37: Chapter 37 White Jade Dragon? A Dead Man!

A speedboat flying a flag depicting a white dragon playing in the waves cut straight through the moored boats without slowing down, rudely bumping against the Hundred Refinements Workshop's receiving boat.

Before the boat had even come to a complete stop, several figures leaped nimbly onto the deck.

The leader was a young man in his early twenties, dressed in a moon-white silk robe with a jade belt around his waist. His Face was as handsome as polished jade, and his expression carried a hint of the arrogance and vanity of someone accustomed to a pampered life.

Yet, his eyes were slightly sinister, and his lips habitually curled into a hypocritical smile.

This was none other than the young master of the gang of the White Dragon Gang, "White Jade Dragon" Bai Shiyu.

Following him were seven or eight guards with fierce auras and temples bulging high.

But the most striking figure was a middle-aged man standing half a step behind and to the side of Bai Shiyu.

This man was tall and thin, wearing a dark purple robe embroidered with strange insect and snake patterns. His Face was pale, his eye sockets were sunken, and his lips were thin and colorless. His entire being exuded an aura that was cold, damp, and like a tomb.

As he opened and closed his eyes, his pupils faintly shimmered with a grey-green hue. Wherever his gaze landed, people felt an inexplicable sense of trepidation and unease.

White Jade Dragon stepped onto the deck, surveyed the area with an arrogant gaze, and finally fixed his eyes on Iron Madman. He put on a formulaic smile and cupped his hands in a salute, saying:

"Master Iron, I have long admired your name! I am Bai Shiyu of the White Dragon Gang. I have come today specifically to request that your workshop forge a batch of weapons."

Iron Madman frowned almost imperceptibly. He set down the tiger bone in his hand, turned around, and returned the greeting with neither servility nor arrogance:

"young master of the gang, what kind of weapons do you require? It is the rule of the Hundred Refinements Workshop to serve in the order of arrival and schedule accordingly. Currently, our orders are backed up for half a month."

White Jade Dragon seemed to ignore the second half of his sentence and said directly, "We need thirty 'blood-dissecting knives'. Here are the design blueprints."

A guard behind him immediately handed over a scroll of blueprints.

"The material must be top-quality refined steel, but most importantly, the core of the blade must be infused with 'cold iron essence' to enhance its sharpness and its ability to break blood and seal meridians. Price is not an issue; I am willing to pay double, but I need them delivered within ten days."

"Blood-dissecting knives?" A knowledgeable Martial Artist nearby heard this and changed expression slightly, whispering, "That thing... is an evil weapon specifically used to harvest living heart blood or dismember certain special living creatures. Why does the White Dragon Gang need so many of these things?"

"Need you ask? It definitely isn't for anything good!"

Iron Madman took the blueprint and unfolded it to look. His expression darkened.

The knife design on the blueprint was long, narrow, and curved, with fine barbs on the edge, blood grooves on the spine, and a hook at the end. It was indeed a lethal weapon specifically designed for bloodletting and evisceration.

He shook his head: "young master of the gang, this knife has a unique design and takes a long time to forge. More importantly, 'cold iron essence' is a rare precious material. Our workshop has a limited supply, and now... there is only one portion left."

"One portion?" White Jade Dragon raised an eyebrow. "One portion is enough to forge a few samples first. The rest can be made with lower-grade Materials. My White Dragon Gang is in urgent need. Can the Master please make an exception, pause other orders, and prioritize mine? Regarding the payment, it can be discussed."

As soon as these words were spoken, the surrounding Martial Artists and merchants were in an uproar, glaring in anger. This was clearly an attempt to cut in line, and possibly even to take the best Materials!

Iron Madman's expression also turned cold: "young master of the gang, the Hundred Refinements Workshop has its own rules. The last portion of cold iron essence has already been promised to this young friend Li, to be used as one of the main auxiliary Materials for his saber." He pointed at Jiang Hanzhou, as well as the conspicuous Red-Eyed Blood Tiger Materials on the table.

White Jade Dragon's gaze finally turned to Jiang Hanzhou, and the dark golden tiger bones and blood-colored claws in front of him.

A flash of surprise passed through his eyes, immediately replaced by greed. He naturally knew the value of Materials of such quality.

The hypocritical smile on his Face grew wider as he said to Jiang Hanzhou: "This... friend Li? Look, my White Dragon Gang really has an urgent need. Why don't you yield this material and the quota for the cold iron essence to me? My White Dragon Gang will surely reward you generously; you may name your price. In addition, I can also grant you a favor. In this Three Rivers Estuary region, the Face of my White Dragon Gang is still somewhat useful." The words seemed like a negotiation but actually contained a hidden threat, using the name of the White Dragon Gang to pressure him.

The gaze beneath Jiang Hanzhou's mask remained completely calm. He couldn't even be bothered to look at him, only saying to Iron Madman: "Master, the deposit Materials have been handed over. When will the contract be signed?"

He completely ignored White Jade Dragon.

The smile on White Jade Dragon's Face stiffened, and a trace of sinister malice flashed in his eyes.

Just then, the gloomy-looking middle-aged man in the purple robe beside him suddenly had his grey-green pupils constrict. He stared fixedly at Jiang Hanzhou, his nostrils twitching slightly, as if sniffing something.

Immediately after, he leaned into White Jade Dragon's ear and spoke rapidly in an extremely low, hoarse voice filled with excitement and greed.

As White Jade Dragon listened, he first showed a look of surprise, and then his gaze toward Jiang Hanzhou changed. The greed was almost overflowing, mixed with a sense of pleasant surprise as if he had discovered a Treasure Trove.

A sense of alarm suddenly rose in Jiang Hanzhou's heart.

The purple-robed man gave him an extremely uncomfortable feeling—cold, evil, and seemingly connected to the aura of the "Gu" arts on He Yunqi and Old Ghost Yin Bone, yet even deeper and more bizarre.

He no longer delayed. He nodded to Iron Madman, picked up the contract certificate handed over by the other party, turned, and left. He walked quickly across the deck, boarded the ferry boat, and rowed toward the shadows where his own small boat was moored.

White Jade Dragon and his men did not stop him on the spot, merely watching him leave with flickering gazes.

Jiang Hanzhou returned to his small boat, immediately untied the ropes, and took up the oars. The small boat shot away like an arrow from a bow, rapidly departing Old Stork Bay and returning upstream toward the Canglang Water Dock.

After traveling about five or six li, the river surface became relatively narrow, and the shadows of the mountains on both banks were looming.

Suddenly, at a bend in the waterway ahead, two black-awning boats, much larger than ordinary fishing boats, emerged from the left and right, effectively blocking the way.

Standing at the bows were more than a dozen White Dragon Gang members holding water-dividing thorns, fishing nets, and hook scythes, their eyes fierce.

On a relatively spacious speedboat in the middle, White Jade Dragon stood at the bow with his hands behind his back, his moon-white robe fluttering slightly in the river breeze.

He wore that repulsive, hypocritical smile on his Face and spoke loudly toward the approaching Jiang Hanzhou:

"Friend Li, why are you in such a hurry to leave? Meeting is fate; why not come over as a guest and let my White Dragon Gang extend some hospitality? Some matters can perhaps be discussed slowly."

Beside him, the purple-robed middle-aged man stood silently, his grey-green eyes glowing faintly in the darkness, like a venomous snake eyeing its prey.

Jiang Hanzhou's small boat slowly came to a stop.

He looked up, scanned the boats blocking his path, then looked at the smirking White Jade Dragon and the sinister purple-robed man, sighed softly, and whispered into the river breeze:

"Why... is everyone in such a rush to seek death?"

Before the words had even faded—

"Boom!"

The small boat beneath Jiang Hanzhou's feet suddenly exploded. Amidst the flying wood splinters, his figure had already vanished!

The next moment, as if teleporting, a blurred black shadow tore through the night, accompanied by a sharp sonic boom, and suddenly appeared at the bow of the speedboat where White Jade Dragon was, less than three feet away from him!

Without any wasted words, without gathering momentum, a fist had already punched through the air!

On the fist, no Qi and blood were visible, yet an invisible pressure as heavy as a mountain shrouded the area beforehand, as if the air over the entire river surface had been sucked dry by this punch!

Aiming straight for White Jade Dragon's Face!

Before the punch arrived, the chilling killing intent and the domineering pressure of the fist had already caused the hypocritical smile on White Jade Dragon's Face to freeze completely, transforming into boundless terror!