"Boss!"
The lackeys around him were stunned.
What the hell had darted out and sent their boss flying?!
Their boss, Guang Long, was a full level 27 Soul Grandmaster, with the ironclad dragon as his martial soul. How had he gone flying?
The lackeys looked at Li Zha and discovered that he was just a child.
Inside the shop,
Tang Wulin, Xie Xie, and the others came out. Xie Xie hurried forward to help the owner up, while Tang Wulin immediately inspected the pot-stewed beef. Once he confirmed that the food was unharmed, he sighed in relief.
Then,
The two turned toward Guang Long's group in unison, clenching their fists.
"Li Zha, I'm making you my brother, no matter what! These bastards actually dared to extort protection money!"
Rage boiled inside Xie Xie.
He had known the shop owner since he was little.
How dare these thugs bully him like this!
Gu Yue silently watched Li Zha. This was a good opportunity for her to get a glimpse of his true capabilities.
Na'er sat on the table with her arms crossed. Knowing Li Zha's strength well, she knew Guang Long and his gang were finished today.
"Ah, your rotten luck really has hit rock bottom. You went and crossed my senior brother."
"You fucking brat."
The lackeys around him grabbed knives and hacked at Li Zha. Without even looking, Li Zha caught one man's wrist with a backhand grab and twisted, snapping it outright.
"Aaaah!"
The leading lackey's arm was twisted like a fried dough twist. He immediately collapsed to the ground, wailing for his parents.
The others immediately lost the nerve to approach.
"You fucking brat! Do you know who you just hit?!"
Guang Long climbed out of the trash can, rice scraps covering his bald head and foul slops drenching his body. He stank to high heaven.
"I'm a level 27 Soul Grandmaster! You crossed me, so tell your parents to come collect your corpse!"
"Ironclad dragon, first soul skill..."
Scaled armor appeared over Guang Long's body. Before he could finish unleashing his soul skill, Li Zha beckoned with his right hand. The Fire-Tipped Spear appeared, and he hurled it straight at him!
Whoosh!
Apart from Gu Yue and Na'er, everyone present saw only a flash of red.
The Fire-Tipped Spear pierced straight through Guang Long's body, pinning him to the ground.
Guang Long stared blankly at his impaled belly. The defense of his ironhide dragon armor, granted by the ironclad dragon martial soul he took such pride in, had been no better than paper. The Fire-Tipped Spear had punched straight through it.
"Aaaah! Murder!"
The crowds around the food street scattered in panic.
"B-Boss..."
Clang! Clang!
At the sight, the kitchen knives dropped from Guang Long's lackeys' hands. They turned and fled for their lives.
Li Zha said calmly, "Na'er, don't let a single one escape."
"Yes!"
Na'er jumped off the table, manifested the Silver Dragon Spear, and chased after them to kill them.
Xie Xie's face went pale as he pointed at Li Zha.
"I... this... brother, you..."
Tang Wulin was stunned too.
Although a gangster like Guang Long deserved to die, Li Zha had killed him with a mere flick of his hand. Xie Xie and Tang Wulin were bewildered.
It was also their first time witnessing a killing.
Only Gu Yue narrowed her eyes.
A flaming spear tip? What martial soul is this?! So powerful...
Gu Yue's nails dug into her palms.
Her spiritual power far surpassed Xie Xie's and Tang Wulin's. She had clearly seen that Guang Long had actually activated his first soul skill.
But the iron armor protection provided by the ironclad dragon had retreated on its own the instant it encountered the Fire-Tipped Spear.
This was not merely an overwhelming difference in strength. It proved that the ironclad dragon martial soul had been suppressed outright upon encountering the Fire-Tipped Spear!
Suppressed so completely that it dared not even resist!
Li Zha walked up to Guang Long.
With his body impaled, Guang Long was clinging to his last breath only because he was a Soul Master.
And now,
His once-arrogant eyes were filled with terror.
Guang Long could not understand.
Where had this child come from? Why had he gone straight for the kill?
"D-Don't kill me. I... I was wrong. Spare my life. My brother is a Six-Ring Soul Emperor, and a mecha captain too... Killing me will bring you trouble..."
Li Zha smiled and extended his hand.
Thinking Li Zha had agreed, Guang Long smiled too.
Li Zha opened his hand and aimed it at Guang Long's face.
Guang Long's face went pale and stiff.
"You haven't realized you were wrong. You've only realized you're going to die."
"Don't worry. I'll send your brother to join you soon."
A ball of purple fire appeared in Li Zha's palm and instantly engulfed Guang Long's head.
"Aaaah!!!"
Guang Long let out an agonizing scream that rang through the entire food street.
The excruciating pain of his soul burning made him wish he were dead.
Guang Long pounded his head frantically.
"Kill me! I'm begging you, kill me!"
Li Zha simply watched in silence until Guang Long's voice gradually weakened and he finally became a corpse.
Tang Wulin and Xie Xie watched and swallowed.
"Th-This... this..."
Xie Xie was getting scared.
Li Zha clearly did not look like someone killing for the first time.
Tang Wulin, however, patted Xie Xie's shoulder. "Our brother Li Zha was a little brutal, but he was right. If he didn't kill Guang Long, that guy would keep coming back here."
Xie Xie nodded stiffly, but fear still lingered in his heart.
It was too terrifying.
Li Zha had outright tortured Guang Long to death.
Xie Xie had never seen bloodshed before. His legs went weak with fear.
Na'er returned just then, the Silver Dragon Spear in her left hand covered in blood, several heads dangling from her right.
There was even a trace of blood on Na'er's face.
"Senior brother, they're all taken care of."
Na'er smiled as she walked over to her senior brother.
Seeing Na'er like that made Xie Xie's scalp prickle even more.
Li Zha pulled out a tissue and wiped Na'er's face.
"Well done."
At that moment,
All around them,
The shopkeepers along the entire food street slowly emerged. Seeing Guang Long's corpse kneeling on the ground, impaled by the Fire-Tipped Spear, they were not frightened at all. Instead, they began to applaud.
"Good riddance!"
"Guang Long is finally dead!"
"Young hero, you're a hero to everyone in our neighborhood!"
Men and women, young and old, all the shopkeepers around them cheered. Some even wiped away tears.
That gangster Guang Long had relied on his status as a Soul Grandmaster and his brother's status as a Soul Emperor to extort protection money at will.
But they were only ordinary people. They dared to feel angry, yet dared not speak.
An old man hurried forward. "Children, you've killed Guang Long. His brother won't let you off!"
"Hurry and run now! If anyone asks later, I'll say I did it. This old man doesn't have many days left anyway."
Li Zha smiled and took the old man's hand. "Don't be afraid, Grandpa. I'm from the Spirit Pagoda. No one here will come to harm today."
Na'er added,
"That bald guy's brother will be dying soon too."
The old man's eyes widened. "The Spirit Pagoda?!"
The surrounding neighbors instantly erupted into a hubbub of discussion.
"An Upright Official!"
The old man suddenly cried out and tried to kneel, but Li Zha reacted swiftly and caught him.
"So you're a Lord Soul Master from the Spirit Pagoda! Thank you, thank you for coming to help us!"
The pot-stewed beef shop owner also stepped forward, thanking Li Zha over and over.
"Young hero, what's your name? I forgot to ask earlier."
Li Zha smiled and said,
"My name is Li Zha. Li, written with 'wood' over 'child,' and Zha, like the word for pricking with a needle."
"Li Zha..."
All around him, the crowd silently committed that name to memory.
A panel also appeared before Li Zha.
[Slain the criminal thug Guang Long! Reward: 100 karmic flame points!] [Your formidable reputation has begun to spread. Your name resounds throughout the food street. Incense points +100!]
Incense points? Didn't Nezha attain sainthood in the flesh?
The question arose in Li Zha's mind.
[Incense points are a form of energy and can serve as the foundation for you to form a new Divine Realm.]
Is that so?
Li Zha understood.
Li Zha recalled the Fire-Tipped Spear, and Guang Long's corpse fell to the ground.
"Boss, keep making the pot-stewed beef."
Li Zha walked back to the shop entrance.
"Um, little brother, are you really not going to hide?" The shop owner was still a little worried.
"It's fine. I'll wait right here for Guang Biao."
Li Zha pulled out a table and simply sat down at the entrance.
Then Li Zha looked at Tang Wulin and the other two with a smile. "Do you want to hide? The one coming next is a Six-Ring Soul Emperor."
Tang Wulin sat straight down. "I'm not hiding. Li Zha, what you just did was brilliant! You're a true brother!"
Xie Xie gritted his teeth. "If none of you are afraid, what do I have to fear?!"
Naturally, Gu Yue would not leave either. She looked at Li Zha, growing increasingly curious about him.
Xie Xie took out a whole case of chilled beer.
He filled five glasses.
Xie Xie raised his glass. "Come on, bottoms up! Once we've eaten our fill and finished our drinks, the five of us will take on that Soul Emperor!"
Tang Wulin said earnestly, "Well said! With hearts and guts laid bare, together in life and death!"
The five of them clinked glasses.
"Hearts and guts laid bare?"
Li Zha looked at Gu Yue. Speaking of that really did make him hungry. He had never tasted a true dragon before.
As for humans, when Li Zha had still been ignorant in this life, an Evil Soul Master had already fed him some. The taste had been seared into his bones and engraved upon his heart.
This Gu Yue,
She was both human and dragon now. Surely she would be delicious.
The more Li Zha thought about it, the more he wanted a taste.
Sitting opposite Li Zha, Gu Yue felt alarm bells blaring in her heart.
Just then,
"Whoever killed my brother, get the hell out here!"
A furious roar erupted from the sky. A black mecha descended from above and landed before Li Zha.
Before you continue