Chapter 178: The Middleman, Invasive Species (5k)

Since you say you’re telling the truth, then why haven’t you suffered any backlash for breaking the contract?

You still didn’t dare to violate the contract, afraid of losing the benefits you got from this.

I’ll give you a chance now, you can run."

The Old Turtle had still been holding on to a shred of hope, but when Wen Yan exposed his lie and laid out the contract terms, that reminder made his limbs instinctively shoot out from his shell and he immediately turned to run.

But as soon as he turned, he saw Jiang Yanyan standing on the water’s surface.

Turning again, trying to make a break for land, Wen Yan was already leaping forward, Chunjun Mace in hand, Yang Energy flaring around him, and on the surface of the Chunjun Mace, four edges and eight faces, runes lighting up one by one.

Wen Yan swung down the Great Mace, landing a blow that felt like the Great Sun crashing down, bringing the force of a thousand pounds.

"If you won’t surrender, fine—but you actually have the nerve to try and escape!"

As the blow fell, the Old Turtle’s eyes suddenly sharpened, he opened his mouth and spat out a Water Arrow, like a powerful arrow, whistling through the air as it collided with Wen Yan’s mace.

The Water Arrow was shattered with a single strike, bursting into a spray of water droplets.

Wen Yan grinned, while next to him, Feng Yao was already holding up a phone, capturing it all on video.

"Suspected demon of a serious crime, stubbornly resisting arrest—by law, killed on the spot."

Wen Yan stayed silent, gripping the Chunjun Mace. These days of hard training in Scorching Sun Fist had almost become instinct—he barely needed to think about it and wouldn’t lose form.

He didn’t have much combat experience, but it didn’t matter. Overwhelming force crushes all skill.

With the Chunjun Mace in hand, he could clearly feel it—perfect match for Scorching Sun Fist, made for wide, open combat.

Now, with Scorching Sun ignited, the Yang Energy he could raise and withstand was far beyond before.

As for the Chunjun Mace, he had no idea what it was made from or what the runes meant, but its capacity for Yang Energy was insane. Even when he poured in energy at his max output, it still felt effortless in his grip.

Applying Scorching Sun Fist technique, he strode forward step by step, and with each step his entire aura surged higher. After three steps, the rising sun in his mind burst into light, sending his aura soaring.

The Old Turtle, still trying to flee, suddenly reared up. His limbs and claws grew longer, his shell widened from half a meter to nearly one and a half meters in the blink of an eye—like a giant turtle.

Its claws were a full three inches long, razor-sharp teeth sprouted in its mouth, and its whole body shifted from a Brazilian Turtle with red marks on its cheeks into a menacing Snapping Turtle form.

The pitiful little eyes now gleamed with ferocious, violent intent.

"If you won’t let me live, I’ll kill you all first."

The moment the words fell, Wen Yan charged in, Chunjun Mace in hand, like he’d been possessed by Qin Kun—surging forward with unstoppable ferocity, treating the mace like a spear, and instantly striking the turtle’s plastron.

With a dull thud, a white shockwave rippled out. The giant turtle skidded backwards seven or eight meters before it even got its footing, and as it looked up again, Wen Yan was already slamming the Great Mace down, hard.

As it fell, the mace seemed to morph in the turtle’s eyes into a blazing Great Sun, carrying an unstoppable, terrifying force that crushed his fighting spirit.

Another thudding bang. The big turtle’s skull took a heavy hit—its thick, hard skin was useless against a blunt weapon like this.

Even after just one blow, it was already seeing stars, stumbling and almost collapsing.

Wen Yan wasn’t about to give it a chance. He lacked combat experience, so he just followed his senior’s advice: if you strike, strike to kill—don’t hesitate.

Bang bang bang—each blow thundered like a sudden storm. After four or five hits in a row, blood bubbled from the turtle’s mouth and nose, its eyes already turning vacant.

It crashed to the ground, neck drooping limply—completely motionless.

Wen Yan stepped back a few paces, not rushing forward—he’d just wait here for now.

When he returned to his previous spot, Wen Yan let the energy drain from the Chunjun Mace and stowed it away. Next to him, Jiang Yanyan’s wide little eyes were still staring in shock.

"Remember: if you ever meet something that calls for deadly force, don’t hesitate. Just go for the kill."

"Got it, got it." Jiang Yanyan nodded frantically, his heart pounding. He really hadn’t expected Brother Wen to so ruthlessly go for the kill; even now, he still thought the Old Turtle was just acting suspicious, hadn’t fully caught on to what lay behind that.

Feng Yao put her phone away and reviewed the video—nothing wrong with the footage.

Especially once the Old Turtle dropped its disguise and turned vicious—they’d gotten all the proof they needed.

"So what happens next?" Wen Yan asked. He really didn’t know what came after.

"Hold on—someone will come handle it. I’ll make a call to the Minister."

Over on the site of the Water Ghost Domain, the floodwaters had receded, and a group was searching through the mud for Wang Xueqi’s bones.

This time, they found them quickly. The Taoist priest performed some standard rituals, placed Wang Xueqi’s bones in the coffin, and that was that.

Dealing with the aftermath—now that was the Scorching Sun Department’s job.

As soon as things wrapped up, Cai Qidong got a call from Feng Yao, explaining what had happened.

As soon as Cai Qidong heard "Changfeng Group," his head started throbbing again.

"What the hell was the previous Minister of Nanwu County doing, leaving such a mess behind?"

Turns out the original Water God here was none other than the long-dead He Changfeng, and it even tied back in a way to the Water God near Virtue City—contracts, Turtle Demon hurting people, you name it.

"It’s dead? Fine, beaten to death serves it right. Seriously, gutsy as hell—a damn invasive species daring to covet a human soul? Whatever, you’ve got it on video, right? That’s good—just write a summary report."

Huh? This Turtle Demon is the Water God here? What Water God? There’s no Water God here. Just some evil demon created by malicious people—Heretic Rites and the like. Mind your wording."