Chapter 41: The Ancient Dragon Mark

At this moment, the Gray Wolf was gravely wounded—where would he go? Never mind, I should head to the Azure Dragon Gang’s headquarters first. With Qin Tian subdued and the gang unified, I’d be in a much stronger position to deal with Gray Wolf. The swordsmanship I’d witnessed from Yu Jing just now had astonished me; with a single strike, he had gravely injured Gray Wolf, and Shi Feng’s fate was still unknown. Bringing Shi Feng back was part of my plan as well; in movies, villains who have been betrayed by their own often end up switching sides. After all, if you’ve been betrayed by a comrade, would you still risk your life for them?

I was certain Shi Feng would turn against Gray Wolf and help us. He had no reason to oppose me. The Azure Dragon Gang was headquartered in a residential complex in the city center—the entire area belonged to them, and it was no easy task to get in. Guards stood watch at the entrance and refused to let us in no matter what. With no other choice, we had to knock them out. The layout inside was labyrinthine, and I had no idea in which building Qin Tian was meeting.

The closer I got to the heart of the complex, the more violently the dragon tattoo on my wrist throbbed. What was happening? This had never occurred before. It felt as though the dragon mark was about to burst through my skin. It didn’t hurt, but the sensation was unsettling. Suddenly, a loud crash echoed from Block B.

There were five buildings in total, each about thirty stories high, labeled A through E. The moment the sound rang out, I ran straight toward Block B.

On the top floor, shards of glass from the floor-to-ceiling windows littered the ground, and two men lay sprawled there, both dressed in the black suits characteristic of the Azure Dragon Gang.

Carrying Shi Feng, I called to Yu Jing and charged upward. We didn’t bother with elevators or other means; each floor was only about four meters high, and the three-foot-wide balcony outside the windows made it easy enough for us to climb by hand.

A few agile leaps, and I reached the top floor, flipping into the room. The place was a wreck—tables, chairs, and papers strewn everywhere. Even the two thick columns inside had been smashed, and a gaping hole yawned in the floor, revealing the level below. I glanced down; no one was there. Yu Jing vaulted in behind me.

“What happened here?” Yu Jing asked, standing by the window’s edge and surveying the debris.

I signaled him to be silent; I could hear footsteps on the roof above.

Quickly, I gestured for Yu Jing to head for the rooftop. But this place was vast—where was the elevator? At last, I found it—damn, it was out of power. We’d have to blast our way through the ceiling.

“Old Li, over here!”

Yu Jing’s voice came from behind a wall to the right. Turned out the rooftop had already been breached; rebar and concrete jutted out, occasionally dropping bits of gravel to the floor.

I leapt up onto the roof. There, a crowd of gunmen in black suits stood in formation. In their midst stood two men—one with blood at the corner of his mouth, the other, Gray Wolf. This man always showed up at the worst possible time. As Yu Jing and I emerged, the crowd turned, leveling their guns at us.

“Relax. He’s my target.” I pointed at Gray Wolf standing with his hands behind his back. Gray Wolf’s lips curled in a cold sneer. “Li Yunfei, I didn’t expect you to find me so soon. No matter—you can all die together!”

The dragon tattoo on my wrist pulsed more violently than ever. I set Shi Feng down, forced the energy back, and pushed through the crowd. The gunmen kept their weapons trained on me as I strode up to the wounded man. The dragon tattoo danced uncontrollably—when I raised my wrist, wisps of black mist seeped from it. Glancing at the wounded man, I saw the same black aura drifting from his wrist. Could he, too, possess an ancient dragon mark?

“You must be Qin Tian?” I asked as I approached.

He nodded silently, one hand pressed to his chest, crimson liquid seeping through his fingers and dripping to the ground. I turned to face Gray Wolf. Yu Jing drew his short sword and moved to my side. A battle was about to erupt. No matter what, I had to capture Gray Wolf alive this time.

“Beware his sword,” the wounded man behind me warned.

I shot him a grateful glance. Two black-suited men helped him retreat into the crowd.

Thanks to Qin Tian’s warning, I finally noticed the sword in Gray Wolf’s hand—a semi-transparent blade. If not for the tip-off, I might have missed it entirely.

“Come, let me show you real swordsmanship today,” Gray Wolf taunted, sword in hand, advancing step by step.

I stepped forward, ready to meet him, but he pointed at me and said, “Not so fast. Let me deal with that white-haired brat first, then I’ll send you to the afterlife.”

He was referring, of course, to Yu Jing—the only one here with an unbroken mane of white hair. Ignoring me, was he? Fine, let Yu Jing take the lead; I could observe his techniques.

“You’re awfully arrogant. Make your move!” Yu Jing replied, gripping his sword in reverse and stepping forward. I slipped back to Qin Tian to check his wounds. After a brief exchange, Qin Tian’s hostility toward me faded. I pressed my right hand to his chest, channeling a gentle stream of white energy into him—an ability I’d unlocked after cultivating the Demonic Heaven technique, able to heal wounds so long as the person still lived.

I couldn’t cure him completely, but at least I stopped the bleeding. Qin Tian flashed me a grateful smile. Meanwhile, Yu Jing and Gray Wolf had already begun to clash. Yu Jing wielded his short sword in reverse grip, relentlessly pressing Gray Wolf. Each swing unleashed a pale white energy. It was less a sword than a dagger in his hands—he swept and stabbed, but Gray Wolf effortlessly countered every move.

This was bad—he was draining Yu Jing’s strength. Yu Jing kept attacking, while Gray Wolf merely dodged. Eventually, Yu Jing would tire. Realizing this, Yu Jing broke off, retreating three meters to put distance between them.

Yu Jing raised his right hand, sword gripped tight, and lifted his left hand before his chest. An invisible energy pulsed in his palm. The purple glow reappeared on his short sword. He tossed it into the air and struck at the void with his left palm, sending the purple-bladed sword hurtling forward like an arrow.

Gray Wolf, confident, swung his own sword, leaping high. “Sword Dance of the Nine Heavens!” he roared. His semi-transparent blade met Yu Jing’s purple short sword head-on, deflecting it. I snatched the short sword out of the air, while the shockwave sent Yu Jing flying. I caught him by the back before he could fall from the rooftop.

Such a formidable sword technique—subduing Gray Wolf would indeed take effort. Gray Wolf smirked at me. “So much for the Violet Azure Sword!”

With that, he swept his blade through the air, sending out a wave of sword energy. I hurriedly deployed a defensive shield, surrounding the group. But as the shield expanded to cover everyone, its power weakened. The sword energy barely paused before shattering the defense. I conjured a black wall of energy for extra protection, but even so, I couldn’t completely shield everyone.

A whole row of people in front of us were sliced in half at the waist. Standing before Yu Jing and Qin Tian, I couldn’t avoid injury; the sword energy tore a deep gash in my abdomen. I touched the wound—it felt as if my intestines had been severed. The pain was maddening.

Gritting my teeth, I said, “Gray Wolf, I’m the one you want—let them go, and I’ll go with you.”

“Old Li, you can’t!” Yu Jing protested, supporting me.

I raised my hand to silence him. “Enough. We can’t possibly defeat him. Better for one of us to die than all.”

The Buddha said, ‘If I do not enter hell, who will?’ As I interrupted Yu Jing, the blood on my fingers trickled down my arm onto the dragon mark. A flash of white light erupted from it. Suddenly, all was blank—when the glare faded, our group found ourselves in a forest.

What was happening? We’d just been on the rooftop—was this the dragon mark again? I looked at my wrist; the mark seemed to have faded. My abdominal wound was already starting to heal. I scanned the surroundings—everyone was here, even Gray Wolf. Things had just gotten a lot more complicated; it seemed we’d been transported to another world once more.

Gray Wolf rested his sword on his shoulder and said, “Ancient dragon mark—no wonder you crossed time and space last time. But the ancient dragon mark can only be used once. How did you do it again?”

What? Only once? Did that mean I could never return?

“Now, hand over the Demonic Heaven technique,” Gray Wolf said, advancing with his sword.

I summoned my energy to protect myself, shielding the others behind me as Gray Wolf leveled his blade at my throat.

“This is your last chance. Refuse, and you’ll never get another. If I can’t have the Demonic Heaven technique, I’ll destroy it,” he said, his tone menacing.

“Even if it means my death, I will never hand it over to you!” I replied, each word deliberate.

“Very well! I’ll grant your wish!” Gray Wolf’s sword thrust savagely at my throat.