At this moment, Jia Tianlong, the "Golden Wolf," stood full of self-confidence, his usually pale face flushed with excitement. His smug expression was understandable; after all, he was about to witness the fall of his sworn enemy, the Seven Celestial Sect, all thanks to his meticulous plotting. As the leader of the Wild Wolf Gang, how could he not feel triumphant?
Standing on the mountainside of Sunset Peak, Jia Tianlong looked over the scene with satisfaction. A large number of his Red-Clad Iron Guards surrounded him, their loyal eyes fixed on the unfolding attack. These 50 to 60 Iron Guards were carefully trained by him over many years, each one an expert in martial arts and utterly devoted to him. He cherished them deeply, usually reserving them for the most important missions.
But today, all of them were by his side, their presence meant to intimidate the smaller gangs and prevent any rebellion. The Iron Spear Society, Broken Water Sect, and other factions had their eyes on the Wild Wolf Gang's dominance and hoped to maintain a balance of power to secure their own positions. Without Jia Tianlong's intervention, which involved kidnapping their families and promising them great rewards, these smaller factions might have turned against him long ago.
As Jia Tianlong glanced at the heads of these smaller factions, standing dejectedly behind him, he couldn't help but sneer. Some glared back at him with hatred, while others avoided his gaze entirely. His lips curled into a cold smile as he began thinking about how he would consolidate his power once the Seven Celestial Sect fell, and how he would eventually swallow up these smaller gangs.
Ahead of him, nearly a thousand people from various smaller factions—dressed in all colors and wielding various weapons—rushed to attack one of Seven Celestial Sect's watchposts. Their movements were chaotic, with no coordination or strategic planning. Casualties were mounting rapidly, but Jia Tianlong didn't care. These weren't his men, but forces from the Iron Spear Society and Broken Water Sect, whom he had tricked into doing the dirty work. He had no intention of having them capture Sunset Peak. Instead, his plan was to exhaust the defenders and let his elite troops finish the job with a well-aimed volley of crossbow bolts.
Thinking of those powerful military crossbows, Jia Tianlong's face lit up with joy. These crossbows were the key to his success. Without them, not only would he have been unable to wipe out the Seven Celestial Sect's negotiation team, but he would have suffered considerable losses in taking down the many watchposts leading up to Sunset Peak. He owed this success entirely to those military-grade crossbows.
The crossbows hadn't been acquired through his own effort, either—they had simply "fallen from the sky." Three months ago, while he was planning the operation, a military officer claiming to be his relative had come to visit. Jia Tianlong was initially surprised, but after meeting him, he realized it was his cousin. This cousin had been part of the government forces when the Wild Wolf Gang's predecessor, a band of marauding horse thieves, had been incorporated into the military. Over the years, this cousin had risen to the position of deputy commander. Coincidentally, he was overseeing a convoy of military supplies, and while passing by, he had heard of Jia Tianlong's rise to power and came to pay a visit.
After catching up and discussing the conflict with the Seven Celestial Sect, Jia Tianlong's cousin had boasted that with just a hundred crossbows, he could wipe out the entire Seven Celestial Sect. This casual remark sparked an idea in Jia Tianlong's mind. He asked his cousin if he could provide some of those crossbows, and to his delight, his cousin agreed—after receiving a bribe of 20,000 silver taels. For that sum, Jia Tianlong received over 300 crossbows, which were then carefully deployed by his trusted subordinates, leading to a series of victories in the ongoing siege.
"Breached! We've breached it!"
The roar of the battle rang out, dragging Jia Tianlong from his thoughts. He looked up, surprised to see that the watchpost previously held by the Seven Celestial Sect had now been completely overwhelmed. A mixture of smaller faction forces had taken it.
Jia Tianlong furrowed his brow, puzzled by the rapid success. Given the strength of the earlier defenses, this final watchpost should have been harder to breach. How had it fallen so quickly? Could there be a trap lying in wait?
His expression darkened. Anyone familiar with Jia Tianlong knew that this was a sign of his displeasure. At this moment, anyone who dared to provoke him would find themselves in grave danger.
"Hey, since you've broken through, why aren't you advancing?" A hoarse voice rang out from behind, lacking the slightest respect for Jia Tianlong.
Normally, Jia Tianlong would have exploded in anger, but this time, he simply turned to face the speaker and replied respectfully, "Master Zhang, I feel that this breach is suspicious. There might be a trap waiting for us. We should proceed with caution."
"Trap? What's there to be afraid of? With me here, these mere mortals can't hurt you. Come on, let's go. I've been waiting for nearly an entire night, I'm about to fall asleep. Let's finish off the Seven Celestial Sect's rabble and get it over with, so I can rest." The voice, though not old, was full of an exaggerated, almost childish bravado, which grated on Jia Tianlong's nerves.
But despite the irritation, Jia Tianlong could only smile wryly. This was Master Zhang, a self-proclaimed expert with dubious abilities, but for some reason, Jia Tianlong couldn't bring himself to dismiss him. Perhaps it was the man's supposed connections and influence, or maybe Jia Tianlong simply hadn't found a way to part with him yet.
Though he didn't show it, Jia Tianlong was growing more and more uneasy as the forces of the Seven Celestial Sect seemed to be either withdrawing or regrouping. Something was amiss.