Just as Wei Chang’an and his n were about to make their move, Chen Chuan walked out of the grain and oil shop. He glanced toward the trade market and saw two groups of people fighting.
It seed to be a dispute between a stall owner and a custor, and many nearby stall owners had joined in to help. But the crowd of onlookers was growing, and it was no longer possible to see the situation clearly.
Cai Si said a few words to the shopkeeper. The shopkeeper nodded, called over an employee, and told him to go check on the situation in the back.
Chen Chuan looked back at the building again. Just then, he suddenly saw soone leap out of a fourth-floor window. In mid-air, the person grabbed the windowsill with a reverse grip, let go, and landed on the ground with a roll to absorb the impact before getting to their feet. They then sprinted toward their street at an incredible speed.
"It’s Fast Legs Tian Yaozu!"
Cai Si saw the man too. He imdiately said, "Junior Brother, I’ll go head him off. You stay back and watch. Don’t let him slip past." As he spoke, he charged forward, simultaneously unfastening a modified belt from his waist.
Chen Chuan followed his instructions, standing back to block the path.
Seeing soone blocking his way, Tian Yaozu imdiately pulled a dagger from his waist and lunged at Cai Si, stabbing at him.
Cai Si whipped his belt, lashing out at Tian Yaozu’s hand. Tian Yaozu quickly retracted his arm and instinctively ducked. A fierce gust of wind swept over his head. Sensing sothing was still wrong, he took another step back. The belt buckle scraped past his knee, narrowly missing him.
Startled, Tian Yaozu retreated several steps and glared ahead in shock and anger. He saw Cai Si pull the belt taut between his hands with a sharp SNAP, his expression calm as he watched him.
Chen Chuan had a clear view from the back. ’That quick whip technique from Senior Brother Cai was beautiful. If Tian Yaozu hadn’t retreated so quickly, he would have been struck down. The man certainly lives up to his moniker, Fast Legs. Still, it’s just a belt. If it were a real whip, Tian Yaozu would have had nowhere to run.’
After forcing Tian Yaozu back, Cai Si didn’t advance. He simply maintained a certain distance from his opponent. His belt had a longer reach than the dagger, so as long as he controlled the distance, the other man couldn’t touch him.
Tian Yaozu, however, was getting desperate. He didn’t know how many people were involved in their capture, and the longer he stayed put, the more dangerous it beca. He stared at Cai Si for a few monts, then his face suddenly twisted with ferocity. He charged forward head-on, raising a hand to block. The belt instantly cracked against his shielding arm, shredding the fabric and leaving a bloody gash.
The belt’s non-lethal weakness was exposed. By taking the hit, he had closed the distance. Cai Si frowned. Instead of clashing head-on, he dodged aside. Tian Yaozu paid him no mind, darting past like a gust of wind. In the blink of an eye, he was seven or eight ters away. Cai Si quickly shouted a warning to Chen Chuan behind him, "Junior Brother, be careful!"
He rembered Wei Chang’an’s words—this junior brother was far from simple and could be trusted at a critical mont. That was why he’d chosen to let him pass.
Chen Chuan watched Tian Yaozu charge at him, standing his ground without moving. Seeing him blocking the middle of the path, empty-handed, Tian Yaozu’s courage surged. With a wild roar, he lunged forward, thrusting his dagger at Chen Chuan five or six tis in quick succession.
However, Chen Chuan’s footwork was incredibly swift. He precisely dodged every strike. For every step Tian Yaozu took forward, Chen Chuan took one step back, perfectly matching his opponent’s pace. It looked as if the distance between them never changed. And at that mont, Tian Yaozu’s breathing hitched.
This was the mont Chen Chuan had been waiting for. He shot out a hand and seized Tian Yaozu’s wrist with unerring accuracy.
Normally, grabbing an opponent’s dagger hand was extrely dangerous; one could easily get their own wrist slit in return. However, the instant he made contact, the Mutated Organization within his body pulsed in layers, sending a surge of Power that instantly perated the man. Tian Yaozu’s entire body went numb.
Chen Chuan then gave his hand a gentle shake. Faint CRACKING sounds ca from Tian Yaozu’s arm. In that single instant, Chen Chuan had dislocated all the joints in his arm, from the wrist and elbow all the way to the shoulder.
Cai Si blurted out, "Python Body Force!"
Chen Chuan then yanked Tian Yaozu’s arm, pulling him in close, and slamd an elbow into his solar plexus. Tian Yaozu grunted in pain and fell to his knees, his body pitching forward until his forehead touched the ground, where he lay writhing.
Cai Si imdiately rushed over, planted a foot on Tian Yaozu’s head, and twisted his arms behind his back. He then used his belt to bind them securely. Only then did he look up and say joyfully, "Well done, Junior Brother! Tian Yaozu is fast on his feet. If I were alone, stopping him wouldn’t have been so easy."
’He had seen it clearly. Chen Chuan’s dodges were unnaturally fast, almost as if he was perfectly matching the distance of Tian Yaozu’s steps. That was sothing only possible if you were much faster than your opponent. Plus, he had the guts to face a blade head-on. Those two points alone put him leagues ahead of most cadets still in the academy. No wonder Wei Chang’an held this junior brother in such high regard.’
Just as they were speaking, a loud BOOM suddenly echoed from a distance. The two involuntarily looked over and saw a huge hole appear in the wall of the fourth floor of the tall building. A figure then fell out of it.
In mid-air, the figure first tucked into a ball, then straightened out, hooking the windowsill with one hand. After swinging a couple of tis, he let go, landed with a few rolls, and stood up completely unhard. It was Wei Chang’an.
He looked a bit of a ss, though. He was covered in dust from head to toe, and his clothes were badly torn.
Cai Si looked up and saw a tall figure appear in the hole in the wall. His voice was grave. "Scarface!"
Chen Chuan saw the man too. He was wearing a grayish-blue work coat and holding a machete that had been snapped in half. In his other hand was a sledgehamr. A scar ran from his forehead to the corner of his mouth, looking like a ferocious centipede clinging to his face. Chen Chuan estimated the man was over two ters tall, but there was an indescribable disharmony about his physique.
As they watched, Scarface glanced forward, took a single step, and smashed right through the wall blocking his path. He then jumped straight down from the fourth floor. THUD! The concrete ground cracked beneath his feet, but he acted as if nothing had happened, rely bending his knees slightly before straightening up again.
Wei Chang’an had already retreated to the street corner. He yelled up to a person who had peeked over the edge of the fourth-floor roof, "Tell the n from the Boxing Club to help hold back the crowd! Don’t let anyone get near this area!"
The person signaled that they understood and quickly ducked back out of sight.
Wei Chang’an then said to Scarface, "Scarface, you’re not getting away today. Don’t put up a pointless struggle."
Scarface ignored him, tightened his grip on his weapons, and started walking forward.
At that mont, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed from all around. The n stationed to the south were now converging on their position.
Cai Si noticed that a large crowd of onlookers was surging over from the direction of the trade market. Although n had been assigned to hold them back, it looked like they couldn’t manage. He said a word to Chen Chuan and ran back to help.
Chen Chuan remained where he was, his eyes repeatedly sizing up Scarface.
After running back, Cai Si shouted at the approaching crowd, "Patrol Bureau business! Stand back! Stand back!" The Patrol Bureau’s na was intimidating enough to make most people retreat. Only a middle-aged woman remained at the front, craning her neck forward as if she hadn’t heard.
He frowned and walked over, saying, "Didn’t you hear..." Before he could finish, the middle-aged woman flicked a kick up from under her skirt, aiming for his ankle. Cai Si reacted instantly, raising his knee to dodge the blow. But the woman then threw her hand up, flinging a cloud of flour at him.
Caught off guard, Cai Si squeezed his eyes shut, but so of the powder still got in. He remained calm, however. He covered his throat with one hand and his groin with the other. Almost simultaneously, he felt his lower hand block a vicious kick, while his upper hand was pricked by sothing sharp. At this mont, instead of retreating, he threw his whole body forward and slamd into her!
The middle-aged woman hadn’t expected him to be so ferocious even while blinded. The collision knocked her off balance. She brought two fingers of her lower hand together and, using the sharp steel nails on them, stabbed at his abdon. With her Power, she only needed to break the skin to shove her entire hand inside and rip him open!
But when she stabbed, she felt a resistance. She froze for a second, then realization dawned. ’Anti-stabbing Armor?’
Although they didn’t have Armor Certificates and couldn’t wear bulletproof Protective Clothing for this operation, getting a few pieces of Anti-stabbing Armor was no problem.
Cai Si seized the opportunity, wrapping both arms around her in a tight embrace. Then, he squeezed with all his might, unleashing a coiling, constricting force. A series of bone-cracking sounds followed. When he let go, the middle-aged woman collapsed to the ground like a boneless rag doll.
Witnessing this scene, the surrounding crowd scrambled back, creating a large, clear circle.
anwhile, at the front, Scarface broke into a run, striding forward as if he didn’t care at all about the n closing in to surround him.
At that very mont, a sudden string of sharp CRACKLES erupted. The firecrackers the Boxing Club had been asked to set off were finally lit. Though it seed useless now, this was the mont Wei Chang’an had been waiting for. He pulled a Year 15 pistol from his coat and fired four quick shots at Scarface’s feet!
The bullets ripped a series of holes in the work pants on Scarface’s legs. He involuntarily staggered a few steps but quickly regained his footing. Faintly visible through the torn fabric was a thick, black, chitinous armor.
Wei Chang’an’s expression turned grim as he recognized what it was. "A military-grade Implant!"
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