Volume 4: Hidden Struggles, Chapter 119: The Demeanor of a Master

That presence was none other than that of the female ninja. According to Xu Hua last night, her name was Yu Xiang. Perhaps due to a failed mission, she was reprimanded for a long time by someone named Yoshida after reporting back. However, through their conversation, Chu Tianyu gained a lot of information.

Due to geographical and historical reasons, Japan has always regarded China as its top rival, constantly seeking ways to deal with it—ranging from international affairs to economic aggression. This mindset is deeply rooted in the hearts of many Japanese people, as evidenced by their alteration of textbooks last century, revealing their aggressive ambitions.

Today, China’s status as a powerful nation is far beyond what that island nation can afford to look up to. Therefore, their plan this time relies on despicable tactics and massive funds to gradually invade China’s foundational industries and control its energy resources, thereby expanding their influence and ensuring their survival.

Chu Tianyu was deep in thought. Seeing no reaction from Chu Tianyu, Zhan Zifeng suppressed his anger and urged again, “Classmate Chu, could we talk alone?”

At that moment, those Japanese ninjas also hid around Yu Xiang as the center point. Yu Xiang herself was dressed casually and innocently, with her long, black, smooth hair simply tied up on top of her head. From a distance, she appeared to be a charming and beautiful woman walking slowly into the alley, drawing glances from passersby.

Chu Tianyu was initially stunned, but soon smiled knowingly. He thought, “It seems this trouble isn’t meant for me after all. Considering the relationship between Tianxing Group and Japan’s Yokokawa Company, and what happened to Zhou Chongyun, the target is obvious. I just wonder what despicable deal Tianxing Group has made with that Yoshida. Moreover, from yesterday’s video, Zhou Tianxing’s bodyguard was clearly far more skilled than those Japanese ninjas. Why go to such lengths to trick them into taking action instead?”

Suddenly, Chu Tianyu remembered something—Zhan Zifeng’s identity and his backing. It seems Zhou Tianxing still has someone to consider, but after analysis, that influence is limited. For Zhou Tianxing to be able to act so boldly, he must have strong backing. So, by having the Japanese take action, he can seemingly distance himself from responsibility, though everyone knows who’s really behind it. By then, it will be a matter of who has the stronger fist!

Seeing Chu Tianyu’s complex expression, Zhan Zifeng couldn’t figure out the situation for a moment. His anger grew, and he just stared at Chu Tianyu silently, cursing inwardly.

Just as Zhan Zifeng was furious, Chu Tianyu grabbed a handful of peanuts, adjusted his seat, and found the best viewing angle to watch Zhan Zifeng with a playful expression on his face. Seeing Chu Tianyu’s actions and strange expression, Zhan Zifeng became even more puzzled and frustrated. Just as he was about to ask questions, three cold glints shot toward him, and two figures appeared out of thin air behind him, wielding oriental swords and attacking like ghosts. Zhan Zifeng was indeed extraordinary—in such a critical moment, he didn’t care about revealing his strength or shocking others. He quickly pulled back, escaping the range of those three cold glints. Without even turning his head, he channeled energy into his arms. A layer of blood-red light appeared instantly as his arms stretched backward and outward, forcefully pushing aside the two ninjas’ swords and countering their ambush. The two ninjas didn’t retreat despite their attacks being blocked. Instead, they seemed to be committing suicide by slashing at Zhan Zifeng, exposing openings in their chests. Zhan Zifeng snorted inwardly, “Idiots! Thinking this will let you fight to the death against me? How childish!” With that thought, he acted swiftly—his palms suddenly clenched into fists, and he struck the two men’s chests at lightning speed before their swords could land. With cracks of bones and muffled groans, the two men spat out blood and flew backward. Just as Zhan Zifeng succeeded in this move, several more cold glints and sword shadows attacked from the sides, blocking his escape routes. Meanwhile, a terrified female scream could be heard not far away… Realizing that passersby had been alerted, Zhan Zifeng had no choice but to endure the blood spewed by the two killed men. Feeling numbness on his face, he didn’t overthink it. He quickly turned, using the wind he generated to deflect the ninja darts, barely avoiding further attacks as he dodged. Just as he stopped moving, a frightened and beautiful face appeared before him. A passing beauty, seemingly shocked by the bloody scene, trembled slightly, her rosy lips unable to utter a word as her legs gave out and she collapsed into Zhan Zifeng’s arms. Such a beautiful woman—pitiable even to look at. Instinctively, Zhan Zifeng supported her, and she fell into his arms. The elegant scent of her perfume intoxicated him, and holding her tempting body filled him with an overwhelming sense of desire.

Before he could even indulge in his fantasies, he felt a searing pain in his abdomen as he was struck hard by a palm. At the same time, the cold tip of a knife barely pierced his abdominal skin. Strangely, the woman who attempted to assassinate him did not push the knife in further, giving him a chance to catch his breath. With a single palm strike, he pushed the woman away from him. Hit by Zhan Zifeng’s palm, she sprayed blood and stumbled backward.

The ninjas around them thought their ambush had succeeded and rushed in to attack. Zhan Zifeng was in extreme distress; a numbness spread from his face to his entire body. If not for the unique bloodline within him, he would have collapsed on the spot from the blows from the woman and the missed knife strike. These injuries, along with the psychological terror, left him unable to react properly to the ninjas’ continued attacks. He could only make hasty moves, leaving his fate to chance. A fear and sense of death like he had never experienced before spread throughout his body.

Just as Zhan Zifeng was throwing random attacks in this life-or-death moment, something miraculous happened. His random strikes somehow hit all the remaining ninjas without fail, shattering their blood vessels and causing them to explode in bursts of blood, killing them instantly.

Looking at the scene before him and then at his own fists, Zhan Zifeng could hardly believe that he had caused all this. He couldn’t believe he was still alive either. He just stood there, stunned and at a loss…

“Zhan, Zhan classmate,” Bai Lei said.

Hearing Bai Lei’s words, Zhan Zifeng looked around in confusion. Indeed, many passersby were peeking from a distance, and some even stuck their heads out from nearby windows. In front of him, Bai Lei wore an exaggeratedly flirtatious expression as if saying something, but Zhan Zifeng was too distracted, still trying to process everything that had happened and that miraculous turn of events. So he could only see Bai Lei’s moving lips without understanding what he was saying.

“Hey, hey, Third Brother. Did this guy go crazy after his rampage? Could he be like me, someone who likes to pose after showing off?” Bai Lei asked Chu Tianyu in confusion.

Chu Tianyu smiled without saying anything, merely pointing at Zhan Zifeng’s face. Bai Lei then shouted even more exaggeratedly, “Wow, Hero Zhan! Your skills are truly profound! Your ‘Blood Qi Divine Art’ must have been practiced for decades! With blood gushing like a fountain and such a dramatic pose, even just scaring the enemy would be enough to kill them!”

This time, Zhan Zifeng finally heard Bai Lei’s words clearly and couldn’t help touching his face. He felt his skin was numb, as if it were leather, with a small hole on each cheek from which blood was slowly seeping out.

Zhan Zifeng was horrified. Remembering the blood sprayed by those first two ninjas and the immediate numbness he felt, his body began to tremble involuntarily.

“But, Hero Zhan, if you could apply such an extraordinary martial art to the Red Cross Association, once you master it, you could also contribute to blood bank supplies and help the World Health Organization—achieving two goals at once! Hehe, impressive, truly impressive…” Bai Lei’s incessant chatter continued to reach Zhan Zifeng’s ears.

Only then did Zhan Zifeng notice that Bai Lei and Chu Tianyu seemed completely unfazed, showing no fear or panic at the corpses scattered around. He temporarily forgot about his own wounds and began to ponder in confusion.

Seeing his expression change, Chu Tianyu probably guessed his doubts. He calmly turned his head and silently transmitted a message to Bai Lei: “Act cool! Act like a master!”

Bai Lei was overjoyed at this. This was his forte—he claimed to have been practicing since kindergarten. When it came to this, no one dared claim to be better than him!

Immediately, Bai Lei tilted his head slightly, fixed his gaze, and adopted the pose he had practiced countless times in the early mornings. With a casual yet proud demeanor, he radiated an air of superiority…

Zhan Zifeng was stunned, thinking, “Could it be this person who acted secretly?” Regaining his composure, he realized that what had happened wasn’t some miracle but surely someone’s covert assistance.

Here, the only people he knew were these two. Chu Tianyu seemed innocuous enough to ignore, but Bai Lei, with his sarcastic words and strange behavior, was highly suspicious!

Yet, he didn’t seem to possess any signs of being a master. Perhaps it was precisely the lack of such visible traits that indicated true mastery—Zhan Zifeng could only think that way…

Suddenly, the sound of urgent police sirens came from afar. Zhan Zifeng’s expression changed, and he hurriedly said to Bai Lei, “I can’t express enough gratitude. Friend, if you helped just now, Zhan Zifeng thanks you from the bottom of his heart! Please forgive me for leaving first!”

Bai Lei simply nodded slightly without saying a word. Now, Zhan Zifeng truly saw the demeanor of a master!

Watching Zhan Zifeng’s back, Bai Lei asked in confusion, “Third brother, I really can’t stand this guy. Why did you save him? Let them fight each other…” Before he could finish, Chu Tianyu spoke with a serious and righteous expression, “We need to separate things. Even if Zhan Zifeng is a scumbag, he’s still a Chinese person. I will never allow any Chinese person to die at the hands of the Japanese in front of me, absolutely not!!!” As he spoke, an aura of true mastery emanated from him…