"If you've got nothing else, I'm taking her. Follow nicely, or your big sister—heh, you know what happens," I said, pressing my face close to the girl's, letting her catch my "menacing" grin.
"Brother Tian, is that you?" My brain froze. I turned, studying my "hostage" closely. She looked familiar. "Brother Tian, it's Little Yan! Don't you recognize me?" the girl said urgently.
I looked harder. Damn, she's like the Little Yan from years ago, but… transformed. Those curves—wow. Catching my lecherous stare, Little Yan blushed, "Brother Tian, still a perv, huh?" It's really her, from the orphanage. Am I that pervy? Just kissed her cheek, c'mon.
"You're really Little Yan? What're you doing in America?" I asked. "Wah, wah!" She didn't answer, just threw herself into my arms, sobbing.
From our talk, I learned she'd been practicing the martial arts I taught her. Despite being a girl, she was hooked on wuxia hero dreams from TV. The orphanage couldn't fund college, so she hit the road to "roam the martial world." Green to society, she got scammed out of her cash. Penniless, she hid in an abandoned parking lot to rest. Middle of the night, footsteps woke her. Peeking out, holy crap—two gangs making a deal. Though trained, her girlish nerves kicked in. Holding her breath, she watched. Then another group swooped in, skilled, robbing both gangs without killing, using the acupoint-sealing trick I taught her. After they left, Little Yan crawled out and, no qualms about looting "social scum," scored enough cash to get by.
Inspired, she mimicked our Dark Dragon's playbook. Started tailing local gangs in SH City, but it was exhausting. So, she robbed legit businesses—sweat! Held up gangs, yelling "stick 'em up!" Brilliant. SH's underworld went nuts, suspecting each other. Tired of the game, she fixated on that skilled group from the parking lot. Curious about us, she scouted and noticed we hit drug deals most. Dollar signs flashed. She tailed a Dark Dragon op, leaked a few deals to the streets, and boom—global black societies came knocking. She'd been shadowing us to this villa. "Brother Tian, I didn't know it was your gang! I wouldn't have if I knew!" Little Yan said, scared I'd scold her, eyes red.
"It's fine, Little Yan. It's clear now. We lost nothing. Clashing with these gangs was inevitable—just came faster than expected. Our strength's still leagues above theirs," I soothed her.
"Sorry, Brother Tian." Good thing her tailed Dark Dragon team hadn't returned to Yellow Dragon Island, or the fallout would've tanked Yellow Dragon Group's Earth operations.
"Stop crying. More tears, and you won't be pretty—won't marry then," I teased, wiping her tears. "I'm ignoring you!" she said, shy. "Oh, who're these four? You starting your own gang?" I asked, pointing at her crew.
"Nah, they're from the orphanage. Didn't want to study, so I brought 'em to hustle," she said, smug. "I'm floored! Others skip school, you should push them to study, not drag them into black society!" This girl was killing me.
"What's the big deal? I'm out here ruling the martial world. You're the only one I respect—nobody else matters," she said, all gang-boss swagger. "Alright, back to base. I'll hear your epic tales later," I cut her off. They say women change at eighteen—she's beyond me now. If we don't move, she'll brag about conquering the martial world next.
In the villa's basement, my crew was back, lined up neatly. "Young Master!" their unified shout startled Little Yan's group. Two thousand strong—intimidating. She'd seen gangs this past year, but never this scale.
Beep, beep. My phone. "Young Master, it's done," came the report. Asian and European gangs got hammered. Little Yan had no clue how much power I still held back.
"Good work, everyone. Rest up," I told the team. We're new-age black society—organized, disciplined. No need for cash rewards, but we don't skimp. Dark Dragon members pull at least $4 million a year. Ever feel the pain of having money to spend but none to flaunt? Heh, not telling.
"Young Master, we didn't find the tracker from the captives' intel," the Americas chief reported. Little Yan fidgeted, embarrassed. "I know. I've got her. Drop it," I said calmly. "Yes, sir." He stepped back. Know what you need to; don't ask what you don't. Our outfit's military—only "yes" or "no," never "why."
Next morning, we caught the news: last night's gang wars across districts. Uncle Sam's gearing up for "counter-terrorism." Little Yan gaped—one night nearly gutted America's underworld. If I told her I left some alive to distract attention, wonder what she'd think. An unfair fight, no complaints. Reality's harsh. The global black society order shifted—we control 60% of the trade. Humanity's first true underworld dynasty: Dark Dragon Dynasty.
Over the next few days, I toured with Xue'er and Little Yan's five-person crew. With Li handling Yellow Dragon Group, I'm at ease. I decided to take Little Yan and her four pals to Flying Dragon Star, sending the quartet to Yanhuang Star for special training.
"Brother Tian, is Flying Dragon Star as beautiful as you say?" Little Yan pestered me since learning we're going. Genius me, why didn't I mention it after we left? Self-inflicted trouble. "You'll see when we get there," I dodged. Women—terrifying.
Three days later, we landed on Yanhuang Star, our warship docking at the military airfield. The base commander awaited. "Yanhuang Star Army Commander, Two-Star Lieutenant General Meng Jiang, and all base personnel salute Your Majesty!" Snap! Over 2,000 soldiers saluted in unison. "At attention. At ease," I returned the salute.
"Commander Meng, I'm here to put this girl under your watch. She's my little sister, but no favoritism—follow protocol," I said, gripping his hand. Little Yan, let's see you squirm. I brought her to help Xue'er with admin, but she's gun-obsessed, insisting on joining the army, especially after hearing we're fighting demons. No choice but to bring her.
"Rest assured, Your Majesty, I'll handle it strictly," Meng said, though his glance at Little Yan—glaring and making faces—screamed trouble. My god, this won't be easy. Can't hit or scold her, and with her tie to me, if I can't handle her and take it out on him, he's screwed. Sweat beaded on his forehead.
"Let's hit the barracks. Been months—time for a surprise inspection," I said, pulling the dazed Meng to a hovercar under the warship.
"Right face, salute!" As we entered, the troops were at some event, seated neatly below a stage. Spotting us, they saluted. "Commander Meng, what's this lively event?" I asked. "Reporting, Your Majesty, we're holding a 'Recall Hardships, Cherish Gains' conference to boost loyalty, clarify the situation, and show the future's bright, the path tough," Meng answered loudly. Felt like post-revolution vibes—has Meng been bingeing that era's history? "Good, good. Carry on, we'll observe," I said. I'm curious about this conference. If it's solid, I'll roll it out army-wide. A thoughtless army's a weak one.
A young soldier (all our troops are 18+; Yanhuang's reserves are younger, and compared to me, they're kids) took the stage, saluted, and said, "Hi, I'm a 19-year-old orphan from Flying Dragon Star. Four years ago, His Majesty and the army saved me from the vile demons' camp, where I slaved, barely fed. Since following His Majesty and the army, I've gained dignity—no longer a broke kid or lowly slave, but a proud Heavenly Dragon Empire soldier. With the army's help, I've got a house, car, land, and married two wives. My second's pregnant—soon, I'll be a dad. I never dared dream this before, but now I'm a father. Thanks to His Majesty and the army!" Eyes red, he saluted and stepped down. Little Yan, beside me, stifled laughter, face and neck red. "Brother Tian, this place is hilarious! So young, two wives?" she whispered.
"No choice. We've got everything here but population. Gender ratio's way off, so it's like this. Most soldiers have two wives. You can stick to one, but gotta have at least two kids. Nice, right? You can pop out a bunch later," I teased.
"Brother Tian, you want Little Yan to pop out babies for you? You're so bad—I'm telling Sister Xue!" she said, shyly fiddling with her hem. Sweat, when did I think that? Black society girls are blunt—reminds me of a Northeast gal I met. She straight-up told a guy, "I like you, you like me?" Back then, I was a clueless idiot about love. Otherwise, heh, I'd have a few Northeast sisters by now.
A sharp pain hit my leg—Little Yan pinched me. "Brother Tian, what's with that sleazy look? Thinking about what I said? Just say you like me—don't stew, it's bad!" I'm done—this girl's too much. Thank god she volunteered for the army, or she'd torment me daily.
"Enough, look at the stage. A lady's speaking," I cut in, turning to a pretty pregnant woman on stage. "Hi, you all know me, right?" "Commander's wife!" soldiers shouted. I nudged Meng. "Your wife?" He scratched his head, sheepish. "My fourth, heh." His fourth wife continued, "I'm here to thank His Majesty. Without his wise leadership, I wouldn't have met my 'Lingda.' I'm pregnant with my second child. My health makes childbirth tough, but under His Majesty's guidance, our medical advances solved it. I'm a happy mother. His Majesty gave me the joy of motherhood. To thank him, I'll name this child Meng Sitian." The crowd burst into laughter. "Old Meng, your wife's a riot. Where'd you find her?" I chuckled, patting his shoulder. "Sorry for the scene, Your Majesty," Meng said, embarrassed.
"She's got character. Boy or girl, I'll claim that kid," I said. Meng stared, then lit up. "Thank you, Your Majesty!"
"Alright, Old Meng, you're too proper. I'm done here. My little sister's your responsibility," I ordered. "Rest assured, Your Majesty, Meng Jiang will complete the task!"
"Brother Tian, visit me often. I'll miss you," Little Yan said, eyes red, clutching my hand as I boarded the warship. "Don't worry, I will. Take care," I said, feigning reluctance. Inside, I was ecstatic: Finally, some peace! My acting was too convincing—she kissed my cheek and ran off, leaving me stunned.
"Still staring? She's gone, you lovesick fool. Tonight, you're in for it," Xue'er growled, yanking my sleeve. Crap, another wild night with all the wives?