Chapter 116: What the Hell? My Foot’s Asleep!

“Captain, when are we leaving?” New Feng, the flamboyant young man sitting at the next table eating breakfast, whispered to the small squad leader, Rose.

They were restless, ill at ease here. At first, they thought this person was all show, nothing special. But after a few words, their big sister, the squad leader, was dubbed the ‘Little Peacock’—a figure they could only look up to. This person was a true heavyweight, capable of reaching the highest echelons, and what was even more terrifying was their strength.

For special forces soldiers like them, they rarely submitted easily unless the person was truly formidable.

Even a direct superior couldn’t keep them in line without strength!

From the mere aura just now, these special forces men knew this was a big shot—not someone to provoke lightly.

At this moment, no one dared to make snide remarks.

Leave?

Rose was inclined to go but harbored a flicker of curiosity—what exactly was a Black-Scaled Dragon? They had heard of it but never seen a living one up close.

Since they were here, shouldn’t they take a look? It wouldn’t be worth coming all this way otherwise.

Tang Long hadn’t sat with them. When he first sat down and chatted with Jiang Xue, Zhang Xiu’e arrived with a mountain bear.

She nodded to Jiang Xue and took a seat beside Tang Long, whispering curiously, “Who are those people next to you?”

She had heard about Li Ergou’s quarrel earlier; she had been near the Yutou Village construction site.

“Those who pay attention to our ancestor!” Tang Long replied with a smile.

“Those who pay attention to our ancestor?” Zhang Xiu’e was surprised. She wasn’t clear on many things; news of last night’s events shouldn’t have spread yet, right?

“We’ll talk about that later!” Tang Long gave Zhang Xiu’e a look—some things didn’t need to be discussed in front of these special forces soldiers.

Though they were mere foot soldiers, no one underestimated them. Even pawns crossing the river could take down generals.

...

“Has the village been sealed off?” Jiang Xiuzhi was stunned when she heard the news from Yutou Village that morning.

Had things escalated so severely that they had to close the village? Was it a ruse, or was it true?

She was confused herself, not understanding what exactly Yutou Village and that boss Tang had up their sleeves.

“Yes. Not only is the village sealed off, but they’re also clearing out tourists. Official announcements have been posted on Yutou Village’s official Weibo and chat groups declaring temporary closure for renovations. They won’t be accepting visitors anytime soon.”

Yajing hadn’t expected the people of Yutou Village to have such resolve. Thousands of visitors daily brought significant income to the village.

Yutou Village was by no means wealthy. Now, they were refusing to earn money—were they insane?

“What do you think is more likely?” Jiang Xiuzhi looked up at Yajing.

Yajing shook her head. “I can’t say for sure, but since they dared to seal the village, I think they’re trying to send a message. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have done this.”

What message? Last night, Tang Long had spun tales, told lies, scaring people senseless. And now, early in the morning, a village shutdown? In short, the entire Yutou Village was brimming with mystery.

“What should we do now?” Yajing blinked, asking.

Jiang Xiuzhi put on a stern face. “What can we do? They seal their village; we just keep operating!”

At the Huayutou Resort, even the temporary facilities were just newly built. They hadn’t even started to break even. Just yesterday, they reached a cooperation agreement with Yutou Village, and today this happened?

If it weren’t for the fact that sealing the village was actually disadvantageous to Yutou Village, Jiang Xiuzhi would have gone straight to argue.

Tang Long was turning everyone’s minds upside down!

The sealing of Yutou Village stirred some people. Many posted online, saying some strange incident occurred last night, forcing the closure. After all, many had left in the dead of night.

As for what strange occurrence, no one knew. Theories ran rampant online, some even spreading nonsense to grab attention.

Some couldn’t stand it—how could such a promising place suddenly throw in the towel?

Wu Zhengyao personally called Tang Long to inquire. Yutou Village had become a breakthrough point for Taoyuan County. It attracted a 30 million yuan investment from the Wen family and was highly popular online. Now, with the village closed, it was unknown when it would reopen. Once this hype died down, who would still come to visit Yutou Village? It was uncertain.

Tang Long smiled as he explained, “Wu County Chief, rest assured, everything here is under control. We’re just pausing now, which will be better for future development. It’s hard to explain everything over the phone. How about this—I’ll come to the county office in the next couple of days and give you a full report in person!”

Tang Long took the call while eating breakfast, with Rose and a few special forces soldiers at the next table all straining to listen.

They were stunned, wondering who this big shot was talking to, managing such discretion?

After finally calming Wu Zhengyao, Tang Long hung up. As the county’s head, Wu was understandably upset. The poor county was just starting to improve, and now this sudden blow—no wonder he was anxious.

“Listen, once you’ve eaten, you can leave. Starting today, Yutou Village is closed to outside tourists. Otherwise, you’d still be welcome to stay and enjoy yourselves!” Tang Long said with a grin after the special forces finished eating.

Rose and the others were speechless. They knew no other place treated them like this. Were they here just to grab a free breakfast?

“Enjoy yourselves? Don’t make me laugh. If it weren’t for the mission, we wouldn’t have come here, even if invited.”

They really didn’t consider them as anything more than fodder.

Rose hesitated but approached Tang Long softly. “Boss Tang...”

“Don’t call me that!” Tang Long quickly interrupted, laughing. “I’m no boss. Sounds like a hooligan. I’m probably just a little older than you. If you want, just call me Brother Tang. If not, just use my name.”

“Brother Tang!”

Rose dared not call him by name directly. She was cold on the outside but warm within—not foolish.

“We also have a mission this time—to take a set of photos of the Black-Scaled Dragon. You know, the last time one appeared was over a hundred years ago in records. We’re not sure if it’s possible.”

After speaking, she looked at Tang Long with pleading eyes, as if afraid he’d refuse.

Tang Long rubbed his nose, half amused, half exasperated. “No wonder the Little Peacock brought up her team with this trick!”

Hmm?

Rose didn’t understand what Tang Long meant.

Tang Long recalled how Peacock, that snot-nosed girl, had once tried to win his favor with those pitiful looks.

As the saying goes, even rabbits don’t nibble the grass by their burrow. Whatever fun and mischief outside was a mutual thing. Tang Long knew his nature—flirtatious but not vulgar. He wouldn’t harm his comrades or family.

He feared hurting Peacock’s feelings and wanted to sever her attachment to him, so he was harsh and cold—not out of dislike. He didn’t know if she had come to terms with this yet.

“Is it not possible?” Rose asked softly, disappointed when Tang Long remained silent.

Tang Long chuckled twice. “It’s not impossible. Since you have this mission, I should fully cooperate.”

He paused, then continued, “Here’s the thing—the big Black-Scaled Dragon is hungry and wants to eat. I’ve already sent someone to buy food. It should arrive around noon. If you’re not in a hurry, wait until the Black-Scaled Dragon eats at noon and take your photos then!”

“Great!” Rose nodded joyfully. As long as he agreed, waiting all morning or even three days was fine.

Taking pictures and gathering data on the Black-Scaled Dragon was one of the tasks their captain assigned.

Rose knew her team was not only at the bottom in the entire Dongfeng Second Team but among the worst in the whole Dongfeng Special Forces—commonly called rookies or weaklings.

The veterans, upon hearing they were dealing with Tang Long, either had stomach issues or epilepsy attacks, avoiding them as far as possible.

“Hey, Brother Tang, are you really as badass as the legends say?” New Feng, looking somewhat approachable, shamelessly asked with a smile.

In truth, a reserved person often had a bright side; it was just their nature and not overly annoying.

“Badass? Not really!” Tang Long laughed, shaking his head and patting New Feng’s shoulder. “And don’t be so formal. Brother Tang? How old do I look to you?”

New Feng stood dumbfounded, watching Tang Long walk away smiling.

“Hey, reserved guy, what’s wrong with you?” One of the team members, besides Rose, was a young girl named Hong Ying, about eighteen or nineteen. She and the others—Hao Xiaodu, a mature-looking youth, and Jin Wenlin, a bit older—looked at New Feng oddly. This wasn’t typical of his reserved nature.

“Ma, ma...” New Feng started, smiling wryly.

Hong Ying flushed instantly, stamping her foot angrily. “What’s wrong with you? Who’s your mother? I don’t want a silly son like you!”

Hao Xiaodu and Jin Wenlin were baffled. How did this turn into Hong Ying calling him ‘mom’? Even if he wanted to flirt, this was too much—who could accept this in front of so many?

New Feng almost cried, silent for a moment, then helplessly said, “I mean, my foot’s numb!”

Who casually calls anyone ‘mom’? He definitely didn’t have that kind of weird habit!

“Your foot’s numb?” Hong Ying first froze, then stared wide-eyed at Tang Long’s retreating figure, mouth slowly opening.

That’s terrifying!

Tang Long had lightly tapped the reserved guy’s shoulder, numbing his foot so he couldn’t move.

As mentioned earlier, Tang Long specialized in Xingyiquan. The five basic forces in Xingyiquan are split, collapse, drill, cannon, and horizontal. The light tap was the ‘nail’ technique from the ‘split’ force.

He didn’t intend to harm him—just teasing. He didn’t even use force; otherwise, New Feng wouldn’t move for half an hour!

New Feng also looked at Tang Long’s back in shock.

No kidding—the man known as the ‘Peerless Soldier King’ wasn’t a hollow title.

Tang Long had already instructed Lian Sheng to send three cows and ten sheep to town this morning. That might not be enough for the big Black-Scaled Dragon!

The village sealing proceeded steadily. Yutou Village wasn’t overly strict; if tourists came, they simply wouldn’t be admitted. But visitors already inside could stay until the afternoon or even the next day.

Guests are guests—Yutou Village still extended that courtesy!