Black Bear Company

Tianshui City Station.

An ordinary-looking young man with no distinguishing features appeared in this place; he was Xia Ping, though his appearance was completely different from before.

This was because he had purchased a skin mask from a shop. It was essentially a high-tech facial film that, when applied to the face, could transform into all sorts of different visages.

These were quite popular among children as a kind of toy, and one could be bought for twenty Federal Coins. The reason he bought the mask was that Black Moon City was far too dangerous; it was a place where underworld figures gathered, chaotic and complex, and it was best not to show his true face there.

In fact, many people heading to Black Moon City would alter their appearance to avoid various dangers; it was a technique for self-protection.

"I must buy that Golden Potion." Xia Ping clenched his fists. Recalling the arrogant look on Zhou Tai'an's face earlier, he couldn't help but feel a surge of anger rising within him.

If he possessed strength that surpassed the other party, would that Zhou Tai'an still dare to be so insolent?! Relying on his cultivation at the sixth heaven of the Martial Apprentice realm and his family background, he had bullied him so wantonly and recklessly, not taking him seriously at all.

He had noted this debt down; once he returned from Black Moon City, he would surely pay it back twofold!

Thinking of this, Xia Ping immediately boarded the levitating train.

From Tianshui City to Black Moon City, the two cities were over a thousand kilometers apart, but with the thousand-kilometer-per-hour speed of the levitating train, he arrived in just over an hour, feeling no turbulence throughout the entire journey.

Of course, the price was expensive, costing four or five thousand Federal Coins for a ticket, but for the current Xia Ping, this price was still within his range of affordability.

Over an hour later, Xia Ping arrived at the Black Moon City station. The moment he stepped off the train, he immediately felt an atmosphere completely different from that of Tianshui City.

The first impression was: chaos!

The ground was covered in plastic trash, paper scraps, colorful beverage cans, and the like, blowing around in the wild wind with clattering sounds. The white walls were covered in graffiti and strange, eerie drawings, as if there were no cleaning staff working anywhere around the station.

Furthermore, the people were numerous and diverse!

All sorts of men appeared in this place, most with ferocious expressions, sporting terrifying tattoos of skulls, fierce tigers, or leopards on their shoulders. They had bulging muscles, wore tank tops, and their hair—or the lack thereof, as some were bald—was dyed in various colors, looking as messy as a chicken coop.

There were also many streetwalkers around the station, dressed very provocatively to highlight various assets, their faces caked in heavy makeup, ranging from teenage girls to women in their forties or fifties.

Whenever a man emerged, they would enthusiastically approach him, asking if he needed a place to stay.

Xia Ping saw the situation was turning sour and quickly left before these women could surround him, otherwise, he had no idea where he might be lured off to by these streetwalkers.

"Right, according to the map, Black Bear Company seems to be not far from the station." Xia Ping tapped his phone, and the nearby map immediately appeared.

The so-called Black Bear Company was the place where Xia Ping had decided to purchase the Golden Potion. On the surface, it was a legally registered Federal company, but in reality, it was merely a shell.

Secretly, they engaged in smuggling, and this Black Bear Company was considered a fairly large underworld organization in Black Moon City, with over ten thousand formal members and countless underlings. The Golden Potion was one of the goods sold by this company.

Because Black Bear Company was relatively famous and large in scale, and unlikely to sell fake goods, Xia Ping had chosen to go there after comparing several options.

He followed the map, walking for two or three kilometers, and discovered that the surrounding high-rise buildings were very dilapidated, lacking even windows. Up close, they looked like unfinished construction projects. The ground floors seemed to be inhabited by many impoverished people who were as thin as skeletons, and dangerous individuals were everywhere.

Moreover, the terrain here seemed very complex, with building after building clustered together, filled with small alleys.

Even though it was daytime, the buildings were so close together that they blocked out the sunlight, leaving the alleys in deep darkness.

"Is Black Bear Company really in this place?" Xia Ping followed the map, but found himself venturing deeper into an alley, with few paths around.

Even the human presence became sparse, and gradually, fewer people came to this area.

Damn it, he really had taken the wrong turn!

Xia Ping looked at the map with a strange expression, only to realize he had arrived at the back door of Black Bear Company, not the front. It was no wonder there were so few people here.

Although the map indicated it as a single point—the Black Bear Company building—in reality, one had to go around to reach the front entrance. After all, the front was where they sold their goods; there was no way to enter through the back.

"Forget it, looks like I have to circle back."

Just as Xia Ping was about to leave, he suddenly felt the space above his head darken, accompanied by a whistling wind. It seemed an unidentified object had fallen from the forty or fifty-story Black Bear building, heading straight for his head.

Bastard, who is throwing things from such a height?!

He felt a surge of annoyance, thinking the person throwing things so carelessly lacked any sense of public morality. However, he quickly adjusted his mindset, circulated the true qi within his body, and threw a punch toward the unidentified object.

Tiger Fist: Fierce Tiger Exits the Gate!

Ever since his battle with Xiong Batian, Xia Ping had been training diligently, constantly practicing the Pure Yang Indestructible Art and absorbing solar essence to enhance his cultivation. He had gained a deeper understanding of the Five Forms Fist, and his execution had become masterful and natural.

The power of this punch was even thirty percent more terrifying than when he had fought Xiong Batian. As he struck, it was as if several fierce tigers were roaring, the momentum astonishing as it tore through the air.

Even a Martial Apprentice at the fifth heaven would have died on the spot facing this punch!

BOOM!

The punch slammed into the unidentified object, sending it flying over a dozen meters away. The powerful force erupted, tearing through everything like a tiger biting its prey.

"Ah!"

However, the unidentified object suddenly let out a miserable shriek, followed by the sound of several ribs snapping. In the quiet, dim alley, the sound was exceptionally clear.

What?!

Hearing this, Xia Ping was startled. The object had actually made a sound; could it be that it wasn't an object at all, but a human?

He squinted to look, and sure enough, he saw the object he had struck rolling on the ground a few times, spitting out a mouthful of blood, and then staring at him with vicious, murderous intent, looking absolutely furious.