Chapter 055: [One Punch]

"...Yes!"
[Vitality +158]
[Vitality +166]
[Vitality +172]
...
In the blink of an eye, three beastmen were slain.
It wasn't that the members of the Bureau of Martial Security were stronger—only that their equipment was superior.
With excellent gear, decent skills, and the advantage of a surprise attack, the beastmen hiding in the factory were caught completely off guard.
Tang Mubai, lurking in a corner, silently absorbed vitality while fully opening his sense of hearing to listen to the commotion inside.
The beastmen's enraged roars, the low shouts of the Bureau's members, the muffled sounds of battle, the hurried footsteps of people running back and forth—all entered his ears.
Guided by the sounds, he left his hiding spot and moved toward the back of the factory.
Just as he rounded the building, he heard rapid breathing, heavy footsteps, and the familiar, unnaturally strong heartbeat. Following its direction, he moved to intercept at the rear.
At once, he focused his strength into his right hand, calculating the timing in his mind.
As a burly, fierce figure with a snarling wolf's head burst out of the factory, Tang Mubai suddenly lunged, attacking from the side.
"Whoosh—"
His sharp fist cut through the air and landed cleanly on the beastman's face.
The fleeing wolf-headed man didn't even have time to scream; Tang Mubai didn't catch a glimpse of his features before his head exploded from the force of the blow!
[Vitality loss detected. Recover?]
"Yes!"
[Vitality +203]
With no hesitation, Tang Mubai grabbed the "bone bead" attached to a rope that had been flung aside, and with another dash, melted into the darkness, vanishing from sight.
He had just left.
Moments later, the middle-aged man who had issued the attack order chased out of the factory. Seeing the wolf-headed corpse on the ground, blood still spurting from its neck, head shattered, his brows arched.
Tap tap tap~
Footsteps followed from behind.
Chen Hai and a burly man in his thirties emerged from the factory as well. Noticing that the middle-aged man hadn't pursued the fleeing beastman, they moved closer, intending to ask. But as they rounded the corner, they saw the wolf-headed body on the ground.

"Dead? Well, dead is dead. No point regretting it. There are definitely more of these beasts around. Next time, we'll keep one alive!"
The burly man rumbled.
Chen Hai murmured, "I doubt the squad leader killed him."
"Hm? What do you mean?" The burly man's eyes widened. "Old Chen, don't tell me someone else was outside just now? The beastman was killed by them?"
"Congratulations, you've guessed it. That's likely the truth."
Chen Hai switched on his flashlight and walked to where Tang Mubai had attacked, pointing at a few shallow footprints. "The attacker was fast, strong, didn't unleash their qi and blood—just pure brute force and speed, and killed the escaping beastman."
"During the kill, the beastman didn't even sense it... No, maybe he noticed, but couldn't dodge!"
"The attacker was too fast—one strike, and the beastman was dead. Then, they left quickly. By the time the squad leader arrived, they were gone."
"This..." The burly man's eyes widened in astonishment. "By your reasoning, that's a real expert!"
"Indeed, an expert," the middle-aged man, who had remained silent, said calmly. "To kill a peak elite beastman in one blow, then leave immediately with such speed—even I couldn't keep up. But the attacker had no intention of interacting with us. Their identity is questionable."
"Questionable identity? Could they be from the 'Red Lake Group'? Killed the beastman to prevent news from spreading?" The burly man fired off three questions.
"That's unclear," the middle-aged man shook his head. "Maybe, maybe not. Their identity can wait. The key is: how did they appear here?"
"Uh, what do you mean?" The burly man scratched his head.
"The squad leader means: did the attacker arrive long ago and has been lurking outside? Did we meet by coincidence, or did they get advance notice and come at the same time, waiting outside just to kill the fleeing beastman?" Chen Hai said quietly.
"Mm!"
The burly man's eyes bulged. "You're saying there's a traitor among us? A mole? The operation was leaked?"
"There's a fifty percent chance!" Chen Hai nodded heavily, anger flashing in his eyes.
Though he didn't say it out loud, in his heart, he was certain someone in the team had betrayed them.
This 'traitor' must be eliminated!
The burly man glanced at the middle-aged man.
The latter said nothing, but his eyes gleamed coldly.

...

Having obtained the fourth "bone bead," Tang Mubai cared nothing for what happened after he left.
Even if Chen Hai had suspicions, it would be hard to pin them on him.
Killing a peak elite beastman in one punch wasn't something a professional martial artist could do—most couldn't.
If Chen Hai tried to investigate, Tang Mubai could easily explain it away.
All the way back, he continued using his light-footed technique, "Grass Steps," moving in a straight line across rooftops, swiftly returning to his base.
Back in his room, Tang Mubai placed the "bone beads" carefully together.

Four "bone beads" side by side, their radiance was dazzling.
Interestingly, even with only four, the beads already showed signs of merging.
Tang Mubai watched with anticipation growing in his heart.
Storing them away, he lay down and drifted into satisfied sleep.

...

The next morning.
At breakfast, his little cousin was still eating beast meat, her appetite astonishing.
Even though Fang Shuixian had seen it twice before, she couldn't help but comment again.
Xu Dalu, seeing it for the first time, widened his eyes in surprise. "Zhenzhen, are you feeling alright?"
"I'm fine!" The little girl blinked and tilted her head. "I feel perfectly fine. Grandpa Xu, would you like some meat?"
As she spoke, she picked up a piece of meat from her bowl and offered it to Xu Dalu.
"Uh, no, no, thank you, Zhenzhen. But Grandpa's old now, my teeth can't handle it. You eat it yourself."
Xu Dalu wiped his brow, waving his hand in refusal, then praised her, "Zhenzhen, you're such a good child, so considerate and filial. Grandpa likes you best."
"Really?" The little girl's face bloomed with a smile at his words.
"Of course it's true. Go on, Zhenzhen, eat slowly."
Xu Dalu urged her, then turned to Tang Mubai, frowning slightly. "Leader, yesterday someone came to the restaurant asking about the martial artist our place is affiliated with. I told them it was you. They were surprised at first, then very annoyed, and asked me to pass you a message."
"Oh? What message?" Tang Mubai replied casually.
"They said you should be careful!"
"Hm?" Tang Mubai sensed something was off, put down his chopsticks, and asked curiously, "They told you to warn me?"
"Yes!"

...

(ps: A new week begins, dear friends, I ask for your recommendation votes!
Honestly, it's embarrassing—a book released at the same time has less than half our bookmarks, but twice our recommendations!
This leaves me at a loss.
With over fourteen thousand bookmarks, even if everyone voted once, we'd have over ten thousand votes, but daily recommendations don't even reach a thousand.
Alas, the new week is here. If you have a vote, please cast one!)