Half a year later.
Ice Prefecture.
It was the Spring Festival again.
Heavy snow had nearly buried the entire Northeast.
Beneath the swirling snow, Ice Prefecture was more alive than ever.
Freed from the oppression of the Five Overlords, Ice Prefecture had taken on a whole new look.
Little White Tiger had put an end to nearly all the dirty businesses once controlled by the Five Overlords.
Children no longer disappeared without explanation, though those at the bottom still lived bitter lives.
But under Black Mountain Town's administration, they could at least survive.
For Little White Tiger and Old Ninth, these past six months had been their most comfortable stretch.
No enemies, no battles.
Even Jiao Jiao had inexplicably vanished.
With Overlord holding the fort outside the city and the Guan Family protecting them in the Capital, they were thriving.
Good news came one piece after another.
The group turned its first profit at the end of the year.
Business in Ice Prefecture and Chun Prefecture was gradually becoming more regulated, too.
The Eight-Nine Group Branch in Ice Prefecture.
This had once been the office building of a company under the Ming King.
After the Ming King's death, Old Ninth had forcibly acquired it.
It was now the Little White Tiger Group's headquarters in Ice Prefecture.
Inside the top-floor office.
Smoke choked the air.
Old Ninth and Hi Dog had bird's-nest hair and bloodshot eyes, their fingers stained yellow-brown by smoke. Cigarettes clenched between their teeth, they focused intently on rubbing the playing cards in their hands.
Old Wine, False Eye, Old Spear, and the others sat at the card table looking equally haggard.
Only Old Sword sat on the sofa, his face contorted with suffering.
"What's going on?"
The door swung open.
Ji Min stared in surprise at