Chapter 32: Peppa Pig

"So they just want you to take out The Howler. Thank goodness..." Hunter breathed a massive sigh of relief. He had genuinely thought they were going to tie Li Yu up and feed him to the crocodiles.

"Why is that a good thing?" Li Yu countered. He stood in front of the sofa, fiddling with the Smart Device on his wrist.

"The Howler is only an E+ rank. You managed to take down Grey Spear, so dealing with The Howler shouldn't be an issue at all," Hunter analyzed earnestly. "There might be some fallout afterward, but at the very least, this smooths things over with the higher-ups."

"That makes sense..." Li Yu nodded.

Hunter lounged back on the sofa and crossed his legs. "Plus, once this is done, you might even become the Tyron Chamber of Commerce's go-to guy for handling these kinds of messes. It's a pretty solid career path."

His own life would become a lot more comfortable as well. At the thought of this, the gloom that had clouded his mood after losing all his money instantly brightened.

"Unless..." He let out a soft chuckle and shook his head. This piqued Li Yu's curiosity, prompting him to ask, "Unless what?"

"Unless you somehow lose to The Howler..." Hunter chuckled. "Though under normal circumstances, that's impossible."

"And under abnormal circumstances?" Li Yu shot him a glance.

When a long moment passed without any response, an inexplicable sense of dread crept over him. He turned his head, and his heart skipped a beat when he saw Li Yu wearing a deeply contemplative expression.

"Hey... what are you thinking about..." Hunter's voice trembled slightly. "You wouldn't actually do that, right?"

No sane person would ever make such a choice. Li Yu would have to be out of his mind.

"Huh?" Li Yu laughed in genuine surprise. "Why would I take on such a thankless task? Just because that guy gave me a piece of clothing?"

Only then did Hunter let out a sigh of relief. He managed a strained smile. "Yeah, exactly. He only gave you a shirt. It's not a big deal, and it's hardly worth anything."

"Right..." Li Yu nodded in agreement before looking around in confusion. "Where is Mo Duo? Where did she go?"

"She went back to her room right after you left and hasn't come out since," Hunter said, pointing toward Mo Duo's door.

"Alright... I need to head out for a bit. I might be back late," Li Yu told him.

'Eh?' Hunter's heart jolted once more. 'Is this guy trying to make a run for it?' On second thought, there was absolutely no reason for Li Yu to flee right now.

......

At the temporary headquarters of the Thorn Flame. The leaders usually kept busy in their own respective territories, only gathering together whenever a smuggling ship arrived in port.

This time, however, because the Snakeheads had managed to vanish without a trace, they were forced to simply sit and wait.

In Third Fatty's room, low, muffled whimpers echoed sporadically, accompanied by sharp, rhythmic smacks that sounded suspiciously like a whip striking bare skin.

Ding!

The Smart Terminal on the table chimed, alerting him to a new message.

Third Fatty paused his movements for a brief second before continuing, completely ignoring the alert.

Ding! Ding! Ding!...

The device chimed over a dozen times in rapid succession, as if aggressively demanding his attention.

"Damn it, who the hell is it..." Panting heavily, Third Fatty plopped his heavy frame down onto a chair. With bloodshot eyes, he pulled up the incoming messages.

The barrage of subsequent alerts turned out to be useless spam; only the very first notification contained anything of substance—a slightly muffled audio file.

"I've arranged for Li Yu to be Grey Spear's opponent, exactly according to your conditions."

"........."

"Don't think I'm blind to what you're trying to pull. You know damn well how much I saved you in mercenary fees."

Third Fatty's pupils shrank to pinpricks. He instinctively snapped the audio off, his expression instantly turning dark and moody.

'Who! Who sent this?!'

His immediate reaction wasn't even anger at Taotie's blatant deception. His overwhelming priority was figuring out exactly who had sent him this file.

He immediately pulled up the sender's contact info. The glowing alias on the screen stung his eyes like a physical blow—"Old Pig Mounts Donkey"!

'What is the meaning of this? Is someone trying to sow discord within the Thorn Flame?'

Third Fatty hesitated for a fraction of a second before pushing himself to his feet. "Baby, wait for me just a minute..."

His expression was incredibly dark, but the moment he yanked the door open, it morphed into a mask of pure, unadulterated fury. His features twisted as he roared at the top of his lungs, "Taotie! I'll screw your mother!"

Back in the room, the woman slowly sat up on the bed. The Silk blanket brushed against her fresh bruises, causing her to involuntarily hiss in pain. Her complexion was pale and drawn as she wrapped her arms tightly around her trembling frame, desperately trying to glean even a sliver of comfort and security.

Bzz... Bzz...

A faint crackle of electricity echoed through the room. The overhead lights began to flicker wildly before the holographic projector suddenly flared to life on its own. A single line of text slowly materialized in the air: Hello, Miss...

The woman's eyes widened in terror. She slapped both hands over her mouth, violently forcing herself to remain completely silent.

......

Meanwhile, in the adjacent room, a red-faced Third Fatty was unleashing a torrential barrage of curses at Taotie, completely unhinged despite Old Ghost's physical attempts to hold him back.

"You absolute #@?*!"

Flecks of spittle flew through the air, splattering directly onto Old Ghost's clothes and causing his eye to twitch in annoyance.

Taotie's expression was incredibly ugly. Beside them, Sister Yao simply covered her mouth and giggled, making absolutely no move to break up the escalating conflict.

"Boss, you tell me, is this the kind of shit Second Brother should be pulling?! He had the nerve to lie to my face and say the mercenary fees were five million!"

"He made me cough up two and a half million! Scamming your own brother?! It makes me sick! Are you even human?!"

Third Fatty wailed, tears streaming down his face as though he had just been brutally betrayed by his own flesh and blood.

Old Ghost let out a heavy sigh, looking visibly disappointed. "Taotie, you were completely out of line doing that to your own brother."

Taotie merely sneered in response. "Third Brother, cut the crap. Do you really think bribing everyone up and down the chain was free?"

"Let me tell you, it cost me way more than five million just to pay off that beast! I was looking out for you! I did it so you wouldn't have to empty your own pockets!"

Third Fatty blinked rapidly. 'Damn it!' He hadn't anticipated that counterattack. Somehow, Taotie was actually trying to squirm his way out of this using that ridiculous excuse.

"Enough! Taotie was in the wrong... but Third Brother, you're an absolute moron!" Old Ghost barked, finally seizing the perfect opportunity to exact petty revenge for the spit on his clothes.

"Did you ever stop to think about the motive of whoever sent you that audio clip? They clearly just want to sow discord between the four of us!"

Displaying a classic case of hating iron for not becoming steel, Old Ghost scolded Third Brother so harshly that the fat man practically started twitching. 'You old bastard, now you're putting on an act too?'

Taotie let out a cold snort. "Forget it, I won't stoop to bickering with Third Brother. Give me a proper apology, and we can consider this matter closed."

Third Fatty's eyes nearly bugged out of his head. 'You motherf—'

"He's right, Third Brother. Just admit your mistake and move on..." Sister Yao chimed in, deciding to join the fun. Striking an alluring pose, she gently fluttered her fan to cool off the seething Third Fatty.

"Apologize my ass!" Third Fatty wasn't totally devoid of a backbone. This was a blatant case of bullying a simple-minded guy. He hurled one last furious curse before storming out of the room in a huff.

He spent the entire walk back muttering curses under his breath. The moment he stepped back into his own room, however, his expression abruptly darkened. 'What exactly is the Boss trying to pull?'

'Constantly propping up Second Brother... that's completely out of character for him...'

"What's the matter, Third Brother..." The woman, now draped in a sheer white veil, pressed her body affectionately against Third Fatty.

"It's nothing, just a bunch of aggravating bullshit..." Third Fatty grumbled, skillfully grasping the woman's curves.

"Aiya... why don't we go out for a little stroll and relax? We've been cooped up here for days and haven't stepped outside once..." The woman leaned in close, softly whispering something directly into Third Fatty's ear.

At the same time, her delicate hands seductively wandered all over his body...

A slow, fiery light gradually began to burn in Third Fatty's eyes...

Smack!

He let out a hearty laugh and pulled his hands back. "Only my baby truly knows how to take care of me."