Chapter 117: The Clash

Liu Sheng first went to the locker room and retrieved a bank card from his wardrobe. Dressed in the bathhouse's disposable attire, he followed the PR manager to the main lobby on the first floor. Without asking the manager a single question, he deposited two million yuan and had a membership card issued.

Naturally, Liu Sheng was targeting the stars on the seventh floor. He knew that if he didn't bleed some money, none of the celebrities would bother with him. Celebrities were expensive these days; just lying there for a night cost hundreds of thousands at the very least.

Seeing Liu Sheng deposit two million yuan without hesitation, the manager realized these men were safe—no one would spend that much just to investigate the place. His demeanor shifted instantly, fawning over them like a dog.

This reminded Liu Sheng of a saying: "When the money is right, even the windshield will shatter!" It referred to car trysts—if you pay enough, you can even break the windshield.

"Oh, sir, what is your surname?" the manager asked obsequiously as he led Liu Sheng inside, completely shedding his previous air of arrogance.

Liu Sheng knew the manager was likely getting a hefty commission from those two million, otherwise, he wouldn't have acted like such a sycophant.

"I don't want to say," Liu Sheng replied.

"Understood, understood. Many people who come to such places prefer to keep a low profile."

The four men followed the manager into the elevator. The manager asked, "Would you like to see the performance on the second floor?"

Unable to contain his impatience, Xiaojia retorted, "If you're already at the brink of shitting your pants, do you have time to stop for a leak?"

"Understood, understood." The manager continued his introduction: "Everything above the third floor is for special services. The third floor is standard, the fourth floor features college students, the fifth floor is models, the sixth floor is international friends, and the seventh floor is for celebrities and well-known influencers. The celebrities change daily; if you have a favorite, let us know in advance and we will arrange it, though you might have to wait until they are available."

Liu Sheng and Ren Xiadong were indifferent to the rest, but when they heard "international friends," they exchanged a glance, their eyes gleaming with interest.

Upon reaching the seventh floor and stepping out of the elevator, they found three rows of beautiful women standing in the lobby, all with exceptional figures and faces. There were stars ranging from A-list to Z-list, both recognizable and obscure. Xiaojia and Lao Jiu were dazzled; they couldn't tell anyone apart, so they had no choice but to pick based on bust size.

Liu Sheng and Ren Xiadong, however, showed no interest; they seemed preoccupied. Once Xiaojia and Lao Jiu had made their selections and entered their rooms, Liu Sheng turned back toward the elevator, saying, "I still want to win glory for my country. I'm going to the floor below."

Ren Xiadong followed him, adding, "Every man has a responsibility for the rise and fall of the nation. I'm going to go finish off the Japanese!"

Thus, Liu Sheng chose a blonde, blue-eyed international friend on the sixth floor, while Ren Xiadong found the Japanese bride he had been looking for.

After a bout of passion, Liu Sheng checked the time. It was still an hour before 1:00 AM. He rolled over and pulled the international friend into his arms.

...

"You can go now," Liu Sheng said to her in a foreign language.

Once she left, Liu Sheng lit a cigarette and watched his watch, counting down: "Five, four, three, two, one!"

He used his lighter to set the bedding ablaze. Ren Xiadong did the same in his room. As the fire grew, both men ran out of their rooms, shouting, "Fire! Run! There's a fire!"

Hearing the screams, the guests rushed out of their rooms. Liu Sheng and Ren Xiadong took the opportunity to set fires in the empty rooms as they went. Their actions were spotted by a waiter, who began speaking into his walkie-talkie.

Watching the crowd running around in their birthday suits, Liu Sheng and Ren Xiadong didn't bother squeezing into the elevators; they took the stairs. As they ducked into an internal corridor, the waiter spoke into his radio: "The two arsonists have run into the internal corridor."

When they reached the third floor, two burly men in suits suddenly appeared. Liu Sheng didn't hesitate; he leaped and kicked the man in front, sending him crashing into the wall behind him. Liu Sheng continued to run downward.

"Mobilize all the brothers! Get your guns and kill them both!"

Liu Sheng ran toward the location of his car, still wearing the disposable bathhouse robe.

"Holy crap, that was intense! I went three times! How about you?" Xiaojia couldn't suppress his joy; for the first time in his life, he had finally "plucked the flower."

Lao Jiu was calmer. "Big Brother practices the 'Virgin Skill.' He must have gone at least five times!"

Just as they were bragging in the back seat, Ren Xiadong and Liu Sheng opened the front doors and jumped in.

"Ren Xiadong, drive! Turn on the AC, it's a bit cold," Liu Sheng said to the driver, then looked back at the people chasing them and burst into laughter.

"What's going on? You didn't even want your clothes?" Lao Jiu asked the two in the front.

Liu Sheng didn't speak; he just shook his head, signaling them not to ask.

Along the way, seeing the men and women fleeing the Palace Bathhouse in their naked state, Liu Sheng laughed again. Local residents were watching from their windows, whistling, and some were even recording with their phones.

Liu Sheng had planned this well. He had only brought one card inside, leaving his phone and wallet in the car. Just when they thought they were in the clear, the sound of many vehicles approaching at high speed echoed from behind.

Liu Sheng sharpened his hearing and detected four cars, each carrying four people—sixteen pursuers in total.

Since they were in the city, he didn't want to expose himself to the public. "Drive to the mountains!" he told Ren Xiadong. Fortunately, there were plenty of mountains around.

Ren Xiadong floored the gas. As they reached the mountainside, one car was about to catch up. Liu Sheng grabbed the gun from the car, loaded it, leaned halfway out the window, and fired at the driver. The car careened off the cliff.

Liu Sheng pulled himself back in and shouted from the passenger seat, "That felt damn good!"

In the back, Xiaojia and Lao Jiu were terrified. "Liu Sheng, what are you doing? How do you have a gun?!"

"Stop the car." Once the car stopped, Liu Sheng turned to the two in the back. "If you want to follow me, you have to adapt. In this world, only the strong have rights!"

Liu Sheng and Ren Xiadong got out with their guns. Lao Jiu and Xiaojia huddled in the back seat, paralyzed with fear.

Liu Sheng listened to the three remaining cars. "One is coming up. Do you want the tires or the driver?"

"The driver," Ren Xiadong said coldly.

The two raised their guns, and as the enemy car came into range, they fired simultaneously.

Ren Xiadong killed the driver, and Liu Sheng blew out a tire. The car followed the previous one over the cliff.

Liu Sheng heard the last two cars stop. Eight men stepped out, preparing to surround them.

"Be careful. Four in front, four above. You take the four in front, I'll take the four above." Liu Sheng fired two shots upward, killing two men, and added, "Here they come!"

Ren Xiadong fired two shots, killing two of the men approaching from the front. Liu Sheng pulled Ren Xiadong against the cliffside. "Two more up there, and the ones in front will be here soon. Keep the ones in front alive. The ones above are right over us. On the count of three, we fire upward. One, two, three!"

They both lay on the ground and fired. After one shot each, they pressed back against the cliff as the two bodies tumbled down in front of them.

Liu Sheng then hugged the wall, inching toward the remaining two men in front while Ren Xiadong kept watch for him.

When Liu Sheng spotted the two men advancing, he quickly fired two shots, knocking the guns from their hands. He stood in the middle of the mountain road, pointing his weapon at them. "Don't move. I know you're out of men. Hands on your heads and walk over here slowly."

The scene shifted.

In front of Liu Sheng's car, the two pursuers sat on the ground with Ren Xiadong holding them at gunpoint. Liu Sheng opened the back door and said gently to the terrified Xiaojia and Lao Jiu, "Come out, it's over."

Once they reached the car, Liu Sheng handed a gun to Lao Jiu. "It's not too late to regret. I won't make things difficult for you. If you don't go around spouting your mouth, I'll give you some money. So, I'll ask you one more time: are you sure you want to follow me?"

Lao Jiu closed his eyes. "My grandfather told me that a martial artist must achieve great things, or their skills go to waste."

"Bang, bang, bang!" Lao Jiu emptied the magazine. He stopped, looking at Liu Sheng in a panic. "I don't regret it."

Liu Sheng smiled. "From now on, we are true brothers."

He looked at Xiaojia. Xiaojia said, "I'm out of bullets, I can't strangle the guy, can I?"

Ren Xiadong walked over and handed his gun to Xiaojia. Xiaojia took it, shaking. "I'm scared."

"Name your price. I'll pay whatever you want, and I'll get you back safely." As Liu Sheng finished speaking, a gunshot rang out.

"Bang!" Xiaojia threw the gun to the ground and slumped down, trembling.

Liu Sheng glanced at the two men in front of the car, who were now motionless. He pulled Xiaojia up. "It's fine. Let's go home."

"Will they hunt us down?" Lao Jiu asked, still worried.

After getting back in the car, Liu Sheng told the two trembling men in the back, "Chong City is my turf. They wouldn't dare run wild there."

For safety, Liu Sheng had Ren Xiadong drive through the night back to Chong City, parking directly inside the school.

Back in the dorm, Lao Jiu and Xiaojia had nightmares all night. Liu Sheng didn't sleep, thinking to himself, "We all went through this. You'll get used to it soon enough."

During the shootout, the enemy hadn't managed to fire a single shot. He had brought back their two guns, intending to give them to Lao Jiu and Xiaojia once they recovered their nerves. The ammunition was the same caliber, which saved him the trouble of finding more.

The next morning, at Hu Yinghe's house:

"Liu Sheng! If I don't kill you, I swear I'm not human!" Hu Yinghe shouted at his strategist in a rage.

"Young Master, Liu Sheng is unforgivable, but he's in Chong City now—outside our jurisdiction. Should we rethink this?"

"Shut up! Send our best assassin and kill him!"

Hu Yinghe paused, then added, "No, make it look like an accident. The more it looks like an accident, the better! And keep an eye on Ren Xiadong. The situation is unfavorable for us right now. Just kill Liu Sheng for now; leave Ren Xiadong be. Without Liu Sheng, he won't act rashly. Even though he's a troublesome opponent, he hasn't fully matured yet. As for the other two, ignore them!"