Chapter 44: Dark River Hunting

Inside a private club disguised as a tea warehouse in Bangkok's Sukhumvit district, crystal chandeliers refracted cold light into spiderwebs of shadow. Three figures at the conference table were stretched into distorted shadows. Cigar smoke and the lingering smoke of gunpowder mingled in the air. The antique clock in the corner read 3:17 AM.

"Lin Kun is useless, Songpa is dead." Haji Omar took a big gulp of whiskey, and the ice ball hit the wall of the glass, making a crisp sound.

He licked the gold foil on his fangs, a sinister look in his eyes: "Mo Xiaohan is going to deal with us one by one. What do you think is the next step?"

"Wait." Nguyen Van Hung, the godfather of the Vietnamese underworld, was wiping his dagger with a velvet cloth, his half-closed eyes reflected in the blade. "The fun has just begun."

"What a show!" Haji smashed his wine glass, sending shards splattering on the carpet. "Are we just going to sit there and wait? Who's going to pay for our losses?!"

"What's the rush? What do you think Nguyen Van Hung is waiting for?" Zakun Wensong of the Mekong Chamber of Commerce sneered, tapping his fingertips on the table. "Khun Sa hasn't made a move yet."

"Khun Sa? He can't even protect himself now!" Haji stood up suddenly, and the chair scraped against the carpet with a harsh sound. "Mo Xiaohan deliberately let him go, wanting him to escape like a stray dog. It's more torturous than death!"

"Haji, when did you become so naive?" Zakun slowly exhaled a puff of cigar smoke. "Precisely because he can't protect himself, he's more dangerous than ever."

"A venomous snake bites most fiercely when cornered." Ruan Wenxiong raised his eyes, and the sharp tip of the knife suddenly "poofed" into the tabletop, sending sawdust scattering. "Wait until he gets his hands on his prey's ankle..."

Silence fell among the three of them for a moment, only the slight trembling of the knife tip embedded in the wood flashed dangerously under the crystal chandelier.

They knew that when Khun Sa was forced into a desperate situation, he would counterattack in the most brutal way. Now, they only needed to stay by the edge of this seemingly calm swamp like patient hunters.

Deep in the rainforest on the Myanmar border, a scarred man stares into a satellite phone. Shrapnel scars run from his brow to his jaw, making his face look even more hideous.

On the screen was a candid photo of Ruan Xingchen walking in the garden. The timestamp in the lower right corner showed that it was taken three days ago.

"How are the preparations going?" A hoarse voice came from the satellite phone, and the sound of electricity twisted the air.

Khun Sa grinned, his gold teeth gleaming in the dim light. "Wait until her PTSD gets better... then her breakdown will be the most interesting."

He didn't notice that the moment the call ended, the satellite signal was locked by an encrypted tracker.

On the other end of the signal, in the strategic command room underground in the Mo Group headquarters building, technicians accurately marked the positioning coordinates on the electronic map. The red light spot was steadily staying in the dense forest belt along the Mekong River tributary.

"Boss, Khun Sa's hideout has been confirmed." The technician pulled up the real-time surveillance footage. "The satellite call just now was from Nguyen Van Hung. Khun Sa also contacted his old subordinates in Laos at the same time."

Mo Xiaohan stood before the screen, a cigar between his fingers, his presence shrouded in an aura colder than the light. His gaze swept across Khun Sa's position on the screen, then to the other side, where Haji, Nguyen Van Hung, and Zakun were displayed. A cold smile curved his lips.

"Notify the Dark River Group," his voice was as cold as ice, "and have them follow this snake to see how many more rats are coiled behind it."

The technicians retreated, but Khun Sa's figure was still flickering on the surveillance screen.

Mo Xiaohan raised his hand and put out the cigar in the crystal ashtray, turned to look at A Tai beside him, and tapped the table with his fingertips, marking the sphere of influence of the three people.

"Haji was suspicious, so we gave him the false information about 'Nguyen Van Hung's rebellion,'" he said in a low voice. "Zakon was conceited, so we let him know that 'Haji was tampering with the docks.'"

A-Tai was stunned for a moment, then subconsciously said, "But they are not..."

"This kind of temporary alliance, each with its own hidden agenda, is inherently suspicious and wary of each other." Mo Xiaohan extinguished his cigar. "This is what makes the show interesting."

"Then Ruan Wenxiong..."

Mo Xiaohan's lips curled slightly: "He's too cautious, so..." He raised his hand and pressed the control key. The light dot representing Ruan Wenxiong on the sand table suddenly flashed a dangerous red light. "Let him find out that we are monitoring him."

In Bangkok amidst the heavy rain, undercurrents are surging.

In Haji's private villa, an encrypted email was quietly delivered:

Ruan Wenxiong has contacted the Mohist School, but the details of the transaction are unknown.

Haji stared at the screen, a sinister look in his eyes. He slammed his laptop shut and dialed an encrypted number: "Find out who Ruan Wenxiong has been meeting recently."

Almost at the same time, Zakun's fleet received an anonymous tip: "Haji's men have made some moves at the Chiang Mai dock, intending to seize the cargo for themselves."

Zakun narrowed his eyes, tapped his fingertips on the mahogany armrest, and suddenly sneered: "Interesting."

Inside Nguyen Van Hung's base, the newly intercepted "surveillance records" and Haji's investigative files lay spread out on the table. Veins bulged in his fingers as he gripped the documents. He unsheathed his dagger and pressed it against the throat of the informant who had brought him the intelligence. A chill ran down his face. "Tell me, what else did Haji find out?"

All of this was clearly displayed on Mo Xiaohan's sand table.

"Boss, they're starting to bite each other."

Mo Xiaohan stood in front of the French window, rain streaks snaking across the glass like snakes. The chessboard had already been set, and now, the pieces were following the script he had written, step by step towards a dead end.

Khun Sa thought he was hunting, but he didn't know that he had already entered the enclosure; Haji, Nguyen Van Hung, and Zakun were suspicious of each other, and every step was within his calculations.

And the real hunter only needs to wait patiently——

Wait until the poisonous snake shows its fangs, and wait until all the mice come out of the hole, then kill them with one blow.