Chapter 70

When Xiang Mingqi was thrown to the ground, he twisted around and fought back. He gritted his teeth and smiled, "What? I hit you where it hurts, didn't I?"

A hook punch aimed at the side of his face, and he didn't dodge, leaving a bright red streak on his forehead. As if he didn't feel it, he rushed towards Sang Lun and kneed him in the liver without fear of death.

Sang Lun took several punches while dazed, his nose bleeding all over his chin. When he came to his senses, he elbowed him outward and slammed him to the ground, the tip of his fist hitting the bridge of his nose from the side. He kept hitting Xiang Mingqi's left eye until it was bloodshot, and the blood kept flowing from his nose.

"You're quite formidable," Sang Lun scoffed, revealing a mouthful of bloodied teeth. He pressed his nose to bleed away the blood, his voice hoarse, "I've never met someone like you on the field. Like a..." He nodded his chin towards Pei Huai, "a dog protecting its master."

"Listen, brother. He called me a dog and beat me." Xiang Mingqi turned around without hesitation, pointed at Sang Lun, and looked at his senior with humble and pitiful eyes.

"Come back, Xiang Mingqi."

"I don't want to." He pulled his lower eyelids, made a face, and then picked up the chair next to him and threw it at Sang Lun. Now, the fight between the two became even more difficult to distinguish.

"Ah, my nose is bleeding. Will I die if it bleeds so much?"

"Wow, brother, my waist hurts so much from being hit."

"Brother Pei Huai slapped me in the face. Although I'm not as handsome as you, if half of my face was disfigured, you would help me get revenge, right?"

Sang Lun was so annoyed by his yelling that he could no longer bear it: "This kid is so brave when he fights, he doesn't care about his life, he sticks his neck out and doesn't dodge, so every punch he gets hits right in the vital parts. One blow leaves his body covered in blood."

The key point is that this brat not only yells, but every now and then when he gets hit by a fist, he'll report it pitifully at the top of his voice. He's not behind in punches and kicks either.

No, Sang Lun just twisted his wrist and tried to fight back—

"Ah, he hit me, brother, look, this kind of person has a violent tendency and you must never consider domestic violence in the future."

"Brother, his hitting hurts so much. He must have been planning to kick my legs and stomach when he raised his foot. Did you see that? Are you watching? Woohoo, I got beaten so badly."

Sang Lun felt like his eardrums were about to perforate: "Can you please stop shouting!"

"My answer is." His hands suddenly locked onto the back of his head, and his upper body shot up with terrifying force, crashing head-on into his forehead. Amidst the muffled crack of bones, an invisible sense of oppression crept onto the young man's face. "No."

The wound inside his nose split open simultaneously, and Xiang Mingqi vomited until he felt dizzy, with a sickening fishy-sweet taste in his mouth. Meanwhile, Sang Lun wiped the blood from his nose and lips, his eyes still brimming with rage.

"You're so fucking brave."

"Thanks for the compliment. I quite like the feeling of beating you up."

Since he had never seen such a scene before, Pei Huai was confused about how he could intervene. He took a few steps forward to pull the man away, but suddenly noticed the unusual movement of Sang Lun's right hand.

He was groping for something in his clothes.

As Xiang Mingqi's elbow clamped against the back of his neck, forming a closed triangle, a hand suddenly slapped his shoulder from behind, pulling him back and widening the distance between the two wrestlers. He wanted to pounce again, but the hand was too strong and he couldn't pull it away.

"Don't move." The grip on his shoulder intensified, and only then did Xiang Mingqi notice that a switchblade was just a few millimeters from his stomach. A centimeter further would draw blood.

He was stunned.

In the moment of delay, only one person remained calm and maintained order. Pei Huai snatched the knife from his hand, kneeling down to pull it back to the handle. He then grabbed the younger man by the collar and led him away. People gathered around, discussing the outcome, mostly about who would win. As for the others—he looked at the dark-haired man who had come between the two sides and said nothing.

He was a man wearing a long trench coat and a pair of black-framed glasses with a not-too-strong prescription. His appearance was refined, so at first glance, it was difficult to associate him with the violent aura that surrounded him.

The other person turned away and looked at him, with a look under his brows as if he was examining his prey.

"My brother has caused you trouble," he said first. "I'm Dando Leka, PBL's agent. I apologize to you on his behalf."

"Apologize?" Xiang Mingqi snorted coldly, took the tissue from his senior and applied it to his swollen nose. "Your bear-like brother has set his sights on my brother. An apology will…" Pei Huai decisively raised his arm to block it, which surprised him. "Brother?"

"I'll take care of it."

"Do you have anything to say? You two, I know that what he did this time was not so authentic. So I..." Dando was about to bend down to help the man when he heard footsteps approaching him quickly at the twelve o'clock direction.

He wanted to dodge, but his footsteps were always a split second too slow. The next second, Sang Lun, who was at his elbow, covered his hands and screamed miserably.

"What are you doing?"

He had to look directly at the white-haired young man squatting in front of him.

"Give him back the knife. Any questions?" His hand lowered slowly, the blade piercing vertically between his metacarpal bones, the force penetrating all the way to the handle. Pei Huai stared at him, his slightly raised chin revealing an undeniable firmness.

"No." Dando stared at his face for a long time, then suddenly licked his lips with great interest, and softened his tone. "Is there anything I can do for you? It's my way of making up for this matter."

"Let's talk alone." He pointed at him without any hesitation, "You, follow me."

No one knew what Danduo was thinking. He stared at Pei Huai for a long time before finally agreeing with an interested smile. Just before leaving, Qiao Feng ran over happily, taking a glass of wine in his hand. Seeing this scene, he was of course dumbfounded.

Xiang Mingqi screamed as soon as he caught sight of him.

"Ah, you're the idiot who keeps saying you're a clay model of my brother, but when it comes to betting, you can't lose anything, right?" He stamped his foot in anger. "Fine, you, if you win, you sleep with my brother, if you lose, you lick my brother. Look how happy you are, you're almost going to have a tail. You stinky lickspittle!"

"Hey, who are you?"

As they passed each other, he noticed that Xiang Mingqi's eyes were still fixed on him. The corners of his mouth curved slightly, and he made a few mouth shapes in a smile.

"I've memorized your face. Wait."

The conversation was originally scheduled to take place in a private office, but considering that the two injured people did not get along well, they were arranged to go to the same lounge to wait for medical staff to treat their injuries.

Ever since being stabbed by Pei Huai, Hongmao has become as wilted as a defeated rooster.

"Hmph, if you can't beat them, you'll stab them in the back. Sang Lun, you're still waiting for your brother to rescue you, you've grown so fat for nothing." Xiang Mingqi relied on Pei Huai's presence to support him, and he was very bold, looking up and down at the red-haired man with squinted eyes.

Sang Lun was waiting for the doctor to bandage him, and he became even more angry when he heard his rude words: "You kid..." But he was not in the right, so he couldn't organize his words to continue.

"Hey, hey, I didn't hear what the guy who stabbed me just said. Please speak louder."

Sang Lun frowned and studied his bruised face carefully, then glanced at Pei Huai and lowered his head in melancholy, "It's obviously... not much different."

When these words came out, Xiang Mingqi's eyes widened in shock.

The big guy with dyed red hair was still mumbling: "Is it because I don't talk enough?"

"It's not about being shameless."

After confirming that the two were alright, Pei Huai glanced at Xiang Mingqi with some concern, then followed Dan Duo to the adjoining office. The doctor also gathered his medical kit and left. As the door closed, Sang Lun wanted to breathe a sigh of relief when he heard humming to his right.

He looked over in confusion and was surprised to find that Xiang Mingqi's mouth corners were raised, and his eyes slowly turned over, focusing on his face.

"He's gone." He smiled so broadly that wrinkles appeared at the corners of his eyes. "Wait a little longer."

Sang Lun felt a little uneasy when he saw this.

"...He's gone. He shouldn't be far away. Let's wait a little longer."

"It should be farther, a little further..."

"Can you please shut up? What are you mumbling about?" He had to slap his thigh and interrupt the man's weird repetition.

"Like this—" Before he could finish his words, a hand suddenly grabbed his face and dug into his eye socket. He ignored the wound on his forehead that had split open a second time, and Xiang Mingqi stood up and pressed closer, letting out a gasp of great anticipation from his throat, "It's not too much for me to take away the hand you used to touch him."

-

"I don't want to chat with you." As soon as he entered the room, the man with his back to Pei Huai emphasized this sentence.

Pei Huai quickly put his hands behind his waist and gripped the claw knife's finger grooves. Dan Duo, anticipating this, stepped forward and grasped his wrist: "Of course, I mean no harm."

Her dark eyes stared at him coldly: "Then?"

"You're very capable. I've never seen anyone Sang Lun couldn't get enough of. With your talent, even if you had to make him kneel at your feet, I'm afraid he would be willing to do it. But players like you are so rare. You must have other motives for appearing in the PBL."

Dando paused for a long moment after he finished speaking. He was quite happy to be stared at like this. Even if his irises only revealed a wary and cold light, those eyes still had their charm.

His white hair was styled into a half-tied, neat, casual ponytail. From his eyebrows to his eyes, there was not a single inch of gentleness to his expression. His nose was incredibly straight, and a gold-woven half-face mask covered the bridge, giving him the ferocious look of a hunter.

Of course, given that his face was eye-catching enough, Dando couldn't help but look him up and down from head to toe.

With the sleeves rolled up, the top became a standard short-sleeved style, giving the illusion of being a size too large on her slender frame. His gaze lingered on the waistline for a moment before shifting to the thighs. The trouser legs were short, a style that allowed for easy movement. This allowed him to gaze even more intently at the eye-catching leg loops.

He was good-looking, but good looks weren't enough to make Dando lose his mind. He was more impressed by this man's potential than his appearance. He wanted to get him.

"It takes too long to get to me through a game and get the PBL's attention. There's a way to get what you want."

He earned himself a raised eyebrow.

"Don't be so quick to question it. Even if it's a deal, shouldn't there be a little romance before reaching a cooperation?"

Pei Huai looked away with disinterest.

"You feel very similar to how I remember you." Dando leaned closer with his thick chest, sniffing him. He couldn't help but tug at his right leg ring. "The owner of this mask is just like you. Even their hair smells like soap."

He touched Pei Huai's firm thigh, grasping the flesh that slightly bulged from the leather ring. He could feel the leg muscles, their thriving, wildfire-like tactile tension, powerful enough to play with his life. Just as he was about to pinch, the next second, a long, bloody gash appeared on the back of his hand.

Pei Huai raised his eyelashes, spun the claw knife in a circle with his finger groove, and then, with a warning, placed the knife against his carotid artery.

"You're wasting my time."

"Then let's get to the point. Join PBL." The rejected man lowered his voice and leaned over to whisper in his ear, "Whether you want something or someone, I'll give it to you with both hands."