Chapter 232: Chapter 229: An Interrupted Flex

"Why?" Yan Hong’s expression was filled with grief and indignation as his gaze swept over the sixteen young men one by one.

"I, Yan Hong, have never mistreated you. When it came to teaching the Martial Dao, I held nothing back. So why have you betrayed me?"

Guilt showed on the faces of the sixteen youths. They all turned away, daring not to meet Yan Hong’s eyes.

"What, you can’t even figure this out?" Qian Duoduo laughed. "Don’t you know I have a nickname? ’Big Spender.’"

"There’s nothing in this world that money can’t solve. And if there is, it just means you need to offer double, triple, ten, a hundred, or a thousand times the price! How else do you think these thousands of experts got here?"

"Which disciple in the Imperial Academy doesn’t harbor ambitions? Do you think simply not mistreating them and your so-called ’holding nothing back’ can satisfy their ambitions? You can’t, but I can. I have the financial power to bankroll their dreams!"

Yan Hong sighed, seeming to age years in an instant.

What else could he say?

The Qian Family. Their very name said it all. Qian—money. They were just that rich!

Their attitude was clear: I can just bury you with money.

So what if you’re a Renowned Master?

They’ll just pull the rug out from under you, leaving you with no students and no title to your name.

And what can you do about it?

Seeing Yan Hong’s utterly desolate expression, Qian Duoduo felt not a shred of pity.

’Didn’t you use your status to send people to hunt down Mo Qi?’

’Aren’t you good at abusing your privileges?’

’Then I’ll show you what real status and real privilege look like!’

"Uncle, Brother Pang, Brother Liu, just say the word on how to deal with them. Your little brother here will handle everything," Qian Duoduo reminded them.

"There’s nothing to say. Just kill them," Liu Hui said coldly.

Even Qian Duoduo was thinking of helping Mo Qi by taking revenge on his behalf, to say nothing of Liu Hui!

If their roles were reversed and Liu Hui had a family background like Qian Duoduo’s, he would have stormed the Wolf Fang Sect and razed it to the ground long ago.

"They’re all bad guys. They hurt my daddy. They should be killed!" Jin Sanpang spoke up.

Jin Quan pondered for a moment before nodding as well.

Qian Duoduo waved to the experts around him. "Then it’s settled. Kill them!"

"Stop!"

Following the sharp cry of a woman, dozens of experts clad in military armor forced their way in, led by a striking woman.

It was none other than Wang Chen’s wife, Zhao Yuqi!

"I am Zhao Yuqi of the Zhao Family! Who among you dares to touch my husband?"

After receiving Wang Chen’s cry for help, Zhao Yuqi had no choice but to swallow her pride and go to the Zhao Family for reinforcements.

She had a falling out with the Zhao Family back when she chose to be with Wang Chen. But her status as a member remained, and with so many years having passed, their old grievances had faded somewhat.

And so, she had successfully brought a group of experts from the Zhao Family’s military camp.

Qian Duoduo’s smile vanished, and his face darkened.

He had finally, after so much effort, obtained authorization from his family’s patriarchs, and he was feeling incredibly smug about it.

Finally, he could show off to his heart’s content!

That’s why he had immediately mobilized the Qian Family’s hidden forces, leading several thousand Void Realm experts in a massive procession to the Imperial Academy just to capture Wang Chen and Yan Hong.

It was an unbelievably grand display of power.

Of course, this kind of stunt was something only an oddball like Qian Duoduo would pull off.

If the various patriarchs of the Qian Family knew that the first thing he did with their authorization was to show off, they would probably die of rage on the spot.

Running into Jin Sanpang and Liu Hui in the guest reception area was a pleasant surprise. But since Wang Chen and Yan Hong were also present, Qian Duoduo began his "performance."

From the moment he made his grand entrance, everything had been under his control.

He was just about to kill Zhang Shao and the other two, which would have made for a perfect show of force. But who would have thought that Zhao Yuqi would jump in and ruin his moment?

This made Qian Duoduo very unhappy.

"The Zhao Family?" Qian Duoduo rubbed his smooth, bald head, his tone unfriendly. "You think you can pull someone from my grasp with just these few people? That’s not nearly enough clout!"

"Then what if you add this old man? Is that enough?"

Dozens more figures appeared, also clad in military armor, though the style was slightly different from the Zhao Family’s.

Leading them was a sturdy old man with white hair but a youthful complexion. It was the Grand Elder of the Nangong Clan, Nangong An.

With his status, finding out about Liu Hui would have been a trivial matter.

Qian Duoduo: "..."

’You guys are going too far!’

’Is it that hard to just let me finish my grand performance?’

’What’s wrong with you people?’

’Can’t you see I have thousands of men here?’

’Believe it or not, with a single order, I could crush all of you!’

"Young Master, I cannot see through that man’s Cultivation. We must act with caution!" a voice whispered in Qian Duoduo’s ear.

It was the personal Guard assigned to Qian Duoduo by the Qian Family patriarchs, a warrior with Peak Void Realm Cultivation.

If even he couldn’t discern the man’s Cultivation, it could only mean one thing: Nangong An was at the Void Realm!

"I wonder why Grand Elder Nangong is obstructing me? What, is your husband among those three as well?"

Qian Duoduo’s single sentence sent Nangong An into a thunderous rage.

’So what if he’s in the Void Realm? I have full authority to mobilize all the Qian Family’s connections and resources right now!’

’As long as I’m willing, and as long as I can handle the lecture from the patriarchs afterward, I can summon a whole group of Void Realm masters in minutes!’

"Hmph. Such insolence. Is this how Qian Juduo taught you to behave?" Nangong An suppressed the urge to strike, his knife-like gaze sweeping over Qian Duoduo’s group before finally landing on Liu Hui.

As he was sizing up Liu Hui, Liu Hui was also staring daggers at him.

Liu Hui’s eyes were filled with rage, hatred, and killing intent.

Deep in his memory, he would never forget that face. It was the owner of that very face who had ordered him and his mother to be driven out of the Imperial City.

The owner of that face was none other than Nangong An!

Liu Hui knew he shouldn’t be showing such emotion right now. He should be hiding his strength and biding his time, growing his power in secret.

But for some reason, he just couldn’t control himself!

Nangong An grunted in surprise and suspicion. He saw a familiar shadow in Liu Hui but couldn’t quite recall where he had seen him before.

"Listen here, you old bastard. Calling you Grand Elder Nangong was me being polite. You really think you’re somebody special? How my old man teaches me is none of your damn business!"

For all these years, Qian Duoduo had suffered immensely because of the Soul-Draining Mother Spider, to the point where he had almost given up on himself.

He had done everything a profligate scion was expected to do—with two exceptions: he never forced himself on women, and he always maintained a moral bottom line.

If Nangong Yan was the infamous she-tiger of the Imperial City, then Qian Duoduo was its most notorious rich brat.

Nangong An had truly picked the wrong person to put on airs in front of.

The one thing Qian Duoduo hated most was people flaunting their seniority. Otherwise, he wouldn’t refer to his own father, Qian Juduo, as "the old man."

"Insolence!"

Nangong An had held a high position for a long time. When had anyone ever dared to disrespect him like this?

He flew into a rage. "The Qian Family truly gets worse with each generation! Today, this old man will teach you a lesson on behalf of your elders!"

As he spoke, Nangong An prepared to strike.

The several thousand Void Realm experts tensed as if facing a formidable enemy, moving into defensive stances to protect Qian Duoduo, but he shouted them back.

"All of you, stand down! I just had my status as part of the Direct Lineage restored. Today, I’d like to see if this old bastard actually has the guts to touch me!"