Chapter Thirty-Nine: Even Minor Evils Must Be Eradicated

Lu Daqi couldn’t help but laugh after hearing this. “Tsk tsk, upholding justice, playing the hero? Your brain’s got to be fried. You little punk, how dare you mess with me? You don’t even know who you’re dealing with—are you looking to die?”

“Little punk” was a term used in the Lingnan region to insult petty thugs.

Shen Ye smiled faintly. “And just who are you, really? Nothing but a local bully in a small town. Did you really think you’re someone important?”

“You rotten brat, you’re really courting death,” Lu Daqi snorted coldly. He reached under the table and drew out a gleaming, razor-sharp butcher’s knife, just over an inch wide.

Back in the nineties, in the years after he’d just gotten out of prison, he’d stayed honest for a while and worked as a butcher.

But those few years of slaughtering pigs had made him immensely strong—far beyond any ordinary man.

He once chased a bachelor from one end of the village to the other with a butcher’s knife, forcing the man to kneel at his door and beg forgiveness.

Now, gripping that same butcher’s knife, Lu Daqi swung it straight at Shen Ye.

He knew his limits; this blow wasn’t aimed to kill. After all, murder was too much trouble these days.

He’d spent eight years in prison for killing someone before, and that was with multiple reductions to his sentence.

The knife flashed cold and deadly.

But Shen Ye had already tangled with heavyweights like Ma Guosheng and Lu Youwei. One had martial experts at his command, the other guns; coping with a mere local tyrant was child’s play. After all, whether it was strength, agility, or constitution, Shen Ye’s stats far exceeded those of ordinary men.

What seemed a lightning-fast attack to others was, in Shen Ye’s eyes, moving in slow motion.

He dodged the butcher’s knife with the slightest twist of his body.

With a sudden lunge, his right hand clamped down on Lu Daqi’s wrist and squeezed hard.

“Let go!”

Unable to bear the pain, Lu Daqi instantly released his grip.

The knife slipped from his grasp and fell to the ground.

Shen Ye snatched up the knife with his left hand, then, in one swift motion, drew its blade across Lu Daqi’s throat.

A jet of blood arced through the air.

The entire sequence was so swift and ruthless that Lu Daqi had no time to react.

Then Lu Daqi collapsed in a heap.

His eyes were wide open in disbelief; he had never expected that, just as he was enjoying his reign as the local despot, someone would appear out of nowhere and end his life.

Blood pooled across the floor.

Shen Ye let out a gentle breath. This time, he didn’t call the police.

Unlike before, this was merely the killing of a villain—a trivial matter, unworthy of police involvement.

Still, there was a pleasant surprise.

The last time he’d leveled up was after eliminating Ma Guosheng’s gang. Back then, his experience bar from level two to three had already reached a bit beyond a third.

Recently, after wiping out Lu Youwei and his men, and now Lu Daqi, the bar was finally full—he could level up.

Shen Ye, Hero, First-Class Profession

Level: Three

Alignment: Justice

Base Attributes:

Spirit: 2 (Normal adult male: 1. The higher the spirit, the more powerful the spells.)

Strength: 5 (Normal adult male: 1.)

Agility: 3.1 (Normal adult male: 1. Note: The higher the agility, the faster the movement and attack speed.)

Defense: 4 (Normal adult male: 1. Note: The higher the defense, the less damage taken when attacked.)

Constitution: 4 (Normal adult male: 1. Note: The higher the constitution, the better the stamina and the faster recovery from injuries.)

With his physical stats enhanced again, his muscles bulged with even more power. The human body was supposed to have just over six hundred muscles, but now his muscle groups had increased to over eight hundred. Not only was his strength boosted, but the hardness and activity of his muscles had risen dramatically.

He was confident that he could now dash even farther and faster—if he wanted, he could cross the distance to the table three meters away in a flash.

Stronger, faster, tougher, and more resilient!

Leveling up meant an all-around improvement.

But a new problem had arisen.

To reach level four as a Hero would require even more experience, making the next ascent a real challenge.

Shen Ye didn’t dwell on it. He quietly cleaned up what needed cleaning, slipped out of the house, and…quickly picked up his pace, determined to walk back to County N tonight and secure his perfect alibi.

...

Meanwhile, in Changqi Village, Nanling Town.

You Jia awoke groggily.

She still hadn’t figured out how she’d ended up unconscious.

She recalled that she and Lu Daqi had been playing a forceful, forbidden game. Maybe Lu Daqi had gotten too rough and knocked her out by accident. That rascal—already fifty, yet still so energetic and inventive, so much more exciting than her former, dull-as-wood husband.

Still, she needed to get that marriage certificate. Lu Daqi had no sons; he probably couldn’t have any. Once he died, all his wealth would be hers.

Over the years, Lu Daqi had made a fortune in town as a bully, selling fertilizer, intimidating others, and raking in money.

She wasn’t the least bit afraid of his daughters from his previous marriage causing trouble. Those girls had no standing with him—how could they possibly compete with her?

Yawning, You Jia staggered to her feet. “That scoundrel, leaving me lying outside. Did he really have his way with me out here? The old rogue—always up to something.”

She walked a few steps and was met with a grisly sight: a large pool of blood, Lu Daqi dead on the ground, and a bloodstained butcher’s knife beside him.

She screamed, her mind going utterly blank.

It was a long moment before she regained some composure and fumbled for her phone. “Is this 110? There’s been a murder in our village—Lu Daqi has been killed.”

The voice on the other end hesitated. “Which village?”

“Changqi Village, Nanling Town,” You Jia blurted out.

“Which house? What number?” the dispatcher asked.

“The tallest building in the village—the only four-story house in the whole place,” she replied in a panic.

“All right, don’t disturb the scene. The police will be there soon,” said the voice from 110.

“Yes, yes,” You Jia stammered, nodding repeatedly.