Chapter 2: The Deal
In the basement of Ling Xiao's house, various supplies were haphazardly stored. Ever since he learned that this was the Marvel World, Ling Xiao had developed a habit of hoarding things, perhaps not knowing when disaster might strike.
However, compared to the tumultuous Manhattan in New York, Los Angeles was much safer. Apart from numerous Gangs and a few Mutants, there were rarely any disasters, making it relatively secure.
At this moment, a man in a plaid shirt with a slicked-back hairstyle was anxiously pacing in the basement. Seeing Ling Xiao appear, he quickly stepped forward to greet him: "Ling Ge!"
"Xiao Qi, why is it you?" Ling Xiao frowned. In that orphanage, about half of the children were of Chinese descent. They clung together, snatching food from the plates of the white and black children. Of the dozen or so siblings, after a few lucky ones were adopted, most of the rest joined the Si Hai Gang, becoming Gang members.
Ling Xiao was among the lucky ones. He was exceptionally intelligent from a young age, self-learning a vast amount of knowledge. Later, he even got into California State University, studying biopharmaceutical science, and was a Genius who received scholarships every year. If not for an accident during one of his experiments, this current consciousness might not have descended.
"Ling Ge!" Perhaps having been in the Gang for too long, Xiao Qi cautiously approached Ling Xiao and whispered, "Ling Ge, Third Brother sent me this time to get a hundred portions of Hemostatic Ointment and a hundred portions of Pain-Relief Powder. It's an urgent need."
With that, Xiao Qi stuffed two thick rolls of US dollars into Ling Xiao's hand. Friendship was friendship, but business was business; all Chinese descendants struggling to survive in America understood this principle.
"Why so urgent? You're going to clean out all my stock!" Ling Xiao frowned. It had only been half a month since his brothers took a batch of medicinal powders from him, which was enough for a whole month's use.
The ointments and powders Ling Xiao sold were extremely expensive. Xiao Qi and his brothers could get them from Ling Xiao for a hundred dollars a portion because they were family. Others who wanted to obtain these items would at least have to pay double the price.
These items were so expensive because of their excellent efficacy. In Gang fights, getting shot was inevitable. The ointments Ling Xiao made could directly close bullet wounds, stopping the bleeding. And with the Pain-Relief Powder, these Gang brothers could be used as biochemical warriors without any side effects.
It wasn't that no one had tried to obtain Ling Xiao's medicinal formulas. Whether it was directly approaching Ling Xiao to purchase them or attempting to reverse-engineer the items he had already sold, nothing had worked.
"Ling Ge!" Xiao Qi looked a bit troubled, but after a moment of contemplation, he spoke, "This matter was personally ordered by Gang Leader Zhang. He's gathered the brothers to ambush a dock in the southeast tonight. A cargo ship, a Japanese smuggling vessel, will be arriving there tonight."
Across the entire West Coast of America, the Japanese accounted for a significant portion of electronics and human trafficking. Electronics were one thing, but human trafficking, especially involving Chinese women, made it understandable why the various Chinese Gangs on the West Coast would take action.
Throughout the West Coast of America, the Hongmen Chee Kung Tong in San Francisco held immense influence in both legal and illegal circles. The Chee Kung Tong had now completely whitewashed its image, establishing companies, participating in elections, and enjoying an excellent reputation in America.
Disciples of the Chee Kung Tong were forbidden from engaging in gambling, prostitution, or drugs. Violators would have a finger severed and be expelled from the Chee Kung Tong. Zhang Xiaotian, the current leader of the Si Hai Gang, was once a Disciple of the Chee Kung Tong. There were countless people like him among the Chinese Gangs on the West Coast.
Zhang Xiaotian's ancestral home was in Lu Province. Ling Xiao, Third Brother, and Xiao Qi also hailed from Lu Province. Their parents lost their lives in the Gang fights during the expansion of the Si Hai Gang. Therefore, when Third Brother and Xiao Qi wanted to join the Si Hai Gang after growing up, Zhang Xiaotian accepted them without hesitation.
Ling Xiao had no fondness for Gangs. Besides, he had already received a scholarship to California State University at the time, so he naturally didn't want any further involvement with Gangs. Thus, he directly moved out of Monterey Park.
"Since it's against the Japanese, I won't say anything more. Tell the brothers to be careful." With that, Ling Xiao reached out and pushed aside the iron cabinet, revealing a large safe deeply embedded in the wall behind it.
Xiao Qi's eyelids twitched rapidly as he watched Ling Xiao effortlessly push aside the iron cabinet, which weighed over a hundred pounds. To be honest, the Si Hai Gang had also tried to get Ling Xiao's formula, but like other Gangs, all the people they sent disappeared, with no trace of them alive or dead.
Ling Xiao never admitted that anyone had ever entered his house. Even when someone reported it to the police, attempting to use law enforcement to find the people, nothing was discovered after repeated forensic investigations.
A few days later, the Gang leader who had come to cause trouble died in his own home, silently. Even the police didn't know what caused his death.
Ling Xiao was not to be trifled with. Rumor had it that Ling Xiao had cultivated his ancestral martial arts to a very deep Realm, so after several losses, no one bothered Ling Xiao anymore.
At this moment, Ling Xiao had already packed a hundred portions of Hemostatic Ointment and Pain-Relief Powder from the safe into a large black bag and handed it to Xiao Qi.
Xiao Qi didn't count them. He nodded at Ling Xiao and then left through the secret passage in the basement, moving with extreme agility.
"The Japanese are restless again!" Ling Xiao frowned, feeling a surge of worry. A month ago, a Japanese smuggling cargo ship was busted by the local Chinese Gang in San Diego. He didn't expect them to turn to Los Angeles this time.
It was essential to gather intelligence in advance and strengthen weapon defenses. Ling Xiao didn't believe that the actions of the Los Angeles Chinese Gang could be hidden from the Japanese. Since the Japanese knew that the Chinese Gang here had already set a trap, yet still dared to walk into it, there must be a conspiracy!
Suddenly, Ling Xiao stood in the basement and chuckled. Such matters could be seen through by an uninvolved person like him, let alone those seasoned Gang leaders. If they didn't have something to rely on, how would they dare to make a move? After all, this was the Marvel World!
No longer dwelling on it, Ling Xiao exited the basement. After closing the door, Ling Xiao glanced at the front desk. Besides one or two regular customers buying health supplements, there was no one else, so Ling Xiao went straight to the third floor.
The entire third floor was blocked by two thick iron doors, secured tightly by a large iron lock. The lock wasn't difficult to open, but the trouble was the iron door itself; weighing half a ton, it wasn't easy to open silently.
Ling Xiao placed both palms on the iron door, then channeled all the True Qi in his body. The two iron doors silently slid open to either side.
The entire third floor had been opened up. On the nearly hundred-square-meter floor, various precious medicinal herbs were displayed: ginseng, ganoderma, ambergris, cordyceps, fleeceflower root, snow lotus, and so on. It was strange how they could grow in wooden basins, and they were thriving.
Ling Xiao took out the small glass bottle he had kept on his person. He slowly divided the Ren Water in the glass bottle into dozens of portions and poured them into the wooden basins of these precious medicinal herbs. These wooden basins contained essence sea mud that Ling Xiao had extracted from the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, combined with carefully collected Ren Water Essence, which was one of the reasons these herbs could grow so vigorously.