As one of the top gangs in Madman's Howl, Yang Jufeng didn't take this rookie Xiao Lin seriously. He just gave him a cold glance and continued talking to Shen He.
"I've already stated the ins and outs. Simply put, we have a bit of a conflict with the Satellite Town right now, and things aren't very pleasant," Yang Jufeng said coldly.
"Hmm, I know that," Shen He nodded.
"I know your Shen Gang has a good reputation nearby, so my idea is simple. You act as a mediator and help us negotiate peace. The reward is 50 gold coins."
50 gold coins...
Xiao Lin calculated silently. Based on his knowledge, the most common gold and silver coins were 20-gram minted coins.
The value of gold was one hundred times that of silver. One hundred gold coins equaled ten thousand silver coins, which translated to 100 kilograms of silver.
Calculating based on the highest silver price of ten yuan before his transmigration, that was roughly a million yuan.
Xiao Lin was somewhat shocked. Were these Gravediggers actually this rich?
But thinking about it carefully, this seemed normal. After all, without such high rewards, why would these people risk their lives as Gravediggers?
However, Shen He didn't agree immediately. He leaned back in his chair and said, "This is difficult. After all, you had a direct conflict with the Satellite Town and injured their people. This has never happened before."
"So?" Yang Jufeng seemed somewhat displeased.
"We need some time to investigate and see if 50 gold coins are worth the risk for us," Shen He smiled.
"Then add another ten gold coins." Yang Jufeng seemed unwilling to give Shen He a chance to consider.
"Thanks, but we all do business relying on the Satellite Town—me, you, and other Gravediggers. If we fall out with the Satellite Town because of you, the loss would be unbearable for us."
Yang Jufeng's face turned gloomy. "60 gold coins. This is the limit. If you don't agree, we can only give up and go back to wait for death."
"But I'm not someone who waits for death willingly. When the time comes, I'll go completely crazy, and I'm not sure what I might do then."
The smile on Shen He's face slowly disappeared. He heard the implication in Yang Jufeng's words. If he didn't agree, the Yang Gang might retaliate against them before they died.
Although the Yang Gang had suffered a heavy blow, Yang Jufeng himself was a superpowered individual and very difficult to deal with. They might end up with no money and still suffer losses.
After struggling internally for a moment, Shen He shook his head. "Since it concerns the survival of the Yang Gang, how could I not agree? After all, we are neighbors."
The expression on Yang Jufeng's face relaxed slightly, but he remained aggressive.
He waved his hand, and a subordinate nearby handed over a wooden box. The box was opened, revealing ten bright yellow gold coins inside.
Yang Jufeng pushed the box towards Shen He. "This is the deposit. The remaining fifty coins will be delivered immediately after the job is done."
Shen He signaled his subordinate to take the box and check it, then picked up his teacup and took a sip, saying:
"But I am curious, how exactly did you offend Lan Shiyu to make him strike so ruthlessly, leaving not a single survivor?"
"He's usually not that kind of person." Upon hearing this, Yang Jufeng's expression immediately turned ferocious. "This won't just pass. That bastard, sooner or later I'll kill him, and his group of subordinates too."
"Let them know that offending me, Yang Jufeng, will absolutely not end well, and they will die miserably!"
Shen He wasn't surprised at all. This guy was never sincere about peace talks from the start; he was just trying to save his own skin. But Lan Shiyu was even harder to mess with.
Just then, Xiao Lin, who had been silent on the side, slowly spoke up: "May I say a few words?"
Yang Jufeng spoke first: "You'd better sit there quietly and act like you don't exist, or you'll regret it."
"No, no, no. What I have to say is really important." Xiao Lin didn't care about Yang Jufeng's threat at all and continued, "Lan Shiyu didn't strike ruthlessly. The Gravediggers from the Yang Gang weren't killed by Lan Shiyu."
Yang Jufeng was stunned for a moment, then his eyes turned calculating. "You're actually making excuses for that bastard?"
"I have no intention of making excuses for him... I'm just stating a fact," Xiao Lin said with a smile.
Yang Jufeng sneered, his expression becoming increasingly dangerous. "Fine, then start stating. If it wasn't Lan Shiyu, then who? Remember, if you dare say the three words 'I don't know', I'll cut out your tongue."
"Of course I know." Xiao Lin's smile remained unchanged.
"Those people... were killed by me."
The entire meeting room instantly fell deathly silent. The expression on Yang Jufeng's face became terrifyingly hideous, with scarlet light beginning to flicker in the depths of his pupils. This was a sign of a physical superpowered individual activating their ability.
Shen He felt his scalp go numb. They hadn't prepared for any conflict. In this situation, Yang Jufeng was capable of tearing everyone present to shreds.
He hurriedly stood up wanting to quell the conflict, but Xiao Lin continued speaking without any concern.
"It should have been five days ago. That night, Liang Yuan led a dozen people from the Yang Gang to rob me.
"I actually tried to negotiate with them, but there was a girl named Xiao Yu... she was an idiot.
"I really had no choice, so I could only kill them all.
"But don't worry, their deaths shouldn't have been very painful. It was just instantaneous."
The atmosphere became increasingly serious and dangerous. The Yang Gang members stood up one after another, and some started drawing guns.
Shen He and the Shen Gang members were already completely dumbfounded, not knowing how to intervene in this sudden conflict.
Xiao Lin continued: "Actually, I never thought about seeking revenge against your Yang Gang. After all, I'm very busy; my work schedule is fully booked.
"But after listening to this meeting today, I suddenly feel that sometimes, cutting the weeds and digging up the roots is very necessary.
"After all, I just want to live a peaceful life."
Yang Jufeng suddenly stood up. Intense red light erupted from his pupils, and layers of dense black scales grew from his body surface. In an instant, he seemed to transform into a humanoid beast.
"Hmm? Are you going to make a move here?" Xiao Lin still sat there, asking with interest.
Yang Jufeng growled: "No matter who you are, no matter what your identity is, today I will make you taste the most painful way to die."
"That's great. That way, I don't even have to find an excuse." Xiao Lin smiled brilliantly, then picked up a fruit knife from the table. He suddenly stabbed it towards his own forehead. Blood instantly gushed out.
This act of his stunned everyone present. "Wha... what is he doing?"
"Did he commit suicide? Is this guy crazy?"
Xiao Lin's arm holding the fruit knife fell limp, revealing a deep bloody hole in his forehead. This wound went straight to the brain, basically confirming death.
But for some reason, Yang Jufeng felt uneasy. He turned to Shen He with a ferocious face: "Shen He, you'd better give me an explanation! Was this person deliberately arranged by you!"
The moment the words left his mouth, everyone present felt an icy gaze sweep across their bodies in the same instant.
The crowd suddenly fell silent and looked together at Xiao Lin's corpse.
They saw that behind that deep bloody hole, a blood-red eye was staring straight at them.
Then, that thing started to crawl out. First one hand extended from the bloody hole, then the other. The hands slowly pushed open, and that bizarre creature slowly crawled out.
"Wisdom Demon... It's the Wisdom Demon!!" Someone screamed in terror.