Encounter

The third packet of sugar seemed to balance out the bitterness of the coffee slightly.

Wang Yiyang drank slowly for a long time; he sat for a full two hours after ordering the cup of coffee, until the very last drop was poured into his mouth.

Only then did he stand up, moving at a leisurely pace.

He took out his phone and checked the time: 11:25.

The armed operation had been underway for twenty minutes.

Just as he walked out of the coffee shop, his phone rang.

Wang Yiyang pressed the answer button.

"Boss, it's over. We captured five of the Mantis group, thirteen in total. Eight were killed," Jian's voice came through steadily from the other end of the line.

"Interrogate them. I need a clear answer as to why they were targeting the Yuekong Martial Arts Hall," Wang Yiyang said softly.

"Understood. I will record the post-operation summary in detail and provide you with an electronic report."

"Very well."

The call ended.

Wang Yiyang felt a sense of relief; the first step seemed to have been a complete success.

It will be the perfect opportunity to see from the report just how much combat power and destructive force a martial arts expert truly possesses in actual combat. I can also take precautions against them accordingly.

He pushed these thoughts aside, setting these clandestine matters to the back of his mind.

"Alright, enough of that for now. Since I have the money, I should treat myself."

He looked at the sky, smiled slightly, and headed toward the sales office of Ruihua Garden across the street.

Regardless of anything else, he had to improve his living conditions first.

Otherwise, if he failed to survive the trouble and kicked the bucket, wouldn't that be a massive loss?

In Wang Yiyang's view, while he didn't need to live a life of debauchery, he at least needed an elevator when leaving his home and a car to take when heading downstairs.

Otherwise, it was simply too much of a waste of time.

Furthermore, he needed a house, preferably in a location with convenient transportation.

This was the reason he had specifically taken a taxi here.

The area was filled with high-end residential complexes, villas, and apartments, and it was adjacent to a commercial district with very convenient subway access.

Aside from the high price per square meter, there were no other drawbacks.

Fortunately, he had enough money to buy a house now, and plenty of free time to look at them one by one.

Angli Hotel.

Jian listened to his deputy relaying the post-battle casualty data behind him, his expression indifferent.

The combat losses were minimal; dealing with so-called martial arts experts was just a standard one-for-one, or even two-for-one trade.

In his view, this ratio was perfectly normal.

After all, a true martial arts expert required years of training at a minimum.

Whereas a competent shooter could become a threat in just a few months.

"How is the coordination with the police department going?" Jian asked casually.

"They have already begun to withdraw. As an armed force mobilized under the guise of an exercise, they are not permitted to stay in the city center for long," the deputy replied.

"And the other two strongholds?"

"No movement, but the people inside have likely already evacuated completely. After all, this operation was too large and caused too much of a stir," the deputy explained.

Jian nodded. He watched the police officers who had already begun wrapping up their work inside the hotel.

He pondered for a moment, reviewing and reflecting on the entire operation, and found no flaws. Only then did he turn and walk toward the corner, where a concealed vehicle had been waiting for a long time.

Just as he was about to get into the car, several black shadows suddenly sprang out from the nearby darkness, moving with incredible speed, lunging directly toward his position.

The black shadows were less than ten meters away from him.

"Alert!" Several men beside him quickly drew their guns, aimed, and fired.

But the black shadows were prepared; with a flick of their hands, black throwing darts flew out, precisely striking the wrists of the men around Jian.

However, the deputy's hand trembled, and a micro-pistol appeared in his grip. With a speed no slower than the black shadows, he raised his hand and fired three shots.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

With three soft sounds, three of the black shadows collapsed to the ground in mid-air, never to rise again.

Four others lunged from the darkness, using their companions as cover to reach the adjutant and punch the pistol from his hand.

Jian was just as quick, reaching back for his own sidearm, but several throwing knives were already aimed at his lower back.

Clang, clang, clang!

With three crisp rings, Jian reflexively used his pistol to parry the blades, but before he could aim again, a long, shapely leg encased in tight blue jeans kicked him squarely in the forearm.

The pistol traced a perfect arc through the air, only to be struck mid-flight by another throwing knife.

With a sharp metallic snap, the trigger guard was sheared clean off. The mangled remains hit the ground, bounced a few times, and went still.

Jian caught the long leg with one hand and shoved it away with brute force.

A lithe female figure was sent stumbling back two meters before landing steadily on her feet.

Meanwhile, the adjutant began trading blows at close range, pursued by two shadowy assailants into a nearby alley.

The rest of the subordinates had been struck down by the sudden ambush, their fates unknown.

Jian glanced around, his expression calm, before fixing his gaze on the young woman who had regained her footing.

She appeared to be the leader, wearing a black ponytail and a tight black tank top that accentuated her curvaceous, explosive physique. Her legs were wrapped in form-fitting trousers, with black dart holsters strapped to her outer thighs.

Judging by the depleted supply of darts, it was clear she had been behind the initial barrage.

The woman wore a black mask covering her entire face, leaving only her eyes visible.

Her purple eyes locked onto Jian, burning with intense hatred.

"Your men are finished, and now it's just you! Are you afraid? Do you feel despair? Hehehe... it's too late... I'm going to crush your bones one inch at a time! I'll make you feel every bit of the agony my juniors suffered...!"

"Heh." Jian nonchalantly pulled off his gloves, tilting his head to crack his neck with a series of sharp pops.

"So there were stragglers after all." He smiled faintly. "Killing so many of my men—I won't be able to answer to the boss like this. So..."

BOOM!!

In an instant, Jian stomped the ground, his muscles bulging as his body swelled in size.

He lunged forward like a black bear, charging the leader with a suffocating, bloodthirsty aura.

Simultaneously, a black dagger flicked from his hand, precisely deflecting the incoming volley of darts.

"Die!!"

Jian unleashed a heavy punch toward the woman.

Caught off guard, she could only manage to throw her remaining darts in a desperate, reflexive burst.

But she was a hardened fighter; she crossed her arms in front of her face to shield her head.

If she couldn't dodge, she would have to take the blow head-on.

BOOM!!

With a dull, heavy impact, the woman was sent tumbling backward like a crumpled piece of paper.

The black-clad men who stepped up to intercept him were no match for Jian, who took on all four and dispatched them one by one.

Each was struck in the chest and collapsed, unconscious.

In barely ten seconds, only Jian and the woman remained.

"Kill him!!" Seeing this, blood rushed to her head. She drew a short blade from her back and charged at Jian.

The two engaged in close-quarters combat, the rapid-fire clash of short blade and dagger leaving fresh wounds on both of them.

The woman was clearly faster than Jian, but her strength was significantly inferior.

During the exchange, she slashed at Jian's chest and waist multiple times, only to be thwarted by his high-density tactical armor.

Her only success was a few inconsequential tears in his outer coat.

Furthermore, the Eresa Combat Arts Jian favored were incredibly troublesome.

It was a practical style based on rapid, alternating offensive and defensive hand movements, and its lethality was formidable.

It was evident that Jian had mastered this popular style to its peak. When wielding a dagger, the damage he could inflict was terrifying.

In reality, the woman's overall martial prowess was a cut above Jian's, both in technique and speed.

Yet, unfortunately, she lacked heavy-duty armor, and strangely, her strength was weaker than his.

As a martial practitioner, she had focused on internal breathing techniques for eight years.

This powerful breathing method, derived from her organization, should have granted her strength far exceeding that of an average adult male.

Yet, even with that power, she was still losing ground to Jian.

BOOM!

The two collided heavily once more, and the woman seized the chance to backflip and create some distance.

It was not that her stamina had failed her, but rather that the several wounds she had just sustained were transmitting a constant, numbing sensation.

"The blade is poisoned!?" she exclaimed.

"Isn't yours?" Jian smiled.

With a swish, he hurled his dagger like a hidden weapon. He then lunged forward, slamming a fist hard into the woman's stomach.

A muffled thud echoed.

Because her body was numb, the woman couldn't react in time and doubled over from the blow.

Just as the battle was about to end, a black line shot in from the distance, aiming precisely for Jian's right eye.

The black line moved with extreme speed, emitting a piercing whistle while still in mid-air.

Forced to react, Jian had no choice but to dodge to the side.

By the time he looked to finish off the woman, he could no longer find her.

She had already been rescued.

Standing in place, Jian remained expressionless. After waiting for about half a minute, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed from the street corner in the distance.

The armed police who had just retreated arrived once more, quickly sealing off the scene.

Jian took the walkie-talkie handed to him by an officer and switched it on.

"Notify the boss immediately; the situation has changed."

Wang Yiyang walked out of the third sales center, about to head to the next one.

Suddenly, his phone rang. He took it out, pressed the answer button, and held it to his ear.

A faint sound came from the other end of the line.

As the report continued, Wang Yiyang's expression gradually darkened.

Soon, he hung up and put the phone back into his pocket.

The operation against the stronghold had indeed started with their surprise attack holding the advantage.

But later, after the operation ended, they were the ones ambushed in return.

With the armed forces having already withdrawn, six members of the squad led by Jian were killed on the spot, along with one adjutant.

Jian had stepped in personally, yet he only managed to wound the opponent before she was rescued by a mysterious expert who arrived later.

If the armed forces hadn't returned quickly to scare the enemy away, even Jian might have been in danger.

"In head-on combat, high-tech firearms are indeed the strongest, but when it comes to sneak attacks and assassinations, hand-to-hand combat clearly has its merits."

Thoughts churned in Wang Yiyang's mind, and he soon had a new idea.

It seemed that this level of force was truly insufficient to control the situation. He needed to officially reinforce the Security Department in the surrounding areas.

Furthermore, since the value of hand-to-hand combat experts had been confirmed, relevant countermeasures should be put on the agenda.

After all, Mister Group had nothing if not money.

Rather than risking the lives of his own private troops, it would be better to hire those mercenaries wandering the battlefields; after all, there were plenty of hand-to-hand combat experts among them.