The Three Heroes Association's Plans

Upon returning to the branch, Su Xin opened the porcelain bottle to find ten yellowish pills inside, emitting a rich, medicinal fragrance.

However, one must always be on guard; who knew if that Old Wolf was still unwilling to give up and had tampered with the pills?

Yet, even if he were to ask someone at a pharmacy, it would be useless.

How could they possibly recognize pills secretly refined by a major martial arts sect?

After some thought, Su Xin suddenly hit upon a method, though he wasn't sure if it would work.

He entered the system space and asked the system, "I obtained a bottle of pills from the outside. Can you identify them for me?"

The system replied, "Affirmative. The system can verify the authenticity of any item the host obtains in the outside world and rate it according to the system's star ranking."

Su Xin smiled; this was truly an unexpected delight.

There were many hidden attributes within the Great Villain System yet to be unearthed; if Su Xin didn't ask, the system wouldn't volunteer the information.

"Very well, identify this bottle of pills and tell me if there are any issues."

The large screen in the system space displayed the appearance of the pill bottle, followed by a series of descriptions.

"Shaolin Temple secret Small Restoration Pill, refined from forty-nine types of herbs using secret techniques. It is a simplified version of the Great Restoration Pill, capable of accelerating the circulation of internal energy, strengthening qi and blood, and assisting in cultivation. Comprehensive rating: two and a half stars."

This world also had a Shaolin Temple, though it was very far from this Xiangnan region of Changning Prefecture. He hadn't expected to encounter something from Shaolin today.

The Southern Barbarians region of Changning Prefecture had very little understanding of the Central Plains martial arts world. Su Xin had asked Huang Bingcheng about it, but he only had a half-baked understanding himself.

To them, Changning Prefecture was their entire world; why waste effort inquiring about useless things?

Thus, Su Xin only occasionally heard snippets about the Central Plains martial arts world. Even so, he knew that Shaolin Temple was a sacred site of Buddhism and held immense prestige in the martial arts community.

Since these Small Restoration Pills were produced by Shaolin and rated two and a half stars by the system, they were quite decent.

Su Xin had already opened sixty acupoints. With the help of these ten Small Restoration Pills, he estimated he could complete his breakthrough to the middle stage of the Houtian realm within ten days.

"The poor study, the rich practice martial arts"—this saying was no joke.

Without these Small Restoration Pills, it would have taken Su Xin at least a month to break through to the middle stage of the Houtian realm, but now he could achieve it in ten days.

The seven-story Shenglong Pavilion in Changde Ward was the largest restaurant in all of Changning Prefecture. Even with money, not everyone was qualified to enter.

Each floor of the seven-story Shenglong Pavilion required sufficient status and standing to ascend.

Sha Feiying, the leader of the Flying Eagle Gang, was only qualified to reach the sixth floor. As for this seventh floor, fewer than ten people in the entire Changning Prefecture were qualified to step foot on it.

Yet at this moment, on the seventh floor of the Shenglong Pavilion, three middle-aged men were drinking together, looking down at the figures below.

Among the Three Gangs and Four Associations of Changning Prefecture, the Flying Eagle Gang, Green Bamboo Gang, and Jiangyang Gang were the weakest.

The Four Associations consisted of the Iron Blade Association, Blood Garment Association, Divine Wind Association, and the strongest, the Three Heroes Association.

These three middle-aged men were the three leaders of the Three Heroes Association.

Most of the Three Gangs and Four Associations had weathered over a hundred years of storms, some even spanning three or four generations. Only two gangs had been established in the last few decades: one was the Flying Eagle Gang, and the other was the Three Heroes Association.

The Three Heroes Association had been established for even less time than the Flying Eagle Gang—only a little over ten years.

Yet in these ten-plus years, the three of them had turned the Three Heroes Association into the largest gang in Changning Prefecture, which was a testament to their strength and methods.

"Have you heard about the new major head of the Flying Eagle Gang?" one of the middle-aged men with a dignified expression asked.

He was Meng Changhe, one of the three leaders of the Three Heroes Association. He was responsible for managing personnel and teaching martial arts to the gang members, and his authority was the greatest among the three.

Another man, lean and gaunt with a hideous scar on his face, said, "To be able to kill Dai Chong and Boss Chen of the Green Bamboo Gang before the age of twenty—this level of strength is extraordinary.

Furthermore, he once defeated Luo Zhen of the Green Bamboo Gang, which makes it even more remarkable. Luo Zhen came from the Weiyuan Escort Agency, and his master is the great escort master, 'Soul-Severing Spear' Lin Luoyuan, a genuine Xiantian martial artist.

For Su Xin to be able to defeat Luo Zhen, the strength he displayed is definitely not his limit; he might even be stronger."

This scarred man was Duan Xiao, another of the three leaders, responsible for external gang warfare, somewhat similar to the War Hall of the Flying Eagle Gang.

However, the War Hall specifically cultivated a group of people, intending to take the elite route, whereas the gang wars of the Three Heroes Association were commanded by Duan Xiao. It was said that Duan Xiao came from a military background, so he was very knowledgeable about formations and tactics.

The last leader was the youngest, appearing to be only in his thirties. He wore a scholar's robe and was very well-groomed, looking less like a gang leader and more like a young master from a noble family.

This man was Ning Luoyuan, the third leader. It was said that he truly came from a fallen martial arts family, but had been expelled for committing a grave mistake.

Although Ning Luoyuan appeared gentle and refined, he was the most terrifying existence among the three leaders.

After the Three Heroes Association was founded, it was this Ning Luoyuan, who looked like a noble young master, who used a pair of Soul-Departing Hooks to turn Changning Prefecture into a river of blood, with over a hundred people dying by his hand.

Hearing Duan Xiao's words, Ning Luoyuan shook his head and said, "I see it quite differently from you. Su Xin's schemes are far more formidable than his martial arts.

That old dog Sha Feiying is as petty as a needle's eye, yet he could tolerate such a young man rising to the position of major head. This Su Xin is truly not simple."

Meng Changhe tapped the table. "Regardless, this Su Xin is certainly not someone to be trifled with. I have decided to poach him for the Three Heroes Association. What do you think?"

Duan Xiao and Ning Luoyuan both nodded.

This kind of conversation was not the first time it had occurred; poaching people from other gangs was one of the primary strategies of their Three Heroes Association.

The strategy of the Three Heroes Association was actually similar to that of the Flying Eagle Gang; they wouldn't waste effort on low-level members by teaching them internal energy.

But the Three Heroes Association did one thing better than Sha Feiying: they never spared any cost to recruit talented individuals with great strength.

The Flying Eagle Gang had also been very strong in the past, but for the sake of his own position, Sha Feiying had ruthlessly slaughtered nearly half of his major heads.

If those high-ranking leaders were still alive, their strength would at least be on par with the three hall masters like Lin Fuhu.

The three leaders of the Three Heroes Association are far more confident than Sha Feiying; as long as someone is recruited by them, whether it be wealth, beauties, or martial arts, they will provide whatever you desire.

Relying on this, the strength of the Three Heroes Association has snowballed over the past dozen years.

The high-ranking leaders of the Flying Eagle Gang do not have a single person who has broken through the early stage of the Houtian Realm, yet the Three Heroes Association boasts over thirty such leaders, each possessing the strength of the mid-Houtian Realm.

Su Xin is currently talented, powerful, and young—exactly the kind of person they are looking to poach.

Ning Luojun said, "Poaching is possible, but judging by this information, Su Xin is a man with his own ideas. I suspect he won't agree so easily, much like when we tried to recruit Luo Zhen back then; he refused us outright."

Meng Changhe smiled confidently, "The two of them are different. Luo Zhen is old, after all, and lacks great ambition; he only wants to protect his band of brothers in the Green Bamboo Gang and live a life where no one dares to provoke him. Naturally, he wouldn't want to come to my Three Heroes Association to be a subordinate.

But Su Xin is still young. He has ambition, and the Flying Eagle Gang clearly cannot fulfill it, whereas my Three Heroes Association can."

Ning Luojun thought for a moment and said, "Very well, let's send someone to test the waters. Let Zhang Heng go; his temperament is steady and mild, making him the perfect person to persuade Su Xin."

Meng Changhe frowned, "Zhang Heng is currently managing the trade with those barbarians all by himself. Only he can get along well with those savages in the mountains, allowing us to acquire goods at a cheaper price. If we send someone else, they won't play ball. Why don't we send someone else?"

"Who else is there?"

Meng Changhe clapped his hands and shouted, "Chong'er, come up here."

A series of heavy footsteps echoed as a young man of about twenty, wearing an arrogant expression, walked up and bowed to Ning Luojun and Duan Xiao, saying, "Meng Chong greets the two uncles."

Among the three leaders of the Three Heroes Association, only Meng Changhe has a son, who is the Meng Chong standing before them.

"Second Brother, Third Brother, Chong'er is getting on in age, and I was just preparing to have him familiarize himself with the affairs of the gang. Let him go this time," Meng Changhe said with a chuckle.

Ning Luojun hesitated, "But Chong'er has such a volatile temper; if he runs into Su Xin, it's very likely the negotiations will collapse."

Duan Xiao, standing to the side, nodded as well. They were all too familiar with their eldest brother's son; he was full of flaws, almost all of which were spoiled into him during his childhood.

Meng Changhe shook his head and said, "Chong'er knows the stakes."

He turned his head and scolded Meng Chong, "Be polite when you see Su Xin. As long as his demands aren't excessive, just agree to them directly.

This young man is a rare expert among the younger generation in our Changning Prefecture, not to mention he commands over a thousand men and a marketplace. We must keep this person in our grasp."

Meng Chong nodded, though it was unclear whether he had actually taken the words to heart.

Seeing Ning Luojun and Duan Xiao remain silent, Meng Changhe laughed loudly, "Since no one is speaking, then Chong'er will go this time. Come, let me take you to pick out a few reliable men."

With that, Meng Changhe pulled Meng Chong downstairs, leaving only Ning Luojun and Duan Xiao to exchange dark-faced glances.

"The boss is being too impatient this time. He wants to secure a future for his son, but he shouldn't be gambling with the interests of the gang to do it," Ning Luojun said in a low voice.

Duan Xiao was usually a man of few words, but he spoke up now, "The Three Heroes Association used to belong to the three of us, and it still does. As long as the three of us are alive, the Three Heroes Association will always be ours!

The boss isn't just being impatient this time; he's being excessive!"

PS: A huge thank you to the reader Nan Chen Da Di for the tip. This is the first time the author has received such a large tip, and I'm feeling quite excited inside~

However, I really dare not accept any more "urge to update" tickets. Updating too much before the official launch is really damaging to the recommendation cycle. Some authors do two chapters totaling 4,000 words, while I do two chapters totaling 6,000 words. By that calculation, my recommendation cycle will be a week or more shorter than other authors, and I really can't handle any more updates. It's not that I don't want to update, but I simply can't~

However, I guarantee that I will definitely release a massive update when the book officially launches. I am currently working hard to stockpile chapters and hope that all readers will support me then.

I also want to thank Gucheng Fengchuixue, Liu Xiao, Gao Chengguang, Gao Shengnan, and Xiaoluoyanchen for their tips, as well as all the readers for their recommendations. Regardless of the amount, every tip and recommendation is support for the author. Thank you all.