Killing and Arson, a Golden Belt

Facing Xie Chong's roar, Chen Jing did not even twitch an eyelid. Like a beast that had been coiled and ready for a long time, he lunged forward, the bluestone beneath his feet trembling from the force. He swung his fist again, the air whistling as it smashed fiercely toward Xie Chong.

"Damn you!"

Watching Chen Jing's movements, Xie Chong endured the piercing agony in his fingers. He surged his blood energy, his muscles bulging as he violently kicked out.

The angle of the kick was vicious and tricky, aimed straight at Chen Jing's lower body.

If it were anyone else, they would have instinctively dodged, or perhaps even ended up crippled for life.

But Chen Jing did not dodge.

Because Chen Jing was faster than Xie Chong!

From the very moment of the initial ambush, Chen Jing had completely detonated half a month's worth of blood energy accumulated through the Five Harms Technique. Now, the blood energy in Chen Jing's body was so violent it felt as if it were about to burst through his pores.

At this moment, Chen Jing's combat power was already approaching that of a Second Blood Martial Artist!

Boom!

Xie Chong missed, his foot slamming hard into the brick wall of the alley.

The wall instantly spider-webbed with cracks, debris cascading down, a testament to the ferocity of the blow.

Had that kick landed on a person, it would have surely been fatal.

But by now, Chen Jing had already reached Xie Chong.

Chen Jing focused his mind, his lungs swelling like bellows, his blood energy thundering. He spread his arms wide, his fist posture sinking and rising, and unleashed a River-Breaking Fist.

"Come on!!"

Seeing the fist flying straight toward his head, Xie Chong's pupils constricted in terror. Instinct drove him to retract his leg and turn, raising his arm to meet the blow once more.

Bang!!!

Fist met fist; their bones collided directly.

But the next moment, Xie Chong let out a heart-wrenching scream.

"Ah!!! You motherf—"

Xie Chong's entire fist felt as if it had been shattered by a sledgehammer; three fingers were pierced clean through by iron nails and fell to the ground.

With the fingers connected to the heart, and Chen Jing putting his full strength into that punch, the pain nearly brought Xie Chong to his knees. He roared with a cracked, broken voice, "You despicable coward!! Using hidden weapons! If you have the guts, stop using hidden weapons! Fight me fair and square!!"

Xie Chong was howling like a mad dog, but his hand trembled so violently he couldn't hold his strength, and even his blood energy was in disarray.

Chen Jing ignored him entirely, his eyes focused on only one thing: kill.

The next second, Chen Jing planted his feet and charged again.

Another River-Breaking Fist was unleashed.

This time, Xie Chong couldn't even raise his arms to block; he could only watch helplessly as the fist smashed toward him.

Bang!!!

The fist, heavy as a hammer, struck Xie Chong square on the forehead.

Blood and saliva sprayed out simultaneously. Xie Chong's head jerked to the side, and he collapsed to the ground, rolling twice before Chen Jing grabbed him by the collar.

"Who... exactly are you... why... ambush me..."

Blood bubbled from the corners of Xie Chong's mouth, his voice so weak it was barely audible.

But Chen Jing did not answer.

After all, he was here to kill, not to seek justice.

He only needed one result: Xie Chong's death.

And so, the third punch, the fourth, the fifth...

His fists, embedded with iron nails, rained down like a storm upon Xie Chong's face and temples.

Bang, bang, bang, bang, bang...

Each blow sank into flesh, each blow drew blood.

The alley was filled only with the dull thuds of flesh being pulverized and Xie Chong's muffled wails, which fell into complete silence within a few seconds.

It was unknown how much time had passed.

Chen Jing's fists finally stopped.

Xie Chong, beneath his feet, no longer showed any signs of life. His head was lolled to one side, his face rendered unrecognizable.

In the silent alley, only Chen Jing's heavy breathing remained.

"Hoo..."

Chen Jing looked down at the corpse, its face beaten beyond recognition. Confirming that the man had truly breathed his last and that there was no one else around, he slowly exhaled a breath of stale air.

"As expected, I am still not strong enough!"

At this moment, there was no joy or relief in Chen Jing's voice, only the cold chill of being awakened by reality.

"To think that I had to prepare iron nails and resort to a sneak attack just to kill a piece of trash hollowed out by wine and women, a man who only knows how to bully the weak and fear the strong."

"This is far from enough."

Chen Jing clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white.

"I must become stronger—strong enough that I don't need hidden weapons or sneak attacks, strong enough to blast such scum to death with a single punch!"

With this thought, Chen Jing took a deep breath, suppressed his emotions, and began to skillfully loot the spoils of war.

After searching the three men repeatedly to ensure nothing was missed, he hauled over several rocks and smashed the corpses repeatedly until the fatal wounds caused by the River-Breaking Fist were no longer recognizable, then silently vanished into the night.

Chen Jing did not head straight home; instead, he followed the Cold River to a remote section, stripped off his clothes, burned them completely, and poured the ashes into the river.

Only after changing into a spare set of clothes did he slowly walk back home.

Along the way, Chen Jing kept reflecting on his tactics from that night, looking for areas to improve so he could achieve a one-hit kill.

"I was too slow this time... Next time, I'll use lime to blind them first, then follow up with a punch... that will ensure a one-hit kill."

Chen Jing scrutinized every detail, repeatedly replaying the act of killing in his mind.

Back home, Chen Jing counted the silver and found that Xie Chong and his two guards had been carrying a full eighty taels of silver.

"A wealthy dog indeed; no wonder he could afford so many wives and concubines. He really was loaded!"

Seeing this, Chen Jing's heart skipped a beat.

As the old saying goes, murder and arson lead to golden belts!

For a fleeting moment, several small gangs flashed through Chen Jing's mind; after all, while gangs might not be incredibly wealthy, they were all rich and had plenty of grease to skim.

But this thought only lasted for an instant before Chen Jing quickly suppressed it.

After all, Hu Duanzhuo stood behind Xie Chong, and who knew what kind of powers stood behind those small gangs.

Chen Jing was not yet strong enough to ignore the major factions of Red Rock County.

"Better forget it. This eighty taels of silver is already enough for my cultivation."

Chen Jing tucked the silver under his bed and fell asleep.

The next day.

Chen Jing did not go to the martial arts hall but instead wandered near Spring Return Hall and Eight Desolations Academy, pretending to shop while listening for rumors.

Logically, after a man like Xie Chong was beaten to death, the news should have spread within a day.

However, until the sun set, there was no movement at all, and even Xie Chong's guards did not come to Spring Return Hall to look for him.

It was as if everyone had simply forgotten about Xie Chong.

Facing this situation, Chen Jing breathed a slight sigh of relief.

It seemed that even Xie Chong's own family didn't care for him; otherwise, he had been missing for a whole day and no one had come looking.

But this suited Chen Jing's intentions perfectly.

By the third day, Chen Jing stopped wandering outside and returned to the martial arts hall, resuming his training just as before.

When the sun was high, Zhuang Tao arrived at the hall. Seeing Chen Jing, his eyes lit up, and he quickly asked, "Junior Brother Chen, why haven't you been here these past few days?"

From the day Xie Chong said he wanted to marry Chen Chunmiao, through the investigation, the act, and yesterday's observation, Chen Jing had been absent for four full days.

Zhuang Tao hadn't seen Chen Jing for four days and had worried that something might have happened to him.

Hearing Zhuang Tao's inquiry, Chen Jing recited the excuse he had prepared: "I was celebrating a little with my sister... After all, it was a big deal, and I had to talk it over with my family."

"I see."

Zhuang Tao nodded and said, "It is indeed worth celebrating. But you are only a First Blood Martial Artist right now. When you promote to a Second Blood Martial Artist, I'll help you host a table at a restaurant!"

Zhuang Tao did not speak quietly, and his words were naturally heard by the other junior brothers in the middle courtyard.

Hearing this, everyone present shook their heads, and even Pu Shaojie showed an expression of disdain.

In their eyes, it had taken Chen Jing two full months to break through to a First Blood Martial Artist, so his potential was clearly exhausted. The idea of him breaking through to a Second Blood Martial Artist in the future was pure fantasy!

The resources Zhuang Tao was investing in Chen Jing were, in their view, a waste of effort.

With those resources, it would be better to invest in someone with more talent!

"Then this junior brother thanks Senior Brother Zhuang in advance."

Hearing this, Chen Jing ignored the surrounding gazes and said with a smile.

"Haha, easy, easy!"

Zhuang Tao laughed heartily, then looked around and whispered to Chen Jing, "It has to be you, Junior Brother. Unlike some people who don't know when they're being offered a favor!"

After saying this, Zhuang Tao deliberately glanced at Xiang Lingfei, who had just walked out the door.