Immortals and Demons Forever

Chapter 30: Dominating the Heavy Industry Zone

The workers still on the job soon heard about the commotion—Su Mu had actually come knocking on his own. Chen Li was digging through the gravel, carefully using his shovel to extract an irregular piece of Source Stone about the size of a palm. He tossed it into the basket at his feet—it was his seventh one of the day. Just three more and he could take a break. Someone came running over in a hurry. “Ah Li, let’s go, let’s go! Stop working—we’ll finish this later.” “Where are we going?” “To check out the commotion! Su Mu’s about to get into a fight with Zhong Da!” “Su Mu’s awake? Is he okay?” “He seems to be in good spirits. You’re close to him—tell me the truth. Is there some hidden agenda behind him asking for a fight?” “How would I know? He was unconscious for a whole day and night—everyone saw that. He should be pretty weak, right?” “Who knows? Who cares anyway? Hurry up—if you’re a second too slow, you’ll miss the show.” Chen Li tossed the damaged shovel to the ground and strode toward where Zhong Da was standing. Zhong Da was also surprised by Su Mu’s sudden visit. If he’d really been unconscious the whole time, there wasn’t much he could have done—even if he hadn’t done a single bit of work. At first, he suspected Su Mu was deliberately staging a charade—that he was actually awake but pretending to be unconscious. He even sent people over to try every trick in the book to rouse him, but nothing worked. Upon closer inspection, Su Mu’s condition at the time was indeed quite serious. He had specifically reported this matter to the Supervision Team, but the foreman in charge of this area turned a blind eye—in fact, he was practically hoping Su Mu would die of his illness. He didn’t have much to do on a daily basis; while he had no other needs, he certainly couldn’t do without fine wine and sumptuous food. Zhong Da sat in a chair, facing a crude round wooden table, munching heartily while clutching a gourd of liquor. Black Hand said loudly on purpose, “Brother Da, this kid came over saying he wants you to surrender to him.” “Have you lost your mind?” Zhong Da grinned. Su Mu strode over, pulled up a chair, and sat across from him. He tore off a chicken drumstick and began gnawing on it as if he were at home. Black Hand flew into a rage and swung his fist to strike, but Zhong Da raised a hand to stop him. He eyed Su Mu with a hint of amusement. “You’re eating my fat chicken and still want me to surrender? If that’s the case, I, Zhong Da, might as well quit this line of work.” “You really don’t need to stick around here anymore,” Su Mu said, spreading his hands. “This fat chicken is too greasy, and the meat isn’t great either. I’ll do you a favor and eat it anyway. Come to think of it, I haven’t eaten anything in days. Hand me the wine—I’m going to have a couple of sips.” That’s what you call pushing your luck! Zhong Da’s face darkened completely. “Su Mu, are you trying to force my hand here?” “Give me the wine. Stop all this nonsense.” Su Mu reached out, snatched it right out of Zhong Da’s hand in full view of everyone, and tilted his head back to gulp it down in big swigs. Zhong Da was taken aback. He’d been holding it so tightly—how could the other guy have snatched it away in one swift motion?! “The wine’s not half bad. Do you have any other fine wines stashed in your tent? Hurry up and bring them out—consider it a gift to me.” If he could put up with this any longer, Zhong Da might as well not be human! “You’re a fucking ungrateful bastard, aren’t you!” He kicked the wooden table across the room with a “Shadowless Kick,” his foot slashing like a razor toward the other man’s head. Su Mu sidestepped; the wooden table was kicked into four pieces, flying off on either side of him, yet he remained firmly seated in his chair. Zhong Da launched a kick at Su Mu’s face, fast as lightning. Chen Li rushed over just in time to witness the scene. Bam! Immediately, everyone’s mouths dropped open in astonishment. Su Mu was still sitting there; he landed a punch on the instep of Zhong Da’s foot, sending Zhong Da flying backward onto his back. “Finished it that fast? Hurry up and get me some more wine—I’m parched.” Su Mu tossed the wine gourd on the ground and pointed at Black Hand. Black Hand was stunned. Brother Da had been sent flying with a single punch—and right at the spot he prided himself on! Just a casual punch like that? What a joke! “Hurry up. Don’t dawdle.” “You—you… who do you think you are!” Black Hand roared, charging forward and swinging a punch. The fist, as big as a sandbag, slammed heavily into Su Mu’s head, but he didn’t budge an inch. He reached out and grabbed Black Hand’s arm. “Why did you have to go and copy Tang Kuan of all people? My scalp’s itching again. This feeling is really unpleasant. Disobedient people deserve a little punishment.” As he spoke, Su Mu held up three fingers and jabbed them into Black Hand’s stomach with a thud, instantly sending him writhing in agony. His legs gave way, and he collapsed to his knees. Su Mu reached out and patted his face. “Just stay kneeling there for now. This is a small punishment for your rudeness toward me these past few days.” As Su Mu spoke, he stood up. Zhong Da had already crawled to his feet, covered head to toe in dirt. Countless eyes were fixed on him, and the way people looked at him was noticeably different now. Gritting his teeth in fury, he let out a loud “Ah!” and pounced like a starving tiger. “Su Mu, I’m not done with you!” “Since you treated me with some respect just a few days ago, I won’t humiliate you too severely.” Falling Sand Palm! Su Mu struck out with his palm; a shadow of his hand billowed with black mist. The moment Zhong Da’s palm made contact, he spat blood and was sent flying backward, his entire body propelled into the air by the force of the blow. With a thud, Zhong Da flew several meters, slammed into the wall, and only then came crashing down. Hu Fo was completely dumbfounded, his body shaking uncontrollably. He’d been looking forward to watching Su Mu get beaten to a pulp, but now the tables had turned. It was as if Zhong Da were deliberately putting on a show—he was far too easy to beat. It wasn’t that he hadn’t gone all out; it was that Su Mu was no longer the man he used to be. How could this be? He woke up and his strength had skyrocketed—that just didn’t make any sense! Chen Li’s eyes were wide with shock, but he was overjoyed—he’d been counting on Su Mu to turn his fortunes around. It looked like he’d backed the right horse. Su Mu strolled leisurely up to Zhong Da. “I won’t go out of my way to cause you trouble because of what happened to your brother—he was just a low-level henchman following someone else’s orders. From now on, I’m in charge of the Heavy Industry Zone. Do you understand?” Zhong Da had suffered internal injuries from a single palm strike and couldn’t even manage to get to his feet for the moment; he could only nod and say, “I understand.” “Very good. Now I’ll give you two choices. First, pledge your allegiance to me, and we’ll consider this completely settled. Second, you can continue to oppose me, but you’ll have to face the consequences yourself. Give me your answer now—be a man and give me a straight answer.” “If I submit to you, what’s in it for me?” “When I leave the Heavy Industry Zone, you can come out with me.” “Really?” Zhong Da looked up. “Can you really do that?” “I, Su Mu, always mean what I say.” “All right! I believe you can do it! From now on, if you tell me to go east, I’ll never dare to go west—whatever you ask me to do, I’ll do it!” “So are we settled now?” “We’re settled! Mu Ge, I’ve really wronged you before—please be magnanimous and let bygones be bygones.” Zhong Da’s attitude had completely softened; he was thoroughly convinced. Yet a mystery still lingered in his mind: They’d clearly fought three days ago, and he’d won—so how was it that the other man’s cultivation had now completely surpassed his own? How on earth had he managed that? Su Mu reached out and pulled him up from the ground. “Did that hurt?” “Just a few minor scrapes—nothing serious.” “Come on, since we’ve gotten to know each other through a fight, let’s go grab a drink together!”