At the sight of this scene, the "Mad Westman" Situ Kong clapped his hands and burst into laughter.
"Oh my! That must have hurt badly! Your two lackeys can't even withstand a few blows—are the Jiangnan Twin Fiends still unwilling to reveal their true skills?"
The Jiangnan Twin Fiends shuddered involuntarily, their hearts pounding violently.
Standing beside Tan Wei, Madam Li Jing suddenly spoke coldly, "Bullying women—does that make you heroes? Aren't you merely river bandits and petty thieves? If you truly possess ability, then fight!"
Li Jing's anger had yet to subside. How could she not seek revenge for this humiliation? Naturally, she hoped to use Li Jian's hands to teach the Jiangnan Twin Fiends a proper lesson.
Seeing Cui Long and Duan Kang defeated within only a few exchanges, the Twin Fiends now understood that the young man before them truly possessed astonishing martial arts. The rumors spreading through the martial world were no exaggeration. This youth was indeed not someone to provoke lightly.
At the thought of this, cold sweat crept down their backs.
Yet Li Jing's relentless taunts clearly relied upon the presence of this young warrior. Without him, how would she dare openly offend the Jiangnan Twin Fiends? Li Jian's heaven-defying martial skill genuinely struck fear into their hearts. Their faces turned ashen, expressions uneasy, thoughts racing endlessly. Still, they could not remain silent.
Zhou Jie let out a cold snort. His gaze darkened ominously as he slowly approached Li Jian.
"Boy, the Jiangnan Twin Fiends bear neither old grudges nor new hatred toward you. Why are you pretending to be some hero?"
Zhu Feng followed with a grim voice:
"Since you fancy yourself such a hero, know that the Jiangnan Twin Fiends are no ordinary men either. Let us exchange a few moves."
The moment he finished speaking, he shot Zhou Jie a glance.
Zhou Jie instantly stepped aside and flashed behind Li Jian with astonishing speed. His five fingers shot forth like lightning, clawing toward Li Jian's shoulder. The claw technique was vicious and exquisite. Yet Li Jian had long sensed ill intent from him and remained fully alert. He immediately shifted aside with a quick step.
Zhou Jie's claw struck empty air.
But like a parasite clinging to bone, Zhou Jie swept sideways again, launching claw after claw. Wind whistled from his fingertips as they tore through the air with terrifying force.
At the same time, Zhu Feng seized the opportunity to attack Li Jian from behind. Li Jian suddenly shifted sideways and spun around, chopping diagonally toward Zhu Feng's wrist. Zhu Feng hurriedly retreated. Yet in that instant Zhu Feng countered with another claw strike. Li Jian smoothly deflected it and spun with mysterious fluidity. Before Zhu Feng could fully evade, Li Jian had already torn away the sleeve on Zhu Feng's left shoulder.
The three exchanged moves at incredible speed. Fast techniques collided endlessly. In the blink of an eye, over fifty exchanges had already passed.
Suddenly Li Jian's techniques transformed.
His upright palm became like a blade as he unleashed eight palm strikes in succession with lightning speed. These eight palms were profoundly mysterious. Linked together, they produced a sky full of palm shadows, instantly enveloping all thirty-six vital acupoints of the Jiangnan Twin Fiends. Should either man lose concentration for even an instant, a single palm strike would be enough to overwhelm him completely.
The eight palms were truly terrifying.
Ferocious palm winds roared through the air, forcing the Twin Fiends backward several steps. Their expressions changed drastically, faces pale as death.
Then Li Jian abruptly halted his attack and sneered.
"Gentlemen, if you do not apologize and admit your wrongdoing today, I fear Madam Gang Chief will not let this matter rest."
The Jiangnan Twin Fiends froze upon hearing this.
Zhou Jie immediately turned toward Zhu Feng.
"Brother Zhu, this brat truly looks down upon the Jiangnan Twin Fiends!"
Zhu Feng's face twisted savagely as murderous light flashed in his eyes.
"A man may be killed, but he cannot be humiliated! Even if the Jiangnan Twin Fiends are outlaws of the martial world, we will never apologize or admit fault. This is a matter of principle!"
Li Jian had not expected the Twin Fiends to be so stubborn by nature, utterly unwilling to yield. As the saying goes, a true man knows when to bend and when to stand tall. Yet ordinary men often know only how to stand proud, never how to yield. And the Jiangnan Twin Fiends considered themselves renowned martial artists—unless facing death itself, how could they lower their heads so easily?
Thus, this truly was a difficult matter.
Behind the Twin Fiends, Tan Wei scoffed disdainfully.
"Don't refuse kindness after being shown respect. Since you fail to appreciate mercy, don't blame the Hall Chief of the Hall of Loyalty for showing no restraint."
Zhu Feng suddenly burst into savage laughter.
"We've wandered the jianghu for years, living with our blades stained in blood. If we feared death, we would not be the Jiangnan Twin Fiends!"
Li Jian replied calmly:
"Since you insist on preserving your precious reputation, then you cannot blame me."
Zhu Feng roared:
"Enough nonsense—attack!"
Suddenly fierce winds swept forth as the Twin Fiends launched themselves forward. Palm winds whistled like thunder.
In a flash, Zhu Feng moved with the speed of lightning itself. Li Jian slid three feet sideways and spun around like a whirlwind. Zhu Feng raised two fingers and jabbed viciously toward Li Jian's pressure point. Li Jian swept the attack aside with a backhand motion.
At that very instant Zhou Jie lunged forward, chopping downward with a savage palm blade aimed directly at Li Jian's face.
Li Jian shifted his footing fluidly, his body darting through the battlefield. The three fought furiously without pause. Palm shadows danced wildly, bodies flashed like lightning, and powerful gusts surged like crashing tides.
Another ten exchanges passed in an instant.
Suddenly Zhu Feng thrust forth a fierce palm strike toward Li Jian's right shoulder while Zhou Jie simultaneously charged in with another attack.
At that critical moment, Li Jian let out a long whistle that pierced the heavens.
With a tap of his foot, he soared upward like a crane ascending to the skies, his body shooting forth like an arrow released from a bowstring. The Jiangnan Twin Fiends lunged through empty air.
Still suspended in midair, Li Jian released another piercing cry before chopping both palms downward with explosive force.
The two strikes descended with terrifying speed.
The Twin Fiends had no choice but to gather every ounce of their inner strength, each man barely managing to receive one palm strike head-on.
Smack! Smack!
Two crisp explosions rang out.
Both men's bodies shook violently as they were blasted backward through the air. After landing, they still could not steady their footing, each coughing up a mouthful of blood.
Those two palm strikes had shaken their internal organs so violently that it felt as though their hearts and entrails had shattered apart.
Ignoring the agony, Zhu Feng shouted:
"Boy! We shall avenge this another day!"
Zhou Jie immediately cried out:
"Quick, let's go!"
Though every movement caused unbearable pain throughout their bodies, survival came first. The Jiangnan Twin Fiends, together with "Leopard Eye" Cui Long and "Changzhou Divine Fist" Duan Kang, immediately used their lightness kung fu and fled while injured.
Within moments, the four men had vanished completely without a trace.