A Disaster-He'd Actually Made Him Enjoy It

The prison.

He Sen was strapped to the interrogation cross, his hands and feet shackled. It wasn't that he was especially dangerous; this was simply a way of showing criminals respect.

"Whoa, Lord He, that expression of yours is downright blissful. What a disaster—I actually made you enjoy it. This Wolf Fang Sky Cannon really lives up to its reputation. The best masters are hidden among the common folk." Lin Fan wore a look of regret.

"Ahhhhh!!!"

"I want you dead! I'll kill you, I swear!"

"You, Lin, I'll kill your whole family! Just you wait—I'll kill your whole family!"

He Sen snarled savagely, his eyes bloodshot. The agony of his ruptured backside pierced him to the bone; his body and mind had both been subjected to a horrifying ordeal.

He had never imagined that something like this could happen to him.

Captain Song and Yang Ming exchanged a glance.

They had never encountered a situation like this in all their years on the job.

"Captain, you two should head back. I can handle things here. I'm planning to stay up all night and give him a proper working-over," Lin Fan said.

"Ahhh..." He Sen was still roaring with fury. Now whenever he heard the words "give him a working-over," an inexplicable rage erupted inside him. He thought of that shadowy alley, the hand pressing down on the back of his head and forcing his face against the wall, and the other man's eager voice coming from behind him.

"Spread your legs nice and wide. Let my Wolf Fang Sky Cannon give you a working-over and beat that wickedness out of you."

Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!

Captain Song shook his head. "It's fine. We'll stay with you. You do your questioning; don't mind us."

"Bro, I don't have much experience. I'd like to watch and learn," Yang Ming said.

At a time like this, who could leave? Who would want to?

They hardly dared imagine the uproar that would erupt once word got out at daybreak.

Jin Biao, who had been sleeping on the straw in the cell, was woken by the noise. Dragging his exhausted body over, he grabbed the wooden bars to see who had been brought in. He had been waiting for someone to rescue him, convinced that Fourth Master had the means and the nerve to do it.

He was sure Fourth Master could get them out.

As for the matter he'd confessed to, he didn't think it was a big deal. Money could make ghosts turn millstones; even now, he still thought Lin Fan was after money.

"Ah, Lord He!"

Jin Biao's eyes widened as if he'd seen a ghost. He hadn't expected the man bound up there to be Lord He of Loyalty Hall, a major underworld figure in Yong'an County.

"You, Lin, you actually dared arrest Lord He? You're digging your own grave!"

Jin Biao couldn't accept it—wouldn't accept it. If the other man dared arrest even Lord He, then it meant Jin Biao might truly never get out.

Lin Fan walked over to the cell, displeased. "You seem full of energy. Can't sleep, huh? At daybreak, we're dragging you all through the streets. Fine, fine, fine. Since you've got so much energy, I'll let you out so you can have a nice reunion with Lord He."

Thinking of the terrifying punishments, Jin Biao waved his hands frantically. "I'll sleep, I'll sleep!"

"Too late."

Lin Fan opened the cell and lifted Jin Biao out like a chick. In a few quick moves, he tied him up beside He Sen.

"Lord He, you're the head of Loyalty Hall, and he's part of Loyalty Hall too. How did he end up tying you up?" Jin Biao couldn't make sense of it. Then he noticed the look He Sen was giving Lin Fan. "Lord He, did he do you? Is that why you hate him so much?"

"Ah... Shut up! Shut your damn mouth!" He Sen roared, out of his mind.

At that moment, he had become Loudmouth He through and through.

Aside from roaring in anger, he couldn't think of anything else.

Jin Biao shrank his head, clearly frightened. But deep down, he was aghast. Lord He was so humiliated and furious—could it be... that he really had been done?

Lin Fan patted Jin Biao's face and said with a smile, "Jin Biao, you should comfort your Lord He. He really did get done by something."

"It was this long, this thick, with sharp little studs. He screamed and howled while it was doing him, but look at the expression on his face now—there's even a hint of longing. Clearly, I actually made him enjoy it."

Lin Fan gestured as he spoke, completely ignoring the fire in He Sen's eyes.

Jin Biao's mouth hung open. He had plenty he wanted to say, but his mind was utterly blank; he didn't know how to begin.

"You, Lin, fuck your mother!"

He Sen cursed furiously.

Lin Fan smiled, found a whip among the torture instruments, and flicked his wrist. With a sharp crack, the tail of the whip struck the ground, making a deep, explosive sound.

He Sen was about to curse again when a heavy lash struck his body. His skin split open in an instant, and he let out a shrill scream.

[Basic Whip Technique Proficiency +1]

[Basic Whip Technique (Not Yet Initiated)]

The panel's prompts left Lin Fan unmoved; he was used to them by now.

After he'd acquired Basic Staff Technique, he had once tried throwing punches, thinking he might casually develop a Basic Fist Technique. Of course, it did exist, and a prompt for Basic Fist Technique had indeed appeared.

But then Basic Staff Technique had absorbed it.

The prompt had said that flashy fist techniques were useless. With enough strength, a single punch could crush everything; practicing Basic Staff Technique, meanwhile, engaged the entire body.

Hands, waist, legs—the strength of every part could be improved across the board.

He accepted that explanation without hesitation. It made sense. Even without a staff, he could swing his arms with the same ferocity as one.

But why hadn't Whip Technique been absorbed?

It must have its own use.

For instance...

Crack!

Crack!

"Ow..."

"Ow..."

Lash after lash fell. He Sen cried out in pain, and bloody welts sprang up across his body. The sight was truly horrifying.

Jin Biao trembled all over beside him.

"You, Lin, don't let me get out of here. If I do, I'll kill you! Ow..."

"Lord He, don't make Lord Lin laugh. Still hoping to get out? What are you dreaming about?"

Lin Fan laughed at He Sen's words.

In this situation,

he was still hoping to get out.

If he really did get out, Lin Fan would write his own name backward—and even add another character.

Fan Shilin.

That would be his name.

Now, he was gradually beginning to act without restraint. After carefully investigating, he had discovered that there wasn't a single person in Yong'an County who could fight.

If he still held back now, wouldn't all the extraordinary combat power he'd gained have been wasted?

Where were the experts?

The experts had to be somewhere mysterious.

Perhaps in the military, perhaps deep in the mountains, or perhaps within the imperial court.

With their own strength, they had already reached places beyond the grasp of ordinary people.

And now, he would do what was right and force those experts to reveal themselves.

Morning came, and the sky was an especially clear blue.

The common folk welcomed the new day with hope. More and more people filled the streets. The tavern's waiter removed the wooden door bars, getting ready to open for business.

Some young men who had just finished their business at the brothel rubbed their aching backs, bought a little street food to fill their stomachs, and prepared to head home to sleep.

Wang Ding was one of the ordinary commoners. He set up his stall, ready to sell the eggs from his home. The other stallholders glanced at him with sympathy.

They had known Wang Ding for a long time.

Wang Ding had once been friendly and talkative, with a kind heart. After setting up his own stall, he would help the people around him with theirs. But now he sat hunched over, head bowed, lifeless.

They understood. They sympathized. Wang Ding's family had suffered a terrible disaster: He Sen had taken a liking to his wife, and when she resisted, he had strangled her to death.

Wang Ding had reported it, seeking justice.

The matter had caused a major stir.

He Sen had simply made one of his underlings take the blame, and in the end, nothing had come of it.

The sound of horse hooves clopping closer.

A gasp of alarm reached his ears.

Wang Ding raised his head and stared at the street with dull eyes. He saw three constables riding slowly along, and hatred surfaced in his gaze.

He hated constables.

Those bastards were all in league with people like them. None of them were any good.

Suddenly—

"Ah! He Sen! That's He Sen!"

The name of his familiar enemy rang out.

Wang Ding searched for him. When he finally spotted a familiar figure among the row of prisoner carts, his mouth fell open. He stared at the scene before him in disbelief.