After entering the city, the two of them leaped across rooftops on their way.
Before long, they arrived at a luxurious and imposing courtyard.
As they landed, several guards immediately surrounded them.
"Who dares to trespass into the residence of the leader of the Yellow Sand Gang?" The leader of the guards sternly rebuked.
Jiang Heng paid no attention to them and casually dropped the middle-aged man to the ground.
The middle-aged man quickly got up, glared at the leader of the guards, and shouted, "Get out of my way!"
Several guards were about to get angry, but when they saw the face of the middle-aged man, they were suddenly shocked.
"Leader Wan?"
They had never expected that Leader Wan, who was usually so domineering and fierce, would one day be in such a miserable situation.
He was being held like a chick in the hands of a young man covered in blood.
"Wait! The clothing of that young man..."
"He's a disciple of the Dalu Sect!"
Jiang Heng's clothing was already stained with blood, and without careful inspection, no one had noticed the Dalu Sect emblem on his clothes.
Although they didn't know what had happened between Leader Wan and this Dalu Sect disciple, the guards didn't dare to ask further questions and quickly bowed and stepped back.
"Let's go! Retrieve it!" Jiang Heng's indifferent voice resounded.
Leader Wan, the middle-aged man, shivered involuntarily, about to take a step, but then hesitated.
"Sir, if I hand over the Fire Cloud Iron Mother, can you spare my life?"
Facing death earlier, his mind was in chaos, but now that he had calmed down, he naturally wanted to fight for a chance to survive.
Otherwise, why would he hand over the Fire Cloud Iron Mother?
"Hand it over, and I'll turn you over to the sect for judgment."
"Don't hand it over, and I'll kill your entire family and ransack your residence."
"You can choose one."
Leader Wan's heart sank.
He knew that at this point, his act of attacking the Dalu Sect's guards had undoubtedly been exposed. If he fell into the hands of the Dalu Sect, there was only one path: death.
But if he didn't cooperate, judging by the young man's actions, he might actually harm his family.
And as for the Fire Cloud Iron Mother, it would eventually be seized by the Dalu Sect after a thorough search. At most, it would take a bit more time.
"Very well, I'll take you."
Leader Wan's heart felt as cold as ashes, and his expression was dim.
He led Jiang Heng to his study, took out a wooden box from a concealed compartment, and retrieved the Fire Cloud Iron Mother from it.
It was a palm-sized piece of green metal with a substance inside that flowed slowly like red clouds, resembling a living creature.
Jiang Heng took it.
The moment he touched it, he felt a tremendous rush of heat flowing into his palm.
The sensation was akin to holding a blazing flame, but even if it were real flames, Jiang Heng's physique had a high resistance, allowing him to handle it without issue.
"It's truly remarkable. There's no sense of scorching heat in the air, but as soon as the body comes into contact, it releases a massive amount of thermal energy."
Jiang Heng observed the Fire Cloud Iron Mother for a while, then placed it back in the wooden box.
He sat in the chair behind the desk and suddenly looked at Leader Wan.
"Leader Wan, right? What's the cultivation level of your family members?"
Leader Wan widened his eyes and angrily said, "Didn't I willingly hand over the Fire Cloud Iron Mother? What more do you want?"
Jiang Heng remained calm and said with a smile, "Don't get angry. I'm just asking. Please answer my question."
Leader Wan fell silent for a moment and replied in a low voice, "My two sons aren't doing anything worthwhile, and their talent in cultivation is average. They've only reached the Fleshly Realm."
"How about your family wealth?"
Although he didn't understand why Jiang Heng was asking, he had to answer, "As the leader of the largest gang in Chuanjiang City, our family wealth is naturally substantial."
"Do you have any enemies?"
Leader Wan hesitated for a moment, then seemed to recall something, and his face turned ugly.
While he didn't answer directly, Jiang Heng could see the response and said softly, "Vast wealth, shallow cultivation, and enemies, probably more than one..."
"After you leave, how long do you think they'll survive?"
Leader Wan shivered all over, and sweat poured down his face.
After a long time, he barely calmed down, looked at Jiang Heng sitting there, took a deep breath, and asked:
"Sir, what do you want me to do? Please, tell me straight."
Jiang Heng sighed lightly and said, "I can't stand to see innocent people unjustly die, so I want to help you a little."
"You have too much wealth, which could attract hungry wolves. So, I can take it off your hands, eliminating these potential dangers."
Leader Wan was furious, but he listened as Jiang Heng continued:
"In addition, even if you don't have as much money, there are enemies targeting your family. So, I can help them relocate to another city for a quiet life."
"During this period, I will ensure their safety."
"What do you think?"
Leader Wan had completely regained his composure, and he nodded without hesitation, saying, "Good! I'll give you the money!"
He knew very well that with his two useless sons, they would never be able to safeguard such a vast fortune, and it might indeed bring them misfortune.
Moreover, Jiang Heng had offered to help relocate his family, which resolved his concerns for the future.
Regardless of whether what the other party said was trustworthy, for now, he had no choice but to believe it.
With Jiang Heng's guidance, Leader Wan retrieved an exquisite wooden box from a hidden compartment in another room.
Upon opening it, there was a large stack of one-thousand-liang silver notes issued by the Wantong Money House.
In this world, the universally accepted gold and silver notes were issued by the Wantong Money House, and they could be exchanged for currency in any dynasty or major city. This ensured their value, made them easy to conceal, and resistant to damage.
So, for large transactions, Wantong Money House's silver notes were commonly used.
Jiang Heng roughly counted the silver notes in his hand, and there were at least over a hundred of them, totaling more than ten thousand liang.
"Is this all the money?"
Jiang Heng frowned and looked at Leader Wan.
Although this amount of money already constituted a massive wealth, compared to Leader Wan's status as the leader of Chuanjiang City's largest gang, his wealth seemed somewhat lacking.
Was the underground leader of a major city worth only a little over a billion?
Leader Wan's face turned dark.
Had he stolen his money, only to be told it was too little?
But he dared not say such a thing. His family's safety still depended on the assistance of the other party.
He struggled to keep his expression calm and said, "Sir, I spend several thousand liang of silver every month on my cultivation, so I can't save up too much money."
"Add to that the daily expenses of a large family, and my two worthless sons squander money every day..."
At this point, Leader Wan's mood grew depressed.
"So, this is most of my savings."
Jiang Heng nodded and didn't inquire further.
"Let's go, I'll take you to see your family and make arrangements for their future."
As they walked out of the room, they happened to hear a commotion outside.
Jiang Heng's ears were keen, and he recognized the voice of Mi Wenjie. He immediately called out loudly:
"Junior Brother Mi, I'm over here!"