Louis took a look around. This is the second time in two days, he felt a shortage of talent. It wasn't just a lack of financial personnel; they were also lacking people with knowledge of weapons. In his mind, Louis decided that he needed to start recruiting more talent, or else they would eventually suffer losses.

Louis and his group took a car to Ghost KTV and stored their firearms inside. Shortly after arriving at Ghost KTV, Steven received a phone call from Alan, instructing him to pick up money and a delivery. Steven brought along two others, exchanged greetings with Louis, and hurriedly left Ghost KTV.

With nothing pressing to do, Louis and Jack decided to visit Oxe's territory and familiarize themselves with the environment there.

The East Ballroom was located in the southern part of the city, with a vast space divided into two levels, capable of accommodating over a thousand people without feeling crowded. However, there weren't many people here, and the atmosphere was quite tranquil. The East Ballroom fell within Van's territory, and Van was known to be timid and risk-averse, content with the current state of affairs. Louis identified him as their preferred target.

Louis and Jack arrived at the East Ballroom, where there were fewer than a hundred people. Despite it being daytime, business was slow. The two of them casually chose a table and sat down, and a waiter approached them, asking with little enthusiasm, "What would you like to drink?"

Jack was irritated by his attitude and said, "Haven't you had your meal? I didn't hear what you said!"

The waiter glared, "What's your problem? Are you looking for trouble?"

Unexpectedly, even the waiter was so arrogant. Jack stood up, grabbed his shirt, and Louis gave Jack a stern look, saying, "Jack, sit down." Jack complied, glanced at the waiter, and pointed, saying, "Be more careful with your words in the future!"

Seeing the waiter turn red with anger, Louis politely said, "Please bring us two beers."

The waiter looked at Louis and then at Jack. Based on his years of experience, he felt that these two were not ordinary, so he swallowed his pride and said, "Okay, coming right up!" He then walked away after a quick glance at Jack.

After seeing the waiter leave, Jack's eyes wandered around the venue, and he spotted three fashionable girls entering from outside, capturing Jack's attention. Jack tugged at Louis's sleeve, his gaze still fixed on the three girls, and said, "Quick, look!"

Louis followed Jack's gaze, and the three girls sat down not far from them. They were all dressed in a trendy and glamorous manner, their faces adorned with makeup, making it hard to discern their true appearances. Louis felt somewhat uncomfortable with girls who dressed like this. Seeing that Jack was staring at them intently, he shook his head without saying anything.

Jack turned back and asked, "What do you think?" Louis replied casually, "They look good."

Jack smiled upon hearing this and whispered, "I'll go over later and invite them for a drink. Maybe I can get to know one of them!"

Louis, irritated that Jack had already forgotten their original purpose, ignored him. Just then, five young guys walked through the venue and approached the three girls. A young man with yellow hair and a cigarette in his mouth sat down beside the three girls and said with a smile, "Ladies, just the three of you? How about we keep you company?"

One of the girls in red replied with a smile, "No need!"

The yellow-haired guy said, "Why?" The girl said, "Because you are too ugly! I'm afraid I'll feel sick if I look at you for a long time!" After that, she and the other two girls burst into laughter. The yellow-haired guy looked back and saw that the people he had come with were also snickering. His face instantly turned red and he said loudly: "Bitch, it's your luck that I choose you!" As he said that, he stretched out his hand and held the bag. The yellow-hair pulled her up and held her in her arms, stroking the girl's body with his other hand.

The girl exclaimed in surprise, not expecting this guy to be so audacious, and slapped him back. The crisp sound caught the attention of the people around. Jack was about to get up to help but was held back by Louis, "Wait! Let's have a look!"

The yellow-hair, dazed from the slap, angrily slapped the girl back, saying, "Bitch, you dare to hit me? I'll make you regret it today!" Afterward, he grabbed the girl and headed upstairs.

The other two girls grabbed the yellow-hair's clothes and shouted, "What are you doing?"

The youth laughed and said, "Kidnap! So what? Today, she deserves it!" Then, he told his companions nearby, "You guys deal with these two!" The four youths next to him laughed and started pulling the other two girls away.

The three girls struggled desperately, screaming for help. Jack couldn't hold back any longer and intended to teach the youths a lesson. Just as he was about to stand up, someone was quicker than him. Two youths, around twenty years old but with dark skin, blocked the way of the troublemakers. One tall youth shouted, "Release them all!"

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The yellow-hair was momentarily stunned by the voice, looking at the two guys with contempt and saying, "Don't start trouble. Get away!"

Before he could finish speaking, the tall young man punched him in the mouth, followed by a kick to his neck, knocking him down. The yellow-hair hadn't quite figured out what had happened, feeling a sharp pain in his face. He found himself on the ground, and after a while, he realized what had happened. He sat on the ground, touching his mouth, realizing he had lost two teeth. Frustrated, he said, "Beat him!"

The guys nearby had already joined in. Four guys confronted the two newcomers, and all six of them engaged in a brawl. The three girls, now released, stood to the side. One of them, wearing a white sweater, motioned to the ground where the blond young man was sitting. The other two girls immediately understood her signal. The three of them approached the yellow-hair from behind and kicked him together.

The girls were all wearing pointed-toe shoes, and with all their strength, they knocked down the yellow-hair. He shouted loudly, "Help me!" The three girls moved forward and continued to kick him ruthlessly.

The four guys who were fighting the two newcomers heard his cries and wanted to help, but they were being held back by those two. One of them was slightly distracted by the cries, and he was kicked in the stomach by the tall young man. He felt as if he had been hit by a car and writhed in pain on the ground.

Seeing one of their comrades go down, the remaining three were getting anxious. One of them grabbed a beer bottle and swung it forcefully at the others. The tall young man dodged quickly, and the beer bottle shattered on the other guy's forehead. Instantly, blood started flowing down his face, making a mess. His friend, seeing this, shouted, "Leo!"

Leo wiped the blood from his face and stared at the person who had thrown the bottle. Terrified, the person turned and ran a few steps, reaching where Louis and Jack were sitting. Jack, seeing the situation, secretly chuckled, thinking, "Good, he left one for me. It's the perfect opportunity to show off in front of the girls." Jack yelled loudly, blocking the path. His voice was so loud that it startled Louis, who was sitting nearby.

Jack didn't stop. He grabbed the man by the collar with one hand and his waistband with the other. With a strong effort, he lifted the man over his head and threw him horizontally. The man let out a scream in mid-air and finally landed at Leo's feet. As he tried to get up, Leo used his hand to push his head down and punched him in the chest.

Leo looked at Jack, and Jack smiled at him. At this moment, more than ten big guys entered from outside, led by a man of medium build, in his forties, with a small beard. He loudly asked upon entering the dance hall, "What's going on here?"

A waiter hurried over and said, "Van, there's a fight going on!"

Jack sat down, lowered his head, and said to Louis, "Looks like this guy is Van." Louis nodded.

Van saw the young men in the middle of the scene and knew what was going on but still asked, "Who dares to cause trouble in my territory? Show yourselves!"

Those young men, upon hearing him call Van, immediately knelt on the ground and said loudly, "We... we didn't know this was your territory. We won't dare again! Spare us this time!"

Van knew that these few people had no significant background, and he had no reason to fear their retaliation. He said to the guys behind him, "Go, drag these few individuals out for me, break one leg each as a lesson to them!" Just as he finished speaking, a group of people behind Van rushed forward without hesitation, grabbing the five individuals and the later arrival, Leo, and pulling them outside. Leo became anxious and shouted, "I got into the fight to save someone. Are you still going to be unreasonable?"

Van didn't take him seriously at all and said, "No matter the reason, fighting on my turf warrants punishment!"

Leo tried to break free, but his arms were firmly held by two big men, and he couldn't move.

At that moment, Louis stood up and said, "Wait a minute!"

Van looked at Louis strangely and saw that he was a young boy. He asked, "What do you want?"

"I hope you'll let them go," Louis said, pointing to Leo and his companion. Three girls nearby also chimed in, "Yeah, they were fighting to save us!"

Seeing someone challenge his authority, Van asked angrily, "Who are you to speak to me like this?"

Louis smiled and said, "Van, you really have that Oxen spirit, even in your speech. As a leader of a faction, why bother with a few young guys? It won't look good if this gets out." Louis spoke casually, but it left people puzzled because his age and words didn't match. The three girls also looked at Louis in surprise, wondering who this student-like young man could be.

Louis's words were soft but carried weight, and Van's expression changed slightly as he asked, "Who are you, really?"

Louis smiled and remained silent. Jack spoke loudly, "Have you heard of Nightmare?"

Van inquired, "You are part of Nightmare...?"

Jack nodded confidently and said, "Please release them two. You can deal with the others as you like."

Van lowered his head in thought. He had no choice but to release them upon hearing they were affiliated with Nightmare, but he didn't want to lose his reputation either. Letting this get out could make him appear weak. However, he knew better than to cross Nightmare, especially since the Dragon had recently formed an alliance with them. That made Nightmare a force he couldn't afford to antagonize.

Seeing Van's dilemma and not wanting an immediate conflict, Louis signaled to Jack. Jack poured a glass of wine and said to Van, "I'll make amends for these two." He then downed the entire glass.

In the criminal world, reputation was essential. Van was already a timid person, and he didn't want to offend Nightmare. Seeing Jack's gesture, he decided to go along with it. "Alright, since you put it that way, I would be impolite not to release them," he said to his subordinates. "Let them go!"

Leo and his companion breathed a sigh of relief and thanked Louis and Jack. The three girls realized that Louis and Jack were affiliated with Nightmare, explaining their confidence.

Although Louis had just met Van, he concluded that Van was afraid of trouble and unlikely to become a formidable adversary. Louis nodded at Van and said, "Thank you. We won't trouble you any longer."

Van smiled and said, "You're welcome! Please convey my regards to your leader when you return!"

Jack almost burst out laughing at that, and Louis nodded in acknowledgment before leading Leo and his companion out. Jack gestured to the three girls, and they followed.

"Thanks for your help this time!" Leo said to Louis as they left, wiping blood from his forehead.

Louis asked, "From your accent, it sounds like you're not from around here?"

Leo nodded and said, "I'm from a village not far from the city center. I came here looking for work."

Louis noticed that Leo's wound was still bleeding and said, "You should go to the hospital. Your wound is still bleeding!" The guy who had come with Leo also added, "Yeah, Leo, I'll take you to the hospital!"