The Way of Restraint

Pfft!

Feng Hengyi had miscalculated again.

He had not expected Su Jie to anticipate his rope dart technique, sever the wire, and send the bayonet flying back at him.

In the instant the bayonet returned, he dodged slightly but failed—the blade tore through his clothes, though it did not draw blood.

If this were a match, he would have lost a point. But this was a life-or-death battle—his skin wasn’t even broken, so he hadn’t truly lost.

*Even that couldn’t wound him?* Su Jie couldn’t help but curse inwardly, *This man is a monster!*

He had thought his flawless counterattack would at least draw blood, but Feng Hengyi only had torn clothes and was still fighting fit.

Nevertheless, this gave Su Jie confidence.

During the three minutes of intense combat, he had found no opening in Feng Hengyi. No matter how hard he pushed, his opponent seemed like an undefeatable martial giant—a war god.

The longer the fight continued, the more Su Jie felt a sense of despair.

Moreover, he hadn’t even seen Feng Hengyi’s stamina deplete.

Even a world boxing champion would have expended enormous energy in a three-minute first round. But Feng Hengyi seemed to have some kind of internal energy furnace or reactor—like a perpetual motion machine.

And every movement Feng Hengyi made was extraordinarily fast and powerful.

If Su Jie hadn’t undergone multiple minimally invasive surgeries at Larry’s life sciences laboratory—fine-tuning his tendons, bones, and body to perfection and compensating for many congenital deficiencies—he would likely have been killed by Feng Hengyi in this fight.

But that counterattack—tearing Feng Hengyi’s clothes—finally made Su Jie realize that his opponent was also human, capable of mistakes. It broke some kind of myth.

His suppressed confidence restored, Su Jie adjusted his breathing, gripped his ironwood ruler, and attacked again.

At this moment, another bayonet appeared in Feng Hengyi’s hand. His aura grew even more ferocious. Su Jie’s counterattack, tearing his clothes, seemed to have truly angered him. He began unleashing his demonic nature, revealing his truly terrifying side.

Boom!

Their weapons clashed in a new round of combat.

In that instant of collision, a pebble shot through the air like a bullet—thwack—from some unknown direction, aimed at Su Jie’s forehead.

It was only when the pebble reached his face that Su Jie sensed the danger.

“There’s another expert lying in ambush!” In that critical moment, Su Jie ducked his head just in time to dodge the pebble. But Feng Hengyi seized the opening—his bayonet sliced a long gash in Su Jie’s clothes, revealing a bulletproof vest underneath.

This was Su Jie’s habit.

His bulletproof vest was custom-made, very thin yet capable of absorbing tremendous impact. It had been obtained by Larry from some secret military laboratory. Wearing it protected him from bullets in critical moments.

Su Jie had relied on this vest to block Zhang Hongqing’s hidden weapons—otherwise, he would have died at Zhang Hongqing’s hands.

He also wore similar protective gear on critical joints like knees and ankles.

No matter how high his martial arts skill, he was still flesh and blood. No matter how precise his calculations, there were things he couldn’t foresee. In many dangerous situations, injury or death were inevitable. He had to prepare for all contingencies.

Even if he survived being shot, the damage could be irreversible, severely reducing his physical capacity.

In sports, many athletes suffered irreversible injuries and had to retire. Su Jie’s work was a hundred times more dangerous.

“You have backup.” Su Jie had wanted to have a good fight with Feng Hengyi, but now it seemed unlikely. He suddenly darted away, sprinting at full speed—a hundred-meter dash, weaving left and right, creating distance and retreating.

He had specifically trained in the hundred-meter sprint. His explosive power could be unleashed at will while running.

Running was key in combat. You could run in the ring, and even more so on the street. An ordinary person, even facing ten or twenty opponents, could escape as long as they didn’t get entangled in fighting.

Seeing Su Jie leave without hesitation, Feng Hengyi didn’t pursue. He knew that even if he did, catching him would be difficult. And chasing him into an area with surveillance cameras would leave evidence, creating complications. This was China, not abroad.

Many things were convenient abroad. In China, he was constrained.

Standing still, he watched Su Jie disappear. He didn’t throw any hidden weapons either—Su Jie was wearing a bulletproof vest that protected most of his vital areas. As long as Su Jie guarded a few key spots, the areas needing defense were greatly reduced.

Su Jie vanished without a trace. Feng Hengyi still didn’t move, not even turning around, and spoke to the space behind him: “I’ll kill this kid with my own hands. You don’t need to interfere.”

Behind Feng Hengyi, a person appeared, wearing a mask—completely pitch-black, absorbing all light, as if it could swallow everything.

The masked figure spoke in a low voice: “Now is not the time. Besides, you don’t seem able to kill him. We can make our move after we complete our plan. Killing him here would cause major trouble. I’m in charge of this operation—you must follow my orders.”

“I’ll challenge you sooner or later,” Feng Hengyi said. “You’re only slightly higher in rank than me—that means nothing. After this mission is complete, I’ll apply to the higher-ups for a challenge match to determine our ranks.”

“I’m happy to oblige,” the pitch-black masked figure said. “But think carefully—none of those who have challenged me have survived.”

“Let’s hope you survive.” Feng Hengyi moved his hand and the bayonet vanished. He seemed to send some kind of signal. Ten minutes later, a car sped up, and he got in and left.

The pitch-black masked figure seemed about to remove his mask and return to the residential complex. But he suddenly became alert. With a flick of his fingers, two stones flew out, smashing two inconspicuous listening devices hidden in the roadside grass.

These two listening devices had been left by Su Jie.

During the fight with Feng Hengyi, Su Jie had planted them unnoticed.

“I underestimated that kid’s skills,” the pitch-black masked figure muttered to himself.

“Too bad!”

From far away, Su Jie was already in a car. He opened a device connected to the listening equipment and heard the conversation from just now.

The driver was Liu Guan.

“How did it go? Did you talk to Wen Ting?” Liu Guan asked.

“I didn’t meet him. I was ambushed outside the residential complex—it was Feng Hengyi.” Su Jie recounted what had just happened. “I was attacked from two sides. The person who threw the pebble was a true expert—he nearly put a hole through my head. But I did gather some intelligence. Listen to this conversation between Feng Hengyi and that expert. The voice has been modified with a voice changer, so it’s impossible to tell if it’s Wen Ting.”

“If it was Wen Ting, that proves he’s in cahoots with the Feng family and comes from that mysterious organization—with status even higher than the Feng family’s.” Liu Guan’s expression grew increasingly grave as he listened to the conversation. “Too bad you didn’t get video—if I could have seen that person’s build and appearance, I could have confirmed it. Just by voice alone, with the voice changer, it’s indeed hard to tell.”

“There’s one more way to determine it.” Su Jie flipped his hand and produced a pebble. “Take this stone for forensic analysis. If it was thrown by Wen Ting, it will have traces of his DNA. That should give us a fairly accurate answer.”

It turned out Su Jie had picked up the pebble before leaving.

This series of actions was no longer just that of a martial artist—it was the work of a super agent.

“You’re something else,” Liu Guan said. “If this stone does have Wen Ting’s DNA, I’ll do everything in my power to make my sister leave him. She absolutely cannot stay with such a dangerous person.”

“Of course. Feng Hengyi practices the path of inhumanity. If Wen Ting belongs to that faction, he’s certainly equally devoid of humanity. Your sister is in extreme danger.” Su Jie said, “It seems I won’t be able to talk with Wen Ting today. When he comes to work tomorrow, I’ll have a conversation with him—that should reveal his weaknesses.”

“I’ll have this analyzed immediately.” Liu Guan was already eager. “By the way, Wen Ting has been with the company for three years. On the surface, he knows some fighting techniques—he was even a rugby player in college, with a strong physique. But he’s never actually fought anyone—just works out.”

“He’s a true master, his realm no less than mine.” Su Jie, with his perception, had known from the third glance that Wen Ting was an unfathomable abyss.

If this man teamed up with Feng Hengyi against him, Su Jie would likely not survive.

Even more formidable, this man’s strength might surpass his own.

Approaching Zhang Hongqing’s level.

All this he deduced from that single thrown stone.

The hidden weapon had nearly killed him.

Yet having such an opponent actually made Su Jie happy. The fight with Feng Hengyi had given him many new insights, activating his thinking, making his cerebral cortex more active than usual.

He had never experienced such intense combat—each exchange was a matter of life and death.

Indeed, fighting Feng Hengyi meant that one wrong move could mean instant death. Feng Hengyi had no regard for law or rules. His bayonet had taken countless lives—his hands were certainly stained with blood.

Life-and-death combat with true masters, under external pressure, could push one’s spirit to maximum concentration and break through critical thresholds. The pressure Feng Hengyi applied was also Su Jie’s motivation.

Just like when he had fought the enforcer Kong Dian—it had propelled him to rapid improvement over two weeks.

*It seems I need to fight Feng Hengyi more often. Even if he doesn’t come after me, I’ll go after him,* Su Jie thought.

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