Settling It II (Please Read On)

"...Cough, cough, cough... It was Young Master Lu... He told... told us to come find you..."

The white-haired young man coughed violently several times, terror filling his eyes as he immediately sold out the person behind it all without hesitation.

Very soon, he explained the rough course of events.

It was that rich second-generation heir who had stolen the original owner's goddess again.

Other than continuing to beat Hu Qi up, those people had also been sent to ask about the whereabouts of Wu Shan and the others.

Those people had now disappeared, and no information about them could be found at all.

As for that—

Hu Qi had long expected it.

Those people were connected to monsters. They had likely been covered up by the higher-ups.

As for why these people had come.

The moment he saw the wolf-head tattoos on them, similar to Wu Shan's, when they first met, he had already had his suspicions.

Now, he merely wanted to confirm them.

"Interesting. This really is never-ending."

Hu Qi muttered inwardly.

The look in his eyes grew colder and colder.

He lowered his head and swept his gaze over the five people sprawled on the ground.

"If any of you dare speak of what happened today, or dare cause trouble for anyone around me again—"

At that, Hu Qi walked over to the innermost large tree, his gaze sharpening.

He raised his hand and threw a fierce punch.

Bang!

The next instant, beneath their utterly horrified gazes, the thick, sturdy bark of the tree—so broad that it would take two people to encircle it—exploded and scattered in every direction.

A great shower of leaves drifted down from the air.

When Hu Qi withdrew his fist.

A clear, sunken fist mark had appeared on the trunk.

"Then I'll come to his door myself and crush his bones inch by inch! If you don't believe me, feel free to try."

Hu Qi's calm words rang through the air.

...Gulp!

Everyone could not help swallowing.

The place immediately fell into deathly silence.

By the time they came back to their senses, Hu Qi had already turned and walked out.

"Fuck! My hand! We can't just let this slide! I'm going to kill him!"

Only after a long while did one of them speak, letting out a miserable cry.

"Yeah, we can't let this slide! That dog—"

Someone beside him echoed, his face full of resentment.

But before he could finish.

He saw Hu Qi returning after having just left.

The rest of his words instantly caught in his throat.

"Remember to clean up the garbage on the ground!"

Hu Qi's words echoed in the air.

Only after Hu Qi's back had completely disappeared did the few of them finally let out long breaths.

"This time, we've lost. Let's just pretend nothing happened. We can't afford to provoke this man. No matter who asks, say we fell by accident!"

The white-haired young man, half his face swollen, watched Hu Qi's disappearing figure at the corner, his expression shifting uncertainly.

In the end, he let out a long sigh.

The others wanted to say something more, but when they looked at the clear fist mark on the tree beside them and imagined that punch landing on their own bodies.

They could not help shuddering.

Hearing the faint sounds of conversation from behind him.

Hu Qi's steps paused.

Then he quickened his pace and left the place.

Outside.

Li Yi was standing at the intersection.

When he saw Hu Qi emerge, he opened his mouth, yet did not know where to begin.

He realized that this cousin of his seemed shrouded in a layer of mist, making him impossible to see through.

"It's fine now. Let's go!"

Hu Qi smiled and reached out to pat the other man's shoulder.

Only when he saw Hu Qi's familiar smile did Li Yi come back to himself.

After thinking for a moment, he ultimately could not suppress his curiosity.

"Brother Qi, how did you do that? That was insane just now—seriously cool!"

Remembering how Hu Qi had kicked someone several meters away, excitement filled his voice.

For every adolescent boy, there were two great fantasies.

The first was possessing a powerful physique and great strength: shining in all kinds of sports competitions, taking on a crowd by oneself.

And earning everyone's shocked, admiring gazes.

Commonly known as—showing off!

The second was having incredible luck with women: running into beautiful women by chance in every sort of setting, making countless girls fight over him.

And if he had to choose between the two.

It would definitely be the first.

To seal the wolf at Mount Xu, to carve stone at Yanran—more or less like that.

The strength Hu Qi had displayed earlier.

Had undoubtedly struck that first fantasy dead on.

"It was nothing. I joined a fighting club recently and learned some Combat Technique."

Hu Qi briefly told him about joining the Red Scale Club.

"Combat Technique can actually be this powerful!"

Li Yi habitually pushed up his black-framed glasses, excitement gleaming in his eyes.

"You don't have much to do at home during summer break anyway. If you're interested, you can come with me!"

After giving it some thought, Hu Qi spoke.

This world was too dangerous. Those monsters hiding in the darkness, choosing people to devour, left him with an extreme lack of security.

The original owner's aunt's family had treated him fairly well. If possible, he did not mind giving them a hand.

From what he currently knew, the Red Scale Club was definitely not simple.

Of course, he had only made the suggestion. As for whether Li Yi was willing to join the Red Scale Fighting Club.

And whether he could achieve anything there, Hu Qi could not say for sure.

"I can too?"

Li Yi looked at his somewhat slender arms and legs, unable to keep himself from doubting it.

"Some things will never yield any results if you don't try. I'm only giving you a suggestion. Whether you want to do it is entirely up to you."

Hu Qi looked up at the setting sun gradually sinking westward.

"Let's go. I'll take you home.

This happened because of me. I dragged you into it, and I'll deal with the trouble afterward.

It's not safe outside at night now. Wild beasts have even been appearing and hurting people. When you have nothing to do, stay in the shop with Auntie. Don't run around alone!"

The sky gradually darkened.

Neon lights along the roadside flickered on one after another.

After seeing Li Yi home.

Hu Qi rode back to his own house.

More than ten minutes later, he changed clothes and stepped out of his home.

Tianhu District.

It was the Core Area that Qirong City had focused on developing in recent years.

It served as an administrative office center, a business and cultural exhibition center, a leisure and tourism destination, and a comprehensive residential area.

All kinds of facilities were fully equipped—hospitals, malls, schools, everything one could need.

At this moment, the lights were just coming on, shadows and radiance intertwining in a dazzling display of color.

Nightfall Bar.

"Young Master Lu, take care!"

Two tall security guards stood on either side of the entrance, their sharp gazes sweeping over passersby.

When they saw a young man and woman emerge from inside.

They immediately bent at the waist ninety degrees, eyes fixed on the ground, and called out loudly.

Lu Shi ignored them, merely waving a hand casually as he wrapped his left arm around Jiang Yu Yan.

He headed toward a red supercar the valet had brought over.

Its sleek body lines gleamed with captivating light beneath the illumination.

The two arrived beside the car, and the valet respectfully handed over the keys.

Lu Shi took the keys. Then, the pair got into the car.

With one press of the accelerator, the engine let out a series of roars, and the car swiftly drove away.

"Who's that? He's got quite the entourage."

Outside the bar.

Seeing this, someone curiously asked the friend beside him.

"That's Lu Shi. Nightfall Bar is one of his businesses."

His friend explained.

"Lu Shi? I think I've heard of him. Isn't he that rich second-generation internet celebrity who changes girlfriends every few months? I heard his old man used to run with gangs, and that his businesses are spread across several cities around Qirong City..."

The person who had spoken first seemed to remember something.

The two kept talking.

What no one noticed at all was.

Beneath the shade of a tree on a street some distance away stood a tall figure, seemingly watching in the direction the supercar had departed.