July 12, 2025 - 12:03 AM - Outskirts of Beijing
The villa stood dark and silent. No lights shone inside. No guards patrolled outside. Only stone walls, pine trees, and deep quiet surrounded it.
Far below, the city of Beijing pulsed with neon lights and noise. But here, on the hilltop, time felt frozen.
Inside the villa, light came from only one room. The floor gleamed, polished. A single leather chair faced a table. On the table sat a strawberry smoothie, full and untouched.
Soft jazz music played from an old record player.
Lin Feng sat in the chair, barefoot. He wore a plain T-shirt and simple pants. His posture was calm. But his eyes revealed a different state.
Not fear. Not peace. Only pressure. A quiet, heavy weight.
The television screen abruptly flickered to life.
TV ANCHOR (V.O):
"At midnight, Chief Lin Feng officially retires. No speech. No press. Cyber Fortress-neutralized in six hours. Yonpo-secured without bloodshed. Missiles-stopped before launch. The nation thanks you."
The screen went black.
Lin Feng picked up the smoothie and took a sip. It was too sweet. He set it down.
A faint creak sounded behind him. He didn't turn.
Lin Feng (quiet):
"You stepped too loud on Fourth tile —Phantom."
The heavy curtains near the window shifted. A man stepped out from behind them. He wore black tactical gear and a mask lined with silver. He moved silently, projecting calm.
Phantom:
"You don't look like the man they used to call the War Emperor... keh."
(a sharp, sneering sound)
Phantom rushed forward, attacking.
Lin Feng reacted instantly. He drove his elbow hard into Phantom's ribs. Phantom grunted, the air forced from his lungs, and stumbled back a step.
Lin Feng:
"You don't look that trained either. Yet, here you are."
[Lin Feng hated that name – War Emperor.]
Phantom:
"I knew you were here. Why act calm?"
Lin Feng:
"I just wanted to see if you had the guts... to come yourself."
Phantom threw a sharp jab. Lin Feng shifted his weight, letting the punch pass, and countered with a powerful punch to Phantom's jaw.
Phantom's head snapped sideways. He spat blood onto the polished floor and regained his balance.
Phantom:
"How'd you know it was me?"
Lin Feng:
"Only one idiot whistles while sneaking in."
Lin Feng clenched his fists. Footsteps echoed on the floor above them.
Phantom:
"Still pretending you're untouchable?"
Lin Feng:
"No. Just waiting for this to end."
Phantom attacked again.
Lin Feng blocked the incoming strike, grabbed Phantom's arm, twisted it brutally, and drove his knee deep into Phantom's gut. Phantom gasped, doubling over in pain.
Phantom:
"They said you've gone soft."
Lin Feng:
"Last time you trusted rumors... you barely made it out of Shanghai."
Lin Feng punched Phantom hard across the face. The force sent Phantom crashing backwards into a small side table.
The strawberry smoothie tipped over, spilling. Blood dripped from Phantom's mask onto the floor.
Phantom (snarling):
"You'll die tonight."
Lin Feng:
"Me? Nah, you look way more disposable."
PHANTOM:
"Now the Emperor of War will die because I ..."
Lin Feng narrows his eyes as the chandelier sways unnaturally with a movement slicing through the still air.. His voice cuts through the Phantom's words.
Lin Feng:
"Phantom, I don't negotiate with shadows! Unveil your men now, or I shall tear you apart!"
Phantom laughs , and whistles "SHREEE!"
Four assassins dropped silently from the ceiling rafters. They didn't speak. They moved only to kill.
Lin Feng stood ready.
The first assassin charged, knife aimed. Lin Feng met the charge, his fist smashing into the man's mouth. Teeth shattered. Blood sprayed. The assassin hit the ground, screaming in agony.
"ARRRGHH-!"
The second assassin swung a metal baton. Lin Feng ducked under the swing and slammed his elbow into the side of the man's head. The assassin collapsed instantly, limp and unconscious.
The third attacker lunged fast. Lin Feng seized the man's wrist holding the knife, twisted it violently until the bone snapped, and forced the blade deep into the man's own throat. The assassin choked, gurgled, and fell.
The last assassin screamed as he charged. Lin Feng stood firm. He delivered one crushing punch straight to the man's nose. The force hurled the assassin backwards; he crashed through a glass coffee table. Glass exploded everywhere.
Lin Feng (cold):
"Still sloppy."
Seven more assassins burst into the room.
One slashed Lin Feng's arm with a knife. Blood burst from the wound.
Lin Feng (growling):
"Hhkk-!"
Lin Feng grabbed the slasher's arm and broke it. A sharp scream cut the air. He then delivered a devastating kick, shattering the assassin's knee.
Another assassin stabbed Lin Feng deep in the ribs. The blade dug in.
Lin Feng (groaning):
"Khh-!"
Ignoring the pain, Lin Feng struck the stabber precisely in the throat. The assassin dropped, clutching his neck, gasping for air.
Then, another assassin grabbed a heavy fire extinguisher from a wall mount nearby. He swung it with both hands, slamming it into the back of Lin Feng's head.
Lin Feng:
"Ughh-!"
Lin Feng dropped to his knees, dizzy, blood streaming down his neck. But rage surged. He lunged, grabbed the neck of the man who hit him, and slammed his head into the wall.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Blood smeared across the wall.
Another assassin rushed him, screaming. Lin Feng spotted a heavy pen on the floor. He snatched it and, as the attacker closed in, jammed the pen deep into the man's eye socket. The assassin shrieked horribly and fell to the floor, twitching.
Lin Feng saw a katana lying near a body. He grabbed it and hurled it like a spear. It flew straight, embedding itself in the chest of an assassin charging from the doorway. The man dropped dead.
Yet another attacker rushed him. Lin Feng didn't hesitate.
He met the rush, seized the man's arm, and with monstrous strength, tore it completely out of the shoulder socket. The scream that echoed was inhuman. Blood sprayed in a wide arc across the wall.
Lin Feng's white T-shirt was now drenched crimson.
Lin Feng (furious):
"YOU WANT WAR?! HERE'S YOUR WAR!!"
Ten more assassins stormed into the room, this time brandishing handguns.
Gunshots erupted. A bullet tore into Lin Feng's shoulder. Another ripped into his thigh.
Lin Feng:
"AAHH-!"
He dropped heavily behind a large couch, breathing hard, shaking from pain and adrenaline.
He popped up just enough, aimed his own pistol not at the men, but upwards. He fired. The bullet severed the chain holding the large chandelier. It crashed down onto three assassins. Two were crushed instantly. Shards of glass pierced the third, who fell screaming.
Lin Feng grabbed a fallen pistol. He fired rapidly.
One shot shattered an assassin's knee. The man shouted, "MY LEG-!"
Another shot hit an assassin square in the face. A third shot punched into another man's chest.
He saw an ornate gas lamp on the wall. He fired once at its base. It exploded in a ball of flame. One assassin was engulfed, screaming, flailing as he burned.
Then, sudden silence.
Smoke filled the ruined room. Lin Feng coughed, spat a mouthful of blood onto the blood-slick floor.
He ducked low, rolled to a new position behind an overturned chair. He switched to another fallen pistol. Fired three precise shots.
One bullet hit an assassin in the jaw.
One in the chest.
One in the skull.
Now, only silence remained.
Bodies littered the room. Twenty-one dead men.
Blood coated the walls, pooled on the floor, soaked Lin Feng.
Lin Feng stood. Barely. Every step was a wobble, agony radiating from multiple wounds.
He dropped the pistol. It landed with a wet thud on the blood-slick floor.
He spat more blood. Wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, smearing red across his cheek.
Lin Feng (barely breathing):
"Hhhghh....."
He limped forward, stepping over broken glass, crunching over debris, weaving around corpses.
His body shook violently. He felt feverish, burning from within.
Then - a sound. A low laugh.
Familiar. Deeply wrong. It shouldn't be here. Not in this world of blood and death.
He froze mid-step.
The laugh came again. Low. Twisted. Undeniably familiar.
Hhhhehh... heh-hehhh...