Chapter 131: Clan

"I have no idea why these people from the Oni Organization are being so docile. After the failed assassinations, the gang was about to transfer this branch to another location, but our sources show that they haven't displayed any intention of retaliating. Anyway, let's go. I'll take you to see if the targets we've found are suitable."

On the way back, Nie Yiyi was a lot more talkative than usual, and it was very clear that this was the only time she had been in a good mood in Shadow City. Even her footsteps had become a lot lighter and more spritely, and it seemed that fighting had done her a world of good.

As long as she was permitted to fight and improve, she was as happy as happy could be.

"Aren't you going to participate in the matches, Shae?"

"I'll pass. I can't do anything on my own," Shae replied with a depressed expression. "I also really want to become more powerful, but without Adam, I probably can't even beat a D tier opponent."

Prior to getting swept up in this mess, Shae had only been a normal student, and a junior student, at that. She could beat up the likes of Hook with no problems, but she definitely didn't have the marbles to compete in these matches.

"Have it your way. You've got a real-life hack to use anyway."

Nie Yiyi rolled her eyes at Adam as she spoken, then sped up slightly with a displeased look on her face.

A short while later, the three of them arrived in front of an Asian supermarket.

They made their way around the supermarket to the back entrance, and after having their identities verified, they were brought into a teahouse.

As it turned out, there was a two-story oriental teahouse at the back of the supermarket, and all of the tables, chairs, benches, and teaware were quite antiquated in appearance.

There were some young guards inside the building, but mostly, it was just old men drinking tea.

All of the old men were of oriental descent, dressed in Tang suits that gave them a clean and dashing appearance.

As soon as Nie Yiyi and the others arrived, an old man holding a pair of jade baoding balls rose to his feet. He habitually wore a fake smile on his face, and he gave Nie Yiyi a nod before turning to Adam and Shae.

"You two must be Yiyi's friends. Come in and have some tea. Young people like yourselves probably won't like your tea too concentrated and bitter. Here, give this a taste."

Sitting down in front of the tea table, the old man brewed a light cut of tea in a very elegant and well-rehearsed fashion. Adam picked up a cup of tea before taking a sip, and a refreshing fragrance immediately wafted into his nostrils.

"I've already heard about your situation from Yiyi. Normally, we don't get involved in things that are so dangerous. We're just a gang that runs supermarkets, we can't afford to mess with the southern congress or the Oni Organization."

The old man was rotating the pair of baoding balls in his hand as he spoke, causing them to clatter together audibly. "However, our Green Gang was only able to exist for the past few centuries on the merit of the clan system. All those who join our gang are considered to be family to us.

“If we turn our back on that connection, then there would be no need for the Green Gang to continue to exist. Hence, we won't weigh up the pros and cons in everything we do like those cold-blooded politicians, nor will we pursue profit above all else like those businesspeople. Sometimes, we choose to dabble in some things, even if a loss is guaranteed, such as right now."

"I understand. Thank you." Having experienced so much, Adam was no longer the blank slate who didn't know anything about how this world worked, and he knew what the old man was trying to say. "If we can weather this storm, we'll be sure to do everything in our power to help Yiyi if anything happens to her in the future."

Nie Yiyi represented the Green Gang, so by extension, Adam was essentially making this promise to the entire organization.

"You enjoy your tea, I'll go fetch the targets for you. Jiang Junior, bring them here." The old man called out in a powerful voice, and a response immediately rang out from the second floor.

A short while later, a cyborg with mechanical parts retrofitted all over his body emerged from a booth on the second floor with two people, then hoisted them over to Adam.

At the moment, both of them were unconscious, and one of them was a portly man with greasy hair, and his entire body was giving off a foul stench, while the other one was far thinner in build with a pale complexion.

"Yiyi told me that you're looking for people with mental problems to simulate fights against artificial anomalies. However, people with mental health problems are very difficult to find in Shadow City."

"Is it because this place is too chaotic?"

Adam thought back to the psychic world of the straggler that he had invaded a few days ago. The man appeared to be quite aggressive and deranged on the outside, but his mental health was immaculate.

"I'm not quite sure what you're referring to." It was clear that Adam and the old man were talking about entirely different things. "All of the people in Shadow City with mental health problems are taken by the director to serve as hosts for artificial anomalies. Only hosts who had mental problems to begin with can give rise to the most powerful artificial anomalies, and the director seems to possess a special ability that allows him to sense those people."

"How does he do that?"

Adam was very curious about this mysterious director.

"Who knows? We know very little about him." The Green Gang was one of the largest intelligence organizations in the black market, yet even the people in its Shadow City branch knew very little about the director, and that in itself was already extremely telling. "All we know is that he's a complete and utter lunatic. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to what he's doing and what he's pursuing."

"Why haven't these two been captured?"

"That's because they haven't been here for very long. The director only scours the city for people with mental problems every once in a while. These two have only been in the city for less than half a year, and according to our sources, that one over there perpetually stays indoors, barely ever setting foot out of the small room that he's staying in. From a psychology perspective, there's generally something wrong with people like him."

The old man was pointing at the greasy fatso as he spoke.

"That's true," Adam replied with a nod. "What about the other one?"

"That guy's demented serial killer. Back in Sandrise City, he kidnapped and imprisoned many young women. However, apparently, one of the women that he was keeping locked up in his underground dungeon managed to escape, and he was worried that he was going to be detained by Mechguard, so he fled to Shadow City.

“Someone like him is the perfect host for an artificial anomaly. These idiots have no idea what kind of place Shadow City is. Otherwise, there's no way they would've dared to come here," the old man chuckled. "If I were him, I would rather be captured by Mechguard than come to a place like this. Outsiders like them know far too little about this city."

At the end of the day, a serial killer was still just an average person, so it was very difficult for them to dig up information on a place like Shadow City.

"Alright, that's about all I have to say about them. You can take them away, or we can vacate this room for you, whichever option you prefer. Oh, by the way, all of the information I have on these two were given to me by my subordinates, so I can't guarantee that the information is 100% accurate.

“However, seeing as you're all adapters, I'm sure it's a very simple task for you to verify everything." The old man transferred his baoding balls to his other hand as he spoke, then reached out to offer Adam a handshake. "My name is Liu Fu. Everyone here likes to call me Uncle Fu."

"My name is Adam, and this is my friend, Shae. I'm fine to go ahead here, Uncle Fu." Adam reached out to shake the old man's hand, and even though Liu Fu was already at quite an advanced age, his hand was very thick and solid, and he had a stronger grip than Adam despite being several decades his senior.

"Alright, take them to the neighboring spare room, Jiang Junior. Once Adam and his friends have gone in, no one is permitted to disrupt them."

"Yes, Uncle Fu."

The cyborg that had carried the two men out picked them up once again before taking them to the spare room. After setting the two down onto the ground, he didn't bother to close the door and stationed himself right beside the entrance.