BOOM!

The force of Xiao Shixiong's words sent Zhou Chengding sprawling to the ground. His own boss is going to deal with me? The realization terrified him.

Zhou Chengding's face turned deathly pale. He looked at Xiao Shixiong in terror, his voice trembling as he asked, "Master, what… what did I do wrong?"

Xiao Shixiong, however, paid him no mind. He didn't even spare the man a glance as he walked straight to Lin Xiao. Bowing respectfully, he said, "Sir, my apologies. I'm late."

BOOM!

Zhou Chengding's mind went completely blank. He could only stare, shock robbing him of his senses. The mighty King of the Southern Town was calling a filthy beggar "Sir." How… How can this be possible?

Zhou Chengding felt as if his entire world had been turned upside down. Something he wouldn't have dared to imagine even in his wildest dreams was happening right before his eyes. A deathly silence fell over the area. It was so quiet that Zhou Chengding felt as if the apocalypse had arrived.

Lin Xiao looked at Xiao Shixiong with an indifferent expression. "You're a bit early."

A shiver ran down Xiao Shixiong's spine. "My lord, I'm sorry," he stammered. "I was wrong."

Lin Xiao waved his hand. "But since you're here, I'll leave it to you."

Xiao Shixiong nodded hastily and then barked, "What are you all gawking at? Seize Zhou Chengding!"

As soon as he finished speaking, a dozen men in black pounced. Though over a hundred of Zhou Chengding's subordinates stood at the villa gate, not a single one dared to make a sound. They held their breath, watching in terror as their boss, who was a superior figure just moments ago, was swiftly apprehended. In a flash, Zhou Chengding was a disheveled, pathetic captive.

"Take him away. Find a place with good feng shui and bury him," Xiao Shixiong ordered coldly. He knew he had to handle this perfectly. Zhou Chengding had offended Lin Xiao, and if Lin Xiao wasn't pleased, he himself would suffer the consequences. Despite my considerable power in the south of Kyushu, in front of Lin Xiao... I'm less than nothing.

At these words, Zhou Chengding's men trembled.

I've imagined my own death countless times, Zhou Chengding thought, his eyes vacant and his face ashen. But never like this. The summer air was hot enough to make one sweat profusely, yet Zhou Chengding felt a bone-chilling cold.

Just as the men in black were about to drag him away, a voice cut through the air.

"Hold on!"

An old man with a full head of white hair and a hunched back slowly walked out of the villa. Time had carved countless lines into his face, making him look like a withered tree on the verge of death. His frail body seemed as if it could be toppled by a single gust of wind. Though he appeared to be shuffling along at a painfully slow pace, in the blink of an eye, he was standing before them.

"Who might you be?" Xiao Shixiong asked coldly.

The old man smiled. "Oh, just the Zhou family's gatekeeper."

"So, what business do you have stopping us?"

Still smiling, the old man replied, "Nothing much. I just wanted to ask what crime our Master Zhou has committed that warrants you burying him alive."

"Old man, this is not your business!" Xiao Shixiong said dismissively.

"But I insist on making it my business."

Xiao Shixiong laughed, clearly amused. A mere gatekeeper daring to speak to him like that was a joke in itself. "And you think you're qualified?" he asked, a smirk playing on his lips.

"I don't know, but I'd like to try."

"Listen to me, old man. Zhou Chengding brought this on himself; he has no one else to blame. Don't throw away what's left of your life over his foolishness!"

The old man threw his head back and laughed. The sound was immense, echoing for miles. Aside from the most powerful martial artists present, the others were so shaken by the force of the laughter that they began to bleed from all seven orifices.

Xiao Shixiong's expression changed drastically, and even Lin Xiao's face tightened slightly. Lin Xiao had sensed the old man was no ordinary person the moment he appeared, but he hadn't expected his cultivation to be this ferocious. To injure people with laughter alone…

Xiao Shixiong stared grimly at the old man. "Who in the world are you?"

The laughter stopped abruptly. The old man's once-turbid eyes suddenly blazed with a sharp, incredibly terrifying light. The moment their eyes met, Xiao Shixiong felt as if he had been stabbed. An overwhelming oppressive force washed over him.

Xiao Shixiong was aghast. This was shocking because Xiao Shixiong was a Martial Artist himself—and a remarkably skilled one at that. An ordinary practitioner could never produce such a feeling in him. Such powerful cultivation!

"Me?" the old man said, his voice ancient and ethereal. "I can't even remember my own name anymore. However, many years ago, I went by a humble moniker: Bei Kuang."

Xiao Shixiong shuddered violently, his eyes wide with disbelief. Bei Kuang? Bei Kuang of the Dragon Alliance?

The Dragon Alliance had been the most powerful organization in the world twenty years ago, with departments covering martial arts, intelligence, economics, and assassination. It was said to have been strong enough to contend with the entire Western world single-handedly before it mysteriously disintegrated overnight. Although the Dragon Alliance fell, its remnants gave rise to many new, powerful factions, like the modern-day Martial Alliance and Heavenly Machine Pavilion.

And Bei Kuang had been one of the Dragon Alliance's legendary top ten experts. Rumor had it that all ten had perished with the Alliance's fall. To think that Bei Kuang was still alive, hiding in this small territory as a gatekeeper for the so-called King of Jinling...

"You... You're Bei Kuang of the Dragon Alliance?" Xiao Shixiong asked, his voice trembling.

The old man looked at him with a flicker of interest. "You actually know of the Dragon Alliance?"

Xiao Shixiong nodded. Of course I know of them, he thought. When the Dragon Alliance fell, I was not yet forty. Back then, all I wanted was to join them, but alas, my cultivation was too shallow. It was not my destiny.

Bei Kuang laughed again, but this time his voice was laced with sorrow. "Twenty years... To think someone still remembers the Dragon Alliance. Alliance Hierarch, your spirit in heaven must feel some small comfort now." He looked at Xiao Shixiong, his eyes filled with a distant sadness. "Boy, seeing as you know of the Dragon Alliance, I will spare your life today. Take your men and leave at once. Otherwise, you'll have only yourself to blame for what comes next!"

As he finished speaking, a terrifying killing intent flooded the area, so potent it felt as if it had enveloped the entire world. A bone-chilling cold washed over Xiao Shixiong. The others couldn't withstand the horrifying pressure and collapsed to their knees one by one.

Lin Xiao, who had been silent all this time, suddenly chuckled. He didn't know about the Dragon Alliance, nor did he understand why Xiao Shixiong was so terrified upon hearing the old man's name. But it didn't matter.

"I'm afraid you're going to be disappointed," Lin Xiao said with a smile. "Zhou Chengding dies today."

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