Chapter 366 - 272: Coming Home

Chapter 366: Chapter 272: Coming Home

A man and a tiger, both with amused expressions on their faces.

"And you are?"

"This is Young Master Tang Wen."

"So it’s Young Master Tang Wen from Flame Camp." The elderly Extraordinary leading the allied forces was about to say more,

when he was suddenly interrupted:

"My young master is the heir to Flame Camp! The Black Water Gang’s Seventh Young Master, a Fourth Grade Honored Guest Elder of the White Tiger Tribe, and one of the leaders of Ganshan City!"

The barrage of titles was hurled at them.

It made the listeners tense up.

Especially since Five Families City was such a small place.

Many people had never even heard of Ganshan City or the Black Water Gang, let alone what an Honored Guest Elder was.

And even someone as thick-skinned as Tang Wen felt inexplicably embarrassed.

But that Extraordinary shouted enthusiastically, "Of course, he is now also the Lord of Five Families City!"

"This...?"

The elderly Extraordinary and the others exchanged glances.

They spoke in secret via telepathy:

"So many grand titles. Are they for real?"

"Real or not, he’s an Extraordinary at such a young age. That power isn’t fake!"

"How old can he be? It’s just a bluff! Couldn’t any of us be shameless enough to claim we’re the leader of some faction?"

"Right! Whether he’s bluffing or not doesn’t matter. That White Tiger behind him definitely has the power of a Sixth Grade."

"..."

Before they could reach a conclusion,

Tang Wen spoke again. "You’ve all come here looking for a piece of the pie. And frankly, that’s not impossible."

Huh?!

Their eyes lit up. The oldest of them, the Extraordinary named Old Lan, asked, "And what might your conditions be, Young Master?"

Tang Wen didn’t answer. He drew his blade, ran a thumb along its spine, and asked, "How many groups are you in total?"

"Between the nearby camps and villages, large and small, there are eleven of us in total."

"So all the surrounding powers are here?"

"They are."

Tang Wen smiled. "That simplifies things. Each of your groups will send out one person. You’ll all come at me together. If you can beat me and prove you have the strength, you can have a piece of the pie."

The eleven leaders froze, staring at one another.

’What does he mean?’

’These terms are way too simple, aren’t they?’

Among the eleven leaders, six were Extraordinaries. The other five were top-tier Martial Artists.

They could hold their own even against a regular Extraordinary.

’Eleven against one?’

’How is this any different from a free handout?’

The six Extraordinaries began another telepathic discussion.

The smaller factions represented by the five Martial Artists were excluded from the conversation.

When your strongest fighter was only a Martial Artist, your opinion was simply irrelevant.

It was the same principle that kept commoners out of a king’s war council.

"Isn’t this just a handout? Elder Lan, what do you think?"

"Heh. It’s either a trap—meaning this Young Master Tang is far stronger than he looks—or he knows he can’t hold on to a juicy prize like Five Families City by himself and is using this as an excuse to give us a cut!"

"He can’t hold it? Isn’t that White Tiger a Sixth Grade?"

"Hmph! So what if it’s Sixth Grade? Including their Queen and the White Tiger, Flame Camp only has two Sixth-Grade powerhouses. Don’t forget, they have the threat of Black Mountain Camp to the South! Would they dare station a Sixth-Grade Powerhouse in Five Families City? Aren’t they afraid Black Mountain Camp will pick them off one by one?"

"Exactly! Without a Sixth Grade stationed here year-round, they can’t hold Five Families City. So they might as well give us a taste! And in doing so, use us to help guard the place."

"Still, if that’s the case, I think it’s only right that we take a sixty percent share."

Hearing the result of their discussion, Tang Wen didn’t even raise an eyebrow.

"You want sixty percent? Fine. Sixty percent it is," he warned. "But if you lose, aren’t you afraid you won’t be able to leave the arena in one piece?"

The leaders all looked to Old Lan, who paid the threat no mind. "Young Master Tang Wen, let me confirm this. You’re saying it will be you, alone, against the eleven of us?"

"That’s right."

"And the White Tiger Holy Beast won’t participate?"

"Of course not. Otherwise, what chance would you possibly have?"

This put the assembled leaders even more at ease.

Their knowledge was truly limited. They still thought the White Tiger was merely a Sixth Grade Exotic Beast.

"Thank you, Young Master Tang Wen!"

’What a nice guy! He’s just handing us money and resources!’

"Heh, I’m not finished," Tang Wen said. "If you lose, you will all become my subordinates. Your factions, big and small, will become my vassals."

’Lose?’

’Lose an eleven-on-one fight?’

’How is that even possible?’

Old Lan asked, "If we were to become your vassals, what would we be required to do for you, Young Master?"

"A Sixth-Grade expert will be permanently stationed in Five Families City, which will also protect your individual factions from harm. At the same time, your eleven factions and camps must be integrated and developed according to a new plan."

’Although I’ve decided to teach these narrow-minded, greedy fools a lesson, the Northwest Land is already barren. Manpower is a scarce resource here. I absolutely must take over their territory.’

"A permanently stationed Sixth Grade?" Old Lan was taken aback.

Another middle-aged Extraordinary frowned. "Young Master Tang Wen, doesn’t Flame Camp only have two Sixth-Grade masters?"

"That’s not your concern. I will transfer someone from Ganshan City. You only need to follow orders!"

’Absorbing them and fostering their growth was part of the plan from the beginning.’

"If we lose, you won’t require tribute from us?" Old Lan didn’t understand, his cloudy eyes filled with astonishment.

"Hah! Your paltry money," Tang Wen scoffed, shaking his head. "Winter is here now. Have any of your people starved to death this year? Is there a single camp among you that hasn’t had people starve?"

Old Lan’s breath hitched.

The crowd fell silent.

In a year of great drought, one didn’t have to wait for winter for people to starve to death.

Winter was when people froze to death on top of starving.

Tang Wen shook his head again and again. The moment he saw their mismatched armor and universally emaciated mounts, he knew they were poor—not even as well-off as Flame Camp. Trying to squeeze them for profit would be like trying to get blood from a stone.

The only thing Tang Wen saw of value was their population.

Compared to squeezing these destitute people, he much preferred shaking down rich and powerful clans.