Sounds of heavy thumping continually erupted from the Chinese restaurant, drawing an ever-growing crowd around it.
While curious onlookers wanted to step inside to see what was going on, the commotion inside sounded far too dangerous. They only dared to watch from a distance and dared not venture in for a closer look, not wanting to get involved.
This famous luxury Chinese restaurant in the area was now completely destroyed. Upon receiving the news, the owner had fainted in his home. The police had been called and would soon arrive.
A figure sprayed a mist of blood from his mouth as he was sent flying back into the kitchen.
Teng Zhong, already suffering from internal injuries, could fight alongside Teng Xi against Ning Fan for a while. However, it wasn't long before his body gave out, and seizing the opportunity, Ning Fan struck him from behind, sending him flying with a punch.
The remaining Teng Xi stood in front of the kitchen, his mind preoccupied with worry for Teng Zhong, while he grew increasingly wary of Ning Fan. Now, he felt truly cornered.
With Teng Zhong out of commission, he was left alone, and facing Ning Fan seemed increasingly unrealistic. Defeat seemed only a matter of time.
Despite his reluctance, Teng Xi wondered what had gotten into Ning Fan, who seemed to get stronger as the fight progressed. The intense combat seemed to have no effect on him as he stood energetically before him.
"Instead of worrying about others, you might want to start worrying about yourself!"
Ning Fan, shaking his head, "kindly" issued a reminder, seemingly aware of what Teng Xi was thinking.
Having dealt with Teng Zhong, it was now Teng Xi's turn. Although Ning Fan had let Teng Nan, Teng Bei, and most importantly, Feiyue escape today, he didn't feel at a loss. Forcing the Yunteng Family to lose two more Object-Manipulating Realm experts while he lost nothing, wasn't that a gain?
Teng Xi, unaware of what was going through Ning Fan's mind, would undoubtedly have cursed out loud if he knew.
In the blink of an eye, Ning Fan appeared right in front of Teng Xi, moving as fast as teletransportation. His hands moved like lightning, throwing several punches with a swiftness that brought immense power upon Teng Xi.
In panicked defense, Teng Xi raised his arms, but under the barrage of Ning Fan's relentless assault, he found no chance to counterattack.
After blocking several of Ning Fan's punches, Teng Xi's arms began to numb. The tingling pain traveling up from his arms made him fear he had lost sensation in them.
Ning Fan, seemingly driven mad by the fight, excitedly shouted out.
After a noisy commotion, the entire Chinese restaurant looked as though it had been bombarded, with no area left intact. Broken furniture was everywhere, and the walls had collapsed, leaving only ruins.
A shaky figure slowly walked through the dust-filled lobby and finally collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
In a victor's stance, Ning Fan walked over to Teng Xi, hoisted the unconscious Teng Xi over his shoulder, and then went into the kitchen to carry out Teng Zhong. He left the scene before the police arrived.
Outside the Chinese restaurant, the sound of sirens blanketed the area, but by the time the police arrived, the place was already deserted, leaving no clues about Ning Fan and Teng Zhong.
The area had been completely sealed off, prohibiting anyone from entering or leaving, with only the police inside conducting investigations.
As the sun was just about to start descending from the middle of the sky toward the west, Ning Fan had already carried Teng Zhong and Teng Xi back to the Shadow Base.
Seeing Ning Fan bring back two people again, the people at the base all cast curious glances.
"Don't just stand there, come give a hand, and lock these two up separately."
Ning Fan threw Teng Zhong and Teng Xi to the ground, his actions not gentle at all.
Following Ning Fan's shout, Di Baitian immediately came over with some men and locked the two on the ground in the dungeon.
There was no need to worry about them suddenly getting up during the transfer because Ning Fan had already sealed their meridians before coming, and currently, their martial prowess was completely lost, no match for anyone.
Ning Fan hadn't rested for long when he suddenly remembered that Teng Zhong had internal injuries, and his True Qi was probably still inside the other's body, un-dissipated. In light of this situation, it could potentially be life-threatening for the fellow.
Naturally, Ning Fan did not want the prisoner he had finally captured to die mysteriously, so shortly after Teng Zhong was thrown into the dungeon, he went over to Teng Zhong to dissipate the True Qi inside him.
In passing, and driven by a physician's instinct, Ning Fan examined the young man's injuries.
He might have been better off not checking, because after he did, even Ning Fan was startled by the severity of the injuries; there were signs of damage to the internal organs, and with external and internal injuries combined, it was adding insult to injury. It was unclear how he had managed to survive until now.
"Interesting, there are Gu Insects embedded in his body too..."
Meanwhile, Ning Fan also discovered something interesting, which was a Gu Insect lying dormant within Teng Zhong's spine, clinging onto it as though fused with Teng Zhong's spine, yet still a separate entity, resembling a parasitic form.
Finding the Gu Insect on Teng Zhong's spine, even Ning Fan felt a chill down his spine.
This Gu Insect could take Teng Zhong's life at any moment, and the reason Teng Zhong had survived was that the Gu Insect was still in hibernation and not activated, presumably controlled by someone else.
"They really… know how to be ruthless to their own people!"
Ning Fan said sarcastically. Although Teng Zhong and the others were Object-Manipulating Realm experts from the Yunteng family, they were still servants. To fully control them while ensuring they could not rebel, these people had Gu Insects buried in them from a young age. If their master discovered any disloyalty, they would be tormented to death by the Gu Insects.
This cruel method was something Ning Fan was learning about for the first time.
Casually throwing a Silver Needle to kill the Gu Insect inside Teng Zhong, Ning Fan then infused a stream of Pure Yang Qi, not only eliminating future troubles for Teng Zhong but also healing Teng Zhong's battered body.
It wasn't that Ning Fan was particularly kind-hearted, but that Teng Zhong still had utility value temporarily, and Ning Fan also didn't want to have someone die mysteriously in the dungeon one day.