Chapter 9: Sinful Transactions

Xiao Xue's experience in the underground boxing world has left her physically and mentally exhausted, yet she continues to struggle internally between revenge and justice. Every time she throws a punch, every time she gets hurt, it makes her hatred for the dark forces deeper, and at the same time, she questions her own behavior more. While in prison, Xiong Yufang also began to re-examine her own life, once greed and selfishness is now only endless remorse, she knows that if she continues to be entangled with the dark forces, it will lead to destruction.

By chance, Xiong Yufang meets a mysterious visitor in prison. This person claimed to know a lot of inside information about the dark forces, and revealed a shocking secret to Xiong Yufang: the dark forces are planning a huge deal involving smuggling and drug trafficking, and the place for the deal is the long-abandoned, eerie old warehouse at the edge of the city. The warehouse is surrounded by overgrown weeds, mottled walls, emitting a putrid smell, like a haunted house forgotten by the world, which is the ideal place for them to carry out their evil deeds.

Xiong Yufang realizes that this is an opportunity to change her fate, and after much deliberation, she decides to put aside her hatred with Xiao Xue, at least temporarily, and work together to fight this greater enemy. She took great pains to pass the news to Xiao Xue through the complex human relationships in prison.

When Xiao Xue received the news, her heart was filled with misgivings. After all, she and Xiong Yufang had accumulated deep grudges, could this be another conspiracy of Xiong Yufang? But after careful investigation and verification, she found the news is true. Xiao Xue knew that with her current power alone, it was difficult to fight against such a huge dark force, and if she wanted to completely destroy them, she had to seize this opportunity, even if she had to cooperate with Xiong Yufang.

In order to discuss cooperation matters, Xiao Xue and Xiong Yufang chose an extremely hidden meeting place - the intricate drainage pipes under the city. It was dark and damp, filled with a pungent odor, with sewage flowing underfoot and water beads constantly seeping out of the walls, and the sound of dripping echoed in the silence, as if it were a whisper of darkness. When the two met, the atmosphere was as tense as a drawn bowstring. They looked at each other with a wary, distrustful look in their eyes, but deep down there lay a hint of understanding for each other and a desire to be free of the darkness.

"Xiao Xue, I know it's hard for you to trust me, but we have to work together this time. This is our only chance, otherwise we will both be consumed by the darkness." Xiong Yufang broke the silence, her voice echoing in the narrow pipe with a hint of helplessness and determination.

Xiao Xue was silent for a long time and slowly spoke, "Okay, but I will keep an eye on you at all times. Once I find out that you have any misbehavioral attempts, I will not be soft."

Thus, they began to carefully plan this battle of life and death. Xiao Xue, with the experience she had accumulated in the dark world, formulated a detailed and risky plan.

On the night of the deal, the night was as dark as ink, shrouding the abandoned warehouse. Xiao Xue and Xiong Yufang sneaked in ahead of time and hid in the dark corners, their heartbeats gradually accelerated with the passage of time, and the tense atmosphere pressed on them like substance. A truck full of smuggled goods, like a ghost slowly approaching, headlights light columns interlaced in the darkness, the roar of the engine broke the silence of the night. A group of ferocious, weapon-wielding criminals jumped down from the vehicle, their eyes scanning the surroundings warily.

Xiong Yufang, as planned, took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down, then pretended to be a member of the dark forces and slowly walked towards the warehouse. Her steps appeared to be calm and steady, but in reality, she was tense inside, as if she was stepping on the edge of a knife with every step. Xiao Xue, on the other hand, lurked in the shadows nearby, holding a sharp dagger, her eyes locked onto Xiong Yufang's figure, ready to deal with unexpected situations at any time.

Xiong Yufang smoothly into the warehouse, she forced calm, and criminals with the false and clever to extract the key information of the transaction. Suddenly, she sent out the agreed signal. Xiao Xue saw the opportunity to act, as agile as a cheetah rushed to the warehouse. Her figure weaved in and out of the darkness, and the dagger in her hand flashed with a cold light.

Just then, an accident happened. A criminal sensed the difference and shouted, "There's an ambush!" Instantly, the warehouse was thrown into chaos. The sound of gunfire, fire flashes in the darkness, the pungent smell of smoke filled the air. Xiong Yufang quickly hid behind a cargo box, her eyes revealing panic and determination. Xiao Xue was also suppressed by enemy fire and had to seek cover.

In the fierce firefight, Xiao Xue was unfortunately injured, and a sharp pain came from her arm, but she gritted her teeth and endured it, with only one thought in her mind: she can't fail. Xiong Yufang saw Xiao Xue injured, a complex emotion welled up in her heart, both guilt and anger. She recklessly rushed towards the enemy, the gun in her hand kept shooting, as if she wanted to vent the remorse in her heart and her hatred towards the dark forces together.

Just when they felt desperate, the sound of police sirens came from far and near. It turned out that Xiao Xue had risked revealing the information to the police before the operation and requested their support at the critical moment. The police quickly surrounded the warehouse, and the powerful firepower suppression made the criminals in disarray.

After a fierce battle, the criminals were subdued. Xiao Xue and Xiong Yufang looked at the scene controlled by the police and had mixed feelings. They won this battle the hard way and paid a heavy price.

Xiao Xue was seriously injured and was sent to the hospital for emergency treatment. Xiong Yufang stood guard in the corridor of the hospital, looking in the direction of the operating room, her eyes filled with worry and self-blame. She knew that this cooperation was just the beginning, their battle with the dark forces was far from over, and what awaited them ahead would be more challenges and unknown dangers. However, at this moment, there was also a glimmer of hope in their hearts that through cooperation, they might be able to truly escape the control of the darkness and move towards the path of redemption.