Chapter 111: You May Die Now

Qi Changling and Shen Guosheng were less than ten meters apart. Taking advantage of his speech, Qi had quietly closed the distance by two steps.

He launched a sudden, lightning-fast attack!

Shen Guosheng and those around him barely had time to react. Watching helplessly as Qi Changling’s "iron claws" reached for his throat, Shen felt a chill run down his spine.

"I was so focused on attacking the Qi family that I forgot they were a family of martial artists. I forgot that Qi Changling himself was a martial practitioner. This is the end of me!"

Shen Guosheng closed his eyes in despair, waiting for death to claim him.

"Snap!"

A soft sound echoed.

Shen felt a breeze brush past his face. He felt no pain; instead, he heard a muffled grunt from Qi Changling.

Shen hurried to open his eyes.

Ye Tianci was standing right beside him, his hand firmly locking Qi Changling’s wrist. Qi’s "iron claws" were mere centimeters from Shen’s throat, unable to advance a single inch further.

"Mr. Ye! Thank you for saving my life!" Shen Guosheng exclaimed, a mix of shock and joy at his narrow escape.

"You dare interfere with me? You're courting death!" Qi Changling roared. While struggling, he swung his other palm toward Ye Tianci’s head.

"Ah!"

Ye Tianci flicked a finger, striking Qi Changling’s arm precisely.

Qi let out a cry of pain as his arm bent at an unnatural, grotesque angle! Ye Tianci had shattered his left arm in an instant!

"How dare you hurt my father? Die!" Qi Dingfeng bellowed in rage, raising his pistol and firing!

Gu Yanzong had been negligent; while the authorities had relieved Qi Dingfeng of his duties, they had failed to confiscate his sidearm in time.

Seeing Qi Dingfeng draw his weapon, the three women—Tang Qiong, Xiao Qingmei, and Zhuang Muqing—all turned pale with alarm.

"Sect Master, be careful!"
"Watch out for the bullet!"
"Junior Brother!"

The three women cried out in unison, their faces filled with concern. He Mingshen and his son, along with Lei Hong, Yuan Zhonghuang, and the others, looked on with tense, horrified expressions.

"Bang!"

A gunshot rang out.

At the exact same instant the shot was fired, Ye Tianci vanished from where he stood! Aside from Gu Yanzong and Zhuang Muqing, everyone else saw only a blur. Ye Tianci’s speed was simply too fast!

"Thump!"
"Ah!"

Qi Dingfeng let out a shriek of agony. He was sent flying backward as if struck by a speeding train!

Ye Tianci had not only dodged the bullet but appeared instantly beside Qi Dingfeng, blasting him away with a single punch. The gun previously in Qi Dingfeng's hand was now in Ye Tianci’s grip.

"Clatter!"

The handgun was reduced to a pile of scrap metal in the blink of an eye and tossed onto the floor by Ye Tianci.

"Cough, cough, cough!"

Qi Dingfeng lay on the ground, clutching his chest and coughing up blood uncontrollably. With every cough, fresh blood poured from his mouth as if it were worthless. His ribs were shattered, the jagged bones piercing his lungs and internal organs; the excruciating pain was relentless. Qi’s face was deathly pale; even if he were rushed to the hospital now, his chances of survival were slim.

"Dad!"
"Second Uncle!"

Several younger members of the Qi family knelt on the ground, crying out in panic.

Enduring the agony, Qi Dingfeng glared at Ye Tianci through gritted teeth, his voice trembling: "You... you surnamed Ye... who exactly are you? Why... why are you attacking my Qi family?"

"Let me... let me die knowing the truth!"

As Qi Dingfeng spoke, he vomited another large mouthful of blood, mixed with bits of flesh.

Ye Tianci’s eyes narrowed, and he gestured coldly.

Li Zhenhua and Shen Guosheng caught the signal immediately, ushering the guests out of the banquet hall. No unrelated personnel were permitted to remain! Once forced out, the guests were unwilling to leave; they crowded the entrance and windows, standing on tiptoe and craning their necks to catch a glimpse of what was happening inside.

In the center of the hall, Ye Tianci stood with his hands behind his back. Pointing at Qi Changling, he said, "Qi Dingfeng, you want to die knowing the truth? Very well, I shall grant your wish."

"As for who I am and why I am targeting your Qi family, you should be asking your father, Qi Changling!"

"Qi Changling, do you remember the little boy whose bones you broke and whose tendons you severed fifteen years ago?"

Ye Tianci’s voice was cold, his gaze sharp as a needle as he stared at Qi Changling.

Qi Changling was stunned for a full three seconds before his eyes slowly widened. He looked at Ye Tianci in disbelief. "I... I finally remember! It’s you! You’re that little bastard from the Ye family!"

"You’re actually still alive?!"

A middle-aged woman stepped out from behind Qi Changling, saying with spite, "So, you’re the bastard born of Yan Xiruo!"

"If I had known this would happen, I should have drowned you back then!"

Ye Tianci’s gaze turned icy as he surveyed the woman. His voice was as cold as a frozen current: "You must be Qi Yan?"

"It’s me! What are you going to do about it?" Qi Yan rolled her eyes in disdain.

"Back then, my mother took me and fled to Shu City to seek refuge with you. We hoped you would take us in, but you were a beast in human skin who betrayed us in secret!"

"For these past fifteen years, every day and every night, I have thought of nothing but revenge! Of how to settle this debt with you!"

Ye Tianci’s expression was dark and somber to the extreme! Qi Yan was the primary culprit behind the suffering he and his mother had endured; he would spare no one, least of all her.

Qi Yan sneered with contempt. "Your name is Ye Tianci, right? You know your mother, Yan Xiruo, was a member of the Yan family from Luocheng in Jiangbei, don't you?"

"Of course."

"Since you know she was a Yan, let me tell you something else: I, Qi Yan, married into the Yan family!"

"My husband, Yan Fengbei, is the biological younger brother of your mother, Yan Xiruo!"

"By family hierarchy, do you know what you should call me? I don't need to teach you that, do I?"

Qi Yan looked proud and arrogant. It was no wonder she had mocked Ye Tianci with such disdain; she possessed this trump card. By seniority, she was Ye Tianci’s maternal aunt-in-law. If Ye Tianci attacked her, it would be an act of rebellion against his elders—a truly heinous crime.

Ye Tianci’s expression remained unmoved. He narrowed his eyes, and a devilish arc slowly curled the corners of his lips.

"You married into the Yan family?"

"Your husband is my biological uncle?"

"Excellent!"

The moment the word fell, Ye Tianci appeared beside Qi Yan. A short blade had appeared in his hand.

"Crack!"

Ye Tianci shattered Qi Yan’s right lower leg, snapping it cleanly at the ankle! By the time she realized what had happened and began to scream in pain, her leg was already broken.

"Ah, ah, ah! It hurts so much! You rebellious, wild bastard, how dare you strike me?"

"Aren't you afraid of being struck by lightning? Aren't you afraid of retribution?"

Qi Yan wailed and cursed simultaneously.

"Pfft!"

Ye Tianci pried open the ankle joint and severed her tendons.

Broken bones and severed tendons! Ye Tianci was returning the exact agony he had suffered back to Qi Yan in full measure.

"Ah, ah, ah!"

Qi Yan collapsed on the floor, shrieking like a slaughtered pig. Ye Tianci ignored her entirely and turned his gaze to Qi Dingfeng.

"Now, do you understand why I am attacking your Qi family?"

Qi Dingfeng’s face was deathly white; he nodded with a vacant expression.

"Very well. You may die now."

Ye Tianci said flatly.

His words were like a decree from the King of Hell. Upon hearing them, Qi Dingfeng slumped like a punctured balloon. His body went limp, his arms dropped to his sides, his head tilted to the side, and he drew his last breath instantly!

"Dingfeng!"
"Second Uncle!"
"Dad!"

The members of the Qi family cried out in grief.

Ye Tianci’s expression did not change in the slightest as he walked slowly toward Qi Changling.

"Qi Changling, it is your turn."

Ye Tianci’s voice, sounding like the tolling of a death knell, echoed in the ears of everyone from the Qi family.