Make Sure You Hold Me Back

City Seven, southern outskirts.

A dark, sluggish river wound around a vast stretch of wasteland, with only a few old trees scattered across the ground. Ahead stood a tall factory building, rumbling within.

Guo Yang, who had only one arm left, brought Yue Wen and Zhao Xing'er outside the factory and pointed ahead. "This is it. I used to come here to work every day."

"Still working this late? That's downright inhumane," Zhao Xing'er murmured, looking at the brightly lit factory.

Yue Wen stole a glance at her expression, unsure whether that comment included herself, since she was working overtime too.

For some reason, becoming a boss had suddenly made him much more suspicious.

He could even sympathize with Boss Cao now.

Maybe paranoia was an occupational hazard of leadership.

"He's not even human!" Guo Yang cursed again, then continued, "Once we're inside, besides keeping me safe, sorry for the trouble, but please hold me back too. I'm afraid that if he deliberately provokes me, I won't be able to stop myself from lashing out and doing something we can't undo! The most important thing today is getting my son back. I can put up with anything else."

"No problem," Yue Wen agreed.

"Don't worry, sir." Zhao Xing'er nodded too. "We'll definitely keep things under control."

"You have to hold me back. Otherwise, you really have no idea... what a desperate father might do." Guo Yang took a deep breath, looked straight ahead, and puffed out his chest.

He knew his way around the place, leading them through the factory's side entrance and straight up to the second-floor office. After knocking and getting the door opened, they saw a balding, obese older man in glasses sitting in an executive chair.

The classic image of an unscrupulous boss.

Behind his desk stood two men in black suits and sunglasses, arms folded across their chests. Both were tall and burly, with brutish faces, restrained vital energy, and abundant vitality. They were undoubtedly cultivators.

Yue Wen and Zhao Xing'er folded their arms too, facing them down.

Guo Yang, who had barely managed to muster some courage, immediately began to hunch again. Compared with the vicious-looking gangsters opposite them, the two young people on his side looked more like well-behaved college students.

"President Chen," he called weakly.

"Well, if it isn't old Guo." The fat boss glanced sideways at him and lifted his chin. "Where'd you find these two youngsters? Relatives of yours?"

"I brought them to help, President Chen..."

Guo Yang offered no further introduction. He was afraid that saying he'd hired cultivators to deal with his boss would only upset President Chen.

"Shut up and listen first." President Chen frowned, cutting Guo Yang off, then leaned back leisurely. "All that's between us is a little matter of money. There's no need to make things ugly, right?"

"Yes, President Chen," Guo Yang said humbly. "I started working for you the second year after you built this factory. It's been almost ten years, and I've always worked hard. Back when we were promoting the factory, I took everyone out to hand out flyers in the freezing snow. We did it for free, and I never complained. Even if I haven't accomplished much for the company, I've certainly put in the work."

"I know." President Chen waved a hand. "I've seen all your hard work. You've certainly given a lot to this factory. That's why I'm saying you should think about me a little more and be more understanding of my difficulties. How can you keep coming here to make trouble?"

"President Chen, I'm not making trouble. I lost my arm, and I'm waiting on the compensation to get surgery. That's why..." Guo Yang explained.

"If you're the only one who has an accident and asks me for money, I can pay. But what if everyone asks me for money? Am I supposed to pay them all? If everyone who's had an accident at our factory over the years comes asking for money, can I afford that? You can't be so selfish!" President Chen raised his voice, his face stern. "All you lost was an arm. What I'm losing is my career!"

"You!" Guo Yang clenched his teeth, his chest heaving.

Watching him bully an honest man like this, even Yue Wen felt anger rising inside him.

He glanced at Zhao Xing'er and found her expression blank. This girl's really even-tempered.

But remembering what Guo Yang had asked of them before they came, Yue Wen quietly suppressed the urge to punch the man and decided to watch a little longer.

"Ahem." One of the burly men in sunglasses behind the desk cleared his throat and said, "President Chen is a friend of our Tiger Head Gang. Anyone who makes trouble for him is making trouble for us..."

He gradually drew out his words, making the threat unmistakable.

"Heh, heh." President Chen gave a nasty chuckle. "Old Guo, I know your family situation very well. Even if you won't think of yourself, you ought to think of your son, shouldn't you?"

"So it really was you!" Guo Yang sprang to his feet and glared at the fat man, his eyes nearly bursting with rage. "Where have you taken my son?!"

"What are you talking about? I'm a law-abiding business-" President Chen flatly denied it.

But before he could finish, a white blur shot toward him.

"Hah!"

A fist glowing red slammed into his fat cheek, caving his face in instantly. As the force drove his face backward, the rest of his body followed, lifting into the air.

-BOOM!

President Chen's head was embedded completely in the wall several meters behind him, his limbs twitching in midair. When his attacker pulled her fist away from his face, it even made a popping sound.

The figure standing beside the wall wore a blouse and long skirt, an outfit that should have looked delicate and refined. Now, however, her entire body was shrouded in a red glow like demonic flames, her skirt and long hair whipping wildly. She looked unspeakably ferocious.

It was none other than Zhao Xing'er!

The pretty young woman who looked the most fragile of everyone present had struck first, planting President Chen in the wall with a single punch.

Even Yue Wen beside her hadn't reacted in time, much less the two burly men from the Tiger Head Gang.

Only after several stunned seconds did the two men shout together, "How dare you attack him!"

Yue Wen gave them no chance to pounce on Zhao Xing'er. He sprang forward, becoming another blur as he unleashed the Wandering Dragon Hand.

These gang enforcers practiced tough, brute-force martial arts. The man on the left roared and raised both arms, force swirling around them. Yue Wen drove a kick straight into his chest and sent him flying.

A tiger's phantom rose behind the man on the right as he roared and lashed out with his claws. Yue Wen blocked with his wrist. The man grabbed the Flying Sword Bracelet, which instantly broke through his protective force. Blood sprayed as he screamed, "Aaah..."

Before the cry could finish, Yue Wen followed with a classic knife-hand strike, knocking him unconscious on the spot.

These two men looked intimidating, but their cultivation was only in the first realm, and they had learned just a few clumsy martial arts techniques. They could bully ordinary people well enough, but against actual cultivators, to put it nicely, they were like a stray

dog by the roadside, easily kicked to death before it could even get out a full yelp.

To put it less nicely, they couldn't put up any resistance at all.

After dealing with the two men, Yue Wen hurried over to stop Zhao Xing'er.

The young woman was now wreathed in red light, as though she'd activated some kind of berserk mode. Embedding President Chen in the wall with one punch hadn't been enough. She pulled him out and punched him in the head again.

"You heartless bastard! Refusing compensation to an injured worker! Hah!" she cursed, throwing another punch.

BOOM!

Guo Yang watched, dumbstruck. When he'd accepted that flyer, how could he have imagined this young woman was so powerful?

"You've got money to pay protection fees to gangsters, but none for compensation? Hah!" Zhao Xing'er cursed again, her features twisting savagely as she punched.

Another punch. BOOM!

The wall had been punched clean through, and President Chen's dangling limbs no longer even twitched.

Guo Yang grew frightened and hurried forward to plead, "Miss Zhao, stop hitting him! He still has my son!"

"Right, and you kidnapped his son! Hah!" Blazing red light shone from Zhao Xing'er's eyes. She cursed again and landed another punch, shaking the entire building.

BOOM!

"I wasn't reminding you to punch him again!" Guo Yang wanted to hold her back, but didn't dare get too close.

"And making employees hand out flyers for free! Hah!" Zhao Xing'er cursed again. Red flames erupted as her arm swung like a windmill.

BOOM!

"That one's fine! I don't mind that!" Guo Yang shouted.

Instead, Yue Wen, who had come to break up the fight, flushed, gave a couple of awkward chuckles, and scratched his forehead.

Guo Yang grabbed him with his one hand and said urgently, "Stop laughing, Boss Yue! Hurry up and talk her down!"

That was exactly what Yue Wen had come to do. He quickly shouted too, "Zhao, stop! You'll have to pay for anything you break!"

"Is property damage really the issue here?" Guo Yang turned toward him in shock.

What's wrong with you people at this agency?

"Broken stuff... take it out of my base salary! Shibal!" Zhao Xing'er's features twisted as she roared and swung another punch.

BOOM!

Through the crack in the wall, they could see that President Chen's piglike head had already been flattened.

Yue Wen said urgently, "But don't forget, your base salary is only three thousand! How could that cover it?!"

"Is money really the issue here, you two?" Guo Yang clutched his head in despair beside them. "We all know murder is illegal, right?"

He stared helplessly at that flattened pig's head. Someone save him... no, someone save me! Will this count as hiring a hitman? Sure, I did hire them, but I only paid five hundred.

That doesn't buy this much, does it?!

"Shoryuken!"

Wait, how are you still punching him while we're talking?

Now he truly was a desperate father.

Good heavens.

Someone come hold her back!!!