Chapter 379

Chapter 379 A Deadly Trap!

Wanyan Zhengyong heard this and let out a chuckle: “What an interesting kid.”

Ever since the Yuanwei Gang rose to power, no one had ever spoken to Wanyan Zhengyong in such a tone over all these years. Su Rui had broken that precedent.

Su Rui raised an eyebrow and said: “Gang Leader Wanyan, let’s get straight to the point.”

Watching Su Rui’s guarded expression, Wanyan Zhengyong smiled lightly, his voice deep and resonant: “My young friend, why don’t we sit down and talk.”

“Sit down and talk? I don’t think that’s necessary.” Su Rui narrowed his eyes. Facing this dominant overlord of China’s northern underground world, he showed not the slightest courtesy or respect.

Ever since Su Rui had wiped out the Beitang Four Tigers, the two sides had already become enemies. What was the point of playing pretend at this stage?

Besides, in Su Rui’s view, something that could bring both pillars of the Yuanwei Gang here at once was definitely no small matter. If he were alone it would be one thing, but Lin Aoxue was with him right now, which gave the other side plenty of opportunities to make a move.

“I’m here to invite you to join the Yuanwei Gang.” Looking at Su Rui, Wanyan Zhengyong’s gaze gradually returned to a calm and measured expression, the smile in his eyes slowly fading.

Tian Bingyi at the side seemed somewhat surprised and glanced at Wanyan Zhengyong, but said nothing.

“Invite me to join the Yuanwei Gang?” A cold smile crept onto Su Rui’s lips: “Sorry, I’m not interested.”

Having one of the Western dark world’s Twelve Divine Gods, Apollo, join a local Chinese gang — was this some kind of joke?

“Young friend, your skills are extraordinary and you have passion in your heart. Staying in Ninghai’s Qinglong Gang will gradually wear all of that away.” Wanyan Zhengyong made no effort to hide his admiration for Su Rui: “You are the most agreeable young person I have met in all these years. Join the Yuanwei Gang, and we’ll accomplish great things together. What do you say?”

“Great things?” Su Rui’s eyes flickered, and he asked as if in passing: “I wonder what exactly Gang Leader Wanyan means by great things?”

Wanyan Zhengyong said with a serious expression: “The things a man ought to do.”

“The things a man ought to do?” Su Rui shook his head, glanced at Lin Aoxue in his arms, and said: “I think what a man ought to do is hold a woman close and book out a screening room to watch a movie. Too bad my movie hasn’t even gotten very far before being interrupted one after another!”

As he said this, a trace of irritation was clearly evident in Su Rui’s tone.

Hold a woman close to watch a movie?

Wasn’t he holding her right now?

Hearing Su Rui’s words, Lin Aoxue’s body shifted slightly. She lifted her head, only to find that Su Rui had also tilted his head down at the same moment, and their eyes met.

In that instant, their gazes locked, and both understood what the other’s eyes were saying.

“Is it a bit dangerous?” Lin Aoxue asked with her eyes.

“It’s fine, I’m here, don’t worry.” Su Rui replied.

At certain moments, two people in sync can communicate far more efficiently with their eyes than with words.

But while some heard Su Rui’s words with delight, others heard them with displeasure.

Seeing this, Wanyan Zhengyong’s expression darkened slightly: “Between a woman and a kingdom, which matters more?”

“Some people will tell you they love their kingdom but love their beauty even more.” Su Rui spoke with a look of contempt: “But I’ll tell you, what does a kingdom mean to me? Not a damn thing. I don’t care for kingdoms, only for my beauty.”

As he spoke, Su Rui patted Lin Aoxue on the back, then let his hand slide all the way down her back, gently coming to rest at the side of her slender waist.

Hearing Su Rui’s words about caring for beauty over kingdoms, Lin Aoxue felt as though a wave of sweetness was slowly melting inside her heart. The corner of her lips curved ever so slightly, revealing a trace of breathtaking charm.

A look of regret, like that of someone disappointed by a promising talent, showed in Wanyan Zhengyong’s eyes: “A man must ultimately build his legacy in this world. If he indulges in women every day, he will ruin his entire life.”

Su Rui said cheerfully: “Gang Leader Wanyan, save your breath. Everyone has their own ambitions. I have no desire to build some legendary legacy, and no desire to join the Yuanwei Gang. I just want to live comfortably without working myself to the bone. So please, see yourself out and stop wasting your time on me.”

Old Tian stood to the side, slowly shaking his head. It was clear he had already seen through Su Rui’s intent — this young man had flatly rejected the olive branch extended by the Yuanwei Gang!

He had killed so many of the Yuanwei Gang’s Beitang members, and had even used the appalling tactic of making the Beitang members slaughter each other, completely destroying their plans. Did he really not know the consequences of doing so?

What kind of fighting strength did the Yuanwei Gang possess, and what kind of punishment and retaliation would they bring down on him?

With this young man’s intelligence, there was no way he hadn’t thought of this!

Or was it that he knew full well, and simply chose to ignore it?

Old Tian knew that the Gang Leader had also developed a fondness for talent, and was willing to set aside past grievances to let him join the gang — if they could gain this young man as an ally, it would be of tremendous benefit to the gang’s actual combat strength, even more effective than an entire fighting hall!

If it weren’t for this, how could Wanyan Zhengyong, who always placed such great importance on brotherhood, bring himself to disregard his feelings for his Beitang brothers?

Yet this Su Rui showed absolutely no intention of accepting the olive branch!

Thinking of this, Old Tian let out a quiet sigh.

Was another genius about to be cut down before his time? He hadn’t even reached the stage of dying young yet!

Going by Wanyan Zhengyong’s consistent principles, if he and Su Rui could not be friends, he would absolutely not stand by and watch someone who posed a serious threat to him continue to grow. This was a threat to himself, and even more so an act of irresponsibility toward the entire Yuanwei Gang!

Wanyan Zhengyong’s expression turned completely cold: “Young man, do you know what this choice of yours means?”

“What does it mean?”

Su Rui raised an eyebrow, looked at Wanyan Zhengyong, and said with a smile: “I’d guess Gang Leader Wanyan means that if I don’t comply with your decision, you’ll have me killed. Right? Since we can’t be friends, we can only be enemies.”

Wanyan Zhengyong said nothing, and his silence clearly meant he was acknowledging it.

“Young man, are you truly unwilling to reconsider?” Tian Bingyi said with what seemed like regret. As someone who had been through it all, seeing a young person cut down before reaching their peak was something he too found sorrowful.

Of course, that sorrow amounted to nothing compared to the Yuanwei Gang’s greater cause.

“There’s nothing to reconsider. Let’s lay it all out plainly — there’s no way I’m joining the Yuanwei Gang, and there’s no way the Yuanwei Gang will let me go.” Su Rui’s words showed not the slightest regard for face: “This matter is actually very simple. I killed the Beitang Four Tigers, so you’ve come to kill me. An eye for an eye. There’s no need to keep up this pretense here.”

“What a character. Really suits my taste.”

Watching Su Rui frankly and cleanly acknowledge what had happened between him and Beitang, without any deflection or excuses, Wanyan Zhengyong couldn’t help but let a flash of admiration cross his eyes.

It was just a bit of a shame that such an outstanding young talent would have to meet his end here today.

“It seems Gang Leader Wanyan is also a straightforward person.” The hand Su Rui had around Lin Aoxue’s slender waist tightened slightly: “I just wonder what kind of death you have in mind for me today.”

“Take your own life. That way you’ll die with some dignity.” Wanyan Zhengyong said in a low voice.

In the eyes of this dominant overlord of the north, dying with dignity or leaving a whole corpse was a matter of great importance. Life was already so hard — if you died with a bruised face or missing limbs on top of that, wouldn’t that be going too far?

But Su Rui looked as though he had heard something absolutely hilarious, and was nearly laughing himself to tears.

Wanyan Zhengyong frowned and said: “What are you laughing at?”

“Gang Leader Wanyan, do you know who I just ran into here?” Su Rui stopped laughing, a trace of mockery in his gaze.

“Yan Kaida from the Molang Gang. Just a piece of trash.” Wanyan Zhengyong’s brow remained furrowed. From start to finish, he had given Su Rui more than enough face, yet Su Rui’s attitude was making him increasingly displeased.

“But Gang Leader Wanyan, this piece of trash you speak of — in my eyes, there’s one way he’s quite similar to you!”

Su Rui truly never spoke without causing a stir. The person before him was Wanyan Zhengyong, who could decide a person’s life or death with a single word in the north, yet he was actually comparing him to a worthless young master!

Wasn’t this just outright calling Wanyan Zhengyong a piece of trash too? He was practically tired of living, bold beyond all reason!

Even Tian Bingyi frowned: “Young man, don’t go too far.”

“Am I going too far, or are you? You came here to take my life, and all I said was that you’re a bit similar to that piece of trash from the Molang Gang. How is that going too far?”

Su Rui stood tall and proud with Lin Aoxue in his arms. Lin Aoxue’s hand rested behind Su Rui’s waist, and they looked just like a couple locked in a tight embrace — completely at odds with the tense, charged atmosphere around them.

Pressed close against Su Rui’s chest, Lin Aoxue seemed to clearly feel that his heartbeat was keeping the same rhythm as her own!

Lin Aoxue had been feeling slightly nervous. Even with her usually calm and unruffled temperament, having never experienced a situation like this before, it was impossible for her to remain completely composed. But after feeling the steady, even rhythm of Su Rui’s heartbeat, Lin Aoxue surprisingly calmed down as well, and her own heartbeat gradually fell into sync with his!

Every move this man made seemed to bring boundless reassurance to those around him!

That warm chest was the solid barrier protecting her!

Lin Aoxue’s heart was beating with strength, and beneath those strong beats, the layers of ice encasing her heart began to slowly melt away!

“Oh? I’d very much like to hear how you think I’m similar to that piece of trash.”

With plenty of time on his hands, Wanyan Zhengyong was in absolutely no rush. The reason he wasn’t worried about things dragging on wasn’t out of arrogance or overconfidence — it was simply because victory was already firmly in his grasp!

In his view, Su Rui couldn’t fly out of this movie theater today even if he sprouted wings!

Because this movie theater was itself a secret base of the Yuanwei Gang in Ninghai!