Chapter 17: Violence in the Courtyard

The man on the other side wore an adorably cute cow mask, but the eyes beneath it held not a trace of cuteness.

The moment their gazes met, Sun Changbiao sensed the stench of death.

A murderous intent so intense it surged like a raging river, threatening to shatter his mental defenses!

“This is Xu Ji’s Wood Carving Shop! How dare you commit such an atrocity here?!”

Gripping his stomach against the searing pain, Sun Changbiao roared in the face of mortal terror.

Blood and qi surged within him, his muscles screamed as inner strength, serpentine and subtle, began to manifest—his tendon burst technique ready to counterattack.

Sun Changbiao knew this was Xu Ji Courtyard, where many veteran wood carvers resided. If he could stall just long enough, rescue might yet come!

At the very least, his older brother and father lived not far away—once they heard the commotion, they could immediately come running!

Li Che regarded Sun Changbiao coolly. The other man’s hoarse, desperate state was a far cry from his usual gentle demeanor.

In truth, Li Che could hardly imagine that the mild-mannered man he knew outside could be so ruthless and venomous with his own daughter…

It wasn’t enough to order his daughter to cook and clean—any hint of displeasure meant being whipped with a vine strand.

You may know someone’s face, but not their heart.

Of course, none of that truly mattered now…

What mattered was that Li Che had heard Sun Changbiao’s words.

He had confirmed Sun Changbiao’s malicious intent towards XiXi—this was the very man who, just last night, had placed the glaring Spirit Infant Wooden Carving, intending to offer XiXi to the Sect Master in exchange for bearing an heir!

A fate worse than death indeed.

At that thought, a surge of grim rage welled up in Li Che, his murderous intent boiling over.

Bang!

Stimulated by the brink of death, Sun Changbiao bellowed and slammed his arms onto the ground. His entire body shot upward, his back muscles tight as bowstrings, as he unleashed two thunderous punches toward Li Che!

The full force of his tendon burst and inner energy erupted wildly!

But then…

The burly, bull-like figure in the cow mask merely raised his hand, clenching his fan-like fist and delivering a sweeping punch.

In an instant, a sound resembling a dragon’s roar mixed with an elephant’s trumpet, a terrifying sonic wave that shook the air and roared through the room.

When fist met fist, a cracking sound of shattered bone exploded!

Sun Changbiao cried out in agony, terror gleaming in his eyes!

“Bone Tempering?! You’re a Bone Tempering martial artist!”

Such power could only come from a practitioner of Bone Tempering!

How could a Bone Tempering martial artist suddenly come to kill him in the courtyard?!

With one punch, Sun Changbiao’s arm bone shattered. Li Che’s eyes, hidden behind the Cute Cow Mask, remained eerily calm.

He flicked his sleeve lightly, and the Dao Fruit Immortal Craft twitched subtly.

An almost invisible silver thread burst forth, slicing through the air like a spider’s silk or a razor-sharp blade unsheathed, whirling wildly and summoning a sudden gust.

A mechanism: Thousand Spider Silk!

Accompanied by several snapping and slicing sounds.

With a tight grip, the silk retracted swiftly back into his billowing sleeve.

The burly figure adjusted his cap, shook his sleeves, and with a few quick steps, dashed into the courtyard.

He swung the courtyard door open and left directly, vanishing into the snowstorm.

Sun Changbiao stood there, dumbfounded, watching as the massive figure disappeared.

A thin red line slowly seeped from his neck, droplets of blood falling steadily…

The overturned Eight Immortals Dining Table behind him was silently sliced open, the cut as clean as if done by a master.

At the same time,

Sun Changbiao’s head was also severed.

With a gurgling thud, his head tilted and fell from his neck, accompanied by a spray of scalding, hot blood.

The room reeked of blood.

Liu, who had collapsed to the side, was so terrified she was rendered senseless, her whole body trembling like scattered chaff.

Then, as the shattering wind and snow battered the broken door,

it was she who, from the depths of her throat, let out a cry of utter terror!

“Murder… murder!”

……

……

In a dark alleyway,

Li Che dissipated the power of the Dragon Elephant Vajra Dao Fruit, his body immediately returning to normal as he re-donned his clothes. He then removed the Cute Cow Mask, and with a firm grip, it shattered into a pile of wood shavings.

Adjusting his cap, Li Che listened to the muffled, pitiful cries carried on the wind and snow.

His expression remained largely unchanged.

If Sun Changbiao were to live, he would continue posing a grave threat to XiXi. Li Che feared that if he ever let his guard down with XiXi, the one crying would be himself.

Born into this world, one must have a heart free of softness and mercy.

Li Che no longer claimed to be a good man. This wasn’t his first time killing—whether it was the old brute with dark skin of yesteryear or the current Sun Changbiao.

Li Che’s own hands were stained with blood.

Yet he only wished to protect his daughter.

It was simply his duty as a father.

“I am still too weak. If only I could… eliminate Lingying Sect, then XiXi would no longer be in danger.”

Li Che glanced at his palm and murmured softly.

Then, with his head held high, he strode out of the alley.

……

……

Li Che returned to the courtyard, where Old Chen was playing with XiXi.

Effortlessly, he used his inner strength to melt the accumulated snow, revealing the dry earth below as little XiXi clumsily ran about in her walker.

“Daddy!” The little girl’s eyes sparkled as she saw Li Che.

Taking a few unsteady steps, she ran toward him. Li Che beamed and teased, “Has my little stinker missed Daddy?”

He scooped her up and playfully pinched her little nose.

Old Chen, suddenly feeling jealous, stopped using his inner strength to melt the snow, and snowflakes began falling in earnest from the sky.

“Father is the best. Grandma Chen can spend all day with you, but once Daddy returns, you won’t want Grandma Chen anymore.” Old Chen remarked sourly, the air almost thick with the smell of jealousy.

Li Che burst into hearty laughter and pointed at Old Chen.

Zhang Ya emerged from the kitchen with a hot dish, smiling sweetly, “Uncle Chen, husband, come and eat.”

She arranged a sumptuous spread on the table: meat, fish, and plenty of nutritious dishes.

She took a small bowl, picked some fish meat, mixed it with plain congee, and began feeding it to XiXi, who sat in her high chair, tapping on a wooden bowl.

Meanwhile, Li Che and Old Chen started eating, drinking, and chatting together.

Zhang Ya’s cooking was excellent. Old Chen often crashed for meals without a care, as the meager cost of the food was nothing to Li Che these days.

Besides, Old Chen had even started cutting back on work to spend more time with XiXi, frequently referring his wood carving clients to Li Che, which earned him plenty of lucrative jobs.

After the meal, Old Chen set off with his hands behind his back, humming a cheerful tune as he strolled away.

But he hadn’t gone far when hurried footsteps reached him, and around the corner he encountered a visibly frantic figure.

“Xiao Liu, where are you off to?”

Old Chen recognized the lad as the younger son of the master from the Wood Carving Shop, Lao Liu.

“Oh, Master Chen! Alas… something’s happened—my sister is in trouble…”

Xiao Liu’s face was grim; seeing Chen Daba, he paused to greet him.

At his words, Old Chen’s expression instantly stiffened.

Xiao Liu’s sister… wasn’t she Sun Changbiao’s wife?

“Inside Xu Ji Courtyard, a villain suddenly appeared, barged into my brother-in-law’s home, and brutally killed him… Sigh… my father sent me to inform the shopkeeper… sigh…”

Xiao Liu sighed deeply, exchanged a few words with Old Chen, and then dashed out of the courtyard.

The cold wind howled, the biting chill cut through, and an eerie silence enveloped everything.

Sun Changbiao… dead?

Only recently had he told Li Che that it was Sun Changbiao who had set his sights on XiXi.

Yet Sun Changbiao ended up being beaten to death in his own home.

What a coincidence?

Chen Daba gripped his wine gourd tightly, his expression instantly turning complex.