Chapter 37: Escape from Prison

I turned my head and saw it was the tattooed man from earlier in the day. Clearly, he still bore a grudge over me taking his spot and was here to settle the score.

Was I afraid of him? Not in the slightest. As he charged at me, brandishing a toothbrush as a weapon, I sidestepped, dodged the thrust aimed at my eye, grabbed his arm, and flipped him over my shoulder. Just like that, he was subdued.

Damn, he must’ve watched too many movies—using a toothbrush as a weapon. The tattooed man scrambled up from the grass and swung his fists at me. I dodged left and right, his punches missing every time. The inmates in Cell 2 shouted, “Brother Fei, you’re amazing!”

“Brother Fei, you’re my idol!”

“Brother Fei, I love you!”

Hell with that. Worship is fine, but love? No, thank you. I kicked the tattooed man to the ground and strode back confidently. My cellmates crowded around me, asking, “Brother Fei, are you alright?”

“Are you hurt? Let me check.”

Being idolized felt damn good. It seemed, whether in the real world or this strange one, strength reigns supreme—an unchanging truth.

The tattooed man got up, gnashing his teeth, and rushed at me. “I’ll fight you to the death!”

I waved him off. “He’s yours.”

I sat on the grass, watching as the tattooed man was beaten until his face swelled like a pig’s head. I copied Chiron’s style, chewing on a stalk of dried grass as I walked over. “There’s only one boss here, and that’s me. Behave yourself.” I poked his chest with my finger as I spoke.

Chiron, who’d been watching the whole spectacle, marched over, displeased that I’d stolen the spotlight. “The old rule: one-on-one.”

“Sure, who’s afraid?” I replied, mimicking the bravado of a third-rate thug.

A group cleared a space, and Chiron and I stood in the center, ready to fight—when suddenly,

“Hey, what are you doing? No work? Out for just a minute and already causing trouble! Chiron, and you—the new guy, come with me.” The officer wielding an iron rod called out.

We were summoned to the open ground behind the prison. “What are you two up to? Fighting is strictly forbidden here,” the officer barked.

“We’re playing a game,” Chiron replied.

“Yes, just playing a game,” I echoed.

“Hmph, you think this is your home? I don’t want to see this again. Dismissed.”

“We’ll see about that,” Chiron said coldly, glaring at me.

I shrugged off his threat and strode back to the crowd. Feather Realm, who’d been watching, came over and asked why I didn’t teach Chiron a lesson. I spat out the dry grass. “Brother Feather, you don’t understand our world. The law rules here, and prison has its own code. We can’t act recklessly. Let’s wait—it may not be long before we leave.”

Feather Realm sighed helplessly. “I wonder how Ke’er is doing. By the way, Brother Yunfei, how did we suddenly end up in this strange world?”

I shook my head. “I don’t know. When Zhang Lei grabbed the Gray Wolf, there was a flash of white light, and we were here.”

“Is it possible that Mo Third and the others ended up here too?” Feather Realm asked, sitting down on the grass.

“It’s possible. If they did, things could get complicated,” I replied, sitting beside him.

“Why did Zhang Lei suddenly help us? Does he remember the bond between brothers, or was he always lurking by Mo Third for some reason?” Feather Realm mused, gazing at the night sky.

I lit a cigarette, handed one to Feather Realm, and he imitated me, coughing violently after his first puff.

“I don’t know why Zhang Lei suddenly helped us, but I know this crossing has something to do with me,” I said, taking a drag.

Feather Realm tossed aside his cigarette and looked at me, waiting for an explanation.

“The last time I crossed into your world, it was because my wrist was injured.” After my attempted suicide and subsequent coma, I’d unknowingly spent more than a year in the other world. Before crossing back, my wrist had also been scraped and bloodied by a stone.

I took a deep drag and threw away the cigarette butt. “This time, it was the same. My wrist was injured.” I showed him my right wrist, where the wound had already scabbed over. Feather Realm gripped it tightly, his expression complex. “It looks like a dragon mark.”

“What?” I asked, looking at him. Indeed, there was a faint grayish ring around my wrist, something I’d had since childhood but never paid much attention to.

Feather Realm explained that the dragon mark was an ancient bloodline relic. In those times, the world was full of powerhouses—demon realm, divine realm, both had people with dragon marks. With a dragon mark, one could traverse time and space, and its abilities would grow with the host’s power. Not only could it allow time travel, but it could also heal injuries—granting near immortality, as long as the mark wasn’t destroyed. So in ancient times, those with dragon marks wore wristguards forged from divine stone.

“I think you possess the bloodline of some ancient powerhouse—god or demon, I can’t say,” Feather Realm said.

“What are you two doing? Slacking off? Get back to work,” the officer with the iron rod barked, coming over again.

After a few hours of labor, we were finally dismissed. Surrounded by my cellmates, I returned to Cell 2. They asked me to teach them some moves, so I demonstrated a couple of basic punches. Everyone practiced together in the dorm, while I lay down to sleep.

Dawn came, and it was time to gather again. Outside, the officer banged on the iron door. “Hurry up, everyone must be ready in five minutes!”

We crawled out of bed, washed up, and everyone made way for me. I accepted their courtesy, finished my routine, donned my prison clothes, and headed to the yard.

People hadn’t all arrived yet. Chiron and his companions were on the field, swaying their hips. “Isn’t that Brother Fei? Go pay your respects!” Chiron said cheerfully.

His companions bowed. “Good morning, Brother Fei.”

I bowed in return. “Please take care of me.”

“Take care of you? I’ll take care of you right now!” Chiron elbowed me in the back and stomped down, forcing me to the ground as his group pummeled me.

Damn it! I clenched my fists. I hadn’t provoked them—why were they always targeting me? Is it true that the kind are bullied? Clearly, if I don’t show them some real strength, they’ll keep causing trouble.

I twisted my body and stood up, glaring furiously at Chiron. I grabbed him and hurled him with all my might. He flew over ten meters, landing face-down and bleeding. The gangsters saw their boss tossed aside like a chick and fled in terror. I picked them up one by one and threw them beside Chiron.

By then, everyone had assembled. Seeing Chiron’s humiliating state, whistles sounded across the yard. I walked up to him, my foot on his chest. “Brother Long, having fun? Want to go again?”

Chiron quickly waved his hands. “No more, no more! Brother Fei, spare me!”

Behind me, hurried footsteps approached. I turned to see the previous boss of Cell 2, the tattooed man. What was he up to? He really didn’t know his limits.

I seized him by the throat, tightened my grip, and with a sharp crack, his head lolled and he stopped struggling. I hurriedly let go, and he collapsed to the ground, uncertain if he was dead or alive.

I checked his breath—dead… I had killed him. This was my second time killing someone; the first was an accidental death during my tenure, so I wasn’t convicted. This time, I might not be so lucky. To be honest, I was terrified.

“Murder!…”

“Murder!”

The yard erupted into chaos.

Clearly, I had to escape this place immediately—or I’d be executed for sure. “Feather Realm, come with me!”

Feather Realm stepped out from the crowd. “Brother Yunfei, what happened—did you kill him?”

“Just come!” Seeing the three-meter-high electric fence in the distance, I sprinted over and leaped cleanly over it. I couldn’t care about anything else now. Feather Realm followed, and behind us, sirens blared as uniformed officers tried to restore order.

Outside the prison lay barren ground, overgrown with weeds. I didn’t take the path I’d come by, but plunged into the tall grass. Feather Realm and I pressed forward, stumbling through the thicket.

Soon, a buzzing sound came from above—the prison helicopter had arrived. I pushed Feather Realm down into the grass as the helicopter hovered overhead, ropes dropped, and several soldiers descended, armed with submachine guns.

We’d been spotted. This was it! I gathered black true energy in my right hand and unleashed a palm strike at the armed soldiers.