Li Yi clutched his stomach, hissing in pain.
He wanted to say something more, but when he met the other's ferocious gaze, he knew better and obediently shut his mouth.
Today, he was supposed to meet a classmate at the internet cafe to hang out and play some games.
Before this, he had been too busy with his college entrance exams and wasn't of age yet.
This was his first time going to an internet cafe.
However, before they could even step through the internet cafe's doors, they were stopped by a group of people.
What was even more infuriating was that as soon as his classmate saw that there was trouble,
he didn't help. Instead, he turned tail and ran without so much as a word.
'Liu Wei, I fucking see your true colors now!'
Li Yi cursed inwardly.
He had always considered him a good friend, but he never expected him to be so unreliable when it mattered most. Running away was one thing,
but he could have at least gone to get a police officer.
Then, Li Yi thought of Hu Qi, and a wave of worry washed over him.
'These guys are clearly trouble.
I don't know what they want with Brother Qi. I made my hint so obvious, he should have understood, right...?'
However, this thought didn't last long in Li Yi's mind.
Soon, he completely lost his composure.
In the fading light of the setting sun,
at the end of the street,
a lone figure on a food delivery scooter was heading their way.
Who else could it be but Hu Qi?
SCREECH—!
Hu Qi slammed on the brakes, and the tires left a clear skid mark on the road as the scooter came to a steady stop in front of everyone.
Seeing this, the white-haired young man shot a look at his cronies, who subtly moved to surround Hu Qi.
"Brother Qi, my dear brother, why are you alone..."
Li Yi looked at Hu Qi, on the verge of tears.
Hu Qi's gaze swept over the scene, pausing on a bruise on Li Yi's face. He then turned to the men surrounding them, his brow furrowed slightly.
"That bruise on his face. Did you do that?"
"I did it. What are you gonna do about it?"
The white-haired young man sneered contemptuously.
Hu Qi pointed to a more secluded alleyway to the side. Due to the orientation of the buildings, there were no shops nearby, making it look particularly deserted.
"If I'm not mistaken, I'm your target, right? Let him go. We can go over there and talk. How about it?"
The white-haired young man frowned, looking Hu Qi up and down.
He sneered.
"Well now, you've got some nerve. You're not planning to find a deserted spot to get on your knees and beg us for mercy, are you?"
"Haha, of course he is."
The surrounding men burst into laughter, their eyes full of mockery as they looked at Hu Qi.
Although Hu Qi now looked somewhat more muscular due to his Cultivation of the Fighting Technique,
they weren't the least bit afraid.
As guys who were constantly in brawls, they had seen plenty of people who were all show.
If they all ganged up on him and landed a few punches, what good would all those muscles be?
He'd still end up crying for his mommy and daddy.
"But since you suggested it, let's go. Don't even think about running."
The white-haired young man waved his hand.
This was exactly what he wanted. It wasn't that he was afraid of anything.
But if he beat someone up on a main road and was unlucky enough to get caught by the police, he'd be locked up for a few days.
However, they didn't let Li Yi go. Instead, they surrounded both Hu Qi and Li Yi and herded them toward the distant alley.
A few passersby seemed to notice something was wrong, but no one wanted to get involved. They just quickened their pace and left the area.
Li Yi's face was deathly pale.
After all, he had just graduated from high school. He had spent his days either at home or at school.
When had he ever seen a situation like this?
「Soon, the group arrived at the mouth of the alley.」
The alley wasn't deep; it was a dead end.
At the far end stood a large tree so thick it would take two people to wrap their arms around it. Behind it was a tall iron fence, and on the other side of that was a busy road with endless traffic.
"Alright, crawl between my legs right now, and I'll consider letting you off."
The white-haired young man spread his legs.
He chuckled darkly.
Seeing that Hu Qi remained silent,
he spat, sending a glob of thick phlegm arcing through the air toward Hu Qi.
Hu Qi leaned slightly to the side, easily dodging it.
At this, the white-haired young man's expression instantly darkened.
"Huh? Shit, you dare to dodge? Brothers, hold him down for me—"
SLAP!
Before he could finish his sentence, Hu Qi suddenly took a step forward, appearing right in front of him.
He raised his hand, moving so fast it was like a blur, and viciously slapped the white-haired young man across the face.
In that instant,
the white-haired young man felt his right cheek go numb, then lose all feeling.
The force of the blow spun him halfway around.
Then he fell to the ground with a THUD.
"Brother Bai!"
"Fuck!"
"He dared to launch a sneak attack! Brothers, get him!"
For a moment, the four young men standing around were stunned. Then, one of them was the first to react.
With a ferocious expression, he charged at Hu Qi, and the others followed close behind.
Faced with this situation,
Hu Qi's expression was cold. He dug the toes of his right foot into the ground as power traveled up his spine. His left leg bent slightly, the muscles instantly tensing.
SWISH!
The next second, Hu Qi's left leg shot out like an afterimage, viciously kicking the man at the front of the charge in the chest.
CRACK!
The sound of a bone breaking rang out as the man was sent flying, crashing into the person behind him.
At the same time, Hu Qi dodged to the side, evading the batons swung by two other men.
His hands shot out like an eagle's talons, precisely gripping their wrists before they could pull back.
His five fingers squeezed hard.
CRACK!
Their wrists instantly dislocated and fractured, and the steel batons in their hands fell to the ground with a CLANG.
Agony twisted their faces, and just as they were about to open their mouths to scream,
an excruciating pain shot through their abdomens. They dropped to their knees, the intense pain rendering them unable to make a sound.
Their faces contorted in agony, turning deathly pale.
It all happened too fast.
From the moment Hu Qi attacked to the moment the men were on the ground,
only four or five seconds had passed.
By the time Li Yi processed what had happened, the thugs were already lying on the ground, wailing in pain.
Staring at the scene, he stood frozen in place.
Li Yi looked at the men on the ground, then at the cold-faced Hu Qi standing to the side.
For a moment, he was at a loss for words.
"Xiaoyi, go wait for me outside. I have some things to discuss with them."
Hu Qi suddenly looked up, a faint smile playing on his lips as he spoke to Li Yi.
Li Yi was stunned for a second, then answered, "Okay," and turned to wait outside the alley.
Hu Qi withdrew his gaze and looked at the figures still screaming and writhing on the ground.
"All of you, shut up! If you scream again, I'll strip your pants off and throw you out onto the main street."
Hu Qi's voice was bone-chilling, like a piercingly cold wind that scraped against their bones, making their bodies shudder. They didn't dare make another sound.
Hu Qi nodded, satisfied with the effect.
He walked over to the white-haired young man from the beginning, grabbed him by the neck, and lifted him up with one hand.
"Alright, start talking. Who sent you to cause trouble for me?"
The white-haired young man's right cheek was grotesquely swollen, and drool was trickling from the corner of his mouth.
His eyes were dazed and unfocused.
He clearly hadn't recovered from that slap yet.
Now, held up by his neck, the intense feeling of suffocation made it impossible for him to breathe. His face turned beet red as he began to struggle desperately.
Slowly, his senses started to return.
"...Big bro... spare... my life... I'll... talk!"
he managed to say, struggling.
THUD!
Hu Qi let go, allowing the man to fall heavily to the ground.