Chapter 10: The First Mission

The Four Little Strongmen were indeed dragons among men; they grasped their respective studies quickly, and their martial arts moves were already taking proper shape.

After Duan Fengyun was taken as a disciple by Xiongba, Duan Lang's status, as Duan Fengyun's younger brother, naturally rose with the tide. He moved to the separate courtyard with Duan Fengyun, bidding farewell to that large room for servants.

Duan Fengyun did not break his promise; he spoke directly to Xiongba about his thoughts regarding little Duan Lang, imploring Xiongba to send someone to escort little Duan Lang out of Tianxia Hui to stay far away from the strife of the Jianghu.

Duan Fengyun and the others were currently the apple of Xiongba's eye, so this small request was granted immediately.

A few days later, little Duan Lang bid farewell to the Four Little Strongmen and Kong Ci at the entrance of Tianxia Hui; he was about to head to the Capital to attend school. Far from the strife of the Jianghu, he should find it difficult to ever enter Tianxia Hui again.

Little Duan Lang looked at Duan Fengyun with reluctance, and Duan Fengyun sent him a look of encouragement and determination.

Little Duan Lang understood his older brother's good intentions, he just couldn't bear to leave everyone.

After little Duan Lang hugged everyone in farewell, he sat on a small boat and left.

Little Duan Lang on the small boat had red eyes, tears swirling in his sockets; with his back to the crowd, he ordered the boatman to row away.

After little Duan Lang left, Duan Fengyun had no more worries and began to practice day and night.

He learned the eleven forms of Cloud-Piercing Palm and the six forms of Wind God Leg taught by Xiongba very quickly; while the two of them, Feng and Yun, were still struggling and lingering on the third form, he had already practiced to the fourth.

This day, the Four Little Strongmen, who were practicing in their respective territories, had their progress interrupted by people sent by Wen Chouchou; Wen Chouchou sent word for them to go to the Back Mountain, as the Gang Leader had a major matter to arrange.

Hearing that there was a major matter to arrange, the few dared not delay and hurriedly stopped their practice.

By the time the four arrived at the Back Mountain, Xiongba had already been waiting for a long time. Xiongba looked at the Four Little Strongmen who had rushed over and said with a smile:

"Today, as your master, I will issue your first mission. You must complete it; if you cannot complete it, bring your heads to see me."

Hearing this, Duan Fengyun and the others began to mutter in low voices: "What kind of mission is this, so terrifying."

Xiongba did not say much more; he clapped his hands, and a group of prisoners, all tied up, were brought up.

Xiongba said to the Four Little Strongmen: "These people are all those who do not submit to my Tianxia Hui. Today, your mission is to kill them. Those who cannot bring themselves to do it are not worthy of being my, Xiongba's, disciples, and I, Xiongba, will personally clean up the sect."

After speaking, Xiongba turned to the group of prisoners and said: "I will also give you a chance. If you can kill these disciples of mine, I will let you leave."

The prisoners heard this and replied viciously: "Xiongba, do whatever you want to us. Don't use your lackeys to insult us; aren't you afraid we will finish off this bunch of wet-behind-the-ears brats?"

Xiongba did not pay them any mind; he looked toward the Four Little Strongmen and ordered people to untie the prisoners' shackles and divide them into four groups.

His purpose this time was twofold: first, to let the Four Little Strongmen have a real battle to assess their training and let them experience the cruelty of the Jianghu; second, it was also an assessment—if there were any cowardly or incompetent people among the four, he would also clean up the sect accordingly.

The Four Little Strongmen dared not delay; after the four determined their respective areas, they each engaged their own opponents.

Although Qin Shuang, Nie Feng, and Bu Jingyun were young, their fathers were all people of the Jianghu, and they had received a Jianghu education since childhood.

At first, the three of them were also hesitant in their strikes; clearly able to defeat the enemy in one move, they showed mercy everywhere.

But as the fighting escalated, the militant factors in the blood of these Jianghu youths were also ignited.

The Tianshuang Fist, Cloud-Piercing Palm, and Wind God Leg—the three ultimates—each reaped the lives of the prisoners. Xiongba was very satisfied after seeing this, and immediately turned his gaze to the area where Duan Fengyun was.

Duan Fengyun was not like Nie Feng and the others; deep down, he had accepted socialist teachings and was a civilized modern person, not a Jianghu child who lived by the blade.

Although he used the Cloud-Piercing Palm and Wind God Leg to the fullest, he held back everywhere; the prisoners were only knocked down in waves, but there was no effect of harming the enemy.

Displeasure appeared in Xiongba's eyes; although Duan Fengyun practiced hard on weekdays, if he was hesitant toward enemies, he would never be able to accomplish great things.

Duan Fengyun caught a glimpse of Xiongba's gaze and knew that if he did not kill these people today, the one to die would certainly be himself. Finally, he unleashed his killing move, and in the blink of an eye, all the prisoners fell to the ground.

Xiongba clapped his hands in satisfaction and left.

Only then did the Four Little Strongmen notice the severed limbs and broken arms beside them, and they all began to retch; the feeling of killing for the first time was just this disgusting.

Thus, the Four Little Strongmen of Tianxia Hui completed the first trial of their lives, and the four great killing weapons of Tianxia Hui began the first forging of their lives.

Time passed like a white horse galloping past a crevice; in the blink of an eye, ten years had passed.

The Four Little Strongmen were now all people who had made a name for themselves in the Jianghu.

Xiongba looked at the four disciples before him with satisfaction: Qin Shuang was loyal and profound, Nie Feng was carefree and dashing, Bu Jingyun was cold as ice, and Duan Fengyun was wise and brave.

Over the past ten years, the four had been like four sharp blades, constantly expanding the territory of Tianxia Hui; the current Tianxia Hui could be called the number one sect in the martial arts world, where one call brought a hundred responses.

The four's efforts over the past ten years were worthy of his expectations, and Xiongba decided to promote the four and officially let them begin to take over the management affairs of Tianxia Hui.

To avoid giving people grounds for criticism, Xiongba still followed what was told in the original story, ordering Wen Chouchou to inform the members of the sect that a Hall Master selection assembly would be held to compete with martial arts—open, fair, and just.

But in this life, without the interference of Duan Lang, the Four Little Strongmen defeated their respective opponents without any suspense.

Xiongba looked at the four happily and then said domineeringly: "My four great disciples are all dragons among men. Today I announce Qin Shuang as the Tianwen Hall Master, Nie Feng as the Shenfeng Hall Master, Bu Jingyun as the Feiyun Hall Master, and Duan Fengyun as the Tianwen Hall Master. Personnel of each hall must obey orders and be dispatched by the four great Hall Masters."

The Four Little Strongmen and the others knelt down one after another, shouting: "The Gang Leader is wise, his literary and martial virtues are great, lasting for thousands of generations, unifying the Jianghu."

After Xiongba left amidst the shouting of the crowd, everyone congratulated the Four Little Strongmen one after another, and the Four Little Strongmen replied to them one by one.

But the hearts of the four were no longer here; the eldest brother, Qin Shuang, had already arranged it with the three, saying that after the selection assembly was over, they would call Kong Ci, and the five of them would go to Tianshuang Hall for a bonfire party together.

Inside Tianshuang Hall, there was laughter and joy; even Bu Jingyun, who was usually cold as ice, showed a long-lost smile.

As Duan Fengyun, who possessed the soul of a trendsetter from the 21st century, he was naturally the number one person to set the mood.

The four lifted Kong Ci up, singing and dancing by the bonfire; for Jianghu children like them who lived by the blade, these were rare, carefree days.

Seeing that it was getting late, Kong Ci left, and the remaining Four Little Strongmen finally let go completely.

Nie Feng and Qin Shuang holding wine jars, Duan Fengyun dancing, Bu Jingyun singing—the four had not lived so freely for a long time.

The next morning, Kong Ci got up early to make a hangover meal for the Four Little Strongmen; she knew the four must have been very drunk last night.

When she walked into Tianshuang Hall, she realized that reality was crazier than she had imagined.

The four sleeping in each other's arms—if it weren't for the fact that there were no homosexuals in this world, Kong Ci would have suspected what had happened among the four after she left.

The floor was full of broken wine jars and food, but seeing the smiles on the faces of the four, Kong Ci could not bear to disturb them.

Seeing this, Kong Ci had no choice but to leave and wait for the four to wake up before making them a hangover meal.

When the Four Little Strongmen woke up, the sun was already high; looking at each other's postures, the four couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Duan Fengyun and the other two looked at the mess beside them and said: "Thank you for your hard work, Senior Brother."

The three disappeared in an instant, leaving Qin Shuang there rolling his eyes alone.

I don't know how much longer such happy days for the four can last.

The four, who had returned to their respective territories, had just washed off the smell of alcohol when a servant came to report that Xiongba wanted them to go to the Huiting immediately.

The few people who arrived at the Huiting discovered that besides Xiongba and Wen Chouchou, there were three others present.

Seeing the four Xiaoqiang arrive, Xiongba said to the leader among the three: "City Lord Dugu, these are my four disciples. I wonder if you have any pointers for them?"

Upon hearing this, the four Xiaoqiang instantly knew the man's identity; in this world, besides Dugu Yifang of Wushuang City, who else could be called City Lord Dugu by their master?

Dugu Yifang looked at the arriving four Xiaoqiang and said: "Gang Leader Xiongba truly has a discerning eye for talent; these four disciples are indeed dragons among men."

Qin Shuang cupped his fist and modestly replied: "City Lord Dugu, you flatter us."

Xiongba smiled and said: "I wonder, after visiting my Under Heaven Society, would you be willing to join my Under Heaven Society, City Lord Dugu?"

Dugu Yifang replied: "Gang Leader Xiongba, Wushuang City has always refrained from participating in the disputes of the Jianghu; I must decline your request. Wushuang City will not join any faction. I hope you understand, Gang Leader Xiongba. If there is nothing else, we shall take our leave."

Xiongba remained silent upon hearing this, and seeing this, Dugu Yifang led his subordinates away.

After the three had left, Wen Chouchou muttered: "Refusing a toast only to be forced to drink a forfeit; why doesn't the Gang Leader just wipe out his Wushuang City?"

Xiongba thought for a moment and said to the four Xiaoqiang: "Which of you is willing to go to Wushuang City and take the head of Dugu Yifang for your master?"

Among the four Xiaoqiang, Qin Shuang had the most matters to attend to and could not get away for the time being; Duan Fengyun had long since informed Xiongba that he was going to Lingyun Cave to pay respects to his father; and Bu Jingyun had to hunt down two traitors from Feiyun Hall.

Seeing that the other three did not respond, Nie Feng did not offer further modesty and replied directly: "Why not let this disciple go."

Xiongba said: "Good. Feng, you shall campaign against Wushuang City on my behalf and take the head of that old thief Dugu. I have heard that Wushuang City possesses a peerless divine weapon called the Wushuang Sword; you shall retrieve that for me as well."

"This disciple will strictly obey the master's orders," Nie Feng said, bowing in agreement.

Nie Feng returned to his quarters, packed his luggage, and prepared to set off.

At this moment, Duan Fengyun appeared before Nie Feng. "Junior Brother Duan, why have you come?" Nie Feng was quite puzzled by Duan Fengyun's arrival.

Duan Fengyun knew full well what would happen on this trip for Nie Feng, but this was a tribulation Nie Feng had to experience, and he found it difficult to interfere too much.

He said to Nie Feng: "Brother Feng, you are going on this journey alone. I will leave you with one piece of advice: what is destined to be yours will come in time; what is not destined to be yours, do not force it. I hope you keep this in mind, Brother."

Nie Feng looked at the mysterious-acting Duan Fengyun and laughed heartily: "Rest assured, Junior Brother, this is not my first time traveling."

Seeing this, Duan Fengyun said no more and watched as Nie Feng departed.