With the shout from the black-clad youth of the Ten Thousand Dragons Society, the scattered black-clad men in the bar instantly converged like a dark tide, gathering in one place.
Ma Da then shouted to the people present, "None of your business anymore. Get back to whatever you were doing—party on!"
The patrons, including Little Dao’s lackeys, slowly picked themselves up off the floor.
However, none of them were in the mood to keep partying. One by one, they hurriedly fled the bar, terrified that staying would mean getting "dealt with."
Ma Da and his men didn’t stop them, letting them leave without interference.
Once nearly everyone had cleared out, Ma Da walked up to Liu Debao and patted his face.
"Hey, wake up. Wake up."
"Come on, stop pretending to sleep."
But no matter how much Ma Da called out, Liu Debao kept his eyes shut, motionless.
At this point, Lai Pihou and the others, who had been standing nearby, couldn’t help but speak up. "Big bro, he’s just wasted. Maybe get him something to sober up?"
Hearing this, Ma Da turned to them and asked, "How’d he get this drunk?"
For some reason, Lai Pihou decided to take credit. "Big bro, we’re the ones who got him hammered. We knew right away this guy was trouble, so we made sure to knock him out before he could run."
Ma Da smirked. "Oh? So you did us a favor?"
Lai Pihou, completely oblivious to the gravity of the situation, even tried to fan the flames to curry favor. "Big bro, to be honest, I met this guy at the train station. He’s no good—stole my girl’s bag—my girlfriend’s, I mean—and even tried to shake us down for money. Total scumbag."
"You guys showed up just in time. Someone’s gotta teach him a lesson."
"Yeah, teach him real good!" the others chimed in.
"We had no idea he’d crossed the Ten Thousand Dragons Society. If we’d known, we wouldn’t have let him off so easy."
"But it’s not too late. Big bro, just tell us how you want him handled. We’ll do the dirty work—make sure he learns his place!"
As he spoke, Lai Pihou yanked the drunken Liu Debao upright, ready to put on a show—maybe a quick five-hit combo—to vent some anger on behalf of the Ten Thousand Dragons Society bosses.
If they impressed these guys, maybe they’d hit the big time.
But before they could act, Ma Da raised a hand to stop them.
"Hold on. Get something to sober him up first."
Lai Pihou thought to himself, Damn, these guys are ruthless—won’t even let a drunk off easy. But out loud, he said, "You’re right, big bro! Gotta wake him up first. It’s way more satisfying when he’s conscious for the lesson!"
"Quick! Get some sober-up pills! And ice!"
The bartender scrambled to dig out the sober-up meds and brought over some ice.
Lai Pihou eagerly took them, pried open Liu Debao’s mouth, shoved the pill in, and then—without hesitation—stuffed the freezing ice down his shirt.
Liu Debao jolted awake, his drunken haze clearing fast.
But when he saw the crowd of intimidating black-clad men surrounding him, his mind went blank.
Huh? Am I hallucinating?
He’d thought Lai Pihou was already plenty "street," but now the guy was acting like a bootlicker, shamelessly sucking up to these black-clad thugs.
Still, these guys looked way more hardcore—and way scarier.
The more Liu Debao thought about it, the more miserable he felt.
He’d just come to Bright Pearl City to find his cousin and have some fun. First, he ran into scammers, and now this gang of underworld enforcers.
Worst of all, he spotted his own photo in the leader’s hand.
What else could that mean?
He was wanted by the mob!
Suddenly, he just wanted to go home to his mom and never set foot in Bright Pearl City again. Even a poor country boy like me gets targeted? This city’s underworld is way too dark!!!
Then, under the stunned gazes of everyone present, Liu Debao did something unexpected—he raised his right hand and slapped himself across the face before collapsing straight back down.
"I’m really drunk! Don’t call me anymore!"
And with that, he resumed playing dead.
Ma Da: "……"
Everyone else: "……"
Lai Pihou, seeing him pull this stunt, grabbed him and yanked him up. "You think you can play dead in front of the Ten Thousand Dragons Society? Get the hell up!"
He raised his hand to deliver a slap, but Ma Da suddenly seized his wrist.
"Not yet. Too many eyes around. Clear the place first."
Lai Pihou and his crew glanced at the thirty-plus black-clad men already present and couldn’t help but think, Uh… isn’t it already pretty crowded?
But being the "smart" guy he was, Lai Pihou figured the boss just didn’t want outsiders seeing the "bloody" scene.
Though the bar’s patrons had left, the staff were still around.
So, taking initiative, he started clearing the place himself.
"Big bros, no need to trouble yourselves with this small job. We’ll handle it!"
"Yeah, leave it to us!"
Without waiting for the Ten Thousand Dragons Society to act, they aggressively herded the staff—including the bartender—out of the area.
"Scram, scram! Can’t you see the Ten Thousand Dragons Society is handling business? You wanna die? Get lost!"
"……"
After shoving the staff into the back room, they even closed the bar’s front door and hung up a handwritten sign: [CLOSED].
Honestly, Ma Da almost felt bad watching them dig their own graves so enthusiastically.
He’d heard of people burying themselves before, but seeing it in person was a first.
Perfect timing—the company just developed a new batch of chest protectors. Might as well test the latest model on these guys.
Rumor had it the new gear increased pain by 50% while reducing the chance of leaving detectable injuries to less than 10%.
Truly, a fusion of technology and brute force.
Once everything was set, Lai Pihou and his crew scurried back, grinning obsequiously.
"Big bro, we got rid of all the extras. No one’s gonna know what happens here."
"Don’t worry, our lips are sealed. We won’t breathe a word."
Ma Da nodded. "You did good. I’m impressed. How about I reward you with a trip to a very safe place?"
"Thank you, big bro! Thank you!" Lai Pihou beamed.
"Thank you, big bro!" The others echoed with equally eager smiles.
The Ten Thousand Dragons Society boss praised us! And he’s taking us somewhere safe! With his connections, it’s gotta be some high-class, secure spot—maybe even a place to "study" without trouble.
The thought made them giddy with anticipation.
Studying’s great—we love studying!
Except for Lai Pihou’s "girlfriend," who shot him a furious glare.
Not that he cared—they weren’t even really together.
Most importantly, this time they might actually succeed in joining this incredibly badass gang. If they pull it off, they won’t have to kowtow to Little Dao anymore when navigating the underworld.
Hell, they might even skip repaying their debts, and there’d be nothing anyone could do about it.
These men in black were hands down the most formidable, most gangster figures they’d ever encountered.
The best part? They’d also score a hefty sum of cash—though once that sister delivered the money, half of it would naturally go to their new boss as tribute.
Lai Pihou suddenly felt like today was his lucky day!
Just as Lai Pihou was lost in his rosy fantasies of the future, Ma Da signaled his crew to haul up Liu Debao, who was still "playing drunk."
Thanks to the sobering pill and the adrenaline of the situation, Liu Debao was mostly lucid—but he was too terrified to open his eyes.
Please let this be a hallucination…
But now, forced upright, he couldn’t keep up the act any longer. The moment his eyes flew open, he started bawling, "I was wrong! I was wrong! Please let me go—"
Before he could finish, Ma Da barked at the group, "Show some respect!"
Immediately, the crowd bowed slightly and chanted in unison:
"Boss Bao!"
"Boss Bao!"
"..."
Liu Debao’s sobs cut off mid-wail. "Huh?"
Had he actually drunk counterfeit liquor today? One minute he’s a nobody, the next he’s a mob boss?
