Chapter Twenty-Four: The Ancient Martial Artist

When the director spoke, Ji Ruyan’s eyes first lit up with hope, but the next moment, it was as if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her.

“However, deploying a B-rank is too much of a fuss. You all know the current state of those bizarre creatures in the city—if we arbitrarily transfer a B-rank, it could bring about major trouble.”

As soon as the director finished, Ji Ruyan bowed her head deeply. Sending a B-rank to Tianjing City was simply reckless—she realized she had been too impulsive earlier, too eager to avenge her man.

She glanced at the director, whose face remained calm, and then at her colleagues, who seemed indifferent to everything. Disheartened, she shot them a fierce glare before striding away.

Once she left, the rest burst into uninhibited laughter. They all knew of Ji Ruyan’s relationship with Li Juetian and naturally understood her agitation.

Ren Zhonghao stopped laughing, turning to the director. “So what should we do?”

The director lifted his eyelids and stroked his chin. “That foreign doll is quite interesting. Perhaps we should trouble Su Chen for this.”

Trouble Su Chen for this?

At those words, the room fell silent. Su Chen was a martial artist. All of China’s martial artists were still in their formative stages—each one was a treasured asset. Sending him was truly…

But no one objected. They all knew—a fine sword, if never used, is nothing but scrap, and the same held true for martial artists. This was a perfect opportunity for him to hone his skills.

Ren Zhonghao nodded. “I’ll see to it right away.”

After everyone had left the office, the director quietly opened a cabinet. Inside was a small bottle, within which seemed to be a tiny person.

“Director Fu, I’m quite interested in that foreign doll. Perhaps if I devour him, I’ll become even smarter,” came a crude, eerie voice from within. The tiny person could actually speak.

Fu was the name of the director of the Ling City Bureau of Investigation into Bizarre Creatures. If people addressed him by his surname and title together, it sounded like “Deputy Director,” so most just called him Director.

Looking at the little figure in the bottle, the director’s face was full of reverence. “Yes, sir.”

…

In an underground arena in Ling City—

A burly blond foreigner stood on the platform, facing a muscular Chinese man.

At the referee’s whistle, the two men clashed instantly, but in just moments, the Chinese contestant was outmatched, quickly subdued, and finally knocked out cold with a punch to the face.

The referee raised the foreigner’s hand and announced his victory.

The crowd erupted in sighs and complaints, scolding the fallen man for disgracing their countrymen.

The foreigner grew even more arrogant. He knocked the referee down with a single punch, then raised his arms and shouted, “Chinese! This!” as he thrust his thumb downwards in blatant provocation.

A hush fell over the arena. Fury flashed in every eye fixed on the cocky foreigner. One man in the VIP seats even drew a pistol, ready to shoot the braggart, but a graceful woman beside him stopped him.

“Look at the referee behind him.”

The man glanced at the stage—the referee, who had been knocked down, was already back on his feet, wearing a disdainful grin.

When he got a good look at the referee’s face, a smile of intrigue crept over his own. Slowly, he lowered the gun, choosing to watch the show unfold.

The foreigner continued his taunting, convinced he was unbeatable, blind to the danger drawing near.

Suddenly, a large hand clapped his shoulder. He looked back instinctively—it was the same frail referee he had casually knocked down. He scoffed.

“Chinese! Watch yourself!” the foreigner growled, dripping with menace and contempt.

But the referee shook his head lazily. “I only took this job because I’m too unbeatable. You really think you’re strong?”

The foreigner was momentarily stunned, then burst out laughing.

“You? My pigs back home are stronger than you!”

The referee ignored him and addressed the audience, “How many moves do you think I’ll need to defeat him?”

Many in the crowd had recognized him by now and could hardly contain their excitement.

“The referee is the Boxing King! My god, am I dreaming?”

“One move! No more—anything else would tarnish your name!”

“Yes! Just one move—beat this white pig to death!”

The arena echoed with chants: “One move! One move! One move!”

The foreigner, enraged, bellowed, “You’re asking for death!” and charged the so-called Boxing King, fists swinging.

The Boxing King’s body twisted impossibly to dodge the blow, and as the foreigner passed by, he struck with lightning speed.

Crack.

That was the sound of bone shattering. The Boxing King’s fist had driven straight into the foreigner’s skull. Outwardly, the man looked untouched, but his entire cranium had turned to fragments, his brain reduced to pulp.

He collapsed, eyes wide open, mouth agape, staring blankly into the crowd.

A thunderous applause erupted. The crowd was bursting with pride at the Boxing King’s one-move victory.

“The Boxing King is incredible! My hero!”

“One move! Who else dares challenge him?”

“Stupid American, serve him right!”

Basking in the cheers, the Boxing King wiped his hands with a towel, glanced at the foreigner on the ground, and sneered, “Foreign trash.”

He stooped and searched the foreigner’s back, pulling out a black object.

“So this is the bizarre creature weapon developed by the United States? It’s nothing much.”

The only reason the foreigner had defeated the previous Chinese contender so easily was thanks to this so-called bizarre creature weapon.

With a squeeze of his hand, the Boxing King crushed the black device and strode off the platform.

A man in a suit stopped him, expression respectful. “Mr. Su, that foreigner was sent by the United States to exchange ideas on dealing with bizarre creatures. You just killed him?”

Su Chen snorted. “Hmph! We Chinese have martial artists, Taoists, and spirit tamers—is that not enough? Must we dabble with these so-called bizarre creature weapons?”

The suited man smiled awkwardly. “That’s not why I’m here. He was just a minor figure, not a real problem.”

“Oh? Then what is it?” Su Chen asked, curious.

“There’s trouble in Tianjing City. The higher-ups want you to handle it. Here’s the detailed report.” The man handed him a stack of documents.

Su Chen flipped through them, and when he saw that the foreign doll seemed to possess intelligence rivaling that of a Chinese person, he laughed outright. Since when did humans admit another species might be smarter than themselves? Ridiculous.

“Haha, this bizarre creature is interesting. I’ll take the assignment!”

The suited man nodded, then whispered, “This time, try to capture it alive—and we’ll announce to the public that it was destroyed. The director is also very interested in this foreign doll.”