Martial Dao: Peace by Force

Chapter 97: Chapter 86: Who Cares Who You Are? Empty the Magazine

Zhai Jia had originally planned to take Wan Ze to a nearby town and find a safe hotel for him to get some proper rest. After all, the toll from today’s brutal fight had been immense.

But halfway there, Wan Ze spoke up. ”I’m fine, Brother Jia. We don’t need a hotel. Let’s go straight to the target location.”

”Wait, you really want to go? Shouldn’t we wait a bit longer? Your condition right now...” Zhai Jia scratched his head, hesitating. He was worried that if Wan Ze got hurt, he’d have a hard time answering for it.

”We’re going!” Wan Ze said without a trace of hesitation. ”Speed is of the essence. If we delay any longer, they’ll realize what’s happening and be long gone!”

Besides...

’If they hadn’t made a move, it would be one thing. But they sent people to ambush and kill me.’

’If I just walk away now, I might never get the chance to avenge what happened today.’

Wan Ze was not a magnanimous man.

And there was absolutely no room for magnanimity in matters of life and death!

A ball of fury had been simmering inside him this entire time.

Ever since he started his martial arts training, he had come to understand the balance between maturity and peace of mind: it lay in utterly eradicating one’s enemies. Only then could one truly live in peace.

Zhai Jia was seething with anger too, but he was more concerned about Wan Ze’s safety.

He mentally calculated. Based on the power Ah Ze had displayed today, he was by no means weak. In fact, Zhai Jia suspected that any Martial Artist below the Refining Viscera Realm would be no match for Wan Ze.

But he had just survived an incredibly intense battle, and his Physical Strength and stamina were severely depleted. Even if his recovery was faster than a normal person’s, he still needed time.

”You just fought for your life. Even with two or three hours of rest... you won’t be back at peak condition, will you? And that Liu Zhengming guy is unreliable to begin with. What if...”

Wan Ze countered, ”Are you confident you can handle it alone?”

The question caught Zhai Jia off guard. He opened his mouth, then said uncertainly, ”Probably? Maybe... I guess I can handle it.”

Seeing his reaction, Wan Ze knew all he needed to. ”Then take me with you,” he said directly. ”I’ll do my best to avoid a direct confrontation and only step in when it’s absolutely necessary. It’s better than you going in alone.”

Seeing that Zhai Jia was still hesitating,

Wan Ze added, ”An extra person means we can watch each other’s backs.”

’Zhai Jia was worried about me, and I was just as worried about him... Besides, my Stealing Celestial Secret ability isn’t just for show!’

”Fine.”

At this, Zhai Jia gritted his teeth and his hesitation vanished. ”Then we’ll go together! But we have a deal—you act based on how things play out. Don’t push yourself!”

”Okay.”

Wan Ze agreed.

Zhai Jia whipped the car around, speeding toward the city in a vehicle riddled with over a dozen bullet holes on its sides.

’If we’re going to do this, let’s just get it done!’

From the operation to round up heretics last night to the assassins’ ambush today, Liu Zhengming’s entire intelligence chain had clearly been compromised. It was an extremely serious and fatal flaw.

If he hadn’t spent all night going over the intel with his direct superior, they probably still wouldn’t have discovered the enemy hidden in their ranks.

The damage caused by the betrayal of a powerful local figure was incalculable.

Liu Zhengming’s original intention had been to ask Zhai Jia for help.

That person was always accompanied by a formidable bodyguard, who was reportedly a member of the Saiya Sect. His Cultivation had reached the Refining Viscera Realm Middle Stage, or possibly even higher.

Liu Zhengming knew his own chances of winning a one-on-one confrontation were slim, which was why he needed Zhai Jia’s help to ensure they could eliminate the traitor today.

He had to kill that man with his own hands.

To hell with official protection! To hell with due process!

Of the five brothers he’d brought with him, two had died today and two were grievously wounded... including Xiaoqi.

And it was all because of that man’s betrayal.

He didn’t have time to wait for a decision from his superiors.

What he wanted was a debt of blood paid in blood! An eye for an eye!

”Old Zhai, remember your mask... Same as always. Make it clean. Leave no one alive!”

No survivors, no accusations.

No traces, and no one would know Zhai Jia and Wan Ze had ever been there.

...

In a small town more than twenty kilometers from Laojun Mountain, a wave-shaped hotel stood on the edge of a lake.

Few people knew who the true owner of this luxurious hotel was, but no one doubted the immense power of the person pulling the strings.

The elevator doors on the top floor opened.

A man in a black trench coat, a gold earring in his left ear, strode in. He ignored the rare portraits hanging on the walls and quickly made his way to the front of a luxurious lounge.

The room occupied the best vantage point on the entire top floor, offering a panoramic view of the lake below.

Standing before the curved, floor-to-ceiling windows was a middle-aged man with a bath towel wrapped around his waist. He had a buzz cut, and his skin was tanned dark from years of outdoor activity. His shoulders and back were broad, evidence of a once-solid physique that had now grown somewhat soft and bloated—a clear sign of his current high-ranking, sedentary lifestyle.

The man stared quietly at the glittering surface of the distant lake, seemingly lost in thought.

The man with the earring strode in, his footsteps silent on the plush carpet, and came to a halt behind the other man.

”Boss, the second team has failed.”

”Failed? Even with White Ape handling it personally?” The man frowned, clearly surprised. ”Have you identified our opponents?”

”We’re still running a full investigation. Right now, all we know is that the two of them visited the Gu Family on Laojun Mountain this morning. I’m worried... could it be the Gu Family?” the man with the earring said hesitantly.

The man scoffed. ”The Gu Family? Ever since that old fossil Gu Nansha lost heart and withdrew from the world eight years ago, their family has been completely washed up. They don’t have the guts, let alone the power, to meddle in something like this. Pay them no mind. Find White Ape as soon as possible. I want to know exactly what happened. If he’s been compromised... you know what to do.”

”Understood.” The man with the earring’s eyes grew cold as he nodded in acknowledgment.