Kneel! Kneel!

Clang, clang—

The shelves inside the pastry shop were knocked over, and the stove was smashed to pieces.

"Help—help—Sister Qi, save me—" the waitress struggled desperately, pushing away the burly man's fat face, trying to escape his monstrous grasp.

But her strength was too small. No matter how hard she tried, the big, stinky fatty's mouth kept nuzzling her face and neck.

Two pastry chefs rushed over with rolling pins, but before they could even react, they were knocked to the ground by those street thugs. They were experts at making pastries, but when it came to fighting, they were no match for these hooligans.

"Xiao Ting—" Luo Qi's eyes split open with rage as she lunged towards the young girl. She was a pitiful child with no parents. No matter what, Luo Qi couldn't let these thugs ruin her innocence.

Zhang Tianyi's sturdy body merely took one step forward, coincidentally blocking Luo Qi from the outside.

"Zhang Tianyi, I'll fight you to the death." Luo Qi reached out to grab Zhang Tianyi's face, but he caught her wrist.

"Fight?" Zhang Tianyi's eyes narrowed into slits as he laughed. "Fighting here, I'm afraid you won't gain much advantage. But if we fought in bed, you might have a fighting chance—"

"Zhang Tianyi—"

"Yes, keep that fiery spirit. I like this kind of attitude—"

Clang—

The wooden door of the pastry shop was violently kicked open, and Li Mu Yang stood at the entrance, panting.

"Mu Yang—" Luo Qi was extremely sensitive to anything concerning Li Mu Yang. Seeing him suddenly rush into the shop, she feared he might get hurt and screamed, "Mu Yang, run—go find your dad—"

"Oh, is this your little bastard? Heh heh, it's good for him to see this. Young people should be exposed to society early—" Zhang Tianyi's eyes swept over Li Mu Yang, his interest piqued even further.

"Zhang Tianyi, you beast—Mu Yang, run—"

"Can't run anymore." As Zhang Tianyi spoke, several thugs had already surrounded Li Mu Yang.

"Zhang Tianyi—let my son go, let my son go! I'll give you money, I'll pay the management fees as you demand, however much you want, I'll give it to you! Do you know who he is? If you dare to hurt him, I'll make sure you die without a burial place, I'll make your whole family pay with their lives—" Luo Qi screamed hysterically, desperately rushing towards Li Mu Yang, looking as if she wouldn't rest until someone died.

"If you had agreed to my terms earlier, wouldn't all this have been avoided? Fine, you want to protect your son, right? It's not impossible. As I said, come have a drink with me, let's have a good chat. What problem can't be solved then?"

Seeing all this unfold before him, Li Mu Yang's dark eyes were instantly engulfed in a crimson haze.

It was the blood-red color of fresh blood, as if a pair of black ink pearls were submerged in a pool of blood.

His expression was as cold as frost, and his face looked like it could wring out a bucket of ice water.

His clenched fists made cracking sounds, as if he were about to crush his own bones.

On the back of his right hand, the scale that had disappeared was now even darker, like a piece of black stone embedded in his flesh.

Because the black stone was so dark, it made his skin appear very pale.

Li Mu Yang panted, standing motionless, waiting for those scummy thugs to pounce on him.

"Kid, you're asking for death, don't blame anyone else—" the leader, a pockmarked face, said with a chuckle, then reached out to grab Li Mu Yang's shoulder.

"You shouldn't have provoked me." Li Mu Yang said in a hoarse voice. The voice was so cold and ancient, it was hard to believe it came from a young boy.

"Oh, the little guy has some temper." The pockmarked face laughed heartily at his companions and said, "So what if we provoked you? Can you kill us?"

"Die."

Boom—

Li Mu Yang threw a punch.

Thunder roared, lightning flashed.

Countless white electric sparks flickered in the air, like a bolt of lightning that suddenly exploded within the shop.

Whoosh—

A fierce gust of energy surged, sweeping up the overturned shelves and pastries, slamming them against the surrounding walls. The clatter was incessant.

The four thugs in black surrounding Li Mu Yang were the first to bear the brunt of the incredibly powerful energy, being blown away.

Their bodies slammed against the walls, and the sound of bones cracking echoed from within them.

Bang—

All four bodies landed simultaneously, and then they violently spat out large mouthfuls of blood.

The most tragic was the pockmarked face, who directly took Li Mu Yang's punch. In front of Li Mu Yang, his entire chest cavity caved in.

His body flew through the air, and a mouthful of blood sprayed out. Blood splattered, and his body rapidly retreated like the wind.

Screech—

His body smashed through the wooden partition and flew directly into the back kitchen.

Then there was no more movement from inside; he likely couldn't withstand the power of the punch and was beaten to death.

The big guy who was holding onto Xiao Ting didn't let go this time, and he inadvertently helped Xiao Ting. As the energy exploded outwards like a bomb, his body also slammed into the display shelf.

His body hit the rosewood cabinet with great force, making the old cabinet creak ominously.

And Xiao Ting, held in his embrace, was protected by the padding of his body, thus saving her life.

Luo Qi's body was light and was blown away by the energy. She landed on the pastry-making counter, her face and body covered in flour.

As for Zhang Tianyi, he knew a few tough-body techniques. Sensing that the situation was unfavorable, he immediately used a sinking technique called 'Iron Horse Crossing River'.

His feet stomped on the ground, and the granite surface made a crunching sound. His feet sank deep into the stone as if they had merged with the massive granite slab.

Li Mu Yang was like a god descending upon the mortal world, bringing forth such a great storm with his every move.

The power of one punch could shock the heavens and earth.

A fierce wind instantly swept through, and then the shop returned to normal.

No, it couldn't return to normal.

Before Li Mu Yang arrived, the Sinian Pastry Shop had merely been robbed by a few thugs.

After Li Mu Yang arrived, the Sinian Pastry Shop looked like it had been hit by a miniature tornado.

Rustle, rustle, rustle—

A piece of pastry paper flew through the air, drifting and fluttering towards the ground.

Everyone in the pastry shop, anyone who was still alive.

Their gazes passed through the paper in the air, finally landing on Li Mu Yang.

Luo Qi lifted her head from the pile of flour, white powder still falling from her face and head.

Her face was filled with shock, her eyes wide open, looking at Li Mu Yang with disbelief.

"Is this... my own son?"

The pupils of the black-clothed men, who were spitting blood, dilated. For a moment, they felt as though they had already died.

They felt as though they had encountered Death itself.

Because no one other than Death could give them that suffocating feeling of complete immobility and despair.

Although Zhang Tianyi had managed to withstand the impact of Li Mu Yang's punch, the consequence of resisting with his physical body was that his clothes were torn as if by countless knives.

After the strong wind, his clothes were in tatters, no different from the rags worn by beggars on the street.

Zhang Tianyi spread his arms wide, as if hugging a large ball.

Even though a cold wind had just blown, sweat was pouring down his forehead. Beads of sweat continuously fell, sliding down his fleshy face and disappearing into his fat neck.

The muscles on his face twitched incessantly, like pork head meat being cooked over high heat in a pot.

His short legs trembled uncontrollably. This time, he truly felt fear.

That feeling of the Grim Reaper's scythe flashing past his neck sent a chill of dread seeping from the depths of his bones.

"Gulp—"

He could no longer hold on. His throat felt sweet, and he bent over, spitting out large mouthfuls of blood.

Li Mu Yang walked towards him step by step.

Clang—

Clang—

Clang—

Li Mu Yang wore flat cloth shoes, which didn't make much noise when stepping on the floor. But to Zhang Tianyi's ears, every step he took sounded like thunder.

Li Mu Yang stopped in front of Zhang Tianyi. His blood-red pupils, devoid of any human emotion, scrutinized the severely injured and vomiting Zhang Tianyi.

"Big brother— Big brother, please spare me this time. I was wrong. I won't dare to come again. I promise you, I will never collect protection fees again—" Zhang Tianyi pleaded, looking into Li Mu Yang's eyes.

He realized he had fallen into a deep abyss, its waters dark and bottomless.

He feared this feeling of drowning, his body sinking downwards, desperately struggling but finding no lily pad to grasp.

"I deserve to die. I am willing to apologize to Luo Qi— to Boss Luo. I am willing to compensate for all the losses in the shop— As long as you spare me this time, I will agree to any of your demands. Name your price, however much money you want—"

"Big brother, say something— I— I won't dare to do this kind of thing again. I won't collect protection fees on this street anymore. I am willing to pay you protection fees. From today onwards, you are my big brother, Zhang Tianyi. I will follow your lead in everything you say. I'll do anything you ask, even murder and arson—"

"Kneel," Li Mu Yang said with authority.

"What? Big brother, don't do this— Boss Luo, please say something for me. Your son is going to kill someone, he's going to kill someone, please stop him—"

Zhang Tianyi wanted to run, but his legs were trembling, and he couldn't move.

Luo Qi's mouth was stuffed with flour, making it a bit dry to chew.

She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.

The Li Mu Yang before her now felt incredibly strange and unsettling.

"Kneel," Li Mu Yang said again. His voice now carried a hint of anger.

"Big brother—"

"Kneel!" Li Mu Yang roared in anger, the blood mist in his pupils boiling.

Thump—

Zhang Tianyi's knees buckled, and he heavily knelt before Li Mu Yang.