Gabriel Xue froze for a second, finally recognizing the man and quickly saluted: "Commander Tang, I didn't realize it was you!"
"Commander Tang?" Even Ryan Ling was taken aback when he heard that title.
Rose Yates blinked, but she was in the know. She leaned over and explained to Ryan, "Commander Tang's real name is Victor Tang. He's the overall commander of Jiangdong Special Warfare—highest rank in the whole province's military. Every unit here answers to him. He's Gabriel's top boss."
Ryan nodded. Yeah, this guy's definitely not here to play nice.
He knew Victor Tang was obviously tied to the Azure Dragon Society, but with credentials this big, there was no way he could just go head-to-head with the Special Warfare chief. No matter how famous he was, he was still just a civilian. For now, he'd have to let Gabriel handle it.
Seeing Gabriel salute, Victor Tang straightened his cap and said, "Enough. Nobody touches the Azure Dragon Society. I'll take them myself."
"Commander Tang, but these guys are monsters—everyone hates them! We finally rounded them up; if we don't act now, they're just gonna come back and bite us!" Gabriel argued. He knew Ryan's whole 'failed breakthrough' stunt was just bait to trap every Azure Dragon scumbag in one net.
"Monsters, public enemy, blah blah—got any hard evidence? Even if you do, this is way too big; you think you can just kill 'em all on the spot? Everything goes through the courts. You wanna kill people like a bandit?" Victor Tang shot back, no mercy in his tone.
Gabriel knew Victor Tang was covering for Azure Dragon, but he was the boss, and his words were airtight. If they killed everyone now, it'd break protocol. But if they didn't, next time would be way harder—Azure Dragon always had scapegoats ready.
"Enough. Hand them over. I'll interrogate them myself. Life or death—let the court decide. Got it?" Victor Tang's voice boomed, and his soldiers instantly raised their guns.
Gabriel Xue froze for a moment. He’d just realized what was going on, and with a start, quickly snapped a salute: “Commander Tang, I didn’t realize it was you, sir!”
“Commander Tang?” Ryan Ling was also taken aback when he heard the title.
Rose Yates was startled too, but she knew a bit about it. She quickly explained to Ryan, “That’s Commander Victor Tang, the overall commander of Jiangdong Province’s Special Warfare Unit—the highest-ranking officer in the Jiangdong military. All the elite units beneath Gabriel Xue answer to him. He’s Gabriel’s direct superior.”
Ryan Ling nodded. Looks like these newcomers weren’t here with good intentions.
Even though Ryan knew Victor Tang was definitely tied to the Azure Dragon Society, the guy’s background was just too big. No matter how famous Ryan was, he was still a civilian without any official rank—he couldn’t just challenge the Special Warfare supreme commander in public. For now, he could only wait to see how Gabriel Xue handled it.
Seeing Gabriel Xue salute, Commander Victor Tang adjusted his military cap and said, “Enough. No one is allowed to touch the Azure Dragon Society people. I’ll be taking them back myself!”
“Commander Tang, but these people’s crimes are monstrous—they’ve enraged gods and men! We finally managed to round them all up. If we don’t act now, there’ll be endless trouble!” Gabriel Xue argued. He knew full well that Ryan Ling had faked a failed breakthrough just to lure all the Azure Dragon Society scum into one net.
Commander Tang shot back, “What do you mean ‘monstrous crimes’ and ‘enraged gods and men’? Do you have solid evidence? Even if you do, this case is way too big—can you really just kill everyone so casually? This has to go through strict judicial procedure. You want to kill people just because you feel like it—what, you think you’re some kind of bandit?”
Gabriel Xue knew full well Commander Tang was shielding the Azure Dragon Society, but he was the boss—and his words were watertight. If they really killed people now, it would be against protocol. But if they didn’t, next time would be much harder; the Azure Dragon Society had plenty of ways to find scapegoats.
“Enough, hand them all over to me. I’ll personally interrogate them. Whether they live or die will be up to the court’s verdict—everyone clear?” Commander Tang’s voice grew louder, and his soldiers instantly raised their guns.
Gabriel Xue’s face flushed red, his fists clenched so hard they cracked, but clearly he didn’t dare move. For a soldier, obeying orders is everything—even if you know the order is wrong, you still have to follow it.
Seeing Gabriel Xue in such a bind, Ryan Ling stepped back and said, “Forget it, let them take them away. I trust Jiangdong Province to give a fair verdict. After all, everyone here saw what happened. If anyone dares to falsify the case and shield the criminals, not just us—even the tens of millions of Jiangdong citizens won’t let them off!”
“He’s right. We’ll let them take the prisoners, but we all saw it—Azure Dragon Society colluded with the Japanese, harmed our own people, and the evidence is ironclad. Anyone who dares to shelter them is the enemy of the people!”
“Exactly. I trust Commander Tang will handle things impartially and give us a fair explanation. He’ll definitely punish Azure Dragon Society, and he won’t go easy on a ringleader like Walter Gu!”
“Alright, everyone clear a path for Commander Tang to take them away. We’re all law-abiding citizens, and I’m sure Commander Tang knows the weight of the law better than anyone. He definitely won’t do anything that breaks the law!”
Hearing Gabriel Xue say this, Jason Lin, Yuan Zhengang, and the others all shouted in agreement. Commander Tang’s face turned extremely ugly, and he swept his gaze sharply toward Ryan Ling, saying coldly, “Relax. I’ll give you all a satisfactory explanation!”
In an instant, Grand Elder Walter Gu and the others acted like they’d just been pardoned, rushing to Commander Tang’s side as if they’d been given back their lives.
“Commander Tang…”
“Save it. We’ll talk when we get back!” Commander Tang sneered coldly, immediately calling his troops to withdraw.
“Damn it, letting them go just feels so wrong—those bastards really deserve to die!” Harvey “Million” Jin slapped his thigh in frustration.
“Forget it. With so many witnesses, I doubt Commander Tang would dare mess around. If he does, I’ll report him straight to HQ—even if it comes down to a fight to the death, I’ll wipe out the Azure Dragon Society!” Gabriel Xue said, fists clenched.
[Navigation note omitted as irrelevant.]