Golden Lion Gang

Still at the same teahouse.

Lu Changfeng and Zhou Feng sat facing each other in a private room on the second floor.

"Which target had Junior Brother chosen this time?"

Zhou Feng asked with practiced familiarity.

Some time ago, with the help of Exotic Beast Meat, Zhou Feng had successfully broken through the Blood Tempering Fourth Level that had plagued him for years and reached the Blood Tempering Fifth Level.

Zhou Feng remained deeply grateful to Lu Changfeng.

If not for this junior brother suggesting murder and arson, finding another path for Zhou Feng.

With his ordinary family circumstances and the martial arts school tasks he took on daily, he could never have afforded enough Exotic Beast Meat to make a breakthrough.

Zhou Feng saw in Lu Changfeng the trait of a cultivator who dared to fight and seize.

Sometimes, burying one's head in bitter cultivation only moved oneself.

Moreover, Lu Changfeng had arranged everything with utmost care when scouting and acting last time. He seemed far more calculating and seasoned than Zhou Feng.

Therefore, Zhou Feng now had considerable faith in Lu Changfeng, this junior brother.

Lu Changfeng took a sip of tea.

More than a month ago, Lu Changfeng had already begun keeping an eye out for the next target.

When killing and plundering, one had to choose the target carefully.

First, the person had to deserve death, or Lu Changfeng himself would not be able to live with his conscience.

Second, Lu Changfeng was still too weak at present, leaving him with few possible targets. If he offended someone he should not, even Changle Martial Arts School would not be able to protect him.

The Outer City alone had nearly a million residents, with tangled forces everywhere. Many factions acted as proxies for Inner City nobles.

Thus, Lu Changfeng still set his sights on emerging forces.

After many days of gathering information and verifying it, Lu Changfeng had selected a gang called the Golden Lion Gang this time.

This gang had more than fifty members. Its leader was nicknamed Golden Lion and claimed to be from Qingshan Prefecture.

Golden Lion possessed the strength of the Blood Tempering Fourth Level, along with an accomplished, masterful fist technique. He soon made a name for himself in Fengcheng's Outer City and established his gang.

Golden Lion's main business was human trafficking.

Male laborers, women for pleasure, children—he sold them all.

Such a wicked business had ruined countless families. If Heaven's Way were just, this man would have long since been struck dead by lightning.

Yet this man was not only formidable, but also extremely cautious. He only targeted those weaker than himself in strength and influence.

Whenever he encountered someone powerful, he immediately fawned over them with lavish flattery.

As a result, the Golden Lion Gang's strength had steadily risen.

Golden Lion had also established the Four Great Red Batons beneath him, all with strength above the Blood Tempering Second Level.

The Golden Lion Gang's overall strength could no longer be underestimated.

"As you said, the Golden Lion Gang indeed deserves to be wiped out. But with their strength... I'm not afraid for myself. I'm afraid something might happen to you. Do you have a foolproof plan?" Zhou Feng asked.

Lu Changfeng smiled. "Second Senior Brother, do you still remember that girl who was forced onto Wang Hu's bed when we killed him last time?"

Zhou Feng recalled it and nodded. "Of course I remember. We could be said to have saved her life. Otherwise, not only would her body have been violated, she would probably have been sold to a brothel to receive customers."

Lu Changfeng nodded.

"That girl is now working for the Golden Lion Gang."

One day, while Lu Changfeng was on his way to a teahouse for tea.

The girl had called out "Benefactor" and stopped him in his tracks.

Lu Changfeng thought for a long while before finally recalling who she was.

The girl's name was Hua'er. That night, she had successfully escaped from the Giant Whale Gang's compound.

Unfortunately, her widowed mother had been beaten to death, and she had nowhere to go. After wandering the streets for several days, she had caught the attention of the Golden Lion Gang.

At the time, the Golden Lion Gang happened to need a girl to cook, so they made Hua'er their cook. She also had to buy groceries every day.

That day, she had been out buying groceries when she ran into Lu Changfeng.

The Golden Lion Gang gave her no money at all, treating her as a servant, while gang members often eyed her like tigers eyeing prey.

Fortunately, Hua'er had learned her lesson this time. Every day, she neither dressed up nor washed her face, deliberately making herself filthy and foul-smelling.

Thus, she had not been forced.

Only after getting in touch with Hua'er did Lu Changfeng investigate the Golden Lion Gang in earnest.

After investigating, Lu Changfeng knew that as long as Hua'er, this chess piece, was used properly.

Wiping out the Golden Lion Gang entirely was not impossible.

"The Golden Lion Gang will hold its Year-End Ceremony the day after tomorrow. Perfect timing for us."

Time quickly came to three days later.

That day, after Lu Changfeng and Zhou Feng ate dinner early in the dining hall, they left the martial arts school together and disappeared without a trace.

Outer City, Golden Lion Gang compound.

Bursts of singing and dancing drifted from within the compound walls.

Today was the Golden Lion Gang's first Year-End Ceremony, making the place especially lively.

Besides the servants within the gang compound, the Golden Lion Gang had also paid to hire chefs from restaurants outside to help prepare the food.

Back Kitchen of the compound.

Although Hua'er held the status of a servant in the gang, she now had a little authority.

She was directing the hired cooks at work.

"You two, go bring in several jars of pickled cabbage from the Cellar outside. We'll need them to make Pickled Cabbage Fish later," Hua'er said to two unusually burly servants.

The two servants dressed as laborers nodded and headed outside.

These two were Lu Changfeng and Zhou Feng, who had infiltrated the Golden Lion Gang's Back Kitchen with Hua'er's help.

Using the chance to move the pickled cabbage jars.

Lu Changfeng and Zhou Feng surveyed the gang members in the compound.

Seven or eight tables had been set up in the open space of the Golden Lion Gang compound. At the head table sat Golden Lion, the Golden Lion Gang's leader, along with the Four Great Red Batons, the gang's Advisor, and others.

At this moment, the gang members were drinking and laughing merrily, already three parts drunk.

Dishes from the Back Kitchen continued to arrive.

Pickled Cabbage Fish was the specialty dish of one of the chefs.

After committing the scene inside the compound to memory.

Lu Changfeng and Zhou Feng had a clear grasp of the situation, then headed to the Cellar.

Pickled Cabbage Fish had a strong flavor, making it perfect for administering poison.

The poison had been carefully selected by Lu Changfeng: Red Toad.

After consuming it, even Martial Artists of the Blood Tempering Realm would have their Qi and Blood congeal and their limbs go weak, unable to exert their strength for a short time.

For ordinary people, consuming it meant sudden death.

Lu Changfeng took out several packets of poison. Together with Zhou Feng, he poured it into the pickled cabbage jars and stirred them thoroughly. Each then carried a jar back to the Back Kitchen.

The kitchen masters suspected nothing. They took out the pickled cabbage and diligently began preparing the Pickled Cabbage Fish.

Today's employers were unreasonable gang members. If the food did not taste good, the chefs feared they might not keep their lives.

Very soon, pot after pot of Pickled Cabbage Fish came out of the kitchen, and servants carried the dishes to the tables.

Lu Changfeng and Zhou Feng exchanged a look, then quietly left the Back Kitchen and followed them out.

Inside the kitchen, Hua'er looked somewhat nervous, but she still followed Lu Changfeng's instructions. After removing her apron, she fled the compound through a side door and waited far away for news.

Lu Changfeng and Zhou Feng pressed themselves against the wall and watched the people eating in the open space as the Pickled Cabbage Fish was served.

Everyone began tasting the delicacy.

"Hm? One of the Red Poles over there isn't eating fish!" Zhou Feng noticed something and spoke.

"We'll kill him first later!" Lu Changfeng made a throat-slitting gesture. Who told him not to eat fish!

Fortunately, Golden Lion, the gang leader, was not the one refusing to eat fish.

The Red Toad had been mixed into the Pickled Cabbage Fish, and its presence was indeed concealed by the dish's flavor.

No one noticed anything unusual.

Until several minutes later, when a gang member suddenly convulsed and collapsed to the ground.

It was like setting off a chain reaction. Gang members at table after table began convulsing and falling, and even Golden Lion, the gang leader, went pale and clutched his chest!

"Not good, enemy attack!"

Golden Lion roared as he rose to his feet.

In the distance, the moment they saw the poison take effect, Lu Changfeng drew his sword and Zhou Feng drew his saber. Pulling cloth masks over their faces, the two charged into the grounds and began harvesting heads!