Chapter 1713: Decisive
Hu Liangchen looked at Ma Feng and said, “Brother Ma, take a seat. What you said made sense to me. With our conflict with Tie Zhantian, he definitely would not let us off. The reason why I made everyone make a choice was to see what kind of reaction they would have. However, their response made me disappointed.”
When he heard this, Ma Feng couldn’t help but stare. Then he said, “Brother Hu, the current situation is very serious. Those guys are still attached to the Black Tiger Gang. Do you think we need to take action?”
Hu Liangchen shook his head and said, “Not yet. If we take action now, those guys will definitely stick closer to the Black Tiger Gang. We need to wait and see if they really intend to take refuge under Tie Zhantian. If they want to stay in the Black Tiger Gang, then I will pretend to agree. Once we discuss with Tie Zhantian, I will make excessive demands that he wouldn’t agree to. As long as Tie Zhantian begins to deal with the families, we will depend on the Wandering Soul Gang to make a move. With your strength and mine, our position in the Wandering Soul Group shouldn’t be low. What do you think?”
The more he listened to Hu Liangchen, the brighter Ma Feng’s eyes became. In the end, he couldn’t help but let out a long breath. Hu Liangchen was truly an experienced and careful person. He nodded and said, “I will listen to Brother Hu’s instructions.”
Hu Liangchen nodded and said, “Alright, you should head back. Don’t send people to monitor the others for the next two days. That will only have an opposite effect. I will contact them and see their decision in two days.”
Ma Feng nodded and said, “Alright, I will follow your instructions.”
Hu Liangchen nodded, “Alright, go back. I’ll talk to the others later and persuade them and stabilize their decision. Wait for the result two days later. You should also contact the Wandering Soul Group. Don’t make them act rashly. If they attack at this time, those guys would definitely side with the Black Tiger Gang. It would be more troublesome if that happens.”
Ma Feng nodded. Then he stood up and gave Hu Liangchen a salute before he left. Looking at Ma Feng’s back, Hu Liangchen coldly snorted as he took out a jade sword and sent it out after writing his message.
Before long, besides Ma Feng, all the other patriarchs returned. After they sat down, Hu Liangchen said, “Everyone should have seen what just happened. Ma Feng has completely sided with the Wandering Soul Group. I think the reason why the Ma Clan was able to develop so quickly was because they have the support of the Wandering Soul Group. I told him to wait two days. I’m going to talk to Tie Zhantian tomorrow. If he agrees to our request, we will deal with the Ma Clan and then give him half of the loot. If Tie Zhantian doesn’t agree, then we’ll go with Ma Feng and communicate with the Wandering Soul Group. What do you think?”
When they heard Hu Liangchen, the other Patriarchs stared. Then they immediately nodded. These families cannot put all of their eggs in one person. Therefore, Hu Liangchen’s plan was the safest way.
Hu Liangchen looked at everyone and said, “Since everyone has agreed, then I won’t hold back. Let’s discuss the conditions we’ll put forward. The first issue is the core disciples. I reckon Tie Zhantian would raise the issue of the core disciples. The top ten core disciples simply have too much power. Tie Zhantian would definitely want to remove the restrictions. His disciples are all very powerful. The current top ten core disciples wouldn’t be able to defeat them. We have to make concessions about the core disciples. But we also need to retain our strength. I think we should divide the top ten core disciple slots into two. Tie Zhantian can send people to get the slots but we need at least five slots for our side. If he doesn’t agree, then the talks end there.”
When the Patriarchs heard Hu Liangchen, they were stunned for a moment before their expressions changed. Although core disciples were called disciples, they were far more than that. They held great power, more power than the average Elder. Since they have a mountain base, they had access to a lot of resources. If five slots were given up, that was equivalent to cutting the flesh of the families. Naturally, they were disinclined to agree.
However, just like Hu Liangchen said, if they didn’t make any concessions about the core disciples, Tie Zhantian wouldn’t agree to their proposal. The core disciple issue was one of the main contention between Tie Zhantian and the Hu Faction. If they don’t give in, then Tie Zhantian would still be suppressed. Tie Zhantian definitely wouldn’t agree.
Hu Liangchen looked at everyone and knew what they were thinking. He said, “Everyone, five slots for the top ten Core Disciples is already a lot. If the Wandering Soul Group gets in control, do you think they would give us slots for their core disciples? If we discuss with Tie Zhantian, we can protect five slots. This is retreating in order to advance. Moreover, everyone thought that Tie Zhantian’s disciples were united, but that was only because they were all equal in power. But once some disciples are more powerful than the others, do you think they would still be united? This is also a method to fracture Tie Zhantian’s power base.”
Hearing this, everyone thought about it for a moment before nodding. They agreed to what Hu Liangchen said. The Si Family’s patriarch nodded and said, “Alright, I agree with Patriarch Hu’s proposal.” The other patriarchs expressed their agreement as well.
Hu Liangchen nodded and continued, “Since everyone agrees to this, then let’s move on to another matter, that is Zhang Feng. With Zhang Feng’s large movements recently, we can’t just ignore him. We can make him one of the top ten core disciples and give him the power of a core disciple. However, later on, if a disciple receives the same merit as Zhang Feng, then the gang needs to handle it the same way. What does everyone think?”
The patriarchs paused but they still agreed. Letting Zhang Feng become a top ten core disciple might be good for Zhang Feng, but it wasn’t the case. Although Zhang Feng wasn’t a top ten core disciple, he essentially has the same status and power. And because of his special status, some of the sect’s rules don’t apply to him. Once he becomes one of the top ten core disciples, he would then be subjected to these rules.
Most importantly, with Zhang Feng becoming a top ten core disciple, one of Tie Zhantian’s slots would be used up. Although Tie Zhantian might not have thoughts about this, how about his disciples? This was another way to put a crack on Tie Zhantian’s faction.
Thinking of this, the patriarchs couldn’t help but let out a sigh. Hu Liangchen was indeed the sect’s wise man. His plans always had another layer to it. He would make the enemy think that they benefited while in fact they have fallen into a trap.
The patriarchs immediately agreed to the plan. Hu Liangchen also knew that the others had understood his plan. Then he immediately continued, “Third. We want a guarantee from the gang that our properties won’t be taken. At most we will pay a tax to the gang every year. But the tax cannot exceed 30 percent of our income. The Black Tiger Gang wants to increase its power, our families want to develop. To be honest, we aren’t as good as Tie Zhantian when it comes to utilizing strength. The Black Tiger Gang is going to fight the Wandering Soul Group, it’s time for us to shed some blood.”
Those present stared. They didn’t expect Hu Liangchen to say that. In the past, Hu Liangchen took their businesses very seriously. It was because of this that they had come in conflict with Tie Zhantian many times. Now, he suddenly wanted to offer 30% of their profits. It sounded unreasonable.
Hu Liangchen looked at the patriarchs as he sighed and said, “If the skin doesn’t exist, the hair wouldn’t have anything to stick to. When the Wandering Soul Group gave its ultimatum, I finally understood. We are the people of the Black Tiger Gang and that will never change. The only reason the Wandering Soul Group is polite to us is because we are members of the Black Tiger Gang. If the Black Tiger Gang is united, the sect will remain powerful. Over the years, we have only been thinking of increasing the power of our families, to the expense of the sect. Because of this, the strength of the gang isn’t as good as before. We cannot continue like this. If the Black Tiger Gang is in danger, we would be in danger.”
Everyone nodded. The Black Tiger Gang isn’t as good as in the past. Even the Roaring Flame Sect dared to provoke them. These people have always been silent in the past.
Hu Liangchen sighed and said, “The Black Tiger Gang is currently at a critical point of its life. Although we have been fighting against Tie Zhantian all these years, were still part of the Black Tiger Gang in the end. Our ancestors built this sect after hundreds of battles. The matter with Tie Zhantian is only internal. But if outsiders have any ideas about the sect, then I, Hu Liangchen, wouldn’t let them off!”
Although Hu Liangchen was mild-mannered and calm, his words were firm and decisive. This caused the patriarchs to feel his determination.
The patriarchs heard this and felt their hearts turn hot. Their ancestors worked hard to establish the Black Tiger gang. Naturally, they don’t hope for the sect to perish. Therefore, they felt the same way as Hu Liangchen.