Chapter 218: The Dragon King's Brutality! Borrowing the Tiger's Skin!
[Location: Jinling City - Black Tiger Gang Headquarters]
Jiangnan. Jinling. The heart of the ancient Southern Capital.
Tonight, the moon was hidden behind thick clouds, and the air was heavy with the metallic tang of blood.
The Black Tiger Gang was a dominant force in the Dark World of Jiangnan, a behemoth that had stood for decades. Boasting numerous strong fighters and controlling half the illicit trade in the province, they were the undisputed kings of the underground. With more than one Martial Arts Grandmaster among their ranks, they were a force that even the official authorities treated with caution.
Of course, the most crucial reason for the Black Tiger Gang's current standing was that its leader, Qian Tianhu, known respectfully as "Master Hu," had reached the Grandmaster (Peak) level. He possessed formidable strength, turning his hands into weapons of mass destruction, and wielded influence that spanned both the legal and illegal realms.
But at this very moment, the impregnable fortress of the Black Tiger Gang was in turmoil, engulfed in a storm of blood and fire.
Crash! Bang!
Furniture was smashed to splinters. Expensive vases were reduced to dust.
One after another, the Black Tiger Gang's elite fighters—men who usually terrorized the streets—lay on the ground like broken dolls. They were bruised, battered, and covered in blood, their groans forming a chorus of despair.
The leader of the Black Tiger Gang, Qian Tianhu, no longer had his past arrogance and dominance.
He knelt on one knee, clutching his chest, coughing up dark blood. His face was grim, sweat mixing with the grime on his forehead, as he looked up at the man standing before him.
A young man wearing a Bronze Dragon King mask.
He stood with his hands behind his back, his posture as steady as a mountain, his aura as cold as the abyss. His suit was pristine, not a single drop of blood staining the fabric, despite the carnage around him.
With just one move—a single, casual strike—he had defeated Qian Tianhu's right-hand man, the Black Tiger Gang's second strongest fighter, a powerful Martial Arts Grandmaster in his own right.
Qian Tianhu's pupils trembled. He knew this man.
His name echoed like thunder in the underground world recently!
The Underground Emperor who dominated the Dark World of Magic City (Modu), Dragon King Mr. Han!
In recent days, this "Dragon King" had descended upon Jiangnan like a plague. He swept through the region with terrifying efficiency, integrating the fragmented underground forces of Jiangnan's Dark World and unleashing a bloody storm that made veterans shudder.
One by one, the former underground bosses faced a simple choice: prostrate themselves at the feet of Dragon King Mr. Han and become his dogs, or be decapitated on the spot.
Those who submit prosper; those who resist perish! It was a tyranny of absolute power.
His purpose in coming to the Black Tiger Gang tonight was self-evident: he wanted to subdue the strongest gang in Jinling to complete his conquest.
Qian Tianhu, the leader of the Black Tiger Gang, wiped the blood from his mouth. His expression was extremely grim and sullen, like a trapped beast.
"A mighty dragon cannot suppress a local snake... Dragon King Mr. Han, you dominate in your Modu, yet you come to my Jinling to wreak havoc. Do you really think I, Qian Tianhu, am easy to bully? Do you think the Jinling underworld is made of paper?"
The young man wearing the Bronze Dragon King mask looked down at Qian Tianhu with cold, indifferent eyes. He completely ignored Qian Tianhu's grim expression and the angry flames burning in his gaze.
"Qian Tianhu," Han Qi's voice was distorted by the mask, sounding metallic and ruthless. "I'll give you ten seconds to kneel and surrender. Pledge your loyalty to the Dragon King Hall. Otherwise... death!"
Han Qi was determined to succeed tonight. He had no patience for negotiations.
As long as he subdued the Black Tiger Gang, then most of the Jiangnan Dark World would fall into his hands like ripe fruit. He would have an army. He would have resources.
Controlling such strength, he would not fear the Emperor Capital Han Family—the family that abandoned him—at all. He could finally execute his grand plan: march north, destroy his elder brother Han Xiu, reclaim the Han family head's position, and make those who looked down on him regret being born.
Furthermore...
A flicker of softness passed through Han Qi's ruthless eyes.
Once his wings were fully grown, once he had his own empire, he could establish his own independent faction. He could break free from Shen Anyu's control. He wouldn't need to be Shen Anyu's dog anymore.
He could bring back Situ Yueying. He could save her from Shen Anyu's clutches, hold a grand wedding for her (as a concubine, of course), and reward her for her "sacrifice."
He could finally tell his legal wife, Liu Qingyue, his true identity. He imagined the scene: ripping off his disguise, revealing himself as the Dragon King, and watching her jaw drop in awe. He would slap the faces of his snobbish in-laws, Liu Xingsheng and He Xuemei, making them kneel and beg for forgiveness for three years of humiliation.
'Just wait... wait for me. I will be the King of the World!'
As he thought of these things, a look of intoxication flashed in Han Qi's eyes behind the Bronze Dragon King mask. These were his biggest dreams, the fuel that kept him going through every humiliation.
But in the chaotic battlefield, distraction was fatal.
"Opportunity!"
Perceiving that Dragon King Mr. Han was momentarily distracted by his delusions of grandeur, a ruthless glint flashed in Qian Tianhu's eyes.
He didn't become a boss by being honorable.
ROAR!
With a roar that shook the windows, Qian Tianhu lunged at Han Qi with lightning speed.
Like a fierce tiger descending from the mountain to hunt, he stirred up gusts of Fishy Wind—a sign of potent toxicity. His iron palms turned a deep, glistening black, pulsating with lethal energy.
[Black Tiger Heart-Shattering Palm]!
The nearby Dragon King Society soldiers who were too close immediately covered their mouths and noses, coughing violently as they fell to the ground, their faces turning pale from the toxic aura.
The Black Tiger Palm he cultivated was a sinister art. It not only possessed powerful, bone-crushing force but also carried a potent neurotoxin. A single scratch could kill an elephant. This made him a formidable opponent among Martial Arts Grandmasters.
However, Han Qi merely snorted coldly.
"Insignificant trick."
His body didn't retreat. instead, it swayed gently, like a willow catkin dancing in a storm. The terrifying palm strike passed right through his afterimage.
Like a ghost, he surprisingly moved faster than the eye could follow, appearing instantly behind Qian Tianhu.
His hand moved to his waist.
Shing!
He drew his blade and slashed!
Tear!
The [Heavenly Wind Draw (Tianfeng Iai)], a supreme technique taught to him by his adoptive father, the sword saint Tianfeng Ichiro, unleashed a dazzling arc of white light in the deep night. It was faster than sound, sharper than a laser.
The next instant, blood splattered like rain, accompanied by a sharp, miserable scream.
"Ahhhh!"
Qian Tianhu fell to the ground face first. A chilling, bloody gash appeared on his back, stretching from his left waist to his right shoulder. It was deep, exposing the white of his spine, almost slicing him in half. His clothes were instantly stained red.
Thud!
Han Qi stepped forward and stomped his leather shoe onto Qian Tianhu's head, pressing his face into the blood-soaked carpet.
"Surrender... or die!"
Qian Tianhu's head was pinned in the dirt. He was enraged to the extreme, humiliated beyond belief. He struggled desperately, his hands clawing at the floor, but Han Qi's foot was as heavy as Mount Tai. He couldn't break free.
Angry roars and howls, like a dying tiger's lament, shook the night!
"Surname Han! I, Qian Tianhu, have dominated for decades! I fought my way up from a street rat to the King of Jinling! Surrender to a mere boy like you? How is that possible?"
"Do you even deserve it?!"
"Kill me then! Come on! Cut my head off!"
Qian Tianhu spat blood onto Han Qi's shoe, his eyes burning with madness.
"I want to see if you can cover up such a major event as wiping out the Black Tiger Gang! This isn't just a gang fight; it's a massacre!"
"I don't lack connections in the legal world either! The police, the courts, the city council... I have fed them for years!"
"They might not want to use their legal connections to help me while I'm alive... but dealing with a madman like you who stirs up bloody storms? That's no problem! They will hunt you down like a rabid dog!"
"Surname Han, if you dare to kill me, you'll be in big trouble! The state machine will crush you!"
"Hahaha! Do you dare to kill me? Do you?!"
By the end, Qian Tianhu's angry roars turned into sneers. He stopped struggling, lying there panting, his bloodshot eyes mocking Han Qi with contempt.
He was gambling.
Times had changed now. The era of reckless slaughter was over.
The reason the Dark World was the "Dark World" wasn't because it was powerful, but because it was suppressed by the legal world, forced to hide in the shadows.
As the local boss of Jinling, Qian Tianhu knew the red lines.
He had heard about the recent incident.
Yan Lingxiao, the Leader of the War God Alliance, a monstrous Martial Dao Grandmaster who had rampaged across overseas battlefields, was directly decapitated by the state for annihilating the entire Jin family. The War God Alliance's eight Grandmasters, hundreds of Xiantian experts, and tens of thousands of elites were routed by the military overnight.
That was the lesson. Don't cross the line.
Compared to a behemoth like the War God Alliance, neither the Black Tiger Gang nor Dragon King Mr. Han was anywhere near as powerful. They were ants compared to the state.
Qian Tianhu simply didn't believe that Dragon King Mr. Han would dare to slaughter the entire Black Tiger Gang and create such a monstrous bloodbath. It would be suicide.
Han Qi's eyes behind the Bronze Dragon King mask narrowed. A dangerous glint of anger flashed within them.
He hated being threatened. He hated being looked down upon.
'This old dog... he thinks I don't dare?'
This hesitation, in Qian Tianhu's eyes, was a sign of weakness. Qian Tianhu laughed even louder, a boisterous, bloody laugh that mocked Han Qi's impotence.
"Hmph!"
Han Qi stomped heavily again, grinding Qian Tianhu's face into the floor until the nose cartilage crunched.
"But I can still cut off your hands and feet, leaving you a human stick. A living cripple."
Qian Tianhu spat out a broken tooth and laughed loudly.
"Am I afraid? It's just death! What haven't I enjoyed in this life? Money, women, power... I've had it all!"
"But if you want to subdue the Black Tiger Gang... I'm telling you, it's impossible! My brothers are loyal to me, not some masked freak!"
Han Qi fell silent. The threat was real.
Qian Tianhu was a charismatic leader. He was loyal, spent money lavishly, and treated his subordinates extremely well. The Black Tiger Gang's cohesion was incredibly strong. If he killed Qian Tianhu, the gang would fragment into chaos, seeking revenge. He would inherit a mess, not an army.
As for integrating the Jiangnan Dark World little by little? He didn't have that much time to waste.
The thought of Situ Yueying enduring "humiliation" and making sacrifices under Shen Anyu—forcing a smile while being "exploited" by the villain—made Han Qi's heart anxious and angry.
He felt like he was wearing a green hat, even though he was the one who put it on.
He didn't want to wait a single second longer. He needed power now.
Although his beloved was undoubtedly his wife Liu Qingyue, how could he not be moved by a captivating beauty like Situ Yueying, who was so deeply devoted to his cause?
'I must save her. I must succeed tonight.'
Han Qi took a deep breath. He realized that brute force wasn't enough. He needed a bigger stick. He needed to borrow a tiger's skin to scare the wolf.
Suddenly, Han Qi crouched down. He leaned close to Qian Tianhu's ear and whispered coldly, his voice dripping with borrowed arrogance.
"Qian Tianhu... do you know who is behind me? Do you know who I am working for?"
Qian Tianhu was startled. He sneered, "Surname Han, are you trying to use your backer to intimidate me? I'm telling you, even if you have the Emperor of Heaven himself behind you, I won't surrender! I only bow to true strength!"
Han Qi smirked behind his mask.
"What about... the Yanxia Shen Family?"
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