Chapter 103: Refugee Street, Mastiff Gang

Liumin Jie, originally not called by this name, quickly lost its former designation and became a base camp for refugees to gather after a massive influx of refugees from Su Cheng.

This place is a mix of dragons and snakes, a foul and chaotic place that locals avoid at all costs.

The Mastiff Gang is precisely what is entrenched here, taking root among the numerous refugees.

This gang, spontaneously organized by Su Cheng refugees, did not perish from Acclimatization as many had guessed.

On the contrary, under the suppression and siege of the Wild Fox Gang and the Mad Horse Gang, they did not retreat but advanced, developing an increasingly formidable influence.

Many homeless Su Cheng martial artists, after failing to integrate into the local area, abandoned their illusions and joined the Mastiff Gang, bringing a wave of elite soldiers and strong generals.

Those who have nothing are the least afraid of death; after these martial artists joined, the Mastiff Gang's combat power rose sharply.

With one life-and-death duel after another, the death toll rose in a straight line, and it was the local gangs that started to struggle.

Moreover, the Mastiff Gang is not without support behind the scenes.

The world knows that gangs are the black gloves used to do dirty work, and they are indispensable.

The two major local gangs, Wild Fox and Mad Horse, have the operations of the government and noble families behind them, stepping forward to do some inconvenient, dirty, and tiring work.

The Mastiff Gang is made up of outsiders, whom the local forces disdain to use, but Gongliang City is not only inhabited by locals.

Long before the fall of Su Cheng, many wealthy merchants and powerful figures from Su Cheng had already moved here, purchasing property, taking root, and banding together.

Song Fugui's in-laws are clearly one such member.

They are likewise plagued by exclusion from the local circles and seek survival through struggle; on the surface, they support the opening of martial arts halls like the Mastiff Fist, while secretly providing money and people, indulging the Mastiff Gang to further expand.

To this day, the Mastiff Gang is only a visible hidden danger; the root cause is the conflict of interest between Su Cheng and the local forces.

Liumin Jie has become an irrevocable part of Gongliang City.

In every street and alley, refugees gather and walk about; on the surface, they are idle, but in reality, they are observing all major traffic routes.

These are all the Mastiff Gang's eyes and ears, guarding against enemy attacks in their own base camp.

Gang warfare has no bottom line, and the methods are despicable and cruel.

Some time ago, dead soldiers sent by the Wild Fox Gang broke into Liumin Jie and burned hundreds of people to death with a fire.

After the incident, the government made no response, hinting for them to mediate internally.

The lives of hundreds of refugees were cheaper than withered grass, turning into fly ash just like that.

These past few days, Liumin Jie has been in a state of panic, and the high-level members of the Mastiff Gang are discussing how to retaliate.

Zhou You transformed into Lu Zhigang and stepped into Liumin Jie under these circumstances, immediately triggering the vigilance of the eyes and ears.

"Who goes there? Stop, don't come any further!"

From both sides of the street, seven or eight well-equipped gang members walked over and surrounded Zhou You.

"I am Lu Zhigang; take me to see the person who wants to see me."

Hearing the name Lu Zhigang, the leading gang member was greatly shocked and scrutinized him twice.

When the others heard the name Lu Zhigang, they all looked over one after another.

Zhou You's mindset was excellent; these people would not see through the flaws.

Although Lu Zhigang was not a famous person in Su Cheng, he did have social connections; the number of people who knew him was not large, but it was not zero either.

Sure enough, the other party recognized his appearance and confirmed that it was Lu Zhigang himself, not an impostor.

"Hall Master Sun invites you; Master Lu, please come this way."

The attitudes of the few gang members became enthusiastic, and they crowded around Zhou You as they walked toward the Mastiff Gang's hall.

Zhou You recalled the situation of this Hall Master Sun; this person was also an Apprentice of the Yanxing Quan and had studied boxing with Lu Zhigang at the martial arts hall.

However, the two did not have a deep friendship, and they went their separate ways when fleeing.

Both were Force-using martial artists with different fortunes; Lu Zhigang was so poor he had no choice but to accept a contract to kill, only to die at Zhou You's hands, while this Sun person joined the Mastiff Gang and fought his way up to become a high-level member.

"Brother Lu, it's been many days; I've been looking for you." Hall Master Sun was a square-faced, middle-aged, burly man who cupped his hands in greeting, laughing and chatting to build rapport, with a heavy air of the pugilistic world.

He wore a silk outer garment and thick gold rings on his fingers, looking very wealthy.

However, all of this was just a facade.

Zhou You glanced at the other party's feet; his ankles were exceptionally powerful, which is a sign of deep mastery in the Yanxing Quan.

This Hall Master Sun's strength, even if not yet at the level of pure Force, was very close to it.

The other party was trying to build rapport, but he did not intend to respond; after all, he was not the real Lu Zhigang, and he did not know the history of their relationship, so talking too much would easily reveal flaws.

"It's alright; everyone around me is dead, but I am still alive."

This sentence was too heavy and killed the conversation instantly.

Hall Master Sun's smile faded, becoming somewhat dejected.

"Brother Lu, you've caused us quite a lot of trouble. Tu Laoer is acting like a madman, seeking revenge on us, attacking our hall, killing people, and burning houses; many brothers have died at his hands."

Tu Laosan died at the hands of 'Lu Zhigang', and Tu Laoer took his anger out on the Mastiff Gang, constantly threatening them to hand over Lu Zhigang.

The Mastiff Gang had grievances they couldn't voice; it wasn't about loyalty, but that they truly couldn't find the person! As a successor of the Yanxing Quan, Hall Master Sun bore the most pressure.

Now that Zhou You had come to his door voluntarily, he breathed a sigh of relief and made up his mind not to let him leave.

"Brother Lu, looking at your dusty face, you must have suffered a lot."

"Now that you're with your brother, just treat it like your own home. Wine, meat, and beauties—I have them prepared for you; enjoy yourself to the fullest!"

Hall Master Sun stretched out his arm to drape it over Zhou You's shoulder, intending to drag him indoors.

The next moment, a faint red light radiated from Zhou You's back.

Just as Hall Master Sun's palm neared him, a terrifying, overwhelming force struck, sending him flying.

He collapsed at a single touch, without even a chance to react.

"Blood Qi, you... you have broken through to Blood Qi!"

Hall Master Sun scrambled up from the ground in a sorry state, his eyes wide, unable to believe what he was seeing.

Everyone had fled from Su Cheng; he had fought desperately to achieve his current status.

He had thought Lu Zhigang was just a lonely ghost who couldn't compare to his own ample financial resources and conditions for practicing martial arts, but he hadn't expected that when the other party appeared before him, he would already be a Blood-Qi expert.

"Surname Sun, don't try to get chummy; as of today, there's nothing left for us to talk about."

Zhou You raised his hand to brush off his shoulder and said indifferently, "I want to see your Gang Leader."

"That mad dog Tu Laoer, I also want to take care of him, but I won't do it for free."

"You provide the money, I do the killing; everyone will be happy."

A moment later, the tardy Gang Leader of the Mourning Dog Gang politely grasped Lu Zhigang's hands.

"Brother Lu, are you interested in serving as the Vice Gang Leader of my humble gang?"

This Gang Leader's face was full of wrinkles, enough to scare a child to tears when he smiled, yet his expression didn't carry a hint of malice.

The moment Zhou You saw him, he sensed the aura of his own kind.

This Gang Leader was also at the Blood-Qi level, and not just one tier, but higher and stronger.

"This matter can be discussed, but not right now; let's talk about the Tu Laoer business first."

Regarding Zhou You's polite refusal, the Gang Leader wasn't angry, "We must talk, we absolutely must talk."

"Old Zhou just told me, whether you want money or goods, Brother Lu, just name it, and I will have no objections."

"Although the Mourning Dog Gang is currently strapped for cash, even if we have to sell our scrap metal, we will never mistreat a friend."

(End of this chapter)