Chapter 64: The Madman Who Ignores Consequences

The final piece of darkness before dawn.

On the main street of the Eastern Concession, hundreds of Foreigners knelt in rows, trembling. Among them were merchants, students, workers, men, women, the young and the old.

These Foreigners who usually flaunted their power in Shen City now bowed their heads, daring not to look at the security troupe officers and soldiers standing before them.

"Captain Yang, the count is finished," Li Mingyuan walked over to report, "We captured over six hundred Foreigners."

Yang Yongkang nodded, his gaze sweeping over the kneeling Foreigners. Over the years they had run roughshod in Shen City, oppressing the people; today, it was time for an end.

"One row after another," he ordered coldly.

"Yes!"

The first row of Foreigners was pulled up and marched to the wall.

"Please..."

"We surrender..."

"Spare us..."

Bang bang bang!

A rapid volley of gunfire rang out, and the first row of Foreigners fell to the ground. Blood quickly gathered on the ground, forming a small stream.

"Next row!"

Another row of Foreigners was pulled up.

"Baka! You bunch of China..." a Eastern youth tried to shout.

Bang!

A bullet blew his head to pieces.

"In Shen City, you should have realized you amount to nothing!" Yang Yongkang sneered.

Row after row, gunfire kept echoing. Blood dyed the entire street red, and corpses began to pile up layer upon layer.

Some Foreigners tried to flee, but only a swifter death awaited them.

Some Foreigners attempted resistance, yet they were shot into a sieve before they even had a chance to stand.

The public execution lasted a full hour.

When the last row of Foreigners fell, the sky was already bright. Sunlight fell on the river of blood that covered the street, reflecting a dazzling red.

"Count the spoils," Yang Yongkang ordered.

"Yes!"

"Report, Captain," after a moment Li Mingyuan came over, "Tonight we eliminated over two thousand Foreigners, captured over six hundred, and have now executed them all. We looted dozens of their shops and burned over a hundred houses."

"Are the valuables loaded onto the trucks?"

"They're already loaded," Li Mingyuan pointed to the trucks parked on both sides of the street, "Three trucks of gold bars, five trucks of cash, and some valuable antique calligraphy and paintings."

Yang Yongkang nodded, "Did you check everything thoroughly? Don't miss anything."

"Chen Hu is leading the special ops squad in the final sweep, making sure not a single thing is left for those Foreigners."

After waiting another half hour, the special ops squad finally finished the sweep.

More than twenty fully loaded trucks lined up on the street, each guarded by soldiers with loaded rifles.

"Depart!" Yang Yongkang commanded.

The convoy slowly started, leaving the ravaged concession behind.

In the morning light, the Eastern Concession was unrecognizable. Corpses lay haphazardly on the streets, blood flowed like a river, many buildings were still burning, and thick smoke billowed.

In the dawn, more than twenty trucks, fully loaded, slowly left the Eastern Concession. The security troupe officers and soldiers sat inside, their faces bearing victorious smiles.

Behind them, the concession held only a few Foreigners who had luckily escaped the massacre. They crawled out of sewers and cellars, looked at the devastated concession, and wept uncontrollably.

Corpses were everywhere, bloodstains everywhere, burning buildings everywhere. The once prosperous Eastern Concession had become a living hell in a single night.

The news quickly reached the Security Command Headquarters.

"What?!" Qin Dong Zhi sprang up from his chair, "What did you say? Lin Yu led men to bloodily cleanse the Eastern Concession?"

"Yes... yes," the adjutant wiped cold sweat, "The security troupe killed throughout the night; Foreigner casualties exceed three thousand. The entire concession was more than half burned, and all the shops were looted..."

"This madman!" Qin Dong Zhi slapped the table with one hand, shaking the teacup so it jumped.

He paced back and forth in the office, his complexion shifting unpredictably.

In just a few days, Lin Yu first set fire to the Eastern Consulate, then shot Consul Mukun on the spot. The newly appointed consul hadn't even warmed his chair before Lin Yu had his men eliminate him.

Now, he actually led the security troupe to directly bloodily cleanse the Eastern Concession!

"Is he mad?" Qin Dong Zhi muttered, "Doesn't he know the consequences of this?"

The adjutant said cautiously, "Commander, should we..."

"Should we what?" Qin Dong Zhi sneered, "Capture him? Do you think I don't want to?"

He walked to the window, gazing at the distant thick smoke: "The question is, what exactly is Lin Yu? The firepower of his unit can't even overcome the main Eastern forces. If we go after him, we might not succeed."

"But Commander," the adjutant hurried, "this matter is too big! The Foreigners certainly won't let it go peacefully!"

"Of course I know!" Qin Dong Zhi gritted his teeth, "Great Dry now is feeble, unable to withstand any storm. Lin Yu's actions could very well trigger a full-scale war between the Easterners and Great Dry!"

He sighed heavily, "If war breaks out, with Great Dry's current strength, they are no match for the Easterners. Then the entire Shen City will suffer!"

"Then what about us..."

"First send people to the Eastern Concession to assess the situation," Qin Dong Zhi rubbed his temples, "Also, immediately contact Yanbei to see the court's stance."

He stared at the smoke outside, his eyes complex: "What does Lin Yu really want? Does he truly not fear sparking a war? Or is it that..."

"Or what?"

"Or perhaps he simply wants war?" Qin Dong Zhi squinted, "But on what basis does he have such confidence? Just because of his few men?"

Outside, the thick smoke over the Eastern Concession continued to rise. This blaze might not only consume one concession but could drag all of Great Dry into the flames of war!

Lin Yu sat in the office, his fingers lightly tapping the desk.

【Ding! Congratulations host for bloodbathing the Eastern Concession, fiercely striking the Great Powers, displaying Great Dry's iron‑blooded methods, rewarding toughness points!】

【Ding! Congratulations host for executing Eastern expatriates, unafraid of Great Powers threats, rewarding 2000 toughness points!】

【Ding! Congratulations host for looting Eastern shops, striking Great Powers economy, rewarding 400 toughness points!】

Lin Yu opened the system panel:

【Current toughness points: point】

"Hmm," he nodded satisfied, "This harvest wasn't bad. An A‑level bloodbath of the concession, a B‑level execution operation, plus a C‑level loot — altogether not bad."

He stood up and walked to the window. In the distance, the Eastern Concession was still belching black smoke — traces of last night's battle. The Security Regiment's raids, the Special Service Squad's assassinations, wave after wave of executions... every link was flawless.

"However," Lin Yu narrowed his eyes, "this is only the beginning."

He turned back to his desk, re‑examining the toughness‑value tier divisions on the system panel.

"S‑level operation... defeat the main force of the Great Powers?" he smirked, "Shino Division, you'd better hurry up and come."

Just then, Yang Yongkang's report arrived.

"Commander, this operation killed 2,847 Easterners, seized cash, gold bars, antiques and other materials worth over two million silver dollars..."

Lin Yu casually flipped through the battle statistics, already plotting the next move in his mind.

Bloodbathing the concession was just the beginning; next...

He glanced at the S‑level rating on the system panel: defeat the main force of the Great Powers (division level or higher).

Soon, this opportunity will arrive.