Chapter 62 The Xiong Family vs. The Ma Family (Part One)

Swish, swish, swish!

Everyone in the conference room rose to their feet, crowding toward the massive floor-to-ceiling windows.

Ma Tian snatched up the walkie-talkie and issued a stern command: “Hold your ground at all costs. Do not let them breach the building!”

Then, turning to the Ma family’s core members present, he said, “Those of you with martial arts training, follow me downstairs!”

With that, he strode out of the conference room at the head of the group, Ma He and the others close behind.

...

At this moment, the plaza in front of the Ma Corporation Tower was occupied by several hundred men in black suits, some burly and some lean but all exuding menace, forming a protective cordon around two black Rolls-Royces as they advanced toward the building’s main entrance.

The Ma family’s security personnel and martial artists stationed at the doors felt the pressure of this darkly clad force and tensed up, gripping their weapons tight.

This time, no one drew firearms; all held machetes.

Cold steel against cold steel—this was the unspoken rule for battles between martial clans. If such families resorted to firearms or other modern weapons, they would not only earn the scorn of the martial world but face its punishment as well.

The phalanx of black suits halted at the entrance, forming ranks as disciplined as a military unit.

The Rolls-Royces came to a stop. From the driver’s seat of the lead car leaped a sinister-looking young man who opened the back door and said, “Father, please step out.”

At his words, a middle-aged man stepped out, exuding authority. He wore a white suit beneath a fur-lined coat, a thick cigar clenched between his lips, his eyes flashing with a sharp, intimidating light—clearly not a man to be trifled with.

This was Xiong He, the current patriarch of the Xiong family, a martial artist at the pinnacle of the hidden force.

The young man who had opened the door was his eldest son, Xiong Ding.

Father and son walked to the entrance of the Ma Tower. Xiong He took the cigar from his mouth with a large hand and addressed the Ma family in a chilling voice: “Bring out your leaders, Ma Tian and Ma He, right now. Surrender and from this moment your Ma family serves my Xiong family as vassals!”

His tone was domineering, like a superior commanding his subordinates.

The Ma family’s guards and martial artists at the entrance seethed with anger at his words.

In City M, the Ma family’s strength had traditionally eclipsed that of the Xiongs. No one could have imagined that today, the Xiongs would dare press them so brazenly.

“Hmph! Xiong He, you talk big! Careful you don’t bite your own tongue!”

Just then, a voice, brimming with wrath, echoed from inside the Ma Tower.

All eyes turned to see Ma Tian and Ma He, accompanied by the Ma family’s core members, hurrying toward the entrance.

“Ma Tian, Ma He—so you finally found the courage to show your faces. I thought you’d stay hidden like frightened turtles!” Xiong He sneered, his laughter twisted.

Ma Tian glared at Xiong He and retorted, “Listen, Xiong, I advise you to turn back while you still can. Once Grandmaster Chen arrives, you’ll have nowhere to hide, not even a grave for your bones!”

“Ha! Grandmaster Chen?” Xiong He let out a brazen, mocking laugh. “Where is he? Your family certainly knows how to spin lies! The Ma family patriarch is dead, so now you invent this so-called Grandmaster Chen to put on a front. You’re only fooling yourselves!

Ma Tian, Ma He—one minute. If you don’t surrender and merge with my family, then tonight I will erase the Ma family from existence!”

His voice grew sharper and more venomous as he spoke.

Xiong He didn’t believe for a moment that the Mas had a grandmaster backing them. Grandmasters were as elusive as dragons in the Hualong Federation; there were only three in all the southeastern provinces. Besides, if the Mas had really secured a grandmaster’s support, would they have closed down their casinos, tightened their operations, and spared their old rivals the Xiongs?

Faced with Xiong He’s aggressive challenge, Ma Tian and Ma He burned with fury.

“Xiong He, if you think the Ma family will surrender, you’re living in a fantasy!” Ma Tian spat through gritted teeth.

A sinister grin stretched across Xiong He’s face, revealing a row of gleaming white teeth. He sneered, “Is that just your opinion, Ma Tian, or does the whole Ma family stand with you?”

“The head of the family speaks for us all!” Ma He replied coldly. “The Ma family will never bow to the likes of you!”

“In that case, tonight I’ll slaughter every last one of the Ma family’s core members and wipe you from the earth!” Xiong He laughed wickedly.

Ma Tian stared him down. “You and what army?”

“On my own? Of course not!” Xiong He cackled, then walked to the second Rolls-Royce in the convoy.

He bent respectfully at the door, making a gesture of invitation. “Mr. Zhao, I’ll leave the next part to you,” he said.

From the car emerged a middle-aged man dressed in a black, cross-collared Tai Chi robe and black cloth shoes. He had a hooked nose and piercing eyes, his gaze as sharp as blades, radiating an overwhelming and chilling presence. The aura emanating from this man dwarfed even Xiong He’s; they weren’t in the same league.

“Please, Mr. Zhao,” Xiong He said.

The two of them walked toward the Ma Tower’s entrance. The men in black suits parted respectfully, forming a straight path.

Xiong He and Mr. Zhao halted at the front of the building. Xiong He curled his lip in a smirk and addressed Ma Tian, Ma He, and the others.

“This is Mr. Zhao, who recently joined our Xiong family. His skills are nearly supernatural. Out of compassion, I offer you one last chance—surrender. Become vassals of my Xiong family, and you’ll receive Mr. Zhao’s elixirs to greatly enhance your martial strength...”

Ma Tian, Ma He, and the others stared at Mr. Zhao, feeling immense pressure, but none backed down.

“Cut the crap! If it’s a fight you want, bring it on! We’re not afraid of your Mr. Zhao or any other dog you brought!” Ma Tian swore.

Xiong He’s face darkened, his body radiating murderous intent. He barked, “Since you refuse the wine of courtesy, you’ll have to drink the wine of punishment! Xiong family, attack!”

“Kill! Kill! Kill!”

At his command, the black-suited men gripped their machetes and, shouting ferociously, charged at the Ma family’s security and martial artists.

Xiong He led the charge, iron fists clenched, heading straight for Ma Tian, his son Xiong Ding and the other Xiong family experts close behind.

Mr. Zhao, meanwhile, stood unmoving, hands clasped behind his back, as if these Ma family underlings weren’t even worth his attention.

In an instant, the Xiongs and the Mas clashed.

The clang of colliding blades and the shrieks of the wounded rang out in a chaotic symphony, the air quickly thick with the scent of blood.

Ma Tian and Xiong He, both masters at the peak of the hidden force, exchanged blows with gusting power.

Ma He and the other Ma family experts engaged Xiong Ding and the Xiong family’s fighters.

The battle raged for more than ten minutes.

Gradually, the Xiong family’s experts began to falter. Xiong Ding, assaulted by Ma He and another Ma family master, was sent flying, coughing up blood.

“Useless trash!” Mr. Zhao, who had yet to make a move, shot Xiong Ding a cold glance and uttered the words with icy disdain.

Then, in a flicker of motion that left only afterimages behind him, he darted toward Ma He with lightning speed.