Chapter 34

The night was hazy!

In the dilapidated temple on the mountain behind Li Family Village, the lamplight flickered, shining out through the drafty windows.

In the room covered in spiderwebs, Li Hu sat beside the oil lamp, took a small sip of wine, and then tossed a peanut into his mouth.

On the other side was one of his two lackeys; one of them, however, was not there.

His name was Li Jian, and he was actually Li Hu's cousin's son.

But because they were in a gang and needed to maintain dignity, Li Hu did not allow him to call him uncle, but rather "Lord Hu."

The mountain wind blew through the ruined temple, making a wailing sound like ghosts crying and wolves howling, and Li Jian was so scared his face turned pale.

"Look at your cowardly self. It's just killing a person, isn't it? He wasn't afraid when he was alive, so what is there to be afraid of now that he's dead?" Li Hu looked at Li Jian's appearance and couldn't help but sneer.

"He Shicai died and still had to harm me by making me hide in this dump. If he can turn into a ghost, I'll just kill him again."

He hadn't intended to kill He Shicai; he had only slapped him once, but he hadn't expected He Shicai to be so weak, angering himself to death and forcing them to go into hiding.

As long as no one reported the case, the government generally didn't care about such matters, and ordinary people didn't dare to report his Three Harmonies Gang, but he was afraid He Shicai's family would be foolish enough to report it.

Even if the government and they were in cahoots, they would still have to put on a show, so it was better to hide first.

Li Jian was somewhat ashamed: "Lord Hu, you've killed several people, so naturally you aren't afraid, but this is my first time killing someone, and I'm just afraid of the vengeful ghost seeking its life."

"What vengeful ghost? If there were such things, could I have lived so freely for so many years?"

Li Hu comforted him: "Don't be afraid. Although we killed someone this time, it can be considered taking responsibility for the gang. Many people want to kill someone to get ahead but don't have the chance. With this incident, you and Li Liang can get ahead after a few more years of hard work. This is a good thing."

"I only started to stand out in the gang after I killed someone."

"Remember, in the gang, you have to be able to take responsibility to have a chance to get ahead."

Hearing this, the fear in Li Jian's heart lessened significantly: "Lord Hu, how much longer do we have to hide? This really isn't a place for people to stay."

They had already been hiding here for three days, and although the food was well-prepared, he really couldn't stay any longer; sleeping on a door panel every day was making his back feel like it was going to break.

"Wait for Li Liang's news. If He Shicai's family hasn't reported it to the officials, we can go back." Li Hu took another swig of wine.

He had experienced this kind of thing many times and was long since used to it.

"What if He Shicai's family reports it to the officials?"

Li Hu laughed: "Then we'll just finish them off. Without a victim, naturally no one will pursue it."

He spoke as if he were talking about stepping on a few ants.

Just then, footsteps sounded outside.

"Who?"

Li Hu was the first to react, pulling a dagger from his waist.

"Lord Hu, it's me."

Li Liang crawled in from outside and laughed: "Good news, He Shicai's family hasn't reported it to the officials."

"We can go back!" Li Jian stood up.

"They didn't seek their own deaths; He Shicai's family is still sensible. Let's go, let's go to your little aunt's place first!" Li Hu took a swig of wine and walked out first.

The "little aunt" was his mistress, originally a widow who couldn't afford the residence fee, so she paid with her body, and after some time, she became Li Hu's mistress.

Having hidden for several days, he was now very frustrated.

Li Jian blew out the oil lamp and followed him out of the ruined temple.

The three of them went down the mountain, bypassed Li Family Village, and headed toward Big Tree Village, where Li Hu's mistress lived.

"Lord Hu, walk slower!" Li Jian reached out to support Li Hu.

Li Hu had already drunk quite a bit in the ruined temple and had been drinking ever since they came down the mountain; now that the alcohol was hitting him, his walk began to sway.

"It's nothing, this little bit of wine can't make me drunk. When I was your age, I could still hack people to death after two or three jin of wine."

The Three Harmonies Gang had rival gangs, and there were frequent skirmishes and assassinations, so Li Hu usually didn't drink when walking at night.

But he had been hiding for the past few days, and no one knew their whereabouts, so he wasn't worried about anything happening on the road.

Not far away, Big Tree Village had already appeared before their eyes.

"Your little aunt shouldn't be asleep yet. In a while, I'll have her make some dishes, and the three of us will keep drinking. These past few days on the mountain, my mouth has been so bland I could die."

As Li Hu spoke, as if remembering something, he immediately added: "By the way, that brat Xu Yang, has he brought the money?"

Li Liang shook his head: "I asked the brothers at the hall, he hasn't been to the hall."

"Is the little brat intentionally stalling for time? I'll go to his house tomorrow to see..."

Before he could finish the word "see," a black shadow suddenly lunged out from under the field ridge ahead, as swift as a tiger or leopard.

Li Hu had been in the gang for many years, had killed several people, and had been hunted many times, so his response experience was extremely rich.

Although he was a bit tipsy, he made the correct response immediately, pushing Li Liang, who was beside him, out.

"Puchi!"

The sound of cowhide being pierced rang out. As he retreated, he saw a sharpened wooden stick pierce through Li Liang's body, propping up his clothes.

In an instant, his scalp went numb, and he broke into a cold sweat; if he hadn't reacted quickly, the one skewered like a candied hawthorn would have been him.

"Bang!"

Xu Yang kicked away Li Liang, who was still on the stick, took a step forward, and gripped the wrist-thick wooden stick with both hands, smashing it down toward Li Jian's head.

He had been lying in ambush outside the village where Li Hu's mistress lived for two days, and on the third day, he finally waited for Li Hu.

He had originally thought he would only be able to wait for Li Hu, but he hadn't expected all three to be there; killing them all was just right to prevent anyone from linking the matter to him.

He didn't have a handy weapon, so he made a sturdy, heavy wooden stick and sharpened it, using it as both a spear and a club.

He hadn't learned any spear or club techniques, but as long as one had great strength, the lethality of this thing was not much weaker than a blade.

"Boom!"

The wrist-thick wooden stick struck the air, making a dull sound. Under Xu Yang's swing, the stick even bent slightly; one could imagine the terror of this strike.

Li Jian had already been scared out of his wits by Li Liang's death, but under the crisis of death, he still reacted.

He crossed his hands over his head, attempting to block this fatal blow with his flesh and blood.

"Crack!"

The sound of shattering hand bones rang out.

Xu Yang's current strength allowed him to lift a 150-jin stone lock with one arm; with the force of both hands, the impact of this club was far more than 500 jin.

Li Jian's arms snapped instantly; he didn't even have time to scream before the unstoppable wooden stick smashed onto his forehead.

With a "bang," brains and bone fragments splattered, and Li Jian went limp, completely powerless.

"Crack!"

Xu Yang had used too much force, and the wooden stick snapped under the continuous impact. He couldn't help but stagger, but fortunately, he quickly stepped forward and contained his strength, preventing himself from falling.

"Kill..."

Li Hu had long since been scared out of his wits and had even forgotten the dagger on his body.

Everything happened in the blink of an eye; at this moment, he had only retreated three or four steps and hadn't run far.

He opened his mouth to shout "Murder," but before he could make any sound, Xu Yang's broken stick flew over and slammed into his back.

Li Hu's vision went black; he couldn't even feel the pain. The force carried by the stick made him hold his breath, unable to let it out.

The next moment, Xu Yang had lunged behind him, grabbed his head with both hands, and twisted it backward with force.