Chapter 168: Bloody Fight
Chapter 168: Bloody Fight
Did last chapter’s montage trick Old Qiang?
No telling.
But even if it did, it wouldn’t take Old Qiang long to figure things out. He wouldn’t want to sit on that mosquito-filled hillside forever. One call to Huang Bo on the communicator would tell him what happened.
These three were desperate men, each more deceitful than the last.
So Li Zian needed to make a decision.
Take Huang Bo with him, hand him over to Liu Jun? Or escape with Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan?
Dragging Huang Bo out, Li Zian’s first thought was to take Huang Bo and deliver him to Liu Jun. Of course, he had a personal motive too: Question Huang Bo before handing him over. Extract some secrets about Lutu Company, and the Symbol’s secrets Huang Bo knew.
But opening the door, seeing the terrified faces of Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan, Li Zian hesitated.
What secret was more important than human lives?
Kang Xin and her father suffered this ordeal because of him. It was his duty to get them away, to safety. Taking Huang Bo along? Protecting the father and daughter became nearly impossible. Kang Xin was a student, Kang Haichuan a professor. Forcing them to face armed killers was practically sending them to their deaths.
“Uncle…” Kang Xin stared at Li Zian, tears welling instantly. “I… I thought something happened to you… I…”
Li Zian let go of Huang Bo’s ankle and offered comfort. “Don’t be afraid. I’ll take you out of here now. Can you walk?”
“I can.” Kang Xin stood, reaching to help her father.
Li Zian moved forward, grabbing Kang Haichuan’s arm to help him up.
Kang Haichuan could walk too.
Li Zian said, “I’ll make an emergency call, then we leave. Stay behind me. Don’t expose yourselves. Understood?”
“Uncle, are there more bad guys?” Kang Xin, who had calmed slightly, tensed again at his words.
Li Zian nodded. “There’s one more gunman outside. So stay close. Never expose yourselves.”
Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan exchanged a look, then nodded.
Li Zian pulled out his mobile phone to call Liu Jun, only to see no signal.
His heart sank.
Jammed signal? Or just too remote?
If it was jamming, things just got more complicated. The Divination result he got earlier echoed in his mind: The mantis catches the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind. Old Qiang wasn’t the oriole. The real oriole hadn’t shown itself yet.
“Uncle, no signal?” Kang Xin asked.
Li Zian didn’t answer. He crouched down, placing a hand on Huang Bo’s chest.
Zhenqi flowed out, Zhenqi flowed back.
He wasn’t trying to heal Huang Bo; just diagnosing his condition.
The returning Zhenqi brought details. Li Zian was stunned.
Huang Bo was practically a dead dog already. Unmoving. His heart beat slowly, dangerously. Worst were his lungs. Inhaling so much toxic smoke triggered a storm of inflammation within them. His immune system battled the poison, filling his lungs with phlegm and dead cells. His lungs were failing.
Li Zian withdrew his hand.
Huang Bo’s condition was critical. Immediate help might not save him.
And Li Zian had no intention of helping anyway.
Da Chui was definitely worse off, still trapped in the smoke-filled room. He’d inhaled far more toxin.
“Uncle, will he die?” Kang Xin whispered.
Li Zian nodded, rising. “We must leave. Stay close. Don’t step beyond my shoulders.”
Kang Xin pressed behind Li Zian. Kang Haichuan clung behind his daughter. A single file line formed.
They hadn’t gone far when a gurgling gasp came from behind.
Li Zian glanced back. Huang Bo’s legs kicked twice. Then nothing.
Huang Bo was dead.
Li Zian felt a chill inside. His first time poisoning someone with the Body-Poisoning Ointment. False Celestial Fragrance contained only a tenth of the dose. Yet its lethality shocked him.
He silently thanked his quick action; dragging Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan out, using Furnace Body Blood to detoxify them, reinforcing their organs with Zhenqi. Any later, they’d have been in grave danger.
Their position also helped. Cornered, low to the ground. Toxic smoke rose higher, slower to reach them.
He’d killed someone now. Would there be consequences?
He pushed the thought down. Saving lives came first. No time for regrets.
Beep beep beep—
The communicator sounded again from the room behind.
Someone was calling Huang Bo.
Li Zian quickened his pace. “Keep up.”
They entered the living room.
Suddenly, outside the French windows, stood two figures in diving suits. Each held a spear gun, peering into the living room.
Li Zian saw them. They saw him and the figures behind him.
“Take them!” one diver roared, raising his spear gun. He spoke English.
Li Zian understood, but had no time to wonder about their identities. He lifted his alloy toolbox, stepping instantly in front of Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan. In that split second, the toolbox unfolded—from a silver case to a silver Bulletproof Shield.
Crash!
A spear broke through the glass, slamming directly into the shield.
Thunk!
Sparks flew as the point hit the metal. The spear bounced off, clattering to the floor.
Almost simultaneously, a second spear shot towards Kang Haichuan.
Still adjusting his position behind his daughter, half his body jutted past the Bulletproof Shield.
The diver aimed straight for that exposed half.
At the critical moment, Li Zian’s right hand whipped the shield left, blocking Kang Haichuan.
Thunk! Sparks! The second spear ricocheted away.
Li Zian’s left hand caught the shield’s handle as it dipped, hoisting it before him again.
The two divers vaulted through the broken window. Military Knives flashed in their hands.
Li Zian saw them clearly now. Tall white men. Blue eyes. Arms thick with hair.
“Get down!” Li Zian yelled.
Kang Xin and Kang Haichuan flattened themselves instantly. Paralyzed by fear, they obeyed without question.
As they dropped, Li Zian charged.
One white man sneered. Right hand gripped the knife’s handle, blade pointing down. Crouched, knees bent. Ready.
The other circled sideways, knife ready to strike from Li Zian’s flank.
This coordination, these movements—they weren’t amateurs. Professional killers? Or highly trained soldiers?
Li Zian, shield raised, sprinted several steps. He stopped abruptly. His right arm snapped forward in an arc. Fist clenched. He punched—through the air—at the sneering diver.
The diver blinked, confused.
What the hell?
Was this guy playing Street Fighter? Throwing a wave fist?
The thought crossed his mind… just as an agonizing pain exploded from his gut and tore through his body. Thrown backward, he slid across the floor towards the shattered window. Broken glass sliced through the diving suit, cutting his flesh, shards embedding in his back and buttocks. A bright red smear followed him, like a bloody mop.
Crack!
His head slammed into the aluminum window track on the floor. It dragged across a shard of glass, ripping open his scalp and neck. Blood sprayed instantly, like a fountain, over a meter high. He stopped only when his shoulder hit the frame.
He wouldn’t be getting back up.
The second white man froze.
Two, three seconds ago, he’d planned his attack—the moment his partner engaged Li Zian, he’d strike from the flank. He’d picked his killing spots. He hadn’t believed it—that “wave fist” move? Just a video game! Until now.
“AHHH!” Kang Xin’s scream pierced the sudden silence. A sheltered university life hadn’t prepared her for such brutality.
Li Zian’s eyes locked onto the second diver.
The diver abruptly hurled his knife at Li Zian.
Left arm snapping up, the Bulletproof Shield covered Li Zian’s front.
Clang! The knife bounced off the shield.
As Li Zian blocked, the second diver spun and bolted for the broken window.
He wasn’t drunk. Fighting a guy who throws wave fists? Insane.
Li Zian didn’t chase. He snatched up a fallen spear from the floor. Winding up like a javelin thrower, he launched it, pouring Zhenqi into the throw.
It sped like an arrow. THUD! It pierced the diver’s shoulder.
Li Zian wasn’t a javelin pro. Aimed for the back, hit the shoulder.
“ARRGGH!” The diver screamed, falling out the window with the spear sticking through his shoulder. He lay still on the ground beyond.
He might not be dead.
Li Zian didn’t waste time checking. He spun back, pulling Kang Haichuan up. “Follow me! Stay behind! Remember that shoulder line!”
Kang Xin scrambled to her feet, face pale but nodding shakily.
Li Zian moved towards the door. As he walked, he drew a stick of sandalwood incense from inside the Bulletproof Shield. With his lighter, he lit it.
He had a feeling.
The real oriole was here. Very close.