Expelled from the Martial Academy!

"So this is... Dark Strength..."

Jiang Ye carefully savored the distinct sensation of power within his body.

It was no longer the ostentatious, rigid ferocity of the Bright Strength stage, where blood and qi surged and force hovered between the muscles and skin.

Instead, it was like mercury spilling onto the ground or heavy iron sinking into a pool; all his power was deeply restrained, settling into the deepest marrow of his bones.

Jiang Ye moved his intent, and that power obeyed like an extension of his own arm, quietly manifesting from his bone marrow—silent and imperceptible, yet containing a heart-stopping, piercing force.

Following this, he raised his right hand and spread his fingers. With a flick of his intent, there was no cracking of tendons or bones, no surging of blood and qi, and not even a visible bulge of the muscles beneath his skin.

Only his palm sank slightly inward, and a subtle ripple seemed to spread through the air.

His palm descended gently, landing seemingly at random on the old, yellowed, and darkened wooden table beside him.

Bang.

A soft, dull thud that was not loud at all.

On the surface of the table, the small area covered by his palm showed no twisted or broken wood grain, as if it had merely been stroked.

However.

Jiang Ye moved his hand away and lowered his gaze.

Centered on the point of impact, the table within a radius of about a foot appeared intact, but its internal structure had been completely shattered in an instant by that Dark Strength which had sunk into the marrow and permeated through the object.

It had not cracked or collapsed; it had been reduced to fine, uniform wood powder.

"Not bad!"

Jiang Ye nodded slightly, a look of satisfaction appearing on his aged face.

Compared to the fierce, externalized Bright Strength that excelled at breaking finesse with brute force, the greatest characteristic of Dark Strength was its ability to penetrate.

The force, condensed like a needle and heavy as a hammer, could easily pierce through clothing, leather, and even ordinary metal armor to strike the internal organs directly, causing damage from within like a blow through a mountain.

"If I had broken through to Dark Strength sooner, that protective inner armor Zhang Xu wore would have been nothing more than a decoration."

A cold glint flashed in Jiang Ye's eyes as he understood.

With his current Dark Strength, which could penetrate armor and injure the marrow, he wouldn't have needed to shatter the wall or send Zhang Xu flying with that previous punch.

The fist force could have bypassed the inner armor entirely, striking directly at Zhang Xu's heart and lungs.

The exterior might have remained unscathed, but the interior would have been reduced to a pulp.

Let alone having one life, even if Zhang Xu had two, he would have died on the spot—there would have been no chance of survival.

"I wonder if that brat... is truly dead..."

At the thought of Zhang Xu, a chilling, icy intent flashed through Jiang Ye's eyes again.

That boy was vicious and underhanded; daring to plot such sordid schemes against Liu Yiyi had crossed Jiang Ye's bottom line.

"If that punch didn't take his life and allowed him to linger on..."

Jiang Ye's withered fingers unconsciously twisted his sleeve, his gaze growing deeper and colder.

"Then I shall have to trouble myself once more to send him on his way personally, ensuring he is thoroughly dead!"

When it came to enemies, especially vile and treacherous scum like Zhang Xu, Jiang Ye had always believed in rooting out evil completely, leaving no loose ends.

Meanwhile.

Anxi County, East City, the Zhang Family mansion.

The brightly lit hall could not dispel the cold and oppressive atmosphere that had almost solidified.

On the left, Liu Qingshi, master of the Bluestone Martial Academy, stood with his hands behind his back, his face as dark as water.

Beside him was Su Chen, head of the Su Family, whose brows were currently filled with sha, lacking his usual harmonious demeanor.

Behind them, Liu Yiyi and Su Yan stood side by side. The young women were pale, but their eyes burned with cold, angry flames as they stared straight ahead.

On the right, Zhang He, head of the Zhang Family, stood alone before the main seat, his expression so gloomy it seemed ready to drip water.

Between them lay a person on the verge of death, gasping for his final breaths—none other than Zhang Xu.

Earlier, Su Yan and Liu Yiyi had consulted each other, suppressing their shame and pain to selectively inform their elders of what had transpired.

They concealed the white-haired old man and the subsequent chaotic mess, focusing only on how Zhang Xu had set the trap and drugged them, and how they had identified and countered it.

Even so, Liu Qingshi and Su Chen were incensed.

Had it not been for the fact that Zhang Xu was dying and already castrated, Liu Qingshi would have beaten him into a pulp of flesh on the spot.

Thus, they had immediately brought Zhang Xu, the living evidence, to demand an explanation.

On the other side, Zhang He's brows were furrowed into a deep frown, his expression dark to the extreme.

To be honest, the moment he saw them bring in the dying Zhang Xu, Zhang He realized that his son had undoubtedly botched the job again.

This left him both furious and enraged.

He was furious that this disappointing son had botched the job again, and enraged that Zhang Xu had been beaten to such a state!

Regardless of everything, this was still his son!

"Master Liu, Patriarch Su! Do not go around making baseless accusations! My son Zhang Xu has always been upright in his conduct; how could he possibly scheme to violate your daughters!"

Zhang He's face darkened as he shouted sternly:

"You took the law into your own hands and injured my son like this—you truly have no regard for the Zhang Family!"

"I strongly suspect that the truth of the matter is that your daughters were the ones trying to seduce my son..."

"And because they feared the truth would come out, they dealt such a vicious blow to him!"

He knew that he absolutely could not admit to anything at this moment.

Furthermore, he had to immediately turn the tables.

Because now that the matter had escalated to this point, both sides were bound to become enemies.

Seeing Zhang He act so shamelessly and attempt to shift the blame, the killing intent in the eyes of Liu Yiyi and the others surged.

They had finally learned what it meant for a son to take after his father.

Only Liu Qingshi remained composed, his gaze icy as he looked at Zhang He and said in a deep voice, "It seems that unless you hear your son confess with his own mouth, you will not give up."

With that, Liu Qingshi stepped forward, intending to hoist the prone Zhang Xu up from the ground.

"What are you doing..."

Zhang He's expression changed abruptly, and he tried to intervene.

Liu Qingshi shifted his gaze slightly, his cold stare descending upon Zhang He like a mountain.

"You..."

Zhang He's body stiffened.

Although the Zhang Family did employ a Transformation Strength martial artist, that expert was never one to be constrained and was not at the estate at this moment.

If Liu Qingshi truly intended to act, there was nothing he could really do.

In the brief moment he hesitated, Liu Qingshi had already hauled Zhang Xu up.

Liu Qingshi moved with lightning speed, extending a finger to strike a specific acupoint on Zhang Xu's back.

Immediately, Zhang Xu, who had been like a dead dog, shuddered violently. As if experiencing a final burst of life, he shook his head and regained a sliver of consciousness.

Without giving him any time to react, Liu Qingshi asked in a commanding voice, "Zhang Xu, tonight, did you plot to drug Liu Yiyi and Su Yan and attempt to violate them!"

Zhang Xu was currently suffering internal agony, his life hanging by a thread. His mind was already blurred, feeling only boundless pain and fear, along with an irresistible pressure of will.

His lips trembled as he spoke intermittently, like someone talking in a dream: "It... it was me... I wanted to... but it didn't succeed... spare... spare my life..."

After trembling through these words, his voice faded, as if he had exhausted all his strength and might stop breathing at any moment.

Zhang He stared fixedly at Zhang Xu with a gloomy expression, unable to speak for a moment, his thoughts unreadable.

"Zhang He!" Su Chen's hair and beard bristled with rage as he shouted, "Your son has confessed with his own mouth; what else do you have to say!"

After a moment of silence, Zhang He offered a cold, mirthless smile to Liu Qingshi, "Master Liu has quite the methods!"

He then looked down at the half-dead Zhang Xu with a cold expression and said icily:

"If you do wrong, you must admit it; if you are beaten, you must stand tall."

"Since my son is the one who erred first, it is only right that he suffers a heavy punishment. I have no objections."

"Fortunately..." He changed the subject, his gaze sweeping over the two young women as his tone softened, "Both of your beloved daughters were alert and did not let this wretch succeed. Their purity remains untarnished, which is the greatest fortune in this misfortune. My Zhang Family is willing to provide compensation to appease your anger."

"For your two daughters, I will offer twenty thousand taels of silver each as an apology for the shock. How does that sound?"

"If you feel this compensation is not enough to satisfy you..."

Zhang He paused for a moment, his gaze turning even colder as he looked at Zhang Xu, and said indifferently:

"Then you may take this wretch with you. Kill him or carve him up—do as you please."

Upon hearing this, a strange look flashed in the eyes of everyone present.

Zhang He was truly worthy of being the head of the Zhang Family; he was indeed ruthless.

Liu Qingshi exchanged a glance with Su Chen. Seeing that the other party agreed, he let go, tossing Zhang Xu onto the ground like trash, and said in a deep voice, "So be it."

The reason they could agree was primarily because they believed their daughters' purity had not been harmed, and Zhang Xu was already crippled—no longer even a man—which was as good as being dead.

There was no point in killing him.

Zhang He acted with great efficiency, immediately calling for silver notes to be brought out before seeing them off.

Watching the backs of the group as they stepped out of the Zhang estate, Zhang He's eyes narrowed into slits, cold as a viper.

Suddenly.

"By the way, from this moment on, Zhang Xu is expelled from my Bluestone Martial Academy and stripped of his status as a disciple. Henceforth, he has no connection to the academy and shall never be allowed to step foot inside again!"

Liu Qingshi's icy voice exploded in Zhang He's ears like a thunderclap.