Moon Veil Nightclub

After all the twists and turns, he had finally set foot on the long-dreamed-of path of the extraordinary.

Golden Skin, Jade Bone—what realms lay beyond?

And what realm was Uncle Jiang, who lived in this mansion, at?

After completing his breakthrough, Luo Bin lay in the bathtub and thought about many things. About half a shichen later, Chuntao and Xiahe entered. Seeing that Luo Bin had mostly recovered, they withdrew with peace of mind.

The next day.

When Luo Bin woke up and prepared to practice the Primordial Stance in the courtyard, he sensed something off. Jiang Ling and Chen Jing were standing in the yard, discussing something. Chen Jing's face was grim, but Jiang Ling remained calm and composed.

Luo Bin drew closer, and the voices became clearer.

"Uncle Jiang, you've followed Grandfather for so long. Can you really not step in this time? Grandfather's body is still warm. The Green Bamboo Gang is tied up dealing with that thing by the river outside the city and can't spare any hands. Just once, just once..." Chen Jing pleaded with Jiang Ling.

Jiang Ling said flatly, "Look at you, so scared. Just go ahead and do it. Your grandfather made it clear—unless the Chen family is on the verge of destruction, I have countless reasons not to act."

"But..." Chen Jing was frantic.

Jiang Ling raised a graying brow and let out a surprised "Hm?" from his throat, cutting off Chen Jing's next words. Then he turned to look into the courtyard.

Luo Bin was walking over slowly. His skin was much fairer than yesterday, and his overall spirit and energy were worlds apart. He moved with the stride of a dragon and the step of a tiger.

His muscular arms, bulging with sinew, were exposed beneath his short sleeves, standing out starkly in the sunlight.

Jiang Ling studied Luo Bin carefully, a look of disbelief spreading across his face. Then he extended a hand and sent a wisp of energy into Luo Bin's body.

"Incredible, truly incredible. You've cultivated the Primordial Stance to the second layer in a single night and even broken through the Golden Skin Pass. Luo Bin, do you feel any discomfort?"

Luo Bin respectfully clasped his hands in a bow. "Thank you for your concern, Uncle Jiang. I just feel a bit unaccustomed to the sudden surge in strength. Other than that, I'm fine."

As Jiang Ling spoke, Chen Jing was also observing the youth before him. Yesterday, Ruan Pei had brought him here. He had only practiced the refined Primordial Stance for a single day, and by the next day, he had already reached the second layer.

With talent like that, there probably weren't many in all of Ping City...

Chen Jing had originally thought that bringing Luo Bin back and handing him over to Jiang Ling for training would, over time, lead him to master this stance. But... one layer broken in a single night?

Was that even something a person could do?

Jiang Ling stroked his beard and nodded, then said to Chen Jing, "I won't help the Chen family with this matter, but he can... And it just so happens that Luo Bin has just stepped onto the martial path and needs tempering. Take him to see some blood."

A moment later, Jiang Ling returned to his room, leaving Luo Bin and Chen Jing alone.

After chatting for a while, Luo Bin finally learned what Chen Jing was talking about.

"Second Young Master, is there really something unclean in the Moon Veil Nightclub?"

Chen Jing paced as he replied, "That's right. If it were a normal demon, most would have a physical form. But this thing doesn't, and firearms can barely harm it.

The most troublesome part is that while it's not strong, it's incredibly persistent. The martial artists under my Chen family may not be top-tier, but many are quite skilled, and none of them have been able to drive it away."

Chen Jing wore a troubled expression. After Old Master Chen Shuo's death, the Chen family's business had been shrinking. Right now, his father Chen Tianren was busy cutting ties with foreign merchants and local strongmen—how could he have time to deal with some strange occurrence at a nightclub?

But as he spoke, Chen Jing's eyes suddenly lit up. "Your main cultivation method—is it only the Primordial Stance?"

Luo Bin nodded. "Yes."

"The blood and qi cultivated from the Primordial Stance are vigorous and majestic. They might just work against that thing."

Then Luo Bin was pulled by Chen Jing out of the mansion and down to the Chen Family Mansion's entrance. At Chen Jing's signal, a small "army" quickly assembled.

The two of them got into the car first. The driver was named Sun Yi, a reliable man personally assigned by Chen Jing's father. Behind them followed two skilled fighters picked from the Green Bamboo Gang—the burly one was Zhang Huai, and the lean one was Hu Junzhi.

The two rode bicycles behind, and a group of about twenty men followed in a single-file line behind them, most with Mauser pistols tucked at their waists and blades at their sides.

The whole procession trailed behind the car carrying Luo Bin and Chen Jing at the front.

Soon, they arrived at the Moon Veil Nightclub. What met Luo Bin's eyes was a large Western-style building about five stories high. But the windows on each floor were extremely small, so much so that from the outside, one could clearly feel a chilling, eerie atmosphere.

Luo Bin asked, "Second Young Master, is the unclean thing inside?"

Chen Jing's face was as dark as water. Though only fourteen, he carried an air of extreme maturity. The Moon Veil Nightclub was a Chen family asset, but the profits went straight into Chen Jing's own pockets.

With the venue disrupted by that thing, business had plummeted.

"That's right. I'll take you to browse the shops on this street first. Take whatever you want. We'll have some fun and head inside when evening comes." Chen Jing parked the car. The twenty or so men following behind entered the nightclub's back courtyard through a side door, awaiting orders.

"Second Young Master means that thing doesn't come out during the day?"

"Exactly. Let's enjoy ourselves first. No rush."

Luo Bin was momentarily speechless. If there's no rush, why did you drag me over here in such a hurry...

Time flew by.

For most of the day, Luo Bin stuck with Chen Jing, and the two gradually grew familiar.

Chen Jing was astonished to find that although Luo Bin came from a lowly background, his knowledge was quite remarkable. He carried a calm, steady demeanor and didn't flinch even when visiting high-end venues.

Surprised as he was, this only raised Chen Jing's estimation of Luo Bin even higher.

After all, a youth with such extraordinary martial talent, who could remain unruffled by praise or criticism, neither humble nor arrogant, was far too rare.

Luo Bin also learned more about this Second Young Master of the Chen family. Their conversations showed no clear hierarchy of superior and inferior, leading him to guess that this likely had to do with the Chen family's upbringing and traditions.

Nightfall came quickly.

The colored light rings hanging on the "Moon Veil Nightclub" sign began to flicker, signaling that Ping City's upper-middle class had officially entered the nightlife.

Vroom—

Driver Sun Yi floored the accelerator, quickly delivering Chen Jing and Luo Bin to the nightclub entrance, while Zhang Huai and Hu Junzhi, who had been pedaling furiously on bicycles behind them, were a bit winded.

But both were Golden Skin Pass martial artists with formidable stamina, so there was no need to worry too much.

As soon as they stepped out of the car, the nightclub's manager and boss, Fu Yunsheng, rushed out in a fluster, his face plastered with an ingratiating smile:

"Second Young Master, if you'd told me you were coming, I'd have made arrangements in advance..."

Chen Jing was here to clean up the filth, so he wasn't impressed by Fu Yunsheng's pleasantries. "I've already got a team waiting in the back courtyard. Didn't you notice, Manager Fu?"

Then Chen Jing glanced at Luo Bin and led the way inside.

As soon as they entered, bursts of raucous music flooded their ears. Foreign musicians from Yingluo Kingdom and Falan Island were performing on stage, accompanied by a few Great Xin instrumentalists.

At the very front of the stage were the Moon Veil Nightclub's dancing girls...

There were female students who had studied abroad from wealthy families, as well as fallen noble ladies—well-read, refined, fluent in foreign languages, and versed in Western dance—but they only danced, never slept with guests.

These were the top-tier red cards. Below the stage were many ordinary dancing girls and unlicensed prostitutes, their full, curvaceous bodies tempting the patrons, clinking glasses with customers.

At that moment, as Chen Jing and Luo Bin entered, the team hidden in the back courtyard surged in. Without firing a single shot, they secured the first floor.

"Try not to fire any shots. Let everyone keep doing what they're doing—don't stop the music. Leave some men here to make sure no one leaves. We're going upstairs."

Even without gunfire, such a massive show of force still sent some timid guests and dancing girls scrambling under tables in fright.