Golden Dragon Swallows Tiger (Part 1)

Seeing the second young lady charging over with such ferocity, A Zhu shifted his hands, ready to meet her. Li Feng chuckled, blocking A Zhu's path, and with a gentle palm, he diverted the second young lady's palm strike. Swaying unsteadily, he hopped down the steps and engaged her in a fight. Li Feng shouted loudly, "This is outrageous! A woman dares to barge in early in the morning. It's truly outrageous! Hmph, a woman this fierce will never get married in her life."

The dozen or so middle-aged men standing behind them all changed their expressions. The second young lady, however, sharply rebuked him, "You brat, what does this have to do with you? Talking such nonsense, I'll knock your teeth out, girl."

Li Feng weaved around her like an eel, and the powerful palm winds couldn't touch his body. He whispered softly, "You're calling yourself a girl now? Not a young master anymore? Heh heh, I knew it. You're clearly a woman, heh heh, and you insist on being stubborn... Oh my, in broad daylight, in front of everyone, you dare to kill someone? Ah, what a shame, what a shame, you missed by just a little, you didn't hit me, hahahaha, hey, little girl, I'm not like those losers. It would be a miracle if you could hit me."

The Right Protector of the White Emperor Sect whispered instructions, "Is that kid stalling for time? The young lady is no match for him at all. Send someone up to take the young lady's place. Since we're here today, we'll teach these Golden Dragon Gang members a good lesson. Don't think that just because Cangfeng Fortress backs them, they can disregard our White Emperor Sect... Hmph, if it weren't for that old fellow Yue Wuxia sucking up to the current emperor, they wouldn't dare call themselves the best in the world?"

A burly man with thick muscles and a full beard stepped forward in response, clapping his hands forcefully three times and shouting, "Kid, you've got some skill. Your footwork is quite smooth. Come, come, come, old man 'Black Diamond' Li Yuankui will play with you... Hey, second young lady, would you like to rest? Let us handle this lowly brat. You are of noble birth, why bother with these petty people? Even hitting him would tarnish your status."

The second young lady could no longer sustain the attack. She unleashed dozens of palms at Li Feng with her inner strength, her internal energy nearing depletion. A fine sheen of sweat had appeared on her forehead. Hearing 'Black Diamond's' words, she immediately agreed, "Excellent. Knock out all of this kid's teeth for me." With that, she turned to leave, disregarding Li Feng's palm that was still heading towards her.

With an incredibly crisp 'slap,' Li Feng himself hadn't expected the second young lady to make no attempt to dodge. His palm strike landed squarely, causing her to stagger badly and nearly fall to the ground. A Zhu on the steps applauded and laughed heartily, while the experts from the White Emperor Sect turned ashen and advanced three steps simultaneously. 'Black Diamond' roared and, like a black whirlwind, unleashed dozens of fist shadows, lunging at Li Feng.

Li Feng stared in astonishment at the second young lady, her face flushed red with a clear handprint on it. He couldn't help but curse, "You woman, why are you so unreasonable? You were fighting me desperately, and you just leave? Do you think I don't know how to hit people? It's good I didn't use my inner strength, otherwise, your head would have been smashed to pieces!" With that, Li Feng shifted his body, his right hand making a false pull, executing 'Slanting Peak Piercing Clouds' and diverting all of Black Diamond's fist energy to his side. With a series of clatters, a large section of the flagstones in the Golden Dragon Gang's main entrance square was instantly shattered.

The second young lady's beautiful eyes widened, and she shrieked, "I'll kill you." A ripple of water surged from her sleeve, chopping down towards Li Feng. She was furious. Back at the White Emperor Sect, no matter who she sparred with, as soon as she stopped fighting, no one dared to continue. Yet, she had to encounter this scoundrel Li Feng, who wasn't a subordinate of her White Emperor Sect. The slap had infuriated her, angered her, and shamed her, completely disarraying her heart. Disregarding the consequences, she drew the White Emperor Sect's secret technique, the 'Moonlit Sword,' and swung it at him.

Li Feng caught a glimpse of a flash of red clothing at the entrance of a nearby alley and immediately cried out, clutching his head, "It's over, it's over, they're going to beat me to death." With that, he spun his toes and had already circled behind Black Diamond, kicking him in the backside before falling backward himself, looking up at the sky.

Black Diamond, enraged, turned and kicked Li Feng in the waist. His tall frame, however, perfectly blocked the second young lady's sword, forcing her to stomp her foot and turn, swinging her sword at Li Feng. Li Feng's body, however, was like a scarecrow, completely unaffected by the force. As soon as Black Diamond's kick touched him, he lightly flew out five or six zhang, rolling a few times on the ground in a sorry state, even cooperating by letting a trickle of blood flow from his mouth.

Sword light flashed, and countless water-like sword lights enveloped Li Feng's entire body. Li Feng cried out repeatedly, wailing, "There's no justice, no law, no fairness... In broad daylight, you dare to kill people in front of the authorities?... Help! The Great Ming's iron law states that those who kill shall surely die." He rolled and crawled on the ground, making A Zhu's heart pound as he weaved through the sword light. With a series of swishes, Li Feng's clothes were torn to shreds, piece by piece, yet not a single inch of his skin was harmed.

The experts from the White Emperor Sect wore strange expressions. They hadn't expected Li Feng to slap the second young lady. If this were White Emperor City, it would have caused a massive uproar. Fortunately, it seemed this kid's martial arts weren't that high. As long as the second young lady killed him or stabbed him a dozen times, her anger would likely subside. Otherwise, with all of them, the experts, standing there and watching the second young lady get slapped, it would be a significant offense if the Sect Master found out.

In the arena, Li Feng was still wailing and shouting on the ground, while the second young lady furiously yelled, "You scoundrel, how dare you hit me? You lie there obediently and let me stab you a hundred times... Black Diamond, what are you doing? Knock him out for me."

Black Diamond grunted, his right arm swelling by half, and he punched fiercely towards Li Feng. With a 'moo,' a wave of white energy shot out from Black Diamond's fist. He roared, "Raging Bull Force, die for me!" His right fist parted and rejoined, and the white energy dispersed into five streams with a 'crack,' precisely covering Li Feng's figure. It seemed Li Feng was about to be struck by the powerful wind.

The second young lady cried out, "Good." Her sword light flashed, and a spray of bright sword light perfectly filled the gaps between the five streams of white energy, intending to split Li Feng into a hundred pieces on the spot.

A sharp shout echoed, "Under the vast sky, in broad daylight. You dare to kill people? Is there no law? Brothers, take them all back." Before the voice had even finished echoing, an extremely powerful palm strike pushed in from the side, shattering Black Diamond's 'Raging Bull Force.' Simultaneously, a subtly insidious soft force imprinted itself on the second young lady's waist. She let out a muffled groan, retreated seven or eight steps in a sorry state, loosened her grip, and the 'Moonlit Sword' fell to the ground. Then, she fell backward, looking up at the sky.

The experts of the White Emperor Sect were in an uproar. With a forceful push of their feet, they leaped towards the arena. With whistling sounds, over a hundred crossbow bolts shot down. Two White Emperor Sect experts, caught off guard, cried out as more than a dozen crossbow bolts pierced their bodies, sending them flying back. The Right Protector and a few others with particularly high skill unleashed palm strikes, shattering the incoming crossbow bolts, but their rapid advance was forcibly halted.

The Right Protector cried out in alarm, "Gu Cangyue, you dare to harm our young lady? Our White Emperor Sect will never rest until we are reconciled with your Cangfeng Fortress."

Appearing in the arena was Gu Cangyue, his face tinged with an abnormal dark aura. Compared to six years ago, he was thinner, but the chilling aura around him had intensified tenfold. It seemed that after his cultivation was damaged, he had focused all his energy on scheming, and the aura he exuded was completely different from before.

He looked coldly at the sky and said in a low voice, "Our Cangfeng Fortress and your White Emperor Sect were already irreconcilable. What does it matter if I injured your second young lady? In broad daylight, slaughtering innocent civilians, are you trying to rebel? As the Chief Constable of Suzhou Prefecture, I, Gu, naturally have the authority to arrest all of you... Guards, handcuff them all! Anyone who dares to resist will be killed without mercy." Over fifty constables rushed out, swinging their iron chains towards the White Emperor Sect experts. The sound of orderly footsteps echoed, and a full two hundred soldiers from the garrison, armed with crossbows, appeared at the exits of the nearby alleys, their eyes filled with murderous intent.

Li Feng, rolling and crawling, reached Gu Cangyue's side and clung to him, weeping loudly, "Chief Constable Gu, you must do justice for me! My capital, a full million taels of silver notes, was stolen by these damned bastards! They also wanted to silence me! These brothers from the Golden Dragon Gang are witnesses! They clearly saw these bandits rob my money and kill over fifty of my escorts..."

Gu Cangyue frowned and couldn't help but cast a sideways glance at A Zhu, who had a sly smile on his face, muttering to himself, "Where did the Golden Dragon Gang find such a treasure? You need to make your accusations more reasonable. Over fifty escorts killed? If I really report this to the higher-ups according to your words, I won't be able to be Chief Constable anymore."

Gu Cangyue coughed and was about to speak when Li Feng's faint voice, like a dying breath, reached his ear: "One price. I'll help you recover your cultivation, and even make you three parts stronger. You help me deal with these bastards, issue a wanted poster, it's not a difficult task, right? Just say they were on the run and robbed my silver notes. How about it? I never lie, I guarantee you can recover your cultivation."

A sharp glint flashed in his eyes, and Gu Cangyue roared, "Still dare to resist? Attack!" The garrison soldiers immediately shouted, and over thirty of them drew their goose-feather swords and advanced with orderly strides, clearing the way for the constables who had been knocked down. They slashed towards the White Emperor Sect experts. Gu Cangyue said in a low voice, "Nonsense. I was struck by the 'Nine Yin Devouring Yang Palm.' If the Fortress Lord hadn't given me a five-hundred-year-old ginseng, I wouldn't have survived. You can make my cultivation recover? What a joke."

Li Feng said no more. He took out a pure white, jade-like, finger-thick ginseng from his bosom, which clearly resembled a small human figure. He said proudly, "See if your Old Tou'er recognizes this. This is a 'Jade Ginseng' over two thousand years old, cultivated in underground spiritual veins. Let alone your 'Nine Yin Devouring Yang Palm,' even if you were half dead now, it could bring you back to life. Heh heh... Do you want to make this deal? As long as you, Old Tou'er, agree, from now on, the Golden Dragon Gang will have a monopoly, and I'll give you an extra thirty percent of the profits."

Gu Cangyue was decisive. He struck his own chest with a palm, spitting out a mouthful of blood. He wailed, "Brothers, capture them for me... Daring to resist arrest in a crowd? Which sect are they from? Find out their background for me and issue a wanted notice."

The constables were already overwhelmed. Hearing Gu Cangyue's shouts, they immediately cried out in unison, "The bandits are from the White Emperor Sect in Sichuan! Ah, what fierce bandits... Garrison brothers, our leader has been injured, you must be careful... Ah, according to the Great Ming military law, those who attack and kill garrison soldiers will have their entire families executed!"

The Right Protector of the White Emperor Sect shivered all over. The palm strike he was about to unleash was forcefully retracted. He awkwardly dodged a saber strike from a garrison corporal. His chest rose and fell rapidly nine times, his internal energy exploding like gunpowder. His body moved like a phantom into the arena, grabbing the second young lady from the ground. He didn't even bother with Black Diamond, who was being besieged by over a dozen of Gu Cangyue's constables, nor did he pick up the 'Moonlit Sword.' He leaped over seven zhang high and flew away, cursing.

With a series of 'caw caw' sounds, a few crossbow bolts were shot into the sky aimlessly at Gu Cangyue's signal, bidding farewell to the Right Protector and his men as they escaped. The experts from the White Emperor Sect, seeing their leader flee, immediately joined forces, unleashing a palm strike to repel the garrison soldiers in front of them, and then fled. They weren't fools. Even with immense cultivation, how many members did their White Emperor Sect have? If they were to incur a criminal record, and compete against the entire Great Ming Dynasty's army of over two million soldiers, it would be suicidal. Especially since the Great Ming had only been established for a decade or two, its army had countless experts, and its soldiers were the best in the world. It was a force that no sect dared to oppose.

In the conflict over territory near Suzhou Prefecture, the White Emperor Sect had always been at a disadvantage. This was precisely because Gu Cangyue was the Chief Constable of Suzhou Prefecture. The common people do not fight officials; even these unruly martial arts experts acknowledged this unwritten rule. As the White Emperor Sect experts fled, Black Diamond, surrounded by Gu Cangyue's elite subordinates, endured for the time it took to eat a meal before being knocked down from behind with a water-fire staff. Two wires were immediately threaded through his collarbones.

Li Feng, grinning, pulled the still blood-stained Gu Cangyue into the Golden Dragon Gang's courtyard. A Zhu asked worriedly, "A Feng, why are you also spitting blood? Did that bastard Li Yuankui hit you that hard?... Damn it, several of our Golden Dragon Gang brothers were injured by him."

Li Feng smiled, took out a half-bitten tomato from his embrace, chewed it for a long time before swallowing, and said, "It's nothing. This is a treasure I prepared long ago, specifically for faking it." A Zhu was speechless, but he was still a little puzzled: "When did this kid go to the kitchen? I thought I was following him the whole time."

Li Feng glanced at Gu Cangyue, whose face was indifferent but whose eye corners were twitching, and suddenly laughed, "A Zhu, you take people to arrange things outside and get in touch with those constables, build some rapport. I have some private matters to discuss with Old Tou'er. I'll tell you later, okay?"

A Zhu nodded in agreement. Li Feng then casually led Gu Cangyue into a side room and closed the door tightly. As Gu Cangyue entered, he gave a look to his subordinates. The constables in official attire immediately blocked the doorway, appearing loyal and protective, forbidding anyone from entering. The constables found it a bit strange that there was no sound coming from the room, only feeling a continuous flow of air leaking from the window cracks.

A full two hours passed, and the sun was directly overhead. Li Feng, sweating profusely, his face pale, and putting on an act of being utterly exhausted, slowly walked out. Behind him, Gu Cangyue flashed out like a phantom and struck the ground with his palm. With a series of 'crackling' sounds, the flagstones within a three-zhang radius centered on his body were all shattered. Gu Cangyue glanced at his hands with excitement and roared to the sky, "Wonderful, wonderful... Brother Li, truly wonderful. My cultivation is now fifty percent higher than at its peak... Wonderful, wonderful, truly a heavenly spiritual medicine, extraordinary cultivation."

Gu Cangyue swept like the wind to Li Feng's side, looking gratefully at Li Feng's "exhausted" appearance, and said solemnly, "From now on, Brother Li's affairs are my affairs. If you need anything, just say the word. Isn't it just about eliminating the Golden Tiger Gang? When my cultivation hadn't recovered, I could only let them cause trouble below. Now that my cultivation has greatly advanced, what do I have to fear?" With that, he burst into wild laughter again.

He was elated. The most important thing for martial artists was cultivation. Li Feng had restored Gu Cangyue's cultivation and even increased it by fifty percent, which was enough to make Gu Cangyue risk his life for Li Feng. Moreover, Gu Cangyue was confident that with a fifty percent increase in his cultivation, he could at least rank within the top thirty in the martial world, and his status in Cangfeng Fortress would greatly increase. Especially since he knew that the full efficacy of that 'Jade Ginseng' had not yet been realized, and a portion of the medicinal power was still accumulating in his body's meridians. As long as he cultivated diligently in the future, his cultivation could at least increase by another thirty percent from its current level.

He now regarded Li Feng as his benefactor and no longer cared or questioned how Li Feng obtained that 'Jade Ginseng.' Even if Li Feng said it fell from the sky, he would believe it.

Li Feng chuckled, "You're welcome, you're welcome. It's just a small matter, Lord Gu doesn't need to put 'too' much emphasis on it. I accidentally found this Jade Ginseng in Changbai Mountain. I originally planned to exchange it for a good sum of gold and silver, but upon meeting Lord Gu, I realized that only a great hero and magnate like Lord Gu deserves to use it. Now this 'Jade Ginseng' is finally being used as it should be... In the future, I will rely on Lord Gu for much care in Suzhou Prefecture."

Gu Cangyue, currently high on the excitement of his greatly increased cultivation, couldn't possibly refuse. He immediately nodded heavily, "Rest assured, everything is on me. From now on, the Golden Dragon Gang will be our Cangfeng Fortress's best ally." Gu Cangyue felt that with his current cultivation, he had the right to say such things and could represent Cangfeng Fortress in deciding matters concerning the Suzhou territory. He was even considering whether he needed to drive away the Earth Fiend Star sent by the Fortress to assist him in suppressing the local forces in Suzhou Prefecture, so that he could monopolize the future increased profits.

In the main hall of the Golden Tiger Gang, the pale-faced second young lady was furiously berating the White Emperor Sect experts, "Nonsense! If we leave now, what face will our White Emperor Sect have? My father sent you to Suzhou to expand our sphere of influence, increase revenue, and expand the sect. If you escape now, aren't you just giving all the hard-won territory to others? No, no, whoever dares to leave, go back and see my father yourself."

As she spoke, the second young lady slammed her palm on the tea table, gritting her teeth, and grumbled, "Especially since my 'Moonlit Sword' has fallen into their hands, how can we just leave like this? I finally got it from my elder brother to play with, and I haven't had it for three months... Especially that skinny kid, if I don't skin him alive, I'm not Bai Lingxin."

The Right Protector of the White Emperor Sect had an extremely grim expression. Looking at Bai Lingxin, who was throwing a tantrum in the main hall, he couldn't help but sigh, "The Sect Master and the eldest young master are incredibly wise, but this second young lady is simply unreasonable. Doesn't she know that if the Golden Dragon Gang bribes Gu Cangyue, and Suzhou Prefecture issues a decree, we won't even be able to leave then? No matter how high your martial arts are, can you compare to the thousands of garrison soldiers within Suzhou Prefecture? Especially the generals in the garrison, aren't they all from the martial world? Our White Emperor Sect has no more than thirty experts in Suzhou Prefecture, and now we've lost Li Yuankui. We can't possibly contend with thousands of constables and soldiers."

A person beside him, with three strands of rat-like whiskers, triangular eyes, and looking like a strategist, stroked his beard and said, "Master Chen, perhaps things won't be so troublesome? Gu Cangyue must also consider that if Cangfeng Fortress directly confronts our White Emperor Sect, neither side will gain an advantage. That's right, their Cangfeng Fortress can manipulate the situation in the northern lands as they please, but in this southern territory, our White Emperor Sect's influence is not at all inferior to theirs."