"Idiot."
Howard Chou heard the cold words spat out by the young man standing before him.
Instinctively, he felt a huge sense of danger and tried to dodge to the side, but it was already too late.
Bending at the waist, lowering his body.
Evan Lin retreated half a step, and the distance he yielded was exactly where Howard Chou's punch lost its force.
The tip of Howard Chou's fist was less than a centimeter from Evan Lin's face, but that final centimeter was like an unbridgeable chasm.
Impossible!
Howard Chou's eyes widened, filled with disbelief.
The distance was so delicate—if you couldn't perfectly judge the force and point of impact, it was absolutely impossible to dodge so flawlessly!
But before Howard Chou could think any further, Evan Lin had already moved.
Evan Lin reached out with both hands, arms spread wide, then suddenly brought his palms together and grabbed Howard Chou by the neck. His right knee shot up, sharp and clean.
The knee strike landed squarely on Howard Chou's chest, sending him flying backward as he spat out a mouthful of blood.
He crashed to the ground, his head lolling to the side—clearly dead.
"You!"
Barry Shaw watched, his face flickering with shock and rage, staring at Evan Lin who stood there calm and indifferent, as if nothing had happened.
"So, after all that time I gave you to call for help, this is the best you could find? I thought the Dongting Tiger could bring out someone stronger. Honestly, I'm disappointed." Evan Lin looked calmly at Barry Shaw and Shawn Young, his tone as flat as ever.
Shawn Young was so terrified he couldn't speak, dropping to the floor and trembling, his eyes full of fear as he stared at Evan Lin.
Barry Shaw's face went pale, his bulky frame tense, but as Eastcourt's longtime boss, he managed not to completely lose his nerve.
He took a deep breath and looked at Evan Lin, speaking slowly: "Kid, it seems you don't realize the trouble you've stirred up. The man you just killed, nicknamed the Emperor of the Fist, was the deputy master of Heaven's Number One Fist Gym in River City. The gym's master won't just let this go!"
"But if you're willing to stop here, I can put in a good word for you. The master of Heaven's Number One Fist Gym in River City, Liu Feiyang, is a true martial arts expert—he's already mastered internal strength! His power is far beyond Howard Chou's." At this point, Barry Shaw's heart was pounding as he glanced at Evan Lin.
"Go on." Evan Lin's tone was flat.
Seeing that Evan Lin hadn't gone berserk again and actually seemed open to negotiation, Barry Shaw felt a bit relieved. He continued, "And I can guarantee that the money Shawn Young owes you will be transferred to your account immediately. From now on, our paths won't cross—well water won't disturb river water. How about it?"
Barry Shaw's eyes flickered. The situation was bad for him; though he'd fought hard for his turf years ago, right now he had no confidence in handling the young man before him.
Besides, once he got out of here, there would be plenty of ways to deal with this kid.
How long could some snot-nosed punk, good at fighting and nothing else, really survive?
In the end, this society isn't a place where one person can just walk all over everyone.
Evan Lin nodded slightly. "What you said does make sense."
Barry Shaw breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. "So, you agree?"
"But." Evan Lin looked at Barry Shaw, half-smiling. The look made Barry's heart sink.
"But what?" Barry Shaw's voice was strained.
"I already gave you your chance. From the moment you walked through that door, tonight's ending was set." Evan Lin's voice was cold.
Barry Shaw's face twisted. He suddenly pulled a gun from his pocket, his expression savage.
"Die!"
Barry Shaw roared and tried to pull the trigger, but in the next instant, a blade whistled through the air and slashed his hand.
Barry Shaw cried out in pain and reflexively let go. When he came to, he felt a chill at his neck—his last sight was Evan Lin's emotionless face.
Seeing this, Shawn Young bolted for the door, but Evan Lin followed at a leisurely pace and kicked him to the ground.
Shawn Young was terrified, screaming, "Don't kill me!"
He crawled toward the casino hall. The gamblers had all been cleared out; only tense, weapon-wielding men remained, watching the Shaw heir crawl in terror across the floor. None dared move.
Evan Lin followed behind, stepped onto Shawn Young's back, and stomped down, crushing his spine.
Big Tank, trailing Evan Lin, saw this and swallowed hard—his shock was beyond words.
He'd thought coming into the tiger's den would end badly, but Evan Lin's strength was terrifying. Was this one man wiping out the entire Shaw family?
"If I give you time, can you take over Eastcourt District?"
Evan Lin's gaze drifted, uncertain. In front of him, the men who were usually so arrogant were now silent as mice, faces pale.
Just now, Dongting Tiger Barry Shaw and so many others had gone into that office, but only Evan Lin and Big Tank came out unharmed. The fact that Evan had just stomped Shawn Young to death in public made it obvious what happened to Barry Shaw.
"Me?" Big Tank was in disbelief, eyes wide.
Evan Lin had just killed Dongting Tiger Barry Shaw and Shawn Young. Now, Eastcourt District was sure to be thrown into chaos.
This was the perfect opportunity to rise up.
"Do your job well as my dog. This is your first bone. Whether you can swallow it depends on your own skill." Evan Lin said coldly.
Big Tank's face lit up. He rumbled, "Just give me a week—I guarantee I can take over all Barry Shaw's turf!"
Evan Lin looked at the others. "You have three choices now: leave, resist, or submit. You have five seconds to decide."
"After five seconds, anyone who hasn't chosen—dies."
Evan Lin's indifferent words hit everyone like a hammer to the heart.
"I—I want to follow the new boss!" someone shouted, dropping his steel pipe.
"Yeah! Barry Shaw never treated us well anyway. With a new boss, things will be much better!" another chimed in.
Gradually, more and more people stepped forward.
Evan Lin looked at the faces—some young, some weathered—of the gathered thugs. He'd lost all interest in staying.
After giving Big Tank a final instruction, Evan Lin left alone.