The warm sunlight poured in through the window and just happened to shine on the seat next to Song Qianlong.

The man who had taken off his mask stared at that spot for quite a while, swallowed, then spoke nervously.

"I... I wouldn't dare."

Song Qianlong didn't seem intent on forcing him.

"Dull, dull. Like this, how are you ever going to accomplish anything big."

His gaze shifted. While raising his cup to sip his wine, Song Qianlong looked down at the bridge below, where heads surged like a tide.

"See them? Mediocre, insignificant, laughably ordinary. Their whole lives amount to a few taels of broken silver. That kind of life is not what people like you and me ultimately seek."

"..."

The man who had taken off his mask fell silent, head lowered, saying nothing.

At the same time, down at the head of the bridge, a commotion suddenly broke out.

The crowd surged, people shoving and pushing each other forward, running ahead as if something had happened behind them, squeezing forward like refugees fleeing a disaster.

The chaos spread quickly—bodies trampled, people fleeing in panic, falling into the lake...

Cries for help, screams of "save me"—even up in the high-rise where they were drinking, they could hear it all clearly.

"It's started."

Song Qianlong suddenly spoke again. The man who had taken off his mask instantly widened his eyes, a guess flashing through his mind, yet he only grew more afraid to raise his head, not even daring to move.

Meanwhile, the chaos below was quickly brought under control with the intervention of the nearby Foolish Underworld.

"It's the Defiled Blood Clone Demon!"

"It's it again!"

"How many clones does this thing even have!"

"After it! The order from above is to kill on sight, anyone who sees the Defiled Blood Clone Demon is to kill without mercy!"

The chaos was receding into the distance as Song Qianlong gradually withdrew his gaze.

The aftermath among the ants below no longer held any interest for him.

He rose, glanced at the "young man" who still kept his head down and said nothing, and smiled.

"You're quite lucky. I just received word: Madam Shang is dead. Black Rain Commerce now needs an external spokesperson. Are you willing to take this position?"

The man who had taken off his mask instantly widened his eyes, his whole body trembling with excitement.

"I—I'm willing! Mr. Song, I'm willing!"

"Good. Tomorrow I'll send someone to arrange the handover. From now on, you're the president of Black Rain Commerce."

Patting the man on the shoulder, Song Qianlong left.

Only the man who had put the sheep-face mask back on was left alone in the room.

It's done...

It's done!

I've climbed up!

At last, I've climbed up!!

The sheep-faced man trembled all over with excitement, yet forced himself not to make a sound.

Finally...

Step-by-step endurance, day-by-day management, running Forest Snake Gang and Honey Casino on two fronts—only now had he finally climbed to this height! And finally... reached out and touched the lowest threshold for dealing with those true big shots!

The post of president of Black Rain Commerce meant he had already stepped up a class, that he could truly make contact with the high-end circles of Thunder City.

Even if this position existed specifically to do dirty, exhausting, unspeakable work for the big shots, it still meant that he had, in a very real sense, entered the circle of the powerful.

It was easy to foresee that starting today, his life from here on out would become very different!

The sheep-faced man clenched his fists, slowly calming the excitement in his heart.

This was only the beginning, only the very bottom rung of this circle.

Not to mention climbing higher—in order to merely hold this position steady, he would have to pour in a great deal of effort.

It was time to get busy...

The previous spokesperson of Black Rain Commerce, to conceal his identity, had taken jobs from all kinds of forces, big and small.

But he didn't need to do that. Once he formally took over Black Rain Commerce, he would directly cut off cooperation with some small and mid-sized forces and focus exclusively on servicing the high-end market.

Using Black Rain Commerce as a springboard, just like he had secretly manipulated Forest Snake Gang, he would turn all of these into nourishment to help him, step by step, climb the stairs, heading higher and farther!

He lifted the lid off Song Qianlong's unfinished teapot, raised it to his lips and drained it in one gulp. The sheep-faced man smacked his lips, chewing the tea leaves down together, his gaze vicious, as if what he was chewing wasn't tea but Song Qianlong's "massive" body.

He looked down through the window; with the Foolish Underworld's intervention, the disturbance below had already been quelled.

But the sheep-faced man seemed to be lost in thought.

Song Qianlong... it seemed that before the chaos broke out, he had already known what was going to happen below.

Could it be that...

The sheep-faced man faintly guessed something, yet didn't dare think further.

He was still far too weak right now. Some things, he couldn't even allow himself to think about, or everything he had painstakingly accumulated could be reduced to dust in an instant—just like... Madam Shang, who had suddenly died.

The sheep-faced man left.

Since the road of expansion had already seen some results...

Then the matters in his backyard should also start being cleaned up.

Otherwise, if his backyard caught fire and word reached Mr. Song's ears, or those of other distinguished guests, it would be a heavy blow to his credibility.

"Fa Hongbao, I didn't treat you badly back then. But your greed is like a snake trying to swallow an elephant. If I don't teach you a lesson, wouldn't that mean anyone can climb onto my head and piss on it?"

With Black Rain Commerce in his grasp and Honey Casino under his control, the sheep-faced man's current energy was more than enough to give a certain substitute a good beating—that was... as easy as turning over his hand!

The sheep-faced man failed to notice that as he left the tavern, a young man was also walking up from the head of Jiangxin Bridge.

...

"What's going on here?"

Fang Yu looked at the people on the bridge, some injured, some lying soaked on both sides of Jiangxin Bridge, and his expression turned somewhat odd.

Ever since leaving Forest Snake Gang, he had consciously started walking toward crowded places.

With Evil Qi clinging to him, he was like a walking satchel. After just a few streets, several Little Demons had followed in his wake.