Chapter 203

At Xie Wendong’s question, Jiang Sen immediately understood. He had Peng Ling and the Gao sisters; if he wanted to choose all of them, it might hurt those three, but if he chose just one, it would hurt him. As the saying goes, excessive affection only brings regret! Jiang Sen was also an idiot when it came to love—still without a partner to this day. Asking him was pointless. Yet Jiang Sen was good at talking and boasting. Calmly, he said, “It’s indeed a troublesome matter. But monogamy is love, and ‘universal love’ is also love. Some people may only love one person in their lifetime, while others may love many. As long as everyone feels happy together, what’s the difference between monogamy and universal love?! Life is short. If we waste it worrying about love, what’s the point of living?”

Xie Wendong frowned as he listened. Jiang Sen talked at length, but Xie didn’t understand what he was trying to say. Not only did Xie not understand, but Jiang Sen himself didn’t know what he was saying either. Yet he was satisfied with his words, thinking they were very philosophical. Things that others can’t understand and even oneself doesn’t comprehend—aren’t those philosophy?!

Xie Wendong muttered, “I don’t get what you’re saying!” Then, dejected, he went upstairs. Jiang Sen called after him, “Brother Dong, I think what I said is quite profound!” “Is that so?” Xie Wendong replied without turning around.

That evening, Liu Bo and Chen Baicheng returned to the dance hall, each with something they’d learned. Chen Baicheng said proudly, “Ma Feng is now in a nightclub in Lushun. I had to go through a lot of trouble to get this information from a contact in Lushun.” Liu Bo smiled and nodded. “Baicheng is right. Ma Feng is indeed staying at a nightclub called Haicheng. It was opened by Ma Wu’s men before, so the owner dares to take such a risk to shelter Ma Feng.” Xie Wendong asked, “What’s the owner’s name?”

“He’s named Huang Guodong, in his thirties, with a short buzz cut, quite thin, and wears glasses,” Liu Bo said. Xie Wendong pondered for a moment before nodding. There seemed to be someone like that among Ma Wu’s men. He said, “Have you sent anyone to spy on that nightclub?” Upon hearing this, Chen Baicheng’s face turned red, and he stayed silent. Liu Bo smiled and said, “I asked Wang Liang to lead a dozen of our men to hide nearby. As soon as there’s any movement, we’ll know right away.” “Hmm!” Xie Wendong nodded in satisfaction and smiled. “If that’s the case, we have no reason not to take action. Early morning! At 10 o’clock in the morning, I’m going to get to know Ma Feng—permanently!”

Xie Wendong always preferred to act in the early hours of the morning. It wasn’t that he liked that time or was superstitious; rather, it was because early morning was when people were most exhausted and sleepy, making it the perfect time for surprise attacks, murders, arson, and robberies.

At 2:30 a.m., Lushun Kou was shrouded in darkness. Lushun wasn’t originally a bustling place—it was actually a military port, a key military stronghold for China at sea. Whether approaching from the sea or from land, one had to pass through here, so since ancient times, Lushun had always been a strategically important area. The Haicheng Nightclub was located south of Lushun. It wasn’t remote, but it wasn’t bustling either. After 2 a.m., most of the club’s guests had left. Two burly men stood at the entrance, listless and yawning constantly, with cigarette butts all around their feet. Just as they were dozing off against the wall, they suddenly saw a figure flash before their eyes. Rubbing their eyes, they looked closely and saw a young man who had appeared out of nowhere. He had no outstanding physique or features, but his eyes were startlingly bright. One of the burly men asked, “Who are you?”

The young man smiled and said, “I’m here to see Ma Feng!” The burly man was puzzled and asked, “Why haven’t I seen you before?” The young man replied, “Of course not. I’m here to collect a debt.” The burly man asked, “Collecting a debt? How much does Ma Ge owe you?” Another tall man glared at him angrily and said, “Why waste words with him? Collecting a debt? He has no money! If you want your money, come take it from me—let’s see if my fists agree!” With that, he rolled up his sleeves, ready to strike. The young man smiled and said, “You won’t be able to repay this debt.” The tall man dismissed the ordinary-looking young man before him and sneered, “Can’t repay it? Today, I’ll make sure you can’t!” Night duty was boring, and the burly man was frustrated. Seeing someone foolish enough to come looking for trouble was perfect for his amusement. He swung his fist at the young man’s face. His fist was huge, almost the size of a baby’s head. With that punch, the young man’s nose would have been ruined. But the punch hit only air—the young man moved as fast as lightning, ducking quickly to avoid it, then lunging forward. The burly man lost his balance and stumbled forward, colliding with the rushing young man. Before he could react, he felt a chill in his abdomen, followed by excruciating pain. The burly man opened his mouth to scream, but the young man shattered his jaw with a single punch. He collapsed, moaning, with a hole the size of two fingers in his abdomen, oozing blood. The young man smiled, his smile stained with blood, looking eerily strange in the darkness. Somehow, a knife appeared in his hand—a long, dark Tang sword. It belonged to Ren Changfeng, but it was Xie Wendong who was wielding it.

Xie Wendong wiped the blood from his face with a finger and said, “I told you, you can’t repay this debt!” The burly man who had spoken first was almost terrified, standing frozen in place, eyes wide open, staring at Xie Wendong as if he were a demon. Then, people emerged from behind Xie Wendong—one after another… In just a moment, no fewer than two hundred people stood behind him, all with their mouths covered by black cloth and holding steel knives. Some wore red armbands with the character “kill” embroidered on them, while others wore black armbands with the character “darkness” embroidered on them.

Xie Wendong looked at the burly man, and those hundreds of eyes also stared at him. The burly man finally recovered from his shock and guessed who this bright-eyed young man was. Sighing, he made the wisest decision of his life: he closed his eyes and rushed headfirst into the wall. With a dull thud, the burly man fell to the ground, unconscious.

“What a smart guy!” Jiang Sen grinned as he looked at the man collapsed on the ground. Xie Wendong said, “So, smart people often live longer.” He swung his sword and led everyone into the nightclub. The interior was dimly lit, with only a few small nightlights emitting faint light. Four men were sitting on chairs, snoring loudly, while there were over a dozen empty wine bottles on the tables. They seemed to be staying late as well, just here to slack off. Xie Wendong sneered and said, “Leave one behind!”
As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Baicheng rushed forward like he was presenting a treasure. With one slash per person, the three men didn’t even have time to scream before their throats were cut in their sleep. Chen Baicheng killed all three without blinking, then waved his hand to slap the fourth man hard. The slap was powerful enough to startle the man, waking him from his sleep. He opened his sleepy eyes and saw countless men in black in front of him, not understanding what was going on at first.
Chen Baicheng placed his sword across the man’s neck and said coldly, “Be sensible and stay quiet. Of course, if you don’t want to end up like the others!” He pointed at the three corpses on the ground. Only then did the man realize his three companions were dead, their necks bleeding profusely. He shuddered, his lips turning blue, and nodded mechanically.
Jiang Sen stepped forward and asked gently, “We’re only looking for Ma Feng. We have nothing to do with the others, and we don’t want to hurt you. If you tell us where he is, we’ll leave right away!”
The man initially wanted to stay silent, but seeing Chen Baicheng’s sinister gaze and the blood-stained sword, he was terrified and stammered, “Ma… Ma Feng is on the third floor, in the room farthest to the left.” Xie Wendong leaned in, narrowed his eyes, and smiled. “Brother, are you not lying to me?” Although the man didn’t recognize him, he could tell from the men in black’s attitude that this man must be the leader. He hurriedly said, “I’m not lying! Ma Feng is indeed in that room. Please spare my life!”
Xie Wendong nodded, ignored the man, and went upstairs with his sword, with the others following behind. Seeing these fierce men go upstairs, the man let out a long sigh. Before he could get up, a person who had already passed by him came back, covered his eyes, and whispered, “Brother, I’m sorry!” As he spoke, he swiftly slashed the man’s throat with his knife. The man’s trachea was cut, and he couldn’t make a sound; only a faint gurgling noise came from his open mouth.

They went up to the third floor. According to that burly man, they arrived at the innermost room on the left. Just as Xie Wendong was about to open the door, Jiang Sen stopped him and whispered, “Brother Dong, let me do it!” He gently turned the doorknob and found it locked. He waved his hand to signal everyone to step back, then pulled out a pistol with a silencer already installed and fired at the doorknob. With a ‘bang’, a large hole appeared in the lock. Jiang Sen kicked the door open and rushed in. Almost simultaneously, another figure entered with him—none other than Chen Baicheng, who wanted to claim credit for the kill. Killing Ma Feng was such a significant achievement; letting such an opportunity slip away was even harder than killing him.

Once inside, Chen Baicheng didn’t say a word and went straight to the bed, stabbing down with his knife. But the knife felt soft, suggesting it hadn’t hit a person. Shocked, he pulled back the covers and found no one underneath. Chen Baicheng quickly said, “Brother Dong, we’ve been tricked!” Xie Wendong scanned the room, his gaze falling on the bed. After a long while, he said smilingly, “Some people are so scared they dare not sleep openly on the bed and instead choose to sleep under it. If I had known this, why would I have done it in the first place?” Hearing this, Jiang Sen without hesitation pulled back the covers, and indeed, there was someone lying underneath—who else but Ma Feng?! Chen Baicheng was overjoyed. He stepped forward, pulled Ma Feng out, and asked, “Brother Dong, how did you know he was under the bed?” Xie Wendong smiled slightly but didn’t speak, his eyes meeting Ma Feng’s. In the underworld, those being hunted often had the habit of sleeping under beds, as the confined space provided a sense of security. Moreover, Xie Wendong saw wine glasses on the table with remaining drops, indicating they had just been drunk. There were also traces on the bed, clearly left after sex. Naturally, Xie Wendong guessed that Ma Feng was hiding under the bed to sleep.

Although Ma Feng was held by Chen Baicheng, his gaze remained fierce. Gritting his teeth, he said, “Xie Wendong, you really are persistent!” Xie Wendong replied helplessly, “I’m just taking back what belongs to me.” Ma Feng snapped, “What?” Xie Wendong said coldly, “Your life!” Ma Feng struggled violently. Whether it was because of his great strength or Chen Baicheng’s intention, Ma Feng suddenly broke free. With a swift motion of his shoulder, a dark pistol appeared in his hand. Shouting, “If I’m going to die, I’ll die with you!” he fired at Xie Wendong’s forehead.

“Bang!” “Jingling!” With a gunshot followed by a sharp metallic sound, Xie Wendong’s Tang dao broke in two. Chen Baicheng was stunned, Jiang Sen was stunned, Liu Bo was also stunned—no one expected Ma Feng’s gun to be so fast, and even less expected that Xie Wendong could get close enough to block the shot.

It turned out that the moment Ma Feng’s shoulder moved, Xie Wendong had already guessed it was his attempt to pull out a gun. He was familiar with this move—having seen it in the Golden Triangle and when he was shot in the chest. Though shocked, he remained calm. Realizing that Ma Feng hadn’t killed him with the first shot, he figured Ma Feng would likely guess he was wearing bulletproof gear and would aim for his forehead this time. Xie Wendong instantly raised his Tang dao to block his forehead the moment Ma Feng pulled the trigger.

He was right—the bullet indeed came toward his forehead and hit the Tang dao, producing a crisp “jingling” sound as the blade broke. The force of the bullet pushed Xie Wendong backward until he hit the wall. Looking at his broken sword, he broke into a cold sweat. Ma Feng was also stunned; he couldn’t believe Xie Wendong was still standing. How could anyone block a bullet? But he never got the chance to figure it out. Suddenly, a red shadow flashed before his eyes, and a red card appeared. Before he could understand what it was, a faint gunshot sounded, and the bullet grazed Ma Feng’s head before flying out the window. Ma Feng’s temples were riddled with holes, and he collapsed straight down, lying on the ground. The card fell in front of his eyes, revealing a large character for “kill” on it.

The card was thrown by Jiang Sen, and the gun was fired by Liu Bo. Neither of them looked at the dying Ma Feng but fixed their gazes on Chen Baicheng’s face. Jiang Sen said coldly, “Give me a good explanation!” Chen Baicheng swallowed hard, glanced at Jiang and Liu, then knelt down abruptly, crying out to Xie Wendong, “Brother Dong, I didn’t mean to! It was an accident. Punish me!” Before he could finish speaking, chaos erupted outside the room—people were shouting, and footsteps were pounding loudly. Clearly, Ma Feng’s gunshot had alarmed everyone in the nightclub.