Chapter 343

Chapter 343: Sky-High Energy

In the Buddhist country of Thailand, one could find buildings and decorations steeped in religious culture everywhere—gold-topped pagodas, statues of Buddha in various sizes, and colorful glazed tiles were countless.

The culture of Buddhism runs deep within the Thai people. Although there is a significant wealth gap, the poor seem unconcerned about the rich and content with their poverty, as if they believe it is their destiny.

Songkhla is not a bustling modern metropolis or an industrial city; as a tourist destination, it retains its traditional architecture, pebbled paths, stone-paved streets, refurbished asphalt roads, and narrow alleys filled with water channels for boats, making it a charming southern coastal city in Thailand.

Walking on foreign land, language barriers are no issue for Lin Mo. He doesn’t even need the translation feature on his watch.

In the pockets of his baggy beach shorts, he carries notes written in both Chinese and Thai while also being stuffed with Thai baht. When he encounters something to buy, he doesn’t say a word—he simply hands over a note asking for the price.

His bargaining style is particularly unique; without speaking, Lin Mo takes out a pile of Thai baht, lets the seller take one by one right in front of him, then pulls some back, switching back and forth until both are satisfied. This is how he wraps up the negotiation; money in one hand, goods in the other—it’s a direct deal.

He isn’t the only solo traveler using this method; Thais don’t seem to mind this humorous way of bargaining and often offer more discounts, which adds to the local flavor.

Using the same approach, Lin Mo spent a few baht to buy a straw hat. As the thin mist gradually cleared, the tropical sun blazed down intensely, yet for someone with a light-element constitution like Lin Mo, it felt like paradise.

Attracted by the Battle Energy, the light elements in the air drifted toward him, merging with his battle energy, and after a transformation, they grew more active.

Lin Mo hasn’t set aside his practice of Battle Energy for even a day, but the elemental energy in this world is not only limited but also very low in activity. If he hadn’t brought some seeds of light battle energy with him when arriving in this world, he might have ended up completely useless.

Even so, this transformation efficiency could only be described as minuscule, but the combat style here does not require Lin Mo to output a tremendous amount of power. The stored energy he has is enough to support the few light-element spells he knows.

As Lin Mo wandered about, buying some snacks, local vendors mistook him for a tourist willing to spend money. They shouted to him with increasing enthusiasm, and two little boys approached him, eager to sell him Buddha statues.

One was a fist-sized god of wealth figure, and the other was a four-faced deity representing love, health, wealth, and career. The boys waved the statues in front of Lin Mo, chattering away in Thai, which he couldn’t understand, seemingly desperate for him to purchase the figures.

Before the Chinese fleet arrived, local government had already swept through Songkhla, rounding up beggars, so he saw no scruffy-haired children stretching dirty hands out for change.

Lin Mo had lost the appetite to continue nibbling on the grilled squid on a stick. The two boys were too clingy; even though he couldn’t comprehend their words, their persistent expressions and gestures made their intentions clear.

As Lin Mo continued to shake his head and decline, he suddenly heard a loud bellow from down the street, followed by a cacophony of piercing shouts. A flood of crashing sounds mixed with cries and shrieks of children broke the marketplace’s lively chatter, and the mooing intensified, echoing as it moved swiftly along the street.

The two boys, too fixated on Lin Mo, only realized something was amiss when they saw people around them in a panic, scrambling to the sides of the road. A massive black water buffalo stomped down the stone pavement. Its hooves struck the ground heavily with a thud, and its wild, red eyes seemed crazed.

Just before, a cheeky bee had stung the nose of the 800-kilogram buffalo.

That sting was no trivial matter—the bee paid for it with its life, but the pain and venom sent the normally docile beast into a frenzy, causing it to lose its mind and charge through the streets, shaking off its owner in sheer panic, and kicking wildly.

The street quickly fell into chaos, with people tumbling in every direction as stalls overturned. The panic-stricken crowd collided with market stands, leaving a mess in their wake. Products scattered across the ground, trampled and smashed. Vendors shouted in distress, for this was their only source of livelihood.

The rampaging buffalo was like a tank; with a simple push or a crash, it sent people shrieking and objects flying. It didn’t care what was in front of it—the stubbornness of a bull remained. Even if faced with a mountain, it would charge headlong into it.

"Damn it!" Pu Zhana noticed that the Chinese officer stood right in the path of the charging buffalo, while the two boys selling statues looked frozen in fear beside him, blocking the only escape route.

Pu Zhana’s heart was in turmoil; his task was to covertly protect this Chinese officer. There were many others assigned to similar duties, all tasked with safeguarding one or several high-ranking Chinese military officials outside the base.

Sensing danger, he instinctively drew his gun, but out of the corner of his eye, he spotted several unidentified individuals mirroring his actions within the crowd—dark guns flickering amongst the people. Damn it, he didn’t recognize any of them. Were there others hidden here? Among these people were both Asians and Westerners, all disguised as tourists.

Were they friends or foes? However, he could no longer afford to ponder that with the immediate peril in front of him.

Was this Chinese officer like a wasp’s nest? One poke could lead to big trouble.

With so many unidentified people lurking nearby, how could he remain so relaxed, casually strolling while sampling snacks? What kind of person was this, drawing in so many to hide nearby?

As a senior secret agent of the Thai military, Pu Zhana put aside thoughts of exposing himself. If he didn’t act soon, that Chinese officer would be trampled into paste along with the two boys by the mad water buffalo.

Just as he rushed toward the Chinese officer’s position, gun raised, unable to aim at the buffalo before him, an unbelievable scene unfolded before his eyes. His finger rested on the trigger, gun raised high, but an invisible force held him back, preventing him from pulling the trigger. Even after he retired, he would still wonder if what he witnessed today was real or just a hallucination.

Time seemed to freeze as the enraged buffalo barreled toward Lin Mo, almost allowing him to catch a whiff of its strong, earthy scent.

In an instant, the Battle Energy within Lin Mo surged. He turned his head to glance at the frightened little boy beside him, whose face had turned pale. Lin Mo smiled carefreely.

Stepping forward two paces, he clenched his left fist and, under the astonished gaze of many onlookers, swung it outward with tremendous force.

A heavy thud echoed as the narrow street seemed to experience a small earthquake. The people running around stumbled from the ground’s sudden vibrations. Those closest to the buffalo fell en masse, with many desperately clinging to anything stable nearby.

The several hundred-kilogram water buffalo seemed to lose all its weight, like a balloon drifting away, uncontrollably redirected by Lin Mo’s punch. Where Lin Mo’s fist made contact, the buffalo’s massive head slammed into the ground first, followed by its weighty body crashing onto the stones. A chilling, loud cracking sound filled the air, be it from the ground or the buffalo’s bones, the earth beneath them visibly sank slightly.

With just one punch—only one punch—he stunned countless onlookers.

The several hundred-kilogram buffalo couldn’t advance another step and didn’t let out a cry; it was simply knocked flat on its side by Lin Mo’s single blow.

Blood oozed from the buffalo’s eyes, ears, nostrils, and mouth, staining the ground red.

What on earth was happening?

Pu Zhana struggled to believe his eyes, unsure if it was reality or a dream. But as a trained agent, his willpower surpassed that of ordinary people, and he quickly snapped back to reality. There were still other armed individuals nearby.

With the buffalo no longer a threat, he immediately directed his weapon at the unidentified armed people.

Those individuals, also coming out of their shock, adopted nearly identical expressions, mouths agape, unable to close them for a long time. Upon seeing the dark muzzle of Pu Zhana’s gun, they all bitterly smiled, lowering their weapons, taking their fingers off the triggers, and signaling no ill will.

It appeared these individuals were engaged in the same line of work as Pu Zhana. They didn’t seem to harbor any malicious intent toward the Chinese officer either. Their simultaneous reach for their guns might have been to protect the officer, given there had been countless opportunities to strike while wandering the street.

Pu Zhana let out a sigh of relief and forcefully pushed through the panicked crowd to reach the scene of chaos.

“Wow!” The two pale-faced Thai boys exchanged glances, screamed, and clutched their Buddha statues and goods before bolting away, nearly losing their lives without caring about such a big spender anymore.

The pesky little boys who had clung to Lin Mo were instead saved by a rampaging water buffalo.

“Hello, Captain Lin, I have been sent by the government to protect you!” Pu Zhana rushed to Lin Mo’s side, awkwardly reciting the prepared lines with a stiff accent, nervously pointing his gun at the now-motionless buffalo, fearing the creature might suddenly strike again.

The unidentified gunmen around them quickly vanished without a trace at the first opportunity.