Dusk bled across the sky, painting the Cangwu Pavilion in shades of orange and purple. Inside, Jiang Dao's eyes snapped open. His massive frame gave a slight shudder, and a sound like a thousand knuckles cracking in unison echoed in the stone chamber.
Two days. That's all it had taken to forge seven more brutal martial arts disciplines into his very being. His [Vajra Devil Body] was no more; it had been reforged into something new, something terrifying: the [Extreme Path Vajra Body].
There was no question—his physical form had become something monstrous. His blood and life force, his qi, swirled within him with the density of a raging river. When he closed his eyes, he could see his own insides, every vein and organ humming with a ferocious vitality, as if he were incubating a caged dragon.
But it wasn't all good. A dangerous side effect was brewing. The raw Yang energy thrumming through him was off the charts. His blood felt like lava, and his temper was a short, explosive fuse. He was a walking powder keg, ready to blow at the slightest provocation. It had gotten so intense that the energy had condensed into three drops of what he could only call [Extreme Yang Liquid]—three little suns of pure, volatile power simmering within him. If they were ever to ignite, the resulting explosion would be unimaginable.
"Gang Leader…" A nervous voice cut through the silence from outside. It was Xiang An.
Jiang Dao fought back a wave of irrational fury, his voice a low growl. "What is it?"
"We have news from Sifang City," Xiang An said, his voice trembling slightly.
A predatory red glint flared in Jiang Dao's eyes. His killing intent flooded the room.
BOOM!
With a casual backhand, he obliterated the wall next to him, stepping out of the ruined pavilion like a walking volcano. The sheer heat rolling off his body was suffocating.
"Talk," he growled, the single word a command backed by volcanic force.
Xiang An swallowed hard, his mouth suddenly desert-dry. "Our scouts have confirmed it. Sifang City is the Black Tiger Gang's main headquarters. All their top fighters are holed up there." He couldn't help but stare. The man in front of him felt… different. Stronger. More terrifying than just a few days ago. What kind of freak of nature is he? Xiang An thought, bewildered. Every time he secludes himself, he emerges as a completely different person. Not even the most heinous monster evolves this fast.
A cruel grin stretched across Jiang Dao's face. "The Black Tiger Gang wanted to start a war. They can't blame me for finishing it."
"Leader, there's… one more thing," Xiang An stammered, forcing himself to continue. "The smaller gangs in the city have been getting bold. They've been working with the local officials, carving up our businesses while our backs were turned. We've already lost sixteen gambling dens, eighteen brothels, and they even hit one of our banks."
"Is that so?" Jiang Dao's gaze turned to ice, seeming to bore straight into Xiang An's soul. "And why am I only hearing about this now? Name them."
"I… I was afraid of disturbing your training, Leader," Xiang An confessed, his head bowed. "It's the Golden Blade Sect leading the charge. They've bought off the city magistrate's office—the yamen. Most of our businesses were officially seized by them. I figure the magistrate saw we were weakened and decided to back a new horse."
"The yamen…" Jiang Dao's rage simmered just beneath the surface, a beast straining at its leash. "Find the Golden Blade Sect's headquarters. Now."
"They're in the West District, Leader. They've always been a second-rate outfit, living off our scraps…"
"Pathetic," Jiang Dao's voice was laced with frost. "They're a minor league gang, and you couldn't handle them without me? Xiang An, you're a bigger disappointment than I thought."
Terrified, Xiang An dropped to his knees. "It's not my fault, Leader, I swear! I'm just a blood-boiling scrub. You killed all our Divine Power masters! Well… all but one. The Deputy Gang Leader. But he's playing the fool, refusing to lift a finger to help!"
Jiang Dao's brow furrowed. "Why won't he fight? Come to think of it, he never came to pay his respects when I took over, did he?"
"No, Leader. He's been playing the harmless eccentric for years. He stays neutral, offends no one, and just looks out for himself."
Jiang Dao's eyes were chips of ice. "The Flaming Sun Gang feeds him, shelters him, and this is how he repays us? Fine. Send the order: as of tomorrow, cut off his funding. Seize every coin he's ever taken from this gang. If he so much as complains, come and tell me."
"Yes, Leader!" Xiang An said, a wave of relief and vicious satisfaction washing over him.
Without another word, Jiang Dao was gone.
Night fell, but Qianyuan City was alive with light and sound. The laughter of women spilled from ornate brothels, a siren's call in the bustling streets.
Inside a grand private tower, the air was thick with conspiracy and cheap wine. Dozens of men, a who's who of the city's criminal underworld, were gathered. At the head of the room sat two figures: Li Hengjiang, the master of the Golden Blade Sect, and Mu Tianlan, a decorated Gold Seal Constable from the yamen.
Li Hengjiang was a mountain of a man in his forties, his imposing frame draped in yellow robes. He exuded an air of authority, slowly rolling two solid iron balls in his palm. Beside him, Mu Tianlan, a powerful martial artist in his own right, sat with the quiet confidence of a man whose authority was absolute. The golden seal at his waist was a symbol of power recognized—and feared—by all. In the entire empire, there were only five men who held such a rank.
"Gentlemen," Li Hengjiang's voice boomed. "With Constable Mu on our side, there's nothing to fear. The Flaming Sun Gang has bled us dry for years. Now, fate has struck them down. Their best men are dead, taken by some demonic plague. If we strike together, we can wipe them off the map in a single night."
A murmur of agreement rippled through the room. This was the moment they had been waiting for.
"Count me in!"
"I'm with you, Sect Master Li!"
Then, a voice of caution spoke up. "Master Li, what about their Deputy Gang Leader? I hear he's their third strongest, a real monster in a fight."
Before Li could answer, Constable Mu spoke, his voice calm and flat. "I'll handle the Deputy."
A wave of relief washed over the room. If a Gold Seal Constable was making that promise, it was as good as done.
"They're finished," one of the minor bosses chuckled. "They put some nameless kid in charge. Even if he's a once-in-a-generation genius, what's he going to do now?"
"Is that what you think?"
A voice rumbled through the room, low and heavy, like grinding stone. It seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once.
The conspirators shot to their feet, eyes darting wildly. "Who's there?"
The voice had been clear as day, yet no one had seen or heard anyone approach. Mu Tianlan and Li Hengjiang's faces hardened.
"Check outside," Mu Tianlan ordered in a low tone.
Two of their men rushed to the door and threw it open. They were met by two massive, claw-like hands that clamped down on their heads. There were two sickening crunches, and their bodies slumped to the ground, headless.
Then, a wave of palpable, suffocating heat rolled into the room, followed by a presence that felt ancient and utterly malevolent.
Everyone stared in pure, unadulterated horror.
Framed in the shattered doorway was a living nightmare. Standing nearly ten feet tall, it was a creature of bulging muscle and pulsing, purplish-black veins. Its skin was the color of dried blood, and its eyes glowed with a terrifying crimson light. One of its hands, bigger than a man's head, casually swatted the rest of the doorframe away, turning it into splinters.
An invisible force slammed down on everyone in the room, heavy and absolute. It was like being pinned to the floor by the weight of a mountain. No one could move. Not a muscle. Not an inch.
Even Mu Tianlan, the mighty Gold Seal Constable, was frozen solid, his face a mask of disbelief as cold sweat drenched his robes. The words escaped his lips in a choked, horrified whisper.
"My god… It's a disaster-class monstrosity."
The thing in the doorway was too massive for a normal entrance. With a guttural roar, it tore the rest of the frame from the wall in a shower of splintered, burning wood. It squeezed its three-meter-tall, muscle-bound frame into the room, its crimson skin and pulsing black veins a grotesque sight under the flickering lamplight. Its burning red eyes scanned the paralyzed men, a predator surveying its trapped prey.
A horrifying grin split its face. "Hehe, good. You're all here," it rumbled, its voice the sound of an avalanche. "Saves me the trouble of hunting you down one by one."
Sheer, soul-crushing terror seized the room.
"Who… who are you?" Li Hengjiang stammered, his bravado vaporized. "We… we have no quarrel with you, mighty one!"
"No quarrel?" the creature chuckled. "You were just talking about me. I'm the new leader of the Flaming Sun Gang. You know, the one you were planning to kill? So, which one of you is the boss of the Golden Blade Sect?"
Their eyes widened. This… this was the new Gang Leader? This wasn't a man. It was a demon.
Instantly, loyalty was shattered.
"It was him! He made us do it! Spare us!"
"Yes, it was his idea! Mercy, Gang Leader!"
"Li Hengjiang forced us! He threatened our families!" the men wailed, a chorus of terror and betrayal as they all pointed at their former leader.
Li Hengjiang trembled violently. "No, it's a misunderstanding, a terrible…"
SPLAT.
Jiang Dao's arm moved in a blur. The sound of the impact was like a thunderclap. Li Hengjiang simply ceased to exist, exploding in a shower of gore and bone fragments that sprayed across the room. All that remained were his two legs, still standing exactly where he had been a second before.
Jiang Dao casually flicked a piece of viscera from his hand. "So weak," he mused with a smile. His burning gaze swept across the remaining men and landed on Mu Tianlan, the constable still frozen in place, his face spattered with Li Hengjiang's remains.
"You're with the yamen," Jiang Dao stated, his voice a low chuckle. "You're the one who seized my property?"
Mu Tianlan was shaking uncontrollably, any semblance of a proud constable gone. A dark stain spread across the front of his robes as his bladder gave way. "Mercy," he whimpered, his voice cracking. "I was just following orders! I'll undo it all! I'll pay you back! A million silver taels! No, three million! Just let me live… please, I'm begging you…"
He couldn't even think about fighting back. Jiang Dao's oppressive aura held them all in an invisible vise. They were nothing but targets in a shooting gallery.
BOOM.
Another casual slap. Mu Tianlan vanished in a red mist.
"You thought you could rob me and just walk away?" Jiang Dao said to the space.
The remaining men were now catatonic with fear, twitching on the floor. A few of them simply died of fright, their hearts giving out. The others lost control of all their bodily functions, and the stench of urine and feces filled the room.
A look of disgust crossed Jiang Dao's face. With a flick of his will, his fiery aura pulsed, and the incontinent men were instantly incinerated, their bodies turning to ash. He had meant to leave a few survivors for questioning, but the thrill of the kill, the sheer release of his pent-up rage, was intoxicating. He was addicted.
To hell with it.
He clenched his fist, and his entire domain of fire and poison collapsed inward.
POP. POP. POP. POP. POP.
One by one, the men in the room burst like blood-filled balloons. In moments, the conspiracy was over. Dozens of the city's most notorious underworld figures were reduced to a bloody slurry on the floor.
The grand tower itself was now an inferno, choked with toxic smoke. Jiang Dao's massive form strode out of the flames and vanished into the night.
Miles away, as he raced through the darkness toward Sifang City, the red haze of his rage finally began to recede. A cold clarity pierced through the fury.
This isn't right, he thought, frowning. My bloodlust… It's getting stronger. This Yang energy is turning me into a monster. If I don't find a way to vent it, I'm going to lose myself completely.
Meanwhile, in the heart of Sifang City, the gentle music of a zither drifted from a stately, red-walled mansion.
Inside, a man with a peculiar half-pale, half-dark face sat silently, sipping tea. He was powerfully built, dressed in a simple red coat, his hair tied back in a long, thin braid. Across from him sat a smaller, wiry man in a black robe and a tall hat, who seemed to be perpetually wreathed in shadows.
The man in black could no longer stand the silence. "The Xie family of Anyang plays a long game," he said, his voice a dry rasp. "Ten years you've been setting the board, and now you're poised to sweep the entire Southern Province. I must admit, I'm envious."
The man with the yin-yang face barely opened his eyes. "The Spirit Child Palace should be content in the Yin Cloud Mountains. Don't tell me you came all this way just to trade pleasantries, Brother Bai."
"Heh," the man in black chuckled. "Hardly. My Palace is also backing the Xie family in this endeavor. We believe an alliance would be… mutually beneficial. What do you say, Brother Xie?"
"I say no," Xie responded flatly. "The Xie family works alone. We do not need allies."
The man in black's eye twitched. "You might want to reconsider. That Xuan-grade sacred artifact you're after won't be easy to claim. And the Flaming Sun Gang you're targeting… they're more dangerous than you think."
"Your concern is noted, but unnecessary," Xie said, his tone final. "I am well aware of my family's capabilities."
The man in black was about to argue further when a woman in a red dress entered and whispered urgently in Xie's ear.
Xie's face darkened for a split second before returning to a neutral mask. He turned to his guest. "My apologies, Brother Bai. A pressing matter has come up. I'm afraid I must cut our meeting short."
"But the alliance…"
Xie raised a hand. "The matter is closed."
The man in black's face tightened, but he forced a smile. "Very well. In that case, I shall take my leave." He rose and departed, a cold fury burning in his heart. Arrogant fools. You think you can claim the prize alone? By refusing our friendship, you have made a powerful enemy.
After he was gone, Xie's face twisted into a fearsome scowl in the dim lamplight. "Report," he snapped.
The woman in red trembled. "It's about Young Master Xie. We've had no contact for three days. And… when I checked the ancestral hall today… His soul lamp has gone out."
"So he's dead," Xie stated, his voice devoid of emotion.
"All signs point to it, my lord."
"The Flaming Sun Gang…" he murmured. "There's something we're missing."
"Shall I dispatch a team to investigate, Master?"
"No," Xie said coldly. "If they were strong enough to kill Xie An, sending more men would be useless. This is a matter for the elders."
"Yes, Master."
Outside, the night was black and silent.
A hulking figure in a dark cloak strode down the empty streets, finally coming to a stop before a massive, fortified estate. He looked up at the gleaming, gold-leaf sign above the gate.
[Black Tiger Headquarters]
Two guards, armed and alert, flanked the entrance. Seeing the cloaked figure lingering, one of them barked, "You there! This is Black Tiger territory. Move along before you get hurt."
A low, unique voice rumbled from under the cloak. "So this is it," Jiang Dao said, more to himself than to them. "Took me long enough to find you."
The guards exchanged a look. "Who are you? If you're here to join, come back in the morning. The masters are asleep."