Hate Extreme Fist, Grudge Extreme Palm

In the vast, white expanse of the system space, Su Xin said, "I want to draw my mission reward."

The system replied, "You have one chance to draw from a designated category (above two stars, below three stars). Please select from the six available options."

Su Xin did not hesitate. "Martial arts."

On the giant screen, a roulette wheel spun continuously, flashing images of various figures before finally settling on a man with an ugly, gloomy face.

"Congratulations to the host for drawing the character Wen Xue'an. He comes with eleven martial arts, including Grudge Extreme Palm, Hate Extreme Fist, Momentum Sword, and Five Tigers Door-Breaking Saber. Character rating: two and a half stars. Martial arts rating: one and a half to three stars. As this draw is a special mission reward, it cannot be designated using Villain Points."

Su Xin pondered for a moment and muttered, "Wen Xue'an, so it was him."

Mentioning the name Wen Xue'an might draw a blank for many, but everyone would certainly have an impression of Number Seven Under Heaven.

He was one of the most hated villains in The Heroes, yet also a deeply pathetic figure.

But as the saying goes, every pathetic person has their detestable side.

Wen Xue'an was the son of Lady Mo, the sixth concubine of the high-ranking court official Wen Zhang. His mother came from a humble background, suffered endless grievances, and eventually died of a broken heart.

He was often bullied by his half-siblings, and combined with his ugly appearance and gloomy nature, he was never well-liked.

Eventually, he became so deranged that he attempted to defile his own half-sister, leading to his expulsion from the Wen family. He later practiced martial arts bitterly and became the top expert under the treacherous prime minister Cai Jing.

However, although Wen Xue'an was known as Number Seven Under Heaven, his strength didn't even rank in the top seventy-seven. The title "Number Seven Under Heaven" was merely a ruse to prevent others from gauging his true depth.

What truly propelled Wen Xue'an's strength was becoming the disciple of Yuan Shisan, who favored him and taught him many martial arts of the Zizai Sect.

Looking at the description on the big screen, Su Xin felt a headache coming on.

In truth, the character Number Seven Under Heaven was not bad; he possessed many of Yuan Shisan's secret Zizai Sect techniques.

But he had also learned common trash like the Five Tigers Door-Breaking Saber, and since the system did not allow for a designated draw, the probability of pulling such garbage was quite high.

"Wait, why is the character rating for Number Seven Under Heaven two and a half stars, but his martial arts go up to three stars?"

Su Xin only just noticed this discrepancy—the techniques carried by the character were actually higher-rated than the character himself.

The system explained, "The character star rating is determined by their own strength, while the martial arts rating depends on the completeness of the character's mastery.

I have told the host before: for example, the original Nine Yin Manual is rated four stars. If the host draws Ouyang Feng, you would only receive the Reverse-Cultivated Nine Yin Manual, rated three stars, while Ouyang Feng himself is rated three and a half stars.

If the host draws Yang Kang, you would receive the Nine Yin White Bone Claw fragment from the Nine Yin Manual, rated two stars, while Yang Kang himself is rated one star.

Number Seven Under Heaven is of the same type as Yang Kang. The 'Momentum Sword' he created by fusing all his martial arts is rated three stars.

He also stole a portion of Yuan Shisan's Heartbreak Arrow Art; although it is only a fragment, it is still rated three stars."

"Alright, let's start the martial arts draw."

Number Seven Under Heaven carried far too many techniques. If he were lucky enough to draw something like a fragment of the Heartbreak Arrow Art, it would be a huge profit.

Su Xin offered a wry smile. He had originally thought this reward would be a windfall, but it turned out to be a gamble after all.

The halo jumped between the eleven martial arts before slowly coming to a halt.

"Congratulations to the host for successfully drawing Hate Extreme Fist and Grudge Extreme Palm. Because the attributes of these two techniques are compatible, they have been merged into one. Rating: two and a half stars."

"It's not a fragment of the Heartbreak Arrow Art, but it's not bad."

Acquiring Hate Extreme Fist and Grudge Extreme Palm was decent. Both were unique skills created by Yuan Shisan and taught to Number Seven Under Heaven, possessing immense power.

Most importantly, these two techniques compensated for Su Xin's lack of versatility in combat.

The Great Sumeru Sword Style leaned toward defense and didn't quite fit Su Xin's style; even though he had practiced it to a high level of proficiency, the more he used it, the more awkward it felt.

Meanwhile, Jing Wuming's fast sword was suited for one-hit kills; if the initial strike failed to severely wound the opponent, the subsequent strikes would be significantly weaker.

That vicious and eerie fast sword was better kept as a trump card.

After leaving the system, Su Xin went out to find Huang Bingcheng.

Huang Bingcheng looked at Su Xin in surprise. Didn't the boss say he was going into seclusion? Why is he out so soon?

"Old Huang, I'll leave Master Li to you to settle in. His monthly pay will be the same as yours. But remember one thing: you can let him handle tasks, but do not let him hold power."

Although Master Li had defected to Su Xin, he was a man who had betrayed his previous master.

Su Xin would use such a person, but he would never trust him with authority.

If you can betray Third Master Hu for profit today, might you not betray me for profit tomorrow?

Huang Bingcheng nodded. In truth, even if Su Xin hadn't said anything, he had no intention of giving Master Li a friendly look.

Just joined the gang and already trying to steal my spotlight? Who does he think he is?

After giving instructions to Huang Bingcheng, Su Xin left Happy Forest and returned to his small courtyard.

From the attack on Happy Forest until now, he hadn't had a moment of rest. It was time to take a break.

Back home, Xin'er was sitting in the room with a bitter face, listening to an Old Master lecture. Seeing Su Xin return, she immediately threw herself into his arms and pleaded pitifully, "Brother, can I stop listening to the lecture today? I haven't seen you for days. Why don't you teach me swordplay instead?"

During the days Su Xin was attacking the Green Bamboo Gang, Xin'er had been forced to listen to the Old Master drone on about dry, boring content and write hundreds of characters, which she could no longer endure.

Seeing Su Xin return, she immediately rushed over to complain.

The Old Master saw Su Xin and immediately said nervously, "Boss Su, Miss Xin'er is naturally gifted, but she lacks focus. If she doesn't study and learn to read now, I fear it will be even harder for her to learn when she is older."

Su Xin was a gang leader, while he was merely a failed scholar who made a living teaching students and writing letters for others. He dared not offend Su Xin, fearing that Su Xin might think he was being intentionally harsh on Xin'er.

"Alright, Old Master, I know all this, but one must balance work and rest. Let's just treat today as a day off for Xin'er."

"Brother, you're the best!" Xin'er immediately hugged Su Xin and began jumping up and down with excitement.

"Then this old man shall take his leave." Old Master felt incredibly awkward being around a figure as fearsome and imposing as Su Xin.

"Alright, stop acting spoiled. You're only allowed to play for one day; tomorrow you must continue reading and studying with the teacher," Su Xin lectured.

"Oh, I know." The little head that had just been held high instantly drooped down.

After sending Xin'er away, Su Xin returned to his room, intending to get some sleep.

Playing mind games with an old fox like Sha Feiying was simply too mentally draining.

The next day, Su Xin woke up feeling refreshed. Instead of going to Happy Forest, he headed straight for Yongle District.

Things were already stable at Happy Forest, but Yongle District was newly conquered territory. Most of Su Xin's men were concentrated there, and he needed to be present to hold the fort.

Along the way, the Flying Eagle Gang members who encountered Su Xin stopped to salute him, their eyes filled with immense admiration.

It was no wonder they felt this way; the gang's orders had come down yesterday, appointing Su Xin as a Great Boss of the Flying Eagle Gang.

One had to realize that Su Xin was only seventeen years old. A seventeen-year-old Great Boss—the age was simply too exaggerated.

Even if it were the gang leader's son, Sha Feiying, who was around the same age as Su Xin, if he were directly appointed as a Great Boss, he would inevitably face criticism from within the gang.

Yet, when it came to Su Xin taking the position of Great Boss, no one could say a word. This was something he had earned with solid, tangible achievements!

At the entrance of the Yongle District branch, Huang Bingcheng hurried over as soon as he saw Su Xin arrive.

"Boss, why didn't you rest for a few more days? You could have just left things here to me." Huang Bingcheng wore a fawning expression; although it smacked of sycophancy, this was simply his style.

"Of course I trust you, but in the path of martial arts, if you don't advance, you retreat. Especially in the Houtian Body Tempering stage, one must constantly hone the physique. It's not just me who needs to cultivate; the brothers under me cannot slack off either. Is the training ground at the Yongle District branch finished?"

Back when the Green Bamboo Gang was in Yongle District, they had no need for a training ground; the backyard of the branch was used merely for storing miscellaneous items.

When Su Xin took over the branch, he had ordered Huang Bingcheng to send men to clear out the backyard to serve as a training ground.

"I sent men to get it ready long ago. The space is a bit small, and I was just preparing to expand it; otherwise, it won't be enough to hold these thousand-plus brothers."

Su Xin nodded and asked, "Have any of the newly joined members violated the rules?"

Huang Bingcheng looked slightly embarrassed. "There were indeed a few, but they were all caught and severely punished by Li Huai and his men.

The group under Li Huai really has a heavy hand, but I reckon those guys won't dare to commit the same offense a second time in their lives. Those merchants now know that you, Boss, weren't just making empty threats."

Originally, the merchants in Yongle District had grumbled about Su Xin changing the rules for collecting protection fees and raising them to fifty taels of silver per month. However, after witnessing how Su Xin severely punished his own men, they finally had nothing left to say.

When the Green Bamboo Gang was in charge, although the protection fees were lower, the low-level gang members frequently harassed these merchants.

As the saying goes, it is easy to deal with the King of Hell, but hard to deal with his impish underlings. Although it only took a few taels of silver to send those guys away, they would come several times a month. The money they swindled was no less than the monthly fee, and they disrupted business to boot.

Now, Su Xin's men were strictly disciplined, with Li Huai overseeing them. Unless you didn't want to work under Su Xin anymore, who would dare to break the rules again?