Urban Martial Saint

Last time the orphanage was bombed, that old building was almost completely destroyed, but, curiously, not a single person was killed, only a few were injured.

Afterwards, Ye Qing went in and saw that the explosions occurred mostly in unoccupied areas. Furthermore, while the explosions seemed powerful, they actually left most of the rooms intact, meaning there was no widespread collapse. Only a few people were injured by flying glass and concrete fragments; no one was actually crushed by concrete or anything like that, so, fortunately, there were no fatalities.

Such a powerful explosion resulting in this outcome made Ye Qing suspicious that something was amiss. Now, hearing the King of Explosives say such things, Ye Qing couldn’t help but be astonished.

He had placed bombs here and destroyed that old building, yet he still managed to control the blasts well enough not to kill anyone. How impressive must his control over explosions be?

When Ye Qing was in the special forces, he had encountered many explosives. He knew very well that demolition was a highly sophisticated field; top-level explosives experts could control explosions extremely precisely. Could this person also be a top-level explosives expert?

”How did you manage that?” Ye Qing asked in surprise, having released his grip. If what the King of Explosives said was true, then Ye Qing owed him thanks. If he hadn’t placed the bombs in that manner, who knows how many might have died!

”It wasn’t difficult,” the King of Explosives, now slightly more at ease after being released by Ye Qing, said: ”I had seen your class schedules and knew where everyone would be at any time. I placed bombs in every room of that building and just needed to check the schedule and detonate the bombs in the empty rooms, so no one would be there, right? Besides, I also adjusted the power of the bombs to make the explosions look very powerful, when in fact, they weren’t that strong, thus avoiding casualties!”

Ye Qing suddenly realized. It seemed the King of Explosives had really gone to great lengths to avoid harming these children.

”Thank you,” Ye Qing took a step back, bowed deeply to the King of Explosives, his bow heartfelt. With not a single child killed, despite the many bombings he had orchestrated, Ye Qing still considered him a good person!

The King of Explosives looked surprised, staring at Ye Qing for a while before saying gravely, ”Thank me? You don’t hate me? I blew up your school building, I conspired with Xu Dingjiang against you, you don’t want revenge? And all the things I did for Yang Shitao, and the explosions at the Beijiao Qianwan Bar, I perpetrated them all, but you ended up taking the blame, and you almost got killed because of these incidents. Don’t you hate me?”

Ye Qing said, ”My issues don’t matter. The important thing is, not a single child was killed.”

The King of Explosives frowned slightly, scrutinizing Ye Qing for a long while before saying, ”Do you really think this way? I’m not afraid to tell you, I have orchestrated many bombings in Shenchuan City and killed many people. If you capture me and turn me over to the police, you could receive a high commendation. Don’t you have a brother named Zhao Chengshuang? If you hand me over to him, he would certainly get promoted!”

”The people you killed mostly deserved to die!” Ye Qing slowly shook his head and said, ”Moreover, you saved so many children this time; that counts as a great deed. If I were to seek revenge on you now or hand you over to the police, would I still be human?”

The King of Explosives’s expression softened, a hint of respect flashing in his eyes, and he nodded, ”Ye Qing, after I returned to Shenchuan City, I heard a lot about you. I used to think you were somewhat foolish in your actions, but today, I finally understand. Your actions aren’t foolish; you are just stubborn, even obsessive. Clear about grudges and decisions, you have a moral compass in your heart. That’s what makes a real man!”

As he spoke, the King of Explosives sighed slowly and said, ”In my life, I have never admired anyone. But this time, I’m actually quite impressed by you. Rest assured, I promise you, from now on, I will not take any more jobs that involve you!”

”Thank you,” Ye Qing nodded at the King of Explosives, paused for a moment, and asked, ”May I ask why you are here tonight? Is there someone else who wants to harm my orphanage?”

”Not at all,” the King of Explosives shook his head and said, ”After I bombed your orphanage last time, I’ve always felt somewhat uneasy. Even though there were no casualties, those children are innocent, and because of my actions, they were rendered homeless, which weighs on me. So, I’ve been coming here often, mainly to guard against anyone else wanting to sabotage the construction here!”

”Oh?” Ye Qing looked at the King of Explosives and said, ”You should know that Xu Dingjiang is already dead; who else could come here?”

The King of Explosives gave a slight smile and said, ”Mr. Ye, feel free to ask me anything you want. Xu Dingjiang and I were merely business partners; we were never bound by any strong loyalties. I can tell you everything about him!”

Hearing this, Ye Qing was overjoyed and quickly asked, ”Do you know who Xu Dingjiang really was? Does he have someone behind him?”

”I don’t know this person’s identity, but he must be extraordinary,” the King of Explosives said in a deep voice. ”He knows martial arts, acts meticulously and shrewdly, and has tough methods. Such a person would definitely not be controlled by someone like Yang Shitao.”

Ye Qing furrowed his brows slightly. If the King of Explosives said so, then he could not help but be astonished. Could it be that Yang Shitao was not the person behind the scenes? Behind Xu Dingjiang, could there be someone else?

”Moreover, there is another point that confirms he is definitely not controlled by Yang Shitao!” the King of Explosives said in a deep voice. ”I planted a bug where they were staying and heard him speaking on the phone with Yang Shitao. He addressed Yang Shitao by his name numerous times without any hint of respect in his tone, even sounding somewhat commanding. However, when he called another person, his manner was very respectful!”

”Another person? Who?” Ye Qing asked hastily.

The King of Explosives replied, ”I don’t know, he just referred to him as ’Elder Brother’ on the phone!”

”Elder Brother?” Ye Qing fell into thought. In that case, Xu Dingjiang was definitely not someone hired by Yang Shitao for money. Moreover, he has an elder brother, suggesting they are indeed a force to be reckoned with. Thinking about it, this also makes sense logically since Yang Shitao simply didn’t have the ability to kill Tie Yongwen. It seems that the mastermind behind Tie Yongwen’s murder was probably Xu Dingjiang’s elder brother.

Another point—if it had been Yang Shitao, he would have had no need to kill Tie Yongwen. However, Xu Dingjiang took a huge detour this time, seemingly aiming to target Ye Qing, but in the end, he only killed Tie Yongwen and Gao Shusen, leading to Elder Master Ding’s death in anger. Of course, he then involved the Tianqing Gang and the Fu Bang gang, which are now in disarray, plunging all of Shenchuan City into chaos. Now, the most powerful forces were Ye Qing and Li Lianshan, nowhere near as glorious as before.

Yet to such extents, Ye Qing had still not died. Given these people’s methods, they could have easily pursued and killed Ye Qing when he left Shenchuan City. However, they did not come after him, and now, considering all these factors, Ye Qing suddenly felt that the real target of the person behind the scenes was not him, but to kill Tie Yongwen and throw Shenchuan City into turmoil!

Furthermore, having secured the support of Liu Changping and Uncle Zhou and just returning to Shenchuan, the person behind the scenes immediately killed Xu Dingjiang to silence him, severing all clues and making it impossible for Ye Qing to trace him. Thus, what unspeakable secrets does this person behind the scenes have, and why does he dare not leave any trace?

With so many thoughts running through his mind, Ye Qing felt somewhat confused. He suddenly realized that neither he nor Shenchuan City was safe anymore; instead, it had become increasingly dangerous because the objectives of the person behind the scenes seemed to have been achieved, covering everyone like an invisible net!

”Do you have any more important information?” Ye Qing asked.

”No!” The King of Explosives shook his head and said, ”These people are very cautious. Even when they talk among themselves, they don’t let slip anything. Moreover, since Xu Dingjiang knew martial arts and was very alert, I couldn’t plant a bug on him, so I didn’t hear much!”

Ye Qing slowly nodded. It wasn’t easy for the King of Explosives to have obtained this information. The person behind the scenes was so cautious that he didn’t leave any trace. If not for the King of Explosives, Ye Qing might have ended up believing that Yang Shitao was the mastermind behind this matter!

”Thank you!” Ye Qing sincerely said to the King of Explosives.

”I should be the one thanking you!” the King of Explosives gave a self-deprecating smile and said, ”If it were someone else tonight, I would have been doomed. The police in Shenchuan City almost hate me to death, they would love to personally finish me off. If it were someone else who caught me, I would definitely have been delivered to the police station by now!”

Ye Qing said, ”However, the number of explosions you have caused in Shenchuan City is too high, which is ultimately not good!”

”Don’t worry, I try to ensure that the innocent are not harmed!” the King of Explosives paused before adding, ”Moreover, my task is almost completed. Once I have avenged my mother, I will leave Shenchuan City and never return!”

Ye Qing recalled the information Zhao Chengshuang had given him and fell silent for a moment, speaking in a low voice, ”Are you... really that old lady’s son?”

The information from Zhao Chengshuang revealed that before the construction of the Beihua Residential Area, there was a lonely elderly woman who refused to move and was eventually killed by the developer in collaboration with some thugs. At that time, the elderly woman had a son who had been missing for a long time. It now seemed that this King of Explosives could actually be that lonely old lady’s child?