A Scroll of Infinite Glory

Chapter 76 Sweeping Across the Land

On a hot summer afternoon, especially in tropical climates like Singapore and Malaysia, the asphalt seems to soften under the heat, and if a car is parked outside, you could fry an egg on its hood.

Inside the house, the air conditioner was running at maximum cooling power, emitting a low humming sound.

After staying in seclusion for a few days, Guan Luoyang received the materials sent by Lao An.

A map of the southwest community of Singapore and Malaysia was spread out in the living room, with various colored handwritings marking out the distribution of areas on the map.

The area circled in vermilion is the current territory of the Shenzhou Brotherhood Society.

"The gangs around us are quite complex, and can be roughly divided into five factions."

Old An pointed his finger at the map and said, "Among them, the two factions in the east are merchants from other places who came to Singapore and Malaysia and formed a united front to protect themselves. One side is led by a man surnamed Ma, and the other side is led by a man surnamed Du. They mainly do business in casinos and brothels. They value their territory very much, but they don't have much room to expand outwards."

"Old Ma has relatively few men under his command, about fifty or sixty, and only about ten gunmen, but he and his wife are both modified martial artists. Another one, Old Du, is a modified human himself, and he also has many thugs under his command, but he doesn't have a good relationship with the patrol team. The patrol team seems to be deliberately targeting him."

After Guan Luoyang nodded, Lao An pointed in a different direction, "To the north of our territory is the Sawtooth Gang."

"It's said that the gang that led them originally came from a circus. They did all sorts of odd jobs, such as buying and selling limbs, poaching, selling drugs, and kidnapping children. They had the worst reputation and were even reprimanded by the big bosses. So, their gang is conservatively estimated to have three modified martial artists and more than forty gunmen. They often go to sea, but they have never been able to expand further."

"To the south is the Blue Scarf Gang, whose members are mostly sailors who go out to sea to fish. They help with smuggling and modify some inferior firearms to sell. They are the weakest of the gangs, but there's not much to exploit them, so others don't bother with them."

Guan Luoyang looked at the map while flipping through some photos in his hand.

The people in the photos are the leaders of these gangs, and some photos show places they frequent.

After memorizing most of the contents of the photo, Guan Luoyang noticed that Lao An's pause this time seemed a bit longer, so he took the initiative to look up and cast a questioning glance at him.

Old An pushed up his newly fitted gold-rimmed glasses and said hesitantly and slowly, "I've also found out some things about the southwest, but some places seem very strange, and it's hard to tell if the information is true or false."

Guan Luoyang said, "You speak first."

Old An picked up his pen and circled the area in the southwest again, saying, "This group in the southwest hasn't given their gang a name. I've only heard that their leader is one of four sworn brothers who came from the Allied countries a few years ago."

"This group's territory is smaller than ours, and I didn't pay much attention to it at first. But after asking around, I found out that they were actually in the arms trade."

Guan Luoyang was also somewhat surprised: "Selling weapons?"

"Yes, their main business is smuggling weapons, but they also have some involvement in things like selling drugs and forced demolitions. They might also be involved in counterfeiting money. The four brothers who are in charge have probably all been reformed."

Old An's expression was complicated as he said, "If these rumors are true, then these people can truly be considered incredibly powerful. Even if Yan Xiong and Black Spider were combined, they couldn't possibly defeat them. But these people were so close to Black Spider's territory, yet they didn't swallow Black Spider up. That doesn't make sense."

Guan Luoyang said, "What if we insist on explaining?"

Old An said, "If you really want to explain it, either they look down on Black Spider and Yan Xiong's business, but who would complain about having too much money?"

"Either they have a grudge against some big shot in Singapore and Malaysia and dare not act rashly, but if that's the case, they can just go somewhere else. Why are they sticking to this place? They're from out of town; they can't possibly have any local sentiments, can they?"

Old An was completely baffled. He said, "It can't be that their leader wants to retire from crime and avoid trouble, right? Ha!"

This last assumption made him laugh.

Let alone the fact that the four brothers are in their prime and unlikely to want to retire, even if they did have that thought, they should first try to clean up their family's assets so that they can enjoy their retirement in peace.

But while this group doesn't embezzle funds, they also show no inclination to whitewash their actions.

Guan Luoyang thought for a moment and said, "There is another possibility that can reasonably explain their strength and behavior, but... heh, that's not important. As long as we grow stronger, we will naturally come into the view of more people, and the situation will definitely change. We don't need to worry about some minor details."

In this environment rife with gangs, the so-called loyalty, even if it exists, often only within a small circle. The bonds connecting people are mostly based on self-interest.

When gang members interact with others, the first thing they do is assess the other person's value.

A person's value is greatest when they are alive; once they die, their value rapidly diminishes.

Guan Luoyang threw a stack of photos in his hand. The photos scattered in the air, the images on the front and the information about the people on the back, fluttering down onto the large table.

Time is tight, and the information that Lao An was able to find is only the tip of the iceberg.

But once you've seen this part of the news, you'll realize that there's no one left who shouldn't have died among those flying around in the air.

As the sun sets and the moon rises, Guan Luoyang begins a familiar life of sleeping during the day and being active at night.

In the darkness, he easily slipped into the hotel, climbed the high-rise buildings, walked through the corners of the corridors, and turned the figures, whether awake or asleep, into corpses.

Even if he acted in front of those gang members, their eyesight wouldn't be enough to catch him.

If someone slowed down the surveillance footage by sixteen times and examined it second by second, they might be able to find some clues, but these people simply didn't have that opportunity.

Whenever the top brass of a gang is purged, their power is quickly absorbed, and many of the lower-level members are recruited and replaced by a new leader.

Those key members who wanted to defect to other gangs would mostly end up in the patrol team's prison. The patrol team members, who usually treated them like brothers, would unusually keep a close watch on them.

The Shenzhou Brotherhood Society has accumulated a large amount of assets through the most brutal and primitive means, recruited and organized a legal team, bribed officials at all levels, and paid money to do things.

The patrol team usually turns a blind eye to gang affairs, but given the opportunity, they don't mind making extra money and adding more arrests of criminals.

The Shenzhou Brotherhood Society expanded its influence at an astonishing speed. In less than a month, the number of members had surged to more than 700, and thousands of households and shops in the vicinity had already felt this change.

In the past, gang members distinguished themselves by their unique hairstyles, jingling accessories, and nonsensical tattoos.

Although their appearance hasn't changed completely yet, they now have uniform armbands printed with the eye-catching words "Shenzhou Jieyi" (a phrase meaning "sworn brothers of China"). They no longer wander aimlessly through the streets, but instead stay and help out in various shops.

Even if many of them are just putting on an act, their behavior is still quite different from before.

Others wear the same arm sleeves and ride bicycles through the streets and alleys, carrying takeout orders and goods.

The group occupying the southwestern coastal area were not deaf or blind, so they were naturally alarmed by this anomaly.

The villa where the four leaders were located, including the garden, mansion, and swimming pool, covered nearly a thousand square meters. They had fifteen regular security guards, each carrying a submachine gun and wearing German-made non-Newtonian fluid bulletproof vests.

Although this kind of bulletproof vest is only a five-year-old product, any gang leader with some connections could get one for himself, but to give dozens of vests to his underlings is probably a rare feat in the area, and only this one company does it.

Around four o'clock in the afternoon, the patrolmen changed shifts. The previous group didn't leave immediately; they gathered at the intersection, lit cigarettes, and chatted.

"Shall we go to Golden Peony Garden later?"

"I'm not going. Most of the girls in those clubs are gone, but there are more guys standing around. What's the point?"

"More than half gone?! When did that happen? I haven't been there in a while."

"Just recently, they got a new boss over there. I heard that the contracts they signed before are now void. Anyone who wants to do something else can just leave. Anyone who wants to stay doesn't have to carry on that debt. Now they're all getting arrogant, acting like they've never seen someone wag their tail while naked."

"What kind of boss would do something so stupid?"

"Who knows? I heard they're gaining momentum and are almost encroaching on our territory."

In the living room on the second floor of the villa, the fourth brother, White Wolf, stood in front of the large French windows, a cigar dangling from his mouth, puffing out smoke as he looked at his men in the garden.

"Boss, even they know that the Shenzhou Brotherhood Society is encroaching on our territory. If we don't react soon, it won't be right."

White Wolf's three sworn brothers are all in this hall at this moment.

The eldest brother, Wang Qing, had a square face, a silver-white beard, and black hair combed back. He was wearing only a dark blue shirt and sat on a sofa, twirling an iron walnut in his hand.

The second brother, Wei Lengbo, looked very young, with long arms and legs. He was huddled on a single sofa, holding a remote control, intently watching the television screen.

The third brother, Qin Deli, was a burly man with only stubble on his head. He was wearing a vest and shorts and was hitting a punching bag in front of the floor-to-ceiling window on the other side of the hall.

The largest red boxing gloves in Singapore and Malaysia were put on his steel arms, and he punched a 900-kilogram sandbag, making it swing back and forth like a water-filled plastic bottle.

Upon hearing Bai Lang's words, Wang Qing seemed to snap out of a deep thought and said, "We need to give him some response. Fourth Brother, tomorrow you take a team and go talk to him."

White Wolf's cigar twitched: "How do we negotiate? Their methods of swallowing up other gangs are quite ruthless. If we go directly to their door, I'm afraid we won't get anything good out of them."

Wang Qing frowned: "We haven't figured out Dugu Hao's whereabouts yet. In the meantime, it's best if we don't cause any unnecessary trouble. At worst, we can cede some territory to them, be more conciliatory, and appease them for the time being. Anyway, this kind of thing is not important to us at all."

Wei Lengbo spoke up, "The young master of the Fan family is almost of age. Among the Five Tigers and Four Valiant Ones, the others have all made their moves. Dugu Hao has already confirmed that he is on our side. There's no reason for him to play hide-and-seek with us at this time."

Wang Qing said, "You mean, Dugu Hao isn't just putting on a show to impress our guild leader, but he's genuinely in trouble and can't get away?"

"pretty close."

Wei Lengbo continued his analysis, "Dugu Hao's men have been a bit restless lately. They probably really don't know where their boss has gone. Meanwhile, Yun Lao Er from Tao Zhu Group has sent people to keep an eye on them. Among the Five Tigers, Yun Lao Er is notorious for his cunning and treacherous nature. It's quite possible that he's the one who sabotaged Dugu Hao."

Wang Qing's face showed a slight surprise: "If Yun Lao Er were to turn against someone now, he'd be making a fool of himself. Does he have the guts to do that? But if it really was him, he must have a backup plan..."

"Shenzhou Jieyi Society"

Wang Qing and Wei Lengbo exchanged a glance. The former suddenly realized, while the latter coldly uttered the same name.

The Shenzhou Brotherhood Society is acting too recklessly. Their leader is like a ghost, appearing out of nowhere, yet he has such abilities. He doesn't seem to be without any backing.

If behind them are smiling tigers and white clouds, then it makes sense.

After having this guess, Wang Qing became more and more certain: "He hasn't even had his coming-of-age ceremony yet, and he's already turned against Dugu Hao, and then he's released this Shenzhou Brotherhood Society to stir up trouble and confuse the public. Wow, this kind of boldness is quite different from his usual cautious and tactful nature. It seems that the president and the others have underestimated Yun Lao Er too much."

Wei Lengbo reminded him, "That's not all. With those new rules of the Shenzhou Brotherhood Society, how can it still resemble a gang? Yun Youbai must have reached a new understanding with the council to instruct his subordinates to do this."

Wang Qing nodded and said, "We need to report this news back as soon as possible. Second brother, go and make a call."

Wei Lengbo agreed and got up to make a phone call to the East Kalimantan Allies.

After briefly reporting their deductions, Wei Lengbo waited a while, then suddenly perked up, straightened his back, and said, "Chairman!"

As soon as those two words were uttered, the eyes of the other three people immediately turned to them.

Wei Lengbo turned on the speakerphone, and a rough, stern voice came from the other end of the phone.

"I know about the situation on your side. Dugu Hao has fallen, so let's find someone else. Yun Lao Er's two decisions were risky and ruthless enough. I really have to value him a bit more. Since he's set up this Shenzhou Brotherhood Society, the four of you should go over there together and say hello to them."

"Okay, then we'll meet tonight..."

"What are we doing tonight? Let's go right now before the sun sets. It's been years since we last met, and I'd love to see you guys on the news."

Wang Qing walked to the phone and answered, "President, how should we make this greeting?"

"Blow up their president's place, then the four of you go to Tao Zhu Group and turn yourselves in. Be smart, don't let me hear any of you confessing directly to..."

When the sound from the microphone was interrupted, the electronic tone vibrated and crackled a few times before suddenly turning into a piercing buzzing sound, and a wisp of smoke rose from the phone.

The four brothers' expressions changed simultaneously.

"Electromagnetic shockwave device!"

White Wolf smashed the French windows with a punch and shouted to the gang members below, "Go to the armory and get a new gun."

The electromagnetic interference device, which could not distinguish between friend and foe, covered most of the villa. The gang members on patrol had their guns flashing with electric sparks as they all ran towards the armory.

Ordinary pistols and rifles pose little threat to super-agile modified martial artists; only a column of assault rifles capable of providing sufficient firepower coverage can pose a real deterrent.

However, things are valued for their rarity. Gunpowder firearms with power comparable to electric submachine guns are rare and sought-after items that can only be produced by a few arsenals. Although the four brothers had a batch of them, they had no intention of distributing them to their subordinates for daily use.

If we only let them exchange their guns now, it might not be in time.

Behind the broken French window, White Wolf looked up and saw a figure on the distant wall.

The man was carrying an object that looked like a speaker. It was a small electromagnetic detonator that could only be found on the black market. Not to mention the price of the machine itself, just the power supply box that could be used to start it would cost at least $50,000.

"Sigh, when it comes to spending money on a fight, you have to finish it quickly."

Bang! ! !

The already damaged French windows were shattered once again.

The white wolf arched its body and flew away.

Guan Luoyang stepped into the second floor of the villa, placed the machine in his hand on the ground behind him, and gave it a cold glance.

"I reckon you guys are bound to make a move soon, so I thought I'd give you a heads-up. Who's going to hit the road first?"

(End of this chapter)