Chapter 24 GO Chapter 24

Chapter 24: The Heart That Hesitates Will Fall

Huang Haifu never imagined that a mere level one soldier like Chen Ning could speak with such arrogance. Could it be that getting into the Elite Squad had gone to his head—made him forget his own limits and just how small he really was?

“Kid, you think you can scare me? I know exactly what you’re capable of, you worthless piece of trash!” Huang Haifu sneered, jabbing a finger toward Chen Ning’s chest.

But his finger never landed.

In one swift motion, Chen Ning’s hand shot out and clamped tightly around Huang Haifu’s wrist—iron-hard, unyielding.

Huang Haifu froze, momentarily startled. Still, confidence flickered back into his eyes. As a level two soldier, he should have easily overpowered Chen Ning.

His gaze turned sharp. “Then fly, you bastard!” he barked, muscles bulging as he tried to fling Chen Ning backward with sheer force.

But the result stunned everyone—including his cronies and the gawking crowd in the mess hall.

His sudden burst of force didn’t send Chen Ning flying as he’d expected. Instead, Chen Ning’s grip on his wrist didn’t budge an inch, as if it were locked in place by iron.

His sneer stiffened. Disbelief widened his eyes. What the hell? Isn’t this guy just a level one?

He twisted again—harder—but nothing. Panic began to creep up his neck. “You—what are you doing? Let go!”

Chen Ning’s lips curled into a faint, icy smile.

“Let go? Sure,” he said coldly. “Then fly for me!”

Before Huang Haifu could react, Chen Ning’s arm flexed and snapped forward like a whip.

With a loud crash!, Huang Haifu’s body—nearly seventy kilos of muscle and arrogance—was hurled two meters across the room. He slammed into a table, splintering it into pieces.

The hall fell silent.

Huang Haifu scrambled to his feet, face ashen, hair disheveled, rage twisting his features.

“What are you idiots standing there for? Get him! Break his damn legs!”

At his command, four of his lackeys lunged forward—two level one soldiers, two level two soldiers.

Bang! Bang!

Chen Ning moved like lightning. Two swift kicks met the first attackers mid-charge, striking squarely in their chests. Both were lifted off their feet and sent crashing backward.

Before he could take a breath, a level two soldier charged in, roaring, “Eat this!” and threw a heavy punch.

Without hesitation, Chen Ning threw back a punch, countering it head-on.

BANG!

Their fists collided like hammers on steel. The impact echoed through the hall. Chen Ning stood unmoved, his expression cold as stone. His opponent’s eyes bulged—then came the brittle crack of breaking bone.

The man howled, clutching his hand as he crumpled to the floor, his wrist twisted grotesquely.

The last level two fighter took the chance to kick out, his boot slicing through the air—

—but Chen Ning’s leg was faster.

CRACK!

The man’s scream tore through the hall as his right leg bent at an unnatural angle, bone snapped clean through.

The crowd gasped.

Among them were regular recruits, seasoned veterans, even a few elite-squad members. 

Many of them recognized Chen Ning. Of course, it wasn’t because he was impressive — far from it. Over the past week, word had spread that the elite unit somehow had a mere Level One War Soldier among its ranks.

Everyone thought Chen Ning was a joke — a weakling who had no business being there. Most felt a mix of jealousy and indignation, convinced that someone like him didn’t deserve that position.

None of them had expected this.

In mere seconds, Chen Ning had flattened five opponents, three of them being level two. He stood there, calm and composed, while the others groaned on the floor.

The spectators exchanged wide-eyed looks. Is Chen Ning really a level one?

Chen Ning dusted off his hands and walked toward the dazed Huang Haifu, who was crawling backward.

“I’m— I’m Xiao Zihao’s attendant! My father serves the Xiao family—one of the Four Noble Families of Vermilion Phoenix City! If you touch me, Young Master Xiao will never forgive you!” Huang Haifu stammered, retreating desperately.

But his foot caught a broken plank, and he stumbled, falling flat on his back.

Chen Ning crouched slightly, eyes cold, and picked up a broken table leg from the wreckage. He loomed over Huang Haifu, voice low and cutting.

“I remember you said you’d break my legs, didn’t you?”

Huang Haifu’s face went pale. “Chen Ning, don’t do anything stupid!”

Chen Ning’s smile deepened—chilling and calm.

Chen Ning said coldly, “Don’t chicken out. The instructor told us: an imperial soldier’s word is his bond — what we spit out lands like a nail in the ground. Especially us Azurebird warriors; we can’t sully the name of the Phoenix Legion.”

“Besides, the battlefield is simple — it’s either you kill me or I kill you. If you want to break my leg, then be prepared for me to break yours. So I’m going to break one of your legs now. Fair enough?”

He raised the wooden club slightly. 

Huang Haifu’s entire body trembled. Cold sweat drenched his shirt. He finally realized—Chen Ning wasn’t bluffing. He was a demon wearing a soldier’s skin.

“Wait—wait, I was wrong! I won’t dare again!” he babbled, voice shaking.

But Chen Ning’s tone was ice. “Unlike you, I keep my promises.”

The club lifted high—and came down in a blur.

“AHHHH—!” Huang Haifu screamed, eyes squeezed shut, certain his leg was gone.

The impact, however, was light—a mere tap against his shin.

Huang Haifu gasped, blinking open his eyes, half-crazed with fear. Am I crippled?

Chen Ning smirked. “Relax. That wasn’t a real hit.”

The color drained from Huang Haifu’s face. His mind teetered on collapse. “Please! Chen Ning—I was wrong!”

But Chen Ning’s eyes hardened, and his words came like frost.

“A soldier who hesitates is a dead man. The heart that isn’t ruthless cannot stand tall.”

He drew in a breath, muscles tensing for the real strike—

Just then, heavy footsteps thundered from outside.

The food hall doors burst open—Instructor Shi Yu stormed in, flanked by Xiao Zihao himself and a squad of guards.

Huang Haifu’s desperate wails filled the hall. “Instructor Shi! Young Master Xiao! Help me! He’s going to break my leg!”

“STOP!”

“DON’T MOVE!”

Shi Yu and Xiao Zihao both shouted as they saw Chen Ning’s raised club about to swing down.

Chen Ning didn’t turn. He knew exactly who had come. He knew that Huang Haifu was Xiao Zihao’s lapdog—and that this entire provocation had been meant to humiliate him. From day one, Xiao Zihao had treated him like an eyesore.

But there was a saying: Mercy breeds chaos. A soft heart cannot command troops.

And Chen Ning had no intention of bowing anymore.

Under everyone’s horrified gaze, Chen Ning’s expression barely shifted. His grip tightened—

—and the club came down with a final, bone-cracking THUD!

“AAAAHHH!”

Huang Haifu’s scream tore through the air as his leg twisted at a sickening angle.

Gasps and curses rippled through the crowd. Even Shi Yu and Xiao Zihao’s faces turned dark as thunder. Shi Yu was Huang Haifu’s instructor, and Xiao Zihao was his young master. As the saying goes, “Even when you beat a dog, you should look at its owner.” Yet today, Chen Ning had shown not the slightest regard for either of them.

_______

TL Note: “Even when you beat a dog, you should look at its owner.” (“打狗都要看主人脸”)

Before punishing someone, consider who’s behind them — their background, connections, or patrons.

_______

Shi Yu, livid, bellowed, “Bastard! Seize him! Thirty lashes!”

A wave of silence swept the room. Thirty lashes. Everyone knew what that meant. Ten was enough to cripple a man. Thirty would kill even the toughest soldier.

Su Luo had just entered the hall when she saw the chaos—Huang Haifu writhing, Chen Ning standing tall, Shi Yu roaring for punishment. Her blood ran cold.

Shi Yu was the instructor for the regular recruits—she couldn’t plead with him directly. But she knew who could.

Without a second thought, Su Luo spun on her heel and sprinted out of the mess hall, her heart pounding.

She had only one thought in mind—

Find the Butcher. Now.