Chapter 27: Answering

After a brief silence, the tavern erupted in laughter.

“Xiao Wu just left, and now another one is here. Officer Ma really means business!”

“Are you still talking? If you hadn't gone so wild yesterday, would Xiao Wu have been scared off? That kid was so timid and honest, it would’ve been great if he'd stayed a few more days…”

“But this one looks better than yesterday's; he's quite good-looking.”

“Let's all take it easy today. Old Qian said if this one runs off too, there’ll be no one left for us…”

“Run? Don't even think about running this time.” A gaunt man slowly rose, his deep-set eyes, like a zombie's, fixed on Chen Ling. “Not bad. Quite young, and a healthy complexion. His parts should fetch a good price.”

“Bone Blade, you're going too far. It'll be hard to clean up this mess later…”

“Hmph, Ice Spring Street was ravaged by the disaster. It was these enforcers’ dereliction of duty to begin with. What, are we not even allowed to ask for some compensation?” The gaunt man known as Bone Blade sneered.

The people in the tavern all scrutinized Chen Ling at the entrance, like a pack of greedy, hungry beasts examining prey delivered right to their den.

Chen Ling stood there, seemingly oblivious to their words. He pulled a pen from his pocket and tapped it on a form.

“Bone Blade, is it?” Chen Ling wrote down the name.

“Let's start with you… Where were you on the night Ice Spring Street was ravaged?”

Seeing that the young man dared to question them, everyone exchanged surprised glances. After all, yesterday, when Wu Youdong saw this scene, he was too terrified to even speak… Was this kid truly reckless, or just utterly foolish?

Bone Blade’s eyes narrowed. He stood up and slowly approached Chen Ling.

“Where was I?” Bone Blade blew on his dark fingernails, then his pale, bony knuckles, like an eagle's talons, lashed out towards Chen Ling's neck!

“I was in your mother's bed!!”

In a flash, a cold glint flickered in Chen Ling’s eyes. His right hand, still gripping the pen, thrust forward decisively, the tip instantly piercing Bone Blade’s palm!

With a scream of bone-piercing agony, Bone Blade had no time to react. A hand rapidly filled his vision, pressing down on his head and slamming it hard against the floor!

Military God Path, Judgment Path, Third Stage — Slaughter Dance!

Bang—!!

Wood splinters flew, and crimson liquid flowed.

Everyone's vision blurred as the young man slammed Bone Blade into the floor with one hand. His heavy cotton overcoat lifted slightly, and the entire tavern fell into a profound silence.

“Assaulting an enforcer is a grave crime,” Chen Ling stated calmly.

He slowly straightened up, patted his blood-stained hands, and his gaze swept over the crowd.

Audience expectation value 2Audience expectation value 2Audience expectation value…

After a brief, deathly silence, the patrons of the tavern finally snapped back to reality. The bewilderment and shock in their eyes were quickly replaced by furious murderous intent, and three of them instantly drew their firearms, aiming them at Chen Ling!

“Damn it, a tough nut?!”

Chen Ling knew they were armed. The instant they drew their weapons, he flipped over the nearest tavern table!

The massive table spun in mid-air, causing a group of figures to immediately recoil to either side, throwing the front into disarray. At the same time, Chen Ling, half-crouched, darted out from behind the table, swinging a wine bottle straight at the face of the nearest armed man!

The bottle shattered, its sharp fragments raking across the man’s cheek and leaving several crimson gashes.

Chen Ling followed with a backhanded elbow strike, knocking the man senseless to the floor.

In that instant, two flashes of gunfire erupted in the distance, and whistling bullets flew straight at Chen Ling!

In the dim light, Chen Ling moved with ghostly agility, his heavy cotton overcoat billowing and twisting, pierced by two bullets—yet not a single one struck his body.

This was Chen Ling's first time using Slaughter Dance, and his most striking sensation was that his body felt weightless, like a ghost.

In such a cramped and chaotic tavern, he moved with effortless fluidity. As long as he could anticipate an enemy raising their weapon, he was confident he could dodge the bullets… provided, of course, that the number of armed individuals wasn't too high.

As he dispatched the first armed man, the other two immediately felt the chilling sensation of being hunted, as if a beast had locked onto them.

Their eyes struggled to track Chen Ling’s movements, but with him continuously overturning tables and chairs to obscure their vision, it was virtually impossible. All they heard was a whistling sound by their ear, and the next moment, their heads were struck hard, and they lost consciousness.

Chen Ling neutralized another armed man, snatched his gun with a swift backhand, and then repeatedly pulled the trigger, firing at several large men who charged forward with knives.

Bang bang bang—!

Several spatters of blood bloomed on their legs. They immediately screamed in agony, falling one after another to the ground.

Wails, curses, gunshots, and the crash of tables and chairs echoed throughout the room. It had been barely thirty seconds since Chen Ling entered, yet the entire tavern lay in ruin. Of the fourteen people originally inside, a staggering thirteen had been brutally taken down!

Chen Ling casually tossed aside the emptied pistol, then stepped over the body of a large man whose four ribs had been broken by a kick. As the man screamed in agony, Chen Ling unhurriedly walked to the only undamaged chair in the room and sat down.

“Bartender, a whiskey,” Chen Ling said. He then kicked the large man again, eliciting another scream. “Put it on his tab.”

The one-eyed bartender, who had stood behind the counter throughout the entire ordeal, finally snapped back to reality, his eyes wide with terror as he looked at Chen Ling.

To be able to run a tavern on Ice Spring Street—a popular gathering spot for most residents—the one-eyed bartender was clearly no ordinary man. He had traveled through the Seven Great Districts and met countless people, but never before had he encountered a young man as ruthlessly decisive as Chen Ling.

This guy is just a reservist?!

He’d believe it if you told him this guy was a full-fledged enforcer!

The one-eyed bartender wisely tucked away the revolver he had secretly clutched in his hand. He lowered his head, retrieved a glass, and began preparing the whiskey.

“Name,” Chen Ling said calmly, crossing one leg over the other and placing the form on his lap.

In the silent tavern, no one answered.

“I'm asking *you*!”

He kicked the large man's broken ribs.

“Arghhhhh… Li Mang! Li Mang!” The large man immediately caved.

“Where were you on the night the disaster struck?”

“I, I was right here in this tavern.”

“Did you see what the disaster looked like?”

“I think I did… I was just stepping out to relieve myself at the time, and I saw it flash across the street… It seemed to be humanoid.” The large man stammered out the truth.

Chen Ling said nothing more. He rose, took the whiskey from the counter, and gave it two gentle shakes, the transparent ice cubes clinking against the glass.

Then, he lifted the glass and slowly, deliberately, poured its contents onto the large man’s gushing wound…

“Arghhhhhhh!!!!” A heart-rending scream echoed through the street.

“What I said is true!! It's all true!!!”

“Do you know?” Chen Ling’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Reporting information to enforcers using words like ‘seemingly’ or ‘should,’ without concrete evidence… that’s considered spreading rumors.”

“I'm asking you again… Did you see it?”

“I, I… I really…”

The glass in Chen Ling’s hand tilted further, and more liquor poured onto the wound, causing the large man to tremble uncontrollably from the agony!

“...No!! I didn’t see it!! I didn’t see anything!!!”