Within minutes of leaving his apartment, Leo's phone lit up with a call from his landlady. He knew what she wanted, so he ignored it. The phone buzzed repeatedly until a message appeared.
'I know that you want to leave without a farewell. Please take care of yourself, and try to visit Auntie whenever you get time. Eat your meals properly, follow the laws, and don't engage in any fights.'
Leo's chest tightened as he read the message. His eyes burned as the word 'Auntie' glowed on the screen.
Memories surged against his will.
He saw the face of his real aunt, her warm smile fading into a lifeless stare. Her body had been severed in half, her eyes were blank, and her blood was soaking the ground. Then came another voice.
"Leo… I'm sor… sorry. Mom can't protect you anymore. Run away as far as you can. You have to stay alive!"
His mother's sobs broke through his skull like a hammer. He saw the blade cut through her body, saw her crumple to the dirt, and the scream tore from his throat before he could stop it.
"No!"
A few passersby glanced at him as if he were a lunatic. Leo clenched his fists, sighing. 'That's why I hate bonding with people. Now I'll have to suppress these memories again.'
With tears in his eyes, he stood at the footpath gazing towards the night sky. He dragged in a shaky breath and unlocked his phone, desperately seeking a distraction. There was only one person he could call without any filter.
Su Hao.
This name pulled another memory.
Su Hao, young master of the Su family in Jinling, was not someone most people could call a friend. On the surface, he was just another arrogant heir of a powerful clan. A year and a half ago, Leo had found Su Hao bleeding in an alley, cornered by the gangsters because he was determined to take revenge for the killing of his servant. Outnumbered and half-dead, Su Hao had still cursed his attackers with pride. That stubborn loyalty had struck Leo deeply, and he stepped in. Since then, the two had been bound together.
He dialed the number. The line rang twice before a cheerful voice burst through.
"Leo! You finally called me on your own, huh? What's the occasion?"
"Nothing much," Leo said casually. "Thought I'd check in."
"Check in? That doesn't sound like you." Su Hao chuckled. "How's your little college life going? Got yourself a girlfriend yet?
Leo smiled faintly at the familiar teasing. He shook his head, though the other couldn't see it. "My class was filled with women; where would I find a girl?"
"What's the problem with aunties?" Hao said in an exaggeratedly serious voice.
"Bastard! Stop faking this seriousness. Try to fool the one who doesn't know about you," Leo chuckled. "My course is completed, so I'll be leaving the town tonight." He continued.
"Already? Tsk, you're making the rest of us look lazy. I bet you topped the class, didn't you?"
"I'm not going to sit for the exam," Leo said quietly.
There was silence on the other end for a moment, then a burst of laughter. "Only you could spend months studying just to skip the exam. What's going on in that head of yours?"
Leo didn't answer immediately. Instead, he said, "Hao, thank you. The documents you arranged for me… they helped more than I can say. Without them, I couldn't have lived quietly here."
"Pfft, don't get all formal on me," Hao replied.
Leo's tone grew firm. "I need another favor."
"Oh?" Hao's curiosity sharpened. "Go on."
"I want information on the city with the highest crime rate and the strongest underworld presence."
There was a pause, then Hao spoke slowly. "Underworld? Why do you want to dip your feet in that cesspool? Don't tell me…"
"Yes," Leo interrupted calmly.
Hao let out a long whistle. "Heavens above, our little Leo is ready to spread his wings." His voice carried a mix of admiration and worry. "You know, most people your age would be chasing degrees, girls, or games. But you… You're looking for wolves."
"That's where the real lessons will be," Leo said simply.
Hao's tone grew serious. "Alright. There is a city that matches your request. Wujiang. It's big and filled with gangs."
Leo's eyes narrowed slightly. "Send me the details of the big gangs."
"Consider it done. I'll forward the details within an hour. But Leo," Hao's voice dropped. "Don't be reckless. I don't know what your intentions are, and you probably won't tell me. Do whatever you have to, just don't die."
Leo's lips curved faintly. "I can't die even if I want to."
Before Su Hao could call him a narcissist, Leo disconnected the call.
The conversation had done its job. He could finally push aside the painful part and focus on the road ahead.
He hailed a cab to the train station and leaned back against the seat, his eyes half-closed as the buildings rolled outside the window. From his bag, he pulled out a pair of sleek white AirPods. Whenever he used AirPods, he always praised the bright mind who invented them. This was his favorite gadget on Earth.
To walk with music flowing straight into his ears, privately, with every beat crisp and deep, felt nothing short of magical. His dimension had music too, but it was always live, performed in courts or arenas. The concept of carrying songs in your pocket had never existed there.
He slid them in and let the rhythm wash over him. For a few moments, the cab, the city, and even the uncertainty of tomorrow faded into the background. After jamming on a few songs, he felt the vibration of his phone. A WeChat notification flashed across the screen.
Leo's lips curled faintly. 'Little Hao is very efficient. It's been only twenty minutes, and he has already gathered the details.'
Leo purchased his ticket to Wujiang and arrived at the platform bustling with late night travelers. When the train finally slid into the station, he found his seat and leaned back as the engine rumbled to life.
Through the window, the quiet lights flickered past. This little town had been his resting place, a cocoon of peace he never truly belonged to. As the final clusters of houses slipped away into the distance and only the black veil of night stretched ahead, Leo exhaled softly and turned his attention to the real reason for his journey.
Unlocking his phone, he opened the files Su Hao had sent. Page after page revealed the tangled roots of Wujiang's underworld. Dozens of gangs, hundreds of names, affiliations, and betrayals.
But Leo's eyes were drawn to the top three.
Three Knives. Shadow Wu. Ghost Hand.
He almost laughed aloud. For all their power and influence, these self-styled kings of Wujiang were remembered not by their real names but by such ridiculous nicknames.They would be trolled to death if they picked these kinds of names on his planet.
The details provided by Su Hao had impressed him. Not only did he map their territories, but he also included a major conflict that had erupted only a few hours ago. Shadow Wu and Ghost Hand had formed an alliance to crush the Three Knives gangs once and for all.
Leo's eyes narrowed, and a spark flickered within. Now he had two potential gangs to choose between.
Yet, as he skimmed deeper, something else caught his attention. The names under the Three Knives' gang were short and simple. The gang leader's name was Zhang. And Cheng and Fang were the names of his two commanders.
A faint smile tugged at Leo's lips. He was bad at remembering names… But the names of these goons were pleasing to the eyes."
Leo closed the files and leaned back, letting the rhythm of the train soothe him.
"Alright, Three Knives," he murmured under his breath. "I choose you."
Far away in Wujiang, Zhang, known as Three Knives, would never have imagined that the fate of his gang would shift, not because of strategy, strength, or schemes, but because of a name he had chosen casually years ago.