Negotiations

Chen Chuan had served in the City Defense Battalion for more than forty years. He had weathered plenty of bloody storms and handled countless cases, large and small, yet the gruesome scene before him still sent a chill straight through his bones. The guest elder of the Changlin Gang with a dark mole between his eyebrows—a master who had opened seven springs—now lay dead in a pool of blood, severed at the waist with both arms missing. Beneath the courtyard wall lay roughly ten corpses, scattered haphazardly, every single one felled by a single fatal sword strike. Across the ground were ferocious ao spiders and thick, crisscrossing webs, all frozen under a layer of frost and ice crystals. Someone had clearly unleashed an area-of-effect dharma artifact. ... This was already a major affair! Yet the person responsible for this devastating spectacle was merely a youth who looked not even twenty years old. If he truly hailed from the Cangling Tribe, he was bound to be a rising star of enormous potential. Chen Chuan could not afford to provoke such a figure now, much less in the future. Reporting this up the chain... would unearth far too many secrets, entangling the political maneuvers of Jiuli City's upper echelon. Li Weiyi lit the bone lamp and hung it back upon the old poplar tree. Under its glow, the bloodstains in the courtyard appeared shockingly vivid. Combined with the corpses strewn across the ground, the yard took on an eerie, chilling terror. Chen Chuan's expression softened as he asked, "Who is the master of this residence?" "I am." Zhao Meng strode out. His six-meter-tall frame made the ground tremble faintly with every step. Dharma power surged within him, turning his skin to gleaming gold and setting his hair ablaze like fire, while his voice boomed like thunder. Senior Coffin had instructed him to appear in this manner, projecting as overbearing a front as possible. "Senior Brother, this is Captain Chen of the City Defense Battalion..." Li Weiyi was seeing Zhao Meng in such a miraculous state for the first time, inwardly astonished. Zhao Meng showed no courtesy. Striding forward like a dragon and pacing like a tiger, he confronted Chen Chuan: "When we rented this residence, we paid our city defense silver. We were attacked by villains and nearly slaughtered to the last man. Why has the City Defense Battalion arrived so late?" In Chen Chuan's eyes, Zhao Meng exuded immense pressure, far exceeding even the iron-fisted Xie Jin. Tempering flesh and blood to resemble molten gold was unheard of in the Yongquan Realm. Chen Chuan felt that Zhao Meng could rip him in two with brute physical strength alone. This was Xie Jin's senior brother—the master of this place had to be an even more terrifying existence. It never crossed his mind that Zhao Meng had only opened a single spring. Faced with a powerhouse, Chen Chuan quickly cupped his hands in respect, not daring even to ask Zhao Meng for a commoner registry. He explained, "We never anticipated that someone would dare break into a private home and commit robbery so close to the inner city. Please, do not be angered, sir. The City Defense Battalion will not overlook this, and such a thing will never happen again." Li Weiyi had not expected his senior brother's deterrent force to be so immense. He took a step back of his own accord, playing the part of a compliant junior brother to enhance Zhao Meng's commanding presence. A quarter of an hour later, their exchange concluded. Chen Chuan walked out the main gates, thumping his chest as he promised to root out the mastermind as swiftly as possible. He then ordered the twenty-odd city defense guards waiting outside to clear away all the corpses and sweep the ground clean. Li Weiyi stood with his hands behind his back, watching the departing guards. "Senior Brother, see that? People only respect us when we hold formidable strength. Otherwise, we'd already be dragged away by now. Of course, this also proves Chen Chuan's own hands aren't clean." Zhao Meng gave a wry chuckle. "I just feel our so-called strength is an empty shell. They probably took me for a powerhouse of the Wuhai Realm. If our true strength is exposed, the City Defense Battalion and the Changlin Gang will find countless ways to make us pay back everything with interest." "The Wuhai Realm!" Li Weiyi uttered the words softly. To him right now, those words embodied dignity, status, and security—a summit he had to reach. "You'll have to keep playing the Wuhai Realm expert. We still have a hard battle to fight tonight." Li Weiyi did not believe Chen Chuan would offend the Changlin Gang on their behalf. That promise to "root out the mastermind" was nothing more than polite lip service. To truly resolve this trouble with the Changlin Gang, they had to rely on themselves. ... The night deepened, and the air grew cool. Li Weiyi sat alone upon the threshold of the front gate, repeatedly wiping the blood from the Yellow Dragon Sword with a gray rag. The water in the basin beside him gradually turned a deep crimson. Zhao Meng sat under the old poplar tree in the courtyard, maintaining an air of calm composure, though his heart was hollow. Old Liu and Old Guan swept the remaining traces of blood from the yard. None of them had fled. At this stage, running would only lead to a swifter death. They had to maintain the posture of being ready to fight the Changlin Gang to the death; only then might they force the other side to weigh the costs and secure a slim chance of survival. *Tap, tap, tap!* *Tap, tap, tap!* A dense chorus of footsteps approached rapidly from the end of the four-zhang-wide street. Led by Vice Chief Tang Yan and Banner Leader Shi Chuanyu, dozens of Changlin Gang members emerged from the shadows of the surrounding buildings in a formidable line. Every one of them wore black, terrifying the street's merchants and residents into absolute silence. The air along the entire avenue seemed to thicken. Li Weiyi glanced over and noticed that the Changlin Gang members carried no weapons. Relief washed through him. In that case... He had to assume an even more unyielding posture. Before long, the Changlin Gang halted before the gates, all eyes landing on Li Weiyi. Yet he simply continued wiping his sword, treating them as if they did not exist. Such audacity, composure, and confidence left the gang members holding their breath, not daring to make a sound. Shi Chuanyu stepped forward and bowed to Li Weiyi, casting a glance at Zhao Meng seated in the courtyard. Without mincing words, he went straight to the point: "This humble one is Shi Chuanyu. My eyes failed to recognize true masters. Tonight, our Changlin Gang concedes defeat. To make amends for the fright caused to you both, our gang has prepared a generous gift, hoping only to turn swords into plowshares." Li Weiyi remained silent, his gaze shifting past Shi Chuanyu to Tang Yan. From this old man, he sensed an aura of extreme danger. Clearly, this was the true figure of authority capable of making the final call. Tang Yan had already been studying Li Weiyi, finding him far younger than expected. Yet this very young man had achieved a horrifying record tonight, inflicting disastrous losses upon the Changlin Gang. Come morning, the gang would become the laughingstock of every faction in the outskirts. The youth was brimming with confidence; evidently, he had powerful backing to fear nothing. Tang Yan squeezed a warm smile onto his aged face, stepped to Shi Chuanyu's right, and cupped his hands in greeting. "This old man is Tang Yan, Vice Chief of the Changlin Gang. The underlings lacked discernment and brought great calamity upon our gang; dying at young friend's hands is nothing less than they deserved. This is the deed to this residence, expedited just moments ago on my orders. Please, young friend, accept it." Tang Yan produced the property deed, and Shi Chuanyu presented it forward. Li Weiyi glanced at it, inwardly shaken. In this district, even a modest courtyard was worth tens of thousands of silver coins. A grand residence of three mu like this one could never be secured for less than two hundred thousand. What a lavish offering! Keeping his expression unchanged, Li Weiyi withdrew his gaze and said coolly, "Where is my man?" Tang Yan raised his hand in a gesture. Four black-clad thugs carried a sedan chair forward, helping Zhao Zhizhuo out and supporting him before Li Weiyi. Zhao Zhizhuo's wounds had already been treated, and his dislocated arms set back in place, but it was obvious he had suffered inhumane torment. Li Weiyi waved a hand, signaling Old Liu and Old Guan to help him inside. The four thugs who had carried Zhao Zhizhuo knelt on the ground, kowtowing and begging for mercy, their faces twisted in terror. They were clearly the ones who had reduced Zhao Zhizhuo to this state. Li Weiyi looked up at Tang Yan, his gaze sharp as a sword. Tang Yan waved his hand. "Those who commit offenses must indeed pay the price. Break both their arms and legs, and leave them to fend for themselves." The four were dragged away, followed by shrill shrieks and the sickening crack of breaking bones. Li Weiyi felt neither pity nor compassion. Given the Changlin Gang's conduct, there were hardly any decent people among them; whatever fate befell them was entirely deserved. "Since the Vice Chief shows such sincerity, then I, Xie Jin, shall accept this deed," Li Weiyi said. "However, I fear that some late night, a similar incident might happen again..." Zhao Meng's voice boomed from the courtyard like the roar of a dragon and the growl of a tiger: "Then we'll storm the Changlin Gang directly and see whose arm is stronger!" Tang Yan's eyes darkened slightly. Had this matter not blown up, had the Eldest Miss not ordered them to keep the peace, and had these two not potentially had Cang Li backing them, how could the Changlin Gang ever stomach such humiliation? Tang Yan smiled and offered his assurance. "Rest assured, gentlemen, such a thing will never happen again. Might I ask, how is Master Qi?" Li Weiyi had spared the white-robed eccentric precisely because an insect tamer held substantial value, serving as a bargaining chip for negotiations with the Changlin Gang. He had originally planned to trade him for Zhao Zhizhuo. Now, however, Li Weiyi had a new thought: "The old man is still alive. How much silver does the Vice Chief intend to offer for his return?" Tang Yan cursed Li Weiyi's greed in his heart, but realizing the youth had only been able to afford renting a home in the outskirts, he supposed the boy was genuinely broke. Any problem that could be resolved with silver was no problem at all. He would swallow his pride for now! After a round of bargaining, Tang Yan ultimately paid one hundred thousand silver coins to ransom Master Qi. When Tang Yan learned that only Master Qi was being returned while the ao spiders remained behind, his face turned green with fury. Li Weiyi rose to his feet, watching the Changlin Gang depart as grandly as they had arrived. Adopting an intimidating posture, he called out loudly, "A word of advice to the Vice Chief: you had best not post watchers on us. If I discover any, I will personally deliver their corpses back to the Changlin Gang." A hundred paces away, Tang Yan's chest heaved violently, murderous intent flashing in his eyes. Shi Chuanyu asked, "Vice Chief, did you gauge the depths of the man in the courtyard?" Tang Yan replied, "Without a doubt, he is in the Wuhai Realm. He has consumed the blood of two ancient immortal behemoths. Did you fail to see that yesterday?" Shi Chuanyu hurried to explain, "Yesterday he deliberately concealed his cultivation, keeping his divine radiance restrained. With my realm... sigh, my attainment falls short... I admit my fault..." Tang Yan's expression was grave. "Only upon reaching the Wuhai Realm can a member of the mutant race drink the blood of a second ancient immortal behemoth. Those with special constitutions are the sole exception, but such individuals are rarer than Pure Immortal Physiques and offer no basis for comparison." "Are we truly going to swallow this? The price we paid tonight was far too steep," Shi Chuanyu said, reluctant to accept the outcome. Tang Yan said, "First, uncover their exact ties to Cang Li. If their ties are distant, then even if we do not vent this grievance tonight, we will make them pay a catastrophic price in the future. Even if their ties are close, if we cannot strike in the open, can we not strike from the shadows?" "By the way, that brat Xie Jin is likely not in the Wuhai Realm. Most probably, he is an eight-spring dharma-martial cultivator." Shi Chuanyu felt the same; the pressure Xie Jin exerted on him was far inferior to Zhao Meng's. He said, "Should we post his name at the Five Burials Temple and let the Fodu Bandits test him for us? If they can kill him, wouldn't that vent our rage?" The Five Burials Temple was the largest assassin syndicate in Jiuli City's underground nether market, rumored to be backed by Xu Fodu of Mount Coffin, one of the southern realm's Three Great Barbarian Bandits.