Seeing that Chu Yan had only fainted and wasn't otherwise injured, Zhou Fan breathed a silent sigh of relief.
"May I ask your name? You're the one who killed my brother, Scarface, aren't you?"
When Zhang Lei saw Zhou Fan stop, a smug smile appeared on his face. He walked over with two men in black masks.
"My name is Zhou Fan. And yes, I killed him."
Zhou Fan said coolly, simultaneously gauging the distance between them.
'Five meters. If I were at my peak, this distance would be more than enough for me to strike before they could react.'
'But now... it'll be tough.'
"You've got balls, I'll give you that. He's all yours."
Zhang Lei nodded, then took a step back and spoke to the two men beside him.
Hearing this, the two men froze. They exchanged a look, utterly baffled.
'They were here to help deal with Chu Yan, sure, but that didn't include taking on *this* guy, Zhou Fan!'
'They had just watched him kill over forty men with their own eyes!'
"Let's get him together!"
But the situation didn't allow for hesitation. With a low shout, they joined the six remaining men and charged at Zhou Fan.
Zhou Fan, holding his dagger in a reverse grip, parried one man's attack and kicked out at another.
The two were clearly experts. Within just a few exchanges, Zhou Fan had sustained two more wounds deep enough to expose bone, though his opponents were even more grievously injured.
"Zhou Fan! I'm throwing this woman into the river! You'd better hurry. Otherwise, I'm afraid she'll be washed away or drown!"
Meanwhile, Zhang Lei, acting as if he had nothing to do with the fight, slashed the rope with his knife and shoved Chu Yan into the river. "Finish him off quickly! I'm off to get my payment from Young Master Chu!"
With that, Zhang Lei sprinted away, disappearing from sight in an instant.
"Fuck! He set us up!"
"Dammit! When we get out of here and see the Young Master, we're definitely killing Zhang Lei!"
Knowing they'd been played by Zhang Lei, the two men cursed and attacked Zhou Fan with frenzied desperation.
Zhou Fan's eyes narrowed. He didn't know what Zhang Lei's motive was, but he had no time to ponder it. Chu Yan was still in the river!
"You... will die!"
Zhou Fan let out a low roar. Ignoring his grievous injuries, he began trading wound for wound, no longer dodging, his eyes turning crimson.
Ten seconds later, at the cost of two more deep gashes to his left ribs and shoulder, Zhou Fan finally slit both their throats.
Without a moment's hesitation, not even glancing at the few remaining men who were fleeing, he sprinted desperately to the edge of the pier and leaped into the river.
The river water hitting his many wounds was so excruciating that Zhou Fan nearly passed out. He bit his tongue hard, forcing himself to stay conscious as he dove deeper. Finally, near the riverbed, he saw Chu Yan. She had woken up and was struggling to swim to the surface.
Chu Yan had been certain she was going to die. But the moment she opened her eyes, she saw a blood-soaked Zhou Fan pulling her into his arms. A warmth spread through her heart, and tears began to stream down her face. She instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck and moved in to kiss him.
But Zhou Fan shoved her away with one hand, snapping her out of it.
Seeing the look of utter exasperation on Zhou Fan's face, Chu Yan felt terribly wronged.
'What was that for?'
"Are you insane? We're underwater! Are you trying to get us both killed?"
The moment they broke the surface, Zhou Fan mercilessly let her have it.
"I'm sorry, husband!"
Normally, if anyone had dared to yell at Chu Yan like that, she would have slapped them without a second thought. But now, she just pouted and apologized with a look of utter grievance.
"What... did you just call me?"
Zhou Fan gave Chu Yan a confused look as he took her hand and started pulling them toward the bank.
"I said... husband. I's sorry. I just woke up and saw you coming to save me... I was so excited I couldn't help myself!"
Chu Yan's face flushed red. If they weren't still climbing out of the water, she would have found a hole to crawl into and hide.
"Seeing as you're being so well-behaved, I'll forgive you this time."
As he spoke, Zhou Fan gave one last pull, and they both collapsed onto the stone pier, gasping for breath.
"Husband... can I call you that from now on?"
Chu Yan suddenly turned onto her side. Perhaps it was because the river breeze felt a little cold, or perhaps for some other reason, but she wrapped her arms around Zhou Fan's wounded body. Tilting her face up to his, she asked in a tiny, quiet voice.
"Okay."
Looking at Chu Yan, who was now as gentle as water, her beautiful eyes filled with adoration, Zhou Fan answered with a single word. Then he pulled her close and kissed her softly.
"AHEM, AHEM. Sorry to interrupt, you two, but I really can't watch this anymore. Could you save the lovey-dovey stuff for when you get home?"
Just then, a very unwelcome voice rang out—a voice that, for years to come, would make Chu Yan want to kick its owner every time she heard it. It belonged to Fan, who had just arrived after capturing the men who had fled.
When Fan took in the scene before him, he was inwardly stunned.
Forty-five people. Not a single survivor. Except for the two men in black masks, the other forty-three had all been killed by a single, fatal blow. Not one had a second wound.
'Just how skilled at killing, how terrifyingly strong and fast, must a person be to do something like this?'
"I have all the information here regarding Zhang Lei and this kidnapping. Interested?" As Zhou Fan and Chu Yan got up to leave, Fan slowly raised his phone.