Wang Hao stood on the second floor, decked out in a white suit with his hair slicked back. He held a glass of red wine, a woman beside him, and looked down at Zhao Dong with a smile.
"My dear brother," he said. "Why didn't you tell me you were back? If you'd given me a heads-up, I would've prepared a grand gift for you."
Zhao Dong looked up at Wang Hao, his mind flooded with a torrent of thoughts. This was his brother! The person he trusted most! And now, he was a complete stranger.
Zhao Dong's voice was heavy. "Wang Hao, are you a fucking animal? How have I, Zhao Dong, ever wronged you enough to make you treat my parents like this?"
Wang Hao looked down from the second floor and smiled faintly. "Zhao Dong, you've never wronged me in any way. But people change, including the closest of brothers. Consider this the most valuable lesson your big brother is teaching you. And I won't deny it; I was indeed tempted by your money."
Zhao Dong's face flushed with rage. "You animal! Back in school, you were so poor you went three days without food. I only had one steamed bun, and I still gave you half! This is how you repay me? I should have let you starve to death back then, you monster!"
Wang Hao's expression instantly darkened as he barked, "Enough! The past is the past! I was down and out back then, looked down upon by everyone, but what about now? Now, with a single word in East Sea, I can get hundreds of men to die for me! I make a million a month. What the hell do you have to compare with me?"
Zhao Dong gave a self-deprecating smile. "I was blind not to see you for the ungrateful wolf you are."
"Zhao Dong," Wang Hao said coldly, "for the sake of our past brotherhood, I'll give you a chance. Submit to me, work for me, and I'll pay back the money I embezzled. We can call it even and still be brothers."
The woman beside Wang Hao spoke indifferently, "Why go to all this trouble? Just kill him."
"Be brothers with scum like you? The thought makes me sick," Zhao Dong sneered.
Wang Hao's face sank. "You had your chance and you blew it," he said coldly. "Since you insist on being my enemy, then you can die."
With a wave of his hand, a group of thugs swarmed out from a first-floor private room, surrounding Zhao Dong.
Wang Hao said indifferently, "Zhao Dong, I'll ask one last time. Will you work for me or not?"
Zhao Dong laughed coldly. "Not only will I refuse to work for you, I'm going to take your life!"
"Then go to hell!"
Wang Hao gestured, and the group of thugs, armed with machetes and clubs, rushed at Zhao Dong.
Zhao Dong's heart sank. He had been left with numerous injuries from his discharge, and now he had leukemia, causing his physical condition to plummet. Facing this onslaught, he might actually die here today! But no matter what, the die was cast. Today, he had to cripple Wang Hao!
Gritting his teeth, Zhao Dong let out a fierce shout and charged head-on.
Even with his diminished physical condition, years as a special forces soldier meant his skills were still far superior to those of street thugs. In a few swift moves, he was upon them. Zhao Dong kicked a hefty man to the ground and plunged into the throng. His brutal punches quickly toppled several men as he weaved through the crowd like a leopard. He kicked a man weighing over two hundred pounds in the chest, sending him flying, then used the momentum for a whip kick that caught two other men in the head. The pair spat out mouthfuls of blood, their teeth shattered, and collapsed.
Seeing Zhao Dong's ruthless strikes, the group hesitated for a moment before retaliating. Zhao Dong performed a backflip to create distance, then grabbed the nearest man's arms and yanked them backward.
CRACK! CRACK!
The man's arms were instantly ruined, and he let out a scream like a slaughtered pig.
The crowd, startled by Zhao Dong's skills, instinctively took a step back. He twisted his neck and said coldly, "Bring it on!"
The thugs exchanged glances, gritted their teeth, and charged again. After several rounds of fighting, Zhao Dong had taken down more than a dozen men, but he had also suffered several cuts from a dagger.
Gasping for breath, Zhao Dong created some distance. Wang Hao roared, "Listen up, everyone! Break one of his legs for a 200,000 reward! Break one of his hands for 100,000! Cripple him completely, and you'll get 1,000,000!"
At his words, the wary and weary thugs surged with renewed fervor, as if they had taken a shot of adrenaline. Zhao Dong gritted his teeth and attacked again. As a former special forces soldier, his punches and kicks still packed power, and a few blows were enough to shatter his opponents' ribs. However, he was also accumulating injuries. By now, he had knocked down dozens of men. His breathing grew heavy, and fatigue began to set in.
A sliver of despair entered Zhao Dong's heart. Was this really how he was going to fall?
But just then, he felt an inexplicable surge of strength, as if he had taken a stimulant. All fatigue vanished in an instant, and a continuous stream of power welled up from deep within his body.
There was no time to wonder why. He had to deal with the men in front of him first.
Zhao Dong erupted with power, charging like an enraged lion. The ten or so men across from him never expected him to suddenly find a second wind and were caught completely off guard. They tried to run, but it was too late. Within seconds, not one of them was left standing; they were all on the ground, wailing in agony.
The entire nightclub fell silent. Upstairs, Wang Hao was stunned. The cigar he was holding slipped from his fingers.
THUMP.
Zhao Dong lifted his head. His eyes were red, his gaze icy, and a chilling smile curled his lips.
"It's your turn."
Wang Hao trembled with fear and, without a second thought, turned to run into the private room. The woman, her face pale with fright, also turned to flee.
But Zhao Dong wouldn't give them the chance. Moving like a flash of lightning, he was upon them in seconds. A chill ran down Wang Hao and the woman's spines. Zhao Dong smashed a fist into the center of Wang Hao's back and sent the woman tumbling to the floor with a kick.
Wang Hao spat out a mouthful of blood, seven or eight of his bones broken as he slammed heavily to the ground. Turning his head to look at Zhao Dong, Wang Hao was terrified. "Dong... what... what are you going to do?" he stammered.
"What am I going to do?" Zhao Dong sneered, grabbing both Wang Hao and the woman by the throat. He lifted them up and threw them straight down from the second floor.
THUD!
Wang Hao broke several more bones, screaming in agony. The woman was unconscious, covered in blood, her fate unknown.
Zhao Dong walked down the stairs step by step.
Clinging to his last shred of consciousness, Wang Hao saw Zhao Dong approaching. He spat out a mouthful of blood and said wretchedly, "Brother Dong, I was wrong... We're... we're brothers, please don't..."
Zhao Dong shook his head. "You're an animal. You're not fit to be my brother."
Standing before Wang Hao, Zhao Dong lifted his foot and viciously stomped down on both of Wang Hao's shins.
CRUNCH!
Wang Hao let out a heart-wrenching scream as his bones were crushed. His legs were completely ruined.
"Those are the price for tormenting my parents," Zhao Dong said. "We still haven't settled the matter of you swindling my money."
He lifted his foot again and indifferently stomped on one of Wang Hao's hands.
CRUNCH! CRUNCH!
The sound of shattering bone echoed through the room. Wang Hao's eyes bulged as if they might burst from the excruciating pain before he finally passed out.
After doing all this, a sudden wave of weakness washed over Zhao Dong. It felt like the crash after an adrenaline rush; his body went limp, and he slumped to the ground, panting and completely drained of strength.
Just then, one of the downed thugs suddenly staggered to his feet. He gave Zhao Dong a sinister smile. "You can die now!"
The next second, he pulled a black handgun from his pocket and immediately pulled the trigger, aiming straight at Zhao Dong's head.
BANG!
A gunshot rang out, but Zhao Dong was unharmed. A line of blood erupted from the thug's head as his body fell stiffly to the ground.
Only then did Zhao Dong react, his face a mask of shock. Before he could process what had happened, a woman rushed in. She was dressed in a red gown and wore a black-veiled mask, her aura exuding a commanding nobility.
Zhao Dong was dumbfounded. Even without seeing her face, he could sense that this woman was an absolute, nation-toppling beauty.
"Follow me!"
Before Zhao Dong could respond, the woman pulled him swiftly into a Mercedes-Benz S-Class parked outside. The car shot off like an arrow released from a bow.
Just as they left, a seemingly endless horde of thugs armed with machetes and steel pipes charged toward the nightclub.
In the car, Zhao Dong felt weak and sore all over. His head was spinning, and he finally couldn't hold on any longer and blacked out. Before passing out, he saw the woman remove her veil, revealing a face of breathtaking beauty and commanding elegance...
「Sometime later」
Zhao Dong felt that something was wrong. A peculiar sensation washed over him. It was as if someone was on top of him... and he could hear a woman's low murmur, soft like a cat's purr...
As the sensation grew clearer, Zhao Dong knew exactly what it was! He snapped his eyes open, and when he saw the scene before him, he was stunned.