Peace Talks

"Hm? Then why haven't you brought him here to see me?!"

Li Zong's eyes widened. He was no detective; he did not need evidence to arrest someone. Forget an eighty percent chance—even if there were only a one percent possibility, he would drag the person in for brutal interrogation and refuse to overlook even the slightest chance of finding the killer!

"Yes, yes! I'll arrange it immediately!"

The middle-aged man hurried out.

Only then did Li Zong close his eyes, though a vicious glint flashed across his face.

"You killed my son. Whoever you are, I'll have your whole family buried with him!"

Just then, his phone rang.

Li Zong frowned. At his level, calls that could reach him directly usually did not come even once a week.

Yet one had come the day after Li Mingyuan's death. He could not help but read into it.

He picked up the phone, and a somewhat familiar voice came through.

"Hello, is this Chairman Li?"

Li Zong's brow relaxed.

"Young Master Wang, Master Long's prized disciple. What matter has brought Master Long to have you call this old man?"

The caller was Wang Gengyuan, the son of a powerful Wang family in Mingguang City. To be honest, although the Wang family carried some weight in Mingguang City, Li Zong did not take them seriously.

Only Wang Gengyuan's second identity made Li Zong wary.

Long Yuanzheng's second disciple!

At first, Li Zong had assumed it was some trivial matter. Long Yuanzheng had once been a major figure, but he had stayed out of worldly affairs for many years. There was no conflict between them, nor any clash of interests.

They merely exchanged occasional greetings through intermediaries and sent small gifts during holidays. On the surface, they got along well enough.

But after hearing the rest, the veins in Li Zong's neck suddenly bulged, and the teacup in his hand was crushed to pieces.

His eyes widened, and by the end, he was forcing each word through clenched teeth.

"Tell Master Long that tomorrow night at eight, I will await his arrival at Wind and Cloud Manor."

As soon as he said that, the phone let out a crack. Li Zong had actually crushed it in his bare hand.

Li Zong then smashed the ruined phone, now nothing more than a lump of scrap metal crackling with sparks, onto the floor and roared.

"Someone!"

A subordinate waiting in the hall hurried over. Seeing Li Zong furious enough to make his hair stand on end, he shuddered and quickly bowed, dropping to one knee.

"Chairman, your orders."

"Bring Mingsheng and Minggui here!"

The subordinate froze. Li Mingsheng and Li Minggui were Li Zong's eldest and second sons. They respectively managed Death Fighting Competitions and various illicit businesses such as gambling and drugs in two neighboring cities, and rarely left their posts.

"Both of them?"

"Do you want me to repeat myself?!"

Seeing Li Zong's furious glare, the subordinate shuddered and hurriedly withdrew.

"Yes, yes!"

"Wait."

Li Zong fell silent for a moment, suppressing the rage in his eyes before saying,

"Tell Yue Shan to come back. Tell him not to arrest anyone yet."

That night, Li Minggui and Li Mingsheng entered the villa one after the other.

Though they were brothers, they looked distinctly different.

The eldest, Li Mingsheng, stood over six feet tall with heavily developed muscles, broad shoulders, and a narrow waist. His face was fiercely intimidating, and even his suit bulged from the muscles beneath it, giving him an air of savage strength.

The second brother, Li Minggui, had a sharp glint in his eyes. He wore gold-rimmed glasses and a fitted white suit, crisp and immaculate, making him seem calculating and shrewd.

The two entered the main hall. The lighting inside was dim, and only one person sat there.

A middle-aged to elderly man in his fifties or sixties, wearing a pair of white gloves and bearing a scar across his face.

"Father."

"Father."

Li Zong turned around, his expression blank.

"You both know what happened."

"We do."

Li Zong snorted coldly, Rage Intent appearing on his face.

"Your brother was murdered, and his body is not even cold. Yet Long Yuanzheng is actually shielding the killer and calling me to account!"

"If I do not avenge this, how can I, Li Zong, show my face in Nanjiang Province again?!"

Li Minggui adjusted his glasses and frowned.

"But Father, that is Long Yuanzheng. He is an expert who has entered that realm."

"So what if he has entered that realm? Your father has entered it too!"

Li Zong shouted. Li Minggui said nothing.

Li Zong took a deep breath and calmed himself.

"I rose through unorthodox means. I fought too fiercely in my early years and accumulated too many hidden injuries. Though I broke through by luck, my strength has been greatly damaged. I may not be a match for Long Yuanzheng, who came from the martial world and devoted himself wholeheartedly to cultivation."

"But I am still half a Transcendent-level fighter. If Long Yuanzheng thinks he can use his superior strength to bully me, I will never accept it!"

Li Mingsheng stepped forward as well.

"Father is right. If the Southern Saint Sect still existed, Long Yuanzheng might count as someone. But now the Southern Saint Sect is in disarray, while Long Yuanzheng has spent all these years hiding away like a hermit turtle. How could he compare to our Death Fist Society in terms of influence?"

"Just give the word, Father, and tonight I'll lead a group into Mingguang City and wipe out his Dragon Gate Martial Hall!"

The moment he said that, the hall fell silent.

After a long silence, Li Zong coughed twice.

"That is not what I mean."

Li Mingsheng asked in confusion, "Then what do you mean, Father?"

Li Zong coughed even harder.

His eldest son had inherited his talent for martial arts, but his mind was not especially quick. Put nicely, he was single-minded—far too straightforward.

If Li Zong truly intended to take on Long Yuanzheng, why would he discuss it? He would have gathered his men directly. Why would he be here talking it over with his two sons?

"Mingsheng, you have not entered that realm, so you do not understand how formidable people at that level are."

"Long Yuanzheng may not have much influence now, but if we truly provoke him, he alone could take us down with him."

Seeing that Li Mingsheng still looked confused, Li Zong stated it plainly.

"Most importantly, this matter itself has little to do with Long Yuanzheng. I do not want Long Yuanzheng dead. What I want is the life of that little bastard named Su Ti."

Though Li Zong was furious, hatred had not clouded his mind. He knew perfectly well who the true culprit was. Long Yuanzheng was, at most, a protector. He did not want to fight Long Yuanzheng to mutual destruction over Su Ti. That would be idiotic.

Li Minggui frowned. "But Father, that boy is now Long Yuanzheng's disciple. With Long Yuanzheng's stubborn, protective nature, he will never hand him over to atone for his crimes."

Li Mingsheng nodded slightly as well. He might have been straightforward, but he was not that stupid. Long Yuanzheng had already struck first by calling them to account. Clearly, he intended to protect the boy to the end.

"That is why I called you here."

Li Zong said expressionlessly,

"Remember this: the one who died was not some stranger. He was your own younger brother."

"Whichever one of you can avenge your third brother, the Death Fist Society will belong to him in the future!"

At those words, Li Mingsheng and Li Minggui's eyes lit up.

Both were ruthless men. They had not reached their current positions merely because they were Li Zong's sons.

To be honest, compared to Li Zong's fury, they felt nothing over the death of their third brother, who had neither brains nor martial skill. If anything, they thought one less person competing for the inheritance was a good thing.

Li Minggui in particular even felt that offending Long Yuanzheng over this was not worth it.

But Li Zong's words were undoubtedly a powerful stimulant, instantly giving both of them the motivation to seek revenge.

At that moment, a cold glint flashed through Li Minggui's eyes. He clasped his fists and smiled.

"Father, your son has an idea."

The following night.

Su Ti was in Long Yuanzheng's villa, using the computer in his room to log into the dark web.

After learning about Cursed Antiques, he had spent the past two days searching the dark web during breaks from training. He had indeed found several vendors selling Cursed Antiques.

Whether they were genuine or not was another matter, but the prices were undeniably steep.

Even the cheapest item started at a million, while some cost several million or even tens of millions.

Although the price did not surprise him, Su Ti was indeed short on funds.

He had no money and no source of income.

His martial arts had advanced quickly thanks to the modifier, but he currently had no financial means at all.

"I need to find a way to make some money."

Over the past few days, he had learned the unspoken rules of Ancient Martial Arts: masters provided disciples with food, lodging, training, and even wages. But Su Ti was not looking for pocket change.

Besides, he would not ask Long Yuanzheng for it. Long Yuanzheng might be his master, but he had already helped Su Ti enough.

"Su Ti, it is time to go."

A voice came from outside. Su Ti opened the door and saw a dark-skinned man in a suit with a close-cropped haircut.

The man was Wang Gengyuan, Su Ti's second senior brother. His master had already brought him over yesterday for them to meet.

"I'll be right there."

Su Ti shut down the computer and went downstairs with Wang Gengyuan. Outside the villa, three cars were already waiting.

Long Yuanzheng emerged with Yao Juan and Yan Jun accompanying him. After giving Su Ti a slight nod, he got into the first car.

Yao Juan and Yan Jun rode with him, while Su Ti and Wang Gengyuan took the middle car. The last car carried several suited attendants, there to bolster their presence.

Their destination was Li Zong's place, where they were going to call him to account.

The three cars drove slowly along the road. Inside the middle car, where only Wang Gengyuan and Su Ti sat, Wang Gengyuan saw Su Ti's silence and smiled.

"What, a little nervous? Relax. With Master here, Li Zong would not dare touch you even if he had a hundred times the courage."

Su Ti glanced at him.

Among Long Yuanzheng's four disciples, only Wang Gengyuan came from a prominent family, with the broadest experience, resources, and influence.

From what Su Ti had learned over the past two days, Long Yuanzheng had accepted Wang Gengyuan as his disciple in order to establish himself in Mingyuan City back then.

The vehicles and accompanying personnel for this trip had all been provided by Wang Gengyuan's family.

As for why the instructors and staff from Dragon Gate Martial Hall itself were not accompanying them, it was because they were simply employees paid to do a job.

The three Dragon Gate Martial Halls in Mingyuan City were also largely commercial enterprises and could not be considered much of a power.

Over the past two days, Su Ti had come to understand that Dragon Gate Martial Hall was basically supported by Long Yuanzheng alone.

Even for this outing, he had to rely on his disciple's family to provide the appearance of influence.

This gave Su Ti a new understanding of Long Yuanzheng's indifference to fame and profit.

Faced with Wang Gengyuan's reassurance, Su Ti said,

"I'm not nervous. I'm thinking about how to make money."

"Make money? Junior Brother, are you short on cash? If you need money, just tell your senior brother. I can still come up with a few hundred thousand or even a million."

Wang Gengyuan smiled. He was deeply interested in this junior brother who had joined them only two days ago.

Li Shao of Mingguang City could barely be considered somebody. Out of respect for his father, even when Li Mingyuan caused trouble in Mingguang City and snatched ordinary people to participate in underground boxing matches, no one dared touch him.

Yet this junior brother had acted. The moment he made his move, he killed seven people, including a Tongli Stage martial artist.

Add to that this junior brother's talent—reaching the Tongli Stage in a single week—and he was practically a monster.

He was talented, decisive in killing, and now had Long Yuanzheng backing him. So long as he did not die prematurely, he would surely become someone great in the future.

Therefore, unaware that Su Ti's innate constitution was abysmal, Wang Gengyuan wanted to build a good relationship with him.

Su Ti understood perfectly well that one should not accept favors without earning them, and that taking from others came with obligations. Still, he did not refuse Wang Gengyuan's deliberate attempt to befriend him.

"I appreciate your kindness, Senior Brother. I intend to earn the money myself, but if I have other matters that trouble you in the future, I hope you will not mind."

"Of course, of course."

Wang Gengyuan smiled and waved his hand.