Chapter 163: Entering The Dragon’s Lair!

Chapter 163: Entering The Dragon's Lair!

The next day, inside a perfectly white bathroom...

The water was the perfect temperature as I held my wife Tina in my arms, the steam rising around us to blur the edges of the room. She lay her wet hair on my shoulder, caressing my arms while I kept a steady hold on her waist just below her breasts. Without opening her eyes, she leaned back against me, her voice breaking the silence in an emotionless tone.

"Making love to you, being your wife, felt different," Tina murmured, her breath warm against my neck. "The feeling of trying to make life inside of me also made my heart thump more."

"I felt your level of passion rise as well," I noted, smoothing her wet hair out of the way. "But can I ask you a question without you getting mad at me?"

"Sorry, I cannot promise that," Tina answered, a tiny twitch appearing at the corner of her lips. "But feel free to ask. I am in a good mood right now."

I smile, feeling her run her nails over my arm playfully, but I steel myself before asking the question. "Why did you bite me last night?" I asked, turning my head slightly. "My neck hurts a bit today."

Tina opened her golden eyes and turned around completely in my arms to face me. Then she lightly licked the exact spot where she had bitten down hard during her climax, looking up at me through her damp lashes. "Well, my primal urge to mark you must have kicked in as you made me a mother," Tina explained, her voice dropping to a dangerous purr. "Well, that and the Blood Demon persona must retire for a year or so. And so it was a painful reminder that you are sleeping with a dangerous woman. Are you mad at me?"

I kiss her lips gently, a wide smile spreading across my face as I pull her tight against my chest. "Never," I promised, resting my chin on her head. "I just need to know what to tell the girls if they ask about the mark. I don't want them thinking you are some vampire and coming to stake you with a wooden spike, ha-ha!"

After some more quiet cuddling in the warm water, our official honeymoon came to a close, and it was time to face reality.

In the huge mansion nursery, I am sitting on a soft pink couch, carefully balancing a pair of twins with Nadia: Bella and Brenda. My wife, who is holding Brenda securely, looked over at me with a thoroughly smug expression.

"Ufufu, see, Ricky?" Nadia teased, rocking her hips slightly. "I told you I would give you your first child. I see you love our Bella very much."

I am currently feeding Bella her bottle, watching her tiny hands twitch against the plastic, while Nadia is feeding Brenda with her own bottle. Seeing Bella look straight into my eyes with her hunger being completely sated, my chest tightens with affection.

"Yeah," I admitted, my voice dropping to a whisper so I wouldn't startle the babies. "Seeing her open her eyes and smile at me while holding my finger... Just, my soul can't forget it."

Nadia leaned across the space between us to press a sweet kiss against my cheek. "Just give me a couple of weeks, Ricky, and then you can have me all that you want," Nadia promised, her eyes flashing with a familiar playfulness. "I miss our physical connection, fufu. Here, let's trade daughters. Brenda needs some Daddy-anium."

Bella looked highly displeased to have been suddenly swapped to her mother, letting out a tiny whimper, but her younger sister seemed very okay with the move into my arms. Nadia pouted at the immediate reaction.

"See that, Ricky?" Nadia complained, crossing her legs. "Even my daughters like you more, sigh. I knew my twins would be total daddy's girls, well, mommy can understand. You did make me love you back in high school, after all."

"Hmm? Yeah," I chuckled, shifting Brenda onto my arm. "I cannot wait to tell them how their mommy used to bully daddy back then, he-he."

Nadia, instantly realizing how terrible that narrative would be for her maternal authority, panicked and begged me. "Ricky, NO!" Nadia gasped, leaning forward. "Please never tell them that! If you do, they will absolutely hate me. Please, I will do anything to make you forget the time before we fell in love, pleeeeease?!"

I then immediately thought of my regular maid time with Tina, a wicked idea forming in my mind as I leaned over and whispered my specific request directly into Nadia's ear. Her eyes snapped open wide in shock, and then a slow smile bloomed on her face.

"Really?" Nadia asked, her voice dropping. "That is all you want me to do? Well, I would have willingly done it for free before, but now we have an official deal and you cannot back out of it, ufufu. Nichole will be thoroughly surprised."

"Why would Nichole be surprised?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

Nadia put on her most devious expression, looking toward the door. "Because you are feeding the twin cousins next, and you will threaten Nichole with the exact same thing, fufu," Nadia revealed, tapping my knee. "Then you will have two naughty maids servicing you instead of one. Get it now?"

"Nadia, when you betray your own sister like this, I wonder sometimes," I said, shaking my head at her cunning layout. "I think you two should be supporting each other, right?"

Nadia kissed my lips again, a look of pure joy on her face as she completely burst my bubble. "No, when it comes to you, we are perfectly fine with betrayal," Nadia stated firmly. "So just enjoy our affections, dear Ricky. Now it is time for you to change our daughters' diapers, fufu."

Then the truly shitty part of parenthood officially arrived, and the dirty diapers had to be changed.

The next day, at the Star City Small Airport, standing directly in front of my personal jet...

Daniel Feng, flanked by his two personal Master-level bodyguards, is giving me and Tina a happy and satisfied look. He waved a hand toward the three of us as we approached. Yes, Hinata is walking directly behind us in her usual guard position.

"Mr. Rick Tang, I, Daniel Feng, formally greet you as the new Leader of the Fire Birds," Daniel announced, his voice carrying over the tarmac. "There, now our administrative changeover is official. Hear me, boys. Rick is now the absolute highest authority, so follow his orders well."

Both Master-level men bowed deeply toward me, their postures perfectly synchronized. "We greet you, Leader Tang!" they shouted in unison.

"Thanks, men," I replied, offering a respectful nod. "But make sure to keep Mr. Feng completely safe so he can enjoy his well-deserved retirement, ha-ha. Everyone, let's get on the plane."

The same three dedicated jet staff members bowed to us as our group of six boarded the luxury aircraft.

Like our previous flights, I suggested that my core group take the comfortable couches, while the security detail took the standard chairs.

Tina, wearing a beautiful knee-length white dress, sat closely beside me on the leather cushions. Thanks to Spring finally arriving, the women get to wear significantly lighter clothing compared to the rough winter weather we had just endured.

Hinata is wearing her traditional crimson kimono, and I am wearing my standard black suit with a crimson tie to match my faction color. Mr. Feng is looking flashy in a crushed velvet red suit, while the bodyguards took their seats wearing tie-less black suits and dark sunglasses.

Daniel turned to me right after liftoff, the engines humming softly in the cabin. "It is a four-hour flight to Central City," Daniel explained, adjusting his jacket. "Then we will drive directly to the Central Government, Syndicate Affairs Office. We will be there for a few hours to complete the legal paperwork, and then we will come straight back to the airfield to fly home. Basically, we will not spend the night there. Too many active enemies would try to hit us in the Capital."

I nodded to his short explanation, keeping my composure. Jenifer and Lucy had both thoroughly covered everything that might or could go wrong during this trip. Both women were incredibly excessive in my preparation. Lucy even forced me to completely memorize the entire city layout, and she has even arranged a secret safe house in the area if an emergency arose.

Taking a slow sip of my whisky, I turned to ask Daniel about the protocol. "All they want you there for is to personally hand over the helm to me in front of the officials?" I pressed. "Is this normal, or is it a trap of some sort?"

His aged face shook as he shook his head, assuring me of the safety. "This is very normal," Daniel assured me, leaning back. "They don't want an imposter rolling in and saying he is you, then learning the Syndicate secrets only to find the real you tied up somewhere or dead. With me physically saying you are real, it frees the bureaucrats of blame for promoting the wrong man. Plus, I receive a substantial parting reward from the government for my efforts over the years. I am having the Central Government buy me a luxury mansion in Crimson's Phoenix City."

Tina, holding my left arm tightly against her side, chimed in to clarify her role. "I am only coming along to prove that you and I are officially married so you qualify for the position," Tina noted. "Just like Brenda Sho will bring her husband, and Jerry will bring your Tang family wife along to verify the bonds. James did not need to come because Ashley is Long blood already, so his connection is verified."

Daniel then turned to congratulate Tina, offering a respectful nod. "Let me be the first to greet you properly... Head Tina Feng," Daniel declared, his smile widening. "I hope your branch family is incredibly prosperous, and your child will lead the Fire Birds well when he or she grows up."

Yes, because Tina is no longer able to act as a spare for her main branch family, she is now the official head of her own side branch that is tied to the Syndicate forever. She crossed her legs, looking completely relaxed.

"Thank you, uncle, but with Rick at my side, it is certain," Tina answered, a proud look in her gold eyes. "Ufufu, Rick will lead his Tang side branch along with Linda leading one for the Lang. If only sister Victoria was still a part of the Long family, Rick would have a complete family monopoly on the syndicates."

Daniel suddenly put on a villainous smile, his eyes narrowing as he questioned her assumption. "Oh?" Daniel asked, letting out a dark chuckle. "Do you think Victoria Long is so easily defeated by that twat, Kimberly? No, I don't think it will be long before the Long family comes begging on their knees for Victoria to save them. Don't ask me what I know, just buy some popcorn for the future, he-he."

He closed his eyes with a satisfied smile, signaling to us that he would not talk any further on the matter. Tina and I looked at one another curiously, but not knowing what his cryptic words meant, we stopped pondering the topic. Seeing Hinata occasionally looking over at me from her spot, I shifted the focus to her.

"What is on your mind, Hinata?" I asked.

She sat up perfectly straight while talking, her posture rigid as she informed me of her news. "Sensei, my mother called to inform me to pass on her words," Hinata reported, her accent clear. "She wanted to thank you deeply for my advanced training and care, and to let you know that the nobles in Crimson have been behaving themselves with my Kyusho clan recently. Do you have any specific words for me to return to her?"

"Just tell her good luck, and to let me know if things change for them," I instructed, nodding slowly as the plane engines hummed in the background. "Also tell her your training is going well with your dedication. Finally, let her and your father know to just call me directly if they have concerns for me. I do not want your family to think I am overlooking them."

"Yes, Sensei," Hinata replied, bowing her head seamlessly from her seat.

Then I pulled out my tablet and did some work online with modifications to the current Harem-Chat setup, which is absolutely exploding worldwide in daily use.

Central City, the massive urban sprawl where all four distinct States of Eurasia meet...

Looking down from the cabin window onto the massive old city below, I get the distinct vibe that it is a complex combination of ancient architecture and modern infrastructure design. From my old Earth's memories, the grand layout reminds me of historical images of Washington DC, the capital of the USA, but with a heavy bit of traditional Chinese aesthetics mixed into the buildings.

Soon, our plane came in for a smooth landing on the restricted military-grade tarmac.

To greet our arrival on the runway was a massive force of around fifty heavily armed and highly experienced Fire Birds members standing alongside two bulletproof limos, waiting to safely drive our two separate groups of three.

A stern-looking woman, who could easily pass for Jenifer's older mother based on her sharp facial features, stepped forward to address me and Daniel. "Greetings Leader Tang, and former Leader Feng," she announced, her posture perfectly straight. "I am Holly Suki. Ah, hello Mrs. Feng, it is a true pleasure to meet you. If we could all get into the limos immediately, our motorcade can begin to move."

As soon as our two respective groups got inside the luxury vehicles, the heavily armed guards all rushed into their armored SUVs, taking up positions to lead from the front and also tightly tail our limos.

Holly rode directly in my limo, pointing out landmarks through the tinted glass and thoroughly explaining the administrative processes of the upcoming leadership changeover. She was exceptionally professional throughout the ride, and never once hinted at trying to get noticed or promoted by the new boss. I highly like that level of integrity in my staff.

After a half-hour car ride through the high-security grid, we had driven completely through the bustling downtown area, briefly stopping for a quick food pickup and admiring the historic streets.

The last time I had physically been to this capital city, I was only a ten-year-old boy. I remember vividly on our way here back then, my father looked completely resigned and defeated, like coming to this place was the absolute last destination he wanted to visit on Earth.

But after my sudden anger and childhood tantrum during that visit, his warm smile on our trip back home was something I would never forget for the rest of my life. Sadly, his life was the ultimate cost of openly rejecting the controlling Li family's demands.

Yes, that tragic bank robbery, just like May Lee's sudden death, was all carefully orchestrated by the father of the new possible Yellow Emperor they are desperately hoping will emerge from the bloodlines. But Lucy and I will get our absolute revenge when the time is right. When they finally find out his chosen son is pure trash, we will strike them directly in the heart.

"Sensei, are we in danger?" Hinata asked suddenly, her voice dropping as she gripped her sheathed blade. "Your killing intent is highly noticeable right now."

Only a Master Level practitioner of martial arts can feel my internal urge to kill from across a vehicle. Tina and Holly remained completely unaware of my dark thoughts, but Hinata, Daniel, and the two personal guards were instantly alerted by the shift in the air. I smiled faintly and shook my head to calm her heightened emotions.

"No, sorry," I replied, forcing my posture to relax. "I just have exceptionally bad memories of Central, is all..."

"Sensei, have you come here before?" Hinata pressed, her red eyes locked onto me. "I was entirely unaware of that, sorry."

Tina, knowing some of the darker parts of my childhood history, intervened and told her the safe version. "Husband has a grandfather who might still live somewhere in Central," Tina explained to her. "And he had an incredibly bad meeting with him as a young child, so do not worry."

Hinata looked at Tina, wanting to scold her for minimizing the situation because she knew the raw urge to kill radiating from me was not that simple.

Inside a highly secure concrete government building, I was escorted down several flights of stairs along with Jerry, Brenda, and Ashley into a deep underground meeting room.

After our legal documents, fingerprints, and other personal information were thoroughly recorded alongside the physical verification of each spouse, the ex-leader, and our own biometric identities, the four of us as official Syndicate Leaders had been led away into the dark.

We were systematically stripped of absolutely anything metal or electronic, and every single weapon had been removed from our gear. Hell, even our formal shoes were taken away from us for the duration of the meeting.

Our group was put into a stark, concrete twenty-by-twenty room containing only a five-person round wooden table, and we are currently waiting for a high-ranking government official to enter for our confidential briefing.

The four of us only offered silent nods to one another across the wood because we know they are actively listening, recording our movements, and probably even tracking our heartbeats for changes in breathing with their high-tech wall scanners. Well, the four of us will absolutely not reveal our true closeness to one another in front of the monitors.

After around ten tense minutes of waiting, a woman looking remarkably like May Lee walked into the room. She did not wear glasses or have the red hair tint, but otherwise looked exactly like her deceased counterpart. She placed some heavy files onto the table, sat down in the remaining chair, and spoke.

"I am Captain Alisa Lee," she announced, her blue eyes scanning our faces. "And here are your confidential files for you to read and skim. You may not leave this room with this information, nor let anyone other than the four of you know or warn anyone in any way, including your wives or husbands. If you break this strict confidentiality, you and your entire family clan will be rounded up and executed without trial, do you understand?"

All of us nodded our heads in unison, like we actually had a choice in the matter. She then handed us the documents, and some of the things detailed in the text, other than the no-brainer administrative updates, was a definitive prediction of global war.

"As you can see, we will be starting a war with the China Empire in close to five years," Captain Lee stated coldly. "Exactly five years from this coming June. The strategic reason for this war is none of your business, but you, the four Syndicates, will be directly responsible for collecting a massive amount of foot soldiers for an on-the-ground invasion of their country."

They are timing the entire global conflict with the suspected birth and emergence of their young master. So the moment they think the mythical Yellow Emperor is securely on their side, they want to exact total bloody revenge for the past two thousand years of history.

The four of us only look to one another briefly, but I am not worried in the slightest because Lucy had a strong hunch they might try something big.

After all, the Chinese Emperor desperately wants to invade us as well, to finish what they started two thousand years ago and kill the entire remaining Li clan.

"How are we supposed to collect a force this size and not show our hands to the public?" Brenda asked, leaning forward over her file. "Please tell me Central has a plausible reason we can tell others?"

The Lee woman looked back at her, her face completely expressionless. "We will send you official military documents saying you are building a specialized force to invade the Antarctica continent," Captain Lee explained. "To finally rout out the remains of the Southern Cross faction. But this is merely a misdirection so we can easily redirect the troops when the time comes. We have a secure base in the Southern region of Africa to stage our main force. So just pretend the new recruitment orders are for that specific mission, any other questions?"

Her sharp eyes drifted directly to me in absolute loathing, like she fully expected me to resist her authority or go against her orders, but I only smiled back at her like this is just another regular day at the office.

"Remember our warning," she reminded us, standing up from the table. "We have you on recording agreeing to our vow of secrecy, so your entire clan will not be saved if you divulge this information. Now please give me the files back, and you may all leave."

Naturally we all handed the documents back over, and for the entire long walk back to our people in the outer lobby, the expressions on Ashley, Jerry, and Brenda looked a bit pale knowing we were going to have a massive World War on our hands.

But when Ashley saw my completely calm face as we walked, her racing heart settled down, just like that tense time on the rooftop. She remembered my calm demeanor under pressure, and for now, she pushed the terrifying idea of war completely out of her mind.

After that meeting wrapped up, we safely left the borders of Central City. Everyone in our retinue knew better than to ask what I found out down in that bunker, and honestly, I do not want to tell anyone about the files.

Except for the one specific woman I know would happily place ten bunker busters up the Li family's assholes without hesitating... My most devoted, crazy psycho, Lucy.