Chapter 146: Lin's Quick Wits
The location was a large clearing in the rainforests of the central Shan State. A number of exquisite wooden houses were situated here, surrounded by purpose-built drainage and sewage systems. Many dark-skinned locals in traditional longyi were moving about, carrying goods.
Grinder sat in his villa, reclining on a rocking chair, his eyes half-closed. A white vapor, carrying an unusually foul stench, continuously exhaled from his mouth and nose, forcing the air in the villa to be thick with the scent of burning sandalwood.
Outside, a naked man was kneeling, his body covered in bruises. A blonde woman with her shirt unbuttoned low stood over him.
"Talk. Who told you to go around saying Grinder's territory was stolen by an outsider?!"
The man didn't dare look at her. He just kept his head down and mumbled the same words over and over. "It was Brother Lin… Brother Lin told me to do it…"
He was one of Lin's men, sent to ask Grinder for help. But Grinder couldn't be bothered with that old e-fraud compound, which had just been an early-stage money-maker for him. He was now connected with the Five Families, and the drug cultivators in the surrounding mountains were all paying him a monthly tribute. He had no interest in such petty resources, so he'd had the man thrown out. He hadn't expected the man to then go to the nearest town and start spreading rumors.
The woman, Mei, cracked her whip again, tearing another chunk of flesh from his back. The man collapsed, twitching, but still repeated the same phrase. She turned and nodded at Grinder.
Grinder stood up. Each step he took was a heavy thud, like a giant bear. The sight terrified everyone around him.
"Arrange for some men," Grinder said to the woman. "Take some hardware and go take care of that Lin. He was just a pig I decided to raise on a whim. After a few years, he's learned to bite. Time to slaughter him."
He then picked up the twitching man from the ground and casually tossed him over the six-meter-high villa wall into the backyard.
SPLASH!
The sound of something hitting water was followed by a terrified human scream, and then the sound of a large carnivore chewing, punctuated by the crunch of snapping bones.
The local workers in the compound continued their tasks, their faces blank. Their eardrums had long since been ruptured; they were all deaf and relied entirely on hand signals to work.
Mei nodded, left the courtyard, and made a call. "Hey, Muza. Take a team and go to Lin's compound. Take him out. And remember to bring enough gear; the place has probably been taken over by an outsider."
She hung up, lit a cigarette, and then decided to drive over and see for herself. Lately, Grinder had changed. He wasn't touching her as much. It made her uneasy. She was always looking for other ways to be useful to him.
She drove her off-road vehicle through the jungle. The plaque of Grinder's estate on her car meant that no one from the other factions dared to stop her.
After two and a half hours, she finally arrived at the forest area where Lin's compound was located. This had once been government land, but due to the long-running historical conflicts in the Kokang region, it had been abandoned. Eventually, it had been bought up by some "investors," who paid the government a regular fee and were left alone.
Mei arrived outside the compound and heard intense gunfire. She waited. When the shooting stopped, she drove her SUV inside. She saw Muza's trucks parked outside, riddled with bullet holes. It seemed they had met some resistance, but judging by the number of holes, the occupants of the compound didn't have many guns.
"Hey! Muza! Is Lin dead yet? If not, leave him alive for me! I have some questions!" she shouted.
There was no answer. Frowning, she pushed open the bullet-riddled iron gate. The next moment, her pupils contracted.
The ground was covered in corpses, all of them horribly mangled. Some had half their heads blown off. Some had massive holes in their chests. Some were twisted into unnatural shapes. Some were embedded in the ground itself.
"Ugh… Sister Mei… run…"
Muza, a giant of a man, over 190cm tall, muscular, with dreadlocks and covered in tattoos, was being held up by the neck, his feet dangling off the ground. The M4 rifle in his hand had been snapped in two by sheer brute force.
A cold chill shot up Mei's spine, from her feet to the top of her head. She wanted to run, but the ground suddenly shook, and she fell.
Tap. Tap. Tap…
Footsteps. A man with skin much fairer than the locals was walking toward her, still holding Muza by the neck.
Kaito, seeing that someone more suitable for questioning had arrived, casually tossed the man in his hand. Muza's body hit the wall with a wet smack, slid to the ground, twitched twice, and went still.
"Lin!" Kaito suddenly shouted, making the woman jump.
Lin, who had been hiding in the office, came out, his face pale. He didn't even dare to look Kaito in the eye. He shuffled outside, thinking he was about to be executed.
But Kaito just said, "This woman is here for you, right? Ask her why Grinder only sent this small group. Doesn't he value you very much?"
Lin was confused. He didn't understand what this monster meant. His words clearly implied he knew Lin had sent for help. And… an idea sparked, but before he could speak…
SLAP!
Half of Lin's teeth went flying, and his face instantly swelled up.
"I told you to ask her a question. Are you a mute?" Kaito's portrayal of a capricious tyrant was flawless.
Lin, ignoring the pain, scrambled over to Mei. He had only ever seen this woman twice before, both times in Grinder's bed.
"Sister Mei! Sister Mei! Is Grinder coming?" His mind was a mess. He had hoped Grinder would come and kill this madman, but now, Grinder's man Muza was dead. Even if Grinder did come and kill Kaito, he himself would probably be killed too for his failure. He had heard Muza yelling for him outside the gate. Grinder had clearly been offended by his "plea for help" and didn't care about this compound at all.
Mei had finally come to her senses. For the first time, she was feeling, from someone other than Grinder, that terrifying fear of a man who could decide her life or death on a whim.
"Grinder… he's not coming…"
The moment she said it, Lin felt an ice-cold killing intent flare up. He looked up and saw that Kaito, who had just been smiling, was now looking at him with a cold, hard expression, as if he were a pig with no further use.
Not good… if Grinder isn't coming, this guy will kill us both!
The killing intent was a physical pain on his back. Lin's mind raced, just as it had two months ago when Grinder had been about to slaughter all the "pigs" and he had offered to manage the compound for him.
SLAP!
Lin slapped Mei across the face. Then, with his one good hand, he tore her collar open.
"So that old bastard isn't coming, is he?!" he screamed. "I'll post his woman's nudes all over the internet! Let's see if he comes then!"
Kaito, who had been raising his hand to kill them, slowly lowered it. He nodded. He suddenly felt that this man, Lin, still had some value after all.
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Guys We cross the 1000 power stone goal and as promise here the bonus chapter
Next goal 1100 power stone,come on guys you'll can do it, good luck.
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