In an instant, the two Han brothers vanished into the thick darkness.
Now that things had finally settled down, the Lin Family's courtyard was a complete mess.
Xiao Ye spread his hands in resignation. "Wife, you're just letting the tiger back into the mountains. The Han Family won't let this rest."
"If you ask me, we should have just torn them out by the roots to prevent any future trouble."
"Shut up! I'm not your wife!"
Lin Chuyue shot him a glare. "What do you know? The Chen Family is behind the Han Family. You have no idea how formidable they are."
"If we'd really killed them, that would have driven the Lin Family into a corner."
"You need to leave now and never come back to Jiangcheng. This is a Lin Family matter. We'll solve it ourselves. We don't need an outsider getting involved."
Lin Chuyue's tone was ice-cold, but her eyes held a trace of softness.
If Xiao Ye hadn't arrived in time, the Lin Family would not have escaped tonight's disaster!
She couldn't, in good conscience, let Xiao Ye get involved any further and risk him losing his life for no reason.
Xiao Ye saw right through her and chuckled, taking her slender, fair hand in his.
"If you're worried about me, just say it. You don't have to act all tough to try and chase me away."
"The insignificant Han Family is nothing to worry about."
"If they dare to cause trouble again, I'll slaughter every last one of them for you."
"And as for this Chen Family from the Provincial City, I'll take care of them too."
Lin Chuyue yanked her hand away, her beautiful face turning cold. "Why don't you get it? The Han Family's influence alone is far greater than you can imagine! To say nothing of the Chen Family, one of the Four Tigers of the Provincial City!"
"The interests of countless other families are tied up with them. You can't possibly be a match for them."
"Don't think you can take on a behemoth like the Chen Family just because you know how to fight!"
"Get out! Stop meddling in our affairs! No matter how far the Lin Family has fallen, we won't sink so low as to drag an outsider down with us!"
"Chuyue, how can you say that? If it weren't for Xiao Ye, we would have met with disaster tonight!"
"Instead of showing the slightest bit of gratitude, you speak so rudely. Is that what I taught you?"
Lin Aoshan rebuked Lin Chuyue, then turned to Xiao Ye apologetically. "Young man, Chuyue has a sharp tongue but a soft heart. She only said those things because she's afraid you'll get dragged into this. Please don't take it to heart."
"It's all my fault for being so powerless. I've just watched as the Lin Family declined, allowing the Han Family to humiliate us like this!"
Xiao Ye wasn't bothered in the slightest. Instead, he smiled dotingly. "It's no big deal, as long as she's happy. A man has to dote on his woman."
"Old Master, you don't need to worry either. The Han Family, the Chen Family… they're not even worth mentioning!"
"Oh, right. From now on, you can just call me Xiaoye."
"Excellent, excellent," Lin Aoshan said, nodding with a smile. "Xiaoye, I'll be counting on you to protect Chuyue from now on."
"I have faith in your abilities. The prized disciple of the Lingxiao Daoist is by no means an ordinary man!"
"And even if you are truly outmatched, I'll put this old life of mine on the line to make sure you two get away safely!"
"I've already set up an overseas account. The two of you can move to another city and be set for life!"
"Grandpa, what are you talking about? It's late, you should go get some rest."
Lin Chuyue's brow furrowed as she helped Lin Aoshan back into the main hall.
Xiao Ye hurried to follow, but Lin Chuyue shot him a cold, sideways glance. "The courtyard is a bloody mess. What are you going to do about it?"
"Just throw this trash out."
Xiao Ye picked up the bodies of the Eight Vajras and casually tossed them out.
「Meanwhile.」
「Jiangcheng First Hospital.」
Han Jianye was rushed to the operating room for emergency surgery.
Han Jiancheng slumped onto a bench in the hospital corridor, his expression dark and venomous.
He'd lived for half a century, only to be humiliated by some young punk!
Thinking of his murdered father and nephew, Han Jiancheng was so filled with hatred he could have ground his teeth to dust.
He had only brought the Eight Vajras with him from the Chen Family, and now every single one was dead.
'When I get back, how am I going to explain this?'
After thinking it over and over, Han Jiancheng took out his phone and dialed a number.
A moment later, a cool female voice came through the phone. "Dad, what is it?"
"Han Xue, I know you're busy, but you have to come back!"
"Someone is trying to wipe out the Han Family! Your grandfather and your brother, Han Fei, were both killed by him!"
"Even the Eight Vajras I brought back were all killed. I still don't know how I'm going to explain it when I return."
"Who would be so arrogant?"
Han Xue's voice grew even colder. After a moment of silence, she said, "Fine. I'm on my way."
After hanging up, Han Jiancheng hesitated for a moment before dialing the Chen Family's number.
The person who answered was the current Patriarch of the Chen Family, who also happened to be his father-in-law—Chen Long.
"Jiancheng, what is it?"
"Dad, something's happened! The Eight Vajras I brought with me… they're all dead!"
"What?!"
Chen Long, who had been sitting and sipping tea, shot to his feet. "All Eight Vajras are dead? How is that possible!"
"It's true," Han Jiancheng said, his voice cracking. "Dad, the killer is too strong. The Eight Vajras together were no match for him. And what's more…"
"What's more? Spit it out!"
Chen Long gripped the edge of the table, seething with uncontrollable rage.
The Eight Vajras were the culmination of many years of the Chen Family's hard work, yet they had been wiped out in a single night!
Although it wasn't a crippling blow, anyone who dared to touch the Chen Family was showing them utter contempt!
No one in the Provincial City would dare do such a thing, let alone someone in a minor city like Jiangcheng!
"And on top of that, the killer mocked our Chen Family! He said the Eight Vajras were nothing but Eight Losers! He said the Chen Family has a hollow reputation and is actually a pile of dogshit!"
"He… he even said he's going to come to the Provincial City and wipe out our Chen Family!"
CRASH!
Chen Long slammed the expensive teacup onto the floor. "Insolence! Who has the gall to be so audacious!"
"Dad, it's some guy named Xiao Ye. I heard he studied martial arts under an old Daoist for a few years."
"Hmph! Just some back-alley practitioner, and he dares to be so arrogant!"
"I'm sending the Chen Family's Four Masters over right now. You'll be their contact. Kill that arrogant bastard and drag his corpse back here. We'll parade his body through the streets."
"Let those restless fools see the consequences of offending my Chen Family! Nobody shits on the Chen Family's head and gets away with it!"
CLICK.
The line went dead.
Han Jiancheng clutched his phone, ecstatic. 'The Four Masters are even stronger than the Eight Vajras. This time, we'll definitely kill that goddamn bastard!'
Just then, the surgery finished.
Han Jianye was wheeled out.
Han Jiancheng rushed over to him. "Jianye, don't worry. The Chen Family has agreed to send the Four Masters."
"They're even stronger than the Eight Vajras. Every one of them is highly ranked in the country."
"Excellent!" Han Jianye snarled through gritted teeth.
His arm was crippled. Even if it wasn't amputated, it would be useless from now on.
He had to get his revenge!
「In the dead of night.」
An unassuming car pulled up to the Han Family residence.
The doors opened, and four middle-aged men with distinctly different builds stepped out.
One was tall and heavyset, while next to him stood a pointy-chinned, sunken-cheeked man. They looked just like the legendary Fat and Skinny Monks.
Along with the Black and White Fiends following behind them, all four were Martial Arts masters, as evidenced by their slightly bulging temples.
"Gentlemen, thank you for coming all this way…"
Before Han Jiancheng could finish, the Skinny Monk held up a hand. "Cut the crap. Just tell me, did that kid really kill all Eight Vajras by himself?"
"Yes!"
"In that case, we can't face him head-on."
"The four of us are much stronger than the Eight Vajras, but even we couldn't take on all eight of them single-handedly and wipe them out."
"To be on the safe side, we should set a trap and lure him in."
An idea immediately sparked in Han Jiancheng's mind. "That's simple. The kid has a thing for Lin Chuyue."
"If we grab her, there's no doubt he'll come running!"