Chapter 63: Three vs. Dog Man
But the optimal solution doesn't always resolve the crisis.
Xiao Peng was ultimately too late.
What none of the three people in the room expected was this:
The Dog Man they'd been waiting to return home so they could ambush him...
Suddenly emerged from the freezer Xiao Peng was leaning against, catching them completely off guard.
It was only thanks to Xiao Q's timely warning and Xiao Peng's instinctive reaction to run forward that saved him.
When the Dog Man first appeared, he'd aimed straight for Xiao Peng's neck. But because of these two factors, he missed the neck and only managed to bite Xiao Peng's right shoulder.
The moment his teeth sank in, Xiao Peng let out a pained scream.
"Fuck!"
Xiao Q reacted immediately, grabbing the metal knuckle dusters from the glass coffee table. After putting them on, he rushed to the freezer where the Dog Man still had most of his body inside, jaws firmly clamped on Xiao Peng's shoulder, eyes filled with viciousness. Aiming at the Dog Man's head and back, Xiao Q's first instinct made him choose the less lethal option - the back.
He repeatedly struck the Dog Man's back with the knuckle dusters, but it did nothing to make him release Xiao Peng.
Ke Bei, however, acted differently. Approaching the freezer with his steel baseball bat, his first reaction was to aim for the head.
Simply put, when it came to potentially killing someone with their own hands...
Xiao Q's practical experience and subconscious hesitation manifested in his actions.
Ke Bei's strike proved much more effective.
Though the human skull is the hardest part of the body, the steel baseball bat wasn't to be underestimated either. With one powerful swing, he forced the Dog Man's jaws open, freeing Xiao Peng.
Xiao Peng stumbled forward a few steps before collapsing to the ground, his left hand pressing hard on his right shoulder where the bite had torn through flesh, blood flowing nonstop.
His entire body convulsed in pain.
Meanwhile, the Dog Man who had been struck by both knuckle dusters and baseball bat now climbed nimbly out of the freezer.
In the open space beside the freezer, he assumed the aggressive stance of a large dog preparing to attack - hindquarters tensed for power.
A low, threatening growl rumbled from his throat.
Then, in the blink of an eye, the Dog Man suddenly lunged at Ke Bei.
He launched himself forward in a canine-style pounce.
Ke Bei swung his baseball bat, landing a solid hit across the Dog Man's face. The creature staggered briefly but quickly regained his footing and continued the attack.
His speed was terrifying - before Ke Bei could even recover from his swing to prepare another strike, he could only grip both ends of the baseball bat desperately to block the Dog Man's snapping jaws.
What happened next shocked Ke Bei to his core.
As the Dog Man bit down on the steel baseball bat, the metal began visibly deforming under the pressure of his jaws!!!
If this had been an actual large dog - a wolfhound or Tibetan mastiff - such bite force wouldn't have been so shocking. But this was clearly a human being!
How could human teeth and jaw strength reach such monstrous levels?!
While Ke Bei remained locked in this desperate struggle, Xiao Q quickly moved to the Dog Man's side and began delivering repeated heavy blows to his head with the knuckle dusters.
This time, Xiao Q had shaken off his initial hesitation.
Meanwhile, Xiao Peng struggled up from the floor despite his injured shoulder, grabbing the sharp dagger that had been knocked from his hand during the initial ambush.
He charged at the Dog Man, aiming the blade for his back.
Seeming to notice Xiao Peng's approach from the corner of his eye, the Dog Man suddenly shoved forward violently, knocking Ke Bei to the ground before disengaging his jaws.
Standing upright, he first delivered a kick to Xiao Q's approaching right fist - the one wearing the knuckle dusters.
Another kick followed immediately, striking Xiao Peng in the chest and sending him sprawling backward.
Then, imitating a dog's attack once more, he pounced again.
The dagger flew from Xiao Peng's hand from the force of the kick.
Facing the Dog Man's gaping maw coming straight for him, he could only raise his right arm as defense - which was promptly clamped between powerful jaws. With his left fist, he struck repeatedly at the Dog Man's head and face.
But this creature seemed like some pain-immune monster.
Not only did he not release his grip, his bite only grew stronger.
Only when Xiao Q and Ke Bei came at him again did he finally let go, turning to engage the other two in a vicious melee.
Though Xiao Q and Ke Bei still had their weapons, even after five minutes of coordinated attacks against the Dog Man, they couldn't gain any real advantage.
Many of their strikes had landed, but the Dog Man displayed unnatural endurance.
"Fuck your mother!!!!"
Suddenly, Xiao Peng - who had been lying on the ground catching his breath for the past five minutes - threw himself desperately onto the Dog Man's back, trying to force him down.
Whether from his own weakness or the Dog Man's strength, he couldn't bring him down.
Instead, he ended up clinging to the Dog Man's back like a stubborn burr, arms and legs wrapped tightly around him while shouting: "Hurry the fuck up!"
Xiao Q and Ke Bei certainly wanted to act quickly, but how?
The Dog Man remained on all fours, with Xiao Peng stuck to his back. Their only options were attacking the head or lower body.
The lower body was difficult to reach, leaving only the head.
But Xiao Peng's head was right next to the Dog Man's.
And with all their violent struggling, any misaimed heavy blow could give Xiao Peng at least a concussion, if not kill him outright.
The Dog Man growled continuously in rage, finally abandoning pure canine behavior. Instead of just biting, he reached back with one hand, grabbing a fistful of Xiao Peng's hair and yanking downward with terrifying force.
Trying to pull him off.
"AAAAAAH!"
Xiao Peng felt like his scalp was being torn off - the pain was fucking unbearable!
"Fuck this, I'll fight you with everything I've got!"
Xiao Peng went all out, sinking his teeth into the Dog Man's right shoulder - payback in kind.
But his bite strength was clearly in a different league from the Dog Man's - his attack might as well have been a gentle nibble.
Realizing this, Xiao Peng mustered all his remaining strength to stretch forward...
And clamped his jaws onto the Dog Man's right ear.
Even the Dog Man's unnatural endurance had its limits - ears were still vulnerable.
Under Xiao Peng's desperate bite...
The Dog Man finally released a pained howl.
Seeing this, Xiao Q and Ke Bei moved in.
Afraid of accidentally hitting Xiao Peng, they discarded their weapons and tried to pile onto the Dog Man together to subdue him.
The Dog Man had gone completely berserk now.
Adopting a "lose the battle to win the war" approach...
He rolled violently, pinning Xiao Peng beneath him. Then with a powerful upward jerk of his head - combined with Xiao Peng's own pulling force...
The Dog Man tore free, leaving nearly half his ear still clamped between Xiao Peng's teeth.
Ignoring Xiao Peng still tangled beneath him, the Dog Man turned all his fury on the approaching Xiao Q - fists, feet and gnashing teeth working in terrifying coordination.
Despite outnumbering the Dog Man three to one, Xiao Peng was the first to reach his limit.
Exhausted and gasping for breath after biting off the Dog Man's ear - an act that had drained his last reserves of strength - he could only lie on the ground watching the ongoing struggle.
The Dog Man had Xiao Q pinned beneath him now, head lowered as he tried to sink his teeth into Xiao Q's throat. Xiao Q held him off with both hands, creating a desperate stalemate.
Seizing the opportunity, Ke Bei retrieved his discarded baseball bat...
And began delivering a relentless barrage of blows to the Dog Man's head and back.