Chapter 272 Speak Civilized Words

The noise from the explosion gradually subsided after quite some time. Once the smoke cleared, what emerged was a chaotic battlefield.

A one-sided battlefield.

The group of little rascals that had rushed in so forcefully were now all lying on the ground, joining the trash on the junkyard. The only person still standing was Ling Mo, who hadn’t even moved from his spot, and even his battle armor was barely scratched—just a thin layer of dust from the explosion.

Meanwhile, the bald guy who had charged in the hardest was now lying at Ling Mo’s feet, howling in agony.

His body remained as tough as a wall, but every part of him was damaged, as if he’d been repeatedly hammered by a steel mallet. Luckily, most of it was charred black from the explosion, which made it less conspicuous in the dark and prevented people from feeling squeamish about it.

This also showed just how tough this guy was—after such a heavy bombardment, he hadn’t sustained any fatal injuries. Most enhanced physiques wouldn’t be able to handle that.

Unlike his group of underlings behind him, who were now too beaten to make a sound.

Of course, the main reason for this was that Ling Mo had intentionally left him a way out.

After all, there were still questions to ask, and if he killed him, no one would be around to answer.

Ling Mo crouched next to the bald guy, yanked him up to eye level, forcing him to meet his gaze. Under the mask, the bald guy couldn’t see Ling Mo’s expression, but he could guess that he was probably smiling: “So? Want to continue fighting?”

“…Fk you.” The bald guy gritted his teeth and cursed.

Ling Mo slapped him across the face: “Civilized city.”

“You son of a…”

Another slap: “Be a civilized person.”

“Fk you…”

Then came another slap: “Speak civilized words.”

This last slap didn’t hold back at all, hitting him so hard that it nearly smashed his head flat. Even with his tough exterior, this greeting left the bald guy momentarily dazed—perhaps this was the downside of being made of steel.

Once he was thoroughly quieted down, Ling Mo spoke up again: “I have a few questions for you—first, was it you guys who caused the incident in the alley behind the Turing Bar?”

The bald guy stared at him, eyes widened. Just as he was about to curse him again, Ling Mo suddenly placed his hand on top of his head. What seemed like a kind pat turned the bald guy’s face pale—

The palm of Ling Mo’s battle armor began heating up rapidly, almost melting him directly!

Not almost—this energy could genuinely melt him!

The bald guy immediately started screaming, finally breaking through his last bit of stubbornness: “I was wrong! I was wrong! Don’t kill me! Please don’t kill me!”

The heat slightly decreased, but Ling Mo’s tone remained unchanged: “So, was it you guys?”

The bald guy hesitated for two seconds.

Then the temperature suddenly soared again.

“I’ll tell you! I’ll tell you!” the bald guy wailed again, “It was… it was my men who did it, but I didn’t give the order! You have to believe me! I didn’t give the order! I only found out after it happened!”

“Oh? If it wasn’t your order, then why did they strike?” Ling Mo asked with a hint of amusement. “I heard that the local tyrants in this area have a pretty peaceful attitude toward other organizations? Why did they go after ours so fiercely? You think we’re pushovers?”

“No! No! I really didn’t look down on you, big bro! Please let me explain!” At this moment, the bald guy had completely given up on his dignity—after all, that was worthless compared to his life, “It was all their idea! They heard… they heard that Ling Ge was easy to bully, so… so… it has nothing to do with me! Please spare me! I’m begging you!”

Ling Mo assessed him for a moment and then continued: “I’m curious, where did this term ‘kept man’ come from?”

“I don’t know! I really…”

“If you don’t know anything, then there’s no need to keep you alive.”

“Wait, wait! I know! I know! Please don’t do anything!” The bald guy quickly changed his tune, “I know how that news got out! Just spare me and I’ll tell you!”

Ling Mo chuckled: “Do you really think you have room to negotiate?”

At the same time, the bald guy noticed Xia Xinyan walking over.

And then, he knew nothing after that.

The good news was Ling Mo didn’t choose to kill him, the bad news was… well, for a little rascal like him, being alive at all was good news, no matter how.

“Goodness,” on the way back, the chubby man was driving, glancing at the unconscious bald guy in the back through the rearview mirror, “Old Ling’s methods are quite impressive. He’s really picked up some skills on his own.”

Ling Mo merely smiled: “They’re just a bunch of thugs. They can’t really have any unyielding spirit.”

Including the bald guy, at best, they were just tough ducks quacking away. Even after he was thoroughly beaten, they wouldn’t save any breath for themselves—until they realized that Ling Mo really had it in him to kill them, that’s when the bald guy truly softened.

That’s what Ling Mo despised about him the most—if the guy had truly remained unyielding to the death, he might have respected him a bit.

Xia Xinyan looked out at the dark night, dousing them with cold water: “Better keep a low profile these days. We can take down the Fire Cloud Cult, but don’t make it too obvious. If others notice, it could cause quite a bit of trouble again.”

She had only sensed someone approaching nearby, which was why she temporarily knocked the bald guy out and brought them away. As for the others, Ling Mo didn’t leave any living witnesses since it didn’t really matter if the information got leaked. This also served as a warning to others.

As long as they didn’t openly connect themselves to this incident, even if there were clues pointing toward them, it would only make other organizations more cautious.

However, Ling Mo’s interrogation style just now… for some reason, it felt oddly familiar to her.

It was almost how she played things in her previous life.

This seemed to prove that certain traits within people never change, which was a good thing. In the future world environment, cunning would always survive better than daddy’s boy antics—so long as this approach wasn’t directed at her, Xia Xinyan could accept it.

At least it would save her a lot of trouble.

But… for some reason, the more she observed Ling Mo’s changes, the more she felt a sense of instability in her heart.

As if something had slipped from her grasp.

And the kind she could no longer pull back.