Chapter Nine: Seeking Thrills

The stick was actually a table leg. And the ball? Still puzzled, Wang Yong noticed that Ling Tian was staring intently at his head, sending a cold sweat running down his back. This wasn’t playing around—this was risking one’s life. Trembling, Wang Yong stammered, “Big brother, I didn’t know who I was dealing with…” A torrent of pleas for mercy tumbled out of his mouth, leaving the onlookers gaping in astonishment. Wang Yong, usually arrogant and overbearing because his cousin was a major client of the company, was now bowing and scraping like a whipped dog.

Ling Tian shot Wang Yong a contemptuous glance and mocked, “Aren’t you the one who has connections in both the underworld and the authorities? Weren’t you acting all high and mighty just now? Lift your head a bit, I’m about to start the game. Oh, and you guys, step aside. I’m going for a home run.”

A home run? Damn! This wasn’t a game; this was a matter of life and death. Was this guy seriously joking about a home run, not realizing that one swing could split Wang Yong’s head wide open and send his brains flying?

This time, Wang Yong was truly terrified. When he’d bullied Ling Tian earlier, Ling Tian had seemed meek enough, but then he’d suddenly exploded, flooring Wang Yong with cold, calculated precision—showing no sign of bluffing. It looked like he really meant business.

“Don’t be nervous. It’s fun—very exciting. Come on, be good, lift your head.” Ling Tian sounded like a wicked uncle coaxing a child with a lollipop.

“Big brother, I was wrong, I swear I was wrong! Please, let me go—someone could die here!” Just moments ago, Wang Yong had been swaggering and fierce, but now he was scared out of his wits. If Ling Tian’s kick hadn’t been so ruthless just before, Wang Yong would have bolted already. His lackeys were also shaking in fear, not daring to utter a single word.

The atmosphere instantly chilled. The crowd watching didn’t even dare to breathe, terrified that Ling Tian would smash Wang Yong’s head with a single blow.

Chang Ming, the manager of the General Affairs Department, couldn’t bear it anymore. He pushed through the crowd and came up to Ling Tian, saying, “Xiao Tian, he knows he was wrong. Give him another chance.”

Xue Kun also came over and whispered in Ling Tian’s ear, “His cousin is a major client of the company—there’s tens of millions in business with him every year. If you don’t let this go, you could ruin that deal.”

Wang Yong had sharp ears and caught Xue Kun’s words. He instantly remembered that his biggest backer was his cousin. With so many people watching, and both the manager and supervisor pleading for him, unless Ling Tian was insane, he wouldn’t dare do anything to him.

Wang Yong took a deep breath, his confidence restored, and said with bravado, “You almost scared me just now. Do you even know who I am? You dare to challenge me? Didn’t you want to play ball? Come on, if you’ve got the guts, hit me right here.” He pointed arrogantly to his own forehead.

Clearly, Wang Yong had recovered from his earlier shock and reverted to his usual cocky, obnoxious self.

“What the hell are you all staring at?” Wang Yong shouted at the crowd, then turned on his own lackeys, cursing, “Damn it, you lot eat and drink with me, but when it matters most, you just stand there watching me get beaten? Are you tired of living?”

His lackeys, terrified, quickly rushed over to help him up.

Ling Tian hung his head, lost in thought, but he didn’t let go of the table leg—his grip remained tight.

Wang Yong brushed off his clothes, jabbed a finger at Ling Tian’s nose, and cursed, “You little bastard, keep acting tough! Damn you, you actually dared to hit me—I’ll ruin you today!”

Ling Tian suddenly raised his head, his gaze icy as he looked at Wang Yong. His voice was cold: “Can you repeat what you just said?”

Wang Yong was taken aback. What was this guy thinking? Didn’t he realize he was about to get beaten up? Although Wang Yong was puzzled, he still replied, “I said I’ll ruin you.”

Ling Tian shook his head. “Not that—what you said when you pointed at your head.”

Wang Yong was furious, feeling that Ling Tian was deliberately provoking him. “I said, if you’ve got the guts, hit me right here! Come on, if you dare!”

No response.

Wang Yong sneered, “Even if you had twice the guts, you wouldn’t dare…”

Before he could finish, his face went deathly pale. He saw a table leg whistling straight toward his head.

Ling Tian aimed at Wang Yong’s head and swung without a moment’s hesitation, as if he were striking a ball instead of a human head.

The onlookers covered their eyes in terror. Chang Ming let out a helpless sigh—someone was going to die.

With a violent crash, Wang Yong was sent flying, smashing two tables in succession before a heart-rending scream rang out. He hadn’t even realized he was being hit, a testament to Ling Tian’s incredible speed.

Ling Tian had used just enough force to avoid causing fatal damage; otherwise, Wang Yong’s head would have been in far worse shape than a mere gash.

With an innocent expression, Ling Tian turned to the stunned crowd and said, “You all heard him, didn’t you? He told me to hit him.”

Everyone: “…”

“Don’t be so nervous, everyone. We were just playing around,” Ling Tian added with a mocking smile. He hefted the table leg and walked over to Wang Yong, asking, “Exciting, isn’t it?”

To Wang Yong’s surprise, his head hadn’t split open—just a cut. But he had no mind to dwell on that. All he could do was stare at Ling Tian in terror. This guy really dared to go all out. Now Wang Yong understood that, compared to Ling Tian, he wasn’t even worth mentioning.

Some people either don’t play, or if they do, they play to win—or to the death. That was true power.

“Big brother, I surrender.” Seeing the table leg still in Ling Tian’s hand, Wang Yong, afraid of getting hit again, dropped to his knees and capitulated.

With Wang Yong unharmed, Chang Ming and Xue Kun breathed a heavy sigh of relief. If anyone had died, the consequences would have been catastrophic.

Still, they knew tough times lay ahead. With Wang Yong’s personality, this surrender was only temporary. Once things calmed down, he’d definitely run to his cousin and complain—who knew what trouble that would bring.

Ling Tian dropped the table leg and said to Wang Yong, “Clean this place up. I need to get back to work. You have five minutes.”

Wang Yong, not wanting to suffer further, set to work with uncharacteristic diligence. With his lackeys’ help, he had the lobby spotless in under three minutes.

Ling Tian sat by the window, then turned to Xue Kun. “Supervisor, I think I’m ready to start work. Do you have any tasks for me?”

Still in shock, Xue Kun quickly replied, “There’s an outstanding payment we need to collect. It was supposed to be Wang Yong’s job, but how about you take it? Just be careful—don’t use force unless absolutely necessary. This is a law-abiding society now, and they have numbers on their side.” What he really meant was that the people outside weren’t like Wang Yong—getting hit a couple of times and giving up.

Chang Ming nodded his agreement. As the saying goes, two fists are no match for four hands. Ling Tian might be a good fighter, but going to someone else’s turf to collect debts could be dangerous.

Ling Tian nodded. “Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing.”

Just then, Wang Ling, the HR manager and notorious troublemaker, pushed through the crowd and came up to Ling Tian with a sneer. “Before you go collecting debts, there’s another task for you.”

Ling Tian didn’t like this meddlesome woman, but since he was now part of the company, he had to follow orders. “What is it?” he asked.

Wang Ling led Ling Tian out of the general affairs department and into HR. After closing the door, she approached with an air of mystery.

Ling Tian was perplexed—just what kind of task could be so secretive?