Fujiang Wharf.
The former headquarters of the Xingshui Gang.
A group of brawny men were drinking in the courtyard.
Every one of them was bare-chested. As they ate and drank, their feet rested on their weapons, and their hands, thick with calluses, reached for food. Whenever they sensed someone passing outside the courtyard or bringing in a dish, a vicious glint flashed in their eyes.
Clearly, these men were no ordinary people.
"Why have Zhang Gou and the others been gone so long? Could something have happened to them? Did they offend someone they shouldn't have?"
"Should we go to the east side of the city and tell Brother Three? Or send someone to take a look?"
Some of the men drank and chatted.
Ning Da ate, his brows unconsciously knitting together.
For people like them, habit was carved into their bones. They valued efficiency in carrying out missions and acted swiftly and decisively.
Why was this operation taking so long?
"Leader Ning, there's no need to worry. Zhang and the others are all seasoned fighters at the peak of Blood Tempering. I've been in the Blood-Coagulation Realm for two years, but could I hold them off if I weren't prepared?"
Wang San asked with a cheerful grin.
The others joined in, laughing and trading jokes.
Ning Da finally set aside his worries, but unease lingered in his voice. "Black Cloud County is a major county, with a wharf and mineral veins, and plenty of local martial artists. If Big Brother hasn't arrived yet, I'm really worried we won't be able to keep the situation under control! Second Brother isn't here either, and Third Brother went east to deal with the Alien Source and the matter of replenishing our supply of beast meat."
"What's there to be afraid of? Damn it, these martial artists have had their bones softened by comfortable living. How would they know what it means to be ruthless?"
A scar-faced man's eyes turned cold. "Watch out for the Black Whale Gang, and don't antagonize the County Office yet. As for all those so-called gangs, Boat Gangs, martial academies, and martial arts schools, they're nothing but clay chickens and pottery dogs!"
"I've had people look into it. The strongest martial artists in Black Cloud County are only at the Blood Refining Force level. There isn't a single one at the Organ Refining Force level."
"If our Military Commander weren't away, he alone could occupy this tiny place..."
"Shut up! Have you forgotten what we said back then?" Ning Da snapped. "Now that we've escaped from that place, we must never use our old titles again. If you want to die, slit your own throat. Don't drag the rest of the brothers down with you!"
The others' eyes filled with desolation and apprehension.
They quickly laughed and changed the subject, putting the matter behind them.
"Big Brother joined the Extreme Yang Society under one of its altar masters. That altar master is deeply interested in what's happening in Tiannan Prefecture, so Big Brother naturally couldn't refuse. He sent us to lay the groundwork in Black Cloud County first, so we have to proceed one step at a time!"
Ning Da said in a low voice, "If we ruin Big Brother's plans, we'll also damage his standing with that altar master. This world is vast, but will there be anywhere left for us to live?"
"Leader Ning, don't worry. There are plenty of us brothers, and the least skilled among those sent to work in Black Cloud County are Blood-Tempering martial artists. We're men who survived the bloody storms of the battlefield. No matter how strong the martial artists here are, they're all sheep who've never seen a battlefield. What are they to us?"
Wang San joked, "No matter how hard Black Cloud County is to take, at least it's a place where people can live."
"But Tiannan Prefecture... I'm worried Big Brother won't be able to get out again once he goes back! Tens of thousands of troops vanished for no reason!! Just vanished!! I don't even know what happened. I was asleep in the middle of the night when the whole camp erupted in chaos. There was crying everywhere, towering skyscrapers everywhere, and steel jungles everywhere. That place could drive a person mad!"
"I heard rumors around camp that some people dressed in yellow and wearing iron helmets could take lives without a trace. You'd hear a shout of 'delivery,' and heads would roll!"
"Didn't a steel forest fall from the sky over Tianlin Prefecture City? Countless steel monsters and strange people with short hair and bizarre clothes came dropping from the heavens!"
"I also heard that place has some terrifying rules. If a red light flashes on the pole at a crossroads, anyone who dares to cross will have their head lopped off..."
The rough men recalled the place that haunted their memories.
Even the bizarre stories they had only heard secondhand filled them with fear!
"All right, stop talking about Tiannan Prefecture!"
"Big Brother warned us. None of you are allowed to think about what happened there. If you vanish, don't blame the brothers for being unable to help you!"
"Your own disappearance doesn't matter. Just don't get the rest of the brothers killed with you!"
Ning Da said coldly, "We'll start with Fuxing Wharf. We'll take down the gangs nearby. Any objections?"
"None!"
"Leader Ning, I'll take on the Black Water Gang."
"I'll handle the Small Knife Society!"
"Peace Lane is big and crowded. I heard those guys from the so-called Harmony and Prosperity Union are weak, too. I'll take it over..."
The men suppressed their sorrow and fear.
They wanted to keep busy with something. Once they were occupied, they could forget the terror of the past!
"Leave any gangs or people with connections alone for now," Ning Da said gravely. "We'll take over the gangs without backing first, then wait for Big Brother and the others to return before deciding what to do."
"Yes!"
The men answered as one, their voices ringing with steely resolve.
"Leader Ning, we've got twelve Blood-Tempering martial artists, two in the Blood-Coagulation Realm, and you, an Origin Blood martial artist. Even if experts from the County Office show up, we can fight them!"
Wang San said with a cheerful grin. "Taking a few people at random probably won't cause any trouble."
"We're fast, but those martial artists aren't slow either. They'll probably come looking for a meal in Black Cloud County in the next few days. Once things get chaotic, who'll have time to keep an eye on us?"
"I don't care about that. I just want to see us take over the second- and third-rate gangs in short order!"
Seeing that the three men who had left still hadn't returned, Ning Da tossed his chopsticks aside, grabbed his saber, and stood up. "I'm going east to talk to Third Brother and see what he's planning. Keep an eye on things. Wait until I get back before doing anything."
With that, Ning Da plunged into the pitch-black night and hurried along the street.
People hurried past in both directions. As Ning Da made his way along, he spotted a young boy with a tender face helping an elderly man pick up goods from a stall he had accidentally knocked over.
On a crowded street, in an age when everyone looked out only for themselves,
how striking that scene was!
As Ning Da looked at the old man's weathered face, something stirred within him.
Thinking of his family back home, their fate unknown, and his elderly parents, Ning Da felt his nose sting. He went over and helped put the goods back in place.
"Thank you, both of you. You don't meet many kind people like you these days." The old man pulled out two handfuls of wild greens with trembling hands and pressed one into Ning Da's and the boy's hands.
"Young man, it's kind of you to do good deeds at your age. You can have them all."
Ning Da handed his greens to the young man.
He looked at the boy's thin frame and rough hemp clothes, clear signs of a poor upbringing. His angular face still looked young, but his manner was mature. Hardship had clearly forced him to grow up early.
Ning Da sighed softly.
His own little brother at home was probably about the same age.
The government was like this, and everywhere else was the same. In the end, it was always ordinary poor people like them who suffered.
"It was nothing."
The boy flashed a row of white teeth and smiled with an innocent, harmless air. Anyone would have thought he was a simple, honest lad.
Ning Da smiled too. But his keen gaze pierced the darkness, and his brow furrowed as he noticed some bloodstains that hadn't been washed off the boy. He paused. "Young man, what happened? Why do you have blood on you?"
"These are troubled times. I was walking along minding my own business when someone hit me from behind. Good thing I reacted quickly."
The boy shook his head helplessly and gave a bitter smile.
Ning Da sighed too. "Yeah. What a wretched world this is. Here, you can have the greens. I've got things to do, so I'll be going."
"It's getting dark. Head home early, old man. I'll buy these greens from you."
He tossed a handful of copper coins onto the stall, then hurried off and disappeared into the street.
"Take care." The old man's face was full of gratitude.
The boy nodded, watching the iron-tower of a man, nearly six feet three, disappear down the street.
"Good people are hard to come by."
The boy sighed. He tied up the wild greens with a piece of hemp rope, picked them up, and continued on his way, politely asking people for information as he went.
A moment later,
he kicked the courtyard gate open.
His eyes fixed on the astonished men around the table, and he smiled brightly...
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