Genesis House was backed against the dock. Cesar watched as enemies continuously poured in, revealing his two large gold teeth as he exhaled a puff of smoke.
“Never expected to be set up by them.”
Today, they came back to ask the landlord to get the deposit back and catch up with their brothers. Cesar had always wanted to expand the Pantheon, even if Darnell didn’t agree.
He gathered over ten people to drink and chat.
The usually stingy landlord didn’t hesitate and immediately returned three thousand dollars. He also gave each of the more than ten people in the gathering room a cigarette.
The sixty-year-old man rarely showed such enthusiasm, lighting cigarettes for more than ten people while chatting casually.
Having lived here for many years, everyone was familiar with each other. So Harry and the others didn’t have any defenses up, happily smoking their cigarettes without realizing anything was wrong. Only Cesar, who was the last one to light his cigarette, sensed something amiss. There was a strange smell mixed with the smoke, a hint of a drug. Immediately, he threw away the cigarette and grabbed the old landlord by his collar, preparing to question him.
Before Cesar could ask any questions, a group of burly men emerged from downstairs, wielding either iron rods or machetes, all wearing masks.
There were at least more than a hundred people.
Cesar knew they had fallen into a trap and immediately deduced that it was likely Steve’s men. After all, they had only offended this group of people.
More than ten people inside the house made a quick decision and instead of running downstairs, they took advantage of their familiarity with the terrain. They picked up chairs and kitchen knives before charging towards the rooftop.
Cesar directly ignited a gas canister and viciously smashed it into the crowd that surged towards them, buying some time for himself and his comrades to escape.
Cesar and his group jumped from one building to another from the rooftop. After jumping across five buildings in succession, they finally came down from another staircase. In the past, they would have been able to escape smoothly, but after inhaling the drugged smoke from the landlord’s cigarette, even though it was just a few puffs, their strength was greatly diminished.
They were quickly caught up by their pursuers. After a fierce battle, they retreated to Genesis House. The warehouse had two doors, one in front where enemies were pressing in and one at the back that was tightly chained with rusted chains.
They were trapped like cornered animals.
The first floor was no longer defensible. Cesar ordered the remaining six people to retreat to the second-floor terrace and guard the only staircase.
Cesar couldn’t remember how much blood his hands had shed. He only knew that on this journey alone, at least twenty people had fallen by his hand.
At that moment, over a hundred men armed with knives and clubs rushed into the warehouse. They skillfully spread out to surround the less than thirty square meters of terrace on the second floor.
Among these men, ninety percent wore black attire while the rest wore red. The former were members of the Crow gang while the latter belonged to the Swain family.
Then everyone’s gaze fell upon Cesar, who guarded the only staircase, covered in blood but unyielding.
A puff of smoke escaped from Cesar’s mouth as he flicked away his cigarette butt and pulled out another one. In the smoke, he appeared harmless.
Amongst the group of over a hundred men stood a bald man sitting on a chair with an ice cream bucket in his hand, absentmindedly digging into it and eating.
His mouth was big. He swallowed a spoonful of ice cream in an instant.
“You started with eighteen of you, and now there are only seven left. Do you still want to continue this futile struggle?” After finishing the bulk of his ice cream, the bald man looked at the defiant Cesar and snorted dismissively, “Surrender, and you can at least keep your whole body intact.”
Cesar didn’t respond, merely exhaling a smoke ring, clearly unimpressed.
Without wasting any more words, the bald man scooped up another chunk of ice cream and declared, “Kill him.”
At this command, over thirty burly men tightened their grips on knives and clubs, charging at Cesar like a pack of hyenas.
Amidst the chaos, Cesar shifted his body, his long leg sweeping through the air with precision.
The five henchmen wielding clubs were the first to take the brunt of it, their lower bodies sliding forward while their upper bodies crashed back as if they had hit an invisible wall, landing harshly on the ground and passing out.
Cesar seized the moment, launching himself forward and smashing into one opponent’s chest, causing the rival’s ribcage to collapse as he coughed up blood and was sent flying.
Cesar exhaled a thick cloud of smoke, using the cigarette to ease his pain and emotions.
With their backs against the wall, Harry and the others fought desperately to guard the railing, preventing their enemies from climbing up to the second floor. If they were breached, they would lose all room to maneuver. The six of them fought fiercely, bloodied and battered, just as one of the assailants began to climb over the railing towards Cesar.
Seeing the sneak attack, Harry shouted, “Mr. Sneyd, watch out!”
He rushed to slam into the attacking enemy, but in doing so, he received a deep gash across his back, a gruesome line from his shoulder blade to his lower back.
Cesar, empty-handed and furious, retaliated, swiftly dispatching four foes, rescuing Harry from the brink of death, before throwing him back to the second floor, shouting, “Stay up there. Don’t die before me.”
Harry gritted his teeth in pain, feeling useless while calling out to Cesar, “Mr. Sneyd, hold on! Mr. Halford will be here soon!”
“What nonsense!”
Cesar spat out angrily, “Bringing him here now is just putting him in danger!”
He had already confirmed the identities of the enemies in front of him. They were members of the Crow and the Swain family, all ruthless criminals, each willing to stop at nothing to achieve their goals.
Darnell’s arrival faced a hundred thugs, a seemingly impossible task.
When Harry thought of this, his heart sank. He then shouted, “Mr. Sneyd, I’m sorry, but this is our only option.”
With the police not coming, and several of their brothers already injured, he didn’t know who else to turn to aside from Darnell. He couldn’t just stand by and watch Cesar and the others die.
As for Darnell, he had an unshakeable confidence in him. Even he couldn’t explain why. He felt that there was nothing that Darnell couldn’t handle.
Cesar fell silent, a flicker of gratitude crossing his face.
It wasn’t shameful to seek help from friends in difficult times. The real shame was finding oneself friendless in times of need.
“Ahh!”
At that moment, a man fighting at the railing was pulled down by an enemy using a rope to strangle him.
Harry tried to rush to save him, but Cesar yanked him back, knowing that charging into the fray would mean certain death for both of them.
They could only watch helplessly as their comrade, who had fought valiantly, was overwhelmed by dozens of attackers, bloodied and beaten.
Cesar felt a wave of regret wash over him. Why had he gathered his old friends to chat today, bringing them into this unwarranted disaster? But now, all he could do was focus on saving himself.
“Ben, wait for me! I’ll avenge you!”
Cesar roared, his rugged face twisted in pain, then suddenly charged forward a few meters, blades flashing, screams echoing.
The weak point in the enemy’s defenses collapsed with the cries, as Cesar, fueled by anger, tore through like a tiger among sheep. His wrists spun with agility as the two knives created a wall of deadly light. In mere moments, blood sprayed as enemies fell, and he effortlessly cut his way back.
A large man wielding a machete attempted to block Cesar’s path, believing he could withstand the onslaught.
Cesar grinned menacingly, twisting his wrist to slice him down, the blade embedding itself deep into the man’s neck, before smoothly retracting.
Bang!
The hefty body spun around before collapsing to the ground, blood gushing from his neck.
“I am Cesar Sneyd.”
Standing like a warrior, Cesar brandished his twin blades at the stairs. “Anyone who stands in my way will die.”
Over fifty men charged forward heedlessly, treating Cesar like a mere annoyance in the criminal underbelly of Whiteville.
“Cesar, you’re a tough guy. Here’s the deal. You kill your six men, and I’ll let you surrender.”
The bald man, finishing his ice cream, smirked at the weary Cesar and his companions. “Just sell that lad out, and I’ll spare your life.”
“Let us kill each other? Are you out of your mind? I would rather die than harm my brothers.”
Cesar exhaled a puff of smoke, scoffing, “If it weren’t for the drugs I’ve taken, wiping you all out would be like child’s play.”
“Even if you don’t bring him out, he’ll be found eventually.”
The bald man’s smile turned sinister. “Those who cross Mr. Swain only have one fate. Death.”
“There’s no place for him in Whiteville.”
Cesar raised his bloodied knife, the glint of his gold teeth shining brightly. “Kill me if you dare.”
“Oh, and Cierra sends her regards.”
The bald man sneered, “She said you burned her fingers, so she hopes I can bring back ten of yours.”
Cesar didn’t respond. Instead, he said, “Enough talk. Have some guts and come at me, Samson. Do you dare to face me in one-on-one combat?”
Samson Kirke, an underboss under the Crow and also a pawn placed by the Swain family in Whiteville’s underworld, was cunning and ruthless.
“Oh? You know me? It seems you’re also part of our world. Otherwise, how would you know my name?”
Samson looked at his crumbling opponent with contemptuous mockery.”You don’t have what it takes to fight me.”
Cesar took two drags from his cigarette. “If you won’t come over here, then I’ll come over there.”