Chapter 154 Hello, Mr. Harrington!

• Darius Harrington and Wang Meng were close as brothers. Back when Wang Meng was still alive, Darius would often visit the old couple. Now that Wang Meng was gone, seeing Darius again made them feel, just for a second, like their son had come home. “Little Darius, get up,” Wang Xuewu said, wiping away tears. “You must’ve suffered a lot in prison these years, huh?” “Uncle, Auntie, don’t worry,” Darius said, voice low and steady. “From now on, I’m your son. Mengzi is gone, but I’ll take care of you for the rest of your lives. With me here, no one touches you.” “This isn’t the time for that, little Darius, you need to run!” Wang Xuewu blurted. “Those bastards will go straight to Viper! He’ll show up with the Dade Demolition crew any minute!” “Yeah, yeah, save the sentimental talk!” Kong Xiu shoved at him, anxious. “If the Dade Demolition people get here, you’re done! You could die! Little Darius, I can’t bear to bury another kid. Run! As fast as you can!” “Run from what?” Darius threw the words down like iron. “Uncle, Auntie, as long as I’m by your side, you’ll be the ones calling the shots—no one bullies you.” “Oh, you stubborn kid!” Wang Xuewu stamped his feet, panicked. “You have no idea how scary Viper is. He’s killed people!” He shoved Darius hard, trying to force him out. “Little Darius, I’m begging you,” Kong Xiu choked out, darting glances toward the door. “Go!” “Uncle, Auntie, I’m strong enough now. I’ll protect you—and I’ll avenge Mengzi. Just watch.” He turned to Xiao Yang. “Go get Liang Kun and the others over here.” For a handful of street punks, there was no need to alert the Noverian Garrison. Xiao Yang nodded. “Yes.” “Little Darius, please go. Someone’s going to die.” “It’s over—it’s over,” Wang Xuewu cried, rushing outside. “We can’t get out—Dade Demolition is here!” Dust boiled from all directions. His face went pale with despair. Rumble… In less than a minute, the four flimsy walls of the little farmhouse courtyard were smashed flat by bulldozers. When the dust settled, a ring of demolition rigs hemmed them in—more than a dozen bulldozers and excavators droning like hornets. Then over a hundred burly men jumped down from the machines, weapons in hand. They wore matching teal uniforms with “Dade Demolition” printed across their chests. Leading them was a thickset man with triangular eyes, a flattened nose, and a wide mouth, a giant python inked down his arm. He looked like a snake spirit—creepy as hell. “You the punk who hit my boys?” Viper’s voice was cold and venomous. It sent a chill through everyone. Wang Xuewu and Kong Xiu saw Viper and went weak at the knees. Even so, they stepped in front of Darius, shielding him. “Don’t be afraid,” Darius said softly. Then he strode forward. “Yeah. I hit them.” His tone was flat, calm. “Good. Pah, pah…” Viper spat thick gobs on the shoes of the punks who’d just been beaten, then sneered. “Kneel. Lick my boys’ shoes clean—or I’ll kill these two old relics.” Wang Xuewu and his wife were terrified stupid. They begged right away, “Brother Viper, he’s our nephew. We spoiled him rotten since he was little—doesn’t know any rules. Please forgive him. We’ll move out right now. We don’t need a penny of demolition money.” “I gave you chance after chance, and you refused to move. Now you think you can bail once things go south? Too late!” Viper’s smile was icy. “Sign this demolition contract. Pay my brothers 750 thousand in medical cost. Then cripple this punk—take a leg. We’ll call it even.” “What? 750 thousand?” The couple went dumb, stunned. Wang Xuewu almost fell to his knees. “Brother Viper, the demolition money is only 400 thousand. We’ll scrape together the rest somehow. The kid is young—if he loses a leg, how’s he supposed to find work or a wife? If it has to be done… take mine instead. Please.” “Like hell,” Viper snapped. “Didn’t he brag about his fancy footwork? He kicked my boy so hard his ribs snapped. If I don’t take his leg, how am I supposed to keep my reputation?” “You old fossil, roll over there and sign. Don’t make me get rough.” He licked his lips. His eyes were pure cold murder. Rumble… Dust roared up again from every side, like a tornado tearing through. Out of the haze, luxury cars shot in, one after another. Viper and his hundred punks stared, confused. Nearly a hundred luxury cars braked and lined up. Rat-tat-tat… Doors flew open, and a flood of people poured out—black as a stormfront—surging into the courtyard and sealing it tight. Suddenly, Viper’s crew looked tiny and helpless. These newcomers weren’t just bigger, with heavier weapons—they were many. Everywhere you looked, packed wall to wall with bodies. And more were still coming from the distance. “B-Brother… Viper… what’s happening?” a thug stammered, shaking. “There’s gotta be eight, nine hundred of them.” “What? Eight, nine hundred?” Viper and his guys were wrecked with fear. When they spotted a few men with dark pistols tucked at their waists, some of them looked ready to wet themselves. Size, numbers, hardware—they were outclassed on every front. How the hell were they supposed to fight that? “Uh… gentlemen… who are you looking for?” Viper forced down his fear and stepped forward. A few men moved up. It was Liang Kun, Chen Haonan, Brother Fortune, and Brother Crow. “Brother Kun, Brother Haonan, Brother Fortune, Brother Crow… uh… why are you here?” Viper’s scalp prickled. He bent over himself, bowing and scraping with a servile grin. These were heavy hitters—top twenty in North River. Viper was small fry compared to them, not even in the same league. But they didn’t even look at him. They walked up to Darius, lined up, and bowed ninety degrees in sync. “Hello, Mr. Harrington!” Then, outside, all eight or nine hundred men bowed the same way, voices thundering in unison: “Hello, Mr. Harrington!”