Chapter 50: Chapter 34: Forcing Submission
Translator: 549690339
Hearing that Lu Yuan had truly practiced martial arts, Scarface’s heart jumped. He never expected that a hunter who was once as insignificant as an ant could actually turn his fate around through martial arts.
However, as a leader within the gang, he had some composure and insight. He didn’t completely lose his footing and instead asked tentatively, “Have you cultivated inner strength?”
For a martial artist, the difference between having cultivated inner strength and not having done so is vast.
A martial arts expert who only knows some boxing skills is just a small fry in Jianghu, serving as cannon fodder to make a show of force and raise morale. They are at the lowest rank.
The ordinary members of the Black Wolf Gang belong to this level. Scarface, on the other hand, is an elite at this level, so he took the position of a leader.
Moving up, martial artists who have cultivated inner strength through their meridians are different.
For martial artists, inner strength is like an amplifier.
A martial artist without inner strength might only have the power of two hundred catties in one punch. However, a martial artist with inner strength can punch with the power of four or five hundred catties.
The above is just an increase in power.
Other attributes like speed, reaction, and defense will also experience significant improvements under the enhancement of inner strength.
Therefore, even if a martial artist has only opened one meridian and cultivated inner strength but has not reached the third-rate level, they are still transforming and are no longer in the same rank as those without inner strength.
The simplest example is:
In the Black Wolf Gang, the strongest strength is the second-rate leader. Below him, a few vice leaders are third-rate experts who have opened two meridians. Further below, the elders and hall masters opened one meridian and cultivated inner strength, making them no-name martial artists.
As you can see, even in a small gang like the Black Wolf Gang, one needs to cultivate inner strength to be part of the management.
Having inner strength is almost equivalent to whether a scholar has a title or not, representing the difference between two classes.
Lu Yuan is, of course, aware of this, so when he heard Scarface’s probing question, he calmly smiled and said, “By chance, I have cultivated some inner strength.”
As expected, upon hearing this reply, the color drained from Scarface’s face. Yet, he still stubbornly asked, “Where did you learn martial arts? Where did you get the money to learn martial arts? Did you secretly sell furs behind our backs?”
He couldn’t accept that he had been humiliated by a hunter whom he had once looked down on. So, he now wanted to grab onto the issue of secretly selling furs and hold Lu Yuan accountable.
However, times have changed, and Lu Yuan had no interest in playing a game of presenting evidence and debating with such a small-time thug.
Lu Yuan coldly laughed, “Of course, I learned martial arts in Jianghu, and I earned money in Jianghu. As for the furs?” He scoffed, “If you’ve learned good martial arts, would you bother to pick up that measly fur money instead of doing great business?”
After briefly explaining and giving a passable reason, Lu Yuan impatiently said, “Alright, I have things to do, and I’m not interested in wasting time with a small-time character like you. If you have nothing else to say, get lost, or do you want to try my business?”
With that said, he looked at Scarface and his men with the eyes of a predator, as if calculating how much meat they had on their bones.
The gaze of a top hunter naturally sent chills down Scarface’s spine. He felt as if he were being targeted by some terrifying creature, as if one wrong move could cost him his life.
Recalling the fate of his predecessor, the head of the Black Wolf Gang shuddered.
Just over a year ago, the former Biao Ye had also been killed by a Jianghu martial artist right on this street, along with several gang brothers.
That moment was just like this one.
Scarface felt that he seemed to understand the feelings of his predecessor at that time.
Therefore, although he was extremely frustrated and resentful at heart, when he faced Lu Yuan’s cold gaze, he shivered and forced a smile, “Lord Lu is joking. I am of humble status and wouldn’t dare to compete with you. Since Lord Lu has other matters, we will leave you be. Farewell.”
Scarface stepped aside and signaled his subordinates to make way, their obsequious attitude readily apparent.
After weighing everything, he ultimately decided not to push his luck any further.
Those who mingle in Jianghu are all full of blood and passion.
If you truly push someone to the limit, they will come at you with deadly force.
Scarface finally managed to climb to his current position as a gang leader, and he still had a taste for wealth and luxury that he was not ready to give up on just yet.
“At least you know when to back off.”
Lu Yuan glanced at him, then walked away without paying any more attention to these guys and headed directly towards the market.
Once his figure vanished, the smile that Scarface had managed to squeeze out faded instantly.
“Scarface, are we just letting him go like that?” One of the underlings, who had just escaped from the terrifying atmosphere, asked with some dissatisfaction.
“What else can we do?” Scarface snapped back, anger in his voice. “Dare to cause him trouble? Not afraid of dying, huh? Think about how Wang Biao died.”
“Uh…” The underling was reminded and recalled Biao Ye, who had died a year ago, and couldn’t say anything more.
After scolding his underling, Scarface looked back at Lu Yuan’s departing figure, his eyes shifting and pondering in his heart.
He was hesitating.
He was unsure whether or not to report Lu Yuan to the higher-ups in the gang, and have a few Hall masters and elders teach this arrogant hunter a lesson.
However, after thinking it through, he still couldn’t quite gauge the opponent’s strength.
In the years prior, the gang spent considerable effort in suppressing Ma Ji Qing, which involved several hundred gang members, including various hall masters, elders, and even the gang leader and his assistants.
Despite all this effort, they lost three hall masters, two elders, and one deputy gang leader. As for the ordinary gang members, their casualties reached the dozens.
Such heavy losses were undoubtedly a huge blow to the Black Wolf Gang, practically leaving them severely injured.
After investigating the cause of these casualties, they found that it all started because Biao Ye couldn’t collect a meager amount of two or three silver taels in protection fees in the city and ended up killing one of Ma Ji Qing’s brothers. Consequently, they were targeted for revenge.
A catastrophe in the gang was caused by just two or three silver taels?
This ironic truth naturally led to some introspection among the high-ranking members of the gang.
As a result,
after experiencing the incident with Ma Ji Qing, the Black Wolf Gang issued a rule that when collecting protection fees, their members must be sure to investigate if their targets have any background or relatives skilled in martial arts.
If they did, then they could reduce or even waive the protection fees.
After all, the government did grant tax exemptions to accomplished scholars. Naturally, the various gangs in Jianghu should show respect and special treatment to those with martial arts and internal strength.
In the end, power speaks the loudest in Jianghu.
This circle valued strong practitioners even more than others.
“You’re lucky.”
After weighing the pros and cons, Scarface figured that even if he reported this, the higher-ups would most likely ask him to let it go and avoid causing trouble.
Ultimately, he dismissed the idea, but threatened bitterly, “Just don’t let me catch you when you’re down on your luck. If I do, there will be hell to pay.” Having said that, he vented his anger on his underlings, saying, “What are you waiting for?”
“Yes, sir.”
The underlings quickly followed suit.
The Black Wolf Gang’s members went on to threaten and intimidate other weaker individuals, hoping to regain their lost face.
Having suffered such humiliation today, they secretly vowed that once they found someone easy to bully, they would make sure to give them a proper
“welcome treatment.”
Only then could they vent their frustration..