Chapter 76: You, Guilty of Death!

“So, what you’re saying is, this stupid dog is one of your Vermilion Bird Division members as well?” Ye Tian frowned, glancing at Lin Yue, who wore the obsequious expression of a sycophant.

“I vaguely remember him. He’s a newly accepted member from one of the families,” Yun’er explained.

“Yes, yes! Miss Yun’er, I’m Lin Yue from the Lin Family of Yang City. I’m truly honored that you remember me!” Lin Yue’s groveling demeanor made Ye Tian want to laugh.

“Who would have thought the Vermilion Bird Division was so skilled at training dogs?”

“What did you say?!” To everyone’s surprise, Lin Yue’s cringing attitude vanished in an instant. He jabbed a finger at Ye Tian’s nose and shouted, “Ye Tian, who do you think you are, daring to speak so insolently before the Vermilion Bird Division?”

“Let me tell you, the lady before you is a high-ranking official from our Phoenix Division. With a single word, she could have your entire Ye family exhumed and cremated again!”

“How dare a ruined wretch like you pass judgment on us!”

His curses were so malicious that anyone else would have exploded in fury and attacked him on the spot. Yet Ye Tian’s expression did not change; he remained utterly unperturbed. In his heart, he had long since passed judgment. Anyone who dared speak to him so contemptuously was doomed to die. Why bother arguing with a dead man?

So, as Lin Yue sprang about, Ye Tian only offered a faint smile, not even deigning to reply. The calmer Ye Tian appeared, the angrier Lin Yue became. Why didn’t Ye Tian show the slightest anger at such vile insults? Was he truly so indifferent in the face of disaster? Did he still think he was the young master of the Ye family in Central City?

It was utterly baffling. Could it be that he’d been so terrified by the Vermilion Bird Division’s reputation that he was stunned senseless? Lin Yue gnashed his teeth, but with Zhu Yun’er present, he dared not go too far. He could only force a smile and seek her approval, “I apologize for this embarrassing display, Miss Yun’er. Ye Tian is reckless beyond belief, daring to offend you. Why don’t I summon the death guards now and have him dealt with?”

As he spoke, he reached for the wooden mallet to awaken the death guards.

But before his hand could rise, a dull thud echoed through the room, accompanied by a crisp snap of bone. In the next instant, Lin Yue collapsed to his knees, clutching his right hand with his left, screaming in agony.

“My hand!”

At a glance, his radius was completely shattered, grotesquely bent at an unnatural angle. Li Muqing, who had watched coldly from the start, couldn’t help but draw a sharp breath, a flash of undisguised fear sparking in her eyes. She had clearly seen the girl called Yun’er strike in an instant, smashing Lin Yue’s forearm to splinters with the mallet meant for the death guards.

“That looks excruciating…” Li Muqing grimaced. Who was this woman, to break Lin Yue like that at the slightest provocation? Judging by their conversation earlier, they should be on the same side. Why had she suddenly acted so ruthlessly?

“Hmph, courting death!” Zhu Yun’er’s gaze was cold as she looked down at the kneeling Lin Yue as if he were a disobedient dog. With another heavy stroke on the mallet, a rhythmic, muffled drumbeat echoed through the living room. The death guards, who had stood motionless, instantly regained clarity.

Dozens of master-level warriors dropped to one knee before Zhu Yun’er in unison. “We await our master’s command!”

“Tsk, tsk, what a grand organization,” Ye Tian commented, amusement in his voice and a glint in his eye. He hadn’t expected Yun’er to hold such authority within the Vermilion Bird Division—yet Zhu Feng had handed her over to him without a second thought. If he didn’t suspect ulterior motives, he’d be a fool. Was this some honey trap, or had they simply sent someone to keep a watchful eye on him?

He smiled to himself at the thought. If they wished to spy, let them. Since the Vermilion Bird Division dared to send someone, he would make sure their agent never returned.

Back to Lin Yue, still kneeling and howling in pain. “Miss Yun’er, what have I done to deserve such punishment?” Clutching his shattered arm, Lin Yue was overwhelmed by humiliation and agony, not to mention the predatory gleam in Ye Tian’s eyes.

Why, why would Miss Yun’er strike him? After all, he had only suggested disposing of Ye Tian. Was a discarded Ye family member worth breaking the arm of one of their own?

“Of course you were wrong,” Zhu Yun’er sneered. “First, to insult my master to my face is a crime worthy of exterminating your entire clan. Second, by the rules of the Vermilion Bird Division—deceiving superiors, bullying the innocent, and mobilizing the death guards without permission—each offense is punishable by death. You could die ten thousand times and it wouldn’t be enough!”

Lin Yue was stunned.

Master? Who was Miss Yun’er calling master—Ye Tian? He looked up to see Ye Tian still smiling, and his thoughts became a tangled mess. Impossible—absolutely impossible! He’d heard all the rumors: after Ye Tian caused a scene at the Sima family auction, the three great clans had declared they would hunt him down. Shouldn’t Ye Tian be a rat scurrying across the streets, reviled by all?

During his absence in Yang City, what had happened in Central City?

But Yun’er left him no time to process. With a wave of her hand, three death guards strode forward. Two seized his shoulders, and one grabbed him by the hair.

“Kneel to the master one hundred times, then drag him out and finish him.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

Lin Yue’s eyes widened with horror, and he pleaded frantically, “Miss Yun’er, I’m innocent! Please, listen to my explanation!” What had he done wrong to deserve this? Why, as a key member of the Vermilion Bird Division, wasn’t he even given a chance to beg for mercy?

“Miss Yun’er, I don’t understand. Why are you treating me this way?” The more he thought, the angrier he became, struggling desperately. But with grandmaster-level warriors restraining a powerless man, he was as helpless as a chicken.

No matter how he fought, it was futile.

“Why?” Zhu Yun’er scoffed, then, before everyone, dropped to her knees before Ye Tian. “Awaiting your command, Master!”

!!!

At this, Lin Yue’s heart sank into utter despair. Ye Tian was truly the second-in-command of the Phoenix Division—Zhu Yun’er’s master!

“Do as you wish,” Ye Tian replied impatiently. He had seen this sort of performance far too many times.

“Yes, sir.” The three death guards immediately forced Lin Yue to the floor. One seized his hair and smashed his head against the wooden boards, again and again.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The relentless, muffled thumping filled the living room, making everyone’s skin crawl. After a hundred blows, Lin Yue—unconscious—was dragged out like a dead pig.