Hong Ji and Ouyang De immediately lost consciousness and slumped to the ground at once. Xiao Luo grabbed both of them with each hand and dragged them toward the doorway of the childrenâs home.
âTheyâ¦â
n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om
Ji Siying ran up when she saw the two old men collapsing in an unconscious state. A worried expression showed on her face.
In a hushed voice, Xiao Luo said to her, âTheyâre alright. Theyâll just become two ordinary men once they regain their consciousness later.â
He had made a purchase in the system mall earlier for a technique to remove both the old menâs fighting abilities. When he slapped them on their heads, he had instantly blocked Hong Ji and Ouyang Deâs abilities to channel their inner power ever again. He had turned them into two ordinary men, and this way, there was nothing much either of them could do, even if they chose to continue their long feud.
Ji Siying sighed with relief after moments of suspense, and her heart was finally at ease. She smiled warmly as she rushed toward Xiao Luo, and said, âMr. Xiao Luo, you are truly a great person!â
A great person?
This wasnât the first time Xiao Luo had heard someone praise him like that. And although he knew that there was no underlying meaning to what Ji Siying had said, still, he listened to those three words with a tinge of irony.
Suddenly, he felt uneasy as he felt a great discomfort welling up within his chest, and soon, he tasted blood at the back of his throat. He tried to hold it in, but fresh blood started to flow out from the corner of his mouth.
âYou⦠you are you injured?â
Ji Siying asked, quickly holding on to him, and her eyes were filled with anxiety.
Xiao Luo forced a smile as he took a glance at Hong Ji and Ouyang De, and in an attempt to change the topic, he said, âThese two old men have been rivals from the day they were born and were determined to fight each other to death today. Yet, they still showed deep concern toward one another. When Ouyang De saw that Hong Ji had lost an arm, you could see that his eyes were filled with pain. And when Hong Ji stared at Ouyang De, it wasnât the look of hostility when one saw an enemy, but rather, a look of welcome to an old friend.â
Ji Siying had no interest in what Xiao Luo said at the moment and was more concerned about his wellbeing. âAre your injuries severe? Let me take you to the hospital,â she said.
âItâs nothing too serious, Iâll be fine after a little rest,â Xiao Luo replied.
It was true that this kind of injury wasnât anything too serious, and with a little exercise and rest, he would fully recover in two to three days without lingering pain.
â¦
About half an hour after Xiao Luo and Ji Siying left, Hong Ji and Ouyang De finally regained consciousness. The children from the home were the ones who woke them up.
âAh, my partner, why do I feel like my body is extremely hollow?â
Ouyang De asked, shaking his head. He slowly sat up and, for the moment, was unable to tell what had actually happened.
Hong Ji, still dizzy, slowly pulled himself up and sat on the floor. âAre your kidneys overdrawn? Hurry up and take your kidney pills, theyâll be good for you and your kidney!â he blabbered, still in a half-conscious state.
âOld ghost Hong, your bloody kidneys are the ones that are overdrawn. You better believe that Iâm going to slap you to death right here and now,â Ouyang De snarled, suddenly noticing that Hong Ji was right beside him, and instantly coming to, with his eyes wide open.
âCome, try and slap my head here. Youâre damn coward, thereâs no way you have the guts to follow through,â Hong Ji retorted.
âYou make the first move if you think youâre that good.â
âOld Poison, Iâll do it if you think Iâm scared of you.â
âTry to strike me first, if you dare to. This old man here will chop you to death!â Ouyang De responded.
âHit me first if you have the guts to. Iâll use the Palm of the Eighteen Dragons and crush you with it.â
âPalm of the Eighteen Dragons, my a*s! Let me show you this old manâs Toad Power. Thereâs no one that I canât beat with it.â
âBragging again! All you can do is brag. Youâre nothing but a load of hot air,â Hong Ji sneered.
âOld ghost Hong!!!â
âOld Poison, why are you shouting like a grandpa?â
Their bickering grew louder and louder, both fuming with anger as they stared at one another with daggers in their eyes. Their faces came to within inches of each other, like a pair of raging bulls staring each other down.
âDamn it, when are you going to start hitting each other? If you canât do it, then stop whining like little girls. Iâm beginning to feel agitated just listening to you guys, and it makes me feel like beating someone up!â
A stern, nasty voice called out from the second floor. It came from a North-easterner, and he was an old man, physically disabled, but still looked like he had some vitality left in him. He had witnessed the entire quarrel and was so irritated that it caused him to feel tightness in his chest.
âWhich b*stard said that, stand up and show yourself?â
âYouâre eating my food, wearing my clothes, and living in a place that I provide. You have the nerve to spout such nonsense? You bloody b*stard, Iâm going to give you a good beating today!â
All of a sudden, Hong Ji and Ouyang De had a common enemy. They got up and were about to summon their internal energy and jump up to the second floor, but all that happened was they were only able to hop barely half a meter high off the floor, before landing right back.
âWhat is happening here? Where did all my internal power go?â Hong Ji asked. His face turned pale, and he was in total shock.
Ouyang De was equally shocked. âAll of this old manâs martial arts abilities are gone as well!â he said.
Both of them looked at one another, and they saw the astonishment in each otherâs eyes.
âItâs him, itâs that brat. It has got to be that son of a b*tch!â Ouyang De said, more convinced of it with each passing statement.
âOur abilities have been removed⦠he must have used an ability removal technique.â
Hong Ji suddenly opened both his eyes wide and trembled. âThat is a really evil technique passed down from the underworld. Where did he learn it from?â he said.
Ouyang De grabbed on to Hong Jiâs shoulders and shook him. âOld man Hong, stop spouting a bunch of nonsense. Quickly tell me where this guy is, I want to kill him!â he cried.
âCalm down, you have to calm down!â
Hong Ji roared, pushing him away.
âHow can I calm down? The skills that Iâve practiced for over fifty years are all gone. This is a fate worse than death.â
âDo you think Iâm feeling any better here? I have no idea where he lives either!â
Ouyang De scowled in reply, âBullsh*t. Do you think Iâm blind? I can see everything. The relationship you have with him is not simple at all. He was even planning to fight for you, so you canât fool this old man.â
âWhy would I want to lie to you, you bloody old b*stard? If I say I donât know, then, I really donât know!â
âFool, you dare to scold me again?â
âIâll scold you all I want, what can you do about it? You, old b*stard⦠old b*stardâ¦â
âScr*w your granny. This old b*stard here will kill you!â
Ouyang De rolled up his sleeves and got ready to fight. It was like a cockfight as the two of them got into a messy scuffle.
âTheyâre finally fighting, damn this feels good!â
The North-eastern old man from upstairs finally looked satisfied and sat comfortably to watching them fight. While they were just talking and not fighting, he somehow felt constipated, as if he had obsessive-compulsive disorder, but as soon as they started fighting, he felt relieved all of a sudden.
â¦
After leaving Tianci Childrenâs Home, Ji Siying dropped Xiao Luo off at the Huayao Corporation Building.
Had he been just a mere salesman, then it would have been fine if he didnât appear in the office for a good ten and a half days. But he had somehow become the third groupâs leader, and as much as he didnât want to admit it, he had no choice but to come to terms with it. He could feel the weight of responsibility on his shoulders, especially now that he also had two subordinates to take care of, but the two were nowhere to be seen. Even though he didnât care about getting a promotion himself, he didnât expect those two members to just follow him and go hungry.
As Xiao Luo didnât report to the office often, his leaderâs title felt pretty hollow, and his sudden appearance today caused quite a bit of commotion in the sales department.
âBrother Luo, youâre here!â
âBrother Luo, weâve been praying to the stars and the moon, and finally our prayers have brought you here.â
Two of the members from the third group, Si Yueting and Liu Yiyao, came up to him and burst into tears. They were finally meeting the team leader again after a long absence. They wondered where he had been all this while and looked like two kids who finally reunited with parents that had cared for them.
âTeam Leader Xiao, we never saw you again since you came and reported that one time. Youâve finally found some time to come and visit the company; what brings you here today?â
The second group leader, Xu Le, smiled as he walked over and conversed with Xiao Luo. He turned and waved with his hand, and Guan Tong, who had been assigned to his team, came running up to him. âXiao Guan, go now and bring me a cup of tea!â he said.