Both the members of the Scorpion Gang and those of the opposing Eagle Gang were stunned by this sudden turn of events.
Even Duan Yunyou, who had deliberately provoked the Scorpion Gang into infighting, had not expected his words to have such an immediate effect. Did they not even ask for clarification? They just started fighting directly? This scene left him completely dumbfounded.
Blood flowed from Cao Dingkun’s body, and his hands were also dripping with blood. He still clutched tightly onto the sword blade stuck in his body, fearing that the other party would twist it and kill him. With a complex expression in his eyes, he stared at Yu Qing, his lips trembling, “I just felt you were unreliable!”
Yu Qing asked coldly, “Where is the gang leader who acted as the inside man?”
The reason he thrust this sword was not purely because of the Eagle Gang’s provocation, nor was it to betray them. He was angry at himself.
When he heard Duan Yunyou mention the Qilin Ginseng earlier, he wanted to slap himself twice.
It was the same logic as before. If the Scorpion Gang or Cao Dingkun truly knew clues about the Qilin Ginseng, would they have revealed them so easily?
He had clearly understood this principle from the start. Was not his purpose in joining the Scorpion Gang to gather information about the Three-Legged Crow? How did it turn into joining a robbery? He had even enthusiastically taken the lead. It was truly infuriating!
At present, the group consisted almost entirely of new members who had just joined the Scorpion Gang. The only veteran, Cao Dingkun, had nearly abandoned them and fled.
Furthermore, where were the people attacking from the front? Had not the second-in-command already sent the signal for a joint attack? They had run all the way here, yet there was not even a shadow of the frontal assault team.
If it was said that they were detained by the sounds of fighting in the distance, those sounds only began after they had arrived here.
If one still did not understand that the veterans of the Scorpion Gang had been acting and fooling them, then one would truly be a fool.
He also knew why he had made such a mistake. It was simply greed that had clouded his judgment. Therefore, he was angry, angry at himself. However, since he could not stab himself, he certainly could not let go of the scoundrels who had dared to deceive them into risking their lives.
The more foolish he appeared, the harder it was to forgive the other party. Killing them was the only way to alleviate the hatred in his heart.
Thus, he thrust the sword cleanly and decisively. If you do not die, are we supposed to die instead?
Cao Dingkun still talked tough, saying, “Things have come to this point. The gang leader has likely perished. How can he possibly appear now?”
His hands were not idle either. He suddenly swung his sword in a sneak attack.
A loud clang rang out.
Mu Aotie, who had been watching closely nearby, noticed something was wrong and immediately intervened.
Cao Dingkun, already weakened by his severe injuries, could not control the sword he had swung. It was directly knocked away.
Mu Aotie showed no mercy. His sword swept out and then slashed back, chopping off a head. He beheaded Cao Dingkun with a single strike.
Bang. Yu Qing kicked the headless corpse, which was convulsing and spraying blood from its neck, sending it flying. He pulled out his sword, blood dripping from the tip, and the scent of blood rose in the air.
Seeing Cao Dingkun dead, Duan Yunyou, who was looking down from above, clenched his fist and coughed once. A slight smile appeared on the corner of his mouth. Apart from Xu Fengji, this person was the younger brother of Boss Cao of the Scorpion Gang. Since he had killed the man’s elder brother, who could guarantee that the man would not try every possible means to take revenge in the future?
For him, a potential trouble had been eliminated, so he naturally felt satisfied.
The two eagles in the sky gradually lowered their flight altitude and landed one after another on the eaves of the temple.
After killing Cao Dingkun just like that, the remaining members of the Scorpion Gang looked at each other. Their gazes towards Yu Qing and the others were quite unusual. One could only say that these two were bold!
Mu Aotie remained highly alert beside Yu Qing, also worried that others might use the same method against them.
At this time, the sounds of fighting from a distance could still be heard, but the intensity seemed to have decreased significantly, and the voices were fading.
Yu Qing turned his head to look at Duan Yunyou on the roof and shouted, “May I ask for your esteemed name?”
An Tianyin, the Right Protector beside Duan Yunyou, replied loudly, “Seeing our Eagle Gang Leader Duan, why do you not hurry to pay your respects?”
Yu Qing held his sword upside down, cupped his hands, and said, “So it is Gang Leader Duan. We were short-sighted and deceived by villains. Fortunately, Gang Leader Duan is generous.” He looked around at the surrounding Eagle Gang members and tentatively asked, “We dare not disturb you further. Can we leave now?”
The group of Eagle Gang members all looked at Duan Yunyou, waiting for his decision alone.
From this scene alone, Yu Qing and the others knew that this gang leader held considerable authority within the gang.
“Cough, cough.” Duan Yunyou coughed again. “You want to leave directly just like that? We did not provoke you, yet you came to harass us. Do you expect to pretend that nothing happened?”
Upon hearing these words, the faces of the Scorpion Gang members changed drastically. Yu Qing’s face turned gloomy. “Does Gang Leader Duan not keep his word?”
Duan Yunyou said calmly, “I naturally keep my word. I promised you a way out, and I will never break my promise. Let us skip the roundabout nonsense. Considering your ignorance and the fact that you were used, our Eagle Gang will not make things difficult for you. As long as you hand over all your belongings, we will honour our promise and let you leave. If you cause us all this trouble and still expect to pretend nothing happened, do you think that is possible? Leave your belongings, or leave your lives. You decide.”
Many members of the Eagle Gang immediately showed strange smiles on their faces. Some even laughed out loud at their leader’s words.
Looking at the situation, it was clear that force prevailed. They had the advantage and had surrounded these twenty or so people like turtles in a jar. Capturing them would be easy. If they handed over their possessions obediently, the Eagle Gang could save some effort. Otherwise, they would have to take them by force.
At this time, the sounds of fighting in the distance had ceased.
Gong Ziting, the Left Protector, muttered to Duan Yunyou, “They should have mostly succeeded over there.”
Duan Yunyou showed no reaction to this. He only watched the movements of the Scorpion Gang members below. The other side had informants reporting news, and his side knew the opponent’s plan. Every strike hit the mark. Success was normal. Failure would have been strange.
The Scorpion Gang members, who were not very familiar with each other, began whispering among themselves. They felt indignant, feeling that they had been played. Being fooled by the Scorpion Gang earlier was one thing, but being openly fooled now was another.
There was a strong sense of shared hatred among them.
But what could they do? The other side was powerful, with over a hundred people, while they only had twenty or so. Moreover, they had just killed Cao Dingkun, one of their stronger members. The situation was hopeless. Anger was useless. They probably had to accept their fate.
If anyone was angry, Yu Qing was the angriest. If anyone was fooled, he was fooled the most, because he was the one who killed Cao Dingkun.
He had intended to minimise the issue. Since he did not know the depth of the other party’s strength, it was not good to provoke them rashly. He wanted to bow his head and let the matter pass. Who would have thought that he would be fooled again? They actually wanted to rob him of his possessions.
He was nearly furious enough to spit out a mouthful of old blood. He exchanged a glance with Mu Aotie, whose face was filled with murderous intent, and glanced upwards towards the roof with the corner of his eye.
Mu Aotie understood and nodded slightly.
Thus, while the group of Scorpion Gang members felt both grief and helplessness, Yu Qing raised his blood-stained sword upside down again. He cupped his hands in salute once more and said, “Gang Leader Duan, those who come to Tianji Mountain to eat sulphur rice do not have much money. Moreover, we are newcomers, so we have even less. The few scattered silver pieces on us are for emergencies.
Gang Leader Duan, we were also deceived by the Scorpion Gang. We only joined the Scorpion Gang today. I have already followed your wishes and killed Cao Dingkun to atone for our sins. Please, Gang Leader Duan, take pity on us and spare us.”
“Yes, please spare us,” someone else followed, cupping their hands and begging.
Thus, the Scorpion Gang members all cupped their hands and begged for mercy from Duan Yunyou, who looked down from above.
“Cough, cough.” Duan Yunyou coughed again and asked, “You seem to have forgotten what you came here to do tonight. If your sneak attack had succeeded, would you have easily spared us?”
Yu Qing said, “Gang Leader Duan makes a valid point. It was our fault first, but Gang Leader Duan later promised to spare us. We fulfilled Gang Leader Duan’s request, yet you added extra demands. This is hardly reasonable. If you had stated from the beginning that we must also compensate with our possessions, we would have had nothing to say. Everything rests on the principle of reason. What do you say, Gang Leader Duan?”
Duan Yunyou’s face darkened slightly. “I have spoken nicely to you, yet you are so uncooperative. Do you not know what place Tianji Mountain is? It is a place where the weak are prey to the strong. Is it a place for reasoning? Have I shown you too much kindness? If you continue to chatter, do not blame me for breaking my promise.”
Seeing that negotiations had failed, Yu Qing’s face turned stern. He pointed his blood-stained sword at the temple above and directly broke off relations, shouting angrily, “You shameless dog. Take a look at yourself in a puddle. You look like a sick monkey. You dare to rob my money? I think you are tired of living!”
These words startled the Scorpion Gang members. Although they were grieved and indignant, they had no choice but to accept their loss when negotiations failed. They had not thought of turning hostile. The enemy outnumbered and outpowered them. Turning hostile would be seeking death.
They feared being implicated by Yu Qing.
The Eagle Gang members immediately found this amusing. An Tianyin, the Right Protector on the roof, sneered, “Truly unaware of death!”
However, Yu Qing was not just speaking wildly. Enraged, he suddenly burst out from the crowd, leaped into the air, and waved his sword, rushing straight towards the roof.
He did not want to cause trouble and was willing to compromise, but robbing his money was unacceptable!
Was his money something that any random person could rob?
Although he did not know the other party’s strength and dared not act rashly, he believed he was not weak.
He had seen many important figures. What was this Eagle Gang? What was this gang leader? Did they really think that the first place winner of the Chaoyang Conference was just for show?
In a fit of rage, evil thoughts arose. He actually fought his way out of the encirclement alone, heading straight for the thief leader, Duan Yunyou.
Cao Dingkun had been right before he died. When the enemy outnumbered you, the best method was to capture the leader first!
The Scorpion Gang members were startled. Would not this action drag them into the water?
The Eagle Gang members stopped laughing and were also somewhat shocked. They had not expected anyone to dare to counterattack in such a situation.
How could they sit idly by and let this villain approach their gang leader? The Eagle Gang members standing in between immediately flew up to intercept.
“Those who block me shall die!”
Yu Qing, in the heat of anger, gave a mighty shout. It was quite domineering and also served to wake up the Scorpion Gang members.
It was not just empty talk. His sword suddenly shimmered with flowing light under the moonlight, emitting bursts of metallic clanging sounds. Instantly, screams erupted.
More than ten Eagle Gang members who flew up one after another were no match for a single move of Yu Qing’s “Fengchen Sword Art”.
At the same time, others flew up to join the interception, and people on the temple roof pounced down. Attacks came from all directions.
Instantly, chaos ensued.
Surrounded, Yu Qing’s momentum was like a rainbow. The sword light sometimes resembled exploding fireworks swirling around him. With crisp ringing sounds, he broke through the encirclements. His sword-wielding figure moved like a agile dragon, weaving through the attacks. No one could stop him. Those who tried were blasted apart in showers of blood, with continuous screams.
In an instant, more than ten people fell to the ground screaming, with severed limbs and blood rain flying chaotically.
So fierce! The Scorpion Gang members were almost stunned by this scene.
Mu Aotie also waved his sword and shouted, “Everyone, follow me and kill!”
He charged out first to attack the Eagle Gang members. The Scorpion Gang members immediately waved their weapons and followed, howling, “Kill!”
They joined in the fierce battle together.
They did not want to, but that bastard was even more坑 than Cao Dingkun. Once he made a move, everyone was dragged into the conflict. The Eagle Gang had already launched a counterattack. They had no choice but to fight. They could not just stand there and be slaughtered. While cursing someone in their hearts, they could only risk their lives and fight desperately.