Not far from the Emperor Foot Bath, a damp alleyway sat shrouded in gloom.
The streetlights flickered erratically, casting a glow that mirrored the ragged breathing of the man slumped against the base of the wall.
Babi had long since shed his usual arrogant swagger.
In its place were eyes filled with sheer terror and a face contorted in agony.
In this life of crime,
there always came a day when the debt had to be paid.
Every low-level gangster knew this truth in their bones.
Yet Babi never imagined that such a reckoning would befall him.
As he stared at the figure leaning against the utility pole, he recognized Yan Liang.
Yan was one of those sworn brothers to Liang Kun, just as he himself claimed to be.
Of course,
he knew full well the truth.
His own so-called brotherhood with Liang Kun was nothing more than an empty title.
While the bond between the man standing before him and Liang Kun was genuine brotherhood in the truest sense.
Even so, that realization could not extinguish Babi's desperate clinging to life.
"Liang, Liangzi, save me..."
"Don't you worry, Brother Babi, you aren't going to die just yet!"
With that, Yan Liang's tone shifted abruptly. "But Brother Babi, we really need to talk about those twenty million you owe my boss, don't you think?"
Already wracked with excruciating pain, Babi felt his eyes roll back at the words.
He was in this bloody state, yet the bastard was still bringing up outstanding debts?
Was this any time for that?
Still, Babi dared not argue too much under the circumstances. Money was wonderful, but it was no match for his life.
Swallowing his agonizing pain, he forced himself to speak:
"I'll pay Liang Kun the twenty million, I swear. Just get me to a hospital, Liangzi, and I..."
"No rush."
Yan Liang raised a hand to cut Babi off, then continued,
"I have a little quirk of my own—I never release the hawk until I see the rabbit."
"Besides, I don't care much for empty flattery. I prefer hard facts!"
Hearing this,
Babi, who had always fancied himself a hardened criminal, found his mind going completely blank.
Hell,
he was still bleeding profusely for crying out loud! Was this really the time to be saying such things?
Yet he was currently a fish on the chopping board and had no choice but to bow his head. Gritting his teeth against the dizzying waves of nausea, he gasped out:
"My, my office is just nearby. There is cash in the safe..."
A few minutes later,
Li Fengtian hauled Babi—whose waist was still leaking blood—into the latter's office, where he proceeded to root through the safe and haul out over thirty million in cash.
"Holy crap!
This bastard cries poor outside every single day, who'd have thought he was hoarding so much cash!"
Yan Liang's eyes widened in sheer disbelief.
Though upon second thought, it made sense.
Even though Babi put on an act of being broke and defaulted on his debts everywhere he went, he was still knee-deep in the drug trade.
If you asked what business was most lucrative in Hong Kong's current climate, trafficking was unquestionably at the top of the list.
"Liang, Liangzi... can you take me to the hospital now?"
Seeing his life savings swept completely into Zhang Liang's duffel bag, Babi felt his heart bleed.
Of course, his body was bleeding just as heavily.
At this point, his only hope was that Yan Liang would take pity on him for the sake of the money and haul him off for medical treatment.
Yet he vastly overestimated the moral standards of a triad hoodlum.
As those final words left his lips, Yan Liang simply shook his head:
"Brother Babi, I'm afraid you're beyond saving!"
"Still, considering all this cash, the least I can do is have Old Li arrange a premium funeral package for you!"
With that,
Yan Liang smiled.
Yet that smile, which he fancied as warm and considerate, looked to Babi like the grin of a demon.
The only reason Babi didn't wet himself on the spot was because the blood had already drained from his extremities.
With eyes bulging in absolute terror, Babi shook his head back and forth like a rattle-drum:
"No, no, don't kill me..."
"We're all good brothers with Liang Kun..."
*Bang—*
The pleas for mercy were cut abruptly short as Li Fengtian's brick slammed squarely into the back of Babi's head.
Bright red blood spurted out like an arrow, rapidly soaking the pristine floorboards.
Even Yan Liang, standing right beside them, was caught off guard.
"Hey, hey, hey... Old Li..."
"You move way too fast! I was still hoping to squeeze him for any other hidden stash spots!"
Watching Babi twitch and shudder on the verge of kicking the bucket, Yan Liang wore an expression of utter helplessness.
What a waste!
He could probably have squeezed a bit more oil out of the rag, but now he had to let it go.
"The bloke wouldn't stop yapping and drove me nuts. Who would've thought he was such a lightweight?"
An innocent look crossed Li Fengtian's knife-scarred face, and he swore to the heavens that he hadn't used his full strength with that blow.
Since the man was already done for, there was nothing more for Yan Liang to dwell upon.
Besides, the haul was already far beyond initial expectations.
Even after handing fifteen million over to Liang Kun, he would still pocket nearly twenty million for himself, combined with what he had managed to squirrel away recently...
He was about to make a small fortune!
"Alright!
Dead is dead!
Have your men clean up the body, I'm heading out!"
With Babi dead, there was no reason for Yan Liang to linger. Leaving the cleanup to Li Fengtian, he summoned a couple of men and headed back to Mong Kok with the cash.
Don't let Li Fengtian's appearance as a washed-up street thug fool you; the man actually had a steady day job.
His old line of work—cremator!
With that background, disposing of matters that Yan Liang needed handled became vastly easier.
After all, bodies dumped in the ocean always ran the risk of floating back up.
But once Li Fengtian worked his magic, the person truly vanished without a trace, leaving neither body nor bones behind.
...
Mong Kok,
Qiankun International Film Company,
*Bang—*
"You... fuck me, you actually got the money back?!"
Liang Kun stared with bulging eyes at the sack of cash tossed right in front of him, his raspy voice thick with sheer disbelief.
You have to understand,
he had personally gone to Babi's door numerous times demanding that twenty million.
Using every trick in the book, he hadn't managed to squeeze a single cent out of the guy.
Who would have thought that a mental case like Yan Liang would actually pull it off...
How could he not be utterly shocked?
Then, a horrifying thought flashed through his mind regarding the pack of maniacs under Yan Liang's command, and his face drained of color.
"You didn't go and off Babi, did you...?"
"Sorry, Boss. By the time I reached Brother Babi, he was already chopped to pieces by Chan Ho-nam and his crew.
I suppose he felt guilty toward you and was afraid he wouldn't rest in peace, so he paid off the debt before kicking the bucket.
As for the man himself...
all resuscitation efforts failed.
Old Li probably scattered his ashes to the winds by now!"
*Hiss—*
What kind of insane nonsense was this?
Even a man as ruthless as Liang Kun couldn't help drawing a sharp breath upon hearing those words.
And Sha Qiang, standing right there in the office, felt his eyes go completely crossed!
Holy crap!
His boss's sworn brother was out of his mind!
Not only did he kill the guy, but he scattered his ashes too?
Too dangerous, far too dangerous to mess with!
"You are one shady bastard!"
After a long moment, Liang Kun finally recovered from his shock.
He thought to himself that it was fortunate Yan Liang was his childhood best friend and partner in crime; otherwise, who knew? Maybe one day his own ashes would end up scattered by the guy.
Damn it!
A few years ago, this kid Yan Liang had been a law-abiding citizen. How had he turned out even crazier than him in recent years?
If there was anyone left in this world whom Liang Kun could truly trust, it was undoubtedly Yan Liang.
After all, decades of brotherhood lay between them, and neither would ever sell the other out no matter what.
That was why Liang Kun trusted Yan Liang unconditionally.
And that was also why, ever since crossing over into this world, Yan Liang had willingly stayed under Liang Kun's wing to quietly build his strength.
"Tonight's my treat, the Grand Capital is booked out for a celebration..."
"Hold on, hold on,"
Liang Kun started, only to be cut off mid-sentence by Yan Liang.
"Scratch the Grand Capital buyout. With that kind of money, you might as well just cash it out and hand it to me!"
"Screw your mother!"
Hearing that, Liang Kun cursed on reflex before snapping, "Are you out of your damn mind, kid?
Why do you always have to kill the mood?"
"Can't do it this time!"
Yan Liang shook his head with a grin.
Are you kidding me?
He still had to go home and get ready for a single draw redemption; why would he waste time hanging out at the Grand Capital with a bunch of dead-end mobsters?
With that kind of time, heading home for a lottery draw sounded much better!
Thinking of this, Yan Liang grew even more impatient. Without a second thought, he turned around,
"Alright, Boss. If you won't cash it out, take the boys yourself!
Consider this round my treat!"
Without giving Liang Kun a single chance to reply, Yan Liang opened the door and walked out...
Your treat?
Using my money?!
Liang Kun stared at the slowly closing door, completely dumbfounded.
Watching their boss standing there awkwardly frozen, Sha Qiang and the others in the office felt equally uneasy.
Though incidents like this happened from time to time, this was happening right in front of them—and heaven only knew if Liang Kun would take out his frustration on them.
Fortunately, the dread they felt didn't materialize. Liang Kun just stood there stunned for a moment before muttering a curse and storming off.
"Damn it! What a piece of work!"