Crisis Arrives

Crisis Comes Knocking

Fang Mo had just returned home, warmed a cup of milk, and was about to enjoy some steamed buns.

Suddenly, a burst of urgent pounding and shouting came from outside the door.

"Open up! Open the door, now!"

His eyes narrowed slightly as he quietly went on guard.

He had no acquaintances in this place, and no decent person would knock so rudely.

Instinctively, he grabbed some clothes to put on, but then paused, his gaze falling on his filthy Martial Hall training uniform.

He walked to the courtyard gate and peered outside through the crack.

Two burly men dressed in black were pounding hard on the door, shaking the iron gate with the force of their blows.

"Open up, now! If you don't, we'll smash it down!"

With a clatter, Fang Mo yanked the door open. He fixed the two men with an icy stare and said in a chilling voice, "Go ahead. Smash it."

The two men froze for a moment, just about to lose their tempers.

But when their eyes fell on the character "Martial" embroidered on Fang Mo's training uniform, their expressions changed at once.

A Martial Hall student!

The shorter man came to his senses and hurriedly plastered on a smile. "Sorry about that. We're looking for someone, so we got a little too impatient with the knocking!"

"The person you're looking for isn't here. If you dare smash my door again, I'll cripple whichever hand does it!" Fang Mo barked coldly, slamming the door shut and nearly smashing it into their noses.

"Damn it, what rotten luck. Why did we have to run into someone from the Martial Hall?"

The taller man rubbed his nose, his face full of irritation.

"Let's go!"

The shorter man tugged him away. "Check the next house. The boss said not to provoke anyone from the Martial Hall. Those people are arrogant as hell, and they've got real skills. Plus, they all have backing. If they beat us up, we won't have anywhere to complain!"

"Why are we in such a rush? Didn't they say the Vice Gang Leader had already found someone who saw him? He'll bring them over to identify him soon enough. Wouldn't it be better to wait for the Vice Gang Leader before we keep searching?"

"What the hell do you know?"

The shorter man looked at him with utter disdain. "If the Vice Gang Leader finds him first, what's left for us? Whoever finds him first gets a thirty-thousand reward!"

"Right! How did I forget about that?"

The taller man slapped his forehead and shouted excitedly.

Listening from behind the door, Fang Mo felt as though a huge boulder had slammed into his heart when he learned that the Vice Gang Leader had found someone who might identify him. Turmoil surged within him.

He stood in the dim courtyard, his fists clenched so tightly that his nails nearly dug into his palms.

He knew that if he was discovered, all his dreams would burst like bubbles.

"I can't give up like this!" Fang Mo murmured, a flash of resolve in his eyes.

He quickly packed the necessities. With every item he picked up, his heart sank a little deeper, as if he could hear the urgent tick-tock of time.

Fang Mo had originally planned to leave through the gate, but just as he reached for it, he heard a jumble of footsteps. It sounded as though quite a few people were approaching.

He hurried over to the wall and climbed out.

Pressing himself against the wall under the cover of night, Fang Mo looked over and saw a group of people coming down the alley across from him.

Every one of them was broad-shouldered and thick-waisted, carrying clubs in their hands, murderously menacing. Among them was a woman in her fifties, shoved along from time to time as she stumbled forward.

"Granny Wang!"

Under the streetlamp, Fang Mo caught sight of the woman, and his heart instantly clenched. She had seen him before.

He did not dare delay. Silently, he slipped into the night. Behind him lay the small courtyard that had once given him temporary shelter; ahead lay an unknown road of flight strewn with danger at every turn. Every step landed upon his racing heartbeat, and the urgency of escape clung to him like a shadow.

The tall and short thugs had just finished checking the second house when they saw Huang Jun arrive. The two hurried forward. "Vice Gang Leader, you're here!"

Though Huang Jun was not tall, his steps were steady and imposing even without anger. Several gang members naturally made way for him. With one sweep of his cold gaze, the two burly men lowered their heads and nervously swallowed. The air around them seemed to freeze at his arrival.

"What are you doing?"

"Didn't I tell you to wait for orders and not act until I arrived?"

The two men shuddered at once. The shorter one hurriedly forced out a fawning smile.

"Vice Gang Leader, we just wanted to search faster and find that person as soon as possible, so we could hand him over to you!"

"Hmph!"

Huang Jun snorted coldly and shot the two a fierce glare before turning to Granny Wang. In a low voice, he asked, "Which house?"

"It... it's right up ahead!" Granny Wang trembled as she pointed forward.

"You'd better not be lying to us. If we find him, we guarantee we won't make things difficult for you—and we'll even give you a reward. But if you led us to the wrong place, you'll pay for it!" Huang Jun said with a sinister gaze and a threatening tone.

"I... I wouldn't dare!" Granny Wang replied tremblingly.

In the night, Granny Wang's figure looked especially small and helpless beneath the dim yellow streetlights.

"Good. Then lead the way!" Huang Jun barked coldly. Granny Wang hurried forward with a faltering gait, the group following close behind.

The tall and short thugs hurried after them as well. When they followed Granny Wang to Fang Mo's courtyard gate, their expressions shifted slightly, though they still clung to a shred of hope.

Yet when Granny Wang trembled and pointed at Fang Mo's gate, saying, "He lives here!" their bodies instantly stiffened. Their faces went pale, and their steps slowed of their own accord.

"Did you search this place?" Huang Jun asked, his sharp gaze fixed on the two men.

The pair jumped in fright. The shorter one stammered, "S-searched it!"

"Who lives here?" Huang Jun asked in a deep voice.

The short, burly man hastily described him. "In his twenties, dark-skinned, with somewhat long hair, wearing a Martial Hall training uniform!"

"Was it him?"

Huang Jun turned to Granny Wang and demanded harshly.

Granny Wang shuddered. Hesitation flickered in her eyes, but faced with Huang Jun's ferocious glare, fear overcame her. She trembled as she said, "I-it was him!"

"I'll settle accounts with you two later!"

Huang Jun shot the two men another vicious glare, then waved at the others. Several people spread out to guard the courtyard walls while two went ahead to knock on the door.

"Open up!"

"Open the door, now!"

They pounded several times, but there was no movement inside. Huang Jun turned back to look at the two men.

The short, burly man hurriedly said, "He was still here two minutes ago!"

Huang Jun's expression changed slightly at that. "Get in!"

Two burly men immediately leapt up onto the courtyard wall. With a light press of their hands, they floated down into the yard.

Before long, the door was pulled open. The two men looked at Huang Jun outside and said urgently, "No one's in the room. The lights are still on!"

"Damn it, he ran!" Huang Jun's face changed drastically. He immediately shouted in a low voice, "Notify the men on the perimeter! Seal off all the surrounding alley exits and stop him with everything you've got! You must keep him here!"

"Yes!" the gang members answered loudly, hurriedly pulling out their phones and making calls.

"Seal off every intersection!"

"Look for a dark-skinned, sturdy young man wearing a Martial Hall uniform!"

"He has long hair, in his twenties!"

Huang Jun's face was livid. He strode up to the two men and slapped each of them across the face, roaring, "What are you standing around for? Go after him! If you let him get away today, I'll skin the two of you alive!"

"Yes!" The two men hurriedly covered their faces and ran off.

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