Chapter 773: A Warning Shot

As he walked through the crowd, certain familiar scenes caused NIE Yan’s heart to jolt with a sudden shock.

The familiar scenes stirred a surge of hard-to-repress sorrow in his heart.

In his previous life, at the same kind of scene, in a surreal world, he had seen the already lifeless body of TANG Yao.

Memories uncontrollably returned to his past life, but the memories of this life had greatly diluted his sorrow.

No matter what, he absolutely could not sit idly by and allow history to repeat itself.

NIE Yan’s heart steeled itself, and he strode directly toward the staircase, ascended it, and entered the reserved private room.

Inside the private room, someone was already waiting. Upon seeing NIE Yan enter, he immediately stood up.

“NIE Young Master,” WEI Kai respectfully greeted.

“Hmm,” NIE Yan nodded slightly and glanced toward the door.

WEI Kai closed the door and said, “I’ve already given instructions; no one will come in.”

NIE Yan sat down on the sofa and looked at WEI Kai. “Sit down.” WEI Kai’s appearance had barely changed, but after such a long time apart, he had grown some stubble, making him look much more mature.

WEI Kai hesitated for a moment before sitting down on the sofa in front of NIE Yan.

“What do you need me for?” NIE Yan asked, picking up a glass of water and taking a sip.

Seeing NIE Yan’s casual demeanor, WEI Kai felt somewhat nervous. He tried to calm himself, realizing this was the most important opportunity in his life. Rubbing his hands together, he said, “NIE Young Master, I hope you can take us in. Right now, I have a few hundred brothers under me, and on Ningjiang’s scene, we’re absolutely number one.”

Although WEI Kai had seen his fair share of things, he still couldn’t remain calm in front of NIE Yan. He was also a bit puzzled as to why this was the case. Not long ago, NIE Yan had still been a young man bullied by everyone, but now, when facing him, WEI Kai felt an inexplicable pressure he couldn’t understand.

NIE Yan shook his head and said, “I’m not interested in Ningjiang or getting involved in the underworld.”

WEI Kai looked up, puzzled at NIE Yan’s words. If NIE Yan had wanted TANG Yao to contact him, what did that mean?

Recently, with the expansion of his influence, he had faced significant pressure. He urgently needed a strong backing, and NIE Yan was undoubtedly the best choice. With just a little movement from the Tianxia Group, they could gain even greater development opportunities.

He had assumed NIE Yan would definitely be interested in him, but he hadn’t expected such a response.

NIE Yan understood that places like Ningjiang were so chaotic they were practically slums. The gang situation was so complex that no one could control it. Even without WEI Kai, other gang leaders would take his place. For someone so young to stand out like WEI Kai had, it was evident that he had some skill.

“What NIE Young Master means is… if there’s anything you need from me, just say the word,” WEI Kai said respectfully, looking at NIE Yan’s cold expression and unsure of what else to say.

“If I need you, I’ll naturally find you. I’ll provide you with some funding to help you develop. There will be continued investment in the future. But I have one condition: your men must not engage in any illegal activities. Otherwise, if anything happens, I won’t be able to protect you. If I find out you’ve violated this agreement, I’ll immediately cut off the funding, and you’ll know the consequences,” NIE Yan said coldly. “I’ve never met you, WEI Kai, and you’ve never met me. This is the premise of our cooperation.”

WEI Kai was a smart man and understood immediately. It dawned on him, “I see.” NIE Yan wanted to distance himself completely.

NIE Yan stopped there, saying no more. WEI Kai was a pawn, useful at some unknown point in the future, but keeping him around was definitely beneficial. Simply trying to win WEI Kai over wouldn’t be enough to make him obedient; making this guy follow orders was no simple task.

NIE Yan instructed WEI Kai to handle the affairs in Ningjiang and expand toward Huanghai. With the backing of the Tianxia Group, they would surely develop. As long as they didn’t commit crimes, over time they could gradually go legitimate, enabling them to do things NIE Yan himself couldn’t do.

After chatting for a while, NIE Yan stood up and said, “If anything comes up, TANG Yao will contact you. I’ll be going now.”

“Okay, NIE Young Master, take care,” WEI Kai stood up respectfully.

“Wait half an hour before you leave,” NIE Yan said, then pushed the door open and walked out, pulling out his phone to call Cidao.

After NIE Yan left, WEI Kai sat back down on the sofa, carefully considering their conversation. NIE Yan indeed had formidable financial resources. The pressure he had felt might have stemmed from NIE Yan’s superior status and sharp aura. But thinking that he could be controlled so easily was overly simplistic. In WEI Kai’s eyes, NIE Yan was merely a stepping stone on his path to the peak; his ambitions extended far beyond just being a gang leader.

In fact, after WEI Kai grew stronger, the public order in Ningjiang had improved significantly. He was actively trying to go legitimate, carefully managing his businesses below the surface. Although he occasionally still engaged in some underhanded dealings, compared to other gangs, he was much better.

After about twenty minutes of contemplation on the sofa, WEI Kai sneered coldly. At this moment, NIE Yan was still just a kid, too naive. Thinking that a single secret meeting could make him submit was overly presumptuous.

With capital injection from the Tianxia Group, their golden age was about to begin. When the time was ripe, they would kick the Tianxia Group aside.

He stood up, pushed open the door, and walked into the bar.

“Hmph, half an hour, ridiculous,” WEI Kai slightly curled his lips. The bar was full of his people, completely under surveillance. NIE Yan had come in alone, so he didn’t need to worry about NIE Yan’s last words.

“Boss.”

“Boss.”

Seeing WEI Kai, a dozen or so people gathered around.

“Let’s go,” WEI Kai waved his hand.

They all swarmed outside. As WEI Kai took his first step forward, a figure flashed past his eyes, something touching his neck. He looked toward the person, but the figure had already vanished into the crowd; he couldn’t even see who it was.

About five or six seconds later, a sharp pain came from his neck. He touched it, feeling a wet sensation, and a strong smell of blood came to him.

A surge of overwhelming terror gripped his heart. He instinctively clutched his neck with both hands, his face turning deathly pale, and shrieked in a piercing voice, “Hurry! Get me to the hospital!”

“Boss, what’s wrong with you?”

“Boss, you’re bleeding!”

Everyone hurriedly gathered around, pushing people aside as they led WEI Kai outside, causing a commotion. People in the bar looked over in confusion, puzzled about what was happening.

Just then, WEI Kai’s phone rang. He looked at it; it was a call from NIE Yan.

WEI Kai answered the phone with a slightly trembling right hand. The phone’s voice was NIE Yan’s calm tone.

“There’s no need to go to the hospital. The wound will heal automatically in thirty seconds. I told you to wait thirty minutes before leaving the bar, but you only waited twenty-three and a half minutes. This is a warning. If something similar happens again, it won’t be so simple.”

Hearing NIE Yan’s words, a chill ran through WEI Kai’s heart. He touched his neck; the wound had already healed and stopped bleeding. He could still faintly feel a hairline scar.

WEI Kai didn’t know who that person was, but he was certain it wasn’t NIE Yan. Although it was just a brief encounter, he vaguely remembered the person seeming to be in his thirties.

What an exquisite method!

He didn’t know what weapon the other party had used, but it was incredibly sharp. When it sliced his skin, he hadn’t felt the slightest sensation. It wasn’t until five or six seconds later that he felt the pain. He was certain that if the person had pushed just a little further, they could easily have slit his throat.

At this moment, WEI Kai reconsidered NIE Yan’s earlier words, a cold sweat breaking out on his back. NIE Yan had just shown him through action that his life was completely in NIE Yan’s hands, and NIE Yan could take it at any time.

No wonder NIE Yan was so confident that he would obey.

WEI Kai walked forward, his mind in turmoil, unable to describe his complex emotions at this moment. This encounter with NIE Yan made him truly realize that all his previous actions had been mere child’s play. He couldn’t even begin to comprehend the level of struggle NIE Yan was involved in, nor did he possess the capability to do so. He was nothing but trash at the very bottom. Any attempt to rise above his station would be extremely perilous. If he wanted to continue living, from now on he would have to be NIE Yan’s obedient dog, carrying out whatever orders were given. Disobeying NIE Yan’s commands would lead to unimaginable consequences.

“Forget it, since I can’t win, I’ll just be a guard dog in peace,” WEI Kai smiled bitterly. Thinking of this, his mood unexpectedly lightened. At least from now on, he wouldn’t have to be an enemy of NIE Yan, that terrifying person. Tonight’s events made him feel like he had returned from the gates of hell. Ordinary people could never understand that kind of despair when death is near, or the relief and excitement of crawling back from the brink of death. It’s so good to be alive, even if it’s just living for a few more minutes.

A few of his subordinates looked at WEI Kai in confusion, feeling that he was acting a bit strangely and somewhat different from usual.

“Let’s go,” WEI Kai said, leading the group to get into cars. Five black sedans sped away.

NIE Yan put down his phone and smiled slightly. Cidao had successfully completed the mission. WEI Kai was thoroughly frightened. After this incident, WEI Kai would probably dare not disobey again. This warning had been quite effective. As long as WEI Kai obeyed, there would be many opportunities to use him in the future.

He stepped on the accelerator. With a roar, hot exhaust shot from the tailpipe, and the Sorn sped away down the wide road.