The tension in the Celestial Grand Hotel ballroom was thick, suffocating. The woman in the crimson qipao stood at the edge of the chaos, her lips curled in a smirk that sent shivers through the room.
Xiao Lian.
A name whispered in the shadows of the underworld. A name feared across the eight major provinces.
Ochieng's eyes locked onto hers. Calm. Calculating. Cold.
She stepped forward, the clicking of her heels the only sound in the eerie silence.
"Ochieng… You play a dangerous game."
Ochieng tilted his head, his smirk barely there. "I don't play games. I win them."
The tension thickened.
Behind him, Black Lotus groaned, struggling to rise from the wreckage. Wei Xian was still trembling on the floor, his fate hanging by a thread.
But Xiao Lian wasn't here for them.
She was here for Ochieng.
—
She reached into her silk clutch and pulled out a single golden envelope.
The emblem on it?
The sigil of the Eight Triads Alliance—the most powerful underground organization across Asia.
Ochieng's gaze flickered.
"You're inviting me?" he mused, taking the envelope. "Or is this a warning?"
Xiao Lian smiled. "Both."
Behind her, a fleet of luxury cars pulled up outside the hotel.
Rolls-Royces. Maybachs. Aston Martins.
And one blacked-out Bentley with a license plate reading: 帝王-01 (Emperor-01).
The room stilled.
Because that car?
It belonged to Xiao Lian's father.
—
Ochieng took the envelope, sliding it into his pocket without breaking eye contact.
"I'll think about it."
Xiao Lian's smirk deepened. "You have one week, Ochieng. After that… you either join us, or you become our enemy."
With that, she turned, her crimson dress flowing behind her like a trail of blood.
The moment the door shut behind her, Tielen exhaled sharply.
"Boss… This is bad."
Ochieng remained silent.
Because he knew something no one else did.
This wasn't just an invitation.
It was a declaration of war.