Starforce Warriors

Chapter 445: Can’t Resist

"What?"

Huang Fulai's expression changed the moment he heard the news. He immediately gathered his men and rushed to the scene of the incident. He was well aware of the Kong family’s methods.

Their bodyguards, who were notoriously arrogant and reckless with no regard for consequences truly dared to kill. If the conflict escalated and violence erupted, the ones to suffer would undoubtedly be the civilians.

However, despite Huang Fulai’s haste, he was already too late by the time he arrived at the scene. The first thing he noticed was the pungent smell of blood lingering in the air.

This is bad!

His heart sank. The conflict had already intensified. With such a strong scent of blood, it was clear that more than one person had died.

"Stop! Stop it right now!" Huang Fulai roared, his figure moving like lightning. Ignoring his injuries, he unleashed his inner qi to its fullest, instantly reaching the center of the crowd. "No harm must come to the civilians... huh?"

The city leader’s words died in his throat. To his utter shock, the corpses lying on the ground were not civilians. They were the Kong family’s bodyguards.

What is going on? Did the Kong family suffer a loss?

"City leader Huang, you're here just in time." Kong Xuanzhong, upon seeing Huang Fulai, roared with a mixture of anger and desperation. It was like he'd found his savior. "There's been a murder... I want to file a report. That little bastard killed six of my guards. Arrest him immediately!"

He pointed to a young man in a black tracksuit standing in front of the crowd. Huang Fulai followed Kong Xuanzhong's finger.

The young man had a tall and upright figure as he stood there like a black spear piercing the heavens. His strikingly handsome and masculine face was an exceedingly rare sight.

At that moment, Huang Fulai’s eyes lit up.

A person of such extraordinary presence among the refugees?

He had never noticed someone like this before.

"What exactly happened here?" asked Huang Fulai as he turned his gaze toward a young official who was struggling to maintain order nearby.

The official, drenched in sweat, quickly stepped forward and whispered a report.

As it turned out, the Kong family had been loudly spreading rumors among the refugees in the afternoon. They claimed that once they reached Haijing City, Huang Fulai would fall from grace and advised everyone to stay away from him. This had already stirred discontent among many people.

By the evening, during the time to set up camp, the Kong family escalated matters. They openly recruited bodyguards throughout the camp, offering exorbitant wages. While it appeared to be a simple recruitment, in reality, was actually using their money to poach members from the escort teams and seasoned veterans.

In the midst of such dire times, where survival itself was a struggle, the Kong family had not contributed manpower nor resources. Yet, they stooped to such despicable tactics, destabilizing the morale of those protecting the refugees.

They even resorted to threats to force skilled fighters and martial artists guarding the refugees to join their ranks. It was utterly shameless.

An elderly teacher named Yin Rong, unable to tolerate the Kong family's actions, reprimanded them with a few stern words. In response, the head of the Kong family's bodyguards had brutally beat him to death in front of everyone.

Yin Rong was a highly respected teacher with numerous students who held him in great regard. He was deeply admired by his neighbors and the community. When the crowd witnessed his tragic death, their eyes turned red with anger. Overcome with fury, they surged forward, surrounding the Kong family’s bodyguards, demanding justice.

However, the bodyguards had no intention of reasoning with them. Drawing their blades, they shouted threats and prepared to kill again. Just as it seemed another life would be lost in the growing pool of blood, the silent young man in the black tracksuit had finally stepped forward.

"City leader, this boy’s strength is terrifying." The reporting official whispered to Huang Fulai. "I couldn’t even see his movements clearly. There was just a flash of sword light, and those Kong family bodyguards, all in the Meridian Expanding Realm, fell like cut stalks of wheat."

Huang Fulai felt a subtle shock in his heart. The young official making the report was Chu Liuguang, now the Director of the Health Bureau in Xu Base City. Just a year ago, Chu Liuguang had been a mere civil servant, talented but struggling in his career due to a lack of connections. Huang Fulai had recognized his potential and mentored him, leading to his current position.

Chu Liuguang was no slouch in martial arts either. He was not yet thirty, but he had already reached the high stage of the Meridian Expanding Realm. If even Chu Liuguang couldn’t discern the young man’s swordplay, this was no ordinary individual.

Huang Fulai glanced at the rusty longsword in the boy's hand, his mind racing through various possibilities. He was certain he had never encountered this person before in Xu Base City.

"Where are you from?" Huang Fulai asked, his gaze fixed on the young man.

The boy smiled faintly. "I am merely a passerby. When the city fell, I happened to be conducting business in Xu Base City and got swept up in this chaos. City leader Huang, you need not trouble yourself. I killed these men; they deserved it. I will take full responsibility for my actions."

Huang Fulai felt a surge of unrestrained heroic spirit from this young man, as if it radiated directly from his soul.

“It’s not Big Brother’s fault.” A little girl named Mengmeng squeezed out from behind her grandmother and spoke in her tender, childlike voice, “They were too mean. They wanted to kill people, and Big Brother stepped in to stop them...”

The innocence in her voice resonated deeply with the surrounding crowd.

The Kong family had been abusing their power for days, no, for countless days within the city. They had treated people cruelly, beating and scolding them as if they were less than human. Today had been no different.

“That’s right, it’s not this young man’s fault.”

“City leader, the young man acted out of bravery to help others.”

“We can all testify on his behalf.”

More and more people stepped forward, pleading for the young man.

Huang Fulai, too, felt a strong desire to protect him. He nodded lightly and said, “I will thoroughly investigate the truth of this matter. I will not let a single wrongdoer go unpunished, but I also will not wrongly accuse an innocent person.”

“What do you mean by that?” Kong Xuanzhong sneered coldly. “Huang Fulai, are you trying to shield this little brat by brushing this off so lightly?”

Other wealthy figures closed in around Huang Fulai as well.

“Huang Fulai, aren’t you the one who claims to uphold strict law enforcement?”

“We were all there when this little bastard slaughtered the Kong family’s men. We can testify too.”

“Don’t worry, I recorded everything.”

Shen Chongyun and Tang Shunzhi, leading the group of elites, blocked Huang Fulai’s way, their stances equally hostile. The situation grew tense again in an instant.

"You’re all bad people! Bad people!" Mengmeng suddenly shouted in her childish yet resolute voice.

"Hey, you little brat, running your mouth like that. You’re asking for a beating." Kong Xuanzhong sneered coldly, his gaze sharp and venomous like a cobra locking onto its prey. He suddenly raised his hand to strike her.

Whoosh.

The young man in black moved like a shadow, appearing in front of Mengmeng with ghost-like speed and caught Kong Xuanzhong’s wrist mid-swing.

Huang Fulai’s heart jolted.

Such speed! Five Spirits Realm?!

"Aaagh!" Kong Xuanzhong’s triangular face twisted in agony as he let out a scream akin to a slaughtered pig. "Let go of my hand! Do you... do you even know who I am?!"

"I don’t." The young man in black replied indifferently, "Nor is there any need to."

Crack.

Kong Xuanzhong’s arm was snapped like a twig. He opened his mouth to unleash a bloodcurdling scream.

"Too noisy." The young man remarked casually, turning his hand and smacking Kong Xuanzhong’s head with his palm. "I don’t like it."

Thud.

Kong Xuanzhong’s head was driven straight into his chest cavity with a sickening crunch. The screaming stopped abruptly. Huang Fulai had wanted to intervene, but it was already too late. This was a disaster.

Killing someone in broad daylight, especially the designated leader left by the Kong family; no matter how much he wished to protect this young man, it was now utterly impossible.

"You... you actually killed Elder Kong?" Shen Chongyun pointed a trembling finger at the young man in black, his face filled with disbelief. "You've caused a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions! No one, neither heaven nor earth, can save you now. You're finished, you—"

Whoosh!

Sword light flashed as Shen Chongyun’s bald head rolled cleanly off his shoulders, tumbling to the ground. The surroundings fell into an eerie silence. Not even a pin drop could be heard.

"Hahaha..." The young man in black burst into laughter. "I didn’t plan to kill you useless garbage who can’t accomplish anything, but you insist on seeking death yourselves... I’ll send you all on your way!"

The sword light flickered, appearing and vanishing like a sudden bolt of lightning.

Before anyone could react, Tang Shunzhi and dozens of other wealthy figures met the same fate as Shen Chongyun. Their severed heads rolled across the blood-soaked ground, their twisted expressions resembling those of malevolent spirits.

They were all dead. In mere moments, these heartless, conniving elites had been wiped out entirely. Huang Fulai and the others stood frozen, their minds reeling in shock.

Such overwhelming killing intent. Such terrifying sword qi. Who is this young man? Where did he come from?