Chapter 452 - 322: A Storm Gathers, Yushi of the Tian Family

Chapter 452: Chapter 322: A Storm Gathers, Yushi of the Tian Family

"This guy nearly cleared out the entire armory. He’s planning something big," another man, a bald one, remarked with a click of his tongue.

"I saw you gave him the blade you spent a whole year forging, right?" another man asked. He was slender, with skin so fair he almost looked like a woman.

The owner nodded. "It was no use to me. Might as well sell it to him."

"How’s his skill with a blade?" the pale man pressed.

"Incredible," the owner replied, his expression growing serious.

"He didn’t even test the blade, but I could tell just by the way he held it that the man is an absolute master. You can’t fake an aura like that."

"Damn... a crack shot, a master with a blade, and rumor has it he can use Magic. Does this kid have any weaknesses at all?" the man by the window exclaimed in astonishment.

"The Sun family is in for it now!" the bald man said, gloating.

The pale man, however, hesitated. "You sold him all those weapons. If the Sun family finds out, won’t you be in trouble?"

The owner chuckled. "What trouble? The Sun family might be powerful, but they can’t mess with a humble black market merchant like me."

Despite calling himself a humble black market merchant, his face was filled with pride.

After all, he had been operating in Qing Province for years and had deep ties with all the major powers. The Sun family might be formidable, but they would have to think twice before making a move against him.

It wasn’t that he was particularly powerful himself; it just wasn’t worth the trouble.

He had only done what any black market arms dealer would do. If they raised a stink over it, the Sun family could forget about ever buying anything on the black market again.

"Alright, enough about the kid. Let’s play!" the bald man cut in, and the group went back to their card game.

After playing for a little while, however, the pale man excused himself to use the restroom.

Once the door was closed, he carefully cast a sound-proofing Magic spell before making a call.

The call connected after just a moment.

"Eldest Young Master Tian, I’ve got a piece of intel. I wonder if you might be interested," the pale man said with a grin.

"Speak," a cold voice replied from the other end.

"Right away!" the pale man chirped, his face wreathed in smiles.

As a black market information broker, he naturally knew how to get the highest price for a piece of intel.

And as luck would have it, this Eldest Young Master Tian was a man who wasn’t afraid to spend.

So, he quickly relayed everything that had just happened.

There was a moment of silence on the other end before Eldest Young Master Tian spoke slowly. "Good. I understand. The money will be transferred shortly."

"Excellent! Thank you, Eldest Young Master Tian!"

"From now on, if you get any intel on this Wu Liangchen, you report it to me first. I’ll pay a premium for it."

"Understood!"

The call ended. Grinning, the pale man dispelled the sound-proofing Magic and flushed the toilet.

At the same moment, he received a payment notification. The long string of digits brought a smile to his face.

This was exactly why he had sold the information to Eldest Young Master Tian instead of the Sun family.

It wasn’t just that Eldest Young Master Tian was a generous spender; it was that selling the intel this way maximized its value.

Sure, the Sun family would have been interested in the intel, but their feud with Wu Liangchen was already public knowledge.

So, even if they learned Wu Liangchen had bought a cache of weapons, they would just take a few extra precautions. It wouldn’t command a high price.

Eldest Young Master Tian, on the other hand, seemed to have no connection to the matter. But the pale man was intimately familiar with the Tian family’s unique internal politics and understood the position Eldest Young Master Tian was in. That was how he’d managed to sell it for such a good price.

And so, the grinning information broker went back to his card game.

On the other end of the call, Tian Junxi set down his communicator. He stared out the floor-to-ceiling window at the brilliant cityscape, his eyes glinting with indecipherable thoughts.

His female assistant of many years didn’t dare make a sound. She simply brought him a steaming cup of coffee and stood silently before his desk, awaiting his command.

"What is he doing right now?" Tian Junxi suddenly asked.

He didn’t use a name, but his assistant knew exactly who he meant. "The Second Young Master went to the clubhouse," she replied instantly. "He met with Bao Zhichao and some others for a bit. He just got back."

"Heh." Tian Junxi let out a cold laugh, a flicker of ridicule in his eyes.

"My younger brother is certainly clever. His only flaw is that he’s *too* clever."

"He thinks he can get away with it by acting nonchalant, but that’s precisely what exposes his true intentions."

The female assistant remained silent.

This kind of succession struggle was far above her pay grade.

Tian Junxi hadn’t expected a response.

He gazed down at the bustling city below and murmured, "If I’m not mistaken, you must be sending people to find information on Wu Liangchen right now, looking for the right moment to make contact."

"But do you really think a man like that can be won over with a few petty favors?"

"Unless you get your hands dirty and help him *now*, you have no chance of pulling him into your camp."

"They say some people want to achieve great things but are too afraid to risk their own skin. That’s you, little brother."

At this, Tian Junxi gave a silent smile and waved his hand. "Relay a message to the Sun family. Tell them Wu Liangchen has acquired a large cache of weapons and is about to make a move. Say it’s a gift from me, free of charge. Tell them to be prepared."

"Yes, sir!"

The assistant turned and left. Tian Junxi took a slow sip of coffee, then whispered, "And my dear sister... what are you doing right now?"

A wind began to blow.

It picked up with incredible speed. One moment, a gentle breeze caressed the face; the next, a gale was howling, tearing trees from the roadside, roots and all.

Thankfully, the gale lasted only a moment before the rain began to fall.

A torrential downpour began, washing over everything in the city.

The residents of Qing Province were long accustomed to such sudden storms.

Tian Yushi was no exception. In fact, she loved the rain.

Whenever a heavy rain fell, she would have her driver cruise aimlessly through the streets.

It gave her a sense of security, as if she were a fish swimming in the deep sea.

Tonight was no exception.

A top-of-the-line sedan, worth millions, glided silently through the rain-swept streets while a soothing piano piece played from the speakers.

Tian Yushi reclined comfortably in her seat, an expression of pure bliss on her lovely, almost translucent face.

The scenery outside grew increasingly chaotic as they left the city center and entered the Shadowlands.

The roads began to flood, but fortunately, this sedan—a custom model from a great house in Kyoto—possessed many features not found on mass-produced vehicles.

A silver light glinted beneath the chassis as a Magic array activated.

The tires lifted slightly, and the car began to skim across the surface of the water.

After some time, the vehicle came to a smooth stop. "Miss," the driver said in a low voice, "we’re here."

Tian Yushi opened her eyes and gazed out the window.

Outside, the neon lights of the shops blurred and bled into the rain-slicked pavement, making the already lurid street seem even more grotesque and surreal.

"Stop here. I’m going to get out and have a look," Tian Yushi said calmly.

The driver looked like he wanted to say something, but held his tongue.

His position was humble; he didn’t dare question her.

’But this place is a complete mess,’ he thought. ’What if something happens to the Young Miss?’

While he was still hesitating, Tian Yushi was already out of the car.

A large black umbrella shielded her from the downpour. Beneath it, Tian Yushi wore a short skirt, her straight, slender legs as white as snow. As she walked, she resembled a white butterfly caught in the rain, drawing every eye.

Tian Yushi, however, seemed oblivious as she walked straight to the entrance of a bar.

"May I come in?" she asked, her red lips parting to release a voice as sweet as music.

The two brawny men guarding the door were dumbstruck.

They’d been working this door for a long time. They were used to seeing garishly made-up strippers and cold, robotic women, but they had never seen anyone so elfin and ethereal.

Only after a moment did they snap out of it, nodding hastily. "O-Of course! Please, come in, come in!"

All bars in the Shadowlands offered free entry to ladies, to say nothing of a peerless beauty like Tian Yushi.

Tian Yushi smiled faintly. "Thank you."

She then drifted inside, leaving the two men staring after her, completely infatuated.

"She smells so good!"

"Yeah, incredible. I’d die happy if I could just spend one night with a woman like that."

"I’m different. I wanna fuck her to death."

Their conversation grew increasingly vulgar, their faces twisted into lecherous grins.

But they failed to notice, as they spoke, that faint red marks had begun to appear in the whites of their eyes.