Chapter Fifty: This Fellow Is Truly Ruthless!

You have advanced technology, but I have a thick skin. No matter how dazzling your words, I’ll blast you dead with a single shot. No one expected Tang Fei to fire so abruptly, without warning or threat. His radiant smile remained unchanged, his expression calm, and his gaze steady—there was no hint of hostility. For him, pulling the trigger was as casual as lighting a cigarette.

Tang Fei thought the people opposite him were foolish. They had already surrounded their target, yet hesitated to simply open fire. What did it mean to kill for treasure? Killing comes first, treasure follows. Once the enemy is dead, the spoils are yours—why bother with ceremony? Would they rather throw out a pair of white gloves first? Clearly, they lacked proficiency in their craft.

What stunned him most was that Simon, the big-nosed foreigner, demanded they drop their pulse guns and retreat into the lake. Had the man fried his brains with strong liquor on the new star? How could he propose such a ludicrous condition? If you lay down your arms, you won’t live to regret it. These people had never encountered predators; those types never leave survivors. When faced with them, you fight if you can, die if you can’t—surrender isn’t an option.

Everyone was dumbfounded. They couldn’t understand how, despite their superior numbers and having surrounded these two troublemakers, Tang Fei dared to fire. Their shock was so overwhelming that when Simon died, they failed to react, and blood splattered over their faces and bodies.

Tang Fei's shot not only killed Simon, but also unlucky was the man behind him, tasked with guarding. The energy blast shattered Simon and tore a massive hole through the guard’s chest. His chest was gone!

Little Fatty, already impatient, saw his elder brother fire first and pulled the trigger without hesitation. Bang bang bang... His shots went astray. Although he aimed for the center of the crowd, the pulse gun’s recoil was stronger than expected, and as a novice he didn’t release the trigger, losing control and blasting a man at the edge of the group.

He’d been told to practice beforehand, but Big Brother wouldn’t allow it...

It was only then that the others finally reacted. A middle-aged man leaped forward, pushing the girl with the braid out of harm’s way. The rest opened fire in retaliation, forcing Tang Fei and Little Fatty to roll across the ground, shooting back while dodging bullets.

Tang Fei’s sudden action shattered the encirclement they’d carefully prepared. After firing a few more shots to scatter the enemy, he dragged Little Fatty toward the dense woods nearby. They couldn’t remain on the bare lakeshore—there was no cover, making them easy targets. Entering the lake would be a death sentence, with no chance to fight back, only to be mowed down by bullets. But in the forest, they would gain the home-field advantage. Then the enemy would understand why the flowers bloom so red...

Little Fatty remembered Tang Fei’s words well, grabbing the skull hammer as they fled. If he hadn’t, Tang Fei would have reminded him; after all, it was their greatest prize from this journey. The red pill and the beast hide scroll were still mysteries, and to him, they held no value. As for the black cloak on his back, aside from being soft, it had no apparent special properties.

Yan Xinyou was stunned by the attack. Following the map, she and her group had traveled from the new star to the old earth days ago, entering this region called Shennongjia. After entering the mountains, they searched for Crescent Gorge as instructed, but found nothing. Unwilling to return empty-handed, she ordered the use of an invisible aircraft to patrol above Shennongjia, hoping to spot suspicious people or areas.

Then, through the feed from the invisible aircraft, she spotted two young men grinning foolishly as they rode horses into the mountains. The main reason was Little Fatty’s broad face, filling most of the screen, his smile distinct and memorable. In Yan Xinyou’s mind, their smiles were one and the same.

Originally, Yan Xinyou paid them little attention—a chubby boy and a skinny one, both young, what could they possibly achieve? But as they wandered the mountains, failing to locate the tomb, she grew bored and had the aircraft track them. By sheer luck, they stumbled upon a surprise: Tang Fei and Little Fatty entered the ancient tomb and emerged with treasures.

From there, things were simple: kill for the treasure, return to the new star, and resume a wealthy, dignified life. How did it all go so wrong? Where had the plan failed?

Yan Xinyou was dizzy, dragged along in a frantic sprint by her chief bodyguard, Gou Guangsong.

“Protect the young lady, head toward the star shuttle!” Gou Wensong shouted, firing and directing his men. As long as they reached the shuttle, everything would be easier—whether to flee or to unleash its advanced weaponry, they’d regain absolute advantage. The first opportunity had been wasted.

As this thought crossed his mind, he cast a resentful glance at the heiress beside him. His plan was to surround and disarm the pair as soon as they emerged... But she just had to insult them, comparing their drinking to dogs—why not wait until after they were dead? Then she could call them whatever she liked. By shouting, she revealed their presence and gave them time to react.

When someone’s intelligence falls short of their wealth, they pay dearly—like now!

Slash! A nearby guard lost his head.

“Blade controlled by inner power!” someone cried, “They’re cultivators!”

Gou Guangsong saw the spinning dog-leg knife strike, cleanly decapitating its victim. Clearly, this youth was skilled in beheading. What shocked him further was that cultivation was rare on the old earth, nearly impossible to find. What was happening today? Were these two not natives, but agents from a faction on the new star?

This realization weighed heavily on Gou Guangsong. Considering his responsibilities and the consequences of failure, he shouted, “Cultivators, stay and intercept the targets! The rest, escort the young lady to the shuttle!”

“Uncle Gou!” Yan Xinyou cried—not out of concern for Gou Guangsong’s safety, but because she felt insecure without him nearby.

“Miss, go! There are only two of them; if we intercept, you’ll have a chance to escape.” Gou Guangsong understood her thoughts well and called out.

On the new star, cultivators are respected, but pricing power lies with the plutocrats and government.

Yan Xinyou hesitated no longer, running as a cluster of elite bodyguards armed with energy guns surrounded her, escorting her toward the shuttle.

Gou Guangsong and several cultivators halted, preparing to block Tang Fei and Little Fatty’s assault. The memory of Tang Fei’s calm, deadly shot filled Gou Guangsong with an inexplicable chill. “This boy is ruthless!”

Suddenly, a fierce killing intent appeared, and Gou Guangsong raised his weapon to fire.

Clang! The sound of metal rang out; the dog-leg knife was struck aside, vanishing instantly into the darkness. Yet this gave Gou Guangsong a signal—a chance to attack. The knife had been retrieved; its disappearance marked the enemy’s hidden position.

He signaled to the bald man beside him, who nodded in understanding. The bald man soared upward, hovering above the forest canopy, then fired at the spot where the knife had disappeared. Only when the energy gun’s rounds were spent did he release the trigger.

He peered down, wondering if his prey had been shredded...

Boom! An energy round blasted him from the sky, scattering his body to dust. Blood rained from above.

“We’ve been tricked!” Gou Guangsong realized the knife’s landing was bait; judging from the firing angle, the shooter was at twelve o’clock, but the bald man had fired at three o’clock. What kind of youth was this, so cunning and devious at such a young age? In a sudden skirmish, he was playing psychological games...

“Gather up, don’t let them pick us off one by one,” Gou Guangsong whispered.

Bang bang bang... Bullets flew from six o’clock; Gou Guangsong and his group dove for cover, but an energy wave tore off someone’s arm.

“Ah!” the man cried out in pain.

Grouping together made them vulnerable to pulse gun bombardment. The relentless bullets came one after another, a desperate, all-or-nothing assault.

Caught between attack and retreat, Gou Guangsong knew they couldn’t continue like this. Entering the forest meant entering the boys’ domain—unpredictable, elusive, feints and distractions, leaving his group powerless. The darkness and bizarre terrain concealed their enemies, and now they couldn’t even spot their shadows.

“Come out!” Gou Guangsong called. “Let’s stake our honor as cultivators and settle this in fair combat!”

No one answered.

He hoped to pinpoint their location by sound, but the boys refused to take the bait. Where was their youthful recklessness, their fearless bravado?

Gou Guangsong focused, extending his yin-yang energy outward, merging himself with the chill wind, the air, and nature itself. The calls of birds, the rustle of insects, the movements of crawling creatures—everything was within his “sight.”

“They’re here!” he roared, slashing forward.

Bang! Tang Fei’s dog-leg knife struck the long blade, his sneak attack foiled. He flew backward, shaking his numb arm.

The old man has some skill.