"Good, very good. Still acting tough, huh?"
Wang Ba's eyes gleamed with admiration for Lin Xuan.
If it weren’t for maintaining the Black Tiger Gang’s flawless record of completing dark web missions, he might have actually let Lin Xuan go.
Soon, two towering, menacing men strode into the hall.
"Boss," they said respectfully.
"Take him down," Wang Ba ordered.
"Yes."
They advanced toward Lin Xuan.
Wang Ba smirked. "These two are the strongest fighters in our gang. With your scrawny build, you stand no chance. If you beg for mercy now, there’s still time."
"Too much talk," Lin Xuan said impatiently.
He still had to get back to Hua Bao.
Wang Ba’s eyes widened in fury.
As the leader of the Black Tiger Gang, his reputation was feared throughout the underworld—except by the elusive Dark Rose. No one dared disrespect him like this.
If word got out, where would his dignity be?
"Hurry up," Wang Ba snapped coldly. "Grab him now. This time, I’ll personally make sure he suffers."
Did this brat think he could look down on him?
Then he’d teach this naive, arrogant college student a lesson he’d never forget!
But—
Once again, Wang Ba’s expectations were shattered.
He watched in disbelief as Lin Xuan took down both bodyguards in just three moves, leaving them groaning on the floor.
"This… this can’t be…"
Wang Ba gaped at Lin Xuan, his face a mask of shock.
His men were renowned fighters in the underground world—yet together, they’d been effortlessly crushed by Lin Xuan.
This kid was far more skilled than he’d imagined…
Cheng Er pushed himself up from the ground. "Boss, my brother and I weren’t lying. Lin Xuan is seriously strong."
Seeing Lin Xuan’s victory, another underling, eager to prove himself, drew a gun and pulled the trigger. The deafening bang echoed as bullets tore through the air.
Lin Xuan had already noticed the movement.
Before the gunman could fire, he’d slipped on a pair of gloves from his spatial storage.
Then—
He caught every bullet mid-air with his bare hands.
"Incredible!" Wang Ba couldn’t help but rise from his seat.
This marksman was the gang’s best—a near-perfect shot. Yet against Lin Xuan, he posed no threat at all.
Lin Xuan didn’t stop there. In a flash, he appeared before the gunman and twisted his wrist sharply.
"Ah—!"
The man screamed in agony.
"Don’t worry," Lin Xuan said with a faint smile. "I won’t hurt you. I just want your gun."
He snatched the weapon away.
Then, he aimed it at Wang Ba.
The moment his finger touched the trigger, the gang members shouted in panic: "Boss!"
Bang!
A bullet whizzed past Wang Ba’s ear—
And struck the eye of the black tiger emblem painted on the wall behind him.
"He hit the tiger’s eye?!" someone gasped.
The target was no larger than a pea, and from that distance? Impossible!
Wang Ba spun around and saw the bullet hole right where the tiger’s eye should be.
His gaze snapped back to Lin Xuan.
This wasn’t luck.
Lin Xuan had that kind of precision.
Not just unrivaled in combat, but a sharpshooter too…
Someone like this… truly deserved to lead.
But the Black Tiger Gang was his life’s work. How could he just hand it over?
"I admit, you’re impressive," Wang Ba said, his admiration undisguised. "But the Black Tiger Gang isn’t yours."
"You can walk out of here unharmed. No one will stop you."
Lin Xuan chuckled. "I didn’t come here to leave empty-handed."
"If you won’t give it willingly, I’ll have to take it by force."
In a blur, he appeared beside Wang Ba. Before anyone could react—
Crack!
He dislocated Wang Ba’s jaw.
Wang Ba: "???"
Lin Xuan forced a pill into his mouth, poured water down his throat, and made him swallow.
Crack!
He reset the jaw.
"What did you just give me?" Wang Ba demanded, grimacing.
"A poison. Harmless as long as you take the antidote regularly. Without it… you’ll bleed from every orifice and die."
He’d learned to brew such toxins in his spatial storage specifically for underworld dealings.
"So, you have two choices. One—die. Two—become my subordinate."
Lin Xuan slid a hand into his pocket, radiating arrogance.
And he had every right to.
"Though, if you stubbornly refuse the antidote, I’ll still take over the Black Tiger Gang. So really, you’ve only got one path."
Wang Ba felt the weight of despair.
Damn it.
He’d thought the eight million bounty on Lin Xuan would be easy money. Instead, he’d brought back a tyrant.
Now he was screwed.
He was about to become someone else’s lackey.
Resigned, Wang Ba stepped forward, knelt on one knee, and clasped his fists.
"Boss," he said solemnly. "This humble one pays his respects."
The rest of the gang followed suit, dropping to their knees.
"Boss!" they roared.
Lin Xuan smiled. "Rise."
"Yes!"
They stood in unison.
Wang Ba looked up at the ceiling, sighing internally.
This was it. His reputation as the fearsome Wang Ba would crumble—now that a college senior ruled the Black Tiger Gang.
Lin Xuan walked over and patted Wang Ba’s shoulder reassuringly.
"Don’t worry. I’ll rarely interfere. You’ll still run the gang as you always have—just follow my new directives."
Wang Ba’s eyes brightened. That… wasn’t so bad.
"Oh, and the Black Tiger Gang needs a rebrand. From now on, it’s the Golden Dragon Gang."
Lin Xuan might suck at naming things, but "Golden Dragon" sounded way more imposing.
---
Su Hua left work an hour early and returned to Night Garden, but Lin Xuan wasn’t there.
After working upstairs for over an hour, she checked the time—6 PM—and went downstairs, frowning.
"Butler Wang, has A-Xuan returned?"
"Master Lin? He left at noon with food for you and hasn’t come back," Butler Wang answered.
"Still not back?" Su Hua murmured.
She pulled out her phone and called Lin Xuan.
A cold, automated voice replied: "The number you have dialed is currently switched off. Please try again later."
Her frown deepened.
Though Lin Xuan had mentioned having business to handle, an uneasy feeling gnawed at her—like something was wrong.
This was the first time since they’d started dating that she couldn’t reach him.
Su Hua then dialed Lin Xuan’s bodyguards.
The phone kept ringing, unanswered.
"Something's wrong," Su Hua murmured, her face pale. "Something must have happened."
The bodyguards' phones were always on and never left their sides.
Why hadn't the two closest guards protecting Lin Xuan answered their calls?
Su Hua quickly opened her phone—she had installed a small tracking trick on Lin Xuan’s device, allowing her to locate him anytime.
She tapped open the app.
"Lin Xuan!"
At the sight before her, her face drained completely of color, her hands trembling uncontrollably.
ine. During your journey, you save an abandoned baby girl and become her elder brother】 【You rely on each other, becoming each other's support】 【At the end of the simulation, you shield the now-grown girl with your life, sacrificing yourself to block numerous demonic cultivators. You die, and the light in the girl's eyes fades】 …… 【Second Simulation: You are transported to a world where steam and magic coexist】 【You immerse yourself in the study of magic, obsessed with its research. One day, while out, you encounter a half-blooded demon girl wandering the streets. You take her in as your student】 【You teach the demoness what it means to be human, show her the beauty of the world, and nurture her into a miracle that surpasses even the gods】 【At the end of the simulation, you die of old age in front of the nearly immortal demoness due to your mortal lifespan】 …… One simulation after another, one encounter after another. Xu Xi suddenly felt something was off: "Wait, you said you're coming to the real world to find me?"
. As long as he maintains the villain image and follows the plot to the grand finale, he can obtain generous rewards and return to the real world. So Gu Chen'an entered the role and began to act as a scumbag villain, but who would have expected that the female leads could hear his inner thoughts. Miss Su from the Su family was shocked: "I originally thought Gu Chen'an was a scumbag, but I didn't expect he turned out to be a gentleman! What? You said I have to call off the engagement? I definitely won't, I'll piss you off!" Bai Yuan Tian was dumbfounded: "Young Master Gu is usually unreasonable and a complete brat, but he actually calls me little sweetie in his heart? What, Young Master Gu even said he likes me?" As the female leads' images collapsed more and more, the plot also collapsed with it. Gu Chen'an looked at all this chaos. "Ladies, don't aggro me, if you keep this up the male lead really will stab me, I still need to survive to the grand finale!"
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
th】 【No prior gaming knowledge required】【The First Cultivation + Game Design Novel on the Platform】 In a world where the righteous path dominates and crushes the demonic sects, Lu Ze unlocks the "Son of the Demon Path" system. Killing righteous cultivators now grants him power-ups. Wait—deaths in illusions count too? As a former game designer, Lu Ze decides to give the cultivators of this world a little—no, a massive—shock... Sect Elders: "What is this 'Escape from the Demon Sect' game? Why have all our disciples abandoned cultivation to play it??" Elite Disciples: "You're saying... mastering 'Demon Slayer' can help us counter demonic schemes?" Reclusive Masters: "Why did I leave seclusion? Ask that backstabbing rat who ambushed me in 'Eternal Strife' yesterday!" Rogue Cultivators & Civilians: "'Immortal Abyss Action' is addictive! You can even earn spirit stones by loot-running..." Sect Prodigy: "My Dao heart is unshakable... except for that cursed black hammer." Royal Scions: "Can skins have stat boosts? I’ll pay 10,000 spirit stones for one!!" Sect Leader: "WHO IS CORRUPTING MY DISCIPLES?!!!"
