Chapter 139: Arrival
Chapter 139: Arrival
The speed of a bullet at close range was simply impossible to resist with human strength.
No matter how skilled a boxer was, the speed of their punch could not surpass the speed of pulling a trigger.
Fang Jing naturally could not achieve this either, but before coming here, he knew that the members of the Takaha Group would definitely have guns—small-caliber handguns were a given, and there might even be self-defense pistols or possibly shotguns or rifles.
“If someone uses a gun against me from a distance, there is nothing I can do to defend myself, but as long as I get close enough, the threat to me decreases…”
In the critical moment of danger, he activated the “Inner Ghost Gate·Secret Essence Orifices” within his body. The secret technique of the Ghost Gate Art allowed one to fully explode their Secret Essence Orifices, which was completely different from partially opening them with stored energy.
Fully opening them could be activated in the blink of an eye, unlike the partially opened state, which required constant readiness to close.
Facing the threat of firearms, he did not hesitate to open the Inner Ghost Gate. Essence Qi rushed down from the crown of his head, instantly altering his five senses.
The surroundings appeared as if in slow motion. With a forceful stomp of his foot, the dust stirred up from the steps floated in the air, lingering visibly.
The expressions on the faces of the Takaha Group members at the stairwell became entirely clear.
He could see every movement of each person. Some reacted too slowly, just starting to reach into their inner jacket pockets.
Others held cigarettes in their hands, their expressions cold and indifferent.
Some panicked and fumbled to release the safety on the guns they were holding.
There were also thugs with ferocious expressions, glaring fiercely at him, though they had not yet drawn their guns.
It was a strange sensation. Fang Jing could perceive the airflow moving in the air, smell peculiar scents, and hear an abundance of sounds.
He could notice everyone’s micro-expressions, the angle of their gaze, and even predict the direction their gun barrels would point and the trajectory of the bullets.
His speed was definitely not faster than a bullet, but he knew he would win in the next second.
Boom!
Fang Jing, in his rapid motion, opened his mouth in a silent roar. His muscles abruptly swelled and bulged. He protected his head with his arms, and his entire body refracted like a flash of lightning.
Bang!
One bullet hit his right arm, but no blood splattered. The muscles of his right arm were as hard as iron, and beneath the skin, a purple membrane clamped the bullet in place.
The High Dragon Force flowed fiercely through his body, and his muscles, infused with surging energy, transformed into an impenetrable armor.
Whoosh!
Another bullet flew past his ear but did not harm him in the slightest.
His figure moved like a refracted beam of light, instantly reaching the top of the stairwell.
His five fingers turned into iron claws as he reached for the woman dressed as a waitress.
She reacted swiftly, throwing her gun at him while simultaneously striking with a fist. A hidden short blade slipped from between the fingers of her other hand.
Fang Jing let out a sinister laugh, neither dodging nor evading. His five fingers, poised like claws, shot out like lightning, twisting and breaking the other’s neck.
He then flung her forcefully. With a thud, she crashed into the wall on the right, as if hit by a speeding car, her head, hands, and feet twisted and bent.
At the same time, he charged into the crowd. The members of the Takaha Group were utterly unlucky. One person facing him took a slap to the face, shattering teeth and nasal bridge. Under the immense force of inertia, that person tumbled down the stairs.
Boom!
He threw a direct punch into another’s cheek. The force of the punch bent the neck at a 180-degree angle, accompanied by a sickening crack.
Someone tried to fire a gun but was instead struck first by his “Dark Dragon Force” punch.
Splat!
That person vomited blood profusely, with black blood oozing from all seven orifices.
Crack! Snap!
Loud bone-shattering sounds erupted from within his body, one after another, like a string of firecrackers.
The “Dark Dragon Force” executed by Fang Jing, with the Inner Ghost Gate activated, could penetrate every inch of the human body’s bones and joints, generating a horrifying explosive pressure that severed all vitality.
With a flick of his hand, Fang Jing generated a force of “overturning” and “throwing.” The tall body of his opponent flew through the air and, upon landing, collapsed limply to the ground as if without any bone support.
In that instant, a living person was shattered, broken, and lay fallen on the ground.
Huff!
After literally “bursting” a person, Fang Jing exhaled a breath. His abdomen contracted and expanded as he lowered his stance, swiftly moved his feet, and spun around, striking out with both fists.
This time, he faced a group of armed enemies, so he could not afford to hold back as he had on the baseball field earlier.
The power of his punches, thrown with both hands, was like an overwhelming tide crashing into the crowd, breaking tendons and bones with extreme ferocity.
Thump!
A drum-like sound emanated from the flesh and skin, a result of the expelled Dark Dragon Force.
Any ordinary person hit by such a punch would either have broken limbs or suffer internal organ displacement and spit blood from the shockwaves generated by the boxing technique.
Three or four people were sent flying by a single punch, either dying on the spot or left dazed, ears ringing, paralyzed on the ground unable to move.
From the moment Fang Jing charged up the stairs to him killing several people in succession, the entire fight lasted only a few seconds.
Starting with the woman dressed as a waitress and including the thugs of the Takaha Group, he had killed seven or eight of them. The remaining few lay on the ground, eyes rolled back, having fainted.
In other words, this group had just noticed Fang Jing stepping onto the stairs and were about to draw their guns when Fang Jing rushed up and, with a series of punches and kicks, either killed or knocked them out—utterly brutal.
“This is the true purpose of martial arts. Martial methods are killing methods, ferocious methods. Martial arts that do not kill only serve to strengthen the body. But the question is… if you just want to strengthen your body, why practice martial arts?”
This was the Ghost Gate Art of the Huanzang Style. A martial artist who cultivated it to its peak, once their body’s Esoteric Energy Pores were opened, seemed to push open the “Ghost God Gate” symbolizing the limits of the human body.
The power pursued by such martial artists was the ultimate. Generations of Huanzang Style practitioners had researched and developed this technique.
The predecessors of the Huanzang Style believed that using this secret technique could allow a martial artist’s brief life to burn brilliantly in the pursuit of martial arts perfection.
“The power of a martial artist is meant for ‘conflict.'”
Fang Jing completely understood this now. He remembered the questions Sakaki Tetsuhei had asked him before, and his mind suddenly felt clear.
The muscles in his right arm twitched, and the bullet was “squeezed” out from the muscle.
Only a very shallow bullet mark remained on his arm.
After killing several people—no, actually, at the same time he killed the female waitress, while ending her life, he felt something being drawn out from within her. When he came to his senses, he realized it was a Miscellaneous Fate.
“So that’s how it is… just as I guessed. This thing called Fate Grade isn’t just found in monsters; even ordinary people have it… No, perhaps it’s only limited to monsters transformed from humans.”
The concept of Fate Grade originated from the game called “Peerless Fate.” Fate Grade represented a person’s destiny trend, originally just a fictional concept, but now it seemed it might actually exist in this world.
It appeared he didn’t need to specifically go kill monsters; even killing ordinary people could yield Miscellaneous Fate.
(However, I’m not a bloodthirsty person, and I couldn’t indiscriminately kill others just to become stronger.)
Glancing at the unlucky ones on the ground, who had their heads struck and now had white foam dripping from their mouths with eyes rolled back, Fang Jing had no intention of finishing them off.
He strode forward, moving towards the corridor on the second floor.
————————
“What happened?”
That was the first thought that crossed the minds of everyone in the billiard room upon hearing the gunshots.
Suddenly, the locked door was kicked flying off its hinges. Inside the billiard room, the members of the Takaha Group instantly drew their guns and stood up.
At that very moment, a black shadow came hurtling in—it was a dead body, thrown inside. It flew through the air and crashed down, shattering a glass coffee table.
With a loud shattering sound, the glass table broke apart, sending countless glass fragments flying in all directions.
While dodging the shards, everyone raised their guns and fired.
Several bullets shot towards the direction of the doorway.
Fang Jing, charging into the billiard room, grabbed the iron door nearby, gripped the handle, and yanked it off, wielding it like a shield as he sprinted forward with all his might.
He took a step that surpassed the limits of what an ordinary person could achieve. His body cut through the air, howling like a steam locomotive blaring its whistle, crashing towards everyone present.
The pupils of the Takaha Group members in the billiard room instantly contracted!
They all shared the same illusion—as if they were standing on railroad tracks watching a train rush towards them. Instinctively, they wanted to retreat; no one dared to stand and block him head-on.
Anyone who rushed forward now would die!