A swig of cold beer slid down his throat, invigorating him instantly. And if you added a stunning beauty into the mix? The thrill doubled.
Just then, a sharp knock echoed at the door. One of the henchmen reluctantly dragged himself up, muttering under his breath, "What's with all the knocking? These bastards have no manners—do they think they can just barge in for food?"
He swung the door open and froze. In the hallway, the four men who were supposed to be guarding the entrance lay sprawled in pools of crimson blood. Standing there with an unsettling grin was none other than the delivery guy, Tang Ze. His smile wasn't warm—it was predatory, like a wolf sizing up its prey.
"You've got good food here, but you didn't invite me over for the party. That hurts," Tang Ze chuckled darkly. Before the henchman could react, Tang Ze's zhanmadao sliced through his abdomen with brutal precision. Intestines spilled onto the floor in a grotesque heap.
Inside the room, everyone froze for a split second before scrambling for their phones on the table, frantically calling for reinforcements. But when they saw Tang Ze standing calmly at the doorway, their faces shifted from anger to sheer terror.
Him! How did he show up out of nowhere?
Ding Feng, who had been brimming with arrogance moments ago, now trembled uncontrollably, his hands shaking so hard he could barely hold his drink.
Dragging his blood-soaked zhanmadao behind him, Tang Ze stepped inside, leaving a long, crimson trail on the floor. As he casually sat down, the men around him felt their hearts leap into their throats. Not a single one dared to breathe too loudly.
They had indeed been plotting to kill Tang Ze, but that was only in theory. Now, faced with him in person, their bravado melted away. After all, why plot to kill someone unless you're terrified of them?
"Peanuts, huh? Not bad," Tang Ze remarked lightly, popping a few into his mouth.
Ding Feng, the self-proclaimed leader, sensed the danger radiating off Tang Ze. But how could he have shown up right after they'd plotted against him? It was too much of a coincidence.
There's a traitor among us!
No sooner had the thought crossed his mind than one of the henchmen dropped to his knees before Tang Ze. "Brother Tang! You promised you wouldn't kill me—you even said you'd give me supplies!"
The others glared daggers at the traitor, their hatred palpable.
"When did I ever make such a promise?" Tang Ze asked innocently. Before the kneeling man could respond, a flash of silver cut through the air. Hot blood sprayed across the pristine white wall, painting it red.
Tang Ze planted his zhanmadao firmly into the corpse and turned to the group. "If he could betray you today, he'd betray me tomorrow. So really, I did you a favor by killing this traitor. Shouldn't you thank me?"
None of the nine remaining men dared to speak. Even the boss's wife, trembling in the corner, couldn't tear her eyes away from Tang Ze. Compared to him, her husband seemed pathetic. With just his presence, Tang Ze had reduced them all to quivering shadows of fear.
"You must be the boss's wife," Tang Ze said with a chilling smile. "Don't worry—I don't kill women."
Ding Feng knew tonight wouldn't end peacefully. By plotting to kill Tang Ze, he had brought this upon himself. If he hadn't, Tang Ze probably wouldn't have come knocking.
Better to go down fighting than to be slaughtered like livestock.
"What do you want?" Ding Feng growled, though his voice lacked conviction.
Tang Ze scratched his head and clicked his tongue. "As the saying goes, when you plan to kill someone, you'd better be prepared to die yourself."
"Kill him!" Ding Feng roared, grabbing a beer bottle and hurling it at Tang Ze. Two henchmen sitting beside Tang Ze lunged forward, pinning his shoulders to restrain him.
The bottle shattered against Tang Ze's forehead, shards scattering everywhere. Beer dripped down his face, but not a drop of blood emerged.
"Not enough strength," Tang Ze taunted, his laughter sending chills down the spines of the two henchmen holding him. Suddenly, an overwhelming force surged from Tang Ze's body—they couldn't contain him!
With a swift motion, Tang Ze pulled out his zhanmadao and decapitated the two men beside him. "Know why I prefer blades over guns?" he mused aloud, his voice dripping with sadistic glee. "I love the feeling of the blade slicing through flesh, the way skin splits open and blood sprays everywhere. And those desperate, agonized screams? Pure music."
Ding Feng thought he was twisted, but Tang Ze was on another level entirely.
"What are you waiting for?! Kill him! Or we're all dead!" Ding Feng screamed, desperation clawing at his voice. He had no way out now.
Faced with certain death, the henchmen abandoned all thoughts of self-preservation and charged at Tang Ze.
Outside, hurried footsteps approached. More of the boss's men arrived, but when they saw Tang Ze inside and the bodies littering the floor, fear rooted them to the spot.
"He's alone! Let's kill him! Everything will be ours!" Ding Feng bellowed. Men from the entire neighborhood had gathered. Surely they could take down one measly delivery guy!
Clearly, Ding Feng had underestimated this delivery guy.
"Kill him! Brothers, kill him, and the women will be ours!"
Sure enough, the promise of women spurred them on. Some even lunged at Tang Ze recklessly. But with a single downward swing of his blade, Tang Ze cleaved one man clean in half. The horrifying sight sent shockwaves through the crowd.
Yet those in the back, unable to see what had happened, kept pushing forward, eager not to miss their chance for glory.
It was like they were lining up to die. Tang Ze grew more exhilarated with each swing of his blade, his eyes blazing red with bloodlust. Bodies piled up at the entrance, creating a macabre mountain of corpses—a scene straight out of hell.
Back inside the room, Ding Feng stood frozen, his fruit knife trembling in his hand. He stared at Tang Ze, drenched in blood and looking like he'd just crawled out of the underworld itself.
Tang Ze plunged his zhanmadao into the mound of corpses and wiped the fresh blood from his face with a tissue. "Couldn't we have settled this peacefully? I didn't want to kill you all. I still need to stay here for a while, and I don't want the neighborhood to feel lifeless."
"Now, though, I've pretty much killed off all the men."
Ding Feng's breathing grew ragged. Summoning the last of his courage, he tightened his grip on the fruit knife and charged at Tang Ze, his eyes burning with determination.
He thrust the knife!
Thud.
Before he could reach Tang Ze, the zhanmadao pierced his abdomen, pinning him to the wall. The blade angled upward, and veins bulged on Ding Feng's forehead as he desperately clutched the hilt, his body sliding downward, threatening to be sliced in half.
The woman in the corner was paralyzed with fear, her entire body shaking uncontrollably.
"Don't be afraid—I really don't kill women," Tang Ze said with a sinister smile as he walked over and pinned her to the table.
Ding Feng's eyes filled with hatred, but it quickly turned to horror.
His woman had transformed into a desiccated corpse, as if every drop of blood had been drained from her body!
Was this delivery guy some kind of vampire?!
Tang Ze approached Ding Feng and grinned. "I'm surprised you lasted this long. I'll spare your life—for now. I still have other residents to visit."
He yanked the zhanmadao free, and Ding Feng collapsed to the floor. The blade had already reached his chest, and a pool of blood spread beneath him. His face was ghostly pale.
This wasn't mercy—it was simply prolonging the agony of death.
"Demon… devil… demon…" Ding Feng muttered weakly. He could have lived a life of luxury, but he had foolishly provoked this monster.
Lust truly is a blade hanging over your head, he realized bitterly. The ancients were right.
Savoring the adrenaline rush, Tang Ze began knocking on doors one by one. If no one answered, he forced them open with brute strength.
Standing in the master bedroom, Tang Ze flipped the bed over with a grin.
"Your husband tried to kill me, so I returned the favor. Hope you don't mind."