"What kind of person dares to sneak into the Green Tiger Gang at night!"
The four hall masters hurried over with their men. Their faces were grave, their eyes sharp.
One of the hall masters arrived first. Taking the lead, he sprang forward and charged straight into the main hall.
"Damn it, Hall Master Ruan Jin got there first!"
The other three hall masters were a step slower and couldn't help regretting it.
An enemy had launched a night attack on the gang leader. This was the perfect moment to prove their loyalty. Whoever arrived first and successfully protected him would surely earn more of the leader's trust and favor.
The three hall masters had only just begun to entertain the thought.
The next instant—
Boom!
A figure flew out of the main hall, tracing a high arc before crashing heavily to the ground in front of them.
"Cough, cough... Ugh!"
The figure struggled to his feet, coughed several times, then vomited a mouthful of scarlet blood. His face turned deathly pale.
"Ruan Jin!"
The three hall masters recognized the figure who had been sent flying. Their pupils constricted, and they froze in place.
Their brief regret vanished like smoke!
"How terrifying is this enemy? He sent Hall Master Ruan Jin flying with a single move?!"
Shock filled the three hall masters' eyes. They exchanged glances, each seeing the wariness in the others' eyes.
At the same time, a question rose in their minds. Where's the gang leader? Did he just stand by and watch Hall Master Ruan Jin get sent flying?
The question filled them with a creeping sense of unease.
Normally, if the gang leader were unharmed, he wouldn't simply watch his subordinate get knocked aside while protecting him.
The question had barely arisen when, beneath the lamplight, a figure slowly emerged from the dim yellow glow of the main hall's entrance.
He wore black from head to toe and a Black Dragon Mask. His right hand held a long saber pointed diagonally at the ground, while his left gripped a blood-soaked head.
With every step he took, blood dripped from the head, splattering the ground.
He walked slowly out of the main hall and looked down at the Green Tiger Gang members gathered before him.
His blade-sharp gaze swept over the four hall masters. Then he tossed the head in his left hand at their feet.
It rolled over and over!
After several turns, it revealed the gang leader's mottled face, his eyes still open in death.
"G-Gang leader!"
The three hall masters' pupils contracted sharply. Their gazes locked on the head, and they cried out in shock.
That was their gang leader's head!
Their gang leader... was dead!
The three hall masters stumbled back several steps, shaken to their cores. They instinctively looked up at the black-clad figure wearing the Black Dragon Mask, but for a moment, none dared step forward to avenge their leader!
Watching them retreat in terror, Liu Chu nodded inwardly with satisfaction.
This was exactly the effect he wanted!
If they all rushed him at once, with so many of them, he would have no choice but to fight his way out.
But that went against his plan.
He wanted to overwhelm the entire Green Tiger Gang and make all four hall masters submit, using the gang leader's head and his own superior strength as proof.
Liu Chu wore the Black Dragon Mask and a black outfit. His long saber pointed toward the ground in his right hand, blood slowly sliding down its blade.
Standing proudly on the steps, he looked down at the crowd. Having slain the Green Tiger Gang leader and sent Hall Master Ruan Jin flying with one move, he had cowed everyone present.
His voice cold and indifferent, he looked slowly at the four hall masters. "The Green Tiger Gang leader is dead. From today onward, I am the new gang leader!"
His gaze was sharp as a blade, cutting straight into their hearts. His long saber suddenly trembled in his hand, spraying blood as its edge flashed with a frigid gleam.
"Who opposes me? Who's with me?"
His voice was cold, and a thread of murderous intent ran through it!
The four hall masters met Liu Chu's icy gaze and shuddered as one, all feeling the killing intent in his eyes.
They gritted their teeth, each lost in thought.
"I'm with you!"
Hall Master Ruan Jin clutched his chest and spoke weakly. "I'm with you. Cough, cough... Your subordinate pays his respects, Gang Leader!"
As he spoke, he dropped to one knee to show his allegiance.
"Hall Master Ruan Jin has submitted..."
The other three hall masters saw what Ruan Jin had done, and a glint flashed in their eyes. They hadn't expected him—the one who had rushed to the front, seemingly the most loyal to the Green Tiger Gang leader—to be the first to yield.
Hall Master Ruan Jin knew what the other three were thinking, but he didn't care.
He had planned to rush in first to protect the Green Tiger Gang leader only because he wanted to earn more of his trust and gain more power.
But the moment he charged inside, Liu Chu sent him flying with a single move. The blow had shown him just how terrifying Liu Chu's strength was!
And the sight of the gang leader's head rolling across the ground had made the gulf between them crystal clear. He couldn't muster the slightest will to resist.
If he wasn't going to resist, he might as well be the first to submit. That way, he could make a good impression and earn greater favor!
"Good!"
Seeing someone submit, Liu Chu nodded in satisfaction, then turned his gaze to the remaining three hall masters.
Their thoughts differed, and hesitation and inner conflict clouded their eyes.
"I oppose!"
A voice rang out as the hall master on the far left stepped forward.
"That's Hall Master Xu Kun..."
The other two hall masters looked at the man who had stepped forward in surprise.
"Don't let this man sway you! How can the Green Tiger Gang be wiped out so easily? Why should we submit to the murderer who killed our leader? Have you all forgotten the kindness he showed us? Come with me and let's kill Liu Chu—"
Hall Master Xu Kun spoke loudly. His gaze swept over the two undecided hall masters and the gang's core members, trying to rally them to surround and kill Liu Chu.
But the next instant—
Whoosh!
A blur swept past. Liu Chu lunged forward like a tiger that had been waiting to pounce, and his long saber flashed with a crescent of cold light.
In the blink of an eye, he had crossed paths with Xu Kun and appeared behind him.
His saber still pointed diagonally at the ground. The blade, which he had just shaken clean, was now stained with fresh blood, slowly sliding down its edge.
Xu Kun's voice cut off!
His eyes bulged. A thin line of blood opened across his neck, then blood gushed out.
Thud!
His head hit the ground!
Silence!
The scene was terrifyingly quiet, steeped in deathly stillness.
After a long moment—
Whoosh!
The crowd retreated as one, unwilling to stand too close to Liu Chu. They stared at him in utter terror.
A hall master, a Grade-Entry Realm martial artist, had been killed in one strike!
His strength was so terrifying that even the Green Tiger Gang leader couldn't have done that!
The faint desire to resist that had just begun to stir in their hearts was snuffed out at once.
"Hall Master Xu Kun is dead..."
The other two hall masters' pupils contracted. A chill crept through them, and they, too, looked at Liu Chu in fear.
He had killed Hall Master Xu Kun with one strike!
Liu Chu's strength filled them with dread!
If he could kill Xu Kun in one strike, couldn't he do the same to them, given that their cultivation levels were similar?!
The same thought rose in both their minds.
By now, Liu Chu had turned his gaze on them. He gave his arm another shake, flinging the blood from his saber and restoring its cold gleam.
The two hall masters instinctively took half a step back.
"What about you two? Do you oppose me as well?"
Liu Chu gripped his saber, clad in black and radiating a cold, ruthless air. He looked at the two hall masters with an indifferent, confident expression.
By now, he knew he had cowed everyone present.
His image as a decisive, mysterious powerhouse had already taken root in their minds!
And in a world where strength reigned supreme, that was undoubtedly the most valuable thing of all!
The two hall masters forced themselves to look at Liu Chu, but they didn't even dare meet his eyes. They kept their gazes lowered.
One of them immediately chose to submit. He dropped to one knee and saluted. "Your subordinate pays his respects, Gang Leader!"
The remaining hall master knew he had no power to resist—and didn't want to. He had no desire to end up like Hall Master Xu Kun, beheaded in a single strike.
"Your subordinate pays his respects, Gang Leader!"
He knelt respectfully on one knee and spoke in a loud voice.
Seeing that one of the four hall masters was dead and the other three had submitted, the gang's remaining core members began to follow suit.
"Your subordinate pays his respects, Gang Leader!"
"Your subordinate pays his respects, Gang Leader!"
"Your subordinate pays his respects, Gang Leader!"
One after another, voices rose in salute as the gang members knelt on one knee.
They weren't Grade-Entry Realm martial artists. Their leader had been killed, an elite hall master had died in one strike, and the other three hall masters had submitted. They had already surrendered in their hearts.
Without a leader, even if they wanted to resist, they couldn't turn the tide.
Besides, they had no power to resist in the first place!
Liu Chu watched them kneel one after another and bow their heads in submission. Beneath the Black Dragon Mask, the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.
"Today, Qinghu is dead, and the Black Dragon shall rise!"
Liu Chu's voice boomed like a bell, carrying throughout the entire gang.
"From this day on, the Green Tiger Gang will be renamed the Black Dragon Gang!"
Before you continue