Chapter 231: The Curtain Rises

Chapter 231: The Grand Curtain Rises

The midnight hour, all human voices stilled.

Before a dilapidated factory, lit by a single solitary lamp, in a refugee gathering ground in the Nanyu District where dragons and snakes mingled, dense shadows swayed.

"Lord Chujiang, right ahead is where that man hides."

Listening to his subordinate's report, Sun Su nodded. Yet he did not rush to give the order to move, instead drawing a long, slow breath.

The damp, rain-laden night wind, he smelled within it a thick, bloody tang, and for a moment his heart surged, difficult to calm.

Now the Right General Qi Huai, bewitched, had joined the Honghu, turning a smooth path into a dead end.

The Rumor General Yuan Mingfei, a dog unable to change its habit of eating shit, betrayed the Gambling Convention, and even struck down the Counter General Gong Qing.

The Wind General Jin Shenghuo died at Hongya Mountain, the Escape General Zhao Tong rotted into a heap of scrap iron.

Of the three great factions of the old Chuan-Yu Gambling Convention, only the Dice Faction's strength remained largely intact.

Once unregarded, they naturally stepped into that Adult's gaze.

But this was no good thing.

Sun Su searched his heart; he, too, feared death. Especially since even a ruthless man like Zhao Tong had been killed; if he ran into that martial brute, he likely would meet no good end either.

But he had absolutely no choice in the matter.

Not just him—even the Fire General and the Tiju General standing at his left and right now, none of them had any choice before them.

They were merely dogs raised by others; when the master was in a good mood, he could untie their ropes, let them scavenge bones for themselves, fill their bellies.

Now the master was angry; even if they were all bluster and no substance, they could only force themselves to bare their teeth and charge forward.

Sun Su glanced back at the twenty-odd men standing behind him; wherever his gaze fell, each bore a fierce, murderous air, clearly all Followers who had stained their hands with blood.

Though most were of low Sequence, the Dice Faction's main business was not assassination; to gather this many capable hands was already their utmost effort.

Sun Su sighed silently, his tone solemn: "Everyone, get ready."

An arrogant voice immediately rang out.

"Brother Su, it's just catching a tiny 'He Pai'; do we need all three Generals to mobilize, such a fuss? Let me take five men inside, I guarantee I'll bring the person out within a quarter-hour."

Sun Su glanced at the Tiju General with his disdainful expression, then at the silent Fire General Zhang Ren, cursing inwardly.

These two: one a reckless fool with courage but no brains, the other a coward scared out of his wits. If it weren't for that dead eunuch Zhang Ruzhen threatening to kill him if he failed again, he would have shoved these two to the front long ago.

"No, Steward Zhang said, this time we must capture He Zangjia; otherwise, none of us will escape the consequences."

"How could we fail? I am one of the Eight Generals; can't I handle him?" The Tiju General spoke fiercely.

Sun Su saw through his thoughts at a glance—nothing more than a grab for merit.

Thinking this is some pie-in-the-sky fortune falling on his head? This idiot!

"Even an eagle hunting a rabbit must use full force. Moreover, the terrain here is complex, and He Zangjia has operated here for years with extensive connections; if he escapes, finding him again will be troublesome."

The Tiju General interrupted Sun Su, stiffening his neck: "If he runs, I'll present my head!"

The latter's brows knitted tight, a savage glint gathering in his eyes.

"Just listen to the Chujiang General; if anything goes wrong, we all die."

The ever-silent Zhang Ren suddenly spoke.

Two gazes hiding killing intent pinned him down, like a basin of cold water dousing the Tiju General to the bone.

The restless desire churning in his mind finally settled; he stiffened his face, daring not speak further.

Sun Su nodded at Zhang Ren, then turned to his other subordinates in a low voice: "Move out!"

*Click-clack!*

The crisp sound of bullets chambering, the sharp ring of blades leaving sheaths, rose and fell in succession, unending.

A host of Dice Faction experts followed the three, striding swiftly toward that lone-lamp-lit shabby factory.

*Boom.*

A muffled thunder suddenly exploded in the night, brushing the dim heaven and earth with a fleeting streak of gray-white.

That solitary lamp seemed unable to withstand the thunder's might; after flickering bright and dark a few times, it went out completely.

The owner of this small factory should belong to the Farmer Sequence, and it hadn't been abandoned long; approaching, one could still smell a faint medicinal fragrance in the air.

Under Sun Su's command, the crowd spaced themselves ten zhang apart, closing in a fan-shaped encirclement.

For Followers whose physical strength far exceeded ordinary men, the outer walls and iron gates posed no obstacle; in an instant they had already infiltrated the factory perimeter, awaiting only the Chujiang General's command to rush in and seize the man.

But strangely, Sun Su, directing this operation, fell into silence at this moment.

In Sun Su's heart now spread a sense of unease.

Clearly everything was proceeding smoothly, yet he felt unsettled, even a chill constantly encircling his heart.

But where exactly the problem lay, he could not say.

Li Jun and Chen Qisheng were now in the Zhongyu District dozens of li away; this was news Steward Zhang had just sent—it could not be wrong.

As long as those two were absent, He Zangjia had no aid whatsoever, absolutely no chance of a turnaround.

But whence came this heart-palpitation?

Ahead, the Tiju General, his eyes already red from the Mechanism Heart frequency, suddenly whipped around, roaring like a beast: "What the hell are we waiting for? Keep dawdling and he'll run! Move!"

Sun Su turned a deaf ear, still lowering his eyes in thought.

"Give the order. We're at this point; advance or retreat, it's death either way. Better to fight."

Sun Su slowly raised his head, only to see the Fire General's right hand holding a folded black umbrella, his body backlit by the moonlight, his expression utterly unreadable.

Zhang Ren is right; the arrow is on the string, it must be fired.

But since when was his weapon an umbrella?

"Move."

*Thud.*

Before Sun Su's voice even landed, the impatient Tiju General took the lead, smashing through the main gate.

At that very moment, explosive gunfire erupted!

In the darkness, dense muzzle flashes danced; scorching streams of bullets surged from within outward, instantly knocking down several Dice Faction experts caught off guard!

Listening to the thunderous gunfire beside his ears, Sun Su felt no shock, no surprise—rather, an expression of relief.

So that's how it is.

"You think it's just this?"

A slightly unfamiliar voice suddenly sounded at his side.

Sun Su's body tensed violently, about to react, yet he felt a bone-piercing cold light press against his neck.

"You're not Fire General Zhang Ren. Who exactly are you?!"

"Want to know? Then turn your head and see."

Sun Su twisted his head inch by inch, his gaze extending forward along the blinding edge of the long saber.

"Zhang Ren" raised a hand to wipe his face; with a distortion of light and shadow, an unfamiliar face bearing a mocking smile emerged.

"I am indeed the Fire General Zhang Ren, though you may also address me by my official post: Wang Xie, Chief of the Second Division of the Jinyiwei, Chongqing Prefecture."

So the problem lay here.

Sun Su's expression stiffened; he forced out an ugly smile, his voice hoarse: "Lord Chief, could you grant this lowly one a chance to redeem himself through merit?"

"Redeem oneself through merit—suitable only for those without brains."

Wang Xie shook his head. "You have a bit of brain. Won't do."

*Puchi!*

The Embroidered Spring Saber grazed past his neck, and a human head soared into the sky!

"Turns out he was a Confucian Sequence cultivator. No wonder even that eunuch Zhang Ruzhen disliked using you Dice System types. Just a touch too weak."

Wang Xie curled his lip in disdain, flicking his wrist to shake the crimson blood from the blade.

At this moment, the gunfire inside the factory gradually died down.

A group of Jinyiwei clad in Flying Fish robes, carrying long guns and short cannons, filed out in succession.

He Zangjia, stripped to the waist and holding a severed head, followed among them, particularly conspicuous.

"What, do you Agricultural Sequence types also like bursting out of your clothes when you fight?!" Wang Xie teased with a laugh.

"No choice. This grandson realized he was being ganged up on and focused solely on beating me. If I hadn't burst out of my clothes, I would've been the one blown apart."

He Zangjia looked shaken, spitting viciously at the head in his hand.

Wang Xie smiled: "Now the Sichuan-Chongqing Gambling Assembly is truly leaderless within. The rest is up to you."

"With you, the sole surviving 'Eight Generals,' backing me, no problem."

He Zangjia fawned: "But may I ask, why did the Jinyiwei choose a small fry like me to clean up the mess?"

"Who told you to hug a thigh that was accurate enough and thick enough."

Wang Xie muttered with no small envy: "Who knows if that kid Li Jun might be the Boss's own son? Otherwise, why wipe his ass for him, and now have to wipe his little brother's ass too."

He Zangjia heard these words; his figure, originally slightly stooped among the Jinyiwei, silently straightened.

*Honglong.*

Another surge of thunder rolled forth, speckled raindrops drifting down.

In the mountain city during the rainy season, wind and rain came as they pleased, hardly worth making a fuss over.

But at that very instant.

Wang Xie's face suddenly changed drastically, his eyes abruptly threaded with bloodshot veins, red to a terrifying degree.

"Zhang Ruzhen, I fuck your ancestors!"