From the time he was young and all the way until now, Yu Lanchuan had always been very relaxed when it came to practicing martial arts and did not have much competitive desire. After all, his life was one that was "conventional" and successful. Since young, he had always been "the perfect other kid" and he was very familiar with all the various rules of society, be it the explicit or the implicit ones.

Whether it was Yan Hao who challenged him under the pressure of his elders or those who started a dispute for the sake of their "reputation," to his eyes, they were all laughably childish. Their lives were like dog shit but they still got so worked up fighting over these useless things. What was the difference between them and kids obsessed with online games?

Even that one time when Elder Yang, Han Dongsheng and the others had gone up themselves to rescue people from the health supplements MLM den, he had felt that the way their emotions influenced their decisions and the way they treated the symptoms but not the root cause was not masterful enough.

In his entire life, what Yu Lanchuan lacked the least was self-confidence. As a hobby, the Seven Secret Arts of Han Jiang was nothing more than a superfluous addition to something that was already perfect. As for whether or not he could become good at it, was it important?

This was only the second time in his entire life that his heart was smothered in a heavy helplessness. He wanted nothing more than to abandon his current mortal body and reincarnate, to suddenly sprout superhuman powers and become the hero that he had fantasised as a child and disdained as an adult.

The last time he had choked on this feeling of helplessness, unable to breathe, was at the landfill fifteen years ago.

And both times turned out to be due to the same person.

But there was no one who was almighty, who could reach both the heights of Heaven and the depths of Earth.

Even if Yu Lanchuan could make use of his numerous connections in society and sweep Yanning clean of all illegal health supplement MLMs, when facing someone like Yang Ping who was fearless like a dead pig unafraid of boiling water, his hands were tied.

Just like all those years ago—Wei Xiao had inherited Wan Mu Chun's supreme skills, had concealed his identity and lived in hiding, and still could not give his little girl a good ending.

The police were still on their way. The clues for the old cases were already obliterated.

He could not defeat Yang Ping. He just couldn't.

"Wan Mu Chun shouldn't be like this." Yang Ping started to leave, unruffled despite the chaos. As he walked away, he said, "I've heard that your grand-master, Mr. Chun—that should be his position in the hierarchy—when he moved to kill, even if his opponent's sword was pressed against his throat, his blade would not stop. It would be a bet to see whose throat was ripped open first. If you hadn't withdrawn just now, you might have cut my throat first, or I might have killed you first. No one knows for sure. But you withdrew."

Gan Qing tried to push herself up on one hand. Her left hand tightened unconsciously around the razor blade until it was cut open and dripping bright red blood. Yu Lanchuan forced her hand open and gripped her wrist.

"Let's not talk about your skills; you don't even have the courage to bet at all." As he spoke, Yang Ping reached Gan Qing's front. He looked down at her in contempt. "Was it really you who killed Wei Huan? I really can't tell. Could it be that it was that old fool Wei Xiao who did it but didn't dare admit it and made you take the blame? In that case, you're really filial."

Gan Qing slowly looked up.

"You don't have bloodlust." Yang Ping leaned forward slightly and said to her in a low voice. "This is normal. Women don't have bloodlust, they are naturally nothing more than a joke. Their mouths may be more vicious than anyone else most of the time but at a moment of crisis, they're completely exposed. I'll be leaving now. Remember what you said… But even if you eat your words, it's okay. You're only someone I have defeated, hah! If you dare, come look for me. I'll be waiting respectfully."

Right at that moment, a golf club barred his way. Yu Lanchuan said coldly, "Wait."

"Little Master Yu." Yang Ping let out a fake laugh. "What other advice do you have for me?"

Yu Lanchuan carefully lowered Gan Qing. "The one who made a bet with you was her. I never agreed to let you go."

Yan Hao wasn't a decisive person but he had ample loyalty. He had been standing at the side just now, unsure of what to do, but hearing Yu Lanchuan state his position, he immediately raised his rod. "Little Master Yu, you… Watch out!"

Yan Hao's voice suddenly changed in pitch because Yang Ping had moved without prior warning, his palm striking at Yu Lanchuan. The might of his strike this time was even more terrifying than when he hit Gan Qing just now. Before the wind from his palm reached, Yu Lanchuan already felt suffocated. How could a civilised person like him have seen this kind of all-or-nothing fighting technique?

Yu Lanchuan immediately retreated eighteen steps in succession, his golf club in hand. He nearly forgot all the moves he had practised since young.

Yan Hao's heart leaped to his throat. This sight made him lose all hope. Why were they still fighting? If they could send this big demon away without coming to any harm, that was already good enough.

Yang Ping raised an eyebrow. "Still want to try?"

Yu Lanchuan's tightly drawn mouth suddenly quirked up. "Of course."

Even if he couldn't defeat him, so what?

There were always times when one had to put aside rationality, put aside everything, forget all those lofty "strategies," forget about profits and losses, and face the direction their instinct and courage was pointing to, and walk forward with their heads broken and bleeding.

"You're looking for death!'

"I heard people say that your body did not develop well ever since you were young and because of that, you put in twice the effort to practise martial arts but only attained half the results," Yu Lanchuan said quickly. "You practised for nearly half your life, yet you did not achieve anything of worth. When you had a match with someone, you even had to fight in a gang and you were all still beaten up until you were pissing your pants. Later on, after some years, your legs were broken and you were ousted from Beggars' Sect. When you were physically well, your martial arts skills were not good but after your limbs were broken, you could instead launch a counterattack? I don't believe this. Given your character, for you to really fight a fair match as you said you would, break the arm that she couldn't really use as she liked in the first place, then just shoot your mouth off and leave... Are you someone who lets people off whenever possible? I don't believe this either."

One of Yang Ping's eyes twitched.

"You say that there's not enough evidence, that's why you're not afraid of the police. I agree. In that case, since you're not afraid of the police, why are you in a hurry to leave?" Yu Lanchuan narrowed his eyes a little. "I cannot think of any other explanation other than that you must have used some way to cheat to make yourself suddenly so powerful. I don't know much about the principles of demonic skills but the possibility of drugs is higher. There is a time limit to their effectiveness, am I right? That's why you want to scare us, to stop us from blocking your way. What is the time limit? Five minutes? Ten minutes? Or does it depend on how many times you use those demonic skills…"

Before Yu Lanchuan could finish speaking, Yang Ping seemed to want to prove that he was wrong and suddenly charged over. The golf club and those strange-looking palms clashed at close quarters and the force that transmitted was even more terrifying than it had been just now. Yu Lanchuan's hands nearly lost their grip, the Seven Secret Arts of Han Jiang going off-key. Yang Ping wrenched sharply and there was a sharp pain in Yu Lanchuan's right wrist. His joints loosened for an instant and the club fell out of his hands!

Yu Lanchuan had grown to his current age safe and healthy, and had never met with a car accident or a sports accident even once. This was the first time he was feeling the true pain of a serious injury, the kind that made a person want to roll around on the ground. For an instant, he couldn't help thinking, How does it feel to break the tendons in your own arm?

Is it also this kind of pain?

No… it should be even more painful, shouldn't it? How did she do it, how could she do something so ruthless?

Yan Hao shouted and swung the large rod at Yang Ping's upper back. Yang Ping flung his arm out and sent the wooden rod flying. His eyes that were shot through with fine blood lines looked over viciously, a ferocious animal-like glint in them. The purplish veins had already crept up to his face, covering both sides of his forehead like spiderwebs. It made him look rather inhuman.

Shocked out of his wits, Yan Hao subconsciously stepped back.

Yang Ping pressed in on him.

Yu Lanchuan breathed out white puffs of air, shaking uncontrollably. He endured desperately not to scream and forced himself to laugh coldly. "So… what is this? A new kind of drug? Have you shared it with anyone else? Do those followers of yours use it too? Senior Yang, you said that the police cannot get anything on you for the old cases but… what about drug trafficking?"

Yang Ping roared and reached out to grab his shoulders. Suddenly, a cold glint flashed past, aiming right at the joints of his elbow. Yang Ping did not dodge in time and a hole was cut open in his sleeve following the line of his arm tendons—three cun and two fen!

"Stop playing with them." Gan Qing picked up the dagger Qiao-Qiao had dropped just now with one hand, her other arm dangling from her body. She loosened her fingertips slightly and a few bloodstained razor blades fell out. Her fingertip brushed along the blade of the dagger and the blood groove, slow but steady. Her left arm didn't seem like it was only in adulthood that she had to make do and use it; instead it seemed to have been trained since she was young and had never trembled. "That was just a warm-up. When did I… cough… admit defeat?"

Yang Ping was nearly driven mad by the few of them. If his actions prior to this could still be considered to be particular about maintaining the proper appearance of a "fair match," this time, he had gone into "SEED mode" and did not care about anything at all. He had completely turned into a mad dog.

Yang Ping's retractable baton shattered the bricks on the wall and smashed towards Gan Qing like a tempest. Gan Qing was far from being as sturdy as stone and her right arm was also broken. She essentially could not control half her body. When she dodged to the right and to the left, her movements were noticeably draggy and there were quite a few times when she narrowly dodged only when the baton was about to hit her.

Yang Ping naturally noticed this and targeted Gan Qing's right side, aiming for any spot on her that looked sluggish… Just like how the few of them had surrounded Wei Xiao back then. Wei Xiao might have appeared arrogant by taking on so many of them on his own, but in actual fact, they had divided the tasks earlier on. That time, he also had fellow fighters using the Tangle form to keep Wei Xiao's knife-wielding right hand occupied and give him the chance to attack.

They didn't feel that it was unfair to do that. All of them from the same generation only had that level of skill, so what right do you, Wei Xiao, have to stand above the rest? What right do you have to be so maniacal? You must have cheated. Either that, or Wan Mu Chun's lineage itself is demonic and does not deserve to stand alongside their reputable and righteous sects as the Five Supremes. It does not deserve to be mentioned in the same breath as the other proper martial arts.

Since it was a demonic skill, then they did not have to apply conventional reasoning to it. Hence, even if it was many fighting against one, it was naturally a reasonable thing.

Only winning mattered.

The current speed of the two people fighting was no longer something Yan Hao could see clearly from where he was watching at the sidelines. Right then, police sirens finally sounded from far away. At the same time, Yang Ping's palm struck towards Gan Qing's temples. The bones in her right shoulder were broken and she had no way to block. If she ducked her head to dodge, Yang Ping's retractable baton could take the chance to smash on top of her head.

But this time, Gan Qing did not dodge.

The sharp dagger sliced Yang Ping's arm, unerringly following the line of the scar all the way up. It was abnormally similar to the way Wei Xiao had destroyed the nerves in his hand all those years ago. Yang Ping let out a terrified shriek; at the same time, an arm lunged in from nowhere, blocking right between Yang Ping's fist and Gan Qing. The back of the hand touched her face.

Her left leg as a pivot, Gan Qing changed directions. The dagger sliced to the end, and with a twist and a snap, she threw him down to the ground.

Yang Ping seemed to be suffering from unbearable pain. He curled into a ball on the ground, his whole body spasming uncontrollably. The police who had rushed there swarmed up. Gan Qing lifted her left hand and threw the dagger onto the ground. She faced Yang Ping and let out a barely audible laugh. "Is bloodlust something that should come out of your mouth?"

The police who didn't know what was going on charged over and swiftly separated everyone at the scene. "There's someone injured! Call the ambulance!"

Yang Ping let out a blood curdling shriek, "My arm! My arm!"

"My god! Arm? It's a knife wound, a dagger…" Two police officers restrained Yang Ping with much difficulty. They flipped him over and saw clearly the arm he was hugging close to his body. There was a line of blood on it that followed the same path as an old scar on his arm, overlapping the scar. It looked extremely vicious and terrifying...

Then, when they took a closer look, they saw that the knife wound had only broken skin, barely reaching below the epidermis. It did not harm his tendons nor did it reach his bones. This person's blood clotting ability was pretty decent. In just a short while, the wound already looked like the bleeding was about to stop.

The police looked curiously at Yang Ping rolling on the ground, then at Gan Qing who was in a battered state. With just this comparison, the person lying on the ground seemed to be pulling a dumb porcelain scam.

"Ai." A police officer felt his head aching and took off his police cap, clutching at his sparse hair. He said in resignation, "Sir, did you draw this on your arm? Wake up, stop pretending."

Yang Ping turned a deaf ear to him.

He had once thought that he had ended the nightmare haunting his whole life with his own hands in that cramped and dark Mudpool Backlane. For the sake of wiping away his past humiliation, he did not mind all the difficulties he had to go through to gather those worthless people and have them watch from the sidelines, letting them be his witnesses to prove that he had defeated Wei Xiao until Wei Xiao was pleading for mercy on his knees.

But it turned out that he had not.

A nightmare did not obey his self-deception. His false persona that he had put on for many years was as flimsy as a cicada's wings. Just a tiny cut from a small knife, and the ugly truth was exposed…

Wei Xiao had first been injured in an accident arranged by Wang Jiusheng as part of his evil plot. His internal organs were bleeding and he could not move freely.

Were it not for that, Yang Ping would not have had the courage to fight him at all.

"What's wrong with this person?" The police saw that he was mentally delirious and asked in suspicion, "His mental state is abnormal… Damn, what's this on his face and arms? Tattoos?"

"I don't know." Gan Qing was not wearing her coat and felt cold. She sucked in a breath through her reddened nose. The cold wind assaulted her and her tears welled up again. She said in a stuffed-up voice, "He suddenly became like that. It was like an illness flaring up. He was terribly fierce, it was so scary."

The expression on the police officers' faces turned grave. They were clearly making a mental connection to drug addicts. "Call the ambulance, then contact our comrades in forensics… Take them all back… Ai, why is there a little girl injured so badly here? Is she with you guys? Is she of legal age?"

A female officer quickly ran over to check on Qiao-Qiao. The police officers' footsteps were hurried and busy, while Yang Ping's ten years' worth of blood curdling shrieks seemed to be ripping apart his heart and lungs.

Gan Qing looked at her own arm, a little distracted. Her right arm was the infamous murderous blade of Wan Mu Chun, extraordinarily gifted, with unparalleled sharpness.

However… back in that year, she had destroyed it herself.

All she had left was a left arm that was by nature not her dominant arm. At the very start, in those few years when she had been the most directionless and powerless, she had only casually trained it so that it would be more convenient for daily life.

In the past, this arm had not been stained with blood before.

She raised her left arm and lightly wiped the side of her face that had been knocked by the back of Yu Lanchuan's hand just now. She looked across the crowd, towards him.