Expelled from the Sect

The whip coiled around Lu Cheng's wrist suddenly snapped taut.

A strange, surging force traveled along the length of the whip.

Lu Cheng completely lost control of his momentum, sent spinning through the air for two somersaults.

Upon landing, he barely managed to stabilize his footing by executing half a Falling Star Flip.

Feng Ji had emerged late.

He had not seen Chen Qing sneak up behind Lu Cheng with a spear.

He had only seen Lu Cheng shatter Chen Qing's wrist with a claw strike and prepare to crush his skull with a Falling Star Crown Strike.

Although Feng Ji usually wore a smiling face, those who knew him well understood that he was the most ruthless of the three brothers.

Yet, even Feng Ji felt a jolt of shock at Lu Cheng's decisive brutality.

That he hadn't shattered Lu Cheng's arm bone with the whip was only because he had forcibly suppressed his rage.

However, seeing the exquisite execution of Lu Cheng's Falling Star Flip, his anger dissipated by more than half.

Seeing that Lu Cheng had ceased his attack, the intention to immediately subdue him also faded.

"What is going on!"

Chen Qing lay on the ground, his right hand bent backward against his forearm, the blood from his mouth staining the stone slabs beneath him crimson.

The excruciating pain from his wrist caused cold sweat to pour down his face, and his entire upper body felt nearly numb.

Lu Cheng's Falling Star Crown Strike had been interrupted by Feng Ji halfway through.

That final kick had been delivered in haste; while powerful, it was not fatal.

Thus, the most severe injury on Chen Qing's body remained his shattered wrist.

Seeing Feng Ji appear, Chen Qing endured the agony and crawled toward him, wailing as he moved.

"Second Escort Master, save me! It's Lu Cheng! He tried to kill me, I beg you to seek justice for me..."

At this moment, Feng Qi and Feng Zhan also arrived at the training grounds, having heard the commotion.

After hearing Feng Ji's account, their faces turned ashen.

The disciples had never seen such a scene before; they were so terrified they dared not even breathe loudly.

Only the wailing of Chen Qing remained on the field.

Feng Zhan walked over to Chen Qing, crouched down, checked his pulse, and examined the wounds on his back and hand before nodding to Feng Qi.

"The injuries to his back and internal organs are not critical; he will recover in two months. But his wrist is shattered, and it is uncertain to what extent it will heal."

He then glared fiercely at Lu Cheng and shouted in a deep voice:

"Why did you use such a vicious hand!"

Lu Cheng felt somewhat dazed. If Chen Qing had only injured him, he might have stopped at breaking the wrist.

But seeing Chen Qing stab his friend, Lu Cheng had been consumed by the singular desire to end Chen Qing's life under his palm.

Now that he had regained his senses, he felt his own actions had been overly ruthless.

Regardless of the circumstances, Chen Qing was a fellow disciple; crippling him was enough, and it was nowhere near the point of taking his life.

Consequently, he was unable to answer Feng Zhan's interrogation for a moment.

It was the Fatty nearby who had the quickest tongue; seeing Lu Cheng stunned, he recounted the events in a few short sentences.

After the three masters heard this and looked at the scene—especially the deep, bone-exposed wound on Liu Wan'er's arm—how could they not understand the truth?

Feng Qi looked at Chen Qing and asked in a deep voice:

"Chen Qing, is there any discrepancy in what Liu Guicai said?"

Chen Qing lay on the ground, struggling to lift his head.

Pinned by Feng Qi's piercing gaze, even his wails were stifled in his throat.

His lips trembled, wanting to say something, but in the end, nothing came out.

Feng Qi looked at Chen Qing for a moment before saying to Feng Ji:

"Junior Brother, deal with this according to the rules of the Long Wind Escort Agency."

Feng Ji nodded and announced in a loud voice:

"The rules of the Long Wind Escort Agency were stated on your very first day."

"Unity among fellow disciples and respect for teachers are ironclad laws that every disciple must strictly uphold, even if they haven't been emphasized often."

Feng Qi's voice was not loud, and though it remained somewhat shrill, every word was resonant and forceful:

"Unauthorized sparring is wrong in itself, and harming a fellow disciple is a grave taboo."

"Lu Cheng has committed both, but considering there was a cause, he will be dealt with leniently: thirty strokes of the cane. As there are two duels pending, this will be recorded and punished after the fact."

"If there is a next time, you will be expelled from the sect!"

As Feng Ji's voice fell, low murmurs of discussion rippled through the crowd.

"Thirty lashes? Is that light or heavy?"

The one asking was a newly entered disciple who did not understand the severity of a lashing.

However, an older disciple quickly replied:

"Ten lashes would have you bedridden for half a month; thirty will likely break your legs!"

Others were curious about the two duels Feng Ji mentioned.

"Two duels? Isn't there only the one in two months? What is the second one?"

Regarding this question, apart from the six, including Fatty, no one could answer.

"Silence!" Feng Ji roared, suppressing the commotion, and looked down at Chen Qing on the ground.

Only then did everyone remember that Chen Qing had yet to be dealt with.

Seeing Chen Qing in such a miserable state, no one felt any sympathy, though they didn't exactly feel hatred either.

They had all joined recently, and some were not even familiar with one another.

Most were just watching the spectacle, indifferent to Chen Qing's fate.

The only one with a hanging heart was Chen Qing himself.

"As for Chen Qing..."

Everyone couldn't help but hold their breath, pricking up their ears, afraid to miss a single word.

"According to the sect rules, his martial arts shall be crippled, and he is to be expelled from the Long Wind Escort Agency."

Whoosh!

A wave of uproar broke out.

Chen Qing was the strongest—no, previously the strongest—disciple of the Long Wind Escort Agency.

His aptitude was infinitely close to a Fine Jade Talent; he had reached the Mid-Stage Refining Strength in less than a year of training.

It could be said that as long as no accidents occurred, he was a shoo-in to become a Body Refining Martial Artist in the future!

But today, that accident had arrived.

Chen Qing looked at Feng Ji in disbelief, his mouth agape. Even the pain in his hands no longer mattered as he let out a hoarse sound from his throat:

"No! It's unfair! Three Escort Chiefs, this is unfair! Why is Lu Cheng only getting thirty lashes?"

Feng Ji said coldly:

"Unfair?"

"Taking advantage of a fellow disciple's weakness to incite a fight is the first."

"Losing the fight and then maliciously launching a sneak attack out of shame and anger is the second."

"Harming the innocent is the third."

"Slandering a fellow disciple and shifting the blame is the fourth!"

"And do you need me to list the targeting of Lu Cheng from a few days ago one by one?"

"Sparing your life is already an act of mercy. From today on, you are no longer a disciple of the Long Wind Escort Agency."

Chen Qing lowered his head in a daze, the resentment in his eyes so intense it could have gouged two pits into the ground.

"Hehehehe, hehehehe, hahahahahaha!"

Chen Qing suddenly burst into laughter, his voice frantic and shrill:

"What kind of bullsh*t sect unity is this? You're only doing this because Lu Cheng's talent is better than mine."

"He is nothing but a crippled Human Hero. Even if he can refine his body, so what? He will never be able to break through to the Qi Refining Realm in this lifetime!"

"He is nothing but a troublemaker!"

"I reached Refining Strength in two months and the mid-stage in eight; I am destined to have hope for the Qi Refining Realm!"

"Short-sighted fools! You all..."

As he spoke, Chen Qing extended his uninjured left hand, but deep down he was afraid and dared not point at Feng Qi, Feng Ji, and Feng Zhan at the head of the hall. Instead, he gestured toward the fellow disciples at his side and shrieked:

"You are all short-sighted, and you will regret this!"

Feng Qi did not look at him and turned to leave.

Feng Ji sighed, shook his head, and followed him out.

Feng Zhan stood where he was, looking at Chen Qing. After a few moments of silence, he finally pointed to two disciples:

"Help him pack his things and send him away."

The two older disciples stepped forward, grabbing Chen Qing by the left and right to hoist him up.

"Let go of me, don't touch me! I am the Senior Brother!"

"Let me go, I am a Martial Warrior of the Qi Refining Realm!"

"You are courting death, you are all courting death!"

Chen Qing twisted incessantly, but how could he, injured as he was, struggle against two men?

His legs dragged across the floor as he was hauled out.

The disciples of the escort agency looked at one another in dismay; no one had expected a simple sparring match to end up like this.

Some shook their heads, some sighed, and some felt a secret thrill, but no one dared to show it.

Lu Cheng stood where he was, watching the direction of the main gate with an expressionless face.

Chen Qing's figure vanished, and his shrill cries gradually faded into silence:

"Third Chief Escort, I was wrong, I know I was wrong..."