Half-human, half-ghost, the number one divine fist

Lin Fusheng's home is located in the city.

Lin Fusheng walked towards his home along the cobblestone street.

On the way back, Lin Fusheng took note of the surrounding buildings.

The streets are lined with Chinese-style shops as well as European-style buildings.

There were also martial arts schools like "Xinmin Martial Arts School" and "Yu Family Boxing Club," which were quite novel to Lin Fusheng.

The streets were bustling with pedestrians.

suddenly.

An unusual commotion arose from the street corner ahead.

"escape!"

"Go, hurry up!"

Shouts suddenly erupted.

From the fork in the road ahead, more than twenty men wielding machetes and axes suddenly emerged. Normally, such a scene would be used for killing, but instead, they all looked panicked and were running away as if something terrifying was chasing them.

There was only one person chasing after them.

The man was extremely burly and wore a thin short jacket.

Just then, a man dressed in a long gown, looking like a schoolteacher, appeared from the alleyway ahead.

He happened to be blocking the way of the group of fleeing men.

There were obstacles blocking their way ahead and pursuers behind.

More than twenty armed thugs were driven to the brink of despair.

"Damn it! I'll risk it!"

"There are only two of them! Chop them up!"

The group of desperados roared, brandishing their knives and axes, splitting into two groups: one charging towards the refined man, and the other turning back to pounce on the burly giant.

The scene that followed caused Lin Fusheng, who was watching from afar, to suddenly shrink in the pupils.

The refined man, facing seven or eight axes and knives coming at him, cut into the crowd like a fish.

With a series of cracking and splattering sounds, the three men at the forefront were sent flying backward at an even faster speed, their chests caved in, their necks twisted, and their weapons long since slipped from their hands.

On the other side, the burly man was even more violent.

He didn't dodge or evade at all. Facing the slashing knives and axes, he grabbed out with his large, fan-like hand and actually managed to pinch one of the axe blades that was being chopped down. With a twist of his wrist, the man holding the axe screamed in pain as his wrist broke, and the axe changed hands.

The burly man's punches and kicks were incredibly heavy; those struck suffered broken bones and tendons, as if they had been slapped by a giant bear. In the blink of an eye, four or five more people fell to the ground, unable to get up.

This is not a brawl; it is a one-sided massacre.

Two unarmed martial arts masters faced more than twenty armed bandits, and they were as easy as tigers among sheep, cutting melons and vegetables.

Pedestrians on the street screamed and scattered in all directions, trying to get as far away as possible.

Just as the twenty-odd men were about to be slaughtered, the piercing sound of police sirens came from afar.

"Waaah—waaah—"

The refined-looking man and the burly giant stopped fighting at the same time, exchanged a glance, and showed no intention of continuing the fight.

With a swift movement, the two figures darted into the nearby alleyway like ghosts and vanished instantly.

The sound of sirens grew louder as they approached.

Two old-fashioned convertibles painted black and white were parked next to the mess and corpses on the ground.

The guard peered out and saw the dead and wounded scattered on the ground, his brow furrowed.

"It's those desperados again..."

"Get ready, hurry up!"

The guards slowly got out of the car, showing no intention of giving chase.

The crowd whispered among themselves, a mixture of awe and excitement.

"Did you see those two? They're Song Dahai, 'Iron Bones,' and Luo Wentai, 'Monument Slayer,' from the Tongxin Society! Both are experts who have reached the 'Iron Tendon' level!"

"The Sihaimen and Tongxinhui are fighting fiercely. I heard that the Sihaimen smashed up two of Tongxinhui's gambling dens a few nights ago, and seven or eight of the guards inside were killed."

Hearing these fragmented discussions, Lin Fusheng felt a chill run down his spine.

The Tongxin Society was the gang he belonged to.

Sihaimen, on the other hand, is a rival that has a long-standing grudge against them for territory.

In broad daylight, on a busy street, a chase and fight broke out in public, with guards arriving late and rendering them ineffective.

This is the Kwantung Mountains during the Republic of China era.

This is the world he lives in.

Danger, chaos, and the glorification of individual violence to a terrifying degree.

"Masters of martial arts are indeed terrifying... but precisely because of this, if you rashly get involved before you have the strength, you'll die even faster. My choice was correct. In chaotic times, the first priority is survival. Before gaining power, you must avoid these gangs that value human life so little."

He took one last look at the bodies and wounded scattered on the ground, hastily disposed of by the guards, and then turned and left.

Deep in his mind, the loading progress of the [Casting Method Visualization Diagram] increased significantly.

[Casting Method Visualization]: Loading 35%...

"Soon."

Lin Fusheng muttered something under his breath and quickened his pace considerably.

After passing through several narrow streets and alleys, we finally stopped at the entrance of a relatively quiet alley.

Before me is a typical northern-style courtyard house with blue bricks and gray tiles.

This courtyard is the home that my father, Lin Yuanshan, bought with his hard-earned money after many years of hard work.

Pushing open the slightly heavy wooden door, it creaked softly.

The courtyard is small, paved with square bricks.

Several hard wooden stakes of varying depths, polished to a shine, stood at the base of the east wall; these were the stakes my father used for practicing his boxing.

Lin Fusheng walked into the east room of the main house.

The main room was the father's room.

Everything remained the same.

Just then.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

A heavy knocking sounded without warning, slamming violently against the black lacquered wooden door.

The sound was more like a pounding than a knocking.

The person knocking on the door was quite rude, with an air of dominance that seemed to want to take over the role of the host.

Immediately afterwards, a deliberately raised voice came through the door.

"Fusheng! Open the door! It's your uncle! And your aunt, your brother, and your grandfather are here too! Open the door quickly!"

The voice added a sentence deliberately, its tone carrying an almost 'proud' or 'showy' connotation.

"And we have another distinguished guest with us!"

"Hurry up!"

Lin Fusheng paused, his eyes suddenly turning cold.

That voice was that of my third uncle, Lin Hongyu, from my memories.

Grandpa Lin Shouting had three sons and one daughter.

My father, Lin Yuanshan, was the eldest son. He had been working hard in Songjiang and had joined the Tongxin Society.

My second uncle's family is said to have gone to Fengjing, a more distant place, to make a living in their early years, and news of them gradually faded.

The third son, Lin Hongyu, stayed in his hometown and did small business, but he was ambitious but not capable, and the family could only barely make ends meet.

My aunt lives in Songjiang and married a junior police officer.

Of the grandfather's three sons, the third uncle was the most useless. He had been idle since childhood and had even committed a crime and was going to jail.

Later, out of pity for his younger brother, Lin Hongyu, his father took his place and served three years in his place.

After his father was released from prison, people in the underworld heard about his character and invited him to join the Tongxin Society.

After joining the Tongxin Society, my father used all the money he earned each month to buy a new house in our hometown, and he helped my grandfather and third uncle's family move to the city. Seeing that my third uncle was unemployed, he also gave him some money to start a small business.

Later, when my third uncle's child, my younger brother who was a year younger than me, started school, my father paid for it every month.

Why did they suddenly come?

And they even brought their whole family, including their grandfather?

In his memory, the original owner and his father did not interact with these relatives frequently.

Oh, and who is that so-called distinguished guest?

Just as the thought was turning in his head, the knocking on the door started again.

His voice sounded hurried and impatient.

Lin Fusheng showed no expression as he walked over, unlatched the door, and pulled the two black lacquered wooden doors inward.

Sure enough, there were five people standing outside the door.

Leading the group was a middle-aged man with narrow eyes, a large nose, and a somewhat shifty gaze—it was none other than Third Uncle Lin Hongyu.

Beside him was a woman dressed in a decent jacket and skirt, with fair skin; she was his aunt, Wang Yun.

Behind the two, hiding a boy of about thirteen or fourteen years old, wearing glasses, with fair skin and a somewhat arrogant air.

This is Lin Fusheng's cousin, Lin Fulai.

My cousin, Lin Fulai, was helping an elderly man with white hair and beard, wearing a thick cotton-padded coat, leaning on a cane, and with deep wrinkles on his face.

Lin Fu looked at the old man and said, "Grandpa."

This is his grandfather, Lin Shouting.

Lin Shouting nodded upon hearing this.

Standing next to these four people was someone who seemed out of place in their surroundings.

The man was a white man with blond hair, blue eyes, pale skin, wearing a well-tailored dark wool coat, a top hat, and carrying a walking stick.

He was about thirty years old, with little expression on his face. His azure eyes held a condescending indifference as he surveyed Lin Fusheng, who had opened the door, and the courtyard behind him. His nostrils twitched slightly, as if he felt a slight discomfort from some smell in the air.

"Hey, Fusheng, what are you standing there for? Won't you let us in and have a seat? It's freezing cold!"

When Lin Hongyu saw the door open, he adopted a friendly tone, stepped aside to make way for the people behind him, especially the foreigner.

Lin Fusheng's gaze swept over the crowd, lingering for a moment on the foreigner's face, before he stepped aside to clear the doorway:

"Uncle, Aunt, Grandpa, Brother Fulai, please come in."

"And this gentleman, please come in."

The crowd filed in.

Upon entering the main room, Lin Hongyu rubbed his hands together and looked around as soon as he sat down.

Soon, his eyes lit up and he spotted the apples and pears on the fruit plate on the octagonal table.

Lin Fusheng followed Lin Hongyu's gaze and saw that these fruits were brought by his father's brothers when they came to visit him.

Tap tap tap!

Then Uncle Lin Hongyu hurried over, saying, "Fusheng is such a clueless child."

"Distinguished guests have arrived, and you haven't even bothered to wash some fruit?"

Lin Fusheng looked at his third uncle, whose hands and feet suddenly became more nimble than a woman's. He quickly took the fruit to the water vat in the yard to wash it, then found tea leaves and a teapot, and busied himself brewing a pot of hot tea.

Then, he carefully arranged the washed fruit on a clean porcelain plate, along with the steaming cup of tea, and respectfully presented it to the foreigner who was already sitting unceremoniously in the main seat, his back slightly bent and his face full of fawning smiles:

"Mr. Smith, please have some tea and fruit."

"Hehe, it's just a rural place, there's nothing good here, please forgive me."

As he spoke, Lin Hongyu stammered out a couple of broken English phrases, "Please, tea, good!!"

The foreigner, referred to as Mr. Smith, gave a soft hum through his nose, glanced at the rough porcelain cup and ordinary fruit, but made no move to touch them.

Instead, he rested his walking stick against his leg, took out a white handkerchief, and gently wiped his hands.

Lin Fusheng stood aside, watching all of this with a cold eye.

Why is my third uncle, Lin Hongyu, fawning over that foreigner like a lapdog?

A strong sense of disgust welled up in his heart.

My father's body is still warm.

When these so-called relatives came to visit, the first thing they did was not to comfort their nephew who had lost his father, but instead to be so obsequious to a foreigner.

They even brought him here to perform?

When did Uncle San get involved with foreigners?

And yet so 'filial'?

At this moment, Grandpa Lin Shouting, who hadn't said much, cleared his throat and spoke.

Lin Shouting glanced at Lin Fusheng, sighed, and a sorrowful expression appeared on his face:

"Fusheng, I know everything about your father."

"It's so painful for a parent to outlive their child."

He paused, then wiped the corner of his eye, which had no tears, with his sleeve.

After offering a few words of condolence, Lin Shouting abruptly changed the subject, his cloudy old eyes flashing.

"I remember, Yuanshan left behind a gambling den in the gang? It was called... Jinrong Gambling Den, right? The Tongxin Society gave 'our' half a percent of the profits?"

Our home?

Lin Fusheng remained expressionless, but inwardly he was thinking...

That's my home.

Seeing that Lin Fusheng remained silent, Lin Shouting continued speaking to himself.

"Fu Sheng..."

Lin Shouting sighed heavily, his face showing grief, his voice deliberately slow and trembling.

"Your father's passing was so sudden, it feels like my heart is being stabbed with a knife."

"But the men of our Lin family can't collapse in the face of adversity! Your father fought his whole life, and the most tangible thing he left behind was half a share of Jinrong Gambling House."

"You're not young anymore; you're already at the top of the family business!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Fusheng narrowed his eyes.

Are you getting on in years?

He was a few months older than his younger brother, Lin Fulai.

"This business cannot be lost. You not only have to take it over, but you also have to hold it firmly, keep going, and do it well! Only then can you live up to your father's spirit in heaven, and only then can you truly inherit his legacy! Let the people in the underworld see that Lin Yuanshan's offspring are not cowards!"

Lin Shouting seemed oblivious to Lin Fusheng's expression. He turned to the side and affectionately patted Lin Fulai, who stood tall and proud beside him, with his withered hand.

Thinking of his grandson who was good at studying, Lin Shouting felt a surge of warmth in his heart.

The Lin family has produced a true dragon.

A true dragon that has changed allegiance!

My little grandson is quite good at learning foreign languages.

He also understands Western culture and etiquette very well.

Lin Fulai is now applying to Songjiang United Public School. Once he is admitted, he will truly be a hidden dragon entering the abyss.

"Fusheng, as you know, our Lin family is about to achieve great success!"

"Your younger brother, Fulai, is an excellent student and has also learned Western etiquette very well. His foreign teachers all say he has a bright future ahead of him, and he's going to take the entrance exam for Songjiang United Public School this year!"

"This Federation of Trade Unions is the highest-level school run by foreigners, where you learn the most advanced Western culture! You don't know, in this day and age, our ancestors' ways are no longer popular! Why did the Great Qian Dynasty collapse? It was because we were not as strong as their ships and cannons, nor as civilized and enlightened! Only by learning Western knowledge can you truly succeed!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Fusheng understood what his grandfather was trying to say.

My younger brother's tuition was basically paid by our father before he passed away.

The reason why the father was able to provide so much money to his younger brother was mainly due to the half-share of the profits from the Jinrong Casino.

Now, my father, Lin Yuanshan, has died a violent death.

My younger brother can't afford to go to school.

"So, you want me to continue running the Jinrong Casino as the manager?"

"Don't you even consider how long I can live?"

A chill ran through Lin Fusheng.

"Cough cough cough..."

Lin Shouting saw that Lin Fusheng remained silent.

The true intentions are revealed directly.

"This road to heaven is difficult."

"Paying favors, showing respect to teachers, buying decent clothes, and paying exorbitant tuition fees—aren't all of these things just throwing money down the drain?"

"Now, if you manage this gambling den well, the steady monthly income will be just enough to support your brother's education!"

Lin Shouting leaned forward slightly.

His voice was very soft, but to Lin Fusheng it carried immense pressure.

"You can't let your father down."

Lin Shouting finished speaking.

Lin Fusheng has not yet responded.

Lin Hongyu, standing to the side, straightened his expression and adopted the demeanor of an elder, saying, "Father is absolutely right! Fusheng, you have to shoulder the responsibility! For Fulai's sake, and for our Lin family to be able to climb the social ladder with the foreigners, it's only right that you work hard! When Fulai becomes successful, will he forget the kindness of his older brother?"

"If Fulai can get into a public school, his future will be limitless! Maybe our whole family will have the chance to benefit from it, and we can even immigrate to the West someday. That's true paradise on earth, where we can live a good life!"

Lin Fusheng didn't want to listen anymore.

He looked at Lin Hongyu and Lin Shouting, and said calmly:

"Are you done talking?"

Their conversation was interrupted by Lin Fusheng's cold words.

"I'm going to sell half of the shares of the Jinrong Gambling House that my father left me cheaply."