Chapter 57: Kill and Counter-Kill
Ten minutes!
A full ten minutes!
Even though Zhou Fan and the other two had laid an ambush, going so far as to coat their golden needles in an anesthetic that slowed movement and clouded the mind, it still took them a full ten minutes to eliminate the seven men!
Worse still, all three of them had sustained injuries of varying degrees!
An opponent had sliced a gash over ten centimeters long across Fan's left ribs, deep enough to expose the bone—a grisly sight!
Zhou Fan had taken heavy blows to his right shoulder and left waist, and his right arm had been stabbed!
As for Chu Wen, who had been hiding in a tree, he was kicked to the ground when one of the men suddenly lashed out in a counterattack. He was now clutching his stomach, grimacing in pain!
"Xiaowen, you stay behind to maintain contact and provide support!"
Zhou Fan glanced at the two of them and gave the quiet order. After Chu Wen nodded, Zhou Fan exchanged a look with Fan. Without another word, they pushed through their pain and resumed the chase!
Unbeknownst to them, the chase had already lasted two or three hours. Just when Fan was about to collapse from exhaustion, they finally caught sight of the people who had abducted Chu Qianqian!
There weren't many of them. Besides the bound Chu Qianqian, there were only four men, but Chu Yifeng was nowhere in sight!
"Can you hold off two of them?" Zhou Fan whispered to Fan, his eyes fixed on the four men resting by the cliffside ahead, completely unaware of their approach.
"I can!" Fan's reply was firm. "But… I'll die."
"Three minutes. If you can't hold them off, we both die!"
Zhou Fan held up three fingers. He wasn't asking if Fan could do it, nor was he negotiating. He was simply informing him.
"Wait!" Fan took a deep breath, pulled a small porcelain vial from his clothes, and shook out two small, green pills, handing one to Zhou Fan.
"My master gave me these. They're lifesavers in a pinch!" Fan placed the remaining one under his tongue, ready to swallow it instantly if the situation turned dire.
"The Lingling Daoist? Then this must be good stuff!"
Zhou Fan took the pill and, mimicking Fan, tucked it under his tongue. He then took the lead, stealthily creeping forward.
"Boss, you think those guys were able to take care of Fan, right?"
"Definitely. Don't forget, Fan hasn't fully recovered from his injuries yet. Even if he were uninjured, it would still be no problem!"
"Just a little longer. It should be over soon. Then we just have to take this woman back, and the mission's complete!"
"That Chu Yifeng is a real piece of work, selling out his own family. Hahaha!"
Zhou Fan was now less than ten meters behind the group, but they remained completely unaware, still laughing and joking amongst themselves.
However, Zhou Fan didn't attack right away. He glanced toward Fan, saw he was nearly in position, and then looked at Chu Qianqian. She was tied up not far away, her hair disheveled but her clothes still mostly intact, an expression of terror and resentment on her face.
Zhou Fan turned toward Fan and slowly raised three fingers. He then lowered one, and then another.
The instant his last finger dropped, Fan erupted into motion. With a great shout, he lunged at the man closest to him!
Fan wasn't particularly fast—at least, not compared to his speed before he was injured—but he still managed to close the distance before his target even had time to react.
Simultaneously, Zhou Fan flicked out two golden needles, his body following in their wake!
"Fuck, it's the Nether King! The Nether King isn't dead!"
After dodging Zhou Fan's surprise attack, his opponent recognized him at once and yelled out.
"Lao Qi, you two hold off the Nether King! We'll focus on killing Fan as quickly as possible!" Seeing this, a long-haired man among the four made an instant decision. He drew a steel saber from his waist and swung it viciously toward Fan!
"The Luofu Ten? If all ten of you were here, even I would have a hard time winning. But what a shame. Only four of you came, and only two are here to stop me: Qi Zi and Jiu Zi!"
At that moment, Zhou Fan recognized them. He looked at the two who had surrounded him—the ones who weren't attacking, only defending, intent on stalling him—and a knowing smirk played on his lips.
The two said nothing, continuing to fend off Zhou Fan's attacks.
THUD! THUD! THUD!
The sound of fists colliding echoed relentlessly. But after only a dozen exchanges, Qi Zi noticed that Zhou Fan's punches were slowing down. The speed and power behind each strike were diminishing.
"He seems to be seriously injured. If we just hold on a bit longer, we might be able to counter-kill him!" Qi Zi quickly relayed his discovery to Jiu Zi.
Sure enough, less than two minutes later, Zhou Fan's punches grew even slower. The two could even spot the unfocused look in his eyes as he threw his fists, a clear sign of his waning strength.
"Brother Qi?"
"Kill him!"
With that brief exchange, they made their decision in an instant. Forgetting their previous orders to simply stall Zhou Fan, they burst forward, swinging their fists right at him!