Chapter 174: Encountering a Ghost
Chapter 174: Encountering a Ghost
Zhan Lian initially thinks his ex-wife and daughter will be in the supermarket. After all, the two women who had been bullied are here, as are the Green Dragon tattooed man and his subordinates, having their fun there too.
However, when Zhan Lian enters the supermarket, there is no trace of his ex-wife or daughter. Yet, his car is parked just outside. If his car is here, where are they?
Scanning the supermarket, he notices the supplies scattered everywhere. Much of it has already been consumed, while some new items have clearly been taken from the cars—both his and Yun Tao's. Zhan Lian confirms this when he spots his ex-wife’s luggage among the supplies.
A distinctive yellow suitcase. Eleven months ago, his ex-wife brought that suitcase when she visited him in the northwest. Now, the suitcase has been rifled through, its contents carelessly strewn about. Children’s clothes and his ex-wife’s underwear lie in a disheveled heap.
Nearby, a shirtless man stands, but what catches Zhan Lian’s eye is the pink underwear draped over the man’s head—his ex-wife’s underwear. Zhan Lian recognizes it immediately. He had been with her when she bought it, during a lazy Mid-Autumn Festival afternoon. He remembers lying in bed with her, impatiently watching as she scrolled through Taobao before finally choosing that specific one.
It’s clear that before Zhan Lian arrived, this man had been wearing his ex-wife’s underwear as entertainment for the group.
Seeing this, rage boils within Zhan Lian. He stands at the entrance of the supermarket, his silhouette framed by the pale glow of the silver moonlight. The light casts a shadow that stretches into the room, ominous and foreboding.
With a flick of his wrist, a golden blade emerges, spinning once above Zhan Lian’s head before shooting forward. The blade pierces straight through the man’s chest, the force driving it into his heart.
The man, his head still adorned with the pink underwear, freezes. His eyes widen in shock, and he looks as though he wants to speak. But before he can utter a word, his body crumples to the ground. He dies not knowing what has struck him.
The room erupts into chaos. Cries and wails fill the air as the Green Dragon tattooed man and his remaining subordinates fall to their knees, trembling with fear. They believed that in this post-apocalyptic world, they could do as they pleased, bullying and dominating others without consequence. But tonight, they’ve pushed too far.
They whisper in terror, "We’ve walked too many dark roads and finally met a ghost."
As they grovel and beg for mercy, Zhan Lian’s eyes shift to the car parked outside the supermarket—his car. The once-pristine body of the vehicle is defaced with obscene drawings of pink snow mountains. It hasn’t been forcibly broken into. The doors have been unlocked with a key, not pried open.
This realization only fuels Zhan Lian’s fury. These untrained small-time thugs couldn’t have dismantled his car without brute force. They must have found his car keys and used them to access his vehicle, rifling through it and taking his ex-wife’s and daughter’s belongings.
Rage burns hot in Zhan Lian’s chest, his fury evident even through the dark lenses of his sunglasses. The golden light in his eyes flickers dangerously, hidden behind the shades. Without hesitation, he kicks a man kneeling at his feet. The force of the blow sends the man’s head flying clean off.
Zhan Lian then turns his attention to the trembling Green Dragon tattooed man, who has backed himself into a corner, his entire body shaking as he kneels and prostrates himself. Zhan Lian crouches down, staring at him coldly.
But suddenly, the Green Dragon tattooed man, in a final act of desperation, leaps to his feet. A sharp knife glints in his hand as he lunges at Zhan Lian with a guttural roar.
Zhan Lian sidesteps the attack with ease, his movements calm and calculated. The Green Dragon tattooed man, undeterred, twists his body and slashes horizontally with the blade.
The two men clash in the confined space of the supermarket, their fight fierce but short-lived. Zhan Lian’s every punch and kick is precise and lethal. The metal barbs on his fists gleam as they tear through the Green Dragon tattooed man’s defenses.
In just two or three moves, the Green Dragon tattooed man’s body is riddled with bloody wounds. His strength drains with each passing second. Finally, he falls to his knees, his face pale, his body shaking uncontrollably.
The fight is over. The Green Dragon tattooed man has no strength left to fight back.