Chapter 54: I Am the Greatest Under Heaven

Half an hour later, Ding Lizhi had swapped out his subordinates for a new batch.

His original men were all dead, leaving nothing but corpses and brittle white bones on the ground. The Blood Prison Scroll, when cultivated to a high level, could corrupt even magical artifacts, let alone the bones of ordinary people.

The newly recruited members of the Longyou Gang, trembling with fear, cleaned up the corpses and bones and transferred over fourteen million yuan to Gu Changqing through dozens of accounts.

“Do you know why I don’t bother to cover my face?” Gu Changqing smiled at the cowering Ding Lizhi. “Because I’m not afraid of you telling anyone what happened. I can kill you anytime I please.”

His smile was radiant, but his words sent a chill down Ding Lizhi’s spine.

“In fact, I’m not that hard to get along with. I’m not some villain. Just do your job honestly—don’t try any tricks. As long as you handle things properly, you’ll be safe, and there will be benefits for you.”

“Next, you can swallow up the other gangs in the southern district and the port area. I’ll handle the Public Security Bureau for you.”

“If you encounter any Awakened ones, throw money at them and recruit them! In this day and age, what’s the most important thing? Talent!” Gu Changqing crossed his legs and spoke with leisure.

“Do you know why I don’t kill you? Because you count as half a talent, at least.”

“Yes, I’ll make sure to do things well…” Sweat beaded on Ding Lizhi’s forehead, mostly from the pain. Blood still smeared his face.

“Go wash your face. With it looking like that, how are you supposed to face your men? Anyone seeing you would think you’d been beaten up—how are you ever going to keep your authority?” Gu Changqing waved him off.

A moment later, Gu Changqing left.

He wasn’t worried about Ding Lizhi trying anything.

What could Ding Lizhi possibly do?

Go to the police? Or seek protection from the city guards? That would actually be perfect.

Once Gu Changqing left, a group of henchmen rushed over. “Boss, what do we do?”

“Take me to the hospital!” Ding Lizhi’s eyes flashed with murderous intent—the moment he didn’t have to face that man, his temper flared back up.

All the way to the hospital, Ding Lizhi’s gaze flickered, unwilling to accept this outcome. But the other man was far too ruthless, and the pain from his wounds never let him forget it. Nor could he forget his men who had been reduced to pools of blood.

Besides, judging by his opponent’s words, he was clearly someone with an official background.

Ding Lizhi hesitated for a long time, unable to make up his mind. He decided to find out who the man really was before deciding his next move.

Gu Changqing’s identity wasn’t hard to uncover.

An Awakened one, holding an official position, ruthless in action, and exceptionally tall—just a little digging revealed that Gu Changqing was part of the Chiming Division of the Public Security System.

When he learned this, Ding Lizhi almost cursed aloud. This guy was from the Public Security System? His methods were even more vicious than a gang boss’s.

Ding Lizhi spent the whole night thinking. In the end, he decided to swallow this bitter pill for now and take things one step at a time.

Besides, with that man backing him, swallowing up the other gangs needed to be put on the agenda right away.

…

Gu Changqing glanced at his account, which now had over nineteen million yuan, and felt his father’s words had been right all along.

Money isn’t saved—it’s earned.

In business, the most important thing is to broaden your income streams, not just to cut expenses.

Wasn’t this a new source of income?

The next day, after spending a short time at Chiming headquarters, he called a few of his subordinates over. “Do any of you know anything about the Riverside Villas?”

“Captain, are you looking to buy a villa?” someone asked instinctively.

Riverside Villas was the best residential compound in Angang. Covering 200,000 square meters but with only over 300 households, each was an independent courtyard house.

There were 212 small courtyards, each about 370 square meters; 53 medium courtyards at 460 square meters; and 11 large courtyards at 580 square meters.

Even the cheapest went for over forty thousand yuan per square meter.

Even with their current decent incomes, Riverside Villas were still astronomically expensive for them.

“That’s right!” Gu Changqing quickly realized he had overestimated them—none of his subordinates actually knew anything about Riverside Villas.

“Go look into whether any villas there are for sale.”

An hour later, Qiao Renxia returned. “Captain, our luck’s in! There’s rarely a villa for sale there, but one just went on the market.”

“Let’s go see it!” Gu Changqing stood up and headed out at once.

“Captain, let’s come along!” Zhuo Zhipeng and Tan Li eagerly joined him.

On the way, Gu Changqing mulled over a question: with the current situation, unearthly things could appear anywhere.

By moving in, he’d actually be a blessing to the rich folks living in Riverside Villas.

Shouldn’t they be paying him for protection?

Riverside Villas was surrounded by a stone wall, with two main gates, each guarded by four security men.

Inside, two security patrol teams operated around the clock. A police substation stood not far away.

Upon driving in, swathes of greenery and forest appeared, with all the courtyard houses nestled among the trees.

Each courtyard was encircled by blue brick walls, ensuring privacy.

The courtyard Gu Changqing came to see was in the second row from the river, a small courtyard covering 370 square meters.

“Good day, Mr. Gu!”

As soon as they stepped out, the agent immediately recognized Gu Changqing as the decision-maker and began leading them in, introducing the property as they went.

Two stone qilin stood at the entrance, symbolizing good fortune and warding off evil. Inside the gate was a small landscaped garden with a stream running through the courtyard and a pavilion by the water, with a peach tree nearby.

The ground was paved with fine stone. The front yard covered 150 square meters, the back garden 80 square meters.

The building itself occupied 140 square meters, with three floors—two above ground, one basement.

The first floor held the living room, dining room, kitchen, one bedroom, and a bathroom. Large tempered glass windows in the living room let in abundant light.

Upstairs were two bedrooms and a study.

The basement was divided into a home theater and a game room.

The villa had a classical charm, while the interior decoration was modern.

The agent kept a close eye on Gu Changqing’s expression. The others looked on with envy, but Gu Changqing himself seemed utterly unconcerned.

Gu Changqing truly didn’t care much—this villa was inferior to his old home in Repulse Bay in his previous life.

Still, the extra layer of walls afforded good privacy, which pleased him.

With two courtyards, he’d also have space for training or other pursuits.

“This one will do!” After a brief inspection, Gu Changqing made his decision. “Draw up the contract, transfer the money, and take care of the rest of the paperwork.”

He tossed out more than ten million yuan without batting an eye. Even Qiao Renxia, who came from a wealthy family, was impressed, and the agent was practically beaming.

…

Once the deal was done, Gu Changqing moved in that very night, with several subordinates helping him.

Late at night, Gu Changqing stood in the courtyard for a long while.

When he finally opened his eyes, they were filled with indifference—utter emptiness, as if a god gazed down from above, regarding nothing and no one as worthy of attention.

Then, channeling his spiritual energy, Gu Changqing threw a punch forward.

Whoosh!

A fierce wind swept through the courtyard, bowing the peach tree and sending its leaves fluttering down.

“No, something’s not right…”

Gu Changqing pondered. The force was coming from his punch combined with spiritual energy, not from the Eight Wastelands Fist itself.

Where was the problem?

He had the pride—on heaven and earth, I alone am supreme.

I’m the most formidable under the sky!

But the intent of the Eight Wastelands Fist didn’t seem to be that.

After a while, Gu Changqing’s gaze turned ferocious. His figure seemed to swell, veins bulging along his skin like a beast about to burst through heaven and earth.

“What’s so great about heaven? What’s so impressive about earth?” Gu Changqing grinned, laughed wildly, and stomped forward in one mighty step, the ground shaking beneath him.

Then he unleashed a punch, spiritual energy surging like a breached dam into his fist.

Boom!

Crack—the peach tree, as thick as an arm, snapped in two. But the sound of its breaking was drowned out by an even greater crash and the thunder of bricks flying.

Ten meters away, Luo Xiu was just sitting in her pavilion with a pot of tea.

Suddenly, a wild laugh rang out, followed by a tremendous explosion.

Luo Xiu instantly leapt onto her courtyard wall, just in time to see the wall of the neighboring courtyard explode in a shower of bricks, shrapnel flying like shreds of a bomb.

Under attack? Luo Xiu’s brows knitted, and she sprang onto the villa’s rooftop, drawing her blade and watching intently.

She sensed a terrifying beast lurking in the smoke and dust—a presence like a rampaging demon.

Countless bricks battered her own courtyard wall, which then collapsed in turn.

As the dust began to settle, she saw a towering figure standing amid the ruins. Just one glance sent the hairs on the back of her neck standing straight up, and alarms blared in her mind.

It was as if she were facing her natural enemy—a fear rising from the very depths of her soul.