Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

"Your previous attacks, without incurring any cost, have severely damaged their pride."

"Conversely, Mason was unwilling to let Angelo become the sole ruler. But after all, he had been developing for many years and was deeply rooted. Mason was unaware of which forces the Italian gang was colluding with. Before you appeared, he was only making small, incremental progress, silently fighting against Angelo, this local tyrant."

"Because of your involvement, many contradictions have been revealed. Mason is certainly on your side, as evidenced by his participation as a member of the jury. His presence at least ensures that the trial will not end in an absurd ostracism."

The power struggle that has lasted for years is about to reach its final moment.

----

Zhang Renfeng has never been particularly interested in games of power and intrigue.

Heaven has opened one door for him, and naturally it closes another window; he's never been interested in these kinds of things. Otherwise, he wouldn't have had to commit the horse attack on his homeland and then embark on a cross-sea escape.

"Thanks to the lawyer's silver tongue, they resorted to this tactic after failing to gain an advantage in court. Everyone with a conflict of interest with Angelo has come forward, and the list is long enough to include them all."

"If, and I mean if, you also have any thoughts about this incredibly wealthy city..."

……

Zhang Renfeng stopped speaking.

There seemed to be a flame flickering in his eyes.

Chapter 248: I've long since passed that stage

"Mr. Mattley, is it really necessary to..."

The boy stood in front of the back door of the theater, holding a bottle of modified liquor in his hand, his expression practically screaming "resistance."

But in such a situation, he had no right to refuse. In fact, before today, he had always been an insignificant nobody.

There are many people like him in the Italian gang, who are unknown but have indeed joined the gang.

When a fight was needed, they charged ahead, sweating and bleeding for the gang; when it came to sharing the spoils, Angelo ate the meat, his subordinates gnawed on the bones, and the remaining soup was subject to layers of exploitation, leaving them with only a few mouthfuls.

But just thinking about the immense power of the Italians, and that they themselves are part of it, these tiny, insignificant members will proudly raise their heads.

They always believed that they could start from the bottom, like Guido Matthias, and if they did well and remained loyal, they would be promoted all the way up and eventually become the Italians' confidants.

However, what was not seen was that when Guido joined, the Italian gang was vying for territory with other forces, in other words, it was a time when they needed manpower.

With the various factions gradually stabilizing, there are no longer many high-ranking positions left for them. Many people believe that becoming a gang member means being carefree and unrestrained, not bound by any city rules, and able to do whatever they want. This is not the case. When gang orders are passed down through an invisible hierarchical structure, layer by layer, there is virtually no room for overturning them.

The boy's hands trembled slightly as so many eyes watched him.

"What's your name again? I forgot."

“Kemi, Mr. Mattley.”

“Very well, Kemi.” Guido looked at him coldly. “You should know what happens to those who betray their gang, right?”

He lifted his black trench coat, revealing a long-handled revolver tucked into his belt. "Now, the gang needs you, more than ever before."

"But, but..."

“Imagine,” Guido interrupted him, speaking in an extremely firm tone, “that Mr. Angelo will be very pleased that you have accomplished this arduous task. He always repays kindness, it’s the same for everyone.”

"You will no longer be an insignificant nobody, but his right-hand man, because you did what no one else dared to do in the most critical moment."

“I’ll be sent to prison. So many people have been burned to death. I… I will…” Kemi’s voice trembled. “I won’t even need a trial. I’ll be sent to the gallows, Mr. Mattley.”

“No, you won’t. Mr. Angelo has connections in the courts, connections in the police department, and this city is his. There’s only one situation in which you’ll be sent to the gallows.” Guido half-squatted down, patted his shoulder, and forced a sinister smile, “that is when you defy his will and betray his kindness.”

"..." Kemi shuddered, biting her lip too hard, until it turned bluish-purple.

“Tell me, Kemi…”

"Are you going to go against the Italians' wishes?"

Kemi jolted awake and immediately shook her head like a rattle-drum.

“Very good.” Guido patted his shoulder hard twice, his eyes cold. “You know what to do.”

----

Evelyn sat blankly in front of the dressing table, staring at her reflection in the mirror without saying a word or doing her makeup; her eyes were somewhat vacant.

"It will be our turn to go on stage soon." Zhu Kuilong knocked on the door, his expression calm, and said softly, "As is customary, you are always the first to go on stage. If there are any special circumstances, I can talk to the theater staff to cancel your performance. I will perform five more new magic tricks as a substitute to fill the time."

Upon hearing this, Evelyn's first reaction was disbelief, and she turned to look at him in great surprise.

Wait, buddy, there's a new trick?

She didn't know much about magic, but she knew that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, few in the world could surpass the magician before her. Despite all the events that had transpired these past few days, he hadn't missed a single performance. He seemed to possess some magical switch, completely separating the emotions of those on and off stage.

No matter what happens offstage, it doesn't affect his composure onstage, which wins him a standing ovation.

“I’ll be there for the performance on time,” Evelyn pouted, sounding a little disgruntled. “You don’t seem worried at all…”

"On the contrary, I'm quite curious," Zhu Kuilong said expressionlessly. "You two are not related, so why are you worried about him?"

Evelyn stopped talking, her cheeks flushed slightly, and chose to lie on the dressing table without uttering a word.

Having lived for over forty years and traveled the world, how could Zhu Kuilong not see through the girl's thoughts? But he didn't comment on it, only saying, "If I were you, I wouldn't waste this time."

“That’s a prison!” Evelyn murmured. “Besides, the people in this city have always been hostile towards him. Maybe… they’ll kill him in prison. I’ve heard stories like that before.”

“Although I would love for him to rot in prison, unfortunately, that won’t happen. This guy is very afraid of dying.” Zhu Kuilong’s tone was quite calm. “He’ll even run away from the execution ground.”

"At the very least, it should be a binding device of the level of the [Eight-Point Sealing Tortoise Shell Lock], sealing all the acupoints on his body so that he cannot use hard qigong. Then, tie his two arms with iron chains, with a hundred-pound boulder hanging from each end to exhaust his strength. Throw him to the bottom of the tower, and then have more than a hundred people guard him in shifts day and night to ensure that he does not escape."

"The people here have greatly underestimated his danger. A pair of handcuffs and a few iron bars are not enough to restrain him. He can come out of there anytime he wants."

Evelyn's eyes gradually brightened, and a smile appeared on the girl's face when she heard that everything was under control.

"Boss Zhu, what are you doing?" Qiu Yun passed by the backstage area and knocked on the door as well. Seeing the scene, she let out a drawn-out "Ah~~" and teased with a smile, "What's wrong with this little girl? Are you worried about him?"

"Aren't you worried?" Zhu Kuilong asked in return. "You seem completely unconcerned about this."

"Ha, I've long since passed that stage." Qiu Yun waved her hand, laughing freely, with a kind of calm madness after seeing through life and death. "Whether you're worried or not, if it were useful, we wouldn't be here."

In the end, he is still himself and will not become someone else because of our worries.

Zhu Kuilong nodded, deeply agreeing.

Just as he was about to say something, a bullet suddenly shot out from a crack in the wall and shattered the mirror in front of Evelyn with a crash!

Chapter 249: You're already dead, you just haven't realized it yet (Part 2)

assassin? !

"Get down!"

Zhu Kuilong let out a sharp shout, his mind racing, but he still couldn't figure out what the shot meant. If the Italian gang wanted revenge, why did it miss?

He increasingly felt that the threat posed by guns was not to be underestimated.

In this country, almost everyone carries a gun on their belt, but most people don't use it. They treat it like a sword, a cold weapon used to intimidate when drawn.

In fact, its real threat lies in places that are out of sight—someone may be aiming at it from a great distance, while the person being targeted may not even realize the danger until a bullet pierces their brain.

"Boom!"

He kicked open the backstage door and rushed into the corridor, but the gunman was nowhere to be seen. The corridor was strangely empty; there wasn't a soul in sight.

"How could this be..." Zhu Kuilong wondered to himself, "The bullet came from this direction, there should be no mistake."

"boom!"

The second bullet whistled past and struck the wall about three inches above his head. If Zhu Kuilong had been somewhat confused before, he was now certain that his opponent wasn't after him. On the contrary, the opponent intended to lure him somewhere and, incidentally, demonstrate his unbelievably skillful marksmanship.

Instead of rushing forward, he dug the bullet out of the wall and held it in his hand.

“Revolver bullets, what the hell…” Zhu Kuilong muttered, “The range of this kind of gun should only be a few dozen meters.”

In other words, if it really was a revolver that fired the shot, then he should have seen the gunman when he rushed out from backstage.

But now, looking at the empty corridor, he still couldn't see anyone, only a bullet hole in the wall not far away.

The bullet came in from the outside.

"boom!"

As if to urge him on, the person outside fired another shot. This time, the bullet hit the floor, only about three inches from his toes. Zhu Kuilong pondered for a moment, then, without further hesitation, strode forward and pushed open the back door of the theater.

A fourth gunshot rang out, accompanied by an extremely tragic wail.

"Ah! Ah—!!!"

He saw a boy, a young man in the truest sense of the word, clutching his leg and screaming in agony. The fourth bullet had pierced his calf, and blood gushed out instantly. A bottle wrapped in cotton and filled with alcohol fell to the ground, its body slightly cracked, but the other end of the cotton was already burning!

Zhu Kuilong's expression changed. He knew the power of fire and the terrible chain reaction that would occur if a fire were lit in this wooden theater.

One minute.

It might not even take a minute before the flames engulf everything, leaving no time to escape.

"hiss……"

He conjured a basin of water and extinguished the burning cotton, his sympathy for the boy before him quickly cooling down.

"I wonder who this master is who helped me?" Zhu Kuilong looked around, gathered his strength, and said loudly, "The grace of saving my life is a great grace! You saved my life, please show yourself and let us talk!"

……

After a brief silence, he saw a figure on the rooftop. The figure was slender and tall, wearing a fitted black trench coat and a top hat befitting an English gentleman, looking quite refined. Most intriguing were his eyes, one blue and one turquoise. In the blue pupil, a strange golden halo, like a rising sun, encircled the iris.

Looking into their eyes, it's as if you can glimpse a corner of paradise through those wondrous eyes.

He stood on the rooftop, the cold wind billowing his black trench coat like a mysterious flag. He made no response to Zhu Kuilong's call, simply removing his hat, bowing, taking two steps back, and then disappearing completely from his sight.

“Interesting, really interesting…” Zhu Kuilong was clearly shocked and murmured, “The world is indeed vast and full of wonders.”

Although he didn't know who the person was or why they saved him, those angelic eyes were firmly etched in his heart and he couldn't shake them off.

When he turned around and faced the assassin who had failed in his arson attempt, Zhu Kuilong's expression turned cold.

"No...no! Sir, you can't kill me..." Ignoring the pain, Kemi curled up and pleaded, "I don't want this, I was forced, forced!"

“They were forced to burn me, along with the theater’s employees, actors, and audience members, a total of 150 people.”

Zhu Kuilong flicked his right hand, revealing the gleaming Fish Intestine Sword, which he pressed against Kemi's throat. With barely any force, a gentle press was enough to draw blood from Kemi's flesh.

What grudge do I have against you?

“No, no, it wasn’t me who wanted to kill you… I just…” Kemi’s voice trembled, “I was just acting on behalf of someone else.”

Having said all that, Zhu Kuilong probably guessed what was going on.

He wasn't surprised by this scene. During their confrontation that day, he had realized that Guido Mateli was not a magnanimous person and would inevitably seek other opportunities for revenge. However, he underestimated the viciousness of this petty villain. It seemed that in order to achieve his goals, it was no big deal for him to involve many innocent people.

“I’m innocent too, sir! I’m the victim… This wasn’t my intention, I’ve already told you everything!”

His expression was very strange, a mixture of fear and ingratiation, neither a smile nor a cry.

"You're a good person, you'll let me go... right?"

……

“Three minutes ago, I was a good person,” Zhu Kuilong said calmly. “Not anymore.”

"Don't worry, it won't be very painful. You're already dead, you just haven't realized it yet."

……

Kemi froze for a moment, touched her neck, and blood suddenly flowed from her mouth and nose, and her pupils began to dilate.

With a thud, he fell to the ground, and his head separated from his body automatically.

Zhu Kuilong looked towards the city center and said coldly, "...Your boss is the same."

----

It was late at night.

The moonlight cast a cool, clear glow on the ground and bricks.

In the cell, Zhang Renfeng, lying on the bed, suddenly opened his eyes and immediately sat up. As he expected, a figure was standing outside the iron bars, staring at him expressionlessly.

“Three breaths,” Zhu Kuilong said coldly, raising a finger. “It took you three breaths to realize I was here. It seems the prisons of this country are far too comfortable for you.”

“I heard… in your gang, besides that girl with the scar on her face, there’s another very young girl. Their lives have changed dramatically because of escaping you.” Zhu Kuilong put his hands behind his back, a mocking smile playing on his lips. “Have you been indulging in the pleasures of the world for too long? Your basic skills have deteriorated so much.”

"In three breaths, you could die six times over if I wanted to."