Chapter 35: Flying Cloud Gang, Hua Gui

Just won a large sum of money.

Hua Gui was in high spirits when one of his subordinates rushed in, frantic and breathless.

The little bit of good mood he'd just had vanished instantly.

Without caring what had happened, he kicked out, sending the man sprawling to the ground, continuing to kick as he shouted.

"Did someone in your family die? Don't you know Boss is in a good mood? Daring to interrupt me, you want to die, right?"

Such a brutal scene.

Those around merely watched, not daring to utter a single word of protest, afraid of being implicated.

"Boss! Spare my life! Something truly serious has happened outside!"

The subordinate could only beg for mercy, not daring to resist at all.

But Hua Gui paid no attention, kicking for a long while until the man spat blood, then finally stopped, letting out a long breath and feeling his mood had improved greatly.

"Speak. What happened outside? If it's nothing important, I'll hang you from the city gate for seven or eight days."

Clearly, Hua Gui had done this kind of thing before.

Ignoring the pain in his body, he hurriedly knelt on the ground and spoke.

"It's Yù Gōngzǐ of the Black Water Gang. He claims we killed one of his brothers and has come with a large force to attack us—so many men, our people outside can't hold them off!"

"What did you say!"

Even though he'd guessed something might be wrong, he'd assumed it was some minor issue; hearing this, he froze in shock.

"When did I ever touch his brother? Is he insane?"

Ye Tian's title, Yù Gōngzǐ, had spread widely lately—even the Flying Cloud Gang had heard of it.

But Hua Gui had merely thought the Black Water Gang had produced another ruthless thug, paying it no mind; he never expected the man would now come directly after him.

"Uh!"

But upon hearing this,

one of Hua Gui's subordinates changed expression.

"Hmm?"

As the sole Hall Master of the Flying Cloud Gang, Hua Gui was certainly no useless fool.

Sensing something, he immediately shot a glance over.

"What do you want to say?"

"Hua… Hua Gui Brother."

Under Hua Gui's gaze, the man swallowed hard but stepped forward anyway.

"Yesterday, a desperate gambler came to our place to gamble, claiming to be from Yù Gōngzǐ's side of the Black Water Gang. But his luck was terrible, and he had nothing to pay his debts with, so I ordered my men to throw him out—I never meant to kill him!"

By the end, he was trembling and knelt down in fear.

He felt he had just stirred up something huge.

"You bastard!"

So this actually happened?

Hua Gui's first thought wasn't that his subordinate was lying to him—he suspected he'd been framed. This "avenging a brother" was just an excuse to seize the Flying Cloud Gang's territory.

The Righteous and Peerless Yù Gōngzǐ?

Someone like Hua Gui, who had roamed the underworld for countless years, never believed such a thing as a truly righteous man existed—and if he did, he wouldn't be in a gang.

Such a title could only fool naive youngsters.

"Damn bastard."

His eyes turned dark and dangerous.

He'd just offended the Earth Dragon Gang, and now they were targeting the Flying Cloud Gang too—did they really think they were easy prey?

"Gather the men. Let's go!"

Hua Gui wanted to see just who this Yù Gōngzǐ really was—he hadn't survived this long for nothing.

"Understood!"

The others behind him sprang into action.

,,,

His initial fierce momentum had barely lasted a moment before Hua Gui's expression turned bewildered.

In just this short time,

most of the gambling dens on the Flying Cloud Gang's territory had been cleared out.

When Hua Gui arrived with his men, he saw Ye Tian's force—nearly six hundred strong—emerging from a recently cleared den, a dark sea of people that made Hua Gui's pace slow noticeably.

Sweat beaded on his forehead.

Fuck, this guy has way too many men.

He's serious!

He'd thought they'd just come to seize territory—but this looked like they were aiming to wipe out the entire Flying Cloud Gang.

"Hua… Hua Gui Brother?"

If Hua Gui was like this, how much worse were his men behind him?

Some were trembling all over.

"You're Hua Gui of the Flying Cloud Gang?"

Someone had finally noticed Hua Gui's group.

"Perfect. I haven't cut enough yet."

Shuang Dao Jiang, shouldering his twin blades, grinned menacingly over at them.

"Nobody gets to compete with me."

"To hell with it—I'm making a thousand taels today."

"Go choke on your own farts—these people are mine."

"..."

They all started shouting at once.

In comparison, Hua Gui's side had clearly lost momentum.

What's going on?

Why are these people even more excited now that they've seen them?

Everyone out in the Jianghu is chasing wealth and a better life; aside from a handful of brainless martial fanatics, who actually enjoys fighting?

Why do Ye Tian's people seem so eager to join forces?

One or two fearless fools, fine—but nearly six hundred men all fearless? That's absurd—and terrifying.

"You… who among you is Yù Gōngzǐ?"

Finally, Hua Gui stepped forward and shouted.

No matter what, he was Hall Master of Feiyun Bang—he couldn't lose face; if he did, even if this matter passed, he'd never survive in the Jianghu again.

"You're looking for me?"

At that moment,

Ye Tian's low voice rang out behind them all.

Hearing the commotion, Wei Wu and his men wisely stepped aside, clearing a path for Ye Tian to walk through.

"Boss!"

"Boss!"

"..."

Dozens of eager eyes—anyone unaware might think Ye Tian was already Bāngzhǔ of a whole gang.

This aura was even more extravagant than my own as Hall Master.

Hua Gui's lips twitched, then he voiced his doubt.

"You're Yù Gōngzǐ?"

His gaze swept over Ye Tian from head to toe.

No wonder he's called Yù Gōngzǐ—Ye Tian's features were truly refined, especially among this crowd of rough men, making him look all the more slick and pampered.

Only his build looked sturdy; otherwise, he'd easily be mistaken for some frail scholar.

Having confirmed Ye Tian's identity, Hua Gui no longer wished to waste time—he spoke directly.

"Everyone knows what's going on. Lay down your terms. How do you want to settle this today?"

Judging by the look of it, he'd have to bleed heavily today—but as long as it didn't ruin his future comfort, a single compromise wouldn't hurt.

In Hua Gui's view,

He'd spoken quite politely already.

He hadn't even accused Ye Tian of crying thief after stealing—had killed his own men and framed Feiyun Bang. If he'd said that outright, it wasn't even clear whether Ye Tian's men would believe Ye Tian or him.

But this matter could never be settled peacefully.

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