Although they were members of the karate club, they were still citizens of Jiuzhou.
Kenichi Yamaguchi's words just now were practically an insult to all of them.
Lin Xue's face was flushed with anger as she glared at Kenichi Yamaguchi. If she had known how to fight, she would have rushed up there herself.
"Is the Dongying pig finished?" a voice rang out, carrying a trace of casual indifference.
Lin Xue's eyes lit up. Could Ye Ning finally not hold back anymore?
Kenichi Yamaguchi's gaze tightened as it landed on Ye Ning, his expression turning cruel.
"How dare you insult Great Dongying! You'll regret this—I'm going to beat you until you can't even take care of yourself," Kenichi Yamaguchi said coldly.
Ye Ning said nothing at all. His response was a single hand that clamped around Kenichi Yamaguchi's throat.
Kenichi Yamaguchi's pupils constricted violently. He hadn't even seen how Ye Ning made his move.
Feeling the grip on his throat grow tighter and tighter, Kenichi Yamaguchi panicked.
Chapter 28: Medicine and Martial Arts Share the Same Roots
"You knocked them down, and that's nothing—you can only blame them for being useless," Ye Ning said calmly, instantly causing the faces of the Jiuzhou Ancient Martial Arts Club members present to darken.
They wanted to retort, but they realized they couldn't find a single valid counterargument.
When a hundred people couldn't beat a single opponent, what were they if not useless?
"However, you shouldn't have used the phrase 'Jiuzhou sick man.' I really hate hearing that. You claim I insulted Dongying and want to cripple me... but since you insulted Jiuzhou, how do you expect me to treat you?"
Ye Ning's voice grew increasingly indifferent.
Everyone present could feel a chilling murderous intent radiating from his tone.
They felt a jolt of alarm, staring in shock at the scene unfolding before them.
Could Ye Ning actually be planning to kill him?
"Jiuzhou sick man... I don't believe you dare kill me," Kenichi Yamaguchi forced out through gritted teeth.
The corners of Ye Ning's mouth curved upward slightly as his murderous intent burned even brighter.
"Ye Ning, don't be impulsive!" Lin Xue cried out.
*Crack.*
Ye Ning exerted force with his hand, and Kenichi Yamaguchi's neck was snapped.
He widened his eyes, staring at Ye Ning in disbelief that the man had actually dared to kill him.
Everyone present was utterly stunned.
Nobody had anticipated this outcome.
Kenichi Yamaguchi was dead.
The members of the karate club looked at Ye Ning with sheer terror in their eyes.
Ye Ning dusted off his hands as if he had just done something utterly trivial.
He swept his gaze over the crowd, smiled faintly, and said, "This is the first time I've ever met someone so cheap—he practically begged me to kill him, so naturally, I had to grant his wish."
Silence fell over the crowd.
He actually killed him.
That was an international student from Dongying, yet Ye Ning had crushed him to death without a moment's hesitation.
This was going to cause massive trouble. This Ye Ning was bound to bring a catastrophe down upon himself.
"Something's gone wrong," Lin Xue said, her face draining of color.
She hadn't expected Ye Ning to be so reckless as to kill Kenichi Yamaguchi outright.
"Ye Ning, you were too impulsive! How could you just kill him? We're in deep trouble now. Let's go back and talk to my father," Lin Xue said, panic gripping her heart.
Ye Ning chuckled. "What's wrong with killing him? He's nothing more than a little Japanese devil. Our predecessors traded every inch of mountains and rivers for every drop of blood to drive out the foreign powers—they didn't do it so future generations could swallow insults. Anyone who violates the mighty wrath of Jiuzhou will be executed without mercy."
The crowd's blood boiled, and the looks they gave Ye Ning were filled with adoration.
"Besides, don't worry. I killed him according to the rules; someone will handle this matter," Ye Ning said calmly.
Killed him according to the rules?
What did that mean?
Everyone was baffled, save for Deng Yang, who looked thoughtful.
"Are you an Ancient Martial Artist? A ranked one?" Deng Yang asked as she struggled to her feet and looked at Ye Ning.
Ye Ning glanced at her and nodded.
"Kenichi Yamaguchi was ranked too. That's why I was allowed to kill him."
Deng Yang immediately broke into a smile and said to Lin Xue, "Don't worry, your boyfriend is going to be fine."
"Really?" Lin Xue asked, uncomprehending.
"That's just the rule of another circle. He really did kill him by the rules," Deng Yang said with a smile.
She had been somewhat worried initially, but the moment she learned Ye Ning was an Ancient Martial Artist, all her worry vanished.
As she finished speaking, Deng Yang coughed a few times, a streak of blood spilling from the corner of her mouth, which instantly startled Lin Xue.
"Ye Ning, hurry up and check on Deng Yang! Is she alright?" Lin Xue's face was etched with worry, terrified that something might happen to her close friend.
Ye Ning glanced at her and said, "Her internal organs are damaged. Although it doesn't look too serious right now, without proper care, everyone who was beaten like this will die of illness one after another within a year."
Hearing Ye Ning's words, Lin Xue's expression changed drastically. She asked anxiously, "Ye Ning, you must have a way to treat them, right?"
"I'll write a prescription. If they drink it for a week, they'll be fine," Ye Ning said.
Having witnessed Ye Ning's divine martial prowess, the crowd naturally harbored no doubts about his medical skills.
Since ancient times, medicine and martial arts share the same roots.
Powerful martial artists all understood a bit of medicine.
At his request, someone brought paper and a brush. Ye Ning wrote out a prescription and carefully explained the precautions for taking the medicine.
Deng Yang took a look. Having dabbled slightly in traditional Chinese medicine, she understood upon reading the prescription that Ye Ning was thoroughly reliable.
The prescription was sound and would be immensely helpful for their internal organ injuries.
"Thank you. My name is Deng Yang, Xiaocheng's good friend. Let's get acquainted," Deng Yang said, extending her hand.
Ye Ning extended his hand as well, shook hers, and replied, "My name is Ye Ning, and I'm Lin Xue's husband."
Deng Yang gave a tight-lipped smile. "We all know that much."
The campus belle Lin Xue taking a boyfriend had already spread far and wide across their college.
By now, there wasn't a soul in the entire college who didn't know about it.
"Turns out I'm quite the celebrity," Ye Ning chuckled, rubbing his nose.
At that moment, he didn't look remotely like the murderous figure who had just confronted Kenichi Yamaguchi.
Seeing them chatting so amiably, some members of the karate club wanted to slip away, while others began calling the police station.
"You'd better head back first. When the police arrive, it's going to get troublesome," Deng Yang warned.
"If they dare bring me trouble, I'll wipe them out," Ye Ning said casually, which immediately startled Lin Xue.
The police were different from Kenichi Yamaguchi. If Ye Ning genuinely harmed a police officer, certain things would become impossible to explain away.
"Let's go back first. It's better not to conflict with official authorities, okay?" Lin Xue pleaded softly.
Seeing her plead like that, Ye Ning finally nodded and left with her.
Before leaving, however, he pointed at the members of the karate club and said, "You guys carry that guy's corpse away. From now on, if I ever find out anyone dares utter the words 'Jiuzhou sick man' again, I will finish them off."
If anyone else had said such a thing, the karate club students wouldn't have cared in the least; they might even have found it laughable.
But with Kenichi Yamaguchi's corpse lying right there, not a single one of them dared to disobey Ye Ning's words.
Several karate students picked up Kenichi Yamaguchi's body and carried it away.
Only then did Ye Ning nod with satisfaction. He turned to the members of the Ancient Martial Arts Club and said, "Did you all see that? There's no need to be polite with Dongying devils. Just treat them like slaves and order them around. This race simply loves the feeling of being oppressed by the strong—the more aggressive you are, the more submissive they become."
The Dongying students in the karate club turned ashen-faced.
Though rage burned in their hearts, they didn't dare utter a single word.
Meanwhile, the students of the Ancient Martial Arts Club beamed with satisfaction.
They thoroughly agreed with Ye Ning's words, and seeing the karate club students get humiliated felt immensely gratifying.
Ye Ning and Lin Xue departed, leaving the school grounds.
Before long, the police arrived. When they saw the students sprawled all over the ground, they were dumbfounded.
"What's going on here?" asked a spirited and heroic female police officer.
Deng Yang stepped forward and recounted what had just happened.
The female officer grew furious, a frosty expression settling over her striking features. She said coldly, "Those little Japanese devils are getting too arrogant. Daring to injure people at will here in Jiuzhou and insulting our people—they truly deserve to die."
Deng Yang was somewhat surprised. This female officer exceeded her expectations; she wasn't some pedantic bureaucrat and clearly harbored a deep distaste for the little Japanese devils.
Chapter 29: A Dead Dog
"Who was the guy that did the killing?" the female officer asked again.
Not a single student from the Ancient Martial Arts Club spoke up; they all kept silent.
Glancing at them, Chen Shu knew immediately what they were thinking.
"Even if you want to shield him, you won't be able to. We have plenty of methods to find out who he is."
"He was just acting out of civic duty," a student protested indignantly.
Chen Shu glanced at him and said flatly, "I didn't say it wasn't a civic act. It's just that even for civic acts, we still need to verify his identity. Certain procedures must be followed."
Hearing Chen Shu's words, everyone felt a weight lift from their chests.
The gazes of the Ancient Martial Arts Club students all turned to Deng Yang.
Deng Yang shook her head and said, "We don't know him."
Chen Shu didn't mind; if anything, she rather admired these students.
Even though they were shielding a killer, they certainly possessed loyalty and righteousness.
If someone had stepped forward to expose the killer's identity, she would have despised them instead, thinking them entirely lacking in loyalty.
Chen Shu questioned several members of the karate club and quickly locked onto Ye Ning's identity.
The Lin Family.
A peculiar glint flashed through her eyes. This was not an easy family to deal with.
A Dongying couple had received the notification and arrived at the scene.
The man radiated a ferocious aura as he demanded of Chen Shu, "Where is the Jiuzhouan who killed my son? Arrest him immediately and execute him by firing squad!"
Chen Shu glanced at him, then asked the school administrators standing nearby, "Who is this guy?"
The school administrator hurriedly replied, "This is Yamaguchi Kazuo, and this is his wife, Yamaguchi Keiko. The slain island nation student was their son, Kenichi Yamaguchi."
Chen Shu nodded. "Got it. Little Japanese devils, huh?"
Cold sweat instantly broke out on the school administrator's forehead. How could this female police officer speak with such utter disregard for diplomacy?
The Yamaguchi Kazuo standing before them was the regional president of a Japanese enterprise spanning the entire Jiuzhou area, holding immense influence.
Sure enough, upon hearing Chen Shu's words, Yamaguchi Kazuo's face darkened.
He said coldly, "Officer, please show some respect. We are Dongying businessmen in Jiuzhou, and now my son has been murdered here. We expect you to apprehend the criminal as soon as possible and give us an explanation."
Chen Shu's face dropped, and she replied with equal dissatisfaction, "What criminal? He's a good citizen who acted righteously. Your son is the criminal—he beat up over a hundred students. If I had been there, I would have gone up and beaten him to death too."
At those words, Yamaguchi Kazuo's face turned completely black.
The murderer of his own son had somehow become a righteous hero.
Judging by this female police officer's tone, she clearly had no intention of pursuing the other party's responsibility. Were they going to present him with a certificate of merit next?
"Officer, please do not shield that criminal! I know the captain of your police precinct. If you cannot enforce the law impartially, I will go talk to him," Yamaguchi Kazuo said coldly.
A trace of disdain crossed Chen Shu's face as she sneered, "Are you threatening me?"
"You can take it that way," Yamaguchi Kazuo sneered back.
The police officer standing beside Chen Shu sensed something was wrong and grabbed her arm.
Sure enough, the moment he grabbed her, Chen Shu surged forward and lashed out with a kick toward Yamaguchi Kazuo.
"Fuck your mother, you little Japanese bastard! Daring to threaten this lady—I'll execute you myself, you beast!"
She reached for her waist, intending to draw her gun, only to remember that her colleague had already confiscated it earlier.
Cold sweat beaded on the forehead of the officer holding Chen Shu back. Fortunately, he knew her temperament and had reacted quickly.
Chen Shu was normally very calm in her work, but whenever Americans or Dongying people were involved, she grew rather impulsive.
This had to do with her family's history.
Starting in 1931, back in her great-grandfather's generation, all seven of his older brothers died fighting the Dongying invaders, and their extended cousins were wiped out during the War of Resistance.
Her great-grandfather had been too young—merely a few years old—which was why he hadn't gone to the battlefield.
Later, in the War to Resist America and Aid the Western 8-Nation Alliance, her great-grandfather died in the Western 8-Nation region.
During the counter-offensive against the Monkey Kingdom, her grandfather's generation of four brothers was whittled down until only her grandfather remained.
Her family's honor was written in blood, and they harbored a heartfelt hatred for anyone flashing arrogance in Jiuzhou.
That hatred had been deeply engraved into Chen Shu's bones since childhood. Usually, she scoffed at Dongying and various other nations, even cursing herself for not being born in that era.
Now that someone from Dongying dared act arrogantly right in front of her, Chen Shu simply couldn't endure it.
Yamaguchi Kazuo frowned and let out a cold snort.
"Is this how you treat international friends? I will definitely lodge a complaint with your superiors!"
With that, Yamaguchi Kazuo turned and left with his wife.
"Team Leader, you've stirred up trouble," the officer said, finally releasing Chen Shu once Yamaguchi Kazuo had gone.
Chen Shu regained her composure and said coolly, "Give me my gun."
The officer handed her firearm back.
"Damn it, just looking at those little Japanese devils pisses me off. They even dared to threaten me—they must have eaten the guts of a leopard. That guy better hope I don't catch him slipping up anywhere," Chen Shu muttered under her breath.
As for any complaints, Chen Shu didn't care at all.
If they wanted to file a complaint against her, they had better figure out her background first.
"Team Leader, what do we do next?" the officer asked.
"To the Lin family."
"Let's move, brothers, we're going to make an arrest!" the officer announced immediately.
Chen Shu immediately delivered a resounding smack to the back of his head, rolling her eyes in exasperation. "Arrest your sister! Like I just said, he acted righteously. I'm just going there to verify his identity and hand him an award."
"What?!"
Cold sweat broke out on the officer's forehead once more.
Did this auntie of theirs have any idea how serious the situation was?
A foreigner had died. If she actually went through with something like that, it could easily trigger an international incident.
Yet, seeing the dead-serious look on Chen Shu's face, the officer knew she was dead set on doing it.
When Chen Shu and her team arrived directly at the Lin family residence, even Lin Muhua was startled, having no idea what was going on.
He received Chen Shu personally. Looking at the large contingent of police officers, he couldn't help but offer a wry smile. "Team Leader Chen, what on earth has happened to warrant such a grand display?"
Chen Shu looked at Lin Muhua and said flatly, "Your son-in-law killed a Dongying national, and I'm here for him."
Lin Muhua was slightly taken aback. Ye Ning had killed someone?
However, upon hearing that the deceased was a Dongying national, Lin Muhua didn't care much at all.
He smiled and said, "Isn't he just a little Japanese devil? You might as well just treat it like a dead dog."
"That person was Yamaguchi Kazuo's son," Chen Shu said calmly.
Lin Muhua paused briefly. He had naturally heard of Yamaguchi Kazuo, who held considerable influence in Xiaocheng.
After a moment's thought, he said, "Even so, he's just a slightly troublesome dog. No need to take it too seriously, right?"
Chen Shu looked deeply at Lin Muhua before suddenly breaking into a bright smile.
"I completely agree with your assessment. Your son-in-law acted righteously; I'm simply here to verify his identity and prepare a commendation award for him."
Now it was Lin Muhua's turn to be dumbfounded.
Chapter 30: Unspoken Rules
He looked suspiciously at Chen Shu. Was she pulling his leg?
Lin Muhua hesitated. As long as Ye Ning wasn't dragged away, he had plenty of ways to handle this. Killing a little Japanese devil was nothing.
However, once a person was taken into custody, it would no longer be something he could influence.
Lin Muhua worried that Chen Shu was tricking him.
"Dad, let this officer in. Ye Ning said it was fine," Lin Xue said as she walked out to address Lin Muhua.
Chen Shu glanced at Lin Xue, a flash of astonishment crossing her face. This girl was breathtakingly beautiful.
Nodding slightly, she led her subordinates forward, preparing to enter the Lin residence.
"Wait a moment," Lin Xue added.
Chen Shu's eyebrows arched upward, thinking Lin Xue had changed her mind.
Instead, Lin Xue said, "Please don't misunderstand. Ye Ning said only one person can enter. Bringing too many people will just complicate explanations and cause unnecessary trouble."
Chen Shu paused for a moment before saying, "I'll go in alone."
Her subordinates' expressions shifted slightly, and just as they were about to speak, Chen Shu had already stepped across the threshold.
Dissatisfaction flickered across the officers' faces as they glared at Lin Muhua and Lin Xue.
Lin Muhua merely smiled faintly, closed the front door, and followed after them.
"Will something go wrong? That Kenichi Yamaguchi could fight a hundred men single-handedly, yet he was crushed to death with one hand by that Ye Ning. If he attacks the team leader, she won't be a match for him," an officer worried aloud.
From their perspective, Ye Ning was unquestionably an extremely dangerous individual.
Leaving Chen Shu alone to face Ye Ning was far too risky.
"Relax, there shouldn't be any issues. We're police officers—even if that guy is crazy, he wouldn't dare attack the police casually. If he really dares to do that, even someone who can fight ten thousand men will be dead meat," an older, seasoned officer said with great experience.
He knew that Ancient Martial Artists existed in this world, but even they wouldn't dare to kill police officers at will.
The moment someone dared to do such a thing, corresponding forces would hunt them down, and at that point, escape would be impossible.
Several officers waited patiently outside.
Meanwhile, Chen Shu and Lin Xue arrived at Lin Xue's residence.
Ye Ning was already waiting for them there. Chen Shu sized him up, her first impression being that he was exceptionally young and remarkably handsome.
Yet this was the very person who had casually crushed Kenichi Yamaguchi to death—and considering Kenichi Yamaguchi could fight a hundred men on his own, he was clearly no ordinary individual.
Ye Ning knew the police had arrived, but he hadn't expected the officer to be a woman, and such a striking one at that, easily rivaling Lin Xue in beauty.
"Are you an Ancient Martial Artist?" Chen Shu asked first.
Ye Ning wasn't surprised at all. To ordinary people, Ancient Martial Artists were a rather secretive existence, but to the police, they shouldn't be unfamiliar at all.
When handling cases, they probably ran into situations involving Ancient Martial Artists quite frequently.
If they knew nothing at all, that would truly be strange.
Ye Ning nodded and said, "That's right."
"Was that Kenichi Yamaguchi one too?" Chen Shu continued.