A quarter of an hour earlier.
The plaza in the center of Huangshi Town.
All the major factions in the town had arrived ahead of time. None of the martial artists wanted to miss this major event that would determine who held sovereignty over Huangshi Town for the next decade, so they had gathered here one after another.
The plaza was bustling with activity.
As witnesses, Xia Youming, head escort chief of the Datong Escort Agency, and Wu Yuan, head of the Wu Family, had also arrived ahead of time.
The two were the only Viscera Refining Realm martial artists in Huangshi Town besides the Black Tiger Gang, and they were also important participants in this affair.
The two were seated in the spectators' area, speaking in low voices about something.
Behind them stood their respective elite escort guards and the experts serving as their family instructors. Though their numbers were small, every one of them possessed a sharp, refined aura.
Although they had no intention of intervening in the struggle between the Sifang Society and the Black Tiger Gang,
a moderate display of strength was still necessary.
Under the convergence of countless gazes,
before long,
the forces of the two sides emerged in a steady stream, one from the south and one from the north.
The Black Tiger Gang and the Sifang Society had arrived!
The spectators who had originally surrounded the plaza all moved aside, clearing a huge open space for the two groups to enter.
"Hall Master, something's strange. The Black Tiger Gang's deputy leader, Song Ding, isn't here, and the people around Shi Meng aren't any of the gang's famous experts from the town!"
"Shi Meng came alone this time. I'm afraid he has some scheme in mind!"
Seeing that the people following Shi Meng were all unfamiliar faces, Zhou Weilong stepped forward and whispered into the ear of the dashing and elegant Hall Master Feng.
Hall Master Feng flicked open the fan in his hand and smiled, a look of disdain appearing on his face:
"The prey refuses to accept death and struggles in its death throes. That's only natural."
"But I'll soon make him understand that before absolute strength, all resistance is nothing but futile!"
As he spoke,
he cast a contemptuous glance at Zhou Weilong beside him:
"If you're afraid, then go find somewhere to hide!"
"After all, you're merely a little martial artist in the Viscera Refining Realm who has only just broken through."
With that, he ignored Zhou Weilong's rather ugly expression,
and strode forward with his head held high.
His faintly smiling face met the gloomy gaze of Shi Meng, leader of the Black Tiger Gang, in the distance, without the slightest trace of fear.
Zhou Weilong's expression was unpleasant, but he could only follow.
After all, as the master of the Weilong Martial Arts School, there was no way he could hide behind everyone else.
After witnessing this scene,
he could only close his eyes and shut his ears to everything.
The two groups took their positions. Nearly one side each, they occupied the entire plaza.
A dozen or so zhang separated them.
The underlings and other members behind each side
carried over tables, chairs, tea, and other things, allowing the leaders of both sides to sit down separately.
Hall Master Feng picked up the teacup beside him and took an elegant sip.
Across from him,
Shi Meng sat in the chair in a broad, imposing manner, his gloomy eyes fixed on Hall Master Feng.
Yet neither of them spoke first.
The entire plaza
was utterly silent.
"Ahem. All right, since both sides have arrived, then let's have the two of you begin!"
Seeing the atmosphere turn rigid,
Xia Youming and Wu Yuan, the witnesses in the middle, exchanged a glance. In the end, the older Wu Yuan, head of the Wu Family, stood up, coughed, broke the dead silence, and spoke.
"All the grievances and grudges accumulated over these days, and who will rule Huangshi Town in the future, will be decided today!"
As Wu Yuan's words fell,
Hall Master Feng set the teacup in his hand on the table beside him.
The faint smile on his face did not change in the slightest.
"Then let's talk!"
"My demands are simple. The Black Tiger Gang must disband, and the Weilong Martial Arts School will become the master of Huangshi Town from this day onward!"
"Your tone is a little too arrogant! With one sentence, you want my Black Tiger Gang to leave?"
Shi Meng's face darkened and twitched slightly as he spoke with a smile that did not reach his eyes.
"Too arrogant? What, you're still not convinced?"
"If you were in my position, would you accept these conditions?"
"Heh."
Hall Master Feng gave a faint laugh and slowly rose to his feet. His white robes fluttered in the wind as he stood before everyone, an invisible domineering aura spreading from him.
"I think you may have misunderstood something."
"With the strength of your mere rural gang, you don't even have the right to say no!"
"When I entered the town a month ago, I didn't kill you solely because I didn't want to resolve this through brute force alone. I wished to avoid having the Sifang Society face resistance and hostility from the other towns!"
"You can refuse. I respect your choice."
"However, I'll beat you to death next, then bring up someone else who agrees!"
Hall Master Feng looked down imperiously at Shi Meng in the distance and spoke in an indifferent voice.
"I know you came alone this time and didn't bring any of the other experts from your gang. You must have made some kind of arrangement."
"But I don't care. Before absolute strength, every scheme is nothing but a joke!"
"I permit you to resist!"
"Because I'll tell you what despair is!"
Hall Master Feng looked calmly at Shi Meng, who sat across from him, his face filled with confidence.
Yet Shi Meng lowered his head,
the shadows covering his face,
making it impossible to see his expression.
Among the surrounding spectators, however, Hall Master Feng's arrogant words stirred a wave of hushed discussion.
"Wow, Hall Master Feng is truly domineering!"
"Of course! The Sifang Society dominates Bao'an County's city. Its Great Dragon Head is said to be a powerhouse of the Blood Changing Realm, and each of its eight halls has an extraordinary Hall Master. They're all said to be in the late Viscera Refining Realm. How could anyone capable of holding the position of Hall Master be an ordinary person?!"
"Not only that, I've heard that Hall Master Feng is also the personal disciple accepted by the Sifang Society's Great Dragon Head. The martial techniques he possesses are beyond what a rustic power like the Black Tiger Gang, which can only lord it over a tiny town, could ever compare with!"
"I heard that the Black Tiger Gang's leader, Shi Meng, is only in the mid Viscera Refining Realm. There was no suspense in this battle from the very beginning."
The people around them lowered their voices and discussed animatedly.
Most favored the Sifang Society and were not optimistic about the Black Tiger Gang's prospects this time.
Behind Hall Master Feng, the people of the Sifang Society and the Weilong Martial Arts School all raised their heads slightly, pride appearing on their faces as their morale soared.
The Black Tiger Gang's morale, meanwhile, fell at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Many people repeatedly looked toward Shi Meng,
hoping he would say something.
"Very good!"
A low voice spread through the air.
At the very front of the Black Tiger Gang,
Shi Meng's burly figure slowly rose to his feet. In an instant, a terrifying aura of pressure surged out in all directions with a thunderous roar!
"Then I'd like to see what you call despair!"
The aura of the late Viscera Refining Realm
was released without the slightest concealment,
completely unfurling!