Lin Xing glanced at the two men in the living room and looked at the scar-faced man, asking, "Where's the little girl you kidnapped?"
The scar-faced man sneered, about to say something, but saw Lin Xing charging towards Jiang Fang, tossing his backpack at him.
Jiang Fang, not backing down, coldly laughed and punched the incoming backpack… only to gasp in pain immediately after.
He felt as though his fist had smashed into some irregular metal lump, possibly fracturing his hand bones.
Meanwhile, Lin Xing quickly pulled out a tool from the bag.
It was a pair of titanium alloy wrenches linked by a chain, each wrench about thirty centimeters long, now resembling nunchaku in Lin Xing's hands.
As a college student who loved cycling, carrying wrenches was normal, their being chained together to prevent loss, and chosen in titanium alloy for durability.
Though merely tools for Lin Xing, in a critical moment, like facing the local ruffian cum part-time human trafficker, the chained wrenches could also temporarily become weapons for self-defense.
Especially now, with Lin Xing's significantly enhanced physical prowess, facing Jiang Fang whose hand bones were fractured, the chained wrenches greatly magnified Lin Xing's destructive power. In no time, Jiang Fang was scurrying about, clutching his head.
Ah!
With several agonizing screams, Jiang Fang, both knees shattered, fell to the ground, soon kicked unconscious by Lin Xing.
Lin Xing thought to himself, 'The difference between unarmed and armed is truly vast. Especially since both of our strengths are at a robust level, the element of surprise can totally create an overwhelming effect.'
Previously injured, the scar-faced man saw the wrenches in front of him and dropped to his knees, terrified, begging, "Spare my life, hero."
Watching the cornered bully, Lin Xing coldly asked again, "Where is the girl?"
The scar-faced man swallowed hard, seeming to weigh his options, but feeling the wrench's cold metal on his cheek, he quickly said, "The village chief took her away."
"Where to?"
"The back mountain."
"Take me there."
Under Lin Xing's coercion, the scar-faced man, with a pained expression, led him towards the back mountain.
It was a forest path no one dared to take on ordinary days, already overgrown with weeds.
After walking for over an hour, the surroundings became more secluded, the woods denser, gradually arriving at a rarely visited place.
All the while, the scar-faced man urged Lin Xing to leave quickly.
"The woods up ahead belong to the Mountain God, anyone except the village chief who enters dies."
"It's over, you're going to get us all killed."
"Let's go, the Mountain God will be here soon."
But Lin Xing was unmoved and continued to press on, forcing the scar-faced man over a small hill until an open area appeared before Lin Xing.
Looking ahead, one could spot a stone platform in the center of the clearing where three children were tied up.
An old man with a goat beard stood below the platform, seemingly waiting for something.
Upon reaching the place, the scar-faced man refused to go any further; his body trembled nonstop, his face full of deep fear.
Lin Xing furrowed his brows and asked, "Isn't the village chief supposed to sell the children to gather 'God's money' for the Mountain God? Why bring the kids into the mountains?"
The scar-faced man nervously glanced around the dense woods and nervously replied, "What does the Mountain God need money for? That's just to fool those idiots in the village, 'God's money' ends up in the village chief's pocket."
"But the Mountain God needs to eat humans every year, so the village chief either uses part of 'God's money' each year to buy someone from the city to feed the Mountain God, or just sends someone from the village who's selling off a child directly."
"This time, the village chief wanted to ask the Mountain God to protect the village, so he simply bought two boys and two girls, including Jiang Hong's daughter, and sent them here."
After finishing, he pleaded continuously with Lin Xing, "I've told you everything, let me go now, or it's all over if the Mountain God shows up."
With a loud bang, accompanied by the violent collision of titanium alloy and human body, the man with the scarred face had already fallen to the ground, clutching his knee.
"Wait here."
Lin Xing left those cold words behind as he walked toward the distant stone platform.
As Lin Xing drew closer to the stone platform, he could feel gusts of cold wind increasing around him, accompanied by the swaying of the surrounding trees, as if numerous cries were coming together.
And as Lin Xing stepped closer to the stone platform, more and more bones appeared on the ground, startling him.
The cat toy on his chest reminded him, "Lin Xing, something is off here, be careful."
It seemed that the cries of the scar-faced man were heard, and the elder in front of the stone platform turned around. He glanced at the scar-faced man in the distance, then looked at Lin Xing in front of him and said, "Was it you who killed Commander Zhang's men? And injured Jiang Wu (scar-faced man)?"
Lin Xing responded, "Was it you who illegally raised funds, trafficked people, and disregarded human life?"
The elder burst into wild laughter, his eyes appearing to dance with strands of blood, exuding a frenzied aura.
"If not for my Jiang family serving the Mountain God all these years, how could the people of Jiang Family Village thrive in this place?"
"In these chaotic times, safeguarding peace for the people is a great merit!"
The elder looked at Lin Xing and continued, "Seeing that you could defeat Jiang Wu and the others, you also possess some skill. How about I give you a chance to serve under me?"
Lin Xing had already pulled out a wrench from his backpack, "What if I refuse?"
The elder laughed heartily and suddenly opened his mouth wide with a shout, then from his mouth came a strange roar.
As if responding to that roar, similarly non-human screams emanated from the forest.
Under the shocked gaze of three children and Bai Yiyi, a humanoid monster, over three meters tall and appearing like numerous twisted animal corpses fused together, step by step came out from the forest.
What could barely be called arms were covered with crisscrossing, outwardly curling sharp teeth.
Atop its head were several distorted, twisted human faces, all staring intently at the children on the platform.
Under the elder's bizarre scream, the monster then turned its gaze toward Lin Xing.
The elder laughed wildly, excitement flushing his cheeks, "This is the Mountain God that has been guarding Jiang Family Village for generations. Have you changed your mind now? Too bad I no longer accept."
Lin Xing, equally stunned, asked, "What's wrong with this Mountain God? Why does it look like that?"
The elder sneered, "You'll soon be unable to retort."
He howled toward the direction of the Mountain God, and the massive humanoid monster responded with a roar, then lunged toward Lin Xing like a mountain.
Lin Xing immediately rolled to the side, barely dodging the assault.
But the Mountain God's size was simply too colossal. While its body, made up of animal corpses, seemed sluggish, its movements were incredibly swift.
With just a stretch of its hand or a lift of its foot, it could cause widespread attacks, and Lin Xing spent all his energy just dodging.
Finally seizing an opportunity, he swung the wrench at the creature, but it only burst a spray of blood, spattering him with a foul stench.
The cat toy in his arms shouted, "What kind of cursed creature is this? It's unassailable, retreat quickly!"
Lin Xing confidently said, "With this creature's size, if I continue to utilize rolls and attack its lower areas, I still might stand a chance."
As Lin Xing's physical strength rapidly depleted, his movements slowed, and he was viciously swiped to the ground by the Mountain God.
Then, with successive booming sounds, the Mountain God pummeled Lin Xing's body with punch after punch.
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