A Pawn's Passage

Could an Enforcer who would strike with the intent to smash someone’s head and even dare to extort a gang leader be considered a good person in the traditional sense?

Although Qi Xuansu was not the real Baron and had no intention of investigating who was right or wrong between the Baron and the councilman, he still intended to give this Enforcer a small lesson.

Qi Xuansu stood up and lifted Ross high into the air with a single hand. Ross had been fully modified by Arcane Alchemy, so he was essentially half steel and considerably heavier. Yet Qi Xuansu lifted him effortlessly, no different from grabbing Little Yin by the back of her collar.

Then Qi Xuansu seized Ross’s left arm and yanked it. Amid the Enforcer’s heart-rending scream, the prosthetic arm was torn off by brute force. The metal pipes connecting it were ripped apart, and gears of various sizes fell from the broken stump. There was no blood, only black fluid and steam.

Qi Xuansu tossed both Ross and the severed arm onto the floor, looking down at him from above.

Even amidst the intense pain, Ross felt shock. How could the Baron possess such overwhelming strength? Could that rumor actually be true?

If he had fought the Baron and been defeated after a fierce battle, Ross would not have been so shocked. His advantage over the four gang leaders did not lie in strength but in status. After all, he was an Enforcer recognized by the City Council. The council’s loose control over the Lower District was a matter of choice, not inability. There was no such thing as the council being afraid to enter the Lower District. Under such circumstances, the four gang leaders naturally avoided direct conflict with him.

What he had never expected was that the Baron would crush him head-on without the slightest flourish. It was obvious that the Baron had not even used his full strength, yet Ross had no power to resist.

Such power was far beyond Ross’s understanding. If the Baron truly possessed this level of strength, there would no longer be talk of the “four respected gentlemen.” The Lower District would have only a single ruler. The Baron would no longer be merely a baron. Perhaps a Duke would suit him better, or King of the Lower District.

Ross was not the only one shocked. The old butler was equally stunned.

The old butler had personally brought Qi Xuansu to the Baron’s residence and handled the entire arrangement himself. He should have been the one who understood Hosea’s background best, yet he suddenly realized that he had been completely mistaken. He had no understanding of Hosea’s true background.

Realizing this, the old butler felt a chill run down his spine.