A Sudden Turn

What?

The burly leader of the Iron Saber Society stared at the cleaver in his hand, now reduced to nothing but its handle, and couldn't help but go blank.

A cleaver, for crying out loud.

It wasn't made of hundred-forged steel, but surely it shouldn't have been that fragile.

Had someone really smashed it apart with a fist?

Before the burly man could find out who had struck, a mysterious fist shot toward his rugged face like lightning.

Pfft!

The fist instantly twisted his features and shattered his facial bones. His whole body toppled straight backward.

He didn't even get a chance to scream.

"Whoa, no wonder it's called the Nine Heavens Crimson Thunder Art!"

Even Li Ye was astonished.

He could feel how strong his body was and how hard his fists were, but he'd never imagined he could shatter a cleaver so easily.

Since crossing over, he'd only killed two men from the Foreign Land, and he'd taken them both out with a single move.

He still didn't have an accurate idea of his own strength.

Now, he'd glimpsed just the tip of the iceberg.

There were Body Temperers in the Iron Saber Society. The one Li Ye had knocked down was one of them, and there were Body Temperers among the crowd rushing to join the fight, too.

And there were even more of them.

As a result, the Iron Saber Society was soon routed, one-sidedly.

Li Ye pulled Zhou Bao's man along as they weaved through the chaotic battlefield. He didn't deliberately strike anyone.

But the power of the Nine Heavens Crimson Thunder Art surged through his entire body, coursing beneath every inch of skin. Even an inadvertent collision with him left the other person with broken bones and torn muscles.

After all, his seven-thousand-jin strength was no joke.

Before long, the Iron Saber Society had been overturned, its members sprawled on the ground and wailing.

But the people still weren't ready to let them go. They surrounded the dozens of men and kicked and punched them.

"Hit them! Hit them!"

"Just keep beating them until they're dead!"

"Liu Dayong, I think I saw several Iron Saber Society bastards grab your wife's butt just now. They've probably had their eyes on her for ages. And you're just tickling them?"

"Old Sun, you might not have seen it, but I think someone groped your wife's chest."

Those who hadn't joined in stood at the side, egging them on.

With the atmosphere stoking their anger, the men in the thick of it gradually put more and more force into their fists and kicks.

Many of them had red eyes. They went after the Iron Saber Society men's vulnerable spots as if they were avenging the murder of their fathers.

Teeth flew and clattered to the ground. Bones snapped. Heads split open...

The scene grew terribly bloody.

Before long, the government soldiers arrived.

Everyone scattered at once.

The Iron Saber Society men were left lying where they fell, twitching like dead dogs.

In their hearts, they cursed the beggar who had started it all.

By then, Li Ye had already pulled Zhou Bao's man into an alley.

The burly man was named Chu Liang.

"Boss, you have to get justice for us!"

Chu Liang's eyes were red. Without even considering whether Li Ye had the power to help them, he pleaded with him.

Something had happened to Zhou Bao. Li Ye's expression darkened. He asked in a low voice, "What happened?"

On the surface, Li Ye was asking Chu Liang. In his heart, he silently murmured, "Daily Divination!"

Hum!

He focused on Zhou Bao's situation. The next moment, his Mental Magnetic Field shifted, as though resonating with Heaven and Earth Myriad Things and the Great Dao Heavenly Secrets.

Then, countless images appeared in his mind.

The entire chain of events became clear to him in an instant.

At first, Zhou Bao's goods had sold smoothly to all the major restaurants. One after another, they'd offered high prices to buy them. With these seasonings, the restaurants had come up with new dishes.

For half a month, Licheng City's restaurants had been vying with one another, each blooming in its own vivid colors.

Everything had been going well until, several days ago, the manager of one of the restaurants set his sights on Zhou Bao.

He had people secretly follow the workers Zhou Bao sent to deliver goods, and they'd discovered his base.

"It was Chen Hong, the head manager of Hongbin Tower. He had the Iron Saber Society steal the rest of our goods and silver."

"The Iron Saber Society's leader is the head manager's brother-in-law. When they came looking for us, they beat everyone they saw and even wanted to seize Zhou Boss."

"Zhou Boss was quick-witted and escaped with me. We hid outside for several days, but they still found us. Just a little while ago, they captured Zhou Boss..."

Chu Liang poured out his story to Li Ye.

That day, Li Ye had used a recipe for Eight Treasure Chicken, along with several seasonings no one had ever used before, to impress the manager of Hongbin Tower.

Afterward, the manager had introduced newly developed braised beef and Eight Treasure Chicken, taking the city by storm.

But once Zhou Bao started selling those seasonings to the other restaurants, Hongbin Tower's dishes no longer stood out as much.

When the manager learned that Zhou Bao was selling the seasonings, he naturally grew unhappy and bore a grudge.

After finding out everything he could about Zhou Bao, he decided to make his move.

"Boss, what do we do now? We have to save Zhou Boss!"

Chu Liang pleaded.

He'd been a refugee, never knowing whether he'd have anything to eat the next day. Zhou Bao had given him a livelihood and made sure he could eat his fill.

To Chu Liang, Zhou Bao was like a second father.

"Go back for now," Li Ye said calmly.

Of course he had to save Zhou Bao.

First, Zhou Bao was his friend.

Second, both Zhou Bao and Li Ye had come from the Corpse Refining Courtyard. Li Ye didn't want the manager of Hongbin Tower to find that out.

Inside an iron prison, cold light flashed as an Iron Whip lashed through the air. Beneath it rang out a string of agonized screams.

A skinny man had been beaten until he was covered in wounds.

It was Zhou Bao.

"What happened to that Body Temperer expert? That heroic knight of the jianghu?"

"You dare deceive me?"

"Speak! Where's that little bastard? Where is he? Are you going to tell me or not?"

The tall, fat manager of Hongbin Tower brandished the Iron Whip as he interrogated Zhou Bao viciously.

The kindly smile he'd worn that day, like Maitreya Buddha's, was nowhere to be seen. His whole face was terrifyingly twisted.

Without a doubt, he'd figured out that Zhou Bao was just an ordinary man who'd never undergone Body Tempering.

So Chen Hong had naturally assumed that the waiter who'd been at the restaurant that day must have been mistaken. Li Ye was probably an ordinary man, too.

They were just two destitute refugees, beggars, mooching food and drink.

Thinking of how respectfully he'd treated them that day made Chen Hong burn with anger.

He'd always respected, befriended, and tried to win over the heroic knights of the jianghu. And now these people, whose lives were as worthless as blades of grass, had made him treat them with such deference?

The very idea was outrageous.

Zhou Bao spat out a mouthful of blood. "You dog of a merchant, fattening yourself by eating people alive! Give it up. You'll never get what you want."

Chen Hong tightened his grip on the Iron Whip. A murderous gleam shone in his terrifying eyes. "Fine, fine, fine. You think I don't dare kill you?"

"In this Chaotic World, overrun with refugees, do you really think anyone will investigate if one person goes missing?"

"Your life is barely worth more than an ant on the ground. Since you won't talk, you leave me no choice but to beat you into a pile of minced meat."

As he spoke, Chen Hong's body crackled and boomed, as if Rolling Divine Power were pouring out of him.

He'd undergone Body Tempering.

And his cultivation wasn't low.

The force of his presence made Zhou Bao shrink his head, but he still showed no sign of giving in.

"Wait, brother-in-law, look!"

"Here's a profound Body Tempering Manual."

Suddenly, another man inside the iron prison spoke.

He was around forty, tall and lean, with a sturdy build and a knife scar across his face that made him look especially fearsome.

This man was Shen Heng, leader of the Iron Saber Society.