Faced with Liu Chu's interrogation, the four hall leaders and the rest of the gang members didn't dare step forward to avenge their chief.
Six slashes to kill the Wild Wolf Gang chief—it was so shocking that it had completely cowed them. Not one of them could muster the slightest resistance.
The four hall leaders, meanwhile, felt as if they'd fallen into an icy abyss.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two figures quickly retreated several steps, leaving two of their comrades exposed in front.
"You..."
The two isolated Wild Wolf Gang hall leaders stared at the pair who had retreated, their hearts gripped by fear and disbelief.
"Sorry..."
One of the retreating hall leaders turned his head away, pretending the matter had nothing to do with him; the other let out a low sigh and bowed his head in shame.
"When disaster strikes, everyone flies off on their own. So the so-called loyalty and friendship were nothing but a joke!"
The two isolated hall leaders wore looks of despair as they laughed bitterly.
"So you two were the ones who injured a hall leader of the Black Dragon Gang!"
Liu Chu looked at the two Wild Wolf Gang hall leaders left exposed in front. Seeing that they didn't even try to defend themselves, his expression suddenly turned cold.
Once he confirmed that the two of them were responsible—
"Die!"
The instant the word left his mouth, a dazzling blade flashed, swift as a startled swan. It was impossible to track, let alone react to.
With a clang, the long saber slid back into its sheath.
Liu Chu was still standing where he had been, his saber at his waist, as if he had never moved and never drawn his blade.
But the two hall leaders' pupils contracted. A chill brushed their necks, and a spray of blood burst forth as they both crumpled to the ground.
Liu Chu's blade was too fast.
They hadn't been able to react at all!
"The two hall leaders are dead..."
The Wild Wolf Gang members were shocked once more. They hurriedly backed away, their gazes at Liu Chu filled with awe.
"Are you willing to submit?"
Liu Chu looked at the two remaining Wild Wolf Gang hall leaders and the dozens of gang members. His voice was cool, yet carried an unmistakable command.
The two hall leaders exchanged glances, then each made up his mind.
"We pay our respects to the chief!"
Both hall leaders dropped to one knee, submitting to him.
With them leading the way, the rest of the gang members also knelt on one knee, welcoming their new chief.
As ordinary gang members, they had little reason to resist once even the hall leaders had submitted.
After all, they only earned a few taels of silver a month. Why risk their lives?
"Good. Take me to the Wild Wolf Gang!"
Liu Chu nodded in satisfaction and gave the order.
He had killed the two Wild Wolf Gang hall leaders for two reasons. First, the Wild Wolf Gang had five hall leaders, already more than his own forces. He had to cut down their numbers, or they might cause trouble.
Though his current strength meant he no longer needed to fear them turning against him, if they really banded together and rebelled, the Black Dragon Gang would likely suffer a grievous blow.
That was something he didn't want to see.
The second reason was to cow the others. Killing the Wild Wolf Gang chief with six slashes had been enough to intimidate them, but not enough to make all four hall leaders submit outright.
Besides, killing these two hall leaders would intimidate the remaining pair, avenge Feng Sheng, and show the entire Black Dragon Gang that he was a chief who stood up for his own.
From the hall leaders down to the ordinary members, they would naturally serve him with even greater devotion.
Sure enough, the two Black Dragon Gang hall leaders and the other members looked at Liu Chu with even greater admiration.
If I'm ever injured by someone from another gang, the chief will avenge me just as forcefully as he did today...
Every Black Dragon Gang member thought the same thing. They suddenly felt that following their chief was the greatest stroke of luck imaginable!
"The Wild Wolf Gang's finances are in such a terrible state..."
After taking stock of the Wild Wolf Gang's treasury, Liu Chu found barely more than four hundred taels of silver and couldn't help frowning.
"The former chief liked visiting brothels and spent money freely. He was on good terms with the courtesans at several places and squandered quite a bit..."
One of the Wild Wolf Gang hall leaders sighed. "That was also one of the reasons the former chief set his sights on the Black Dragon Gang."
"I see."
Liu Chu felt a headache coming on.
Those four hundred taels were barely enough to keep the gang running. He wouldn't get a single coin for himself.
"At least I got nearly two hundred taels of silver from killing those two hall leaders!"
Liu Chu thought to himself.
The Wild Wolf Gang chief had been so extravagant that he was even poorer than his subordinates.
Fortunately, he'd gotten some silver from killing the two hall leaders.
"I'm still one or two hundred taels short of having enough to buy thirty Treasure Fish..."
Liu Chu did the math.
Over the past few days, he'd occasionally sent gang members to buy Treasure Fish for him, but he still had to pay for them himself.
He had only four hundred taels of silver to begin with. Adding the two hundred taels he'd just acquired brought him to six hundred.
He was building up his supply bit by bit rather than buying everything at once, so thirty Treasure Fish would probably cost between six and nine hundred taels.
Taking the middle of that range, he'd need around seven or eight hundred taels.
He was still short by one or two hundred!
"No rush. The bridge will appear when the boat reaches the riverbank. I can always divert some of the gang's operating funds if I have to."
Liu Chu was troubled for only a moment before putting the matter out of his mind.
He then asked them about their techniques.
"The chief's cultivation techniques are the Jintao Yanglian Technique and the Jintao Blade Technique..."
One hall leader said, "This subordinate cultivates those techniques. If the chief needs them, I'll copy them down at once."
"I cultivate a martial arts school's techniques, which I'm not allowed to pass on. But I once came across a secret technique. It's somewhat useless, though, and very difficult to master..."
The remaining hall leader respectfully presented him with a secret technique.
"A secret technique?"
Liu Chu looked surprised. He hadn't expected to gain a secret technique on this trip!
He took it and examined it, his expression turning to surprise. "Blood Qi Profound Sound Technique?"
The five characters for Blood Qi Profound Sound Technique were clearly written on the manual.
"This is actually a secret technique that uses Blood Vitality to temper the sinews, bones, and skin a second time!"
Liu Chu was delighted and began reading eagerly. As he continued, his brows gradually furrowed, and he looked toward the hall leader who had offered the technique.
"It really is a pretty useless secret technique."
Liu Chu sighed.
The hall leader looked embarrassed.
He'd acquired the secret technique by chance. It could temper the sinews, bones, and skin a second time, bringing them to the level of Copper Skin, Jade Tendons, and Iron Bones, and greatly increasing the strength of external martial artists!
But its requirements were harsh. First, one needed ten strands of Blood Vitality to produce the specific profound sound through high-frequency vibrations. That sound was what tempered the sinews, bones, and skin.
On top of that, one needed expensive medicinal decoctions. Just one dose for tempering Copper Skin cost thirty taels of silver!
To put that in perspective, the medicinal decoctions Liu Chu took while cultivating at the martial arts school cost only twenty taels of silver for an entire year.
A single dose for Copper Skin cultivation already cost more than that, and the expenses that followed were impossible to estimate.
"Still, this secret technique might be of some use to me. You've put thought into this."
Liu Chu offered another mild word of praise and put the manual away.
"If it's useful to the chief, then it's my honor to offer it!"
The hall leader's embarrassment immediately turned to delight, and he bowed respectfully.
He had once offered the secret technique to the Wild Wolf Gang chief, only for the man to treat it like worthless trash.
Now that a new chief had taken over, even if the technique could earn him a little favor, that was already enough to satisfy him!
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