The two were startled. They spun around in astonishment, only to see several people lunging at them like a pack of wolves.
Zhao Yuan's first reaction was that they'd run into robbers. Fang Yi thought the same, letting out a strange cry as he snatched the bag of Soul-Stabilizing Incense from the table and clutched it to his chest, terrified it would be stolen.
In the blink of an eye, the group of uninvited guests was upon them.
Zhao Yuan didn't have time to think. His body reacted instinctively, unleashing the White Tiger Form from the Four Saints Technique. His entire aura changed in an instant, becoming as fierce as a tiger descending a mountain, ready to pounce and devour its prey. This immediately affected the two people rushing him, causing them to hesitate for a split second. Zhao Yuan seized the opportunity, closed the distance, and used his shoulder as a weapon, ramming brutally into them. With two loud THUDS, he sent both men flying, and they crashed over the booth behind them.
This sudden turn of events stunned the coffee shop into silence, which was immediately broken by a chorus of screams and gasps. People near the fight scrambled to their feet and backed away, content to watch the spectacle from a safe distance.
After sending the two attackers flying, Zhao Yuan turned to help Fang Yi. But at that exact moment, a sharp whistling sound cut through the air as an attack bore down on him.
Zhao Yuan's pupils contracted. Just from the whistling sound of it tearing through the air, he knew this attack carried immense power! He hastily raised his arm to block. THUD! A foot whipped down hard on his forearm. The sharp agony made him grit his teeth; if he hadn't already reached the Mid Stage of Muscle Strengthening, that single kick would have likely snapped his arm clean in two.
He looked up and saw his attacker was a striking woman in her early twenties with a commanding presence. She was the one who had given the order to attack just moments ago.
Zhao Yuan instantly came to a conclusion. 'This woman is definitely the leader of these robbers!'
'Such a pretty girl. She could do anything, so why choose to be a thief!' Zhao Yuan scoffed internally. Deciding to take down the leader first, he lunged at the woman.
The woman hadn't expected Zhao Yuan to be able to tank her attack. But she reacted with incredible speed. Seeing him lunge, she remained calm and instantly threw another kick. Her style was peculiar; she spun on her axis like she was cracking a whip, flinging her leg out to generate maximum speed and power.
The force of this kick was even greater than the last!
Zhao Yuan sucked in a sharp breath. He switched from the White Tiger Form to the Black Tortoise Form, crossing his arms into a shield to block the incoming whip-kick.
BAM!
Arm and leg collided heavily once more, and both of them shuddered from the impact.
The violent pain made Zhao Yuan feel as if he'd lost all sensation in his arms. His movements, however, were not significantly hindered. He pushed off the ground and continued to rush the woman.
The woman clearly hadn't expected Zhao Yuan to be so durable. She quickly threw another kick, trying to force him back.
This time, Zhao Yuan neither dodged nor blocked, taking the full force of the kick to his side. As cold sweat broke out on his brow from the pain, he seized the woman. Taking advantage of her unrecovered leg, he shoved her down, pinning her to the floor. Then, he clamped a hand tightly around her throat, intending to use her as a hostage to make the other robbers stand down.
But before he could speak, the cold muzzle of a pistol was pressed against his head.
'Fuck, these robbers actually have a gun!' A cold sweat instantly drenched Zhao Yuan. Even though he'd reached the Mid Stage of Muscle Strengthening, he couldn't block a bullet!
Just as Zhao Yuan's mind was racing, the person pointing the gun at him gasped out, "Don't move! Police!"
'Police?'
Zhao Yuan was stunned.
'I thought they were robbers, but they're actually cops? But Brother Fang and I haven't committed any crime, so why are they arresting us? And with such a huge show of force! Could it be because the Soul-Stabilizing Incense I made doesn't have a production permit? But even if that's the case, the Bureau of Industry and Commerce should handle it, not the police. And it definitely doesn't warrant pulling guns!'
Fang Yi was just as baffled, and he hurriedly yelled, "Are you really police? You must have the wrong people! We haven't done anything illegal!"
Unfortunately, the police officers paid him no mind.
The two officers Zhao Yuan had sent flying rushed over, yanked him to his feet, and cuffed him. The female officer got up, rubbing her red, chafed neck. She glared at Zhao Yuan and said, "You're skinny, but you're surprisingly tough and strong." Then, she ordered the other officers, "Take them back to the station. And bring the goods from their transaction. Hand it all over to the lab techs for analysis!"
"Yes, ma'am!" the officers replied in unison.
Meanwhile, in another corner of the coffee shop, the expressions of the men who had been giving Zhao Yuan and Fang Yi strange looks earlier all changed the moment they heard the word "police." One of them instinctively started to rise but was pushed back down by his companion.
"Don't be hasty. Let's wait and see," his companion, a man with a little moustache, whispered, his voice carrying an unnerving chill.
The others hesitated for a moment, but they all did as he said and stayed put.
Soon, the police escorted Zhao Yuan and Fang Yi out of the coffee shop. A police car was already waiting outside; they were put in the car and taken to the station, leaving a single officer behind to manage the scene.
"Let's go," Little Moustache said, getting to his feet. "Make sure your pieces are well hidden. Don't let them be found."
His companions nodded and followed Little Moustache, quickly exiting the coffee shop. By now, the scene was chaotic, with some people leaving and others rushing over to gawk. The officer left to manage the aftermath didn't notice the small group slip away.
A little over ten minutes later, Zhao Yuan and Fang Yi arrived at the police station and were placed in separate interrogation rooms.
The one interrogating Zhao Yuan was none other than the female officer with the formidable kicks.
"Name."
"Zhao Yuan."
"Gender."
"Male."
"Place of birth."
...
After running through the basic information, the female officer's tone sharpened. "Alright, start talking," she demanded. "Where did you get the drugs for the deal?"
"Drugs?"
Zhao Yuan finally understood why he'd been arrested. 'So the police think I'm a drug dealer! I can't take the fall for this!'
He quickly explained, "You've made a mistake. What Brother Fang and I were trading was incense, not drugs!"
"Incense?" The female officer raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. They had received a tip today that a drug deal was going down in the coffee shop across from the traditional Chinese medicine market. Their informant was reliable; they wouldn't have been misled.
"Whether it's incense or drugs isn't for you to decide," the female officer scoffed. She turned to a colleague assisting with the interrogation. "Go see if the lab results are in." Then she glared back at Zhao Yuan. "I refuse to believe you can talk your way out of this when you were caught red-handed."