Chapter 564: How Naive a Thought (Are You Asking for Subscriptions??)

"You… alright, everyone has their own path; I hope your future lives are brilliant!"

Qi Dabing had anticipated someone might defect, but not three—he turned aside, bowed slightly, and walked off without hesitation; this place was no place to linger, and in his haste, he didn't even bother picking up his dropped weapons.

"Stop right there!"

"Don't you dare leave!"

The two shouts came from Zhang Su and Meng Changwei respectively.

Puh puh puh.

The sound of feet crushing decaying grass rose up—Zhang Su didn't need to waste his breath; over thirty combatants surged forward, blocking the nine would-be defectors in place.

"What are you doing? This isn't righteous conduct!"

"We don't have any supplies—what good is keeping us?"

"Master Zhang, we don't want to join Tianma Yu—can't we just be allowed to leave? You're being far too tyrannical!"

The nine members of Feilang Gang huddled together, backs to backs, watching the crowd with wary eyes; unfortunately, they had no weapons, making them look strangely noble in their helplessness.

The atmosphere instantly grew tense.

Zhang Su gave Meng Changwei a strange look, pulled out a cigarette, and shoved it into his mouth, lighting it with a snap. "Meng Laoda, I stopped them just to remind them about the weapons on the ground—why did you tell them not to leave?"

Of course, this was a lie. Zhang Su didn't let Feilang Gang leave because he sensed their emotions were off—and he trusted that if there was a hidden truth, Meng Changwei knew something. Since the man had spoken up, he'd give him a chance.

Meng Changwei took a deep drag, exhaled, and sighed: "Master Zhang, honestly, seeing you makes me happy—because these bastards spread rumors saying… saying you were dead!"

???

"Huh?"

Zhang Su couldn't help but laugh and groan, glancing at the nine of Feilang Gang; except for Qi Dabing, every other face he could see was flickering with nervousness—Meng Changwei's information was accurate. As for why Qi Dabing remained calm? Nothing else—he simply had excellent mental fortitude. "I'm dead? Don't you know they call me the King of Hell? I'm alive—didn't see that coming, did you?"

Zhang Su found it hilarious and couldn't resist teasing Feilang Gang, then turned to Meng Changwei: "So I'm dead—then what? They must've had a follow-up plan, right?"

"Of course they did!"

This time, it wasn't Meng Changwei who spoke—it was Xie Guangfa, standing on the other side, still unbound.

"Old cripple, I hope you haven't forgotten your oath!"

Qi Dabing glanced up at the gloomy sky, speaking in a low, even tone.

Meng Changwei spoke, and Qi Dabing wasn't worried—he knew too little; even if he spilled everything, Qi Dabing could spin it. But Xie Guangfa was different—he knew every detail. "Hah!" Xie Guangfa sneered, his voice hoarse: "How could I forget? Those who betray the gang are struck by five thunderbolts. Today's weather's perfect for thunder—if it takes me, fine! But I'll expose your scheme!"

Xie Guangfa then laid bare everything Qi Dabing and the others had planned, receiving eager nods of agreement from Ning Jianshe and Qian Guangwei beside him.

How they fabricated lies, how they deceived Daqiao Fortress Village, how they executed their plan, how they covered their tracks…

As Xie Guangfa spoke slowly, Qi Dabing and the others stood silently within the circle, neither confirming nor denying, their expressions ambiguous.

The faces of Zhang Su's troops wore strange expressions—utterly dumbfounded by Feilang Gang's plan. So naive, they thought a few men and a few guns could take Tianma Yu.

Too naive by far!

Not to mention tanks and Lingling Three alone would bury them alive—Tianma Yu, despite its seemingly thin ranks, was no soft target! The old saying holds true: know yourself and know your enemy, and you'll never be defeated. Feilang Gang's plan was ignorance of both—sure to be crushed in one battle. "I've said everything. I guess Master Zhang wants to know why I betrayed Feilang Gang—because what they planned was unjust!"

"What a fine word—unjust."

Zhang Su listened quietly to Xie Guangfa's words, nodded, then turned to Meng Changwei—he knew the man had more to say.

True to form, Meng Changwei spat out his cigarette butt, crushed it underfoot, and hurriedly added: "Master Zhang, don't misunderstand—I don't plan to join Qi Dabing in causing trouble. Our plan was…"

"Hahahaha! Old Meng, do you think your excuses mean anything now? We've been wearing the same pants since day one—I shit, you get shit on you. You can't wash it off!"

Qi Dabing clenched his fists. He had no weapon, facing armed combatants—he had no will to resist. Xie Guangfa's betrayal caught him off guard, but he couldn't let Daqiao Fortress Village walk away unscathed.

The thought of "immunity by numbers" took root in his mind—if he could drag twenty or thirty of Daqiao Fortress Village's people down with him, maybe there'd still be a chance!

Meng Changwei's face fell; he shot Qi Dabing a glare. Seeing Zhang Su ignore his bluster, he hurried on: "I never believed you were dead, but I doubted Tianma Yu's internal strife—because the past two days have been too strange, so… my plan was simple: go up the mountain with Feilang Gang. If it's truly a split, I'll side with…"

"Good!"

Zhang Su suddenly shouted, voice sharply high—startling many in the crowd, cutting Meng Changwei off mid-sentence.

"Good. Don't say who you'll side with yet. I ask you: do your men know who you'll support? If you say it out loud, you're all dead."

This was the chance to test Meng Changwei's true intentions—Zhang Su wouldn't let it slip. He trusted Daqiao Fortress Village mostly because he trusted Meng Changwei as their leader. If the man had changed, everything needed reevaluation.

Yu Wen's eyelid twitched in the crowd—he knew the fate of these people would be decided now.

He silently prayed nothing went wrong. He genuinely liked the men Meng Changwei brought—more honest and disciplined than Liu Yao and Yang Xin's troops, yet not as rigid as soldiers. Capable, too. Overall, these survivors were excellent—if they joined Tianma Yu peacefully, they'd be useful.

Meng Changwei, as a leader of his own faction, was sharp—he instantly understood Zhang Su's intent, nodded vigorously, and chose silence to avoid accidentally betraying his men.

He felt no resentment toward Zhang Su's actions. Though their groups differed in scale, their positions were identical—he knew the weight on their shoulders, and how cautious one must be when accepting survivors.

On the contrary, he was deeply grateful Zhang Su acted clearly and fairly—never condemning anyone based on surface appearances! "Come! Start with you—step forward…"

Zhang Su gestured to the men behind Meng Changwei. Since they'd already reached his mountain's foot, there was no rush to return—he planned to interrogate them one by one.

The interrogation was simple—just one question. Soon, Zhang Su finished questioning all of Daqiao Fortress Village's people. Their answers were uniform: Meng Laoda intended to support Zhong's family.

After the round of questioning, it was finally Meng Changwei's turn. His answer was just as direct: "When I arrived, I didn't see a single familiar face from the Qinglong Military Unit—I truly thought something had happened. But if I had to pick a side, I'd choose someone close to you. Legally, the closest bond is between spouses—so I'm siding with your wife."

Everyone nodded inwardly—no flaw in the answer. But one person pouted and made a face: Zheng Xinyu, standing directly in front of Feilang Gang. Hearing these answers, Zhang Su felt the stone in his chest drop—he sensed Meng Changwei's sincerity. He was unchanged from when they'd met in Qinglong Military Unit.

"Didn't expect Meng Laoda to think so thoroughly—haha, I was overthinking."

Zhang Su drew his dog-leg knife, sliced through Meng Changwei's ropes with a swift slash, then told the nearby combatants: "Come on, untie the men from Daqiao Fortress Village! Hey—don't cut them. Take your time. Carefully."

Seeing someone try to copy him and cut the ropes with a knife, Zhang Su quickly stopped him. Joking—he was the only one who could slice through ropes with such a cool, effortless motion?

Shameful waste!

After being freed, Daqiao Fortress Village's men exhaled deeply—not only did they stop resenting Zhang Su, they were now deeply impressed by his decisiveness and style. Their attitude had turned completely around.

"Master Zhang, I hate ruining the mood, so about Feilang Gang—I planned to wait until things stabilized before speaking. But look how this turned out—it's all my fault."

Meng Changwei felt deeply embarrassed by how things had unfolded.

Everyone saw him as a pirate with an eye patch, but few knew he'd once worn an official hat like Li Zongkai—he still held to old traditions, always mindful of face.

"Let me tell you a secret—I just lied to you. I didn't stop them to remind them about the weapons. If I waited for others to tell me before noticing anything, Tianma Yu would've been wiped out eight hundred times over."

Zhang Su gave a mysterious smile, leaving everyone baffled.

Meng Changwei kept pointing at him, laughing and exasperated: "You—you!"

"Alright, Meng Laoda, take your men over there to rest, smoke, and watch. We'll climb the mountain later—I'll deal with these people first!"

Zhang Su patted Meng Changwei's arm, then smiled at Daqiao Fortress Village's combatants.

His easy, friendly demeanor naturally earned warm responses. The shadows in Daqiao Fortress Village's hearts vanished instantly—even they found it unbelievable how quickly their emotions had shifted. Clearly, dramatic ups and downs forged growth.

Seeing Daqiao Fortress Village's mood lift, Zhang Su quietly suppressed his own emotions—not letting them affect others.

The surrounded members of Feilang Gang now felt icy cold. They'd hoped to drag Daqiao Fortress Village down with them—but instead, the others had been utterly sincere, already planning to side with the Lady of the Fortress. This was pure betrayal…

Qi Dabing swallowed hard, his spine chilled. His once-clever mind spun furiously, searching for a way out of this dead end—but if it was truly a dead end, how could it be broken?

Just as he was at a loss, he saw Zhang Su walk toward the "traitor," Xie Guangfa.

"You're Xie Guangfa?"

Zhang Su asked the middle-aged man.

Xie Guangfa nodded silently.

"I noticed your leg seems to have trouble?"

Zhang Su's gaze rested on Xie Guangfa's slightly awkward gait.

"Thank you for your concern, Master Zhang—my leg's fine, heh…"

As if to prove it, Xie Guangfa suddenly pushed off hard—before anyone could react, he executed a perfect forward flip!

Zhang Su, enveloped in mist, sensed the anomaly the moment Xie Guangfa's muscles tensed. Since he felt no hostility or killing intent, he merely stepped back slightly.

But others weren't so calm—they instantly thought the old cripple was going for a headshot. Seven or eight guns snapped toward Xie Guangfa—until they saw Zhang Su raise his arm, signaling calm. Their tension eased.

"A martial artist?"

Zhang Su watched Xie Guangfa with interest. That move—launching a forward flip from a standing position, without any flourish, pure power—was no showmanship.

As the saying goes: experts see the essence.

That move demanded tremendous core strength. Zhang Su silently calculated: among the entire King of Hell Army, maybe four or five could do it. If you counted those barely capable, maybe two or three more.

Even among all combatants here, he couldn't find ten! In other words, this middle-aged man, around fifty, was a master—at least in hand-to-hand combat! "Not much, just a little knowledge."

Xie Guangfa nodded. He didn't think one forward flip was enough—he followed it with a flawless backward flip, landing steady as stone. Frost-cracked earth kicked up dust beneath his feet; when he stepped away, he left a deep, solid footprint—proof of power!

"Fucking hell… what's this guy rolling around showing off for?"

In the crowd, Lu Yu was furious, muttering to Zhao De: "I hate people who show off more than me—except Zhang Su."

Zhao De gave a strange look, whispering sideways: "Like an old woman selling melons—she praises her own. He wants to join us—selling himself to the big brothers!"

Xie Guangfa's display was sharp—it instantly silenced many in the crowd.

Aside from the King of Hell Army, fighters from other divisions had almost no systematic combat training. Their drills focused on killing zombies, with minimal physical conditioning—most were weak. Seeing this fierce, limping old man, they felt a chill.

The words "Above the sky, there's higher sky; beyond people, there are greater people" flashed in their minds.

For those like Wu Baokang, Wu Daqiang, and Da Zhuang—strong fighters themselves, and some King of Hell Army members—their emotions were mixed. A strong newcomer was good for the group… but also a threat to them.

Still, no need to worry yet—because the King of Hell hadn't accepted Xie Guangfa or his group.

Indeed, in Zhang Su's eyes, Xie Guangfa was still from Feilang Gang—he needed testing.

"Looks like you're strong."

Zhang Su nodded. Xie Guangfa's combat ability had been confirmed—but strength alone wasn't enough. He shifted tone, pointing at the surrounded nine of Feilang Gang.

"Since you're so skilled in hand-to-hand combat, you'll judge these bastards."

The crowd froze. Everyone thought: the King of Hell's methods were ruthless. If Xie Guangfa refused, fine—he'd be dealt with alongside Feilang Gang. If he accepted, even better—he'd severed all ties with Feilang Gang.

No loopholes left! (End of Chapter)