Truly Reckless

"This!" The Black Armored Army soldier surnamed Yao hesitantly looked at Warden Lin.

"If you have no way to answer him, Chen Lin can submit a request to the War God Temple's Law Enforcement Hall for trial intervention. When that happens, not only will that mastermind behind the scenes be unable to escape, even you won't evade punishment!" Seeing this, He Yanjun immediately spoke up with a threat.

Hearing this, Warden Lin did not dare hesitate any longer and hurriedly said, "Sir, the mastermind who arranged the attack on you in prison was Zhou Feng of the Zhou Family Armory in the Outer City!"

"Zhou Family Armory? Zhou Feng?" Chen Lin frowned and thought for a moment before saying decisively, "I don't know this man. Who told him to do it?"

Seeing this, Warden Lin no longer concealed anything and hurriedly answered, "Duan Xingze of the Duan Family asked Zhou Feng for help. He said he wanted your tendons and hamstrings severed!"

"Duan Xingze?"

A cold glint flashed through Chen Lin's eyes as he said in a deep voice, "He truly doesn't know whether he's dead or alive!"

"That man truly doesn't know whether he's dead or alive. He actually dared to order someone to harm a member of our War God Temple. Though he failed, it is still a grave crime. He can absolutely be sentenced to twenty years in prison!" He Yanjun said gravely.

"My lords, forgive this lowly one for speaking out of turn, but this man is a direct descendant of the Duan Family. His father is an army captain, and his elder brother is even a Rank 8 Monster Exterminator of the War God Temple. Trying to deal with him will likely take a great deal of effort. It might be better to settle this privately and have the Duan Family pay more compensation to put an end to it!" After hesitating, the Black Armored Army soldier surnamed Yao still gathered his courage and offered a reminder.

Hearing this, a thoughtful look flashed through He Yanjun's eyes. Then he asked, "Is it the Duan Family of Rank 8 Monster Exterminator Duan Hengyuan?"

"Reporting to you, sir, Duan Xingze is indeed the younger brother of Rank 8 Monster Exterminator Duan Hengyuan!" the Black Armored Army soldier surnamed Yao answered respectfully.

He Yanjun's expression darkened as he said, "Chen Lin, this matter is troublesome. I'm not in a position to advise you on what exactly to do. Whether you settle privately for compensation or apply for the Law Enforcement Hall to intervene and sentence Duan Xingze to twenty years in prison, consider it carefully before making your choice."

Chen Lin nodded. He knew that for He Yanjun to speak this much was already more than generous. The two had no prior connection, and he was already deeply grateful that He Yanjun had come to the prison to get him out.

The group walked out of the prison, and outside, the sky was already filled with stars.

"Brother!"

The moment Chen Lan saw Chen Lin, she hurried forward, threw her arms around him, and wailed her heart out.

Though Chen Hongbo said nothing, his reddened eyes had long betrayed his feelings.

Seeing this, He Yanjun and Chen Yu did not wish to disturb the Chen family's warm reunion. Smiling, the two turned and quietly left.

On the morning after Chen Lin was released, Duan Xingze and Zhou Feng sat facing each other in a refined and elegant teahouse private room in the southern part of Nanqing City.

The fragrance of tea filled the air before them, yet neither had the slightest interest in it.

"Brother Zhou, you sent someone to summon me so early in the morning. Has the matter been handled?" Duan Xingze asked happily. He was somewhat eager to see how Chen Lin would react after having his hamstrings severed.

Zhou Feng sat across from Duan Xingze with a gloomy face, saying nothing as his expression gradually turned uglier.

"Brother Zhou?"

Duan Xingze sensed that something was wrong with Zhou Feng's expression. He did not look like someone who had successfully handled the matter, so Duan Xingze anxiously pressed, "Brother Zhou, could something have gone wrong? How did the matter turn out? Say something!"

"Duan Xingze, you're ruthless enough! I have no grudge against you, so why the hell did you drag me into the mud when you wanted to die yourself?" Zhou Feng glared at Duan Xingze with a frosty expression, questioning and cursing him.

"Wh-what do you mean? Brother Zhou, could you make yourself clearer?" Duan Xingze's heart sank, and he immediately asked anxiously.

From Zhou Feng's expression and tone, he sensed that something might have gone wrong with the task he had asked Zhou Feng to carry out.

Zhou Feng stared intently at Duan Xingze's face. Seeing that his expression did not seem false, he took a deep breath and said in a low voice, "Duan Xingze, the man whose tendons and hamstrings you asked me to have severed is a member of the War God Temple. Your elder brother is also from the War God Temple. You should know even better than I do what punishment awaits someone who attacks and frames a War God Temple martial artist for no reason!"

"A member of the War God Temple? Chen Lin?" Duan Xingze instantly felt his mind go blank.

The tea room immediately fell into an eerie silence!

Duan Xingze's face turned pale. Disbelief, shock, and fear took turns appearing in his eyes, while fine beads of sweat gradually formed on his forehead!

"How could this be? How could he have the strength to join the War God Temple? How could this be!" Duan Xingze's eyes were vacant as he found it difficult to accept this outcome.

He no longer felt any jealousy toward Chen Lin. All that remained was boundless unease and fear!

He knew better than anyone what consequences awaited someone who secretly harmed a War God Temple martial artist.

Their Duan Family had risen through this privilege, and he knew even more clearly that if Chen Lin insisted on pursuing responsibility, his whole life would be over!

"No, I don't believe it. Brother Zhou, stop joking with me. Tell me quickly, how did the matter actually turn out? I can pay you more. Stop teasing your brother here!" Duan Xingze said to Zhou Feng with a deathly pale face full of terror.

"Now you know fear? What the hell were you doing earlier? Because of an idiot like you, this young master has also been dragged into this filthy mud pit! A War God Temple martial artist! You actually had me send people to sever the tendons and hamstrings of a War God Temple martial artist, and you even told me he was at most at the Late Martial Disciple stage! You're fucking pig-brained!"

Gritting his teeth, Zhou Feng smashed the tea table before him into pieces with one punch. Scalding tea splashed everywhere, but no one cared!

"What should I do? What should I do? I don't want to spend twenty years in prison. I don't want to go to Two Realms Mountain to build defensive fortifications!"

Duan Xingze's face filled with despair at Zhou Feng's reaction. With his mind in disarray, he actually began to lose his senses!

Zhou Feng sat to one side with a cold sneer. While cursing Duan Xingze inwardly for being blind as a bat, he was also considering how he could apologize to Chen Lin and make him give up pursuing responsibility.

"For the sake of our past friendship, I came especially to remind you today. If you want to put this disaster to rest, you'd better hurry and inform your family, lest the Lineage be implicated. That is all I have to say. I'll take my leave first!"

With that, Zhou Feng strode out of the tea room.

Duan Xingze's eyes suddenly lit up.

"That's right, I need to tell Father immediately. He will definitely have a way! He absolutely has a way!"

With a pale face, Duan Xingze rushed out of the teahouse and headed for the Black Armored Army camp as quickly as he could.

At the entrance of the Black Armored Army camp, Duan Xingze stood anxiously outside the gates, his fists clenched as his legs could not stop trembling slightly.

"Ah Ze, why have you come to the camp so early in the morning? Did something major happen at home?" Duan Hong, a burly middle-aged man striding out of the camp, saw his son's expression and felt his heart sink. He hurriedly asked.

"Father, I've caused trouble. You have to save me!" Duan Xingze hurried several steps forward, grabbed Duan Hong's arm, and cried.

That simple sentence immediately made Duan Hong's heart skip a beat.

Knowing his son as he did, Duan Hong understood that ordinary matters could be settled by Duan Xingze himself with the Duan Family's strength, and there was no need to tell him. Any matter for which his child came begging for help was certainly no small matter.

Though Duan Hong knew full well that the trouble his son had caused was likely serious, as the head of the Duan Family, he had weathered every kind of storm over the past decade or so. He was not flustered in the slightest as he said in a deep voice, "Speak. What exactly happened? Tell me everything from beginning to end, without leaving out a single word!"

"It happened like this..."

Duan Xingze haltingly recounted every grievance between himself and Chen Lin, concealing nothing at all.

"Y-you fool! You dared to make a move against someone without even finding out their exact background first. Are you a pig?" After listening, Duan Hong's expression immediately turned ugly, and he pointed at Duan Xingze as he cursed him harshly.

"I... I trained at the same martial arts school as him. You could say I knew his background inside out. But I never expected that in less than two months, his strength would grow so quickly, and that he would even join the War God Temple." After being shouted at by his father, Duan Xingze explained with a mournful expression.

Duan Hong's face alternated between green and white. Taking a deep breath, he said, "This matter involves the War God Temple. I currently have no way to handle it for you. We can only wait until your elder brother returns to Nanqing City in a few days. The most urgent matter now is finding a way to steady the other side and keep them from making this a bigger issue! I'll go with you to handle this. Come with me!"

Zhou Feng, who had suffered the same fate as Duan Xingze, was currently kneeling in the Zhou Family ancestral hall, being fiercely whipped by his father, while Zhou Le stood nearby with a helpless expression and tightly furrowed brows.