The instant his decision was made,
Fang Shuwen drew a deep breath. His muscles tightened, and he became like a leopard lying in wait.
He didn't rush to act. Instead, he crouched behind the bushes for a moment, carefully watching the two men by the river bend.
Brother Hu slid his dagger back into his belt and jerked his chin at the stocky man.
"Lao Liu, get these two sacks onto the boat. We need to ship this batch out before dark."
Lao Liu grunted in acknowledgment and bent to lift the sacks from the handcart.
He carried one in each hand as if they were a pair of chicks. The sacks hung weightlessly from his hands, as though they weighed almost nothing.
Fang Shuwen's pupils contracted slightly.
Each sack contained a person, weighing at least a hundred pounds.
The stocky man lifted them with one hand without the least effort, walking as steadily as ever.
"At least one bone crack."
Fang Shuwen silently assessed him.
Brother Hu looked more wiry than Lao Liu, so his strength was probably greater.
Fang Shuwen didn't attack rashly. He remained in hiding, waiting for an opportunity.
When one was prepared and the other unaware, it took only a moment for the two men ahead to let their guard down.
By then, Lao Liu had carried the sacks onto the wooden boat.
Brother Hu stood beside the handcart, his back to Fang Shuwen, looking down as he adjusted his belt.
A perfect opportunity.
Fang Shuwen praised his luck inwardly and deliberately activated his Snake Form Talent.
His body slid forward without a sound, as if it had no bones.
His landing was noiseless, and the roar of the surging river covered any sound he might have made.
Brother Hu didn't notice a thing.
After adjusting his belt, he turned around and casually glanced toward the river bend.
Lao Liu had carried the two sacks to the stern and was bent over, untying the mooring rope.
"Move it. It's getting dark," Brother Hu urged.
He lifted his foot, preparing to walk toward the boat.
At that moment,
Fang Shuwen moved.
This was the moment he'd been waiting for.
Brother Hu's attention was elsewhere, while Lao Liu was at the stern with his back turned.
Neither man had noticed Fang Shuwen.
Fang Shuwen burst from his hiding place. His spine sprang up like a giant serpent turning over, and the force he had built up exploded from his feet, surging through his hips and into his right fist.
He didn't charge in a straight line. Instead, he curved around and cut in from Brother Hu's rear flank.
Uncanny and treacherous, it was nearly impossible to guard against.
Soaring Snake Fist.
Snake Fang Thrust!
His fist tore through the air with a sharp crack.
He unleashed everything in that single burst.
His Snake Form Talent, the killing move of the Soaring Snake Fist, and the strength of two bone cracks...
At full power, his fist came down like a siege ram.
His fist tore through the air,
and the atmosphere itself erupted in a piercing, vibrating boom.
"Who's there!"
The blow came too fast and too hard.
But Brother Hu was a veteran with three bone cracks. A man who had spent years living by the blade had instincts for danger far beyond those of an ordinary person.
When Fang Shuwen's fist was still half a foot from the back of his head, Brother Hu's hair stood on end.
Knowing he had no time to dodge, his body instinctively shifted sideways and turned as his arms crossed over his chest to shield it.
But he was still half a beat too slow.
Fang Shuwen was too fast. He had poured his entire body's strength into that one blow.
Brother Hu managed to avoid a direct hit to the back of his head, but his right arm was still across his chest. Fang Shuwen's fist smashed squarely into his forearm.
Crack!
The crisp sound of breaking bone rang out across the river bend.
Brother Hu grunted. His right arm went limp at his side, his forearm bent at an unnatural angle. White bone fragments pierced through his skin.
One blow broke his arm and left him badly injured.
"Stop! Stop it!"
Brother Hu's eyes bulged until they seemed ready to split.
The agony of his broken arm left him unable even to shout in anger before a relentless barrage of fists swallowed him.
Soaring Snake Fist!
Snake Fang Thrust!
Driven by his momentum, this blow was even more powerful than the last.
The second punch—
Brother Hu's remaining arm snapped.
With both arms broken and death looming, Brother Hu's eyes blazed red as he roared:
"Who are you? Who?"
"Why are you trying to kill me!"
But Fang Shuwen didn't answer.
In the blink of an eye, another punch came flying.
Fang Shuwen had little combat experience, but he had already knocked his enemy down and gained the upper hand.
He would naturally strike while the iron was hot and finish him off. He wasn't about to make the mistake of wasting time talking.
Another punch followed immediately.
By then, both of Brother Hu's arms were broken. He couldn't defend himself at all; his guard was wide open.
Thud!
The fist slammed into Brother Hu's chest.
At that single blow, Brother Hu felt as if his internal organs had been stirred into a pot of mush.
His fierce instinct to survive made him forget the pain in his arms. He wildly swung his broken limbs, trying to block Fang Shuwen's next attacks.
Brother Hu roared inwardly.
If I can block even one blow... I'll have time to recover and escape with my life!
Unfortunately,
it was utterly useless.
Soon came the third punch, the fourth... the sixth.
Brother Hu took four punches in quick succession. His eyes nearly burst from their sockets.
Almost every rib in his chest was broken.
In a matter of moments,
Brother Hu's thin, tall body crashed to the ground.
Blood pooled beneath him. Three bone cracks—Brother Hu was dead.
"Who are you? How dare you attack someone from the Wild Wolf Gang?"
"You've got a death wish!"
Lao Liu's voice rang across the river bend, his menace edged with barely concealed fear.
He had just jumped down from the stern. Before he could make out Fang Shuwen's face, he saw Brother Hu lying in a pool of blood.
The thin, tall body lay limp on the gravel, both arms bent at unnatural angles. His chest was caved in, and blood spread beneath him.
Anyone could see he was well and truly dead!
Lao Liu's pupils shrank.
Brother Hu had three bone cracks and was one of the Wild Wolf Gang's notable members.
He had blood on his hands, had killed before, and was a formidable fighter.
He was dead just like that?
Killed in a few punches by a half-grown youth in a blue-green school uniform?
"You... who are you?"
A muffled roar squeezed from Lao Liu's throat, and he unconsciously took half a step backward.
At that moment, Fang Shuwen lifted his head and looked over.
He was very young, with prominent brows, deep-set eyes, and thin lips.
He couldn't be called handsome, but there was a composure unsuited to his age—one might even call it coldness.
After beating Brother Hu, Fang Shuwen was breathing slightly hard.
But his heartbeat was steady, his gaze clear. There wasn't a trace of the panic or excitement an ordinary person might feel after killing someone.
A chill ran down Lao Liu's back.
He had been in the underworld for more than a decade and had seen all kinds of ruthless men: men who went berserk after drinking, men whose hands shook after killing, and men who remained expressionless, as if they'd just done something perfectly ordinary.
The youth before him was precisely the last kind.
"The Wild Wolf Gang?"
Fang Shuwen finally spoke. His voice wasn't loud, but it carried clearly to Lao Liu's ears.
He shook the blood from his fist and stepped forward.
"The Wild Wolf Gang in the western part of town?"
"That's right!"
Lao Liu stuck out his neck, raising his voice as if to bolster his courage.
"Scared now? The Wild Wolf Gang has four or five hundred men in Xikou County Town, and our leader is a Grand Martial Master with Dark Force! If you touch me, the Wild Wolf Gang won't let you get away with it!"
Fang Shuwen gave a cold snort. Not a trace of warmth remained in his gaze.
"If you're from the Wild Wolf Gang, then you deserve to die all the more!"