While all the other Orks fought tooth and nail to squeeze onto the main boarding ramp, Liu Zhipeng led his disciplined-relatively speaking-Big Tooth Gang around to the side of the warship with a swagger.
Then, before the utterly bewildered Gretchin operating the auxiliary lift, Liu Zhipeng tossed down a heavy sack of "teeth" that gleamed enticingly.
"Little fella," he told the dumbstruck Gretchin in a kindly tone full of "wisdom," "we're in a hurry. You get it."
The Gretchin stared at the mountain of wealth before him, enough to buy him the freshest roast Squig every day for the next hundred years. What little loyalty his tiny brain held toward the "bosses" was shattered in an instant.
He nodded like a chicken pecking at grain.
And so, while countless Orks were still locked in bloody battles over a spot on the main boarding ramp, the several hundred members of the Big Tooth Gang leisurely boarded the enormous warship in their "exclusive VIP elevator," like executives on an inspection tour.
When they entered the vast, chaotic hold, thick with the stench of machine oil and sweat, every face showed heartfelt admiration for their boss's "uncanny foresight."
Running with Boss Tooth Puller really gave you status!
The moment Liu Zhipeng set foot aboard, he established a new, grander goal for himself and his Big Tooth Gang.
"Become the strongest Ork on this planet"-that goal was far too small-minded.
Now, his goal was-
To become the flashiest lad on this ship.
Then, step by step, become the lad in this WAAAGH! who was the toughest, richest, and sneakiest of them all.
He knew that climbing the ranks in Ork society, with its extreme worship of strength, would take more than his little human tricks. He had to prove his worth in the most direct, brutal way possible, one that perfectly suited Ork tastes.
That meant one unquestionable victory after another.
And his first targets were the bosses of the other tribes aboard this ship, who had also joined as "new recruits."
Thanks to their "superpower of money," Liu Zhipeng and his Big Tooth Gang were assigned a relatively spacious and clean cargo hold by the Gretchin. It had once been used to store Imperium artillery shells, and its sturdy metal walls and high ceiling left the Orks very satisfied.
"All right, lads!" Standing on an enormous ammunition crate, Liu Zhipeng delivered a speech to the several hundred fanatical gang members below. "From today on, this is the Big Tooth Gang's new home! But!"
He abruptly changed tack, raising his voice. "We can't settle for a little shack like this! There's more teeth on this ship! Bigger Choppas! Louder dakka! And tougher gits waiting for us to bash 'em! What d'you reckon we should do?!"
"WAAAGH!!!"
"Fight!!"
"Grab teeth!!"
The gang's responses were simple, direct, and brimming with Orkish enthusiasm.
Liu Zhipeng nodded in satisfaction. He knew that building a "corporate culture" among Orks was actually very simple. All he had to do was focus on two core principles: "fight" and "loot."
He hopped down from the ammunition crate and began his expansion plan.
The first step was gathering intelligence.
He sent out the gang's most "quick-witted" Gretchin and Boyz-in other words, its best thieves-to "take a stroll" through the ship's various sections. Their task was to find out which other newly recruited, reasonably powerful bosses and gangs were aboard.
Before long, the reports came in.
This ship was practically an Orkish boot camp. During his conquest of this region of space, Bonecrusher Saraka had absorbed a great many small and medium-sized tribes. Once aboard, their bosses had naturally carved out new territories, constantly clashing with one another and fighting over turf and loot every day.
Liu Zhipeng looked at the extremely crude "territory map," drawn in charcoal on a sheet of iron, and curled his lips into a cold smile.
To him, these Ork gangs, each fighting alone and knowing nothing but brute-force brawling, were simply fat lambs waiting for slaughter.
He picked his first target: the Ironhead Gang, entrenched near Engine Room Three.
The gang's boss, Ironhead, was a typical traditional Ork. Supposedly, his head had actually been replaced with a solid chunk of iron, hence the name. His gang members were also a bunch who worshipped muscle and brute strength. They fought fearlessly, but their brains, like their boss's, were made of iron.
"Target: the Ironhead Gang." Liu Zhipeng jabbed the tip of his cleaver hard into the area marked with an iron head on the map. "I reckon their teeth oughta be as hard as their heads. Lads, time to get to work!"
He did not choose to do what other Orks did: charge straight over with his gang, roar "WAAAGH!" and start brawling.
He chose a more "civilized"-and more "underhanded"-method.
That night, the Ironhead Gang was still celebrating a victory in a small armed clash earlier that day and the several barrels of mushroom beer they had captured, drinking until they could barely stand.
Liu Zhipeng led a dozen or so of his most elite Boyz into the ventilation ducts of Engine Room Three, slipping through like ghosts.
From his trouser pocket, he took out a secret weapon: a bag of the hottest chili spore powder, painstakingly gathered by the Gretchin.
"Let's spice things up for 'em."
With a vicious grin, he emptied the entire large bag of red powder into the vent leading to the Ironhead Gang's territory.
A few seconds later.
"Achoo!!"
"Cough, cough, cough! What's this stuff? I'm choking!"
"My eyes! I can't see!!"
The Ironhead Gang's camp, filled with laughter just moments before, instantly became a living hell. The sudden "biochemical attack" left every Ork streaming tears and snot and coughing uncontrollably, utterly unable to fight.
At that very moment, Liu Zhipeng descended with the main force of his Big Tooth Gang like gods dropping from the heavens.
"WAAAGH!!!"
Every member of the Big Tooth Gang had a wet cloth wrapped over his nose and mouth. They charged into the enemy ranks like tigers among sheep, delivering a completely one-sided beating to the Ironhead Gang members still rolling on the floor, unable even to open their eyes.
Before you continue