SWDnovel Chapter 133 The Haihe River is Cold at Night, the Living Yama of the Japanese Concession!
Chapter 133 The Haihe River is Cold at Night, the Living Yama of the Japanese Concession!
Chapter 134 The Haihe River is Cold at Night, the Living Yama of the Japanese Concession!
The nights in Tianjin are always filled with the salty smell of the Haihe River in the wind.
Outside Dengying Tower, the wailing of police sirens filled the air.
Chinese police officers from the French Concession, Indian police officers from the British Concession, and even heavily armed security teams surrounded these streets like an iron barrel.
However, with hundreds of foreign guns pointed at that gate, not a single person dared to take a single step inside.
The smell of blood seeping from the crack in the door was too strong.
The water flowed down the bluestone steps, staining the white marble bases of the pair of stone lions in front of the door red.
"My God—this isn't a retirement ceremony, it's a bloodbath at Dengying Tower!" An old constable's hands trembled, unable to even light a cigarette. They only saw a window on the third floor break, and a white shadow flew out like a hawk, disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Who would have thought that in the Republic of China era, where guns and cannons reigned supreme, someone could single-handedly take on hundreds of people with just a white waxwood pole?
At this moment, the white figure had already crossed the boundary marker of the French Concession and entered the Japanese Concession.
Xujie Street, Hongkou Dojo.
This place is the largest stronghold of the Japanese Black Dragon Society in North China.
It occupies a huge area, surrounded by a two-zhang-high red brick wall, with an electrified barbed wire fence strung on top of the wall.
Watchtowers were built at each of the four corners, and the pale beams of searchlights swept back and forth across the night sky, providing crisscrossing cover, making it impossible for even a bird to escape.
At the main entrance, two fierce-looking stone komainu (guardian dogs) lay down.
HGC
Eight Japanese military police officers, dressed in khaki uniforms and wearing leggings, stood ramrod straight like wooden stakes, bayonets fixed on their Type 38 rifles.
This isn't a martial arts arena; it's clearly a small military fortress!
"Click, click."
The military police's leather boots pounded on the concrete as they patrolled back and forth.
But above them, in the thick darkness of the night, a figure dressed in a moon-white robe was hanging upside down on the thick branches of a century-old locust tree.
Lu Cheng.
He was like a giant white bat, his body pressed tightly against the tree bark by his Bone Shrinking Technique, and his Heartbeat and Body Temperature suppressed to the lowest possible level by his Turtle Breathing Technique.
Even when the spotlight swept past him, it didn't cause the slightest disturbance.
"The defenses are indeed very strong."
Lu Cheng stared coldly down below.
"There are thirty-two visible sentries and fifteen hidden sentries, and there is also a patrol team with wolfhounds in the yard."
If it were the peak of Dark Force in the past, Lu Cheng would have had to go through a lot of trouble to enter silently, and might have had to fight his way through.
But now, he has reached a state of enlightenment.
"Not a single feather can be added, not a single fly can land."
This is not only about absolute control over one's own body, but also about the ultimate utilization of the surrounding energy, wind direction, and even light.
"call"
A chilly sea breeze blew from the direction of the Haihe River, making the locust leaves on the trees rustle.
"Now."
Lu Cheng made a move.
Instead of using the "Hundred-Refined Ghost Hand," he flipped over and, like a weightless leaf, drifted lightly down along the path of the wind.
[Swallow shape], a swallow skimming the water!
In mid-air, his body twisted incredibly, just in time to avoid the moment when the two searchlights crossed.
I lightly touched the electrified wire mesh with my toes.
The insulated black cloth shoes with their multi-layered soles, combined with the master's skillful technique of "moving away as soon as they touch the clothes," prevented even the barbed wire from sinking down by an inch.
"Whoosh!"
He transformed into a faint white shadow, vaulted over the high wall, and landed in the shadow of a rockery.
It landed silently.
Even the few koi carp in the pond next to the artificial hill were not disturbed.
"Woof woof woof!"
In the distance, a German Shepherd suddenly started barking wildly, desperately pulling on its leash and baring its teeth at the direction of the artificial hill.
Animals have a far sharper intuition than humans.
"Baka! What's going on?" The Japanese soldier leading the dog cursed as he pulled back the bolt of his rifle and walked over, shining a flashlight.
Lu Cheng leaned against the artificial rock, his eyes calm and still.
He took a deep breath, and the circulation of qi and blood in his body suddenly changed.
【Form and Meaning】!
The alligator is the Yangtze alligator. This skill emphasizes holding one's breath and swimming underwater, with one's breath as light as mud or soil.
In that instant, Lu Cheng's "human touch" completely vanished; the aura he exuded mingled with the cold, artificial rockery.
The damp soil blended perfectly into the whole.
A Japanese soldier led his dog to the artificial hill.
The flashlight beam swept across the stone, even illuminating the white hem of Lu Cheng's clothes, but the soldier seemed blind and completely oblivious.
The German Shepherd that had been barking incessantly just moments before now tucked its tail between its legs, whimpered twice, and lay down on the ground in fear, not daring to lift its head.
It could no longer smell it, and even felt a terrifying pressure emanating from the depths of its bloodline.
"Damn it, an animal is an animal, just making a racket."
The Japanese soldier kicked the black dog, cursed, and led it away.
Lu Cheng stepped out of the shadows, dusted off his long robe, and fixed his gaze on the low building at the deepest part of the dojo.
The underground water prison is right there.
Hongkou Dojo, two underground floors.
This is hell on earth.
The air was thick with the stench of blood, feces, and the damp, chilly smell of the Haihe River flowing in.
The dim light bulb above my head emitted a buzzing sound.
-
Inside the water dungeon.
Four men, their collarbones bound by thick iron chains, were soaking in waist-deep, foul-smelling water.
Those are the four most respected figures in the Northern martial arts world!
Liu Wenhua, the president of the Simin Martial Arts Club!
Mr. Yang Chengfu of Tai Chi School!
Master Cheng Tinghua, a master of Baguazhang!
There was also an old master of Tongbeiquan (a style of Chinese martial arts).
Any one of these individuals, if picked out, would be a figure capable of establishing their own school and being hailed as an ancestor by hundreds or thousands of people in the martial arts world of Beiping and Tianjin.
But now, they are imprisoned here like pigs and dogs.
The scapula was pierced by an iron hook, and the blood had congealed and turned black.
Even worse, after drinking the Black Dragon Society's specially made "Muscle-Weakening Powder," their once formidable internal energy, capable of splitting rocks and shattering monuments, was now like a drained pond, leaving them completely powerless.
"Old Liu—can your old bones still hold up?"
Beside him, Mr. Yang, who was practicing Tai Chi, coughed violently a few times, spitting out a mouthful of bloody saliva, and asked with a wry smile.
President Liu's hair was disheveled, and his once rosy face was now ashen and pale.
He gritted his teeth, straining to keep his back from bending over.
"We can hold on."
"As long as a martial artist is alive, his spine cannot be broken."
President Liu was panting heavily, his eyes filled with anger.
"I only hate that I was blind to trust that bastard Ma San. If he hadn't poisoned the celebratory wine, I could have crushed all those Japanese dwarfs with one hand!"
"It's pointless to say these things now."
Old Mr. Cheng closed his eyes, his white beard covered in mud and water. "Ma San is holding a hand-washing banquet at Dengying Tower tonight. He's climbing to power by stepping on our corpses."
"We old guys are not worth dying for."
"It's a pity for the martial arts world in the north. Without us in charge, and with those secret manuals and tokens stolen, the very foundation of this martial arts industry is likely to be severed!"
At this point, a deep sense of despair and sorrow appeared in the eyes of the several masters.
The country is broken and the land is shattered; the martial arts world is plunged into calamity.
How incredibly frustrating!
"Oh, so these great masters of China, aren't they dead yet?"
The iron gate was pushed open with a loud bang.
A Japanese ronin wearing wooden clogs and carrying a samurai sword at his waist walked in with a sinister grin.
He was carrying a wooden bucket filled with leftover rice and vegetables from steamed buns.
"Splash!"
The ronin poured the bucket of swill directly onto the edge of the water dungeon, emitting a sour and foul smell.
"Chairman Ma was eating sea cucumber up there, and the Japanese officer specifically instructed me to send you some 'feast'."
"Eat up, eat like a dog crawling on the ground, hahaha!"
The ronin laughed wildly, even loosening his belt and urinating into the pool.
"brute."
President Liu was so angry that his eyes were bloodshot. He struggled desperately to pounce on him, but the iron chain on his collarbone snapped straight, and the tearing pain made him scream and fall heavily back into the stinking water.
"Old Liu!" The grandmasters were filled with grief and indignation, but they were powerless to do anything about it.
"Hahaha, shout it out, shout it out louder!"
The ronin pulled up his pants, drew his katana from his waist, and slapped President Liu hard across the face with the back of the blade, instantly leaving a bloody welt.
"Aren't you grandmasters? Aren't you supposed to be good fighters?"
"Isn't it just like a dead dog, trampled under my feet? The martial arts of the Great Japanese Empire are the best in the world!"
The ronin raised his sword and aimed it at President Liu's shoulder.
"Today, I'll break one of your arms first, and see just how hard your bones really are."
A flash of cold light, and the samurai sword slashed down fiercely with a whoosh.
President Liu closed his eyes, not begging for mercy, but filled with hatred.
"bite--!"
At this critical moment.
A sharp, metallic clang suddenly erupted in the deathly silent water prison.
The sound wasn't loud, but it made the ronin's eardrums ache.
He opened his eyes in horror.
His finely forged steel katana stopped abruptly half an inch from President Liu's shoulder.
It blocked the blade.
It's not some kind of legendary weapon.
It was not a copper coin, but an ordinary copper coin.
A ten-cash copper coin, a common currency in the Republic of China era, flew in from who knows where and landed squarely on the blade of the samurai sword.
Followed by.
"Click."
The terrifying internal energy attached to the copper coin erupted instantly, and the samurai sword shattered inch by inch from the middle, turning into a pile of scrap metal.
"Who goes there?!"
The ronin was so frightened that he stumbled backward and fell to the ground with a thud.
President Liu and several masters also suddenly opened their eyes.
At the entrance to the water dungeon, under dim lighting.
Suddenly, a person appeared standing quietly.
A moon-white long robe stood out starkly against the filthy, polluted water dungeon, appearing spotless.
He carried a white waxwood stick without a spearhead in his hand, and a square box wrapped in a cloth sheet on his back.
Those eyes, cold as stars in the darkness.
"Brother Lu—Brother Lu?!"
When President Liu saw the person's face clearly, he trembled violently, his eyes instantly reddened, and he could hardly believe his eyes.
"Brother Liu, seniors. Lu Cheng is late, I'm sorry to have troubled you."
99
Lu Cheng spoke calmly as he stepped into the water dungeon.