Are you out of your mind?

When Li Daniu shouted, everyone present—from the landlords upstairs to Coolie-Strong and the others by his side—was taken aback.

"Two blind men?"

"What is going on?"

The landlady turned to exchange a look with her husband.

"Could it be?"

"That pair of street musicians?"

"But weren't they only missing one of them?"

Li Daniu felt a twinge of embarrassment when no one entered after his shout. He could clearly sense two individuals with profound internal energy hiding by the doorway. Who else would show up at this time, if not the assassins hired by the Axe Gang?

The two assassins were in a difficult position. After accepting the job, they had been brought here by the Axe Gang. They had originally intended to wait for an opportunity to sneak in and finish off Li Daniu, but they had arrived just as he was fighting Coolie-Strong and the other two. They naturally decided to hang back and reap the rewards of the conflict. However, they were stunned when both sides suddenly shook hands and started talking about going for tea.

Confused as they were, they weren't fools. Based on the combat skills they had just witnessed, there was no way they could take on all four of these men in a direct confrontation. Leaving aside the mysterious Li Daniu, they weren't even confident they could handle Coolie-Strong and his companions, as they were assassins who detested head-on fights. In the original movie, they had only succeeded by ambushing Coolie-Strong and the Tailor, with only Ghost being the one to face them directly.

*Where the hell is this place? How can there be so many masters here?*

With their presence exposed by Li Daniu’s shout, they had already lost their nerve and had no intention of walking out.

Sensing the puzzled gazes of Sing and the others, Li Daniu shouted again, feeling slightly awkward. "If you don't come in, I’m coming out to find you. Don't worry, I won't gang up on you; I'll take you both on one-on-one."

Pushed into a corner, the assassins had no choice but to emerge. As assassins, their reputation was their livelihood; if they let themselves be scared off like this, who would hire them again?

When the two men walked out carrying their zithers, Coolie-Strong and the others were shocked. They hadn't sensed anyone at the door at all, which could only mean one thing: these two were masters of internal energy. Since when did internal energy experts become so cheap? They had encountered three in a single day.

"Stay back and be careful," Li Daniu warned Sing and the others before stepping forward.

As Li Daniu moved, the two assassins swiftly dropped into a horse stance and placed their zithers across their laps.

"What? Are you going to play some music for me in the middle of the night?" Li Daniu knew exactly what they were capable of, but he couldn't resist a jab.

The two blind men smiled without a word, their four hands hovering over the strings, plucking them gently.

*Shouldn't it be like the movie, where one attacks at a time? Why are they both attacking at once?*

Before Li Daniu could finish the thought, he felt the air ripple. In the movie, Coolie-Strong and the Tailor had been helpless because the attacks were invisible; they couldn't see them coming, and by the time they realized something was wrong, it was too late to dodge. Ghost had only managed to rush them because he had witnessed the others' injuries and realized the nature of the threat. Even then, he was eventually crushed by their overwhelming internal force.

External martial artists of their level were at a severe disadvantage against masters who could project internal force to kill. Li Daniu, however, was different. His greatest reliance was his own internal energy. He could project it too, though he lacked the proper techniques to keep it as focused as these blind men.

Feeling the air ripple, Li Daniu executed a "back-bridge" maneuver—a technique he had perfected during his time at the Wudang Sect. But he forgot that Sing and the others were still standing behind him. They didn't understand why Li Daniu had suddenly performed such a move, and as they felt a chilling sensation, they could only instinctively raise their weapons to defend themselves.

The difference between having weapons and being empty-handed became clear. The Tailor had his iron rings, and Ghost had his long spear, but Coolie-Strong was the tragic one; he could only shield himself with his bare hands. Blood sprayed everywhere, and his hands were likely ruined. As for Sing, he was in a sorry state—not instantly cut to pieces like in the movie, but he was shredded as if struck by blades.

"Damn it!"

Li Daniu was instantly enraged. Ultimately, this was due to his lack of combat experience. Seeing Sing bleeding profusely, his anger boiled over. He had tested Sing’s physical limits before; the boy couldn't leave palm prints in raw iron like in the movie. If he died, where would Li Daniu learn the Tathagata Palm?

No longer bothering to play the part of a hidden weakling, he unleashed his light-body technique and charged straight at the assassins. With Li Daniu’s internal energy, his movement was as ghostly as a phantom, impossible for the naked eye to track.

But the two assassins were no ordinary foes. Possessing strong internal energy of their own, they reacted quickly, plucking their strings again. Before Li Daniu could reach them, he felt violent ripples in the air.

Just as a person with keen hearing can sense a punch thrown before them with their eyes closed, Li Daniu could clearly perceive the ripples. Even though the assassins' projected energy was as sharp as blades and invisible to the others, to Li Daniu, the disturbance was obvious.

He couldn't dodge this time, or those behind him would suffer again. Stopping in his tracks, he channeled his protective energy, focused his internal strength into his fists, and met the invisible blades head-on. Thanks to the刚猛 (indomitable) nature of his Nine Suns Divine Art, he was able to shatter the assassins' projectiles.

To Coolie-Strong and the others, Li Daniu looked like a madman, swinging his fists at empty air. But to the Landlord and Landlady, it was clear that every punch Li Daniu threw accurately struck the incoming force.

"His internal energy is deep, but his combat style is clumsy," the Landlord remarked. He had felt a fondness for the kid when he saw him using Tai Chi earlier, but seeing his crude fighting style now, he couldn't help but curl his lip.

"He's still young. Under normal circumstances, at his age, if he weren't practicing martial arts, he should be a doctor or a lawyer."

Li Daniu, unaware that the couple now considered him a fool, felt his confidence soar as his fists remained unscathed. Having dispersed the wave of energy, he pressed forward and reached the assassins in the blink of an eye.

Realizing they were facing a formidable opponent, the assassins went all out. They plucked their strings in a new rhythm, unleashing a different kind of energy. In Li Daniu’s perception, the previous attacks had been like thrown daggers or axes—deadly but mindless. This new wave, however, felt alive, as if a group of men wielding blades were swarming him, adjusting their strikes based on his movements.

*Damn, this is even more advanced than the Six-Medal Divine Sword!*

Li Daniu let out a roar infused with internal energy, hoping to shatter the incoming force or stun the assassins just as it had done before. To his surprise, neither the energy nor the assassins wavered. To ordinary people, his roar was deafening, but to those with deep internal cultivation, it was no different from someone speaking loudly.

Seeing it had no effect, Li Daniu stopped shouting—his throat was already sore—and went back to punching the invisible force. It was a far cry from how easily the Landlady had countered this move.

He cleared the air in the blink of an eye, and because he was now too close, the assassins couldn't pluck their strings again. Casting their zithers aside, they attacked him directly.

"Well played." Li Daniu had feared their abnormal zither techniques, but when it came to hand-to-hand combat, he had nothing to fear. In the movie, the Landlord had defeated them easily once he got close.

Still fuming, Li Daniu didn't hold back. With a few strikes, he broke the assassins' bones and joints. Once he confirmed they were no longer a threat, he ran to Sing’s side.

"Master!" Sing, cradled in Coolie-Strong's arms, smiled when he saw Li Daniu approach, but he couldn't speak. He could only use his finger to draw a symbol on the ground.

"What language is this? I can't read it," said Ghost, who knew foreign languages, looking at the symbol in confusion.

*Language? Language my ass, that's a lollipop.*

Li Daniu hurriedly lifted Sing and began channeling internal energy into his body. The Landlady, appearing out of nowhere, puffed on her cigarette and started cursing.

"Are you an idiot? He’s suffering from blood loss! Take him to a hospital for a transfusion! What good is pouring internal energy into him? You don't even know how to bandage a wound—are you trying to kill him?"