"Boy, where are you from?"
Li Xiu suddenly asked, causing hundreds of people to look at Sing together.
"Big Brother, I am one of our own."
Under the gaze of hundreds of black-clad men, Sing managed to remain calm and answered fairly smoothly. He knew that if he didn't show the right attitude, the Axe Gang would pursue him and he might be killed on the spot.
Li Xiu grunted and didn't ask any more questions. He gestured for Sing to stand aside.
The leader's unusual behavior of speaking to a person like this made hundreds of people occasionally glance at Sing, making him feel uncomfortable. He felt like a weak lamb that had strayed into a pack of hungry wolves, with a constant danger of death, making him sweat profusely.
Despite this unusual behavior, no one spoke out. The leader must have already made a decision, and no one dared to make more trouble.
The crowd of people walked together, heading towards the courtyard. The landlady was the first to bear the brunt. At that moment, a thick black cloud flew over, giving her an opportunity to escape.
The landlady, as if she hadn't seen the Axe Gang's members, turned around and pointed, shouting loudly.
"What are you all standing around here for? It's raining, hurry up and go home to gather your clothes!"
As she said this, the landlady started to move and it looked like she was heading home. Liang Hsiao also realized that she was in charge of the area and stepped forward to stop her: "Fat woman..."
Before he could say anything else, the landlady suddenly changed her speed, frantically running towards home, and in seconds she was upstairs with an astonishing speed.
Sing looked at this scene with a strong and envious light in his eyes.
He called the landlady "Fat woman" and could only be beaten with slippers by others, threats and pleas were useless. But the members of the Axe Gang could use the same words to scare the landlady into hating her own parents, so much that she lost two legs. Such a disparity made him even more eager to join the Axe Gang and be so powerful, no longer be bullied and looked down upon.
Li Xiu noticed the changes in Sing's expression, he smiled coldly, he knew that this is exactly what the protagonist of this virtual world is thinking right now.
He was sold a copy of the "Buddha's Palm manual" for 10 yuan by an unknown beggar when he was young, he practiced it with delight, hoping to stand out and be admired by others, but when he first did a brave and selfless act, his Buddha Palm didn't work at all.
He used his life's future, the money he had planned to use to study and become a respected lawyer or doctor, to exchange for a copy of the "Buddha's Palm manual." He put all his hopes and trust in it, but in return, he received only a beating and ridicule.
When the few thugs who had humiliated him walked away with contemptuous laughter, Sing woke up. He rejected the cheap and ridiculous chivalry offered by the mute girl, and also rejected the innocence and kindness he had once had in his heart. From then on, he knew that good people do not get good returns.
What had trampled on him was not the "Buddha's Palm manual," but a few small thugs. Therefore, from then on, he also vowed to become a gang leader who is respected and followed by many, and no longer be bullied or ridiculed by anyone.
However, Sing, in addition to being good at talking, was also weak-willed and indecisive, so until today, he is still a small thug with nothing to show for his life and living in a state of hardship.
Now, after seeing the huge gap in front of him once again, he once again firmly decided that he wants to become a gang leader.
Li Xiu knew this, and he also planned to help him, after all, he is so willing to help others. His reason for coming to this world is simple, which is the "Buddha's Palm manual," and the Lion's Roar is also of interest.
He is no longer weak and helpless like in the last world, when he had to calculate every step he took, these two small goals are not difficult for him. In addition, he decided to find something to do, otherwise it would be too boring.
In addition to crossing through countless virtual realms to enhance his strength and moving towards immortality, Li Xiu is also interested in seeing and participating in all kinds of things in the world, even developing and changing them according to his wishes.
In the previous world, he was once called a heartless demon, but Li Xiu felt wronged. But today, he gradually realizes that he seems to have such a vicious interest.
"You people of Pigsty Alley, listen up. Our Axe Gang has taken a liking to this land of yours. We give you a month's deadline to move out, otherwise..."
After Liang Hsiao finished speaking, he casually waved his hand, and two gang members immediately apprehended a nearby person.
The apprehended person, who was half-dressed and half-butt naked, stared dully yet determinedly at Liang Hsiao, and slowly said, "You're trying to scare me, but I'm not afraid."
"What?"
"... "
Liang Hsiao came closer to the apprehended person, his face twisted with anger, and the other person was so scared that he couldn't speak for a moment.
"I..."
The apprehended person, Barber, was barely able to utter a word, and the moment he did, Liang Hsiao's eyes flashed with anger, and he picked up the axe from his waist and ruthlessly chopped at barber.
"Da!" "Pa!" "bang bang!"
A crisp gunshot sound, the sound of the axe falling and cutting through flesh and bone, and the sound of two people falling to the ground almost simultaneously.
Barber's neck was cut open, he lay on the ground bleeding profusely, making unintelligible noises from his throat before his eyes gradually lost their luster completely.
Liang Hsiao wiped his face that was splattered with blood, and looked somewhat puzzledly at a muscular coolie dressed in rags, who was not far from Barber's corpse, he was wailing and holding his right leg.
The man's right knee was suffering from a grotesque gun wound. Liang Hsiao turned his gaze and found Li Xiu holding a shiny silver handgun, still smoking.
Li Xiu gestured with the gun for Liang Hsiao to step aside, then he approached the sweating coolie. With a dismissive expression on his face, he said,
"What era is this? Still practicing martial arts? If you're going to practice martial arts, at least be good at it. Don't show off if you can't even reach seven or eight floors high."
The coolie glared at Li Xiu with hatred in his eyes, wishing he could swallow Li Xiu alive, his life-long training and skill had been wasted due to his injured leg, how could he not hate it.
At such a close distance, the coolie had a sudden idea, he gritted his teeth against the pain, and with a push from his hands, he lifted himself off the ground and then kicked out a phantom kick towards Li Xiu's head. He was confident that this powerful kick, if it landed properly, would at least break the neck and kill the person in front of him.
"bang bang bang!"
Three consecutive gunshots, the force dissipated, and the coolie fell heavily to the ground. This time, he was crying out in pain and holding onto his left leg.
His knee, the middle of his bone, and his ankle were all hit by the three bullets. His left leg was more severely injured than his right leg, and all that was left in his eyes were two colors: death and hatred.
Li Xiu's face wore a look of mocking: "It seems you still don't have a specific understanding of seven or eight floors high, don't act if you can't kick away the bullets. Learning martial arts has made you foolish."
Li Xiu moved away and walked to the courtyard, pointing the shiny silver handgun at the people in the courtyard, saying meaningfully.
"I know there are still people like this among you, who think that learning martial arts for a few days makes them experts, and still want to retire from the martial arts world. Just a bunch of frogs in a well!"
"Now is the era of handguns and cannons, so think twice before acting next time, whether your fists and feet are strong or whether bullets are harder!"
As he spoke, Li Xiu also casually fired a few shots, scaring everyone to hide their heads and scatter, causing a commotion.
The image of the arrogant and domineering gang leader, who looked down on martial artists with his fast gun skills, was vividly presented in front of everyone.
By the side of the early morning street vendor, a man with a heavy face, wearing an apron and crouched with his head down, secretly looked at the coolie who was lying on the ground with a dead gray face, shook his head with regret and sighed in his heart.
"The Tan Tui Twelve Kicks technique, emphasizes both offense and defense, can strike like a whip or a stick, it is a pity, a pity."
"Ah..."
Thinking of this, Donut couldn't help but feel the same, and let out a long sigh. He looked up at Li Xiu and the shiny silver handgun in his hand, and a deep fear flashed in his eyes. This fast gun skill is too fast and too amazing, and he feared that he couldn't do well just now.
Nowadays, it is no longer an era where martial artists rely on their fists and feet to show their bravery. Decades of hard work and effort are no match for others who can just shoot a gun, it is pitiful and ridiculous.
After the warning, the Axe Gang left triumphantly like a tide, leaving only the devastated Pigsty Alley behind. Everyone's hearts were filled with endless panic and worry.
"Don't look, we've made poison oaths to each other, we will never reveal our martial arts skills again. Let the Axe Gang take this land."
Landlord went upstairs, closed the window, and urged landlady.
"But if the Pigsty Alley is gone, where will these people go to live? Nowadays, the times are turbulent and chaotic, and Shanghai is too crowded for them. Most of them will have to live on the streets and die of hunger and cold."
Landlady spoke, and both of them sighed. landlord hugged landlady and comforted her, a scene of deep love between husband and wife.
The next second, landlady suddenly saw the lipstick mark on landlord's face that had not yet faded, and her eyes turned cold. She suddenly hit him with an elbow, and then grabbed his hair, hitting his face fiercely, causing him to scream in pain.
In the main hall of the Axe Gang, Li Xiu sat on the sofa, casually placing the silver shiny handgun on the table.
Men are naturally attracted to firearms, and after Li Xiu possessed incredible martial arts skills, he was no longer interested in the power of firearms. He was now more interested in the sense of control and power over life and death with a mere finger flick.
"Ah, Leader, your gun skills are accurate and fierce, truly the gun master among men, my admiration for you is like..."
Li Xiu waved his hand to stop Sing's constant chatter and leaned back on the couch, squinting down at the hall.
On either side of the room, black-clad gang members stood in rows. Sing, dressed in a gray and white suit, was drenched in sweat, forcing a calm expression on his face while trying to suck up to everyone. His expression was very unnatural.
His fat companion, Bone, was even worse off. His face was pale, and the two axes he had painted on his chest were smeared with sweat. His legs were shaking and he could barely stand.
After a few seconds, Sing could no longer take the pressure and spoke first: "Leader, we have a thousand admiration and respect for the Axe Gang. Everyone in Shanghai knows that the brothers in the Axe Gang are the most powerful and affluent. We really couldn't join, so we had to pretend to be members."
"Great Leader, please let us go this time, give us a chance to join the Axe Gang. We will be your horse and your dog, ready to do anything for you."
Li Xiu knew that Sing's words were partly true and partly false. Although he pretended to be a member of the Axe Gang to extort more money, he also genuinely desired to join the gang and dreamed of becoming a powerful figure in the Shanghai underworld.
In the movie, after his pretense caused the Axe Gang to lose dozens of brothers, he was caught by brother Sum. His first reaction was not to beg for mercy, but to actually ask brother Sum to give him a chance to join the Axe Gang.
Later, when brother Sum told him that he could join the gang if he killed someone, he went through with his plan to kill the landlady. Although the knife ended up ricocheting off the wall and into his own shoulder, it's clear that he had the intention to kill.
Afterwards, Sing successfully joined the Axe Gang, but he didn't receive their respect.
The Axe Gang treated him like a dog and made Sing realize that his long-time dream was not as good or as happy as he had imagined.
Another dream and reality gap led to the reawakening of his conscience, and in the end, he turned against the Axe Gang at a critical moment.
Before this, Li Xiu had heard a saying that he found simple but also very reasonable.
A person does not do well in something because he is not interested in it, and he is not interested in it because he did not do well in it at first.
If Sing had joined the Axe Gang and had been able to get whatever he wanted, he would not have turned against them.
Never underestimate the corruption and change that fame, wealth, and women can have on a person, let alone someone like Sing who is on the brink of failure. And Li Xiu will push him to do so.
Li Xiu sat on the sofa seat with an inexplicable expression, and spoke softly: "Do you want to join the Axe Gang?"
...