Chapter 12: The Box
Before Ling Xiao could react, four Yashida Jiros simultaneously attacked him. The saber light was cold and the Saber Qi raged.
In Ling Xiao's perception, all four Yashida Jiros were Immortal Masters, which was somewhat unimaginable.
Ling Xiao narrowed his eyes and lunged forward, his longsword transforming into a sky full of star-like rain that enveloped all four Yashidas, not letting a single one escape.
Although these four Yashidas appeared to be Immortal Masters, and in Ling Xiao's perception, they all were Immortal Masters, the great disparity in strength between their blades and swords revealed their true nature.
Just then, a cold saber light suddenly rose from beneath Ling Xiao's feet, aiming to cleave him in two from his crotch.
Ling Xiao had originally thought that Yashida Jiro was either one of the four people or hiding in the dark, preparing for a sneak attack. He never imagined that the fellow would be hiding underground, making it impossible to guard against.
Ling Xiao, caught off guard, was directly struck by the saber, yet he seemed to have no reaction. The attack was successful, and in the next moment, his entire body was split in two by the soaring saber light.
However, Yashida Jiro, who appeared on the scene in black clothes, showed no joy. His katana was held in front of him, for the Ling Xiao he had cleaved in two had vanished before his eyes, turning into specks of spiritual light.
Clearly, that was just a mirror image. He wasn't the only one who knew such substitution Spells. If Yashida Jiro had a few chances of winning before, after witnessing a Spell not inferior to his own Ninjutsu, his confidence had dwindled.
Before Yashida Jiro could think clearly, his expression suddenly changed. A black shadow leaped from a large tree and then fled into the distance. Yashida didn't hesitate and pursued him, because the tree the opponent had just descended from was exactly where he had just placed the silver box. There was no need to ask; the item had definitely been taken.
The Black-Clothed Person with a monkey-like head was very fast, even faster than Yashida Jiro with his exquisite Ninjutsu. He moved like a wisp of smoke, and before long, he had completely vanished from Yashida Jiro's sight, merging into the thick night.
Yashida Jiro stopped, full of reluctance, and glared hatefully at the night. At this moment, a fierce blaze suddenly erupted in the distance, accompanied by a loud explosion. It was clearly the car from before, which had finally given out and exploded.
After all, this was reality, not like movies and TV shows where cars explode as soon as they flip. In reality, unless the fuel tank is ignited, making a car explode is as difficult as ascending to the heavens. This was the Marvel World, after all, so turning a car into an explosive device didn't seem too difficult.
Yashida Jiro no longer hesitated and ran towards the site of the car explosion. When he arrived, he saw Elektra and Bullseye standing together, a rare sight, their faces solemn. On the other side, another figure had appeared: an ordinary-looking middle-aged man in a gray long gown, who seemed like the most common of common men, stood on the scene. Zhang Xiaotian and Qin Ming stood respectfully behind the middle-aged man.
Ouyang Sheng, the overall boss of the Chinese Gang in Los Angeles, one of the thirty-six Red Flower Double Sticks of the Hongmen Chee Kung Tong, the decisive Ouyang Sheng.
So it was him. No wonder there was such a surprise attack tonight, and no news beforehand.
Yashida Jiro hid in the darkness using Ninjutsu, not daring to show himself, especially after seeing Ouyang Sheng. Since Ouyang Sheng personally appeared tonight, his responsibility for the lost goods would be much less. After all, even his father couldn't contend with Ouyang Sheng, as the Nisshin-kai was merely an outer branch of The Hand.
After Ouyang Sheng said a few words to Bullseye in the center of the scene, Bullseye nodded with a serious expression, then clasped his fist in a formal manner and turned to leave. Ouyang Sheng also didn't linger; the explosion just now must have already prompted someone to call the police.
However, before Ouyang Sheng left with Zhang Xiaotian and Qin Ming, he gave a deep look at Yashida Jiro's location. Yashida Jiro felt as if he had been targeted by a fierce tiger. After a long while, Yashida Jiro recovered his senses. He knew that this was because the other party saw him as a junior and felt it inappropriate to directly attack him; otherwise, he would surely be dead.
This time, their meeting with Kingpin's subordinates was just a transaction. They had originally intended to use ordinary human trafficking to cover up this transaction, but they didn't expect to be collectively ambushed by the Chinese Gang, and by Ouyang Sheng himself.
Someone must have leaked the news. There might already be a rat in the family. Moreover, Yashida Jiro suspected even more that the one secretly leaking the news was likely his older brother, Ichiro. Sabotaging him in such matters was exactly what he enjoyed most!
No longer hesitating, Yashida Jiro turned and melted into the deep night. The wailing of police sirens had already begun on his side.
Ling Xiao had actually never left. Sure enough, just as he had predicted, Ouyang Sheng appeared. Only he had the ability to gather all the Chinese Gangs in Los Angeles without leaking any information beforehand.
Although not many Japanese were killed this time, the hundreds of Asian women rescued were enough to solve some problems and boost morale. He believed that after this battle, the Japanese would be quiet in Los Angeles for a while.
Seeing that Qin Ming was safe, Ling Xiao had no intention of revealing himself. Only Qin Ming knew his identity. As for Zhang Xiaotian, although he had some suspicions, Ling Xiao had already publicly severed ties with the Gang, so there was no reason for him to come looking for Ling Xiao.
After circling a few times, Ling Xiao changed into a gray hoodie, took the subway back to downtown Los Angeles, then traveled through dark alleys to return to his Ling's Pharmacy.
Tonight, besides ensuring Qin Ming's safety, Ling Xiao's greatest gain was this box. After hiding the box in the basement, Ling Xiao returned to the second floor. After taking a shower, Ling Xiao went back to his room.
As soon as he lay down on the bed, a smooth body embraced him. It was Gan Jing. That girl had come to his room to sleep again. He knew he couldn't 'eat' her right now, but she always managed to stir him up.
Turning over, Ling Xiao picked up Gan Jing, held her tightly, and fell into a deep sleep.
Although as a Cultivator, Ling Xiao could replace sleep with meditation and cultivation, he rarely did so. The main reason was that while such cultivation could continuously increase his cultivation, the amount it could increase was very small.
Of course, for some Cultivators, such a small increase could allow them to Breakthrough the Realm one step ahead of others, but in Ling Xiao's view, such a Breakthrough was illusory. Because their mental strength could never be fully recovered, and even during a Breakthrough, they might fail due to a Heart Demon invasion, especially when transitioning from Acquired to Innate, the chance of a Heart Demon invasion greatly increases.
Of course, this woman who kept pestering him was also one of the important reasons.
The next morning, when Ling Xiao woke up, Gan Jing had already left his bedroom and started making breakfast and tidying up medicinal herbs.
Ling Xiao, lying on the bed, couldn't help but smile. However, he didn't stay in bed long. While the night had not yet faded, Ling Xiao changed into his training clothes and went up to the rooftop. Sitting cross-legged on a silk meditation cushion, Ling Xiao slowly circulated his Xun Wind Heart Method.
The sky gradually brightened, and the purple Qi of the early sun spread between heaven and earth, absorbed by Ling Xiao strand by strand. Perhaps due to the battle last night, Ling Xiao could feel that his cultivation barrier had loosened.