Joining Up

"What, what?"

Scar-Head Li didn't seem to understand what Qin Fang meant. He stared at him in confusion.

Qin Fang narrowed his eyes. "When you told Wang Long and the others where I lived, how many people overheard and learned they were coming to find me? And afterward, did you tell anyone else?"

Scar-Head Li froze for a moment, but then his expression visibly changed, and his whole body began to tremble. "M-Master, what are you planning to do? W-Wang Long isn't just anybody. His younger brother is Wang Hu of the Iron Tiger Gang. He's a Dark Force expert..."

From Qin Fang's eyes, he had clearly seen something that unsettled him.

Qin Fang didn't say anything. He only watched him impassively.

Under the pressure of Qin Fang's gaze, Scar-Head Li finally stammered, "O-Only those few people just now know. A-After they heard, they came right over. I-I didn't tell anyone else..."

"Who were they? Be specific." Qin Fang's voice remained calm.

"One was Wang Long, naturally. Then there was Mole Zhang—the man with the, the mole on his face... And..."

Scar-Head Li stuttered out the names of five or six people. Aside from Wang Long, he could only identify them by their nicknames, since he didn't know their real names.

Street toughs were usually called by their nicknames.

And those men were all members of the Iron Tiger Gang.

Qin Fang listened carefully, matching them up in his mind.

Including Wang Long, six men had come earlier—the same number as that day. It seemed they all ran with Wang Long.

From Scar-Head Li's description, he matched them up one by one.

"Where do they usually hang around?"

After a moment's silence, Qin Fang asked.

"M-Master, what exactly are you planning to do? D-Don't do anything reckless! That's the Iron Tiger Gang!"

Scar-Head Li was terrified. He desperately tried to talk Qin Fang out of whatever he was considering.

At that moment, he was filled with regret.

Even if he'd known he'd be beaten to a pulp—or had his legs broken—he still shouldn't have let greed cloud his judgment and snitched!

That damned Wang Long had no sense of honor. He'd gone back on his word.

And now he'd caught the attention of this refugee who looked like nothing but trouble!

...A refugee, no less!

A real desperado!

He'd seen the tragedy caused by the refugees' riot some time ago with his own eyes!

And now...

He was being forced to face a brute like that.

Cold sweat streamed down his forehead without stopping.

Qin Fang watched him. After a brief silence, he asked calmly, "Do you owe them money?"

"Huh?" Scar-Head Li stared blankly at Qin Fang.

"Five taels of silver, right? If you don't pay in three days, you'll be in serious trouble?"

Qin Fang asked calmly.

Scar-Head Li swallowed instinctively... If he didn't pay, he'd lose at least one or two fingers.

His family might even get dragged into it...

He knew all too well how the Iron Tiger Gang operated.

"You live here?"

As he spoke, Qin Fang glanced back at the deep, shadowy alley, then looked at Scar-Head Li, whose face had grown even more frantic. He narrowed his eyes. "Because of you, Wang Long and the others found me. If I don't deal with them, I won't survive. Do you think you, the one who set this in motion... will survive?"

Qin Fang's voice was perfectly calm as he said it, but the icy glint in his eyes made Scar-Head Li shiver from head to toe.

"B-But..."

Scar-Head Li tried to say something.

Qin Fang cut him off with a cool voice. "I only need one piece of information: where they'll be tonight. At most, I'll ask you to keep an eye on their movements. That's all... You won't have to lift a finger. Once it's done, I'll give you ten taels of silver. All you have to do is keep this buried."

Scar-Head Li's expression wavered, but hesitation quickly returned.

Qin Fang knew what he was worried about. He said calmly, "I know what you're afraid of. You think I'll use you and then get rid of you. But think about it carefully: I have no reason to do that. I'm an outsider. I've become Elder Wu's disciple, and all I want is a quiet life. If Wang Long and the others hadn't pushed me too far, I wouldn't be taking this risk."

"And if everything goes smoothly, Wang Hu will investigate once it's over. I'll need to keep tabs on Wang Hu and his movements, which means I'll need a local as my eyes and ears... If you work with me properly, you'll be the perfect informant."

"By then, we'll be in the same boat... You're not naïve enough to go to Wang Hu and expose me after something happens to Wang Long, are you? If Wang Hu finds out you helped me, you won't survive either, will you?"

"So why would I harm you?"

Qin Fang patiently coaxed him. Scar-Head Li's face twitched, his expression shifting again and again.

Then Qin Fang said one last thing in a quiet voice. "But if you refuse now... you'll leave me in a difficult position. You already know what I'm planning. Tell me, what am I supposed to do?"

Scar-Head Li trembled all over, and the burning pain in his cheek grew even worse.

A long while later, he asked in a trembling voice, "Y-You really only need me to keep watch?"

"Yes."

"T-Ten taels of silver?"

"Ten taels."

Scar-Head Li looked at Qin Fang. His expression was calm, giving nothing away.

But in the end, he clenched his teeth. "All right. I-I'll do it!"

"M-Master, you really won't burn the bridge after crossing the river?" Scar-Head Li asked, his face crumpling as he spoke.

"Relax," Qin Fang said coolly. "I'm not Wang Long."

Scar-Head Li studied Qin Fang closely. Only after deciding he didn't seem to be lying did he swallow and relax a little.

"Then tell me, where will they be tonight?"

Qin Fang asked calmly.

Scar-Head Li took a deep breath, then began to explain.

Wang Long was Wang Hu's older brother, which naturally gave him a very high standing in the Iron Tiger Gang.

But his own strength was limited—he hadn't even reached Bright Force—so he didn't actually wield much authority within the gang. Naturally, he wasn't put in charge of any important business, either.

He was responsible for several underground gambling dens in the county.

"But the gambling dens in the county are divided up by territory. After all, besides the Iron Tiger Gang, there are more than a dozen gangs of various sizes. It's a real muddle."

"The Iron Tiger Gang's gambling dens are mainly concentrated around South Market Entrance..."

A compulsive gambler to the core, Scar-Head Li couldn't help lighting up as soon as he started talking about gambling dens. He knew every one of them like the back of his hand.

And as a local through and through, he knew Wang Long and the others' movements inside out.

Qin Fang listened quietly. From Scar-Head Li, he learned a little about the underworld of True Martial County.

Gangs stood everywhere, a tangled mess.

And behind every one of them, without exception, stood martial artists.

As he listened to Scar-Head Li, Qin Fang began laying out his next move in his mind...

A gentleman's revenge could wait ten years?

Qin Fang didn't consider himself a gentleman.

Because he took revenge.

From dawn till dusk.