Chapter 1016: A Chain of Devious Tactics

“What an amazing Meng Yun! Truly cunning! Aside from the Blood Alliance and the Five Poisons Sect, she’s even quietly won over the major gangs in the capital. Yuan Zhixiong’s attempt to sacrifice himself as a ruse is probably just her first move… Who else is going to step forward? Stop hiding—reveal your identities! Don’t make me, Shadow, look down on you…”
Shadow was extremely pleased!
Yuan Zhixiong’s sudden turn against her, coupled with his earlier accusations and slander against the Xifeng Tower and her own Shadow, had already raised her suspicions. His willingness to sacrifice himself only made her realize the true source of her unease.
Meng Yun’s trump card.
Since such a clichéd tactic as a self-sacrificing ruse had already been used, more people would surely come forward to expose her and smear her further…
It was incredibly wise of Shadow to act first. Not only did she expose Yuan Zhixiong’s move as a ruse, but she also directly confronted the calm-headed headquarters of the First Rank Hall, adding more doubt in the minds of the martial artists watching.
Sure enough!
Another gang leader’s voice rang out:
“Lord Shadow, Gang Leader Yuan is a good friend of mine, Wen Sheng. We joined forces together this time, and he agreed only after my persuasion. I never expected… Lord Shadow, you’re truly cunning—even after his death, you still try to slander him. If that’s the case, I’m no different! From today onward, the Linfeng Garden withdraws from this operation. If you try to deal with us in the future, we won’t back down—we’re ready to fight!”
“All the brothers of Linfeng Garden! Let’s go!!!”
A furious roar echoed through the capital, as countless people rushed out from the streets…
Immediately after:
“Shadow! You killed my Gang Leader Tianxiong! From now on, we’re enemies for life!!”
The members of the Tianxiong Gang and Linfeng Garden both rose into the air with formidable momentum. Even many disciples of the Xifeng Tower, including Shadow, looked extremely upset.
As Wen Sheng, the leader of Linfeng Garden, spoke, the crowd became skeptical—no longer as convinced as before…
They could believe that the First Rank Hall had the power to control a major gang in the capital, but Yuan Zhixiong’s death and Linfeng Garden’s withdrawal still cast a shadow over many people’s hearts.
Was Shadow’s confrontation with the First Rank Hall truly selfless, aimed at protecting the martial arts of the Central Plains and fighting against the Wild Wolf Organization, or was she simply using this opportunity to destroy the First Rank Hall, reshuffle the power structure, and establish the Xifeng Tower’s dominance over the martial arts of the Central Plains?
Many people couldn’t help but wonder this.
“Very good.”

As countless people evacuated the surroundings of Yipin Hall’s main hall, Shadow finally managed to hold on. Although her voice didn’t show any change, her speech speed increased slightly:
“The Tianxiong Gang, Linfeng Garden—time will prove everything… I hope you can continue to pretend… But your tactics aren’t enough to make me back down.”
Shadow’s gaze turned back to Yipin Hall’s main hall, now filled with a murderous intent!
Framing! Slandering! Creating public backlash to distract the martial artists of the Central Plains.
This was Mengyun’s countermeasure. Truly fierce and ruthless!
Just as everyone thought it was over, suddenly, several people stepped out resolutely from a restaurant nearby on a nearby street!
Behind them, hundreds of people in the restaurant stood at attention, staring at them in disbelief.
Four of them stared in shock at the gang leaders heading toward the door:
“Could it be you too…”
Before they could finish speaking, six more gang leaders emerged from the crowd and the cries of surprise.
“Shadow!”
One of them spoke on behalf of the others, bowing toward Shadow’s direction:
“Different paths mean no alliance! I’m sorry! I, Ma Sanyuan, along with these gang leaders, must reevaluate whether the claim that Yipin Hall is colluding with the Wild Wolf Organization is true… We refuse to be used and then foolishly help count money! The Wuji Dao Sect withdraws from this plan!”
“I, Lu Dawei, represent the Xuanming Sect and withdraw from this plan!”
“Xiaoxiangzi! On behalf of the Qin family, I withdraw from this plan!”
“…The Wind-Fire-Thunder Hall withdraws from this plan!”
“Xiaotianhou withdraws from this plan!”
“Tiedao Wuling withdraws from this plan!”
“Disciples of the six major gangs, heed my order—evacuate immediately! No disobedience allowed!”
At the command of the six gang leaders, over a hundred thousand people evacuated from around Yipin Hall’s main hall…
With the departure of the eight major gangs, more than a third of the crowded crowd vanished instantly!
Inside Yipin Hall’s main hall, triumphant cheers erupted.
In contrast, outside the hall, the people from Xifeng Tower and the remaining members of the six major gangs looked desolate, as if the tide had turned against them…
Originally, hundreds of thousands of people surrounded Yipin Hall, giving them a huge advantage!
But now, with the departure of the eight major gangs, their strength had dropped by more than a third—at most twice that of Yipin Hall’s forces…
With such strength, even if they managed to capture Yipin Hall’s main hall, these gangs and Xifeng Tower would likely face extreme danger.
Now, many people had even begun to doubt.

Are the leaders of the eight major gangs also forced to come here by Shadow in some way, just like Yuan Zhixiong…? Some people even openly discussed in the crowd whether it was true that Xifeng Lou was launching a major attack on Yipin Tang to condemn those involved in colluding with the Wild Wolf Organization. After all, no one had conclusive evidence linking Meng Yun to the Wild Wolf Organization! Only three people could probably be sure about what had happened with the withdrawal and defection of the members from the eight major gangs… Shadow, the Emperor, and Bai Xiaosheng. These three had planned this operation, so they knew well that all fourteen gangs had joined without hesitation after being contacted by them, not under coercion as they pretended now. Yet Shadow was also stunned for a long time. In an instant, she went from heaven to hell! It was at this moment that she realized just how much she had underestimated Meng Yun and how deeply hidden this woman really was! Among the eighteen major gangs in the capital, aside from Xifeng Lou and Yipin Tang, half of them were actually under Yipin Tang’s control… With such strength, it was already very difficult for Xifeng Lou to resist! In fact, Yipin Tang even had the strength to confront the heroes of the capital. Yet Meng Yun chose to use this method to “prove” that Yipin Tang had nothing to do with the Wild Wolf Organization! “…” Shadow was deeply troubled. She could feel the worried and hesitant gazes coming from all directions. Many people already had doubts and concerns about this operation. But! It seemed Meng Yun’s scheme wasn’t over yet. Then another voice spoke up. “Lord Shadow, if those eight gang leaders before were all under Meng Yun of Yipin Tang, I think our current strength is simply not enough to destroy Yipin Tang’s headquarters…” “So, my Xuanjia Gate will also withdraw from this operation! Sorry!” Another gang leader announced their withdrawal. The streets, which already didn’t seem very crowded, quickly saw another group leave! “I am deeply grateful to the gang leaders who offered help at this critical moment. This matter is a feud between Yipin Tang and Xifeng Lou. Since you are withdrawing, Meng Yun promises here that Yipin Tang will still maintain good relations with you!” These grandiose words sparked countless discussions on the forums! Many people now split into two major factions… The website was filled with debates. Some believed in the hierarchical relationship between Yipin Tang and the Five Poisons Gate, concluding that Yipin Tang was colluding with the Wild Wolf Organization!

Another group is gradually increasing in number! Nine gangs from the capital have chosen to withdraw, sensing that there might be some hidden tricks at play, and believing that Shadow is trying to take advantage of the situation to destroy Yipin Hall and dominate the martial arts world of the Central Plains. The remaining indecisive people are skeptical and lack a clear stance. But as the tenth gang leader stepped forward and led away over 20,000 people, Shadow’s efforts to pressure all the gang leaders in the capital against Yipin Hall quickly gained the upper hand. Fourteen gangs left, ten of them… The remaining ones also lost all their previous momentum and morale. The crowd was in chaos! Shadow remained silent for a long time… Everyone could see that the situation he had created, along with that orchestrated by the Emperor and Bai Xiaosheng, had been completely ruined. Not only had the crisis at Yipin Hall’s headquarters been resolved, but Shadow, the initiator of this plan, found himself in a very awkward and dangerous position. … “Shadow is in trouble this time.” Happy, Nurse Xiao Yi, and Xu Yao watched the whole thing from start to finish, their expressions gradually shifting from excitement to solemnity, even turning slightly pale. “Master…” Nurse Xiao Yi hesitated before speaking, “Did you deliberately stay offline because you knew something?” “…Know what?” Happy’s expression wasn’t good either. Although he had expected Yipin Hall to be forced to unleash its hidden strength by Fei Feng Lou, preventing him from gaining an advantage at their headquarters, he never expected Meng Yun to resort to such ruthless tactics. A strategy of self-sacrifice, slander, division, psychological manipulation—various vicious schemes intertwined to completely turn what seemed like irrefutable evidence around. The tide of public opinion had changed! Meng Yun had come back from the brink… “I mean, did you guess that Shadow was planning to take down Yipin Hall and become the sole ruler of the Central Plains…” “…” Happy and Xu Yao exchanged glances in silence. They didn’t expect even Nurse Xiao Yi to be convinced by Meng Yun’s words about Yuan Zhixiong. Happy and Xu Yao were absolutely certain that Yipin Hall was colluding with the Wild Wolves Organization, since it was Happy who had exposed the Wild Wolves Organization being covered up by the Five Poisons Sect. Moreover, Happy had other unknown sources of information… Happy knew about Kaisen. Since Huang Sha could pinpoint his location with such accuracy, his collusion with the Wild Wolves Organization was beyond doubt. However, from Nurse Xiao Yi’s reaction, the two realized that not all the accusations against Shadow on the forum were instigated by Yipin Hall’s people; it seemed many people had truly been misled by Meng Yun.

Happy was too lazy to explain anything to Nurse Xiao Yi…
He knew.
If he didn’t get into the game and do something soon,
the next moment might see Xifeng Tower surrounding Yipin Hall’s headquarters,
and in return, Yipin Hall using the same tactics against them!