A Ji

Taking down Fat Dog and his five men was no great challenge for Song Ren.

If anything, he had needed to hold back. If he had truly beaten them badly enough to leave them seriously injured, the trouble would have come back to him instead.

He walked over to Fat Dog and held out a hand. Frightened by what had just happened, Fat Dog shrank back, his neck recoiling.

Yet Song Ren still caught hold of his dislocated jaw. Under Fat Dog's terrified gaze, he gave it a hard wrench.

Crack!

Fat Dog let out an immediate howl of pain. Only after shouting did he belatedly realize that he could speak normally again.

Watching Song Ren silently head toward his bunk, Fat Dog could not help swallowing.

Fierce Ghost tilted his chin at Song Ren and asked tentatively, "Brother, what should we call you? You're damn good. You trained before, didn't you?"

Song Ren had noticed the two men sitting furthest inside.

They looked somewhat familiar, but he could not identify them at once.

It could not be helped. Quite a few characters in those three movies had been played by the same actors. After the worlds had merged, he could not be sure who was who.

Song Ren climbed onto his bunk and tidied his bedding as he answered, "A Ren. Just call me A Ren. I studied at a martial arts school for a few years."

Seeing that he was unexpectedly easy to talk to, Fierce Ghost grew interested at once. "Brother A Ren, you look unfamiliar. Who were you with outside?"

Song Ren sat at the head of the upper bunk. "I wasn't in a triad."

"Oh?"

Fierce Ghost became even more interested. "Then how about joining me? My name's Ou Man Kwai. People outside call me Fierce Ghost. Those who give me face call me Brother Ghost."

"Brother, think it over. I think highly of you."

Pfft!

Fat Dog, still rubbing his jaw, burst out laughing. Perhaps sensing Song Ren's calm manner, he had found some courage and could not resist snapping at Fierce Ghost. "Fierce Ghost, what nonsense are you spouting?"

"You're talking so damn loud. Aren't you afraid of biting your own tongue?"

"Your Fu Yi has barely anyone left. You've been obsolete for centuries."

"Brother, joining him? No future in that!"

By the end, he looked at Song Ren again. It was as if he had forgotten the beating he had just received, and he put on a magnanimous air as he recruited him. "Brother, we don't know each other until we fight.

My name's Fat Dog. I'm with Master Bao of Zhong Yi Xin."

"In Western District, after midnight, everyone knows Master Bao's word carries more weight than the superintendent's."

Being taunted to his face by Fat Dog, Fierce Ghost angrily slapped the bedboard and barked, "Fat Dog, you dead bastard! You looking to die?"

Fat Dog sneered. "Fierce Ghost, you really do talk loud. I'm so scared."

Fierce Ghost's face darkened until it looked ready to drip water.

But there was nothing he could do. The other side was stronger.

Fu Yi was a fading triad. Its members were generally getting old, and there was barely any fresh blood joining. They could only cling to a few territories with little profit, barely preserving the dignity of an old-established triad.

With so little profit, there was naturally no way to expand the triad.

Even he had been considering whether, once he got out, he should switch to another triad or simply start one himself.

After all, he had accumulated some dirty money over the years. If he found the right connections, he might be able to make something of it.

That was why he had always been recruiting promising fresh blood in Stanley Prison.

As for Zhong Yi Xin, which held Western District, it might not have been the most powerful triad.

But Zhong Yi Xin's boss, Wong Po, was famously vicious in their circle.

He was ruthless enough, and even more ruthless in a fight, like a mad dog that never cared about the cost.

That was the main reason Zhong Yi Xin, despite having few members, could firmly control Western District.

Fat Dog stared at Song Ren with some pride. "So? Want to join me?"

Song Ren glanced at him and shook his head. "Forget it."

Though the main target of this mission was Wong Po of Zhong Yi Xin, what was the point of joining some small-time lackey?

Fat Dog sounded impressive at first, but his words were all bluff and bravado. He was relying entirely on Wong Po's name, because Wong Po was the true soul of Zhong Yi Xin.

And Fat Dog was pathetic in a fight, pale-faced and physically weak, without the slightest presence of a boss.

Clearly, within Zhong Yi Xin, he was at most a minor lackey with a bit of a name, throwing his weight around under Zhong Yi Xin's banner.

Rejected to his face, Fat Dog's expression sank. He felt that he had taken the initiative to make peace out of appreciation for talent.

Yet the other man showed him no gratitude at all, and his injuries seemed to hurt even more because of it.

Damn it, refusing a toast only to drink a forfeit!

Fat Dog withdrew his gaze and lowered his head to hide the gloom in his eyes.

He did not explode on the spot, choosing to endure it for now.

He had just suffered a loss. He was not stupid.

Song Ren turned his gaze to Yau Kong Ngau and Fierce Ghost, Ou Man Kwai, on the lower bunk.

From the introductions just now, he had already guessed who the two were.

Yau Kong Ngau, the villainous dirty cop from Raging Fire Case, and Ou Man Kwai, the boss of the Vietnamese Gang.

Of course, neither had been released at this stage, so they had not yet done the string of insane things they would later commit.

Yau Kong Ngau had been observing Song Ren all along. Only when Song Ren's gaze swept over did he take the initiative to hold out a hand. "Yau Kong Ngau. Brother Ren, just call me A Ngau."

Song Ren jumped down and shook his hand politely. "Brother Ngau."

Fierce Ghost patted both men on the shoulder, wearing the air of a boss.

Then he leaned close to Song Ren's ear and said quietly, "Watch out for Fat Dog. That guy's notoriously petty."

"You're new here, yet you beat him up and embarrassed him in front of everyone. He might not let this go."

"Most of Zhong Yi Xin are crazy. Just be careful. It won't hurt."

Having said that, he turned to remind Yau Kong Ngau, "You too, A Ngau. Don't let your guard down in the bathhouse again."

Yau Kong Ngau nodded. "I understand, Brother Ghost."

Fierce Ghost smiled. "All right, it's about time to eat. Let's go get food together."

Stanley Prison's activity areas were divided by cell block.

Each cell block held around a hundred prisoners. Aside from certain holidays or special events, prisoners from different blocks rarely crossed paths.

The entire Major Crime Unit that Yau Kong Ngau had led back then had been imprisoned here for manslaughter. One of them had been unable to accept the sentence and committed suicide, while the rest were locked up here.

They had merely been assigned to different cell blocks, to prevent prisoners from forming groups.

While getting food in the cafeteria, Song Ren kept an eye out for A Ji, the target of this trip.

In Sha Po Lang, A Ji was Wong Po's best fighter. Ruthless in his work, he had handled many troublesome opponents for Wong Po and was also Wong Po's most trusted right-hand man in Zhong Yi Xin.

Unlike Wong Po, who specialized in Brazilian Jujutsu, A Ji was better with a knife and exceptionally capable in close-quarters combat.

In a cafeteria of around a hundred people, finding him was not difficult.

But just as Song Ren was considering how to approach him, Fat Dog had already led several lackeys from their cell to sit beside A Ji.

As he quietly told A Ji something, he occasionally pointed in Song Ren's direction.

Soon, A Ji rose to his feet and walked over.

Fat Dog and a group of imprisoned Zhong Yi Xin lackeys followed closely behind him. Around eighteen or nineteen men surrounded them aggressively.

The prisoners getting food or eating all put down their chopsticks and looked over, their eyes filled with anticipation for a show.

Outside the prison, the guards on duty noticed the scene and all sharpened their focus, ready to prevent any sudden group incident.