Piltover's Turmoil

Reforms take time. After the Wildfire Gang was incorporated into the Lian Hua Gang, Li Ke did not, as Ekko had expected, dismantle the Wildfire Gang and scatter its members into the Lian Hua Gang. Instead, he allowed the Wildfire Gang to develop freely within the community.

Ultimately, Li Ke needed Ekko himself more than the Wildfire Gang's current combat strength.

Therefore, to allow Ekko to research new energy sources with peace of mind, Li Ke did not dismantle the Wildfire Gang.

However, the reform of the new territory was not as smooth as it had been in Hope Community because this area originally belonged to Finn and was a region with a developed black market industry.

The Lian Hua Gang quickly took over all of Finn's industries and began to make deep changes to them. Yet, many people still refused to submit to the Lian Hua Gang's control.

When money is involved, conflict is inevitable.

The Lian Hua Gang's actions affected the income of many local residents, who naturally became dissatisfied and resisted.

This was not surprising. Even in the current Hope Community, petty theft occurred frequently. Over the years Silco had ruled Zaun, too many Zaunites had become accustomed to getting by without working. Naturally, they were unwilling to find legitimate jobs and live ordinary lives.

In response, Vi had been very busy lately, extremely busy.

Her team, along with the second squad of Enforcers formed by Scar, had been busy cleaning up the community.

They didn't have time for verbal persuasion. If someone didn't listen once or twice, the next time they met, they'd get a punch, and the questions would be asked during the beating.

As a modern person, Li Ke felt that violent enforcement was inappropriate. But this was Zaun, and in Zaun at this time, weakness only invited others to push their luck. They wouldn't be grateful for Li Ke's kindness; instead, they would intensify their efforts to profit from it.

Therefore, Vi and Scar's actions were, in fact, Li Ke's orders.

Li Ke ordered the expulsion of all existing gangs in the area. Those who refused to leave would lose their lives. The number of Zaunites who had died because of Li Ke during this period was truly significant.

As for the idle ruffians, if they were willing to change, they could stay and develop in this place. But if they repeatedly refused to change, they could expect to face the fists of the Gutter Enforcers.

Fortunately, Zaun had been in chaos for so many years, but not everyone went with the flow or was willing to collude with the barons. In Zaun, most people still wanted to live a new life and were willing to make changes for it.

For the residents of Finn's territory, they had initially thought that as long as the new baron wasn't worse than Finn and didn't exploit them more harshly, they could accept him. But looking at these past few days, he... didn't seem to intend to exploit them?

Moreover, he was actually supporting their businesses?

Yes, he was truly supporting their businesses!

He hadn't swallowed the industries that originally belonged to Finn. Instead, he had converted them into markets, providing them for free use, allowing them to sell food, parts, and other goods there.

All they needed to do was to hand over a small portion of their profits at the end of each month as public funds for the community. According to the cute girl with hair like sparks and two strange buns, that money belonged to everyone, not to the new baron. If needed, the new baron was willing to disclose every account.

Heavens, was this still Zaun?!

This new baron... Goddess Janna above, please bless him with a long life and victory in all his battles!

And five days later, the new community, which had gradually taken shape and established rules, was ready to have its own name.

Because the Wildfire Gang members were the majority in this community, after Ekko stepped down to become a researcher, the former Wildfire Gang members were leaderless. They instinctively nominated Scar as the new leader of the Wildfire Gang. After consulting Li Ke, Scar received the right to name the community.

Li Ke let him name the community himself.

Regarding this, Scar sat alone in the tent for over two hours, contemplating.

When he finally walked out of the tent, he had made a decision. He made it without asking Ekko, because he believed Ekko would think the same way.

He had followed Ekko for so many years, and as his confidant, he knew what kind of person Ekko was.

It was precisely because they yearned for a better life that Scar formally disbanded the Wildfire Gang that afternoon. This time, none of the Wildfire Gang members raised any objections.

Previously, Ekko abdicated and nominated Scar because they feared becoming individuals again without a group, vulnerable to bullying. But after spending time with the Lian Hua Gang and witnessing the changes in the new community these past few days, they had found their answer.

Ekko was right. Their new leader was one of them, someone who was striving to make Zaun better.

Thus, the Wildfire Gang became a part of Zaun's history. Now, there was only the Lian Hua Gang.

And the new community was named—Hotarubi.

The light of a firefly can contend with the moon.

We know it's foolish for the light of a firefly to try and outshine the sun and moon, and we are self-aware of that.

But we are willing to do it anyway, and that is the purpose for which the Wildfire Gang existed!

When Li Ke learned the name Scar had chosen, he burst into laughter.

He wasn't laughing at the ignorance of the "Wildfire Gang" members, but rather praising their spirit.

Piltover. The appearance of a group of people attracted the attention of the Upper City residents.

Looking at this group of people, dressed sloppily and appearing in droves in Piltover, the Piltover Citizens' gazes turned unfriendly.

"Damn it, I really want to punch him in the face."

Manzu glared back at a Piltover Citizen wearing a tall hat. Seeing the other man still staring, he gritted his teeth and said.

"Alright, Manzu, look at me, then look at Vi. We're used to it," Weila said indifferently. He added, "This is your first time coming to buy materials, right? Stop looking and hurry up and buy what you need and leave. Who the hell wants to stay here with them."

Manzu nodded.

"Hey, have you guys noticed? Piltover seems a bit off lately. Look at the expressions on those Piltover Citizens' faces; they're even more sour than last time we came," said a short person in the group.

Zeri was also in the group. It was her first time coming to the Upper City on a public expense.

The instruments and materials Ekko and Jinx needed for their research would take time to build themselves, and even then, they might not work. After all, one couldn't guarantee the usability of contraptions assembled from scrap materials.

In terms of precision, Piltover truly crushed Zaun. This was something Zaunites had to admit. They might have pioneering spirit and creativity, but when it came to meticulousness and carefulness, they couldn't compare to the Piltover Citizens.

Vi walked at the front of the group. She also noticed that Piltover had been a bit strange lately.

For example, those Red-Clad Fellows?

Covered head to toe in red, wearing helmets and wielding weapons, they appeared in Piltover. Although there were only two or three of them, their attire and aura made them incredibly conspicuous.

Had something happened?

Vi wondered curiously. Then, she walked past a park and stopped.

"What's up?" Weila looked back at Vi, who had stopped.

Vi, with one hand in her pocket and the other raised, said with a smile, "Found something cute~"

"You guys go buy the ingredients first. I'll be there in a bit."

After Vi finished speaking, without waiting for Weila or Manzu to say anything, she flipped over the iron rail and entered the park.

Weila and Manzu muttered to each other but didn't say anything else.

Vi walked up to a wall in the park. The wall was decorated in a Piltover style. A tall woman, with her back to Vi, was wearing Enforcer clothes and a hat, looking down at something unknown.

Vi, hands in her pockets, approached her from behind, stood on tiptoe, and whispered in her ear.

"Good afternoon~"

"Cupcake."