Chapter 63: Sailing Against the Current

“Boss, they’ve cleared the dense forest.” Officer Li’s earpiece crackled again.

Officer Li sipped his ginseng tea, glanced at the clock on the wall, and said, “Give them the green light. Make sure Li Zimu and Xu Si get to He Wentian’s house safely.”

“Brother Tian? It’s me, it’s me—Xu Si.”

“What took you so long? Liang Lingzhi’s already here—why haven’t you shown up?”

“Brother Tian, listen to me—something’s happened to me this time, and only you can save me!”

There was a pause on the other end. “Cut the crap! You think I don’t know the police are after you? Liang Lingzhi’s already told me your identities! Damn it, you dare try to fool me? Are you really tired of living?”

“Never, Brother Tian!” Xu Si was so startled by Ye Dong’s roar that his phone nearly slipped from his hands. “Brother Tian, for the sake of the times I’ve helped you out, please just help me through this!”

“Enough whining. Come here and we’ll talk. Send an address—I’ll send someone to pick you up.” The call ended without Ye Dong mentioning Li Zimu at all, and that made a chill run through Li Zimu’s heart. “He Wentian doesn’t even see me as a person. Looks like my odds aren’t looking good at all.”

Before long, Dachun arrived in a car to pick them up.

“When you meet Brother Tian in a bit, if you want to live, don’t say a word—remember that.”

Li Zimu and Xu Si exchanged glances and nodded repeatedly. “Thank you, thank you for the warning, brother.”

They followed Dachun to a luxurious villa on the outskirts. As soon as the doors opened, a cacophony of noise erupted from inside. “Beat him! Beat him!”

A chill ran through the two men. They looked toward the source of the commotion and saw two muscle-bound men locked in an iron cage, brawling fiercely. He Wentian was shouting at the side of the cage, the very image of a maniacal fan of brutal combat.

“The Iron Cage Tournament—exhilarating stuff!” Dachun explained with a grin. “It’s Brother Tian’s favorite.”

With a heavy thud, one of the fighters collapsed, and the match came to an end.

“Useless! Down so fast!” Ye Dong tossed a wad of cash into the cage, shaking his head in disappointment.

“Brother Tian, the guests have arrived.”

After Xiaobao lit Ye Dong’s cigar, he stepped back. Ye Dong’s voice was cold as he asked, “Xu Si, I’ve always treated you like a friend. Why’d you bring these riffraff along?”

Li Zimu knew full well that “riffraff” referred to him.

Xu Si hurried to explain, “Brother Zimu’s looked after me for years—he’s my big brother.”

Liang Lingzhi sneered nearby, “Big brother? Someone this pathetic is worthy of being your big brother? If you want to follow someone, follow a real man like Brother He!”

Ye Dong lazily exhaled smoke. “Liang Lingzhi tells me you two are really artifact smugglers?”

Xu Si didn’t dare answer and looked to Li Zimu.

Li Zimu licked his lips, hesitating for a long moment before nodding. “Y-yes.”

Ye Dong patted Li Zimu’s shoulder, gently steering him toward the cage. “Don’t let my looks fool you—I’m actually very reasonable. Here, I’ll give you a chance. If you can last a minute in the cage, I’ll let your little lie slide.”

Before Li Zimu could reply, Ye Dong gave him a hard kick, sending him sprawling into the cage.

“Start the timer!”

“Brother!” Xu Si clung to the bars. “Brother Tian, I’m begging you—please spare my big brother!”

Ye Dong removed his cigar, squinting at the cage. “No, no, begging me is useless. Beg that muscle man inside—he’s the one your big brother is fighting.”

Li Zimu was terrified. He had never faced such a hulking brute before. In less than twenty seconds, he’d been punched twice and was already on the verge of passing out.

“Hang in there, big brother!” Xu Si called, his face full of worry. “You have to survive this if you want to live!”

Li Zimu’s mind was awash with memories: Wei Ye and his men dismissing him, luxury cars filling the streets, beautiful women crowding gala halls, thirty million in cash sitting in a bag, He Wentian’s humiliating words, desperate escapes at gunpoint at the border, Xu Si’s urgent calls—these images flashed before his eyes. “I want to make something of myself! I can’t die here!”

With a roar, he hurled himself at the muscle-bound fighter, grappling with him desperately.

“Good! Now that’s interesting!” Ye Dong slapped the bars enthusiastically. “Why didn’t you do this sooner? You wasted over twenty seconds for nothing!”

Finally, a minute passed. Bloodied but alive, Li Zimu staggered in front of Ye Dong. “Brother Tian, you promised—you’ll let this go now.”

Ye Dong smirked coolly. “You’ve got some guts. What’s your name?”

“Li—Li Zimu! Cough, cough!” Li Zimu could barely get the words out.

Xu Si rushed forward. “Brother Tian, you have to help us this time!”

Ye Dong lifted his finger and waved it twice. Everyone but Xiaobao and Dachun left the room. Then Ye Dong said, “Liang Lingzhi, you stay.”

Liang Lingzhi was elated. “Yes, Brother Tian!”

Ye Dong clamped his cigar between his teeth again. “Li Zimu, let’s hear your story.”

Li Zimu hurriedly replied, “Yes! Yes! Xu Si and I are in the artifact trade—we handle illegally acquired relics and help get them into auctions. The cut after expenses from the last auction was about thirty million, and I got greedy, wanted to keep it all for myself. But when we tried to sneak across the border, customs caught us—we got caught in a firefight. In the chaos, we escaped, but the money was lost. Now both the law and the underworld are after us!”

Liang Lingzhi cursed. “You lost thirty million? Are you out of your mind?”

Ye Dong kicked him in the shoulder. “You dare lie to me too?” He demanded coldly, “If the law is the police, who’s after you from the underworld?”

Li Zimu clutched his shoulder, not daring to cry out in pain. “The man I work for is called Wei Ye. You might not believe it, but he knows magic.”

Ye Dong’s eyes lit up, a curious glint in them. “Magic? What kind of magic?”

Li Zimu recalled, “He can command the dead to work for him—even kill the living with corpses!”

At this, Ye Dong swore loudly. “Nonsense!”

Li Zimu waved his hands frantically. “I wouldn’t dare lie to you, Brother Tian! I really saw him kill a man with magic. I even know the man’s name—Pan Dehua. Before he died, he did what I do now—laundering goods for Wei Ye!”

Ye Dong paused, thinking, “So the previous fence is dead. No wonder Officer Li said the trail went cold.”

“Why did Wei Ye kill him?”

Li Zimu glanced at Ye Dong from the corner of his eye. “He tried to steal the money and run. Got caught—died horribly, tortured to death.”

“You knew how ruthless Wei Ye was—why did you keep working for him?”

“Because… because his goods are good, high quality, and he gave me a twenty percent cut. Tonight at two thirty, I was supposed to deliver the money to him—but I don’t have it anymore.”

Ye Dong took the cigar from his mouth. “So tonight you’re here to ask me for money to pay Wei Ye?”

Li Zimu nodded fervently. “Please, Brother Tian, for Xu Si’s sake—he saved your life before—please help us! We’re truly desperate!”

After a long moment, Ye Dong half-closed his eyes and smiled. “Thirty million isn’t pocket change. Unless…”