All's Well That Ends Well!

"Brother Hu, how is that matter with the Li family's shop going?"

Under the candlelight, a woman with a decent figure stood behind Liu Hu, kneading his shoulders.

Liu Hu cracked a sunflower seed, his expression relaxed. "It's about time. With me blocking their storefront, no one dares to come and buy anything. They can't earn money, and they can't afford to support that vase in his martial arts training. Naturally, they'll obediently cave in."

Liu Hu suddenly let out a cold laugh. "Heh, don't think I don't know what they're plotting. They're just waiting for that Li Chuan to break through to Bright Force so that I won't dare to make a move. Who would have thought that their precious grandson has no heart for martial arts and spends all their silver on drinking and whoring! I told them as much, but they didn't believe me, shouting that their grandson wouldn't do such a thing! If you ask me, Li Nian is just a senile old fool. He's been training for four months and hasn't even gotten stronger; how much effort could he have put in?"

The woman covered her mouth and giggled. "You're the one with the means, Brother Hu. At worst, we can use both kindness and force. Give Li Nian an extra five taels of silver—ten taels in total—and we'll keep twenty for ourselves. By then, we can buy a house in the city..."

Liu Hu laughed heartily and grabbed the woman's backside with his right hand. "Before they sell the shop, I'll even put laxatives in their breakfast so the customers get diarrhea. That will completely ruin their reputation and ensure they have no chance of a comeback... As for that Li Chuan, I'll find an opportunity to kill him off. He has practiced martial arts, after all, and who knows if he might have some stroke of luck? If he happens to break through to Bright Force one day, what would happen to my own life?"

The woman gasped. "Brother Hu... this..."

Liu Hu frowned and said coldly, "What, are you feeling soft-hearted? I'm telling you, women can never get things done."

The woman suddenly chuckled. "Brother Hu, what I meant is that when you cut weeds, you must pull them out by the roots. If you kill Li Nian's precious grandson, who knows if the old man will go mad? We might as well wipe out their whole family to avoid any future worries."

Liu Hu's eyes lit up. "What kind of plan do you have?"

The woman's right hand slid downward. "While they're fast asleep, just like this—set a fire, and that will be the end of it!"

The woman squeezed hard.

Liu Hu grinned, showing his teeth. "You've certainly stoked my fire!"

Liu Hu rolled over, preparing to undo his belt.

Bang.

The sound of an object hitting the ground was exceptionally loud in the silent night.

"What was that noise?" Liu Hu narrowed his eyes.

In the middle of the night, who would be at his door?

In that instant, Liu Hu thought of many things. He made a "shush" gesture, picked up a wood-chopping knife with his right hand, and quietly walked to the door.

One breath.

Two breaths.

"Whoosh!"

Liu Hu yanked the door open and swung the knife down.

"Hm?"

There was nothing there.

Liu Hu froze. He looked around, only to find the place completely empty. There was only a tattered cloth bag lying on the ground. A corner of the bag had opened, revealing a glint of silver.

Broken silver!

A cruel grin tugged at the corners of Liu Hu's mouth. "You little bastard, trying to play these games with your grandfather? Come out!"

"Master Liu, that's my silver that I dropped."

Liu Hu froze for a moment, feeling as though the voice sounded somewhat familiar.

By the candlelight inside the room, he saw the visitor clearly.

Li Chuan?!

His thoughts raced like lightning.

This brat coming to his doorstep in the middle of the night certainly meant no good.

It would be better to strike first and hack him to death with a blade!

"In the middle of the night, how did you—?!"

"Bang!"

Under the moonlight, a large cloud of white lime was scattered from Li Chuan's right hand.

"Ah!" Liu Hu clutched his burning eyes, his expression twisted in pain.

Li Chuan lunged forward, his right hand coiling upward like a spirit snake, his five fingers forming spikes aimed directly at Liu Hu's eyes!

Liu Hu had been in many fights, and he managed to react even in this desperate situation.

Hearing the whistling wind, he instinctively dodged to the side.

Li Chuan abruptly changed his move, his five fingers sweeping downward to clamp onto Liu Hu's throat!

"Snap!"

A teeth-grinding sound echoed.

Li Chuan did not hesitate, crushing Liu Hu's windpipe in one go!

"Thud!"

Liu Hu's eyes were filled with disbelief as he clutched his throat, wanting to say something but unable to utter a sound.

Li Chuan delivered a heart-striking elbow, caving in Liu Hu's facial bones.

He was dead as could be!

Only three breaths had passed since he started!

At the doorway, a woman in a thin garment covered her mouth, not even having reacted yet.

"Master... spare me!"

Before she could finish, she saw a pebble shoot toward her.

"Bang!"

The pebble struck her eye socket with precision, tumbling through her brain.

She lost her breath instantly and collapsed to the ground.

Li Chuan quickly searched Liu Hu's body and pulled out a cloth bag.

He glanced inside to see nothing but shimmering silver.

He weighed it in his hand; it had some heft to it.

"Clack."

Li Chuan struck a flint with a fire steel, sending sparks flying.

He blew on the sparks until they caught the tinder, instantly igniting a flame.

He tossed the burning tinder onto the thatched roof.

The wind fueled the fire, and it roared to life in an instant.

After erasing his tracks, Li Chuan vanished into the night.

Inside the house lay two corpses with eyes wide open in death.

Until his final moment, Liu Hu never understood that the one who killed him was neither a member of the Iron Tiger Gang nor a government official.

It was Li Chuan, whom he had once deemed incapable of posing any threat.

Li Chuan was too fast, without a hint of hesitation.

He had completed everything in just over ten breaths.

Therefore, it was only when the fire had fully engulfed Liu Hu's house and thick black smoke began to billow that people started waking up one after another.

But upon seeing that it was Liu Hu's house on fire, the crowd tacitly waited a few moments longer before shouting that there was a fire!

Li Chuan sprinted through the dark night, racing back to his own home.

Only after closing his door did he gasp for air.

He had rehearsed the process of killing Liu Hu hundreds of times in his mind, ensuring every movement was foolproof.

In fact, according to his plan, Liu Hu should have been asleep in the dead of night, and he had intended to play the "gentleman on the beam."

He had planned to leap directly from the rafters to give Liu Hu a swift end.

Unexpectedly, it was already the second watch of the night, yet Liu Hu had not gone to sleep.

He was even on the verge of facing a great battle.

Fortunately, I had already anticipated this situation.

Li Chuan cast his gaze toward the lime pouch at his waist.

This thing had proven incredibly useful.

As long as it made contact with the eyes, it would cause an instant burning sensation, making it impossible for anyone to keep them open.

If he seized the opportunity, he could secure a kill in one strike!

Li Chuan pressed down on his slightly trembling right hand.

Killing for the first time, he did not feel the fear or terror he had imagined.

Aside from the sticky blood that made him feel a bit nauseated, there was only excitement left.

It was just that due to the surge of adrenaline, he was still struggling to control the shaking of his body.

Li Chuan comforted himself:

"The first time is strange, the second time is familiar; it will be better next time."

In this godforsaken world, one could not survive without being ruthless.

Only by devouring others could one become a person above others.

Soon, Li Chuan calmed down.

After that rush of excitement faded, his complexion returned to normal, as if nothing had happened at all.

Only the pouch at his waist served as proof that the deed had taken place.

Li Chuan used the faint moonlight to fumble around inside the pouch.

"Five maces of broken silver? This Liu Hu isn't as wealthy as I imagined." Li Chuan raised an eyebrow.

But on second thought, it made sense; those like Liu Hu who drifted in gangs lived day to day, likely spending whatever money they had immediately.

They were terrified of becoming "misers."

"Something is better than nothing. Five maces of silver plus the one tael of silver for food expenses is enough for me to eat meat at every meal for a while."

Regardless, this money was an unexpected windfall.

The primary goal was to eliminate Liu Hu and earn himself time to practice martial arts.