Chapter 24: Subside
Chapter 24: Subside
Her breathing was steady, as if she was sound asleep, but he couldn’t seem to wake her up.
He was crouched in front of his sister when a figure slowly rose behind him. At that moment, as if sensing something, Fang Jing heard a gust of vicious wind rush past his ears. Reacting swiftly, he quickly embraced his sister and crashed onto the sofa. Their combined weight caused the sofa to tip over.
Squelch!
Someone was swinging a knife, stabbing into the sofa and piercing a large hole. A flurry of feathers burst out.
Fang Jing roared angrily and pushed the entire sofa upward with all his might.
With a loud crash, the sofa slammed toward Tanaka on the other side. Tanaka leaned slightly to the side, stumbling backward and falling to the ground as the sofa flipped over. It shattered a beige coffee table nearby and the vase on top, sending a chaotic clatter of broken pieces flying.
(Bad! There’s danger!)
A sudden warning flashed in his mind. Fang Jing saw a gleam of white light and abruptly stepped back, startled to find his sleeve torn open by the sharp blade.
Tanaka, who had clearly been knocked down, struggled to his feet like a zombie. He gripped a bloodstained kitchen knife with both hands, slowly advancing toward Fang Jing.
At that moment, the Bamboo Sword lay discarded nearby, leaving Fang Jing defenseless and unarmed.
He couldn’t retreat! Satsuki was right behind him.
Fang Jing wasn’t weak enough to flee now. He took a deep breath, pushed aside all distracting thoughts, and bravely took a step forward.
Swish!
Seeing Fang Jing step closer, Tanaka first thrust the knife forward. Fang Jing neither dodged nor retreated. Instead, he pulled out his Phone and hurled it directly at Tanaka’s face.
The move wasn’t particularly clever, but it at least made his opponent flustered.
Surprisingly, Tanaka didn’t even block it. The Phone hit him square in the face, yet his pace didn’t slow in the slightest.
Just from the impact of the Phone, his center of gravity tilted slightly to the right.
At the same time, Fang Jing’s forward step perfectly aligned with the “Cat-Foot Stance” of the Gōjū-ryū style.
The Cat-Foot Stance, also known as the Cat-Foot Posture, involves bending the back leg and lightly touching the ground with the toes of the front leg.
This stance focused on blending illusion and reality, allowing fluid transitions between left and right or even switching to other postures.
Moreover, it enabled quick, agile movements, reminiscent of a cat pouncing on a mouse.
Choosing this stance naturally set up Fang Jing for a “Front Kick” attack. However, such a kick was extremely perilous, given his opponent’s bladed weapon.
If Tanaka had been unarmed, there would be little concern; even if Fang Jing missed, he could always retreat to defend.
But with Tanaka wielding a knife, kicking recklessly would be foolish indeed.
A single casual slash from Tanaka could easily cripple Fang Jing’s leg.
However, this time Fang Jing didn’t fully extend his kick. What “flew” out wasn’t his foot, but his shoe.
He swung his leg, kicking off his shoe with full force as if aiming Tanaka’s head like a goalpost.
Smack!
The flying shoe struck Tanaka’s cheek, causing his knife-hand to waver and momentarily halting his movement.
Each action was aimed at disrupting the enemy’s rhythm. Fang Jing seemed to have an innate talent for combat, instinctively knowing how to handle precarious situations.
In the next second, he leaped forward with a furious shout, throwing a reverse punch. At that angle, Tanaka couldn’t stab effectively, so he swiftly swung the knife instead. Fang Jing’s punch, perfectly timed, collided with Tanaka’s knife-holding fingers.
Crack!
Fang Jing heard the sound of shattering finger bones and watched as Tanaka’s knife flew away.
Without hesitation, Fang Jing launched a fierce assault. A spiraling inner fist struck Tanaka squarely in the face, followed by a relentless barrage of punches, treating Tanaka like a training sandbag.
He held nothing back this time; Tanaka was too dangerous and had to be subdued with full force.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!…
Each punch landed solidly, without any restraint. Tanaka resembled a target riddled by relentless bullets, his body faltering and staggering as if he might collapse at any moment.
Huff!
Fang Jing stopped his assault to avoid potentially killing Tanaka. Self-defense was one thing; excessive force was another.
He sure is sturdy. Most ordinary people wouldn’t still be standing after such a beating.
Tanaka remained firmly on his feet, but what happened next left even the ever-composed Fang Jing gaping in disbelief.
At some point, black tears began streaming from Tanaka’s eyes. He opened his mouth desperately, as wide as if his jaw had broken.
Gah… gah!
He seemed to be trying to say something, but in the next instant, black water gushed from his mouth.
Splash!
Like a sandcastle suddenly collapsing, Tanaka dissolved right before Fang Jing’s eyes, rapidly turning into a pile of black “soot,” melting away entirely.
Fang Jing stumbled back, nearly falling, but managed to steady himself by placing a hand against the wall.
He dissolved? This man dissolved? How is that possible?
No matter how hard it was to accept, the reality had unfolded right in front of him.
Nothing remained on the ground. Tanaka, along with his clothes, coat, and everything he wore, had all turned into a pile of black ashes.
Clatter!
A Wooden Buddha Statue rolled into view from the side. It was a charred wooden carving, originally placed on the beige coffee table and knocked to the floor in the turmoil.
This Wooden Buddha Statue… why…?
Fang Jing reached out to pick it up, but before his fingers could touch it, the statue disintegrated into dust, just like Tanaka.
He slumped to the floor. This time, he truly couldn’t explain what had just happened.
——————————————
Resolving the immediate crisis didn’t mean all issues had subsided.
Fang Jing understood clearly: the murderer Tanaka was indeed dead. But now, did he need to report this to the police?
Mrs. Tanaka was also dead, and… Tanaka turned into a pile of ashes. Damn it, how can I possibly explain this situation?
If he told the police the truth—that Tanaka had been killed by him, and after being beaten, turned into something like soot—what would they think?
Ha! If you were a policeman, would you believe such nonsense?
Trouble! Even if I omit that part and claim I was the first to discover the scene, the police would still consider me a suspect.
Plus, the scene was littered with traces of him: footprints inside the house, signs of struggle everywhere.
If the police focused on him, how could he clear all these suspicions?
Even with his sharp mind, he couldn’t think of a good solution.
False accusations and wrongful convictions were not uncommon around the world. No matter how advanced investigative techniques became, there was always a chance of accusing the wrong person…