Lin Hu's eyes widened in disbelief as he looked at Lu Chuan, seemingly wanting to say something, but his neck was already gushing blood, making a gurgling noise, and he couldn't speak at all.
With a palm strike, he hit Lu Chuan and sent him flying away, then he hurriedly clutched at his neck, trying to stop the blood spurting out like a fountain.
Unfortunately, the four bloody holes were too terrifying, and no matter how much he tried to stop the bleeding, it was of no use.
Leng Feng, who had been about to make a move, was slightly surprised by this turn of events and withdrew the throwing knife he had been holding.
Gu Hongzhuang, sitting in the car, had a face full of surprise, having not expected Lu Chuan to actually pull off a turnaround, and her view of him began to change, "I actually underestimated this guy."
Lu Chuan, gritting his teeth, stood up from the ground, wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and gave Lin Hu a cold smile, "You're nothing special after all!"
After clashing with Lin Hu, he knew that even if he used a secret technique to boost his strength, he might not necessarily defeat Lin Hu. The technique had a significant toll on him and lasted only a short time, so if he used it and failed to take out Lin Hu, his death today would be certain.
So from the start, he was just resisting, allowing Lin Hu to let his guard down, until pretending to be knocked out by Lin Hu's punch.
Then he seized the opportunity to use the secret technique, bringing his power to its peak, and struck Lin Hu unexpectedly, which led to his success.
The secret technique he used was the Blood Combustion Technique, which boosted strength by burning essence blood and was the least harmful to the body among such techniques, allowing for recovery afterwards with the help of elixir pills.
Lin Hu's eyes were filled with blood, showing his rage, but regrettably, the heavy blood loss caused his life force to rapidly fade, and he no longer had the strength to deal with Lu Chuan.
He knelt on the ground, clutching his neck, reaching out a hand towards Lu Chuan, but after a few struggles, he collapsed to the ground and was motionless.
Lu Chuan didn't dare to check if Lin Hu was truly dead, for he was now at the end of his tether. If Lin Hu was playing possum like he had himself, waiting to deliver a fatal blow, that would be bad.
He turned and limped towards the park's exit.
After taking just a few steps, he felt a tightness in his chest and then violently spat out a mouthful of blood, collapsing stiffly onto the ground, fainting.
Leng Feng turned his head to Gu Hongzhuang and asked, "Sister Hong, he's seriously injured and seemed to have used some profound method to temporarily enhance his own strength, which would place a heavy toll on his body. If he isn't treated promptly, he probably won't live for another hour. Should we save him?"
Gu Hongzhuang's face showed a mockingly playful smile. Lu Chuan's counterattack had piqued her interest in this seemingly ordinary individual. She nodded and said, "Take him to my place."
Leng Feng nodded, walked over to Lu Chuan, picked him up with one hand, and threw him into the trunk of the car; then he drove away from the scene.
Twenty minutes later, a young man came to the lakeside for a smoke. Upon seeing Lin Hu's body and the blood all over the ground, he was so scared he almost wet his pants and hastened to call the police.
Soon, several cars arrived at the park, and a group of people in official uniforms came down to seal off the scene, determining from the traces that a fierce battle had taken place there.
A staff member spoke up: "This murder case involves an Inner Strength Martial Artist; the murderer must be a high-level Inner Strength expert. Notify the Censorate Department immediately!"
"Yes!"
The so-called Censorate Department is a special department established by Cathay, independent of the system, filled with experts and tasked with overseeing those who practice martial arts, preventing them from using their skills to break the law and endanger society.
Usually, only cases involving Inner Strength Martial Artists result in the intervention of the Censorate Department, so ordinary people are completely unaware of its existence.
Shortly afterward, an SUV stopped, and a tall girl with a pretty face, wearing tight jeans, a black tank top, a trench coat, with her hair in a ponytail and an air of valiance between her brows, got out of the vehicle.
This person, named Yu Xin, was responsible for managing Martial Artists in the area, and because of her beauty, she was known as the office flower of the Censorate Department's Cloud City branch.
When Yu Xin arrived, everyone's eyes lit up, and many of them fixated on the black tank top beneath her trench coat, unanimously deeming that it bore a weight it shouldn't.
Yu Xin ignored the gazes of these men, effortlessly picked up the record materials, and after reviewing them, walked over to Lin Hu's corpse. She flipped it over and when she saw the deceased was Lin Hu, she was slightly taken aback.
"Lin Hu of Inner Force Stage 5 dead? Looks like the killer is no simple character," she said.
Her gaze fell on the four bloody finger holes, and her eyes grew increasingly cold. "Such a ruthless strike, it seems this murderer is a heinous criminal, daring to kill on my turf in Cloud City. Truly they must have the courage of a bear and the heart of a leopard!"
She looked to the others and commanded, "Get me all nearby surveillance footage immediately. Inform me the moment you find a clue. I will personally capture this murderer!"
"Yes!"
...
Two days later.
In a secluded villa on the outskirts.
Lu Chuan woke up groggily and found himself lying in a spacious room with an IV drip in his arm.
It was with great difficulty that he sat up, only for a severe pain in his chest to almost knock him out again.
He could feel he was severely injured and extremely weak, so he quickly circulated his martial arts technique, absorbing Spiritual Energy to relieve the pain.
After a while, nourished by the Spiritual Energy, he felt somewhat better, not as uncomfortable as he had felt upon waking.
He removed the needle stuck in his arm, got out of bed, and began walking outside.
"Where am I?" he wondered.
He remembered that he had just taken care of Lin Hu in the park and was about to leave when he passed out. He had no recollection of what happened afterward.
"Could someone have saved me?"
He left the room and discovered he was in an incredibly luxurious villa, adorned with various ancient paintings and exquisite embroidery. Not far away, there were several sets of gorgeous Hanfu garments, clearly indicating the owner's passion for ancient artifacts.
It was also clear that the owner was a woman of taste.
After observing for a while, he confirmed that the villa was empty.
"Strange, of the people I know, only Mengyao and Ning Xin could afford such a large villa, but neither of them likes these antiquities. Who could have saved me?"
Feeling the urge to urinate, Lu Chuan didn't ponder for long and quickly began searching for a bathroom in the vast villa.
Entering a room that resembled an ancient boudoir, he saw another door, which he presumed to be the bathroom, so he hurriedly pushed it open and entered.
Then he saw a round wooden tub where a seductive and beautiful woman was taking a petal bath.
As he entered, the woman was just getting out of the bath, revealing her delicate and charming body right before his eyes.