Chapter Six

With a single stroke, Tian Jiu’s blade fell, severing Old Master Bai’s head on the spot! Blood splattered everywhere, and Li Changshun’s expression changed drastically.

How could the stench of merchants ever contend with the heroes of heaven and earth?

Tian Jiu’s attack was so ruthless that even a mighty family like the Lis, who could dominate Jiangzhou and kept many martial experts, could not help but tremble at the sight. Li Changshun was no fool—he knew at once that Chu Tianhe was no ordinary man—but he did not show the slightest trace of fear.

After all, this was Jiangzhou, the Lis’ domain.

It is said that a mighty dragon cannot suppress a local serpent. In Jiangzhou, even if Chu Tianhe were a dragon, he would have to coil; if he were a tiger, he would have to crouch.

“Li family, is this all you amount to?” After executing Old Master Bai, Chu Tianhe fixed his gaze on Li Changshun.

Chu Tianhe’s purpose was clear: to wipe out the Li family and avenge his late wife. He had investigated every detail of the family.

The Lis’ supremacy in Jiangzhou was not due solely to their martial retainers. In Jiangzhou, the family’s power was synonymous with the title “The Twin Tigers of Jiangzhou”—the brothers Li Changshun and Li Changhu.

“I don’t know who you are or where you came from, but you’ve come to the wrong place and provoked the wrong people!” Li Changshun declared, immediately calling his brother.

“Changhu, something’s happened at home. Your nephew’s been killed, and many of my martial experts are dead. Bring your men here, now!”

In that instant, all of Jiangzhou was shaken.

Li Changhu was the Commander of the City’s Divine Guards, commanding thirty thousand troops—enough to be considered a local warlord. It was for this reason that the Lis could rule Jiangzhou with impunity.

Now, hearing his family was under attack, Li Changhu could no longer remain composed. Fury blazed in his eyes as he roared, “Assemble! All Divine Guards, assemble immediately!”

“Damn it! Someone had the nerve—had the guts—to strike at our family!”

“I want to see which bastard has the audacity, the courage of a bear and the heart of a leopard, to defy the Li family!”

“All Divine Guards, assemble! Bring every weapon we own. Not one piece of equipment is to be left behind!”

Very soon, the Divine Guards of Jiangzhou were fully mobilized. The earth itself seemed to shake as thirty thousand men gathered and surged toward the Li family’s villa.

Yet, by this time, Chu Tianhe had already left, leaving behind nothing but corpses and blood.

Every last martial expert, every guard dog the Lis kept—none were spared. There was not a single living soul left in the estate.

“Damn it! Who? Who the hell dared do this?” Li Changhu’s eyes were bloodshot at the carnage within his home, his fury erupting like a volcano. The Divine Guards at his side all wore twisted, murderous expressions.

“I’ll skin him alive! I’ll tear him limb from limb, scatter his remains to the wind!” Li Changhu was shaking with rage, on the verge of madness. Never before had the Lis suffered such a defeat, let alone on the day of Li Changshun’s fiftieth birthday. His wrath was uncontrollable.

“Report! We have not found Mr. Li’s body.”

A trusted subordinate came to report. Though corpses littered the villa, Li Changshun’s was not among them.

Clearly, he had been taken.

“Find him! Track down who abducted my brother! I’ll devour them alive!” Upon hearing that Li Changshun was still alive, Li Changhu’s grim expression eased slightly, but his anger remained undiminished.

“Report! Surveillance at Huìháo Tower shows Mr. Li’s kidnapper has gone there!”

“Huìháo Tower?!” At this, a cold, murderous gleam flashed in Li Changhu’s eyes. That was their own family business!

He had never imagined his brother would be taken to their own company building.

“Assemble! Everyone, surround Huìháo Tower! Not even an ant is to escape!”

“No matter who it is, anyone who dares strike at our family—I’ll make them regret ever being born!”

…

At the top floor of Huìháo Tower, Tian Jiu stood beside Li Changshun, his military blade still dripping with blood.

Li Changshun was a broken man, his former arrogance utterly gone. He was covered in wounds, and Tian Jiu’s blade had not ceased.

The punishment of death by a thousand cuts cannot stop before three thousand strokes.

“Ah… you… you dare treat me like this? When my brother arrives… I’ll see you dead with no grave to receive you!” Li Changshun, bound and helpless, screamed with each merciless slice.

Chu Tianhe stood at the spot where Qin Xiaorou had leapt to her death, gazing into the distance, ignoring Li Changshun’s agonized cries. His expression was dark, his eyes filled with infinite longing.

Men are not made of wood—how could they be without feeling? Even a man as ruthless as Chu Tianhe possessed deep emotions.

“That woman was the love of my life,” he murmured. “When I was destitute, she defied her family and eloped with me. In my bleakest days, she asked nothing in return, sought no wealth—she chose to grow old with me, through thick and thin.”

“We slept under the stars, spoke of dreams and brighter days to come. I promised her that when I returned triumphant, I’d bring her a kingdom as dowry and marry her in glory.”

“In my life, I have always kept my word, never once gone back on a promise. But this time…”

Staring into the distance, grief washed over Chu Tianhe. His eyes reddened as he reached out, as if longing to hold Qin Xiaorou’s hand in the heavens above.

A long, long silence.

At last, Chu Tianhe sighed and asked, “Tian Jiu, do you know what is a man’s greatest treasure in this life?”

“I do not, sir,” Tian Jiu replied, pausing his blade for a moment.

Chu Tianhe’s lips twitched with sorrow. His gaze was lost in the distance, consumed by mourning.

“A man’s greatest treasure is not wealth or fame, but the one woman who stays by his side when he is penniless, slandered by all, and burdened by infamy.”

“But she is gone.”

At these words, Chu Tianhe’s eyes sharpened, cold with murderous intent as he turned toward Li Changshun. His voice was ice:

“It was your Li family that drove her to her death.”