Tiger Head Gang

Seeing Zhao Xing'er grow increasingly frantic and the situation on the verge of spiraling out of control, Yue Wen had no choice but to intervene. He grabbed her raised arm.

"Stop!"

But with her attack blocked, Zhao Xing'er suddenly spun around and swung a backfist at him.

Yue Wen caught a glimpse of her eyes up close. Red light blazed within them like fire. The clarity was gone; she could no longer tell friend from foe!

Fortunately, Yue Wen reacted quickly. He crossed his arms and blocked the punch. Meeting resistance, the red light enveloping Zhao Xing'er erupted all at once, and her surging fists burst out like crashing waves.

Boom—

Crimson flames exploded. Yue Wen was hurled across the room in an instant, slamming into the opposite wall and leaving a web of cracks behind him.

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Thankfully, he had already gathered his pure qi into a protective barrier, so he wasn't injured.

Still, the impact left him dizzy for a moment.

What a vicious punch.

After that punch, the red light around Zhao Xing'er slowly faded, and her eyes regained their clarity.

"Boss." Seeing that she had sent Yue Wen flying, she hurried over to check on him.

"I'm fine."

Yue Wen breathed a sigh of relief, landed lightly, and shook out his arm. Aside from a sore, swollen forearm, he didn't seem to have any other injuries.

"You took my full-strength punch and you're fine?" Zhao Xing'er asked, surprised.

"You sound disappointed," Yue Wen said with a laugh.

"I'm sorry." Zhao Xing'er hurried to apologize. "I... I really do have a bit of a problem."

"I can see that." Yue Wen steadied his qi and blood, then asked, "Your résumé said you were at the Second Realm, didn't it? That punch just now was way beyond the lower three realms."

"I fudged the truth a little on my résumé." Zhao Xing'er gave an embarrassed smile. "I'm actually at the mid-stage of the Third Realm, and... I have a unique constitution. I was born with the Innate Martial Saint Body, but it's a little mutated."

Yue Wen had naturally heard of the Innate Martial Saint Body. It was one of the many immortal constitutions, and those born with it were protected by Martial Spirit Red Light. It was incredibly powerful.

He had never had the chance to see one up close, though, and had no idea what a mutation might look like.

"My anger turns into Martial Spirit Red Light. The stronger the anger, the brighter the red light. If I can't hold it back, it erupts, and I have to let it all out before I can calm down," Zhao Xing'er explained. "When I get angry enough, I can't hold back the Martial Spirit Red Light. Sometimes I can't even tell friend from foe..."

Looking at the girl's fair, gentle face, Yue Wen thought, What a contrast.

She looks like a gentle beauty, but the moment she gets angry, she turns into a bloodthirsty berserker.

"Hey, you two." Guo Yang, looking somewhat broken, cautiously asked from the side, "Should we call an ambulance for Manager Chen? He looks a little dead."

"We'll deal with your situation later." Yue Wen waved to Zhao Xing'er, signaling that they should handle the immediate business first.

Zhao Xing'er turned to Guo Yang and apologized. "Sorry. I forgot to ask what happened to your son."

Judging by Manager Chen's flattened head, he probably wouldn't be answering any questions anytime soon.

"It's fine. We still have two living ones." Yue Wen walked over and hauled one of the sunglasses-wearing brutes to his feet. "Open your eyes! Stop pretending!"

"Ah! Please spare me!"

The brute hadn't actually passed out. After seeing Zhao Xing'er beat Manager Chen like that, who would dare move?

"You usually do this guy's dirty work for him, right? Did you kidnap Brother Guo's son?" Yue Wen asked. "If you don't tell us the truth..."

He glanced at Zhao Xing'er, who immediately flexed her biceps.

"I don't know!" the brute shouted at once. "My boss gave us the job, so I came. Whether he sent anyone else to do anything else, I really don't know!"

"Where's your boss?" Yue Wen frowned. "Take us to him."

"Uh..." The brute looked troubled. "If my boss finds out I led outsiders to him, he'll never let me off."

Yue Wen glanced again at Manager Chen's flattened head. "Should we have the ambulance bring two more stretchers? One for him, and one for..."

The brute immediately jumped three feet into the air, brushed the dust off his shoulder, and gestured ahead. "This way, sir!"

Yue Wen called out to Guo Yang. "Brother Guo, we'll bring your son back now. Go home and wait. Leave it to me—you can count on me."

"Ah."

Guo Yang stared blankly as they left, then looked at the mess around him, unsure whether he should feel reassured.

The world seemed peaceful on the surface, but was chaotic underneath. Every city had its share of criminal gangs lurking in the shadows.

The most powerful gang in the southern suburbs of City Seven was the Tiger Head Gang.

Ten years ago, the Tiger Head Gang's boss had suddenly appeared in the area. He didn't have many men, but every enemy who crossed him would be found dead in the wilderness the next day. Before long, he had become Brother Hu, the man no one dared provoke.

There were plenty of businessmen like Manager Chen in the southern suburbs. Every month, they paid the Tiger Head Gang hefty protection fees. In return, whenever they needed someone to do their dirty work, the gang would take care of it.

Like dealing with workers such as Guo Yang, who demanded compensation.

"The Tiger Head Gang's headquarters is well hidden. That three-story building aboveground is just a front. There are always plenty of men inside, ready in case anyone tries to ambush us. Several enemies who tried to go straight for our boss have died there."

"Our boss actually lives in a basement beneath the building. There's a huge space down there, and it's very well hidden. I've followed him for years, but all I know is that the place exists. I've never been inside."

"But I know where the entrance to the basement is. I can take you there. As for how to open the door, you'll have to figure that out yourselves."

"..."

The little white electric scooter wound along a leaf-strewn road in the suburbs.

Zhao Xing'er still sat on the back of Yue Wen's scooter, while the captured brute sat in front of him... in a sense, right in his arms.

There was barely any room at the front of the scooter. Rather than sitting, he looked like a hunk of muscle crouched there.

He looked strong, fierce, and helpless.

The brute was surprisingly talkative now, telling Yue Wen and the others all about the headquarters' layout, as if he were afraid they'd stumble into an ambush.

As they neared their destination, Yue Wen couldn't help asking, "I told you to help us, but you're really going all out. You'd think you were afraid the Tiger Head Gang might survive."

"Of course," the brute said with a sly grin. "I've already betrayed the gang by bringing you to headquarters. If you wipe out the Tiger Head Gang, then fine. But if you fail, I'm done for."

"Oh—"

Yue Wen suddenly understood. He now knew how the traitors in history had thought.

A courtyard wall surrounded the Tiger Head Gang's building. Inside, groups of men in black suits patrolled back and forth. Security was tight. Without an insider, it really would've been difficult to break in.

After parking the scooter outside, the brute straightened his clothes and resumed his cold expression. Then he swaggered inside with Yue Wen and Zhao Xing'er.

The brute hadn't been lying. He wasn't very strong, but he really was a veteran of the Tiger Head Gang. The underlings they passed along the way greeted him one after another.

"Sixth Brother, you're back."

"Mm. I'm taking two people to see the boss." The brute nodded.

"Sixth Brother."

"Sixth Brother."

"..."

With the insider leading the way, they passed through without a hitch and reached the top of a flight of stairs leading down into the building. The brute turned and pointed.

"This is as far as I can take you," he said. "The boss is usually downstairs. Unless it's something important, he won't come out."

Yue Wen stepped forward to examine the entrance. "There are multiple arrays on the door. Force might not open it, and it could alert the people inside."

"Then what do we do?" Zhao Xing'er asked. "Wait here for him to come out?"

"That puts us at too much of a disadvantage." Yue Wen thought for a moment, then asked the brute, "Do you have your boss's number?"

"You want me to lure him out?" The brute shook his head. "That'll be difficult. Our boss is very cautious. I went to deal with that small matter at the factory. Even if something went wrong, it wouldn't be enough to make him come out in person."

"Just give it to me," Yue Wen said.

The brute had no choice but to open his contacts and show him a number.

Yue Wen took out his phone and dialed it. "Hello? Sir, your food delivery is here."

"How is that supposed to fool our boss? That's way too sloppy!" The brute stared at him, eyes wide.

Sure enough, a cold voice came from the other end of the phone. "I didn't order food."

Yue Wen suddenly cursed, "Idiot! If you didn't order it, who did? Do you think I'm your dad, here to feed you? I left it at the door. If you don't want it, take it to your mom's grave!"

"You don't even try to play along—you just start swearing?" The brute was dumbfounded. "That's filthy!"

The person on the other end clearly hadn't expected Yue Wen to launch into a string of insults without warning. After several seconds of silence, a furious roar came through. "You're at the door, right? Don't you dare leave! I want to see who's got the nerve!"

Then came a series of clattering noises from behind the basement door, and it swung open.

Bang!

The brute covered his face with his hand, completely incredulous. "You actually fooled him?"