Chapter Forty-Eight: Reversal

Seeing Su Ruoran’s face twisted in pain and determination, Zhang Wenhao felt a pang in his heart. Earlier, Su Ruoran had fallen hard while running, tearing even her jeans at the knee; it was impossible now to drag her along and keep running. Doing so would only leave them both vulnerable to attack from behind.

Zhang Wenhao gritted his teeth, shielding Su Ruoran behind him, glaring fiercely at the three men before them, a defiant aura emanating from his whole body.

The three stopped in front of Zhang Wenhao. One, a middle-aged man wielding a machete, spoke coldly: “This kid’s got good moves. Don’t hold back—cut him down first, then grab the girl and get her in the car. Make it quick!”

With that, the three charged at Zhang Wenhao.

He struggled to fend off six fists with just his two hands, and now there were two cold, glinting blades on top of that. No matter how tough a fist made of flesh, it was useless against a machete. Zhang Wenhao pushed Su Ruoran behind him, shouting, “Run!”

Su Ruoran stumbled back a few steps from his push, while Zhang Wenhao focused on the attackers. The two machetes swung at him simultaneously. There was no way to block them head-on; Zhang Wenhao dodged to the side in an instant. Glancing out of the corner of his eye, he saw Su Ruoran still standing there and barked furiously, “You stupid woman, why are you just standing there? Waiting to see me get hacked to death? Go to the hotel and get help!”

Su Ruoran’s thoughts matched Zhang Wenhao’s—she absolutely didn’t want to leave him behind and run alone. But his angry shout jolted her into action. Calling the police would be useless now; the only thing she could do was rush to the hotel for help—at least there were quite a few security guards there.

Enduring the agony in her legs, Su Ruoran turned and ran toward the hotel. Seeing this, the three men became even more eager to catch her, forgetting Zhang Wenhao entirely and chasing after her. But Zhang Wenhao would not let them succeed; he spun back and blocked their path again.

Just then, Chen Feng stepped out, having bumped into Xiao Si, who’d just finished a phone call. They suddenly heard Su Ruoran’s terrified cry for help as she ran in their direction. From afar, they could see several figures attacking a tall, slender boy in the shadows. Chen Feng’s lips curled into a satisfied smile. “Ah Luo really has my back, getting here so damn fast.”

“Brother Feng,” Xiao Si said awkwardly, “Ah Luo just said on the phone he’ll be here within twenty minutes—asked you to wait a bit longer.”

“Huh?” Chen Feng frowned, muttering to himself, “Then who the hell are these guys?”

Suddenly, Chen Feng stomped his foot. “Damn it, Xiao Si, follow me!”

Meanwhile, Su Ruoran had barely run a hundred meters when a black, unmarked Passat sped over, overtaking Zhang Wenhao and the three fighting with him, then screeched to a halt, blocking Su Ruoran’s path.

Someone jumped out from the passenger side, grabbing Su Ruoran and dragging her toward the back seat to shove her inside. At the same time, he turned and angrily shouted to the three men facing Zhang Wenhao, “Tiger, we’ve got her! Let’s get out of here!”

He was just about to climb into the Passat when Chen Feng and Xiao Si rushed over.

Chen Feng charged forward, heart pounding with fear. The moment he realized these weren’t his own men, he knew the attackers were after Miss Su. If anything happened to her on his territory, he’d be finished.

Chen Feng and Xiao Si tackled the man who was trying to force Su Ruoran into the car. Su Ruoran, panicked and confused, scrambled out. Suddenly, the driver shoved open his door, pulling out a handgun from his waist.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three shots fired!

He aimed at Chen Feng and Xiao Si. The distance was too close for them to dodge; both were struck and fell, bleeding on the ground. Then the man leveled his gun at Su Ruoran, snarling, “Get in the car, or I’ll blow your head off!”

For a moment, Su Ruoran stood frozen, unable to process the gunshots that had just rung out. But seeing Zhang Wenhao sprinting closer, she didn’t hesitate. She yanked open the door, bent low, and slipped inside.

Zhang Wenhao saw Su Ruoran dive into the car and understood: if the driver got back behind the wheel and started the engine, everything would be lost. He shouted at the armed driver, “You bastard, you’re dead! Let’s see how Grandpa Zhang deals with you!”

The driver frowned at Zhang Wenhao, then, without hesitation, pulled the trigger.

At the same time, Zhang Wenhao used his combat instincts to predict the gun’s direction, staying alert for any shot aimed at him. Judging the threat of firearms and possible hit locations was a crucial skill in real combat, though he’d never had the chance to use it until now.

Zhang Wenhao dodged as the shot rang out!

The bullet pierced through his left upper arm, a burst of pain and intense burning surging through him. He ignored it; getting hit in the arm was something he’d already anticipated. After all, no one could outrun a bullet, and real combat wouldn’t make him a superhero dodging gunfire. But a wound in the arm wouldn’t affect his running or fighting ability.

In the instant it took for that shot, Zhang Wenhao had already reached the Passat!

The driver was surprised—the boy’s body only staggered slightly from the shot, but his speed hadn’t slowed at all! It was unbelievable. He couldn’t be sure where exactly the bullet had hit, but from years of experience, he was certain it had struck him.

Zhang Wenhao was now at the Passat, directly facing the passenger side, while the armed driver was on the far end of the car.

Just as the driver prepared to fire a second shot, Zhang Wenhao dove straight toward the cement ground with a loud thud!

Though his whole body throbbed with pain, Zhang Wenhao knew his opponent no longer had a firing angle. The trajectory from the gun barrel to the Passat’s roof created a slanted line, forming a narrow dead zone on his side. Unless the driver moved around, his bullets couldn’t reach Zhang Wenhao.

The driver grew nervous. In fact, he was the ringleader—the only one with a gun. He’d been directing from the shadows, thinking it would be an easy job. But he hadn’t expected one unremarkable boy to turn the situation upside down.

He didn’t dare recklessly move around to shoot, but his three accomplices were now drawing closer.

“Tiger, you useless fool! You couldn’t even handle this simple task! Cut him down for me!”

Just as he finished speaking, a huge black shadow flew at him and slammed into him, knocking him down instantly.

The shadow was the accomplice who’d first grabbed Su Ruoran and shoved her into the Passat, then been beaten by Chen Feng and Xiao Si.

Zhang Wenhao had just unleashed his full strength, using his right arm to toss the man entirely across. The force seemed to surge from a rush of adrenaline, making his power multiply several times in an instant.

The driver never expected Zhang Wenhao could throw a man at him, and caught off guard, he toppled backward, his head hitting the ground hard, his mind going blank and his vision filled with sparks. The gun in his hand flew far away.

Seeing the three men almost upon him, Zhang Wenhao stood, braced his right hand on the car roof, and leapt over to the other side. He immediately picked up the black handgun from the ground.

The three men had no idea their comrade had been taken down. As they rounded the car, machetes raised, Zhang Wenhao suddenly aimed the gun skyward and pulled the trigger hard.

Bang!

The gunshot stunned them completely. They’d never imagined that, in an instant, the tables would turn so dramatically. Their carefully planned attack, their combined effort, had been utterly reversed by a boy under twenty!

Zhang Wenhao pointed the gun at them, roaring, “Stay right there, damn it! Move and I’ll shoot you dead! You kidnappers—using your own gun against you isn’t just self-defense, it’s righteous heroism! Even the mayor of Jiang City should thank me for ridding the people of evil!”

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I’ve been on break at home lately, making it hard to get online, so I had to go to internet cafes to upload chapters. Things are finally stable now, so I’ll guarantee at least two chapters daily, with occasional bursts!

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