Chapter 100: Fierce Dragon Crossing the River

Chapter 100: A Fierce Dragon Crosses the River

Half a shichen ago, Qingyang District, Chengdu Prefecture.

At this moment, it had barely reached the hour of Xu, yet the sky was already shrouded in gloom.

Heavy dark clouds loomed over the city, damp cold air howling through the streets.

Crowds dressed in varied attire streamed out from different buildings in succession—these were the "worker slaves" clocking out from their respective companies to return home.

If one were to gaze down from midair at this moment, one could see dense throngs of people like ants, rapidly vanishing into this steel jungle after leaving their nests.

"Turtle son, rain's fixin' to fall, why ain't you crawlin' out for your pa yet!"

A shrewish woman stood in the street, hands on hips, shouting at the top of her lungs.

Mischievous children poked their heads out from street corners, hands clamped over their ears, screaming as they ran.

They hadn't run two steps when one suddenly halted, turning to peer into the depths of the alley.

The alley was pitch black, nothing visible within, but he knew those uncles who'd asked for directions were still there. He pointed at a twelve-story building not far ahead and called out:

"This here's Shu Dao Logistics, ma's callin' me home for mangmang (rice), so I ain't guidin' you no more."

"Got it, thank you."

A heavy voice rang out from the darkness.

The child grinned, revealing a mouthful of gap-toothed teeth, patting off the dust from his play as he ran toward the furious woman.

"Turtle son, who were you just talkin' to?"

"Just some uncles askin' for directions."

"Your pa's told you how many times, don't talk to strangers, you don't understand?"

"You're the one who said to help others, now you're blamin' me, hiss... ow ow ow."

"Hey, you dare talk back to your pa, watch how I deal with you when we get home!"

The fierce woman glared viciously into the alley before dragging the child away by the ear.

By now the cold wind weaving through the streets had rushed in, blowing into the alley's depths, bringing bursts of piercing whistles.

Yet it abruptly fell silent after crashing into three "walls of men."

A powerfully built man stood in the center, a faint smile still on his face—he was the one who'd spoken with the child.

The two youths flanking him were equally robust, yet their appearances were worlds apart.

One had a high nose bridge, deep-set eyes, handsome without losing masculinity.

The other's face bore a hideous saber scar, stretching from brow bone to jaw, looking rather terrifying.

The three stood shoulder to shoulder, blocking this not particularly narrow alley to the brim.

The leader raised his head to glance at the increasingly dark sky above, voice low: "The hour's about right, Yaoji, you sure the target's still at Shu Dao Logistics?"

"Rest easy, Boss. I slathered that courtesan from the Teaching Workshop with tracking agent, didn't miss a single nook and cranny. Gu Yong can't run even if he touches a speck."

The handsome youth's nostrils flared slightly. "Scent's still in Shu Dao Logistics, hasn't moved."

"Good. Move clean when we strike. This target and the backer ain't no pushovers. If we slip up, we're all getting laid out here."

"Ain't just two Confucian companies? We've handled plenty in Chongqing Prefecture, need to fear them?"

The youth muttered under his breath, then suddenly frowned: "Boss, after this job, you promotin' me or what? Going out with the handle 'Yaoji' is damn embarrassing."

The youth glanced at his wooden-faced, scarred companion. "Ertiao, you say somethin' too, don't you want a promotion?"

The scarred face remained cold, lips curling downward at the words, not uttering a sound.

"Damn it, if my 'card seniority' wasn't shorter than yours, I can't beat you for now, else I'd've bent your stick long ago!" Yaoji seethed at the non-response.

"Yaoji, you're a Farmer sequence, don't go provoking Ertiao. If he flies into a rage to clean you up later, I won't stop him."

The leading man shook his head with a laugh, picking up two massive cylindrical backpacks at his feet and handing them over.

The packs hit their hands, the heavy weight making the youth codenamed 'Yaoji' grin wider. He unzipped one and peeked inside, unable to help exclaiming:

"Worthy of a military enterprise, generous as hell. This many toys, forget snatching a person, enough to rob a bank. This stuff Fire Dragon Emerges from Water? The hell, you want us to blow up Shu Dao Logistics?"

"Generous indeed." The taciturn 'Ertiao' finally spoke, excitement flickering in his eyes.

The man likewise hoisted a pack onto his back, tone flat: "Alright alright, don't look like you've never seen the world, embarrassing our 'Gambling Society.' These weapons might not be a gift from Tianfu Heavy Industry but a warning. If we fail, these firearms will be aimed at us."

Yaoji curled his lip. "To kill us with these, you'd need at least ten more 'Fire Dragon Emerges from Water.'"

Ertiao muttered: "Not enough. At least two more Sequence Eights."

The man nodded. "And they'd have to be the fighting kind."

The three locked eyes, all laughing heartily. They reached for the metal conical hats hanging at their necks, clapped them on their heads, pressing the brims low, and strode out of the alley in big steps.

"Right, Boss, where's San'tiao off to?"

"Had a target not on this side, San'tiao went to handle it."

The moment they exited the alley, Yaoji could no longer suppress his excitement, letting out a low cheer.

"Gambling Society's men, fierce dragon crosses the river, come to your Chengdu Prefecture to gamble for your lives!"

By now the clock-out hour had passed, those working in major companies had mostly cleared out, the streets rather empty.

Under such circumstances, the trio's attire stood out glaringly. Before they neared Shu Dao Logistics Group's main gate, the security guards sensed something amiss and shouted.

"Halt! What business at Shu Dao Logistics?"

A lazy, dangling voice came from beneath the metal conical hats. "What business? Course we're here to find your boss Gu Yong for a card game!"

"Cards? What cards?"

The guard was baffled, but before he could react, his vision suddenly went black.

Ertiao's hulking silhouette had somehow closed the distance, hand clamping over the man's face, hoisting him single-handedly and flinging him aside.

This guard, whose skills were already decent among ordinary men, flew horizontally through the gate, crashing onto the hard wooden floor in a daze.

He ignored his aching body, struggling to prop himself up, looking at the surrounding Shu Dao Logistics staff struck dumb with shock, about to open his mouth to raise the alarm.

Clatter clatter.

A rolling sound suddenly rang out before him, cutting off the shout already at his lips.

The guard instinctively lowered his head, just in time to see a fist-sized pitch-black "round stone" slowly rolling over, stopping against his body.

"This is a Fire Fire Thunder?!"

In pupils violently contracted from utter terror, a blinding orange-red flame suddenly erupted.

Followed by a deafening boom.

Boom!!