Daoba let out a shout, and a group of his lackeys swarmed forward.
Wu Hao charged into the fray, sending one man flying with every punch. In less than a minute, everyone lay on the ground, motionless. Daoba watched this scene, scared half to death. As one of Third Master Zhao’s men, he had seen plenty of tough fighters in his line of work, but he had never encountered anyone as formidable as Wu Hao.
"Call Third Master Zhao and tell him to get over here. Otherwise, I’ll end you!"
As Wu Hao walked steadily toward him, a trembling Daoba pulled out his phone and dialed Third Master Zhao’s number.
"Hello?" a deep voice came from the other end.
Daoba stammered, "Third Master, it’s bad. Something happened at the card room. Someone broke in, beat up all our brothers, and said he wants to see you. If you don't come, he's going to kill me!"
Meanwhile, Third Master Zhao was sipping tea in his courtyard. Upon hearing this, he stood up immediately. "How dare he beat my men! I’m heading over there right now!"
After hanging up, his second son, Zhao Quan, stepped forward and asked, "Dad, what happened?"
Third Master Zhao gave him a brief summary.
Zhao Quan speculated, "Do you think this has something to do with that bitch Liu Yafei?"
"I'm not sure yet. Let's go and see for ourselves."
Third Master Zhao wielded significant power in the area; he held many assets, but more importantly, he was well-connected to many influential figures. He immediately summoned over a dozen men and drove straight to the card room. When they arrived, everyone’s jaws dropped.
"Damn it, who has the guts to do this?" Zhao Quan cursed. When they stepped inside, they saw Daoba kneeling on the floor, while Wu Hao sat in a chair, calmly drinking tea.
"You're here." Wu Hao looked sullen.
Third Master Zhao walked in, grinding his teeth. "Brother, what circle do you run in? I, Zhao Laosan, haven't provoked you, have I?"
"Heh, your son was kicked into a useless heap by me, and you sent people to threaten my front door with paint. You haven't provoked me?"
Third Master Zhao narrowed his eyes. "So it's you. Who exactly are you?"
Wu Hao stood up. "I am Ms. Liu's husband. Your grandson bullies my son every day. You need to give me an explanation for this!"
"You bastard!" Zhao Quan could no longer hold back. "You kicked my brother into a useless heap and injured our men, and now you want me to give you an explanation? Listen, kid, don't be ungrateful. Kneel down right now and break one of your own arms, and we’ll call it even. Otherwise, I’ll make sure you die here today!"
Wu Hao looked at Zhao Quan. "If you want me to die here, we'll see if you have the capability to pull it off."
"You arrogant brat, still talking tough? I want to see just how much ability you really have!" Zhao Quan cursed and lunged forward, ready to attack.
Before he could react, Wu Hao reached out, grabbed his head, and with a casual flick, snapped his arm.
"Ah!!!" With a pained scream, Wu Hao tossed him aside.
Third Master Zhao panicked; he hadn't expected this kid to be so ruthless.
"Does anyone else want to try?" Wu Hao looked calmly at the group, but not a single person dared to rush forward.
Fearing the situation would escalate, Third Master Zhao roared at the men behind him, "What are you standing there for? Get him!"
The men, spurred by Third Master Zhao's command, charged forward, only to be struck down by Wu Hao as well. Third Master Zhao’s heart turned ice-cold.
Wu Hao walked toward him, and he kept retreating. "You… what do you want?"
*Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!*
Wu Hao flicked his wrist, and several silver needles pierced Third Master Zhao’s body.
"Ah!!!" With a miserable scream, Third Master Zhao collapsed to the ground, writhing in agony.
"From now on, you will live a life worse than death. Behave yourself in Longshui District."
Leaving behind those simple words, Wu Hao turned and walked away. As for Third Master Zhao, he lay on the ground, rolling around, feeling as if countless venomous insects were biting his entire body. It was excruciating. This was the unique technique Wu Hao had unleashed: the "Ten Thousand Insect Needles." Anyone pierced by them was finished for life, as the pain would make them wish they were dead.
***
After leaving the card room, Wu Hao pulled out his phone and dialed his fourth senior sister. When he had come down from the mountain, his master hadn't given him anything, and now that he was out in the world, everything required money. He wanted his fourth sister to send him some funds.
However, when he dialed the number, it couldn't connect.
*Damn it!*
Wu Hao felt frustrated. He tried calling his other senior sisters, but none of them answered. What was going on? He cursed the heavens, then suddenly remembered his master telling him to temper himself in the mortal world before he left. Could it be that his master intended for him to rely on himself? It truly lived up to the old saying: "Relying on heaven and earth is not as good as relying on oneself!"
Wu Hao sighed and accepted reality. Fortunately, he possessed great skills, so why couldn't he make a living? He decided to earn a few million to buy a house for his wife and child.
He began to wonder how he could make money. He walked through the bustling city for a while, but couldn't find any job that would pay well. Just as he felt hopeless, he noticed a news headline on his phone: "Bai Jinhai, Head of the Bai Family in Hecheng, suffers from a critical illness... 5 million reward for a cure?"
*No way!*
Wu Hao’s eyes lit up, and he immediately hailed a taxi.
"Young man, where to?"
"The Bai residence!"
One hour later, in the Jinhe Villa District of Hecheng, Wu Hao arrived at the main gate of the Bai family mansion. Just as he stepped out of the car, a white-haired old man walked out, and their eyes met.
"Hey, hey, hey! Old man, old man!" Wu Hao stopped him.
The old man frowned. "Who are you calling an old man? I'm only thirty years old!"
"What? Thirty?" Wu Hao looked at him and immediately corrected himself, "Brother, are you here to treat the head of the Bai family?"
"That's right!"
Wu Hao asked again, "What exactly is wrong with him, and have you cured him yet?"
The man shook his head, then asked suspiciously, "And what do you do?"
"I'm here to treat him too."
"You?" The man sized Wu Hao up and chuckled. "Young man, let me tell you, the head of the Bai family has a strange illness. It's been a month, and they've searched for the world's most famous physicians to no avail. Even I, the eighteenth-generation successor of Gurentang, Zhang Zhongshan, have no solution. What could you possibly do? Tell me the truth—you're just here for the five million, aren't you? Take my advice: if you're doing this for money, leave quickly. That five million isn't easy to take."
"Why so much chatter? I asked what the illness was, not for a long-winded speech," Wu Hao retorted. Ignoring Zhang Zhongshan, he turned and pressed the doorbell of the Bai villa.