Chu Ge drooped his eyelids, concealing his murderous intent.
Only after he retreated into the alley, the fierce-looking bandits opposite were already sprinting over wildly, their relaxed smiles at having broken through the encirclement apparent on their faces.
Whoosh!
The bandits crossed a corner and charged right into the alley.
Yet at the same exact time, Chu Ge also struck out abruptly. With wide-open eyes, his concealed murderous intent burst forth in an instant.
His figure was like a fierce tiger leaping across a ravine, his vital energy surging. Crouching slightly, he delivered a ferocious punch.
The Crouching Tiger Fist possessed the momentum of a fierce tiger descending the mountain, its violent waves emptying the skies.
The strength of the blow was so great that just executing it whipped up a violent gale, and the muscles on his arms bulged in thick, distinct blocks.
The opposing bandit was caught completely off guard, his expression changing drastically as he hastily raised his right arm and swung his palm to counter the attack.
With only a crisp bang, the two fists and palms met solidly.
The bandit let out a miserable scream as his arm emitted a horrifying, crisp crack, twisting and fracturing.
The bones of his forearm even pierced out from the elbow, bringing forth a gush of fresh blood.
The broken bone was like a short spear, fiercely slamming and pressing against the man's own chest.
Yet upon this contact, a muffled clunk rang out.
Gold stars instantly danced before the bandit's eyes, and his body staggered back a few steps before he slammed hard into the wall. With a blech, he spewed a jet of blood, his complexion turning ghastly pale.
"Hm? He's wearing inner armor?!"
Chu Ge's expression was one of astonishment, and he was about to step forward to finish off his opponent.
Suddenly, his ears twitched as he sensed two bone-chilling murderous auras enveloping him, closing in from behind in a split second. The sound of a tearing wind reached his ears, causing his expression to change slightly.
"There are actually still experts hiding all around?!"
"Save me!"
At that moment, the blood-spitting bandit roared loudly, as if casting some sort of forbidden art. His suddenly pale face bloated and flushed red like it was stuffed with blood, his vital energy climbing to the extreme and his aura turning ferocious.
Acting as though desperate for his life, he charged out once more.
His left hand struck a palm strike at Chu Ge, his vital energy filling the expanding and contracting palm until it seemed to swell a fraction.
"Swish, swish—"
Two other figures rapidly darted out from the rear alleyway to provide backup, two narrow sabers thrusting in from different directions.
"Kill—"
With a muffled thud, the red-eyed bandit's palm struck heavily against Chu Ge's sturdy back.
Yet it was like ocean waves crashing against an indestructible, dark-green reef; not only was the force rattled and dispersed, but his own palm even felt somewhat numb.
Inside the alleyway, Chu Ge's torso stood unmoving. The muscles of his high-bulging chest had already turned dark green in the blink of an eye under the inundation of his vital energy.
His spine was even like a solid sheet of iron, hard and domineering, bulging in a startling arc like bloated dough to form a terrifying ghost face.
The hard-body training of the Tiger Crouching Technique!
At this moment, his arms were like cast iron as he fiercely grabbed the wrists of the two figures who had darted out from the alleyway.
The sharp tips of the two sabers were only a single inch away from his steel-like abdomen.
"You?!"
The three bandits were struck with terror in unison, simultaneously sensing that something was wrong as a trace of dread surfaced in their eyes.
Chu Ge's gaze was cold and stern as he slowly churned his vital energy, rapidly building up his momentum.
"You guys really did hide experts to cover your retreat. I was so careful, and yet I still almost fell for your tricks."
"Kill—!"
The two saber-wielding bandits suddenly exerted force, yet their faces turned red only to feel that the palms gripping their wrists on the opposite side remained completely motionless. Instead, the arresting momentum of the man opposite them grew even more terrifying.
The injured bandit in the rear, having exerted his strength, was directly repelled by the terrifying force of the muscles suddenly bulging on Chu Ge's back, his expression turning one of shock.
"Let go!"
Chu Ge's gaze blazed brightly as he abruptly elevated his vital energy and put force into his palms.
With two crisp crack sounds, the wrists of the two bandits were directly crushed, and the short blades and daggers in their hands fell to the ground with a clatter.
Before their screams of agony could even escape, a roaring explosion of air boomed!
Two palms with intertwined veins under the hard-body state of the Tiger Crouching Technique simultaneously assaulted them like double bees piercing the ears, landing fiercely on the heads of the two bandits.
"Bang—!"
The heads of the two men smashed together instantly, the sound of shattering bones echoing out, and their eyeballs almost popped out from their sockets.
The bandit in the rear was so frightened that the hair all over his body stood on end, his legs trembled, and he instinctively cried out in retreat.
"Go to hell!"
Chu Ge abruptly whirled around and thrust out a single finger, fierce and unyielding.
The bandit's scalp tingled, and with a loud cry, he hurriedly raised his left hand to block.
With a poof sound!
The very instant his finger and palm collided, the bandit was struck as if by lightning.
He felt a current-like sensation dart from his palm through the opponent's fingertip all over his body, bringing excruciating pain, muscle spasms in his heart, and suffocation so severe he couldn't even speak.
Qi attacking the heart meridians—this was a Blood Change expert!
Staring at Chu Ge, the bandit's eyes were filled with shock and disbelief.
"Bang—"
Chu Ge kicked the bandit with the broken arms out of the alleyway, then glanced left and right to make sure no one was around before storing the corpses of the two backup bandits along with their weapons into the Dragon Clock, after which he turned and walked toward the alley mouth.
"Kill him!"
Right at that moment, footsteps came from outside the alley, and one figure after another rushed in, wildly thrusting sabers and swords at the bandit.
Chu Ge rapidly pacified his vital energy.
Watching the bandit outside being stabbed by sabers and swords without even being able to utter a single scream amid the flying fresh blood, he hurried forward and ruthlessly delivered two extra kicks, ending the bandit's sinful life.
The various people who had rushed over looked at the corpses on the ground, then looked at Chu Ge, whose tall and sturdy physique gave one a sense of security.
A broom-browed junior brother from the Tiger Martial Arts School said excitedly, "Senior Brother Chu! Awesome! This guy just injured Senior Sister Liu and Senior Brother Chen, and you actually fought him and broke both of his arms?"
Nearby, several bailiffs holding sabers and swords also relaxed, looking at Chu Ge and saying with courteous smiles.
"This time we owe it to you arriving in time, Young Master Chu, otherwise this fellow probably would have escaped."
"Not at all, not at all. It was also because you guys exhausted some of his vital energy beforehand, otherwise I might not have been able to hold out for so long."
Chu Ge raised a hand and politely replied.
Seeing that the battle outside had also ended and the various bandits of the Heaven and Earth Incense Cult had either been executed or captured alive, he immediately let out a breath of relief.
He then proceeded to inform them about encountering the bailiff Little Qin outside the city.
Following that, he asked about the whereabouts of City Guard Captain Tian Youji and Hu Xuezhi.
A bailiff said, "City Guard Captain and Guild Master Hu were previously outside the Wang Family exchanging blows with the leader of this gang of bandits.
They are experts of the Blood Change Realm, and we were unable to intervene. By now, the battle is most likely over."
"The Wang Family."
Chu Ge nodded. Learning from the bailiff that his own area had not been patronized by the bandits, he promptly abandoned the idea of going home first and headed with the group of bailiffs to the Wang Family to check the situation.
At this moment, inside the chaotic Wang Family courtyard.
Five people had gathered together to converse, among whom were strikingly the figures of City Guard Captain Tian Youji and Hu Xuezhi.
"...This time, many thanks to Brother Zhu and the rest of you for your timely reinforcement, otherwise our losses here would have been even more severe. I didn't expect this Incense Cult stronghold to have so many experts; our people almost all fell victim to their foul hands."
"Alas, Lord Tian, there's no need for such polite words. Linyuan City and our Linyun City are separated by nothing more than a river, making us as closely related as lips and teeth; helping you is also helping ourselves. It's just a pity that this time we still let that envoy escape, and by now he has most likely fled out of the city."
Tian Youji nodded slightly. "This person's movement technique was bizarre and swift, and his strength was formidable to boot. He also excelled in alien power secret arts, and in the end he actually managed to fight his way out of the encirclement.
Fortunately, Lord Lin of the Demon Suppressing Division arrived afterwards. With him in pursuit now, even if he cannot capture him, he should at least be able to project a deterrent force and make that Iron Token Envoy quiet down for a period of time."
As he spoke, he wiped away the blood from the corner of his mouth, smiled bitterly, and cupped his fists. "This plan of feigning compliance and using the Wang Family caravan to lure them out cannot be considered a complete failure.
Come to think of it, we still have to thank the intelligence provided by the secret agents on your side, otherwise we wouldn't even have known that they would make a feint to the east while attacking in the west. Truly craftier than foxes!"
"The Heaven and Earth Incense Cult is inherently wicked and secretive, and most adept at bewitching people's hearts. Now that we've cleared our hands, we should still go outside and take a look, just to prevent any fish from slipping through the net."
As the few of them were conversing, a squad of bailiffs suddenly walked in from outside to report that the bandits outside had all been executed, and subsequently stated that someone outside the gate was asking for an audience.
"Oh? It's my disciple Chu Ge? Why is he coming at a time like this..."
Hu Xuezhi was taken aback. Remembering that Chu Ge was also a wealthy merchant, his expression changed slightly, and he immediately took the initiative to walk out of the courtyard.
A short while later.
Hu Xuezhi and Chu Ge walked into the courtyard conversing companionably. Hearing Chu Ge's account, Hu Xuezhi relaxed and laughed.
"Good, as long as you're fine. But you were far too rash this time, running out of the city and fighting for your life against bandits—thankfully you didn't come to any harm."
"Thank you for your concern, Master. Perhaps I just had good luck, but lately my vital energy has been overflowing and restless, and my bones even feel itchy. It's probably because I'm about to break through, so I've been somewhat more inclined toward action than stillness."
Chu Ge spoke with a semi-joking smile, taking the initiative to reveal the message that he was about to make a breakthrough.
In the current turbulent times, no matter how much he hid his light under a bushel, he should still appropriately display more of his strength.
When he first arrived, intimidated by the Divine Marvel Building incident, he had been extremely cautious, but now the Divine Marvel Building had vanished for sixty years and should be considered completely extinct.
Appropriately displaying his strength would make it more convenient for him to take action at any time, and secondly, it would also prevent him from being looked down upon and treated as a soft persimmon, sparing him some trouble.
Upon hearing this, Hu Xuezhi was moved. "Overflowing and restless vital energy, and itchy bones? It seems you really have reached the verge of a breakthrough! No wonder you borrowed the fourth layer of the Tiger Crouching Technique last time."
He sighed with emotion and clicked his tongue, his old heart deeply gratified. This disciple of his was simply too outstanding; having practiced martial arts for only two and a half years, he was actually already on the verge of breaking through to the third realm of bone refinement.
Such speed was comparable to the top geniuses of some major clans in the prefecture city, and more than twice as fast as he himself had been in the past. If his spiritual aptitude proved sufficient in the future, his prospects would be boundless.
"Hahaha, nephew-disciple, if you can break through, hurry up and do so! With the city inside and out in turmoil right now, having the strength to protect yourself means we can rest easy too."
At that moment, City Guard Captain Tian Youji walked over with a booming laugh, casting a sideways glance at Hu Xuezhi. "Old Hu, are you still hoarding a mere Tiger Crouching Technique like a miser? Still lending it out? Why don't you yield this disciple to me, and I'll pass down my Golden Wind Technique to him?"
Hu Xuezhi bristled with indignation, his mustache twitching. "Go on, go on! You're even coming to my place to poach disciples? The bounty you promised me this time hasn't even been settled yet."
Though he spoke thus, in his heart he felt a bitter pang. He very much wanted to take Chu Ge as his Closed-Door Disciple, but the problem was that Chu Ge was simply too wealthy, and his natural talent was too good.
Thinking of this, he lost the courage to bring up that request.
Chu Ge smiled as he watched the two banter, then raised his hands in a cupped fist salute, modestly thanking Tian Youji for his deep affection. With a solemn and grave expression, he then asked, "City Guard Captain, I heard that the bandit leader who arrogantly charged into the city to attack us this time is an envoy of the Heaven and Earth Incense Cult. Has this person been executed by now?"
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