34: Chapter 34: The Enemy at the Gates, the Last Fury of the Four Great Families

Bai Family Manor.

This fortress, usually resplendent with lights and symbolizing the highest power in Kokang, was now filled with apocalyptic panic.

Although the gunfire on the perimeter hadn't fully erupted yet, the sense of crisis, like needles pricking the back, had already tightened the nerves of everyone in the manor. Patrolling private soldiers looked panicked, fingers locked tight on their triggers, with even the slightest rustle causing a commotion.

In the core command room beneath the manor, Bai Suocheng sat on a rosewood armchair with a livid face, clutching a satellite phone tightly.

"Min Aung Hlaing, that old fox! He took so much of our money, yet now he's playing deaf and dumb!" Bai Suocheng slammed the phone onto the table with a loud "bang." "Talking about 'coordinating,' coordinating my foot! He just wants to watch us get devoured by that madman Zhang Cheng so he can use it as an excuse to intervene!"

"Dad, is there any news from the Wei Family, the Liu Family, or the Ming Family?" Bai Yingneng asked, his face deathly pale, a blood-soaked bandage wrapped around his arm. "Didn't we agree to provide mutual defense and support each other?"

"Mutual defense my foot!" Bai Suocheng gritted his teeth. "Wei Chaoren, that old slippery fox, has long since pulled his main forces back to his entertainment complex, saying he wants to defend that treasure pot to the death! Liu Aibao, that miser, is busy installing steel plates outside his vault! As for Ming Xuechang, humph, I heard he's digging tunnels at the Wohu Mountain Villa, preparing to run away!"

"These idiots!" Bai Suocheng trembled with rage. "Do they not understand the concept of 'when the lips are gone, the teeth are cold'? Zhang Cheng is determined to have our lives this time! Splitting our forces to defend is a dead end!"

"Then… then what do we do?" Bai Yingneng asked, his voice choked with sobs. "Even though we have a lot of troops, we can't stop that Death God Legion! I heard they wiped out an entire regiment of regular troops at Gunlong Gorge!"

"Even if we can't stop them, we must try!" A flash of ruthlessness crossed Bai Suocheng's eyes. "This is the foundation of our Bai Family! Run? Where to? Wherever we run, we'll be stray dogs! We might as well fight that little bastard here!"

He stood up abruptly, his eyes filled with madness: "Pass the order! Bring out all those 'hard bones' in the dungeon, and all those 'high-level piglets' that haven't been shipped out yet!"

"Dad, what are you doing?" Bai Yingneng was stunned.

"What am I doing? Those are our protective talismans!" Bai Suocheng grinned viciously. "How many are there? Eight hundred? A thousand? Drag them all to the manor walls! Drag them to the windows of the main building!"

"Whether they are men or women, old or young, tie them all in front of the shooting ports! Tie one every two meters!"

"Tell the brothers below to hide behind these human shields and fire! Let's see if that Zhang Cheng dares to use artillery! Let's see if he dares to send these thousand-plus lives to heaven all at once!"

This move was truly unscrupulous and despicable to the extreme! But for Bai Suocheng at this moment, as long as he could survive, he wouldn't hesitate even if it meant dragging all of Kokang down with him.

New Jinjiang Entertainment Complex, Wei Family headquarters.

The place was still filled with red lights and green wine, but beneath this false prosperity hid a volcano about to erupt.

Wei Family's second young master, Wei Qingtao, stood before the floor-to-ceiling window of the luxury office on the top floor, overlooking the heavily guarded plaza below. Hundreds of fully armed mercenaries were constructing fortifications, with light and heavy machine guns and rocket launchers set up at various commanding heights.

"Second Young Master, we are prepared," the security captain reported. "As long as that Zhang Cheng dares to come, we will make sure he never returns! Our firepower configuration here is stronger than that of regular troops!"

Wei Qingtao lit a cigar and took a deep breath, trying to calm his inner unease: "Don't be careless. That kid Zhang Cheng's troops are incredibly bizarre. Tell the brothers, whoever can take down Zhang Cheng, I'll reward him with ten million US dollars! If anyone dares to flee in the face of battle..."

A trace of murderous intent flashed in his eyes: "Then don't blame me for being ruthless!"

Although he talked tough, Wei Qingtao's hands were trembling slightly. He recalled the rumors about the Death God Legion—undying bodies, precision like gods, cold and heartless...

Liu Family mansion.

As the richest man in Kokang, Liu Aibao's defense strategy was simpler and more brutal—throw money at it.

He opened the door to his underground vault, pointed at the mountains of cash and gold bars inside, and roared at the group of desperadoes recruited with huge sums of money: "See that? These are all yours! As long as you can save my life and protect this mansion, you can take whatever you want!"

"If you can't hold it..." Liu Aibao gritted his teeth, "Then we'll all die together holding this money!"

The desperadoes looked at the gleaming gold, greed shining in their eyes. Stimulated by the money, their fear was temporarily suppressed, and they rushed toward the defensive positions, howling.

Wohu Mountain Villa, Ming Family.

Ming Xuechang was directing his police battalion to seal off all entrances and exits to the villa, littering the surrounding mountains and forests with landmines and traps.

"I don't believe Zhang Cheng has three heads and six arms!" Ming Xuechang said with a gloomy face. "The terrain here is complex and easy to defend but hard to attack. As long as we hold out for a few days, wait for the situation outside to change, or for pressure from the Dragon Kingdom, we still have a chance of survival!"

The Four Great Families, under the shadow of death, each made their final, desperate choices. They thought that with solid fortifications, numerous hostages, the lure of money, and the advantage of terrain, they could withstand that army from hell.

However, in the darkness outside the manor.

The Death God Legion had silently completed the encirclement.

Old K stood on top of an armored command vehicle, watching the real-time images transmitted by drones on his tactical tablet. The defensive deployments, firepower locations, and even the hiding places of the commanders of the Four Great Families were as transparent as glass in his eyes.

"Dominator, the encirclement is complete. The targets are fighting separately, just as you expected." Old K pressed the communicator, his voice as calm as if he were reporting the weather.

On the other end of the communicator, there was a suffocating silence, followed by Zhang Cheng's cold voice:

"Very good."

"Since they don't want to go out with dignity, we'll help them go out with dignity."

"Order all squads, no need to wait, no need to negotiate."

"Strike simultaneously."

"Tonight, I will use their blood to wash away the sins of this land."

"Action!"

Following Zhang Cheng's order, the originally dead-silent night sky was instantly ignited by boundless killing intent.

The Death God's sickle had fallen.