I can return to the age of mysterious

Chapter 32: 032 From the Heart (Seeking to Pursue Reading)_1 Chapter 32: 032 From the Heart (Seeking to Pursue Reading)_1 There were hardly any pedestrians on the street, and the soft, yellow light in the buildings across the dim street was the only view visible from afar. The faint light of the moon sprinkled through the clouds barely shed light on the blurry shadows of the corners of the walls.

Shortly, the black hooded carriage halted beside the elevated platform, and Casio naturally took his seat.

Casio leaned against the brown leather seat, the sides of which were simply treated with lacquer and engraved work. As it’s for customer use, it was not designed in the extravagant Baroque style associated with the aristocrats. Such carriages were extremely luxurious, with spacious and comfortable carriage shells, dazzling gold statue skirts at the back, and even gold-plated and relief carved wheels.

These were the symbols of the wealthy and prominent people of the past.

Of course, with the rapid changes brought about by progress and technological development, vehicles resembling iron boxes gradually replaced the old-fashioned horse carriages, and stretch luxury cars took the place of extravagant carriages.

“Where would you like to go, sir?” An aging man with a head full of white hair raised his whip and asked Casio for his destination.

“25 Banner Street, Jessica’s apartment.”

“Alright, please hold tight.”

The horses began moving, and the vehicle slowly followed them.

Seated in the carriage, Casio looked at the slightly desolate streets on either side. Rows of pale yellow houses, resembling building blocks, black streetlights mimicking European candlesticks, and the occasional tall spire of grey-white buildings, either apartments or churches.

The familiarity intermixed with strangeness of the style made Casio somewhat solemn.

Casio took the handfuls of banknotes from the file bag he was carrying and placed them all into the spacious pocket on the inside of his coat. He then threw the bag out and spoke to the carter.

“You’re taking me to a desolate place, what are you going to do?”

Whoosh! A straight fist suddenly swung from the front!

Casio was about to respond with his fist when he suddenly spotted a flash of icy light between the assailant’s knuckles. He immediately made a quick move to the left, executing a roll and jumped out from the window side of the carriage.

“Seems like you are with those guys from the evening…”

On the ashy white street, Casio lightly placed his right hand on the rough, brick stone. Like a spring, his whole body sprung up right away.

Thump!

His black leather boots hit the ground.

The carter jumped down from the carriage. His previously hunched body straightened, and his seemingly moderate stature gradually unfurled, shockingly morphing into an unusually burly figure in an instant.

If it comes to height, this man was half a head taller than Casio.

“Don’t lump me in with those pieces of trash.” A raspy voice echoed. The voice was entirely different from the previous frail one.

Underneath the moonlight, the carter peeled off his head and facial disguise. It revealed a vicious face with distinct features.

He was probably in his thirties. His light-green eyes held a viciousness reminiscent of a poisonous snake. His temples bulged, his neck veins were prominent, and his short hair stood on end, straight as steel needles.

A silver ring glittered on his right index finger, and a faintly sparkling silver needle was wedged between his index and middle fingers.

“You’re pretty good, have you trained in boxing? Sanda? Or is it mixed martial arts?” The man pitched the needle he was holding down on the ground.

The surface of the needle seemed to have a layer of poison smeared on it.

“Initially, I wanted to kill you like an assassin, but I’ve now changed my mind.” He twisted his neck, which made a cracking sound. As he stretched out both his hands, his entire body muscles immediately bulged.

“Kill me? Don’t be absurd…” What Casio hated the most was arrogant enemies, especially those who violated the martial code.

“I hope you can be so tough when you’re begging for mercy on your knees.”

As soon as his voice fell, the man lunged violently towards him. Casio quickly adopted a stance in accordance with the Wind Elephant Combat Technique to fend off the attack.

Whoosh! A quick swing punch came rushing towards him. His arm cleaved through the air with a faint hissing sound. In an instant, Casio launched a punch, his muscles contracted and rebounded on his arm and shoulder. He surged forward, converting defense to offense.

With a thud, the man’s arm was deflected, and a fist mercilessly aimed at his shoulder. The man quickly dodged to one side, spinning to deliver a knee strike as his foot hit the ground.

Mid-air, callused palms and knee collided harshly. Both men retreated a step. Casio shook his slightly numb hand while the man twisted his right foot.

After one exchange, neither side gained the upper hand.

“Skills of at least a third-grade professional, maybe fourth. Not bad. But I’ve killed even fifth-grade pros…” The man slightly narrowed his eyes as a killing intent began to spread around him.

Thump, thump, thump! A series of sounds echoed through the quiet alley as fists and flesh collided. Two figures clashed fiercely, fists, feet, knees, arms, and elbows were all weapons. Every strike was aimed at the vital spot, and the one slightly slower would get severely injured.

This was not a regulated fight, but a real killing technique.

Casio was a bit troubled to keep up with the fierce attacks at first, since the man seemed to be a professional assassin with rich combat experience. However, he soon adapted, all thanks to Lixia’s relentless actual combat training.

Over a hundred battles provided Casio with a rich foundation. Facing the tricky boxing method of the assassin, he quickly found countermeasures in his memory. The connection between various killing moves was becoming more smooth and slick.

Thud! A fist slammed hard onto the man’s arm, causing him to tremble from the immense force. The man stumbled backward.

“What a powerful swing punch!” The man was slightly taken aback. He couldn’t place where the youth’s technique originated from. His boxing method had a perfect structure with hardly any flaws. More so, his arm swings were vicious, fast, heavy and tricky.

“Strength prediction error, possibly a fifth-rank. Then I’ll need to change my strategy…” The man shook his hand and squinted.

He swiftly retreated to dodge Casio’s oncoming arm. He made a slight footwork adjustment and walked a few steps to the right.

Under the hazy moonlight, a dark shadow whisked in from not far away.

“Mandala Explosive Technique…”

The man inhales and exhales quickly. His right arm echoed with a series of explosions, and his muscles swelled with a force that was at least forty to fifty percent stronger than his normal state.

He stomped heavily on the ground, and fiercely punched towards Casio.

Bang! Two larger than average fists collided in mid-air, making both men’s thick arm muscles quake. The unleashed force tore open their sleeves with a ripping sound.

“An explosive technique?” Casio made a slight sound of surprise.

“He knows it too!?” The man’s eyes widened in surprise.

A murderous intent flashed in his eyes, and his left hand shot out lightning fast, a glint of metal appearing between the fingers on his fist.

Slap! Casio’s arm, like a steel whip, beat him to it. Instantly, his hand smacked the man’s wrist, and the steel needle clanged as it fell.

“Another explosive technique!?”

The man’s pupils contracted as he released a ferocious kick. Forcing Casio away, he immediately spun around to escape.

“Stop!”

PS. I implore you to continue reading. Everyone else gets ‘likes’ on every chapter, but I haven’t received any in chapters. I feel panicked and scared.