Watching the business he had worked so hard to build almost destroyed by Chen Yi, Shi San was now filled with raging fury. Bare-chested and wielding a large machete in both hands, he led his gang of brothers to surround and attack Chen Yi.
While protecting Da Chun, Chen Yi fought them off, handling the situation with ease.
This wasn't just a difference in realm; it was a world of difference in combat awareness and fighting skills. Chen Yi had inherited memories from two simulations and had served in the military. His combat experience was so rich that he could even apply military tactics to this current brawl.
He beat these illiterate thugs so badly they couldn't find north, utterly bewildered in the end.
"Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!"
Blood fountains sprayed skyward. Chen Yi's strikes were ruthless. The Flame Iron Heavy Sword cut through iron as if it were mud, and with each swing, a head went flying!
When Chen Yi channeled his spiritual energy, the surface of the Flame Iron Heavy Sword became scalding hot, turning completely crimson as if just taken from a forging furnace.
The members of the Black Stone Gang were slaughtered and scattered by this sword.
Corpses already piled up around Chen Yi.
Now, truly no one dared to step forward.
Shi San urged them on.
"Go on! What are you all standing around for!"
Someone finally couldn't hold it in any longer.
"Boss! Can't you see? He's not in the Body Refining Realm! His spirit artifact can become scalding hot; it must be powered by spiritual energy. He's in the Spirit Gathering Realm!"
Shi San roared angrily.
"I don't need you to teach me! So what if he's in the Spirit Gathering Realm? Won't he get tired? Keep attacking!"
For just a few coins a month, the remaining gang members were no longer willing to throw their lives away.
"You go yourself if you want to fight!"
Splashing sounds were heard continuously. The squad guarding the boats directly jumped into the river and swam toward the opposite bank.
The group blocking the dock exit also scattered in an instant.
In the blink of an eye, Shi San became a commander without an army.
Yet Chen Yi was still approaching step by step.
Shi San gulped, backing away as he spoke.
"Chen Yi! Don't you forget gratitude! If it weren't for our Black Stone Gang brothers fishing you two out, you and your fellow villager would have drowned in the river long ago!"
Before Chen Yi could say anything, Da Chun chimed in.
"Who says? I got ashore myself, then found some wood to fish Brother Yi out. That's when you guys noticed us."
Shi San glared at Da Chun.
"Chen Yi! He's an idiot, don't believe his nonsense!"
Chen Yi sneered.
"Do you think I'd believe him or you?"
Shi San had already lost the courage to fight Chen Yi to the end, and his tone softened.
"No, Chen Yi, if you had said earlier you were a martial artist and this powerful! I'd even give you the boss's seat, I'd work as a laborer for you, no problem! Why let it come to this? Only a fool wouldn't take easy money!"
"Stealing your dirty money is also making money! Not only do I make money myself, I can let everyone make money too!"
Saying this, Chen Yi turned to face the crowd of bewildered laborers on the dock.
"What are you all still standing here dumbfounded for? The Black Stone Gang is finished!
Those lackeys who just ran off are definitely in their treasury right now, wildly dividing up the money!
If you're late, you won't even get a sip of the soup!"
Upon hearing this, the laborers finally snapped out of it.
First, they kowtowed to Chen Yi several times, their heads hitting the ground audibly.
"Thank you, Hero Chen, for saving us!"
"We'll be oxen or horses in our next lives to repay you!"
"Hero, take care!!"
Then, they grabbed iron rods, wooden planks, hammers, and anything else handy from the dock, charging toward the Black Stone Gang's main headquarters.
Chen Yi had fought his way from the main headquarters all the way to the dock, so not many of the Black Stone Gang remained.
As for the martial artists, they were Chen Yi's primary targets. Anyone who had made a move was definitely dead by now.
So, how much these laborers could snatch from the surviving gang members depended entirely on their own abilities.
But Chen Yi estimated that with the laborers' current morale and the resentment built up over the past days, they'd most likely be able to raze the Black Stone Gang to the ground.
At this moment, Shi San felt as if a lifetime had passed.
A moment ago, he was the boss of the Black Stone Gang, commanding wind and rain on the docks.
Now, not only was he a commander without an army, but his own enterprise was being divided up.
It was all over!
Right now, he only hoped Chen Yi would spare his life.
As long as the green hills remain, there'll be no shortage of firewood!
Shi San only saw Chen Yi's figure blur for an instant before the scalding Flame Iron Heavy Sword was pressed against his neck.
It's over, even the green hills are gone!
"Talk. Do you recognize this?"
Huh? A chance for survival!
"I do! I do!"
Shi San hadn't even clearly seen what Chen Yi was holding before he started nodding like pounding garlic.
When he finally saw it clearly, he was stunned.
Where did this mask come from?
"Where's it from? Did you wear it? Or did someone else wear it? Where was it worn? Speak!"
Shi San hemmed and hawed, sweating profusely.
Think, you dead brain, think!!
Finally, under the pressure of death, Shi San's CPU overloaded and started running, and he remembered.
"That day, it wasn't just you two who drifted down from upstream; there was another person! This mask was on his face! One of the brothers said this mask was hard to destroy, seemed like a spirit artifact, so we kept it!"
"What about the person?"
"He was already a corpse at the time. The brothers dug a random pit and buried him."
"Where's he buried? Take me there!"
"You... you want to dig him up?"
"Hah, not me. You."
Forced by Chen Yi's intimidation, Shi San didn't dare to disobey. He led Chen Yi to the burial site and dug up the corpse himself.
Three months had passed. The corpse was rotten beyond recognition, emitting a foul stench when unearthed.
Even Da Chun, who always had a good appetite, vomited.
Chen Yi endured the nausea and used the Flame Iron Heavy Sword to sift through the person's remains, looking for clues to his identity.
"Did this guy have anything else on him at the time? Like a token, a jade pendant, something like that?"
"No, he just had these black clothes and a mask."
Black clothes and a white mask. It was indeed the attire of the mysterious group that slaughtered Luoding Village that day.
In Chen Yi's memory, they were all martial arts experts. How could one of them have died?
In the simulation, Chen Yi had asked Shen Qingshan if the authorities had investigated anything, but the result was they had no leads.
So, it was unlikely the authorities found the killer and took him out.
Could it be that some great hero saw injustice on the road and righteously intervened?
"Hmm..."
Within this decayed corpse, Chen Yi did discover something peculiar.
This person's hair had a tuft that was red.
This world didn't have perms or hair dye. Red hair appearing definitely had a special reason.
Chen Yi silently noted down this single clue.
"He ran away!"
Da Chun suddenly shouted. Chen Yi turned to look and saw that Shi San had taken advantage of his focus on searching for clues to make a run for it.
Chen Yi stood up, his expression disdainful.
"I'll let you run a thousand meters first."
Shi San looked back and saw Chen Yi wasn't chasing him. Thinking Chen Yi couldn't catch up, his professional habit kicked in, and he started trash-talking.
"Chen Yi! Wait until I make a comeback! We'll settle old and new scores together! Wash your neck and wait for it!! Heh~ Ptooey!!"
Then, he saw Chen Yi move, incredibly fast!
Shi San panicked.
"Run, damn legs, run!!"
Shi San opened his vitality energy to the max, running for his life as if his lungs were on the verge of exploding!
"Haha, he can't catch up, he can't catch..."
Shi San glanced back unintentionally and actually saw a burning giant hand rapidly closing in, about to catch him!
"What the hell is that..."
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