401: Chapter 234 Young Flag Master (Seeking Subscriptions)_3 401: Chapter 234 Young Flag Master (Seeking Subscriptions)_3 He let out a light snort and sheathed the long sword in his hand.
Actually, there was no need to continue fighting.
Opposite him, Long Heng had taken care of his injuries and regrouped his forces; he had already passed the most vulnerable period.
The two of them fighting on would yield no results.
Chu Xisheng did have the confidence to kill him on the river, but the Heluo Fish Zombie’s combat strength of Fifth Grade Lower was limited to rivers, and as long as Long Heng was smart enough to stay away from the banks of the Shenxiu River, Chu Xisheng had no way to deal with him.
And today, by destroying four of Long Heng’s boats, almost severing his “left arm”, Chu Xisheng had vented the pent-up frustration in his chest and also harvested tens of thousands of Martial Arts Points, completely recouping the energy spent on his ‘Return Charge Slash’.
After sheathing his sword, Chu Xisheng stepped on the water’s surface to return to his own flagship.
In fact, the Headquarters of the Iron Banner Gang was nearby their battlefield, only half a mile away, so it would have been closer for Chu Xisheng to go directly there.
But the problem was that Ye Zhiqiu was still on the boat, and Chu Xisheng needed to drop the esteemed instructor off on shore first.
Wei Lai then turned his gaze to Long Heng: “Long Heng, the same goes for you!
No further conflicts are allowed.”
Long Heng, however, remained silent.
He looked at the river miles away, where the Long Family’s cargo ship had sunk and broken apart, and at the floating debris and merchandise, his face as dark as the water.
The Iron Banner Gang’s incense master, Li Dehou, was also watching this scene.
He thought to himself that ‘Chu Xisheng plus a Heluo Fish Zombie’ could be equated to ‘sinking ships’.
It wasn’t a matter of sinking his own ship, but sinking the ships of others.
After landing at the East City Pier and arriving at the Headquarters of the Iron Banner Gang, Chu Xisheng spent the entire afternoon entertaining guests.
Currently, the Iron Banner Gang had a total of eighteen Outer Halls, plus the six major Inner Halls: Iron Banner Hall, Xuanfeng Hall, Internal Affairs Hall, Patrol Hall, Punishment Hall, and Ritual Hall, totaling twenty-four Tangkou.
Aside from the Iron Banner and Xuanfeng, which were directly led by the Tie Brothers, as well as Xiushui Hall’s Lin Shi and Ancient Market Hall’s Jia Dali, many other Hall Masters and influential altar masters with significant power were lining up to speak with Chu Xisheng and drink with him.
Actually, Chu Xisheng had only met most of these people once.
Previously, when Chu Xisheng was establishing a new hall in West Mountain, these people had made special trips to support him.
The Iron Madman personally introduced him to them one by one, sharing meat and drinks together.
However, that was as far as their relationship went.
At the time, many were skeptical about Chu Xisheng’s sudden rise to power and even held some dissatisfaction.
They were only going through the motions out of respect for the Iron Madman and Tie Xiaosheng.
Within the Iron Banner Gang, only the brothers from Xuanfeng Hall had the deepest ties with Chu Xisheng.
But the current situation was completely different from the beginning of the year.
Now, the West Mountain Hall commanded great respect, boasting 1,400 gang members alone, and was able to mobilize 7,500 archers and swordsmen from within West Mountain, solidifying its position as the number one hall within the Iron Banner Gang.
One sub-forum of West Mountain Hall alone had a hundred members, and among the other halls, the one with the most members did not exceed two hundred.
They simply couldn’t compare.
Chu Xisheng himself now had Seventh Rank cultivation, not only listed among the ‘Shenxiu Ten Masters’, but he had also severely injured Long Heng, the Young Master of the Long Family, in front of everyone’s eyes.
Though Chu Xisheng had relied on the power of the Heluo Fish Zombie and only possessed such formidable combat strength on water, it was more than enough for the Iron Banner Gang.
Their power and business were, after all, on the rivers.
His reputation for ‘benevolence and righteousness’ was renowned throughout the world.
Who in Jianghu wouldn’t admire Chu Xisheng, a hero of such chivalrous spirit?
With the opening of West Mountain Town’s canal imminent, the numerous Tangkou of the Iron Banner Gang would eventually rely on Chu Xisheng’s influence.
Naturally, everyone was thinking of ways to get closer and build a relationship with him.
Chu Xisheng was also very gracious, treating every brother in the gang with respect.
To be a successful hall master of a big gang, it wasn’t enough to be good at fighting and managing; it was important to unite the gang members.
To have many friends and few enemies.
Later, he simply booked over eighty tables at a nearby restaurant to host a banquet for the many brothers in the gang.
What surprised Chu Xisheng was that both Songfeng Sword Lin Shi and Jia Dali, known as Tie Niu, declined to attend the banquet that evening.
Lin Shi was an old-timer of the Iron Banner Gang, a contemporary of the Iron Madman brothers.
It was reasonable that he didn’t want to socialize with the younger members; Jia Dali, on the other hand, claimed he was in a critical phase of his cultivation practice and could not attend the banquet.
Upon hearing this, Chu Xisheng frowned slightly, then put this thought aside for the time being to join the merry drinking and laughing with everyone.
That night, Chu Xisheng nearly got drunk under their insistence.
Chu Xisheng’s tolerance for alcohol had been improving lately.
He had discovered that the martial arts novels were fiction when they described using inner strength to force out alcohol.
While water could be forced out through the pores, alcohol was mixed in the blood and would become more concentrated.
However, Chu Xisheng’s physical constitution had greatly improved.
He could sprinkle the alcohol on his chest and then use his True Yuan to evaporate it.
But no matter how strong Chu Xisheng’s tolerance, he couldn’t withstand being plied with drinks by hundreds of people in turn.
Fortunately, the Iron Madman had warned everyone in advance to drink in moderation.
After eating and drinking their fill, they returned to the Headquarters for a meeting.
The time for the incense hall meeting was scheduled for the next morning, and the deliberation was set for that night.
Chu Xisheng felt his head getting dizzy from the drink and began refusing any more alcohol, using the Iron Madman’s words as a shield.
And the many Hall Masters and altar masters also left the banquet to return to the Headquarters after the wine had been passed around seven times, and the dishes had been served five times.
At this time, the Iron Madman, Tie Xiaosheng, Songfeng Sword Lin Shi, and Jia Dali had already been waiting in the grand deliberation hall at the Headquarters.