The Black Tiger Society was indeed no ordinary faction.
At the very least, within the Outer Court Annex, its influence was formidable.
Among the thousands of disciples dwelling in the annex, it was only natural that various cliques and factions would emerge—some vast, some modest. The Black Tiger Society was not only among them, but also counted as one of the most powerful.
Its membership numbered in the hundreds.
At its helm stood Zhao Yuanji, hailed as one of the "Two Tigers" of the outer sect.
Zhao Yuanji was a towering figure, ranked among the top three in overall strength throughout the Outer Court, and one of its most senior disciples. In truth, had luck not deserted him during his last inner sect assessment, he would likely have already ascended. His cultivation was widely acknowledged to be on par with inner sect disciples.
Beneath him stood several formidable subordinates.
Most renowned among them were the Three Tiger Generals of the Black Tiger Society: Plague Tiger Lei Yuan, Smiling Tiger Xu Pingzheng, and Steel-Claw Tiger Huo Tianlu.
All three were long-standing disciples of the Outer Court Annex, notorious for their strength. While none equaled Zhao Yuanji, each of them ranked easily within the outer sect's top fifty.
That may not sound impressive—until one remembers that the annex housed several thousand cultivators. Every one of them had either been recommended by prominent forces, or selected from the elite among Tyrant Sect's regional branches—each a prodigy in their own right. To distinguish oneself among such talents was no small feat.
Simply put, the Black Tiger Society wielded considerable power within the annex.
Not just new disciples—even many veterans steered clear of provoking them.
So after suffering public humiliation at the hands of a group of fresh arrivals, it was unthinkable that the Black Tiger Society would take it lying down.
Sure enough, at dawn the following day, several dozen members of the Society gathered outside Wei Yi and his companions' courtyard.
…
"So you're the ones who dared raise a hand against the Black Tiger Society?"
The man at the forefront was a burly figure clad in dark green, his expression grim and brooding.
His square-jawed face was masked with frost; his thick brows twitched ever so slightly above cold, fishlike eyes that stared icily at the group assembled before the gates. He spoke through clenched teeth, his fury barely restrained.
"That must be Steel-Claw Tiger Huo Tianlu," Zhou Heng muttered in a low voice.
He had pulled strings the night before to gather intelligence on the Black Tiger Society, and now recognized many of its key members.
The moment his words fell, the True Martial students felt their hearts sink.
Steel-Claw Tiger Huo Tianlu.
While not as fearsome as Zhao Yuanji himself, Huo was nonetheless ranked among the top five within the Black Tiger Society.
And behind him stood dozens of Society members, each wearing an expression of cold amusement—clearly ill-intentioned.
It was obvious that this conflict would not be resolved peacefully.
The students sighed inwardly. They had suspected retaliation might come, but not so soon, and certainly not so overwhelmingly.
Meanwhile, other outer disciples were flocking to the area, eager to spectate. Laughter and hushed gossip filled the air.
"Brother Wei… what do we do?" Zhu Ling'er asked anxiously.
"Should we go to Dean Liu?" Pei Qinghe, usually the first to leap into battle, hesitated when he compared both sides' strength.
"If we go to Dean Liu, how will we ever establish ourselves here?" Liu Huan shook his head.
It would be no different from tattling to a teacher—regardless of right or wrong, they would be branded as cowards.
"Besides, even if Dean Liu intervenes today, what about next time? Or the time after that? Are we going to keep running to him?"
These words deepened the gloom over everyone's faces.
One by one, their gazes turned toward Wei Yi.
Though not the eldest, he had already proven himself the strongest among them. Naturally, they now looked to him as their anchor.
"What do you propose?"
Meeting their hopeful eyes, Wei Yi didn't hesitate. He stepped forward, calm and unwavering.
His eyes locked onto Huo Tianlu. He didn't bother with words of reason—this world belonged to the strong. Reason was not spoken—it was demonstrated. Without strength, all the arguments in the world were meaningless.
"Hm?"
Wei Yi's bluntness seemed to catch Huo Tianlu off guard.
He turned toward the sneering, hook-nosed youth from the day before.
"Brother Huo, he's the one who attacked us yesterday," the youth snarled with venom. "He beat us all single-handedly, showed no respect for the Black Tiger Society. You must make him pay!"
His voice was loud, desperate.
Hearing this, the surrounding crowd burst into laughter.
Beaten by a newcomer—and he was still this loud about it?
Even the Black Tiger Society members couldn't help but grimace. Some quietly distanced themselves from the youth, clearly embarrassed.
"What a disgrace," Huo Tianlu growled, shooting him a venomous glare.
Then he turned back to Wei Yi, his face darkening.
"It is a long-standing rule of the outer sect that newcomers pay a protection fee."
"You not only broke that rule, but laid hands on members of the Black Tiger Society."
"I won't be accused of bullying juniors, so I offer you two choices."
His voice dropped into a low growl.
"First, each of you pay ten times the original fee—and join the Black Tiger Society."
"Second, fight me one-on-one. Win or lose, we'll consider the matter settled."
A cruel smile tugged at his lips.
"Choose."
"Tenfold? That's fifty thousand taels per person! What is he, a royal tax collector?"
"Joining the Society? Isn't that supposed to be incredibly difficult?"
"You moron, if they join now, they'll be slaves in everything but name."
"But the second option is no better—Huo Tianlu is a ruthless brute. One fight with him, and you'll be crippled for at least a month. Forget the inner sect trial."
Whispers swept through the crowd.
The faces of the True Martial students turned grim.
Neither option was desirable.
They exchanged uncertain glances, unsure of how to proceed.
"There's no need to choose. I'll fight you."
Before anyone could speak, Wei Yi answered decisively.
His voice was steady—his gaze calm, even faintly exhilarated.
"Brother Wei, it's too dangerous!"
"Yeah, Wei Yi, you don't have to do this!"
Zhu Ling'er and the others cried out in alarm.
"Don't worry. I've got this."
Wei Yi nodded reassuringly.
"Kid, you've got guts."
"I promise—I'll make sure it's a fight to remember. Haven't seen a fun one like you in ages," Huo Tianlu's eyes gleamed with bloodlust.
The Tyrant Sect did not forbid private duels. So long as no one died, the higher-ups rarely interfered.
"You won't be disappointed," Wei Yi replied, meeting his gaze with unwavering calm.
A strange, cold smile played at the corners of his lips.