing Fist he had mastered, there was also a basic breathing and meditation technique.

Though constrained by his talent and age and unable to cultivate deep inner force, he had at least barely developed a sense of qi.

In addition to practicing the external Tiger Subduing Fist each day, he could nourish his body and increase his strength. His power was absolutely among the very top tier in the county town.

Yet now, he had actually been forced back several steps by an obscure youth. It was simply unbelievable.

Xiang Yang stood on the cement ground four or five meters from Jia Kui. His right hand was numb and aching. He flexed it slightly, then tightened his grip around the saber hilt and laughed loudly.

"Jia Kui of Fierce Tiger Martial Arts Hall, when did you become a running dog of the Little Knife Society? Aren't you afraid Hall Master Qian will expel you from the martial arts hall?"

Xiang Yang's voice carried the vigor and hot-bloodedness unique to youth, calming the Green Wolf Gang members who had been somewhat panicked and fearful. In particular, after he and Jia Kui had exchanged a direct blow, testing each other without either gaining the upper hand, their confidence rose further.

"You little brat, you truly don't know the height of heaven or the depth of earth. You think that learning a couple of martial arts tricks lets you show off before me? Today, I'll let you taste the might of my Tiger Subduing Fist."

At Xiang Yang's words, Jia Kui's eyes widened. With a whoosh, he sprang forward and rushed at Xiang Yang, his body like a tiger pouncing on prey, radiating fearsome power as several drops of sweat flew from him.

"As if I'm afraid of you. Old man, today I'll let you taste the sharpness of this young master's blade."

Not only did Xiang Yang not retreat, he met him head-on. His face was full of excitement, and the eagerness in his eyes was utterly undisguised.

For so long, he had either dealt with Hu Qiang, whose combat strength was not even one-tenth of its peak, or ordinary people with nothing but brute strength. At last, someone weighty enough had appeared to measure his own abilities against. How could he not be excited?