“President Zeng, Liang Mengsong, after a tour around the company, you must be hungry. The night view of Pearl City may not compare to those big cities, but the night market snacks are quite distinctive. I’ll take you to try some local late-night eats.”
Zeng Jin responded politely, but his heart was pounding with unease.
Just now, inside Shunchang Tower, he’d seen a boxing gym, a criminal law study room, and walls covered with silk banners and group photos—everything he’d known for half a lifetime had been turned upside down.
He honestly couldn’t imagine what kind of scene this Chairman Liu’s simple offer of a late-night snack might create that would blow his mind yet again.
Liang Mengsong, however, didn’t overthink it. To him, this was just a normal part of hosting.
He nodded and said, “Then we’ll trouble you, Chairman Liu. I actually enjoy strolling through night markets too.”
Liu Yutong smiled faintly without adding much and headed straight for the elevator.
By the time they reached the ground floor, a group of black-suited men had already gathered behind them.
Zeng Jin kept sneaking glances back, silently counting the numbers.
In just that short time, at least thirty black-clad men had fallen in behind Liu Yutong.
And every single one of them stood tall and upright, with sharp eyes and an aura of pressure that made your skin crawl.
Back in his days in Taiwan Province, he’d seen plenty of so-called underworld big shots making their grand entrances.
The men around them were either rakish thugs reeking of hoodlum energy or loudmouthed enforcers who couldn’t wait to show off their criminal ties.
But Wanlong Corporation’s people were completely different.
Quiet, straight-backed, and well-drilled—like blades sheathed in their scabbards, no threat at rest, but guaranteed to draw blood the moment they were unleashed.
The more you watched them, the more unsettling they became.
When they stepped out of the building, a dozen shiny black Mercedes-Benz cars were already lined up outside in a row.
A black-suited man stood rigidly beside each vehicle. At the sight of Liu, they all bowed in unison and greeted her.
“Miss!”
Zeng Jin stopped short and instinctively moved closer to Liang Mengsong.
Liang Mengsong, still unruffled, simply thought how disciplined the company’s employees were—truly high-class.
Liu Yutong gave a slight nod, then walked straight to the black Maybach at the center.
The man beside the car smoothly opened the door for her.
Once Liu was inside, the others got into their own vehicles, and the convoy set off for the night market.
Their destination wasn’t any of Pearl City’s most famous old-school night markets, but a fairly new commercial street.
Right at the entrance stood a massive sign: Wanlong Plaza.
The plaza itself was already closed for the night, but only an adjacent side street remained brightly lit.
This was a pedestrian street built behind the plaza, which turned into a night market after dark.
The whole street was strung with red lanterns, and warm yellow light spilled from every shop; cooking smoke curled upward, and the aroma of cumin and chili mixed with the smell of charcoal drifted far away.
At first glance, it looked just like any ordinary night market.
Seeing this through the car window, Zeng Jin breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Well, this matched his guesses—it’s just eating some street food. At least they wouldn’t create another epic spectacle, right?
There had already been plenty of black-suited men back in the building. Surely they couldn’t be so over-the-top as to rent out an entire street.
But the next second, Zeng Jin sensed something wrong.
A night market on any normal night should be bustling with people.
Yet now, aside from the drifting cooking smoke he could see, it was eerily quiet—was that right?
And for some reason, even though from the car the whole street appeared lit up, the closer the convoy got, the more it seemed darker—an illusion, maybe.
It was just strange.
However, when Zeng Jin’s party got out and turned into the pedestrian street at the corner, a single glance inside made their blood run cold.
From the entrance, stretching deep into the street, were rows upon rows of ordinary plastic round tables, packed tight together like a black dragon coiling through the middle of the road, its head and tail invisible.
The black wasn’t the color of the tables or chairs—it came from the people seated at every one, all dressed in identical black suits!
The crowd sprawled as far as the eye could see.
Warm yellow streetlights spilled down over that sea of black figures. Though the lights were clear and bright, it felt as if the day had truly turned black.
A wave of pressure, like tidewater, surged from all sides and instantly swallowed Zeng Jin and Liang Mengsong, leaving them almost unable to breathe.
In their decades of life, this was the first time they’d fully witnessed a physical phenomenon—it turned out that black really does absorb light.
The most terrifying part was that despite the vast number of people, nobody spoke. The silence was oppressive.
Even all the shop owners and waitstaff along the street dared not say a word; they just buried themselves in grilling skewers and preparing snacks, working much faster than usual.
Of course, though they were nervous and uneasy, inside they were delighted—at least today’s turnover would be all but guaranteed.
Zeng Jin's hair stood on end, his scalp tingled, and his legs uncontrollably trembled.
He blinked hard, thinking his eyes were playing tricks on him.
Who would believe it? In all his years, he'd never seen someone rent out an entire street before.
He had witnessed countless spectacles in his life—street brawls in the back alleys of Taiwan Province, lavish banquets at the Chamber of Commerce, gatherings of both the underworld and the elite… but never had any scene made him tremble from the depths of his soul like this one.
He had been wrong!
And spectacularly so!
What did he think? That the Black Dragon Society only had a hundred or so men in black? The formation before him was ten times that, at least!
Just from what he could see, there had to be no fewer than a thousand people!
And this street stretched at least a kilometer long, making it impossible to see how many were seated farther back. It only gave him one impression—that this black dragon had no end.
Liang Mengsong was also completely dumbfounded, his mind wiped blank.
An engineer working with chips, his whole life had been spent dealing with labs, machines, and code—how could he have ever witnessed something like this!
He had genuinely believed the Black Dragon Society was a legitimate, socially responsible company dedicated to public welfare.
But what did this scene in front of him mean?
Was he really just too naive?
Liang Mengsong stiffly turned his head, looking at the calm-faced Liu Yutong beside him. His lips moved, but no words came out.
Who on Earth was this unsettlingly young chairman?
Zeng Jin swallowed hard, his voice trembling as he asked, "Mis… Miss Liu, if I may ask, how many brothers are here tonight?"
Liu Yutong casually said a number: "Probably… less than three thousand."
Zeng Jin: "..."
Liang Mengsong: "..."
