Chapter 96: Capture the King First

  "No! It seems there's someone else secretly watching. That person is the real master!" Wang Chan saw the five people in front of him and had a fleeting thought to use his Taibai Jingqi to kill them all at once, but suddenly felt a chill run down his spine as the feeling he had previously overlooked surged back up.

  And that gentle man thirty miles away witnessed Wang Chan's white essence cutting down the helicopter in the sky, which was a bit different. Wang Chan could sense his presence, which was a completely spiritual and mysterious feeling. It was as if they were two huge magnets, although far apart, but still clearly felt the strong magnetic field emitted by each other, attracting each other.

  At the same time, a series of rustling sounds echoed through the dense forest, with countless people rushing and the sound of guns being cocked and magazines being replaced growing clearer. The five people in front of Wang Chan had already discovered him, exchanging only one glance before dispersing into five dark shadows that quickly pounced on Wang Chan like ghostly leopards.

  Without a doubt, these people were the main force of the Lin family's ambush in the dense forest to kill Wang Chan. Led by Lin Changzhi, who was one-handedly organized by Lin Yuanfang's third uncle as the highest commander of the Lin family's "secret mercenaries". The four famous martial artists from the capital, Song Shicheng, Du Liansheng, Liu Changhe and Liu Changjiang, launched a simultaneous attack to surround and kill Wang Chan.

  Within their realm of martial arts, they couldn't see the origin of Wang Chan's Tai Bai Jing Qi, but they watched in awe as a state-of-the-art armed combat helicopter was mysteriously shot down by Wang Chan, exploding and catching fire. They realized that Wang Chan was incredibly powerful, far beyond what any of them could withstand.

  Wanting to kill him, relying solely on the power of the five people is likely to be ineffective. Having had the incident at the White Crane Martial Arts Hall during the day as a warning, these five people now only thought of holding Wang Chan back for a few minutes in this place.

  Then a large number of mercenaries rushed up and shot him dead in a hail of gunfire.

  However, they were secretly making their own plans, but Wang Chan was no fool either.

  Just now, he made a sword move and cut off the helicopter that threatened him the most in mid-air. The Taibai Jingqi, which was originally over a foot long, is now only five or six inches long. If you want to take it out again to kill the five boxing masters in front of you, I'm afraid it will be exhausted immediately and can only be retracted into the lungs for warmth. It cannot be used again within 100 days.

  Although he had another move, it was never used. However, in that instant, he sensed that there was another expert hiding deep within the forest, exerting an immense pressure on him, making it hard for him to breathe, which is why this last resort of Tai Bai's pure energy was his final trump card.

  At this moment, who would still be willing to entangle with these five people? With a sneer, he didn't wait for the others to pounce on him before he had already taken three or four dozen steps. Under the illumination of the flames, he suddenly turned around and plunged headfirst into the dense forest.

  "You, with the surname Wang, don't try to escape. Weren't you very arrogant during the day? Alone and unarmed, you charged into the White Crane Association, killing people left and right, as if no one was in your way. Now you're like a mouse, not even daring to show your head. What kind of hero are you?"

  In the dark of night, an old man wearing blue clothes, with his hands spread out like a soaring eagle, leaped through the mountains and forests. He was thin and not too tall, but his entire body was lean and strong as iron, with both palms always clenched into eagle claw hooks. When he ran, his speed was noticeably faster than the others.

  "You want to come and die, then follow me! Life and death in an instant, why so much nonsense?" These five people were originally over a hundred meters away from Wang Chan, but as soon as he turned his head and walked, with more than a dozen ups and downs, the distance between the two sides quickly increased again.

  However, Lin Changzhi, who was wearing a military uniform, had already pulled out the pistol from his waist and chased after Wang Chan while aiming at him from behind and firing continuously.

  Lin Changzhi was a middle-aged man with a strong and fierce personality, originally one of the few top generals in the Lin family who could lead troops. He had trained a well-known mercenary group that was famous internationally for their marksmanship. Although visibility was poor in the mountains and forests, and Wang Chan's movements were extremely agile, Lin Changzhi would often fire his gun only to have Wang Chan dodge it as if he had anticipated it. Nevertheless, Lin Changzhi still managed to cause a lot of trouble for his opponent.

  One side was running quickly, and at the same time, he had to respond to the bullets shot from behind. Wang Chan's speed wouldn't be too fast, of course. There might be some other reasons, so when Wang Chan ran out about seven or eight miles away, the old man in blue clothes, lean and strong as iron, agile like an eagle, had already caught up with him from behind.

  This old man was the famous martial artist Du Liansheng of Beijing's "Eagle Claw Flipping Fist" style. He had spent his entire life practicing the powerful Eagle Claw technique, and as a result, his palms and fingers were as hard as iron. Although he was already over 50 years old, he still maintained his physical strength at its peak, without any decline. His hands possessed an astonishing power, and he could run extremely fast. Like a large bird soaring through the air, he suddenly crouched down and took off in a flash, landing one foot on a nearby tree trunk. Borrowing momentum from the force of his movement, he instantly appeared behind Wang Chan's back. With a swift swipe of his claw-like hand, the air was torn apart with a loud ripping sound, like the tearing of silk. The dark, heavy, and sharp Eagle Claw struck the back of Wang Chan's head with a flurry of slashes.

  At the same time, Dou Lian's lean body suddenly transformed into a giant eagle, swooping down from the sky, with his hands grasping and feet kicking, taking care of everything at once, instantly covering all of Wang Chan's vital points on his back.

  "Eagle Claw Fist, Eight Flashing Turns." Wang Chan was deliberately trying to deceive people. With a burst of energy, he ran down and instantly created a distance of at least five miles between himself and the large group of armed Lin family mercenaries. Taking advantage of this opportunity, he finished off these people. As soon as he didn't turn his head back, his ears moved, and from the sound of the evil wind rising from behind his head for an instant, he recognized that Du Liansheng's fist method was indeed the famous "Eagle Claw Turning Fist" that had been passed down in the Beijing-Tianjin area.

  In an instant, he shook his body, swung his arms, and the surging blood and energy throughout his body seemed to be fueled by oil on fire. The true internal energy of the Neijia school burst into his meridians and skin, exploding with a deafening crash.

  Eagle Claw Flipping Fist, the movements are precise and powerful, with swift and dense attacks like rain. In addition to the internal Eagle Claw strength and poking footwork, chopping hands, mutual inside and outside, when fighting against others, mainly focus on grabbing, hitting, and capturing, splitting tendons and bones. The two iron claws, once they touch the body, are bloody and flying flesh. Therefore, in "Fist Theory", it is said that the most poisonous, the most fierce, and the best defender is none other than Eagle Hand Fist, which refers to this Eagle Claw Flipping Fist.

  Du Liansheng is the number one master of eagle claw in the Beijing-Tianjin region, his ancestor was Chen Zizheng, a famous eagle claw king during the Republic of China era. His movements are swift and fierce, with his claws reaching wherever he aims, his hands and feet moving in perfect sync, absolutely not comparable to any ordinary master.

  Undoubtedly, Du Liansheng was also extremely angry with Wang Chan. Otherwise, he wouldn't have used a killing move as soon as he made his first move. This eagle claw technique of his originated from grabbing the urn, throwing the sandbag, and piercing through iron sand. The tips of his fingers were like five thick springs connected together, no matter how far apart they were, he could still unleash a curved yet straight internal "inch force" that could easily tear apart hard wooden bricks and stones.

  It can also be imagined that being scratched by him on the back of his head, what a scene of brain bursting and beating for ordinary people!!

  Just then, Wang Chan was already prepared. Facing Du Liansheng's grab, he flew into a kick, suddenly stopping his step, shaking his head and swaying his body. His whole body's blood and energy pushed the true strength throughout his four limbs and hundred joints, and his body only slightly shook. In front of him, behind him, to his left and right, in an instant, a whirlwind arose from the ground, as if it was spouting out from every pore on his body with great force.

  For a moment, the strong wind howled, Wang Chan turned his head back, like a tiger twisting its body, looking up at the moon, and suddenly stretched out his hand, with thick, sturdy, and prominent veins, like a green snake wrapped around his arm, each muscle twisted together like steel wires.

  Horizontal whip tiger claw, one leg sweeps horizontally, like a tiger tail steel whip.

  He actually fought with his claws against theirs, and his legs against theirs!

  Wang Chan also favored the claw method in his fist, spending his days playing with bears and tigers in the mountains. His tiger claw kung fu mixed the ferocity of his Thirteen Taibao's horizontal training with the powerful momentum of Shaolin's Five Forms Fist, specifically the Tiger Form. The moves seemed simple, but within that one grab, there were over a dozen types of internal energy, including tearing, pulling, hooking, popping, yin, yang, hard and soft. This was one of his favorite methods to use when fighting with others.

  His claws were like a tiger's, his feet like a tiger's tail. In that instant, Wang Chan was like a white-browed tiger revealing its ferocious face in the dark. One swipe of his paw, one sweep of his leg, and a bloody gale howled forth.

  Bang! The palms faced each other, the ten fingers interlocked, and the two feet also collided at the same time! Du Liansheng, who was over fifty years old, never thought that Wang Chan would be so formidable. His iron-like eagle claws were only clasped with Wang Chan's tiger paws for a moment, and the next instant, there was a crisp crackling sound, and five fingers snapped simultaneously, twisted like a hemp rope.

  Before he could even cry out, his lower abdomen was kicked with a loud thud, and he flew out five meters away, landing heavily on the ground, rolling around in agony, at the same time, one of his thighs also emitted a crisp cracking sound.

  But was also broken by Wang Chan's tiger tail kick.

  However, Du Liansheng was indeed a famous martial artist in the capital, with rich experience in fighting in the forest. He suddenly felt something was off and rolled all over the ground, attempting to use the Eagle Claw Flipping Fist's Yanqing flipping technique to escape danger and regroup.

  However, in the midst of life and death, Wang Chan did not intend to let him go, his feet closely followed, like a shadow, one move of a hungry tiger pouncing on its prey, he pounced down.

  Just as Du Liansheng exerted force with his shoulder and elbow, rolling on the ground to roll into a bush, Wang Chanren fell down, kneeling on one knee, like a child worshiping Guanyin, with one leg bent, like Mount Tai pressing down, suddenly hitting his waist eye vertebra.

  Children worship Guanyin! A special move in boxing that uses elbows and knees, with twisted joints, is the most solid and sharp. Kneeling down on one knee and pressing down with both elbows, it's exactly used to deal with enemies who have fallen to the ground, an absolutely lethal move.

  Wang Zhan flew forward and knelt on one knee, and suddenly a crisp cracking sound was heard. Du Liansheng's spine shattered instantly, his waist turned to mud, and he let out a miserable cry. He was then hit by Wang Zhan with an elbow to the back of his head.

  Bang! It was as if a big watermelon had burst, the entire head exploded, brain matter splattered everywhere, and he died on the spot.

  Wang Chan's boxing skills were originally much stronger than Du Liansheng's, and he could easily kill him with three moves in a head-on confrontation. Now, in the dense forest melee, without any pretence, every move was lethal. With his current skill level, this knee strike would be enough to crush not only a living person but also a rhino, breaking its bones and tendons.

  This Du Liansheng, although his eagle claws are sharp and fierce, has grown even more robust with age. It's unknown what method he used to maintain his physical strength at its peak, never declining, a man in his fifties still possessing the combat power of his thirties. However, apart from his hands, other parts of his body didn't seem to have practiced any Iron Shirt-like internal strength training, and compared to the thick-skinned and muscular Rhinoceros, he couldn't be mentioned on the same day.

  So he was killed by Wang Chan, the evil boy, with just one blow. He wasn't a powerful Guanyin Bodhisattva after all, and his entire head was smashed into a rotten watermelon-like pulp.

  "Ah, Old Du......!"

  Although everyone knew that this was a life-and-death battle, Wang Chan's sudden move still shocked the remaining four people who arrived later! Just now he was still a vigorous and powerful man, but in an instant he was lying on the ground with his head smashed to pieces. Even though Lin Changzhi and others had already seen their fair share of life and death and bloodshed, they couldn't help but feel a little stunned, with a slight feeling of nausea in their stomachs.

  Du Liansheng was really miserable, so miserable that anyone who witnessed this scene would gasp in shock, with a numbness on the top of their head that couldn't be stopped, and a chill running down their back. Looking at Wang Chan's arm covered in brain matter and blood, it was as if his own skull had been targeted.

  "What a fierce man!" Lin Changzhi's eyebrows and eyes moved, and he quickly regained his composure, even faster than the three great boxing masters behind him. Although there was still a hint of shock in his eyes that couldn't be concealed, the previous fear had disappeared, replaced by an intense excitement as he faced Wang Zhan, who was just inches away from him.

  A true soldier, iron-blooded and fond of fighting. If Du Liansheng just now was a typical example of the Jianghu faction's martial arts, then Lin Changzhi is the most distinctive military general. He remains calm in the face of danger and advocates for offense.

  The pistol in his hand had long been out of bullets, casually thrown aside, and a shiny dagger was pulled out from the military boots. With a flash, he was like a cheetah suddenly accelerating its sprint, darting towards Wang Chan's throat like lightning.

  He had a knife called "Bak nightingale", which was a special equipment for the US Special Operations Forces. The blade had been treated to be extremely sharp, and the handle was durable and non-reflective. Lin Changzhi held the short knife in reverse grip, took a step forward, first hiding the blade under his forearm, until he reached Wang Chan's neck, then suddenly flicked his wrist forward, popping out an inch, with a speed that was almost unbelievable.

  And his knife technique, in fact, also integrated the route of Huoshou Double Daggers in Southern Fist, mixed with the simple and direct attacking techniques of the military, after decades of subtle adjustments, Lin Changzhi's short knife white blade technique has become the most effective killing skill.

  If it were an ordinary martial artist, even in broad daylight, his movements would only be a simple clenched fist and backhand, without revealing the sharp blade hidden under his arm. At night, it's even more concealed. Once he gets close to you, suddenly whipping out a knife edge, whoever it is will suffer greatly, losing big time.

  But Wang Zan was no ordinary person! His eyes were sharp, how could he be deceived by this trick? Suddenly, he stretched out his hand and blocked the throat in front of him. The knife blade quickly swept across his wrist, making a piercing sound, as if it had cut through a steel plate. A white line instantly appeared on Wang Zan's wrist, but the next moment, he threw a punch that flew towards Lin Changzhi's chest.

  Ding! Another crisp sound, the clanging of metal, Lin Changzhi suddenly produced another identical short knife from his other hand, and with a few swift slashes, he blocked Wang Chan's punches, each knife tip pointing at Wang Chan's fist. At the same time, Lin Changzhi let out a strange cry as he was knocked back repeatedly by Wang Chan's powerful fists.

  "What kind of kung fu has this guy practiced? It looks like the Shaolin Temple's protective hand double knife, but it also seems to be the Mandarin duck double arm knife. He can actually block my punch with just a small dagger! This officer's skills should be even more formidable than that person from earlier!" Wang Chan's punch was unexpectedly neutralized by Lin Changzhi, although he still managed to knock him back, but Lin Changzhi didn't get killed or injured by his move. Compared to Du Liansheng, the famous Eagle Claw master, it's truly incomparable.

  In Chinese martial arts, the skill of wielding weapons emphasizes "one inch longer, one inch stronger; one inch shorter, one inch more dangerous". The long spear and large halberd are indeed majestic and powerful, with a courage that can withstand ten thousand men. However, short swords and daggers are by no means inferior, as they excel in close combat, with swift and deadly movements, clever techniques, and extreme ferocity, often deciding life or death in a single move.

  Lin Changzhi just used his dagger to block Wang Chan's punch, and in an instant, he stabbed out seven or eight knives. The knife came out like the wind, each knife accurately hitting the point on Wang Chan's fist, one knife dissolving a fraction of the force, and after seven or eight knives, the power of Wang Chan's punch was already dissolved to nothing, leaving only a few fractions of strength, which naturally disappeared after retreating several steps.

  This dagger fighting skill is indeed wonderful, otherwise he would not be able to block Wang Chan's punch, and it would surely hit his chest, breaking his bones and killing him on the spot.

  "Among all the people, only this one was wearing a military uniform, without any disguise. The several martial arts masters who followed him seemed to also take him as their leader. It seems that he should be the planner and commander of this operation, or at least a key member of the Lin family. To capture the enemy, first capture the king; to shoot people, first shoot the horse. In any case, we can't let him go. Let's catch him first and ask him clearly before doing anything else."

  Just as Wang Chan was about to take advantage of the situation and capture Lin Changzhi, Song Shidao and the Liu brothers suddenly burst out from behind him and attacked him simultaneously.