Chapter 157: Winter Solstice, Summer Demise (Part VI)

"De Guangqing, you patricide and mentor-killer, you truly are a despicable and shameless villain!" I was completely stunned by the gunshot. This fellow had surely gone mad; he had actually murdered the very master who personally cultivated him, behaving even worse than a beast. A towering rage surged from the depths of my chest. If such a person were not killed, the fury at the old man's tragic death could never be appeased!

"Hahaha... So what if I killed him? So what if I didn't?" De Guangqing laughed with a ferocious distortion on his face. With a wave of his large hand, he roared wildly at the subordinates behind him, "Today, I will absolutely not let you leave this place alive!"

"Was it Xia Guomin who made you do this?" I suddenly sneered at him. "After killing me, do you think he can continue to act with such lawlessness in City C? The Xia family is nearly finished. If you remain as deluded as they are, you will certainly be ruined as well!"

Hearing my words, De Guangqing trembled violently all over. Finally, I could be certain that all my suspicions were correct. De Guangqing was indeed sent by Xia Guomin, and all of this was a scheme orchestrated entirely by the Xia family! Seeing his gaze flicker somewhat, I pressed harder, "De Guangqing, do you think doing this has any meaning? Do you believe that killing me and Chu Qitong will leave no trace? Aren't you afraid that the Chu family will eventually investigate and come after you for trouble?"

"Hmph, you surnamed Xiao, I have tolerated you for a long time. Originally, I didn't want to provoke you, nor did I want trouble, but you repeatedly humiliated my subordinates. Do you really take my Axe Gang for pushovers? Very well, since you are so fearless, today I will make you taste fear for once!" With a grim and cold face, De Guangqing abruptly pointed his pistol straight at me. "Brothers, whether the Axe Gang lives or dies depends on today! As long as we take down this brat and that hanging woman, the Axe Gang will still have a future. Today, we succeed or we perish!"

"Snap..." In the very next second, almost all of his subordinates behind him raised their weapons to aim at my body. The hoodlums throughout the warehouse all grabbed their implements, fixing their gazes tightly on me. Meanwhile, the optical smoke grenade was already clenched firmly in my palm, while a small knife retrieved from my tool bag was ready for action in my other hand! De Guangqing clearly had no intention of letting me go, leaving me no choice but to fight for my own survival. I quickly swept a glance around the periphery of the warehouse with my peripheral vision, then snapped my head up and shouted loudly toward Chu Qitong, "Qitong!! Close your eyes!"

"Clang..." Just as De Guangqing was about to pull the trigger, my right hand violently hurled the optical smoke grenade in his direction, and I immediately squeezed my eyes shut. Barely half a second later, an intense flash of brilliance flooded the space between De Guangqing and me. The entire warehouse was instantly swallowed by a blinding glare far more intense than the sun!

"Ah..." Caught off guard by the blinding light before they could close their eyes, all the hoodlums let out panicked screams. In the warehouse completely engulfed by the glare, the men of the Axe Gang fell into utter chaos. Relying entirely on my memory, I sprang fiercely into mid-air, wrapped my arms around Chu Qitong's trembling body, and swiftly severed the rope suspending her delicate form. At that exact moment, a loud roar echoed from De Guangqing on the ground: "Don't panic! Brothers without guns, fall back to the main entrance and make sure that bastard doesn't slip away! Brothers with guns, it doesn't matter if you can't see—aim straight ahead in the direction you were facing and fire!"

"Bang, bang, bang..." Accompanied by a series of sudden gunshots, Chu Qitong and I landed heavily on the ground. Instinctively, I twisted my body to shield Qitong, pulling her completely into my embrace at an angle. Turning my back to the indiscriminate bullets flying from De Guangqing, I began running swiftly toward a dilapidated piece of machinery on the right side of the warehouse.

"Whoosh, whoosh." Bullets zipped past my ears. For the first time, I truly felt the terror of firearms. The unsettling sensation of missing shots whizzing by was deeply frightening. Fortunately, I wore concentrated light armor; as long as the bullets missed my head and limbs, I could withstand up to four direct hits. This was the only thing that brought me a sliver of reassurance.

Because the blinding light from the optical smoke grenade I had thrown was powerful enough to temporarily blind everyone in the Axe Gang, I knew these bullets were merely being fired blindly by gunmen with their eyes closed, possessing zero accuracy. Because of this, sprinting at top speed, it took me less than a few seconds to dash behind the abandoned machinery with Chu Qitong in my arms and dive straight into it.

"Clang, clang..." Just as I plunged into that narrow space, several stray bullets struck the machinery, producing an unpleasant metallic screech. Breathing heavily, I looked down at Chu Qitong, whose eyes were wide with terror, and realized her mouth was still stuffed with a cloth gag. I hastily pulled the cloth away.

"Sob, sob... Xiao Kang... I-I'm so scared..." Opening her mouth, Chu Qitong wept bitterly as she threw herself into my arms once again, her delicate frame shaking continuously. "I-I thought... I thought I would never see you again... Sob, sob..."

"Don't be afraid. I came to save you, as I promised. I'm sorry, Qitong; I'm the one who dragged you into being kidnapped by these animals..." I looked remorsefully at the weeping Chu Qitong. If not for me, she would never have suffered this.

"No, I don't blame you, Xiao Kang. I am your woman, so I should be willing to endure this for you..." Choking back her sobs, Chu Qitong shook her head slightly, a spark of resolve flashing in her eyes. "Xiao Kang, I-I'm not scared anymore. Don't worry about me; deal with those monsters quickly."

Seeing the deliberate bravery she forced herself to show, I smiled, stroked her slightly wavy long hair, and kissed her forehead. "You silly girl, stop pretending. Scared is scared; don't hold back out of consideration for me. Qitong, I will bring you out safely, I promise!"

"Mhmm..." Chu Qitong rubbed her face affectionately against mine, pressed a kiss to my lips, and whispered, "Suddenly, I'm not scared at all anymore. Really. Because I'm so happy. Because I am Xiao Kang's woman, and no matter what happens, I won't be afraid!"

"All right, Tongtong, don't worry. Leave the rest to me!" I nodded, swiftly drawing two laser pistols from my waist, and thought with a cold smile, "How dare these bastards kidnap you? I'll let them taste my wrath!" Once finished, I spoke in a low voice into the miniature communicator on my collar, "Li Dabiao, charge in with your men. Be careful, they have firearms."

"Understood, Boss! I've already had my men procure guns. Hold on a bit longer, we're charging in right now!" Li Dabiao's voice came through the earpiece. I was noticeably startled—when on earth had this fellow managed to acquire guns? Heavens, was this really a security firm? Speechless...

Outside, the light had finally begun to dim, and the Axe Gang hoodlums were starting to calm down, their vision gradually returning. Peering through a gap at the edge, I saw them scanning the surroundings, clearly trying to spot my silhouette within the warehouse.

"That bastard couldn't have escaped. Hurry up and search! The place is only so big; he must be hiding inside those abandoned machines!" True to his reputation as a veteran of the underworld, the moment his vision cleared, De Guangqing began directing his men. "Take a dozen men to block the front doors! The rest of you, charge inside with me!"

"Yes, Boss!" Acknowledging the command, De Guangqing's henchmen quickly formed small squads to search the interior of the warehouse. At the very center were De Guangqing himself and several subordinates clutching pistols.

"Hold on a bit longer, Li Dabiao and the others are almost here." I offered Chu Qitong a faint smile, then spun around to press against the abandoned machine, raising my laser guns to take aim at the henchmen creeping closer and closer. This was going to be the first time I killed anyone; the feeling was thoroughly unpleasant, but for the sake of survival, I had no other choice.

A few thugs, clutching iron pipes and machetes nervously, crept toward my position with panicked expressions. They must have been terrified inside, given that they had witnessed my combat prowess; if De Guangqing weren't backing them up with a gun from behind, they probably would have been too paralyzed with fear to move.

"Whoosh, whoosh..." Amid the tense atmosphere, two sudden red beams of light flashed out, piercing directly through the bodies of the leading thugs and continuing straight through to strike several others standing right behind them. Looking down in confusion before they even understood what had happened, they watched blood suddenly gush from their chests...

"Thud, thud..." Without a single cry of agony, without a single painful groan, the thugs pierced by the crimson rays collapsed rigidly to the ground, utterly lifeless. Everyone stared in utter shock, the surrounding silence chillingly profound...