SNT Chapter 13: Extermination

Locust Street was on the edge of the outer city, three parts dirtier and more chaotic than Mute Bay.

Both sides of the street were crowded with beggars in tattered clothes, while skeletal children rummaged through sewage ditches for food scraps.

The air reeked of rot and excrement, and occasionally one could see swollen, bluish corpses lying by the roadside.

In such a place, a person's death was less noticeable than a rat's.

Chen Qing crouched in the shadows under the eaves, surveying the intricate network of narrow alleys below.

Qian Biao's death was like an invisible thorn. As long as the Golden River Gang wasn't eliminated, this thorn would remain embedded in his flesh, and who knew when it might fester and rot.

Rather than waiting for trouble to come knocking, it was better to strike first.

Suddenly, Chen Qing's eyes sharpened.

Two figures emerged from the alley entrance, acting stealthily. One was Pockmarked Liu, and beside him was a shifty-eyed man.

Both walked hurriedly with tense expressions, looking back every three steps like startled birds.

"Brother Liu, do we really have to go out at this time? Those Tiger Gang bastards are biting hard..."

The yellow-toothed man lowered his voice, unease evident in his tone.

"Nonsense!"

Pockmarked Liu irritably rubbed his hands and cursed in a low voice, "My mouth is so bland it could hatch birds! Who can stand gnawing on dry bread crusts for two days? Move it! Buy and go!"

The two pressed against the wall base and quickly burrowed toward the other end of the alley.

Chen Qing's heart stirred. Holding his breath, his figure silently moved across the rooftops, following them with cat-like agility, his gaze locked firmly on those two figures.

Pockmarked Liu and his companion navigated the familiar turns expertly, arriving at a relatively bustling small crossroads.

He vigilantly looked around for a moment before quickly stepping forward, pulling out a few copper coins, grabbing oil-paper-wrapped food, and immediately turning back with the yellow-toothed man, walking even faster.

From his rooftop vantage point, Chen Qing could see clearly that this food didn't look like it was just for two people.

He silently followed, maintaining a safe distance and height.

After winding through several turns, Pockmarked Liu and his companion finally slipped into the end of an unusually quiet dead-end alley.

Before them was a dilapidated wooden door.

Pockmarked Liu nervously looked left and right again, confirming no one had followed, before quickly knocking on the door.

The door creaked open a crack, the two quickly slipped inside, and the door immediately closed.

"Let me first probe the situation."

Chen Qing took a deep breath and climbed along the adjacent courtyard wall onto the rooftop.

He carefully extended his head to look into the courtyard.

Two or three long knives lay on a wooden table in the courtyard, with fragments of women's torn dresses scattered on the ground, creating a scene of chaos.

At this time, voices of conversation came from inside the house.

Chen Qing carefully lifted a roof tile to peer down.

This was a bedroom with messy quilts piled on the bed, a medicine bottle on the table, and bloodstained bandages thrown on the floor.

"Not this room." Chen Qing understood and gently replaced the tile, crouching low as he moved to the adjacent eaves and lifted another tile.

The main room's scene came into view. Four or five burly men sat around, with a middle-aged man in black robes and a cold expression sitting at the head.

"It really is Golden River Gang people!"

Chen Qing's eyes narrowed as he recognized the middle-aged man as Song Tie, the Golden River Gang leader.

It was said that Song Tie was extremely skilled, specializing in blade techniques, and Mute Bay had been carved out by his blade.

Chen Qing had seen him once before.

"Gang Leader, we bought the things!" Pockmarked Liu wiped his sweat and handed over the oil-paper package.

Song Tie impatiently tore it open, glanced at it, and immediately cursed, "Cornmeal steamed buns?! Not even a trace of oil? My mouth is ready to scrape out knives!"

Pockmarked Liu smiled bitterly, "Gang Leader, in this godforsaken place on Locust Street, having something hot is already not easy."

"Damn this humiliation! How long do we have to hide and skulk around?" one man couldn't help but mutter.

"Go out? Do you miss Qian Biao?" another sneered, "Died without even knowing how!"

Several gang members couldn't help but complain quietly. When mentioning Qian Biao's death, their voices carried several degrees of fear.

Pockmarked Liu rolled his eyes and tentatively said, "Gang Leader, the Tiger Gang is biting too hard... perhaps we should try... to negotiate peace?"

"I think negotiating peace isn't bad."

Pockmarked Liu's suggestion immediately gained agreement from quite a few people present.

"Slap!"

Song Tie's palm heavily struck the table, and the solid wooden table immediately split into pieces.

The room instantly fell silent, all gang members quiet as cicadas.

Such strong power!

Chen Qing on the rooftop was also secretly shocked.

This Song Tie's qi and blood could be considered vigorous even among those at obvious strength. If he faced him head-on, he probably wouldn't fare well, not to mention there were so many Golden River Gang members.

Song Tie said expressionlessly, "Negotiate peace? I think you want to take my head and surrender, eh?"

Pockmarked Liu shuddered, "I wouldn't dare! I wouldn't dare! Gang Leader, please calm your anger!"

Song Tie's accumulated authority over the years remained. The gang members all lowered their heads.

"All scared now? Ah Biao's revenge, Mute Bay's territory, I will personally take them back! All of you listen!"

Song Tie's hawk-like gaze swept over his silent subordinates and sneered, "Ah Hu! Do you all remember? He's coming back! Once he arrives, let's see if there's still room for that Tiger Gang to bounce around in Gaolin County!"

"Ah Hu is returning?!" Pockmarked Liu's eyes suddenly burst with light, his voice trembling.

"Would I lie to you?"

Song Tie impatiently waved his hand, "You all go back. Don't let those Tiger Gang bastards catch your scent."

"Yes!"

The men felt as if they'd received amnesty and hastily bowed and retreated.

"Ah Hu?"

Chen Qing's mind filled with doubt.

Who was this person? Someone Song Tie relied on so heavily?

He committed this name to memory.

This wasn't a place to linger.

Chen Qing silently withdrew and prepared to leave.

"Wait!"

Chen Qing paused. How clever was he? Even a single hair pulled from his head was hollow.

Connecting this to the medicine bottle and gauze he'd seen earlier... this old fox was probably injured?

Chen Qing crouched low again, moving to above the side room where he'd previously observed the medicine bottle and bloody cloth strips, holding his breath and gently opening a gap between tiles.

Inside the room, Song Tie had just confirmed the last gang member had left, and his whole person collapsed in the chair like a deflated balloon.

"Bah! A bunch of treacherous bastards!"

Song Tie gritted his teeth while pouring wound medicine on his injury, the powder mixing with blood to form dark red scabs.

As gang leader, he understood too well how laughable the "brotherhood loyalty" written in gang rules was. If he showed even half a sign of weakness, tomorrow his head would be hanging on the Tiger Gang's flagpole.

"Fortunately, I was smart enough to keep a trump card."

Song Tie applied medicine while snorting coldly, "All hoping for me to fall so they can lick their new master's boots?... Just wait, once I catch my breath..."

"...That palm strike just now was probably a desperate bluff."

On the eaves above, Chen Qing saw this scene clearly.

If he ambushed, this seemed like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

His eyes narrowed as he began calculating in his mind.

A skinny camel is still bigger than a horse. How severely was Song Tie injured? Did he just look bad on the surface, or was he truly at his last gasp?

Moreover, a cornered rabbit will bite, and a desperate dog will jump over walls. Someone who could survive gang struggles and sit in the gang leader's position would definitely have fierce retaliation and trump cards when facing death, perhaps hidden weapons, deadly poisons, and such.

This broken courtyard's terrain was unclear. Were there other traps inside? Secret passages? Once he made his move and couldn't instantly resolve Song Tie, if he made noise and attracted others, what should he do?

If he failed or left survivors, his identity would be completely exposed.

If the ambush succeeded, the benefit would be obtaining Song Tie's wealth, though he didn't necessarily look wealthy.

"Using another's knife to kill!"

Chen Qing had an idea.

Like a falling leaf, he silently slid down the rooftop, landing without even disturbing half a speck of dust.

In less than a moment, Chen Qing's figure had melted into the darkness of the alleyways.

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