BANG!
Zhang Bin kicked open the door to Xu Xiaobing's house.
The house was bustling. Three tables of Mahjong were in full swing, surrounded by a motley crew of thugs and thieves. They had all been in and out of the police station numerous times and naturally exuded a fierce aura. When the door was kicked open, their ferocious gazes all fixed on Zhang Bin.
"Yo... look what we have here! A martial arts master? You dare kick down my door?" Xu Xiaobing roared as he stood up, his face a mask of malice. "Pay up ten thousand yuan, or I'll kill your entire family!"
He was one meter eighty-five, a good five centimeters taller than Zhang Bin. He was burly and muscular, his physique honed by frequent fights, giving him an undeniably intimidating presence.
"Ten thousand? That's not enough. Make it at least one hundred thousand."
The other eleven men also got to their feet, eyeing Zhang Bin like a piece of prey. The tallest and most muscular of the group, a man with a long scar across his face, bellowed the demand. His name was Wang Hu. He stood at an imposing one meter ninety and had once practiced the Iron Sand Palm. Although he never mastered it, he was still a formidable fighter; three or four men together couldn't get near him.
They were all local troublemakers from Qingshan County, but they preferred to gamble in out-of-the-way places like this to avoid attracting attention. They would extort people even when they had no reason to. Now that Zhang Bin had delivered himself to their doorstep, they had no intention of letting the opportunity slide.
Watching from a distance, Liu Xin's face turned pale, her heart hammering in her chest. This is bad. There are so many of them. Zhang Bin is going to be in trouble. She began to regret asking him to step in; this could lead to disaster.
The neighbors heard the commotion and rushed out, their faces filled with anger. "Zhang Bin actually went to provoke Xu Xiaobing? This is serious trouble. He's a dead man..."
"Good, very good. Kill my whole family? Extort one hundred thousand?" Zhang Bin's eyes glinted with an icy light. "Xu Xiaobing, you steal from your neighbors, extort money, and do whatever you please in this village. Today, I'm here to teach you a lesson. Come on, then. All of you, at once."
He slowly backed out of the doorway onto the paved area outside.
"I'm going to cripple you!"
Even Xu Xiaobing was a little wary of Zhang Bin. He drew a dagger, brandishing it with practiced skill. With a few heavy steps, he charged forward, thrusting the blade viciously at Zhang Bin's chest.
"Ah!"
Some of the more timid villagers cried out in terror.
Just as the dagger was about to connect, Zhang Bin sneered. His right hand shot out and clamped down on Xu Xiaobing's wrist.
Xu Xiaobing felt as if his wrist was caught in an iron vise. He couldn't move it an inch, and the bones felt like they were about to shatter. He let out a choked grunt of pain.
Then, a terrifying force pulled him forward. He was lifted off his feet and sent flying through the air, screaming as he landed in the branches of the large banyan tree. He was stuck fast, unable to get down.
Everyone was dumbfounded, their eyes nearly popping out of their sockets.
That branch was at least two meters off the ground. To casually throw a two-hundred-pound man that high into a tree... what kind of horrifying strength did that require?
A look of shock and apprehension crossed Wang Hu's face. The other thugs froze in their tracks.
"Was it you who wanted to extort one hundred thousand from me just now?"
Zhang Bin's gaze, sharp as an arrow, landed on Wang Hu.
"Go to hell!"
Wang Hu roared and lunged forward, swiping his palm at Zhang Bin's face while simultaneously aiming a vicious kick at his groin.
"Fuck off!"
Zhang Bin bellowed. His left hand caught Wang Hu's wrist while his right hand shot down to grab his ankle. With a mighty swing, he used Wang Hu as a club, smashing him into the crowd of thugs. Five or six of them were instantly knocked to the ground. The rest, however, were still in a frenzy. They drew their daggers and swarmed Zhang Bin.
The glinting blades danced in the air as they surrounded him. It was a terrifying sight. The villagers were so frightened their hearts nearly leaped from their chests.
Zhang Bin, however, just sneered. Instead of retreating, he advanced, moving like a tiger among sheep. Fists flew and feet kicked. The burly men were sent flying like scarecrows, landing in a scattered heap on the ground. Not a single one of them had managed to even touch him.
Everyone was stunned into silence, staring at Zhang Bin as if he were a monster, completely baffled as to how he had done it.
Am I really this powerful? Even Zhang Bin himself was surprised.
In any case, he felt that his enemies' movements were sluggish, while his own were as fast as lightning. This allowed him to easily dodge their daggers and strike their vital points. He wasn't even using his full strength. If he had, they would all be corpses by now.
It was clear that his body, tempered by Spiritual Energy, was no longer ordinary. He had transcended the limits of a normal person.
"I don't believe this!"
Wang Hu, who had tumbled into the main hall, scrambled to his feet. He grabbed a thumb-thick steel bar from a corner and charged frantically back out, thrusting it at Zhang Bin's throat.
A sharp light flashed in Zhang Bin's eyes. His left hand shot up and caught the steel bar. Then, he delivered a heavy slap across Wang Hu's face.
SMACK!
Wang Hu spun like a top for several rotations before collapsing. A few bloody teeth flew from his mouth, clattering on the cement.
WHOOSH!
With a casual flick of his wrist, Zhang Bin threw the steel bar. It flew past Wang Hu's neck and embedded itself deep into the ground, leaving only two inches exposed.
Wang Hu was so terrified he wet his pants, a yellow puddle spreading rapidly beneath him.
WHOOF!
Zhang Bin leaped into the air and brought his foot down in a savage kick against the banyan tree.
CRACK!
The massive tree snapped. Xu Xiaobing, still caught in its branches, came crashing down with it.
"Help!" he shrieked in terror.
The next moment, he found himself being hauled up by his chest. Zhang Bin's icy gaze locked onto his face. Xu Xiaobing felt as if he were being stared down by a primordial beast. Yellow liquid began to drip from his pants, and a foul stench filled the air.
"Xu Xiaobing, what was that you said earlier?" Zhang Bin asked, his voice dripping with menace.
"I-I-I... it's just a phrase I use, I didn't really mean it. I-I won't ever do it again..." Xu Xiaobing stammered.
Zhang Bin's brow furrowed, his murderous aura intensifying. He had no desire to let this man who had threatened to kill his entire family go free. At the very least, he would cripple him.
"Sir, please spare us! You're a master, we're just petty thugs. Why bother with the likes of us?"
Worried that Zhang Bin might actually kill Xu Xiaobing, Wang Hu scrambled to his feet and limped over, his face a fawning mask.
"Yes, please spare us! We don't have any deep-seated grudge against you," another thug chimed in, bowing and scraping before Zhang Bin. "You're so powerful, only a fool would want to be your enemy."
Soon, the rest of the thugs began pleading for mercy. They were experts at knowing which way the wind blew, bullying the weak and fearing the strong. Faced with a terrifying expert like Zhang Bin, they were genuinely afraid.
"What about all the chickens, ducks, cattle, sheep, pigs, and dogs you've stolen?"
Zhang Bin's eyes narrowed as he swept his gaze across the men, his icy killing intent still focused on Xu Xiaobing.
"I'll pay! I'll pay! I'll give you one hundred thousand in compensation!" Xu Xiaobing shouted, sensing the imminent threat of death.
He knew with absolute certainty that a master like Zhang Bin could kill him without leaving a trace. He was not ready to die.
Expressionless, Zhang Bin set Xu Xiaobing down. He pinched the steel bar between two fingers and pulled it effortlessly from the ground. With a powerful twist of his hands, he bent the solid bar into a corkscrew shape. He tossed it in front of the cowering thugs and said coldly, "You will pay the compensation in full today. Otherwise, this steel bar will be your fate!"