You, a living person, are telling me I've served in the underworld for ten years?

"Withdraw! The other group of targets has been severely damaged by rockets, and the remaining ones are not a threat! Activate signal erasure and disengage immediately!"

Two barely perceptible ignition sounds rang out at the edge of the thick fog, and two ghostly figures sped away, disappearing into the chaotic night forest.

Below the cliff face was not the 500-meter-deep abyss shown by the venomous claw detector.

About twenty meters from the cliff top, a short, natural stone platform suddenly jutted out, hidden by dense ancient vines and thick fallen leaves. At this moment, Chen Yang awkwardly bent his knees and landed on the thick layer of fallen leaves to dissipate the force of his fall. On his right shoulder, his clothes were torn, revealing a deep, bone-revealing knife wound with eerie, dark blue edges that seemed to be constantly trying to erode the surrounding flesh.

This was the price paid for breaking through the three poisoned blades at the last moment. At the wound, a layer of pale golden, almost transparent soul power acted like the toughest film, firmly suppressing the spread of the dark blue poison.

"call……"

Chen Yang exhaled a breath of turbid air, the blazing white flames burning in his eyes slowly subsided, and the surging power within his body dissipated like a receding tide, leaving only the subtle true essence deep within his dantian circulating like a wisp of silk, repairing his severely damaged and aching meridians. Forcibly connecting with and accommodating Li Rou's higher-level soul power placed an immense burden on his physical body.

A nearly transparent, slender figure coalesced beside him, and Li Rou's soul appeared slightly more transparent than before.

She looked at the wound on Chen Yang's shoulder and frowned slightly.

"What a tricky biochemical neurotoxin, quite interesting."

If I hadn't protected your vital energy, this poison would have crippled an ordinary Golden Core cultivator's arm.

The items these people have are far superior in quality to the trash we encountered before.

Chen Yang endured the pain and used his Qingwei True Essence to gradually eliminate the toxins on the wound, his voice hoarse.

"You don't recognize the way either?"

Li Rou circled around Chen Yang, her fingertips sending out a wisp of extremely pure soul power into his wound to suppress the explosion of poison. She shook her head and said.

"The method was ruthless and covert, but the underlying technology of the equipment, especially this kind of subtle toxin that can paralyze energy levels and mental will, and can even self-reproduce... could never have been produced by a street gang or a small local family. It's worlds apart from the junk used by those men in black and the Zhou family's bodyguards! However..."

She seemed to be deep in thought.

"It does have a slight resemblance to the equipment style of those top-tier battle slaves in the Heavenly Dao Alliance, but it's not entirely the same. It's more like... eerie? More insidious?"

Chen Yang's eyes were sharp as knives.

"You mean, the trading party connected to the core of the Heavenly Dao Alliance brought another group of even higher-level assassins to double-cross us?"

"Nine times out of ten."

Li Rou smiled softly, her soul fading into the distance.

"Such a swift and ruthless betrayal, coupled with significantly superior equipment, suggests either the forces behind the trading party have suddenly changed their minds, or... it's simply another force taking advantage of the situation! Like a mantis stalking a cicada, unaware of the oriole behind, you, Chen Yang... almost became the mantis that got crushed by the cicada."

She paused, glancing at the special watch on Chen Yang's wrist that shimmered with a faint light.

"The thing Jianghe gave you is pretty useful. It's been sending encrypted signals for location and distress signals. It should be arriving soon, right?"

"Yes, I can sense it. Her presence is rapidly approaching, she'll be here in about three minutes."

Chen Yang closed his eyes for a moment, then suddenly opened them. The dark blue hue on his shoulder was dissipating at a speed visible to the naked eye.

"The most urgent thing is to reunite with Shengxiong and the others!"

The situation over there after the rocket attack is unclear!

With a stomp of his foot, he sprang into the air like a cheetah, using both hands and feet to propel himself up the steep cliff face with a few nimble leaps, instantly flipping back to the top. The pervasive poisonous fog was largely dispersed by the canyon winds that followed. A horrific battlefield unfolded before his eyes.

Several of the Zhao family's armed off-road vehicles were blown to bits, leaving only twisted and burning metal frames, billowing thick smoke.

Corpses dressed in Zhao family guard uniforms and unidentified individuals in black combat suits lay scattered on the ground, the air thick with the stench of blood and gunpowder. Wounded guards groaned in pain as they were being helped by their comrades for first aid and relocation.

"Damn it! Chen Yang!!"

A loud, rough roar, filled with boundless anger and surprise, rang out.

Covered in gunpowder and dust, with a piece of scorching shrapnel embedded in his shoulder, Wang Shengxiong charged forward like a raging bull, wielding an exaggeratedly shaped alloy gear-shaped giant axe.

Behind him followed a dozen or so brothers, all wounded, their eyes bloodshot and their killing intent undiminished.

Seeing Chen Yang appear unharmed despite his shoulder injury, Wang Shengxiong's blood-stained face finally showed a hint of joy, and he punched Chen Yang hard in the left chest.

"Damn it! I saw you surrounded by those three bastards and couldn't get through! I thought you were going to die! When I saw you jump off the cliff, my heart sank! I'm so glad you're alright! I'm so glad you're alright!"

His eyes widened as he scanned Chen Yang from head to toe.

"You... those few moves just now... how come it seemed like you suddenly became a different person? That flame... that aura..." He still felt lingering fear as he recalled the blazing white flames and terrifying pressure that flashed by on the cliff edge and instantly devoured the bone blade assassin.

Chen Yang calmly dissipated the force from his fist and said in a deep voice.

"Our trump card for survival comes at a high price, so we can't use it lightly. How are things on your end?"

"Fuck his mother!"

Wang Shengxiong's face was filled with murderous intent as he pointed to several corpses dressed in black equipment in the distance.

"Those bastards! They lured us to this godforsaken canyon under the guise of a trade, then launched a barrage of rockets from both sides of the mountain, blowing us to smithereens! Just as we were about to rescue them, several elite groups launched a surprise attack in the chaos! Their equipment was damn well-made! If it weren't for the weight of my axe and the fierce fighting spirit of the Zhao family's guards, we almost wouldn't have been able to hold out!"

He spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva and pointed in Zhao Cheng's direction.

"Old Zhao was hit by the shockwave of a rocket, his lungs and internal organs were shaken, he vomited some blood, but he was still conscious."

Nearly half of his guards were killed! Damn it, this is a huge embarrassment! The goods were stolen, and so many people are dead!

He looked at the several black-clad corpses in the distance on the other side, clearly smashed beyond recognition.

"Eight of them were killed by me and my brothers. Damn it, they died too easily!"

Supported by two guards, Zhao Cheng walked over, his face pale, his eyes filled with lingering fear and gratitude as he looked at Chen Yang.

"Boss Chen! It was you who lured away those three most powerful monsters... Otherwise... the pressure on our side would have been several times greater, and the casualties would have been much higher..." He coughed violently, spitting out a little blood, and his eyes instantly turned as cold as a deep pool.

"I, Zhao Cheng, will remember this debt! No matter who's behind it, the bastards who stirred up this mess will pay the price!"

His voice wasn't loud, but it carried the ruthlessness and vindictiveness unique to scions of noble families.

"Go back! I'll report to my third uncle immediately! All losses will be repaid tenfold! The supply channels, all related parties, even the smallest fry involved—I'll make sure their ancestors for eight generations never have a moment's peace! How dare they target our Heavenly Dao Alliance's supplies and the Zhao family's escort team... Ha, very well! I'd like to see how many lives they have that our Zhao family can cut down!"

His words were no longer just directed at his enemies; they were more like an almost obsessive declaration and a assertion of confidence in his family's power. Wang Shengxiong patted Zhao Cheng's uninjured shoulder, his expression equally menacing.

"That's right! Old Zhao, this can't end like this! I've been in this business for so many years, and I've never suffered such a loss! They smashed my pot, killed my men, and stole my goods? Go back and cast a wide net! Whether they're human or ghost, they have to be dragged out and burned alive!"

He looked at Chen Yang.

"Chen Yang, how are you? Is your injury serious?"

Before Chen Yang could answer, he immediately yelled at his subordinates.

"Seventh Brother! Get a car out here! Clean up the scene, don't worry about the dead, and for the living, whether they're ours or those scum, find a way to get them all in! Withdraw! Back to my territory!"
We'll get our revenge slowly! And what about Jianghe's side?

Chen Yang raised his wrist.

"Location shared, she'll be here soon. I'm fine, Shengxiong, you arrange the evacuation first."

He saw Wang Shengxiong begin to systematically direct the clearing of the area and the treatment of the wounded, while he silently circulated his internal energy to suppress the toxins and recover from his depletion.

Soon, Jiang He appeared at the canyon entrance like a ghost. She glanced at the horrific scene, her brows furrowed, and quickly went to Chen Yang's side. Without saying a word, she took out a blue syringe that was shimmering with a faint light and injected it into Chen Yang's arm.

"A powerful detoxifier and nerve cell repair agent, rest assured."

She spoke concisely before asking in a low voice.

"What happened? What's the opponent's equipment information?"

Chen Yang synchronized the data from his wristwatch to Jiang He via an encrypted receiver, speaking in a low voice.

"The attackers were divided into two groups, involving at least three parties."

One group, disguised as a convoy of traders, ambushed me with rockets; another group, at least three top assassins, surrounded me, their equipment extremely sophisticated and bizarre, similar to the Heavenly Dao Alliance's war slaves but even more insidious and vicious.

He pointed to the remaining, still gruesome wound on his shoulder, which had stopped bleeding.

"The three of them combined their attacks with a tight formation, using a high-level gene paralysis poison mist. I almost got hit."

He didn't mention Li Rou's existence, only using "using forbidden techniques" to cover up the final explosive reversal.

A cold glint flashed in Jiang He's eyes.

"I've collected the toxic fog sample. Preliminary analysis of the equipment data... the technical composition is unfamiliar, with residual bio-energy and spatial interference characteristics... this is getting more and more interesting, and also... more and more dangerous. I'll report it. This place is not safe to stay any longer. Can your vehicle still move?"

With the cooperation of Wang Shengxiong and Jiang He's men, a passage was barely cleared, and Zhao Cheng was placed in the back seat of a relatively intact SUV, driven by a guard.

Wang Shengxiong jumped into the driver's seat of his modified armored Hummer and beckoned Chen Yang and several of his confidants to get in.

"Chen Yang, come with me! We can still clear a path!"

Chen Yang and Jiang He quickly got into the passenger seat and the back seat.

With engines roaring, the convoy, bearing the scars of gunfire, escorted several black-clad prisoners whose wounds had been hastily treated and who looked dejected. They rolled over the broken road and mottled bloodstains, retreating in a disheveled yet menacing manner towards the coastal city.

They remained silent the entire way, the atmosphere heavy and somber like solidified lead.

Wang Shengxiong slammed on the gas pedal, and the car bounced wildly on the rugged mountain road. The anger in his eyes almost burned through the windshield.

Finally, in the early hours of the morning, the wrecked convoy returned to Wang Shengxiong's house, located on the edge of the coastal city.

"Warhammer Bar." The huge metal gear on the bar's sign gleamed faintly with a cold light in the deepest darkness before dawn.

"Crench!"

The Hummer was parked roughly in front of the bar.

Wang Shengxiong kicked the car door open and jumped out, cursing under his breath.

"Damn it! Finally... huh?!"

Before he could finish speaking, he froze on the spot, his weariness and anger instantly replaced by a more intense and pure rage! Like a volcano about to erupt!

Where is that thick, heavy steel gate, full of rugged industrial style, now?!
All that remained was a twisted and deformed wreckage! The heavy, rivet-studded alloy door panel, engraved with a huge battle axe pattern, had been ripped open with terrifying brute force! The broken metal edges were warped and twisted grotesquely.

Where the original entrance used to be... was now empty and a mess! Broken glass, broken bar stools, shattered bottles, and smashed audio components mixed with viscous red, yellow, blue, and green liquor, resembling a huge overturned garbage heap, splattered and spread from the entrance all the way to the street!

The wall he was so proud of, adorned with a huge steampunk-style mural, was now reduced to a few shattered panels and several deep, gaping dents! The entire front half of the bar had been almost completely leveled! The air was thick with the smells of alcohol, dust, and a faint...stench of blood!

"Fuck...fuck his ancestors! My...my territory!!"

Wang Shengxiong's voice was squeezed out from between his teeth, with a heart-stopping tremor.

That wasn't fear, it was a furious rage that had been building up to its peak and was about to explode!
His eyes were bloodshot and bulging, like a ferocious beast whose territory had been invaded!
"Boss!!"

A young man with a bruised and swollen face and a blood-soaked bandage wrapped around his head scrambled out of a nearby alley, crying as he ran.

"Boss, you're finally back! It's...it's Boss Gao! He's the one who hired people to do it!"

He said you cut off his livelihood and killed his men. He couldn't swallow this insult, so he smashed our shop and threatened to uproot our "Wild Dog Gang" from Binhai City and sink it into the sea to feed the fish if we didn't hand over the antiques he mentioned and the Chen Yang brothers!

"Gao Wei? Did his mother eat the gall of a bear and the gall of a leopard?"

Wang Shengxiong's roar echoed through the deathly silent, empty street.

"That little punk who deals in smuggled cars?!"

"No...no, boss!"

The injured subordinate hurriedly added, a trace of fear still lingering in his eyes.

"He said... he said he's now... connected with the Green Wolf Gang! Gang leader Lei Zhenyue personally dispatched men from his 'Blood Fang Hall,' led by that bald Mad Tiger! There aren't many, only about twenty, but they're all ruthless characters! Bald Mad Tiger single-handedly took down more than a dozen of our guards!"

He said... Gao Wei's stuff belongs to Master Gao of the Green Wolf Gang! He said our 'Wild Dog Gang' isn't worthy of using hammers, only worthy of being stray dogs..."

Clap!

Wang Shengxiong's sturdy riding boots crushed a broken neon light tube.

The veins on his forehead bulged and throbbed like earthworms. (End of Chapter)