The sadness of angry waves

文 Feichen had his reasons for currying favor with Long Hui. Although Hu Man, the leader of the Blood War Gang, was a legendary figure, fate had not smiled upon him; he had no sons, only two daughters of stunning beauty. Feichen believed that the vast legacy of the Blood War Gang would eventually fall into the hands of the Long family, and thus he felt compelled to ingratiate himself with the young master. When the Long family ultimately takes control of the gang, Feichen anticipated that he would reap considerable benefits.

After discussing their plans, the group inside the room prepared to rest when a soft knock was heard at the door. 

"Come in!" Feichen ordered briskly. 

The door opened, and a gang member stationed outside for lookout duties entered, saluted Long Hui, and then whispered a few words into Feichen's ear. Feichen's expression immediately grew curious, and he murmured, "So that's it." 

He cast a meaningful glance at the others in the room and instructed, "Go, capture those people. We cannot allow them to ruin Young Master Long's plans." 

"Understood!" they responded in unison before swiftly exiting the room.

"What's going on?" Long Hui inquired.

Feichen chuckled, "Young Master, this is quite amusing. Remember how we saw many hoofprints along the way? Yet our information indicated that only two people were traveling with Yang Kai. At first, I assumed those additional hoofprints were just passersby, but it turns out that we're not the only ones tracking Yang Kai!"

"Oh?" Long Hui expressed his surprise, "Who are they?"

"Some minor figures from the Storm Tower. It seems they plan to make a move against Yang Kai, unaware that the woman with him is beyond their capabilities," Feichen explained.

"This is amusing indeed," Long Hui sneered, "I assume you've made the necessary arrangements, Feichen?"

"Rest assured, Young Master, they won't disrupt your plans," Feichen nodded confidently.

As they spoke, several individuals entered the room. The Blood War Gang members who had left earlier returned, accompanied by a visibly frightened Nulang and his companions. Nulang and his men were terrified; they had barely caught up with Yang Kai today and were plotting to seize him to inquire about the disappearance of Nuo Tao and Cheng Shaofeng. However, before they could act, they were captured by these fierce-looking, powerful strangers.

Nulang, petrified, dropped to his knees and begged, "Sirs, we've never offended you. Please, have mercy!"

"Silence!" One of the Blood War Gang members slapped Nulang across the face, leaving him bloodied and stunned. He didn't dare to protest and could only obey quietly. 

As they trembled in fear, the Storm Tower members realized that any one of these men could kill them easily, let alone the six or seven experts surrounding them. They were at a loss, unable to understand why they were being treated this way. They hadn't done anything particularly evil, just planned to capture Yang Kai, which they hadn't even acted on yet.

Nulang then noticed a familiar-looking young man among the gang, who was watching him with a smile. Realization dawned on him, and he tentatively asked, "Are you Long Hui of the Blood War Gang?"

Long Hui smiled, "You know me?"

Nulang replied awkwardly, "As a descendant of the esteemed Long family, your reputation precedes you."

"Since you recognize me, this will be easy," Long Hui nodded.

Nulang was full of doubts. He couldn't comprehend why they had encountered members of the Blood War Gang so far from home. While meeting familiar faces in a foreign place was usually a pleasant surprise, the current situation was far from comforting. Given the circumstances, he had no choice but to bow his head.

"Why are you pursuing Yang Kai?" Long Hui asked with narrowed eyes.

Nulang's heart skipped a beat, fearing that Long Hui was angry with him. Panicked but unable to lie, he recounted the entire story and then pleaded, "Young Master Long, I only suspected Yang Kai was involved in my brother's disappearance. I had no intention of harming him. If you find this objectionable, I will immediately take my men back to the Storm Tower and abandon any plans against Yang Kai."

Long Hui chuckled, "Do you think I'm friends with Yang Kai?"

"Are you not?" Nulang asked nervously.

"Ridiculous!" Long Hui scoffed, "Who do you think I am, and who do you think he is? Friends with him? You must be blind!"

Nulang didn't dare respond, but he thought to himself, 'If you're not his friend, why are you interfering in our affairs? Aren't you just meddling in other people's business?'

"You fools, Young Master Long has just saved your lives, and you still don't know to thank him!" a gang member scolded.

Nulang and his companions were perplexed.

The gang member sneered, "You only see Yang Kai's meager strength, but did you know that the woman with him is a peak Harmony Realm expert?"

With this revelation, cold sweat poured down Nulang's face. A peak Harmony Realm expert was nearly two major realms above his own level.

If they had gone ahead with their plan, that woman alone could have annihilated them.

Realizing his grave error, Nulang was filled with both fear and relief. He repeatedly kowtowed, "Thank you, Young Master Long, for saving our lives. We are forever grateful."

The minor members of the Storm Tower also hastened to express their gratitude.

"Hmph, as long as you understand," Long Hui seemed to revel in their deference. "To be clear, I am here to take Yang Kai's life. However, we need to wait a few more days. Your rash actions nearly alerted him and ruined my plans."

"We didn't know. Please forgive us, Young Master Long!" Nulang said, trembling.

"Forget it, I won't hold it against you. Since our target is the same, you can come along with me. Once I have captured Yang Kai, you can find out what happened to your brother."

Though Nulang felt uneasy, he knew his group was too weak to resist. He nodded and said, "We will follow your orders, Young Master Long. We are willing to face any danger on your behalf."

"Return now. I'll reach out to you tomorrow," Long Hui waved them off.

"Yes!" Nulang and his group got up and retreated slowly. Once outside, they realized their clothes were drenched in sweat.

After they left, Long Hui turned to Feichen with a puzzled look, "Why did you bring them along, Feichen? Their weak strength could compromise our plans. Surely, we can handle Yang Kai and that woman without them?"

Although Long Hui had followed Feichen's whispered instructions, he didn't understand the reasoning behind them.