Kill the beasts in the courtyard, I fled to Hong Kong, surrounded by beauties on both sides.

He reached out and grabbed Banggeng's arm.

It felt icy to the touch; the cotton-padded jacket with the stick-like stem was completely soaked and extremely heavy.

Chen Fei pulled upwards with force, while simultaneously channeling his martial arts power into his other hand, pressing a palm against the back of the stick.

On the surface, this palm strike was meant to provide support while saving someone, but in reality, a subtle, hidden force penetrated through the cotton-padded jacket and went straight to the core of the patient's heart.

Bajiquan - Zhen (震) Technique.

The hidden force penetrates the body, not harming the skin, but specifically targeting the internal organs. With Chen Fei's current mastery of Chinese martial arts, this palm strike is enough to shatter the heart meridian of an adult, let alone Bang Geng, a twelve-year-old child.

Banggeng's body trembled violently, and a mouthful of blood foam gushed from his mouth, but it was mixed with the icy water and could not be clearly seen.

Then, he stopped moving completely.

Chen Fei dragged the stick onto the ice and checked its breath—it was gone. He then checked its carotid artery—it had stopped.

died.

Chen Fei's face showed an anxious expression. While pressing on Bang Geng's chest to perform CPR, he shouted to the terrified children, "Go get someone! Go quickly!"

Er Gouzi then realized what had happened and turned to run towards the shore, shouting, "Help! Bang Geng fell into the water!"

The other children followed suit.

Chen Fei continued to "rescue" the stick joke, his movements were standard and his expression was spot on, anyone who saw it would feel that he had done his best.

But in reality, while pressing down, he continued to use subtle force to damage the internal organs of the rod, ensuring that nothing went wrong.

Two minutes later, a commotion of footsteps came from the shore. Several adults ran over, including nearby residents and police officers who had rushed over after hearing the commotion—there was a police station near Shichahai.

"What's going on?" a middle-aged policeman asked.

"This child fell into an ice hole," Chen Fei looked up, his face filled with grief and self-blame. "When I pulled him out, he was already... already dead..."

As he spoke, tears welled up in his eyes—tears were forced out using martial arts techniques, making them appear incredibly real.

The police officer crouched down to examine her, his face grave: "She's definitely not breathing. You are...."

"I'm his neighbor," Chen Fei wiped away his tears, "I live in Nanluoguxiang. I was passing by today and saw the children playing, I never expected..."

He choked up and couldn't continue.

An older woman nearby recognized Bang Geng: "Isn't this the Jia family's child? Oh dear, what a tragedy!"

The policeman looked at Chen Fei and said, "Don't go yet. Come with me to the station to make a statement later."

"Okay," Chen Fei nodded, then glanced "reluctantly" at Bang Geng's body again. "Officer, could you... notify his family first?"

"Someone has already gone to inform them," the policeman said. "You wait here for now."

Chen Fei sat on the ice, head down, shoulders trembling slightly, looking as if he was overwhelmed with grief.

But actually, he was calming himself down.

It was my first time killing someone, and even though he was a scumbag and a beast, it was still a human life. It would be a lie to say I wasn't nervous.

But he quickly recovered.

Think of the horrific scene of my father being crushed to death by steel ingots, think of the strange circumstances surrounding my mother's "sudden illness," think of my younger sister struggling in the icy river...

That bastard deserved to die.

And this is just the beginning.

Evening: The Collapse of the Jia Family

At 4:30 p.m., the news reached the courtyard.

A staff member from the neighborhood committee accompanied police officers from the local police station to the courtyard and knocked on the Jia family's door.

Qin Huairu opened the door. Seeing the police officer, she paused, then asked, "Comrade, is there something you need?"

The police officer asked sternly, "Are you Jia Geng's mother?"

"Yes, it is." A sudden sense of foreboding welled up in Qin Huairu's heart.

"At around 2:40 pm today, Jia Geng fell into an ice hole while skating on Shichahai Lake. Although he was rescued by passersby in time, he unfortunately died despite all efforts to save him."

"What?" Qin Huairu's eyes widened, as if she hadn't heard clearly. "What did you say?"

"Jia Geng has passed away," the police officer repeated. "Please accept our condolences."

Qin Huairu's legs went weak, and she collapsed to the ground.

"No...it can't be..." she murmured, "Bang Geng said he was going ice skating this afternoon...how could this be..."

Hearing the commotion, Madam Jia Zhang came out of the house: "Huai Ru, what's wrong? Who's here?"

She was stunned when she saw the police officers and Qin Huairu, who was slumped on the ground.

"You're Jia Geng's grandmother, right?" the police officer said. "Please accept my condolences; the child has passed away."

Jia Zhangshi stood frozen for a few seconds as if struck by lightning, then let out a piercing scream: "Ah—my stick!"

She rushed over and grabbed the police officer's arm: "Comrade, are you sure you're not mistaken? My dog, Bang Geng, is perfectly fine, how could this be..."

"The body has been taken to the hospital," the police officer said. "You can go and identify it. Also, the officer who rescued the person is giving a statement at the police station; he says he's your neighbor."

"Save someone? Who?" Qin Huairu looked up abruptly.

He said his name was Chen Fei.

"Chen Fei?" Qin Huairu and Jia Zhangshi were both stunned.

How could it be Chen Fei?

Hearing the commotion, the neighbors came out of the courtyard. Yi Zhonghai, Yan Bugui, Xu Damao, Shazhu... everyone gathered around.

"What happened?" Yi Zhonghai asked.

The police officer briefly explained the situation.

After hearing this, everyone fell silent.

Banggeng died? That petty thief who was always stealing chickens and dogs, he fell into an ice hole and drowned?

Many people secretly felt this was retribution, but no one dared to say it aloud.

Sha Zhu looked at Qin Huairu and saw her slumped on the ground, tears streaming down her face. His heart ached. He went over to help her up, saying, "Sister Qin..."

Qin Huairu shook off his hand and struggled to stand up: "I need to go to the hospital... I need to see Bang Geng..."

"I'll go with you," Sha Zhu said.

Jia Zhangshi had fainted from crying and was helped into the house by her second aunt and several other women.

Yi Zhonghai, being an elderly man, also went to the police station.

Inside the police station, Chen Fei sat on a bench, head down, his shoulders still trembling slightly. His cotton-padded coat was soaked through, the water from when he rescued the stick.

When he saw Yi Zhonghai and Qin Huairu enter, he looked up, his eyes red and swollen, with tear stains on his face.

"Uncle... Sister Qin..." His voice was hoarse, "I'm sorry... I couldn't save Banggeng..."

Qin Huairu looked at him, her lips trembling, wanting to ask something, but unable to utter the words.

Yi Zhonghai sighed: "Xiao Chen, what exactly happened?"

Chen Fei recounted the events again, exactly as he had told the police before: He was passing by Shichahai Lake when he saw children skating. Suddenly, he heard cries for help, ran over, and saw Banggeng had fallen into an ice hole. He lay down to rescue him, but the ice was too thin, and he almost fell in too. He finally managed to pull Banggeng out, but he was already dead.

"It's all my fault...it's all my fault..." Chen Fei covered his face. "If I had arrived sooner...maybe I could have saved him..."

His performance was flawless. Grief, self-blame, and regret—all the emotions were perfectly conveyed.

Even Yi Zhonghai believed it.

"It's not your fault," Yi Zhonghai patted his shoulder. "It's already commendable that you went to save people."

Qin Huairu stared intently at Chen Fei: "Why...why did you go to Shichahai?"

Chen Fei had already prepared his answer: "I was on my way to the black market to buy some grain."

This reason is quite reasonable. Everyone in the compound knows that Chen Fei doesn't have food coupons and can only buy expensive food on the black market.

Qin Huairu stopped talking and just cried.

After taking Chen Fei's statement, the police officer said, "Comrade Chen Fei, thank you for your bravery. Although the child couldn't be saved, your actions deserve praise. You can go home now."

Chen Fei stood up, hesitated for a moment, and said to Qin Huairu, "Sister Qin... please accept my condolences."

After saying that, he turned and left.

His figure was desolate, his steps heavy.

Anyone who sees this will think that this is a young man who is grieving and blaming himself for not being able to save his neighbor's child.

But no one saw the fleeting, cold smile that crossed his lips after he turned away.

Late at night: The resentment dissipates

Late at night, Chen Fei returned to his small house.

He closed the door, leaned against it, and let out a long sigh.

Today was exhausting. Acting, killing, dealing with the police—every step required caution.

But he did it.

The stick is dead.

He walked to the bedside and sat down, when he suddenly felt a warmth in his chest.

Looking down, the golden mark was glowing faintly, but this time it wasn't dark red, but a soft gold.

[Detection of the death of the primary enemy, Jia Geng]

[Original body's resentment dissipated by 10%]

Current body control level: 100%

[System notification: To completely dissipate the resentment, you must personally eliminate all your enemies. Please continue your efforts.]

At the same time, Chen Fei felt a sense of relief.

The feeling of his soul being torn apart disappeared. The original owner's resentment dissipated to some extent because of Bang Geng's death. Now, he had one hundred percent control over this body.

Moreover, he also felt that his mental strength seemed to have improved. The range of telekinesis had expanded from ten meters to twelve meters.

"Xiaoyu," Chen Fei thought to himself, "your brother has avenged you. The first one."

He seemed to hear a soft "thank you," and then the oppressive feeling that had been shrouded in resentment lessened considerably.

But not enough.

Bang Geng was just the first. Jia Zhangshi, Qin Huairu, Yi Zhonghai, Liu Haizhong, Yan Bugui, Xu Damao, Sha Zhu... everyone will pay the price.

Chen Fei lay in bed, beginning to think about his next plan.

According to the outline, the next target is Jia Zhangshi. But this old woman rarely goes out, making it difficult to create an "accident".

We need to find a way to get her out of the house.

Also, will the police investigate Bang Geng's death more thoroughly? Although I managed to get away with it today, what if someone becomes suspicious?

Chen Fei thought for a moment and decided to be even more careful in the next few days. He would continue to maintain his facade of "weakness" and "grief" and not arouse anyone's suspicion.

Lost in thought, he fell asleep.

He slept exceptionally well that night.

No nightmares, no hallucinations.

There was only deep darkness, and from within that darkness, a faint, satisfied sigh could be heard.