A Shocking Upset

The people living in the border wilderness revered martial arts and respected the strong. Not even children of a few years old were exceptions.

Around the packed arena, cheers continuously rose from the jeering crowd, praising Zhang Xiaofei's manly spirit. Only those adventurers who had spent years hovering on the line of death showed flashes of mockery in their eyes. They could see the young man's inner weakness and unrealistic conduct.

Even an eagle catching a rabbit had to go all out.

Yet that youth had judged his opponent by appearance and declared that he would give her three moves. His arrogance had gone too far. Even if he won this time, he would one day capsize in a gutter if he encountered a similar situation.

Yin Xiaojiu stood there timidly and asked hesitantly, "Are you really going to give me three moves?"

Seeing Yin Xiaojiu's terrified appearance, Zhang Xiaofei became even more confident. He slapped his solid chest until it rang with smack, smack, lifted his chin high with a proud look, and shouted, "This young master's word is as good as a nail driven by spit. I'll absolutely give you three moves. You stinking girl, come at me!"

Yin Xiaojiu took a deep breath and encouraged herself inwardly. Then she pushed off the ground with her toes, desperately controlling the pitifully scant vital energy in her meridians. The instant strength flooded through her body, she charged at Zhang Xiaofei.

The distance of five or six meters vanished in an instant. Without any fighting techniques, Yin Xiaojiu swung her little fist straight at Zhang Xiaofei's nose bridge.

Smack...

The crisp sound of a broken nose bone was heard clearly by the adventurers around them. As Zhang Xiaofei's body tipped backward, Yin Xiaojiu drove a straight kick hard into his abdomen.

Gah...

The voices of the crowd that had been cheering Zhang Xiaofei abruptly died away, as though that punch and kick had not struck Zhang Xiaofei, but smashed straight into their hearts.

Yin Xiaojiu watched Zhang Xiaofei fly backward several meters before skidding back on his knees. A trace of hesitation appeared on her delicate little face, but she recalled what the adults had said: "Strike while he's sick and take his life." Though she had no intention of taking Zhang Xiaofei's life, she still pounced like a nimble leopard.

Every punch landed on flesh, using all the strength in her body.

Yin Xiaojiu did not hold back, because she feared she would fail to hurt Zhang Xiaofei. Once he got back up, she would be the one getting beaten.

At that moment.

The area around the arena fell deathly silent. Faces filled with disbelief and eyes struck by utter shock seemed to turn them into living statues. The unexpected course of events, the ending that had seemed already laid out before them, became invisible slaps that viciously struck the faces of those self-righteous spectators. Their faces burned with pain, and so did their trembling hearts.

A hundred meters away.

A Kirin Carriage stood quietly at the roadside. Four burly middle-aged men wearing Battle Robes swept their icy gazes across the surroundings. A pretty maidservant dressed in silks and satins stood silently by the window.

"Wen Yun..."

A distant, ethereal female voice came from within the luxurious carriage.

The maidservant's expression shifted, and she hurriedly said respectfully, "Mistress, what are your instructions?"

Behind the curtains, a graceful and noble beautiful woman stared at the arena a hundred meters away and said calmly, "That little girl is not bad. Stay here in Cold Mountain City and find out her background. When I return, bring her with us if possible."

"Yes!"

The maidservant looked toward the arena again. A trace of pity grew in her bright eyes, along with a trace of envy.

At the edge of the arena.

Ye Tong watched the one-sided battle, appreciation showing in his eyes. Though he was very worried about Yin Xiaojiu, he had not stopped the match. There was no peaceful, prosperous age here; everyone was struggling desperately to make a living. Even if he could take care of Yin Xiaojiu for a while, he could not take care of her for a lifetime. If she wanted to live better in the future, she would ultimately have to rely on herself.

Besides.

Matches between children might result in injuries, but they rarely endangered lives.

"Stop."

A fat middle-aged woman in coarse cloth garments charged onto the arena aggressively. Behind her were two fat-headed, big-eared youths, their faces equally full of fury.

Yin Xiaojiu stopped attacking. When she saw the fat woman and the two furious youths, fear immediately appeared on her face, and she quickly retreated to the edge on the other side of the arena.

"Fat hag, if you dare touch even a hair on her head, I can make sure none of you walk off this arena." Ye Tong leaped onto the arena and looked at the fat woman, who was trying to rush at Yin Xiaojiu.

"Brother Yezi."

Yin Xiaojiu's eyes lit up, and all the fear on her face receded like a tide.

Ye Tong turned to glance at her, nodded in satisfaction, and said, "You did well. From now on, if anyone dares bully you, teach them a hard lesson. Even if you beat them to death or cripple them, I'll cover for you."

The fat woman stopped. She looked at her son, who lay curled up and twitching on the arena, with pain-filled eyes, then glared viciously at Ye Tong and cursed, "Where did this pig spawn come from? That damned mongrel girl hurt my son so badly. This isn't over. Da Kui, Er Kui, beat them to death for me!"

A chill flashed through Ye Tong's eyes. As his left hand withdrew into his sleeve, he crushed a black pill into powder. Just as the two fat-headed, big-eared youths were about to pounce on him, his fingertips flicked, sending the black powder flying. It transformed into a sheet of flames. Though the flames burned for only a few breaths, they still made the two youths retreat in fright.

"A magical art?"

Most of those present revealed shocked expressions, including the fat woman.

Within the surrounding crowd, an adventurer carrying a longsword shook his head and said, "It's not a magical art. It's merely Illusionary Black Poison."

Illusionary Black Poison?

Everyone came to a sudden realization, and their expressions as they looked at Ye Tong again became strange.

Ye Tong had openly used poison before everyone's eyes, so he had no intention of concealing it. He snorted coldly. "Kneel and admit your mistake, and you can leave this arena alive. Otherwise, tell that butcher husband of yours to come collect your corpses."

"Well, well... what a big mouth!"

A rough voice came from behind the crowd. As the people parted to make a passage, the burly Butcher Zhang walked toward the arena with an eight-character swagger. Behind him followed a handsome young man with four household servants.

Ye Tong's face was stern. His gaze lingered on Butcher Zhang only briefly before falling on the young man.

Tong Kaishan!

The third son of Cold Mountain City's Tong Family, a notorious playboy. He was insidious and shameless; every rule and restraint was as empty as air to him. The evil deeds he had committed in Cold Mountain City were too numerous to record. Ye Tong knew him mainly because this scoundrel, rotten to the core, had visited the Precious Medicine Workshop many times to buy aphrodisiacs and poison.

Tong Kaishan did not step onto the arena. Instead, with a strange half-smiling expression, he spread his hands toward Ye Tong and said, "So it's Young Lord Ye. Since when have you started mingling with lowly street slaves? Or perhaps... that old senior disappeared, the shackles on you vanished, and you turned into a pig in heat, even seducing a little slave girl?"

Ye Tong fell silent for a moment before slowly saying, "Three times the amount of last time's medicine."

Tong Kaishan's eyes immediately lit up. Then he gave a light cough and said with a grin, "Young Lord Ye wants to play the hero and save the beauty. Whoever dares interfere will be making an enemy of me, Tong Kaishan. Continue."

Ye Tong inwardly relaxed. He did not fear Tong Kaishan, but he was wary of the Tong Family behind him. This Lineage held considerable power in Cold Mountain City, especially Tong Kaishan's father, a ruthless and highly accomplished powerhouse. Unless necessary, it was best not to provoke them for now.

Butcher Zhang clenched his fists, then slowly loosened them. Inwardly, he cursed Tong Kaishan as "an ungrateful wolf cub that could never be fed full," but outwardly he did not dare show the slightest objection. He could only stare directly at Ye Tong and shout sternly, "Boy, you're pretty arrogant, aren't you? You even dare offend my wife? Are you tired of living?"

Ye Tong said, "This is an arena. Confidence requires hard fists. When the young lose, the old come out—such conduct is shameless, but I can still accept it. If you want to make a move, kneel first and kowtow a few times, then apologize publicly. Otherwise..."

Butcher Zhang sneered. "Otherwise what? You little pig spawn whose hair hasn't even grown in yet, and you dare threaten me?"

"That's about enough."

Ye Tong turned to look at the fat woman and the two youths.

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

The fat woman and the two youths collapsed to the ground the instant Ye Tong finished speaking. Their faces turned dark, and they twitched on the ground.

Butcher Zhang's eyes widened larger than bronze bells as he cried out in horror, "What happened? You... what did you do to my wife?"

Ye Tong said calmly, "I don't have much experience in fighting. What I am best at is refining poison and using poison. You have only a quarter of an hour. If you refuse to kneel and apologize because you care about your face, then I can only congratulate you—you can marry a new wife later, or perhaps have another big fat son!"

"Poison?"

Butcher Zhang's expression changed drastically in terror.

The watching crowd also erupted into commotion and backed away one after another. Poison posed a deadly threat to them. Those adventurers, however, studied Ye Tong with interest. They did not believe a youth like him could refine any truly formidable poison.

Ye Tong said, "Think it through. Whether you kneel and apologize or prepare to arrange a new wife depends entirely on a single thought. The good people of Cold Mountain City certainly won't despise you for standing by and watching your own wife die."

What should he do?

If he truly knelt and apologized, his face would be utterly disgraced, and he could only live a wretched, cringing life in Cold Mountain City from then on. But if he did not kneel, his wife would be poisoned to death. The harsh reputation of watching his own wife die would not be any better than the humiliation of kneeling.

Butcher Zhang turned his head with difficulty, casting a pleading look toward Tong Kaishan. He had latched onto Tong Kaishan's thigh some time ago and had offered him no small amount in tribute lately.

Tong Kaishan rolled his eyes. With his nature of being able to turn his face and deny someone even before pulling up his trousers, how could he be willing to care about the life or death of Butcher Zhang's family now? Ye Tong's offer just now could save him quite a bit of blue silver.

"Butcher Zhang, his poison is very potent," Tong Kaishan said carelessly.

Butcher Zhang's eyes nearly split with rage. While hating Ye Tong, he began to hate Tong Kaishan as well.

Before everyone's eyes, Butcher Zhang suddenly dropped to both knees before Ye Tong and gritted out, "Young Lord Ye, is it? I apologize to you on behalf of my family. Every fault is ours. I hope you will be magnanimous and spare my wife and them."