Chapter 115: Shadow Following

Lin Mu didn’t look back to see who it was. The corner of his mouth lifted slightly. He stepped back, swung his shoulder through a half-circle, and suddenly slammed it into the chest of the person sneaking up behind him.

The impact was infused with Zhenqi. The person behind him was sent flying without surprise.

Only then did Lin Mu slowly turn around. He looked at the middle-aged boss now collapsed in a pile of shattered wood.

Over at another side, the boss’s wife who had been wiping a table seemed stunned by the scene. She only reacted when the boss crashed into a table and broke it.

With a sharp cry, she pulled a dagger from her waist. Slipping through the space, she sprang straight at Lin Mu.

Lin Mu didn’t even turn his head. He simply slapped the dagger out of her hand. Then he stepped in and slapped her chest, knocking her out cold.

“You, who exactly are you?”

Looking at the boss, who was too stunned to speak, Lin Mu gave a cold smile. “Noodles like these are truly awful. Opening a restaurant with such lousy skills? You can’t seriously serve customers like that, right?”

Facing Lin Mu’s teasing question, the boss didn’t reply. Slapping the ground with one hand, he flipped to his feet and charged again, letting out a loud roar.

“Pull back!”

As soon as the word fell, faint footsteps seemed to come from the restaurant’s upstairs.

Lin Mu glanced briefly at the ceiling, paying no attention to the boss’s desperate attack.

Just as the boss reached him, Lin Mu sidestepped lightly. His figure instantly blurred. When he reappeared, he was already behind the boss. A swift Hand Blade chopped down on the boss’s neck.

The boss, only slightly stronger than an ordinary human, was no match for Lin Mu. Facing Lin Mu alone, armed only with a small dagger, he stood no chance.

As the boss went limp, Lin Mu grabbed his collar. He felt along the jawline, a look of understanding flashing across his face.

Lin Mu’s fingers searched along the boss’s jaw for a second. Then, he seemed to catch something along its edge. With a slight tug, a thin, polymer-leather mask peeled off the boss’s face.

Stripped of his disguise, the boss instantly revealed his true face: a European Caucasian.

“No surprise there. Seems this little village has been secretly taken over by you lot, huh?” Lin Mu muttered to himself.

He then walked over to the unconscious boss’s wife. From her face too, he peeled off an advanced polymer mask.

These high-tech polymer-leather masks commanded an extremely high price on the black market. Made with cutting-edge science, combined with expert makeup skills, they could completely transform a person’s face into another’s within five minutes.

Typically, only spies on infiltration or assassination missions used such tools. Lin Mu had only heard of them during his training with the Dragon Protection Corps. He’d never expected to see one actually used.

The disturbance in the small restaurant alarmed the Donghai Municipal Bureau officers monitoring from a distance. Through remote observation tools, they witnessed the scene and immediately reported it to Shen Zhuguang.

Shen Zhuguang was still en route. Hearing the report, he thought briefly, then commanded sharply: “Close in immediately. Let no one escape!”

Receiving Shen Zhuguang’s order, the nearest squad of Donghai City Special Police advance team members immediately charged. Closing in from all sides, they rushed towards the small restaurant. But by the time they stormed inside, the place was empty.

The boss’s accomplices upstairs, having received his earlier retreat signal, instantly withdrew without hesitation.

Every one of them moved fast. They escaped through the rear windows, climbing and vaulting over walls with remarkable agility. Before the Special Police cordon could fully form, they had already broken out.

If only the Special Police had been pursuing them today, these individuals might well have escaped entirely.

Sadly for them, Lin Mu was on their tail. Trying to outpace him? It wouldn’t be fair to say no one on Earth could surpass him, but at least no such expert existed within this fleeing group.

Ten people escaped the building: six Europeans and four Asians. Outwardly, they looked perfectly normal.

But Lin Mu sensed their danger from their agile movements and the aura they emanated. Dropped among ordinary people, they’d be like tigers in a herd of sheep.

The burly European man leading the way seemed to be their leader. Suddenly, he slammed to a stop, signaling with his hand. Everyone behind halted in unison.

He sensed immense pressure emanating from the door ahead. Someone had moved faster than them, cutting off their path.

Over the past day, they’d realized Donghai Municipal Bureau had them under surveillance. They’d planned to mess with the detectives. But the enemy had escalated, deploying large numbers of Special Police.

While they were far stronger than ordinary people, facing a large group of paramilitary forces? The outcome was obvious – they weren’t bulletproof.

Now, with someone blocking the front and swarms of pursuers behind? Any delay meant hundreds of Special Police would soon surround this place.

“Kill him!”

A flash of killing intent shone in light blue eyes. The leader hissed the order.

Two figures behind him leaped forward instantly, charging towards the door.

Lin Mu stood behind that door. After using his Lightness Skill, his speed easily surpassed theirs. Taking a longer detour he’d cut around and intercepted them earlier.

He didn’t rush to attack. Only when he sensed the two almost upon the door did he finally act.

A single palm slapped the door. Violent Zhenqi instantly shattered the entire door into flying splinters.

A cloud of wooden shards blasted towards the group. Lin Mu flashed forward right behind the debris, darting past the wreckage and into the room.

The two charging ahead didn’t flinch at the storm of wood. They simply blocked with one arm, daggers clutched tight in their other hands. Working as a seamless pair, one darted left, the other right.

In the blink of an eye, they had Lin Mu pincered. Their daggers flashed like streaks of lightning, every slash fierce and relentless.

Dancing with coordinated steps, left and right, they flashed their blades around him. Their simultaneous, close-quarters onslaught seemed to leave Lin Mu cornered, with no room to retreat.

But Lin Mu finally moved. His right hand shot out, fingers spread. Like lightning, it clamped onto one attacker’s dagger-wielding wrist. A twist, a sidestep, a pull – instantly controlling the man’s arm.

Lin Mu forced it backwards. A hard clash rang out as his controlled arm parried the other attacker’s slashing dagger! Clang! Sparks flew from the high-quality carbon steel blades.

Using the deflection, Lin Mu’s hand was already following like its shadow. Like a sudden gust, it whipped towards the first attacker. His earlier dodges had made them underestimate him.

Intent only on quick kills, they neglected their defense. Their fierce strikes left openings Lin Mu exploited instantly. One palm slammed firmly into the center of the first man’s chest.

The motion seemed deceptively light, but the force behind it was terrifying. Masters who Cultivated Zhenqi fought with effortless grace. Their lethality came from this powerful inner energy.

Muscle strength was almost irrelevant to them. Zhenqi-driven destruction was astounding.

The hit man flew sideways as if struck by a speeding car. He crashed into two others behind him before tumbling across the ground several times.

After a few twitches, he fell still. The two knocked over managed to struggle back to their feet.

From the moment they slashed at Lin Mu to the first man being blasted away – despite the barrage of blade strikes like flashes of lightning – only ten seconds had passed.

The leader was still avoiding the flying wood splinters. He thought the two fighting the young man could at least detain him long enough to provide cover.

He hadn’t expected, barely a moment later, one was already airborne. If not for his quick reflexes ducking low, he’d have been barreled over too.

During his pause, Lin Mu struck again. His hand weaved like a butterfly through blossoms, becoming a blur. Then it settled lightly onto the chest of the second attacker.

This time, the man didn’t fly back. Stuck where he stood, a trickle of blood seeped from his mouth. Then he slowly crumpled to the ground.

The leader’s heart lurched. We underestimated his strength! Forget stealth now.

His hand flew to his waist, pulling out a pistol. He began bringing it up to shoot.

Lin Mu vanished… reappearing instantly right before him. One hand shot out. A single finger jammed firmly behind the trigger.

The leader strained to pull the trigger. But Lin Mu was too close, too immovable. Locked in the strength contest, beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

Though Lin Mu seemed less bulky than the leader, his inner power vastly eclipsed it. Close-range struggle? Victory was Lin Mu’s.

Meeting the leader’s gaze, Lin Mu smiled faintly. His right hand snapped down and twisted sharply. Snap! Crackle! Three fingers holding the gun broke cleanly.

The bone cracks were crisp. At the joints, even the white bone edges were faintly visible.

Knowing he couldn’t win, the leader instantly chose retreat. His free hand snatched a dagger – a defensive cover as he lunged backwards.

But against Lin Mu? If you couldn’t win, you couldn’t flee either.

Lin Mu’s palm pushed forward… falling just short of the leader. Seeing Lin Mu strike air, the leader’s mouth curved into a smirk. Got away just in time!

Lin Mu saw the smile and smiled back too. A faint tremor ran up his arm, Zhenqi pulsing into his palm.

As if struck by lightning, the leader jerked violently. His whole body flung backwards and crashed heavily to the ground.