It was approaching evening. A black sedan sped towards Jiangsu Province. Yang Yi sat inside, silent, his thoughts undoubtedly weighty, certainly nothing trivial. After all... tonight was destined to be a remarkable night. It wasn't just Yang Yi who knew this in the car; everyone understood. The Black Dragon Society was sending ninjas tonight, their target clearly the Black God Gang's branch in Jiangsu. Consequently, the atmosphere inside was tense.

"Child, return to me only when you feel your life is threatened, child... when you..." That old man's strange voice echoed in Yang Yi's mind again. He shook his head forcefully, a flicker of confusion crossing his eyes.

He thought grimly, Why has this voice been surfacing so often lately, and growing stronger? Am I about to encounter something terrible? Yet, the present moment seemed to forbid him from dwelling on it further.

"Boss, what's wrong?" Xu Ming, noticing Yang Yi's sudden head shake, asked with concern.

"Hm?" Yang Yi responded, offering a faint smile. "I'm fine!"

"Are you worried about tonight?" Xu Ming inquired, glancing at Yang Yi, who was now resting his cheek in his hand, a slight smile on his face.

Lin Pangzi and Ye Xiaohou looked over at Yang Yi when they heard this. Though each had their own thoughts, their ultimate goal was the same—they were brothers, after all.

"Heh heh!" Yang Yi laughed again. Seeing the worried expressions on the faces of the three men, he said, "Don't forget, we are rascals. The world is vast; nothing can defeat us. Tonight might be a bit dangerous, but don't forget the main thing: just protect yourselves first."

"Haha!" "Haha!"

Hearing Yang Yi say this, the three of them burst into hearty laughter, followed by a round of playful teasing and banter that filled the time in the car.

At the Jiangsu headquarters of the Black God Gang, Zhou Hu was already implementing the plan Yang Yi had laid out. To prevent various branches from being ambushed by the Black Dragon Society, the Black God Guards brought over from City A, along with the high-ranking and low-ranking members, had all been dispersed across the different local branches.

However, only the Thirty-Six Heavenly Spirits and Seventy-Two Earthly Fiends remained at this main branch headquarters, along with about a hundred Black God Guards. Though the numbers seemed low, their collective strength was far from lacking.

"Sigh, tonight feels like it will be long. Ming'er, though I don't know if Father's actions today will allow you to live, I don't regret them. If you are still in this world, I hope the Dragon Lord will rescue you so you can live a normal life with your father," Zhou Hu kept thinking. As long as Yang Yi wiped out the Black Dragon Society in Huaxia, he could formally retire. He seemed utterly confident in Yang Yi's abilities.

"Black Master, the Lord sent me with these words for you," a figure, clad entirely in black, clearly a Shadow Ninja, stated. He knelt respectfully behind the Black Master and spoke.

"Good... I understand," the Black Master replied emotionlessly, then continued, "You may go. Tell those who are ready to wait for me outside!"

"Yes!" The shadow vanished from the room.

"Black Society, Black Society. Black God Gang, Black God Gang. You two factions... I originally planned to slowly erode the Black Society, but you didn't cherish the chance. And as for you, Black God Gang, hmph, since you have incurred my wrath today, I will not let you go easily," the Black Master muttered to himself, a cruel glint in his eyes.

With that, his expression hardened, a deep shadow settling on his lips. He turned, walked to the far corner of the room, looked at the long katana resting there, stroked its scabbard, and then headed towards the doorway.

"Young Master, we have arrived," Feng Shi announced as he pulled the car into the distribution center's parking area.

"En," Yang Yi responded, turning to Lin Pangzi and the others. "Let's go. I want to introduce you to someone."

"—Alright—" Lin Pangzi and the others agreed.

"Steward Zhou, Steward Zhou!" a middle-aged man called out as he rushed into Zhou Hu's office.

Because Yang Yi had temporarily entrusted Zhou Hu with managing all the Black God Gang branches in Jiangsu, he was given the title of Steward. While he shared the title with Han Zhong, Han Zhong clearly held greater authority, which was undeniable.

"What is it?" Zhou Hu asked, setting down some documents.

"The Dragon Lord is here," the middle-aged man reported.

"Oh? Quickly! Escort me to welcome the Dragon Lord," Zhou Hu startled, quickly standing up and saying as he walked out.

"Yes!" ...

In less than a moment, Yang Yi, having just arrived in the main hall, spotted Zhou Hu and smiled. "Uncle Zhou!"

"Dragon Lord, my apologies for the late welcome!" Zhou Hu said, his face tight with formality.

"Heh heh, Uncle Zhou, don't be so constrained. Just treat it like meeting friends normally."

"Yes, Dragon Lord."

Seeing Zhou Hu remain so nervous, Yang Yi smiled again. "Come, Uncle Zhou, let me introduce you to my three sworn brothers." He gestured toward Lin Pangzi. "This is Lin Pangzi, Ye Xiaohou, and Xu Ming."

"Gentlemen, it is my first time meeting you; please forgive my lack of manners," Zhou Hu said, cupping his hands in greeting.

In Zhou Hu's view, this was the most polite way to greet them. Lin Pangzi and the others smiled politely and told Zhou Hu, "We'll call you Uncle Zhou too, just like Brother Yi, since you are indeed older than us."

"Very well. You all possess remarkable spirit, and as the Dragon Lord's sworn brothers, your future accomplishments must be extraordinary," Zhou Hu smiled back, and they quickly warmed up to each other.

"By the way, Uncle Zhou, is everything prepared?" Yang Yi asked with a smile.

"Everything has been prepared according to the Dragon Lord's instructions. Would you like to see the arrangements, Dragon Lord?" Zhou Hu inquired.

"No need... I trust your capability in handling matters, Uncle Zhou." Yang Yi gave a faint smile, glanced at Lin Pangzi and the others, and then deliberately asked, "I have a few things to give you all. Do you want them?"

"—Uh—"

The three froze simultaneously, then cautiously asked, "What are you giving us?"

Zhou Hu, catching the subtle cue, smiled serenely. "Gentlemen, please follow me."

"Let's go. You'll find out what I'm giving you shortly," Yang Yi said.

"Oh!" the three responded.

It wasn't long before they arrived at a rather dim room. Upon opening the door, Zhou Hu pressed the light switch.

"Holy crap!" Except for Yang Yi, the three of them all cried out in shock, then immediately strode forward, gathering around a table inspecting three rectangular boxes. Each was nearly half a meter long, and although their wrapping was simple, they exuded an oppressive feeling.

"Boss, what is this? Why do I feel this sense of pressure just looking at it?" Xu Ming approached a box, examined it, and asked.

"Heh heh, why don't you open one and see for yourself?" Yang Yi chuckled.

"Okay!" Xu Ming agreed, unhurriedly opening the box.

"Holy crap—!" Another curse; it seemed these guys were quite fond of exclamations.

"Stop with the cursing. These are the armaments I'm gifting you," Yang Yi said with a smile.

Inside each rectangular box were six small throwing knives, a dagger, and a sword. The hilt had layered detailing, but the end where it connected to the blade featured a thin sheet of metal. The sword looked like a rectangular blade; if you hadn't seen the tip, you'd mistake it for a simple knife.

Xu Ming, unable to contain his curiosity about the strange sword, picked up the hilt. The blade remained resting in the box. Clearly, it was a soft sword.

"Boss, how do you use a sword that's so floppy?" Xu Ming asked what seemed like a very foolish question.

Yang Yi shook his head speechless, gesturing toward the other man. "Look at Pangzi!"

"Swish!" "Swish!" "Swish!"

With an odd sound, Lin Pangzi held up his half-meter soft sword. With a slight tremor of his body, the entire blade stood perfectly upright and rigid.

"Brother Yi, this is a fine sword," Lin Pangzi asked, clearly excited.

"I'm glad you like it. There's also a mechanism near the hilt; press it, and you'll see," Yang Yi told Lin Pangzi, ignoring Xu Ming's dumbfounded expression.

"Oh... this good?" Following Yang Yi's instruction, Lin Pangzi pressed the button connecting the hilt to the blade. "Click, click!" Another set of strange sounds followed, enough to stun Xu Ming and Ye Xiaohou standing by.

As Lin Pangzi pressed the button, the blade began to retract continuously, layer by layer, coiling neatly back into the hilt.

"Doesn't it look like a harmonica?" Yang Yi was quite impressed by the design. When Han Zhong had first shown it to him, it had startled him too. Although the design was simple, it was highly practical.

"This is excellent! It's incredibly convenient for carrying around," Lin Pangzi exclaimed in amazement.

But where Lin Pangzi was amazed, someone else wore a sour face. "Boss, aren't you testing my skills? How can I possibly master this?"

"I'll kick your ass! You're not pulling your weight. Look at Fourth Brother," Yang Yi snapped, rolling his eyes at him.

And as Yang Yi pointed out, Ye Xiaohou seemed to control the soft sword with relative ease. "Haha, Boss, just ignore Third Brother. That guy always slacks off during training, making me take the punishment every time with him."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to," Lin Pangzi quickly apologized, fearing Ye Xiaohou was about to spill more secrets and stopping his urge to continue.

"The six throwing knives and one dagger are spares for you. This soft sword is your real weapon. It's not just convenient; it will constantly train you. After all, truly mastering this soft sword takes considerable time. Since you can all hold them now, when the fighting starts later, don't embarrass me. If you can't use the sword, use the dagger," Yang Yi’s words seemed directed pointedly at Xu Ming.

"Haha, Third Brother will definitely need time to master it."

"Damn, what's that supposed to mean?" Xu Ming felt miserable inside; he knew exactly what his limits were. But to save a little face, he challenged Yang Yi, "Boss, what about your weapon?"

"Heh heh, don't worry. My weapon is the same as yours, except my soft sword is half a meter longer than yours," Yang Yi said with a calm smile.

"Damn, you're all monsters." After saying that, Xu Ming turned to look at his own weapon box, his expression quite gloomy.