The Eighteenth Birthday Coming-of-Age Ceremony

Zhang Ningrong struggled in the room, but her hands and feet were bound and her mouth was gagged. She could not break free. Looking at the darkened sky, she was terrified. She knew what she would face when Song Qingyun came in.

Who in Star City did not know of Song Qingyun's depravity and brutality? Generally, none of the young women he abducted ever walked out of the City Lord's Manor alive. At the thought, Zhang Ningrong struggled even harder.

"Creak."

The door opened, and Zhang Ningrong looked up at it in terror. But the person who entered was not the dreaded Song Qingyun. It was Qin Yi, the man who had personally delivered her here.

Qin Yi removed Zhang Ningrong's gag, but before he could say anything, she spoke first.

"What are you doing here? When Song Qingyun comes in, he'll kill you first." Seeing that it was not Song Qingyun, Zhang Ningrong immediately felt much bolder and spoke to Qin Yi with cold sarcasm.

Qin Yi stepped forward and gripped Zhang Ningrong's chin, forcing her to look at him. Without mercy, he said, "You've already been given to me as a gift."

Zhang Ningrong was dumbstruck. How could that be? Back on the street, she had only thought Qin Yi was good-looking, and that was why she had decided to use him as a shield. What was going on?

Seeing that Qin Yi said nothing, Zhang Ningrong tried to look up at him. But the moment she did, she saw the wicked intent in his eyes. Her heart skipped a beat, and she said in alarm, "You... what are you going to do? Please don't, don't do anything rash."

Seeing Zhang Ningrong looking like a lamb awaiting slaughter, Qin Yi felt his heart beat faster and faster. He bent down and whispered in her ear, "Weren't you awfully arrogant just now? From here on, I'll allow you to keep being arrogant."

That night, sheer curtains swayed gently, and spots of crimson bloomed.

Early the next morning, Song Qingyun sent someone to bring Qin Yi a meal. But just as the person was about to knock, a voice came from the room.

"Put it down and get lost." Having tasted the marrow and learned its flavor, Qin Yi did not want anyone disturbing him.

For three days straight, Qin Yi did not step outside his room, spending his time enjoying the pleasures of flesh with Zhang Ningrong. Had Song Qingyun not spent a night eavesdropping outside the room, he would have thought Qin Yi had run away.

After a bout of overturning clouds and rain,

"I want you to help me," Zhang Ningrong said, lying against Qin Yi's chest.

Qin Yi gently stroked Zhang Ningrong and asked with his eyes closed, "Help you with what?"

"Help me kill Song Qingyun," Zhang Ningrong said bitterly. All she wanted now was to kill Song Qingyun.

Qin Yi opened his eyes and looked at Zhang Ningrong. "Why should I help you?"

"You already did that to me..." Zhang Ningrong said unhappily.

Qin Yi leaned close to her ear and said, "Remember this: you're my maid now. A servant must obey her master. As for that matter, it depends on how you behave."

That evening, Qin Yi finally stepped out of his room. He had not forgotten that he still had to help Song Qingyun deal with his elder brother.

"Brother Jin, your stamina is impressive," Song Qingyun said with some envy when he saw Qin Yi come out.

Qin Yi did not want to waste words with him and asked directly, "Let's get down to business. When do I make my move?"

"My father will leave tomorrow, and he'll take most of the experts with him. That will be a good time for you to make your move," Song Qingyun said to Qin Yi, turning serious as well.

"I understand. Tomorrow, move the guards away. I'll make my move when the time comes." Qin Yi nodded, then turned and headed toward his own courtyard.

Song Qingyun watched Qin Yi leave, then turned to the captain of the guards beside him. "Go, hurry and find some medicinal herbs for this young master. I'm going to fight a great battle for three days and three nights too."

As Qin Yi walked, he considered his plans for the next day. Before he knew it, he had returned to his room. Zhang Ningrong had been put through three days of exertion and was now asleep. Qin Yi quietly walked to the bedside.

"Why did you..." Zhang Ningrong opened her eyes.

"Don't speak."

The next day, Qin Yi stayed in his room until noon before quietly slipping out. The City Lord's Manor covered a vast area and had many courtyards. Following the map Song Qingyun had given him, Qin Yi found the courtyard where Song Qingyun's elder brother, Song Yunfeng, was staying.

Qin Yi crouched on the roof and watched the young man practicing swordsmanship in the courtyard, sensing the fluctuations of spiritual power coming from Song Yunfeng. A moment later, Qin Yi smiled disdainfully. He was only at the Qi Refinement Seventh Layer. Someone like him was not worthy of Qin Yi personally making a move; a little trickery would suffice. Was poison not the best way to kill someone? It saved both time and effort.

Qin Yi took a bottle of medicinal powder from his Storage Bag. He had found it in Huamei's Storage Bag. Made from the venom of a second-tier Demon Beast, the Nine-Colored Illusion Spider, it was colorless and odorless and could be carried through the air by the wind. It could easily poison cultivators below the Qi Refining Ninth Layer to death, and even those at the Qi Refining Ninth Layer could only struggle a little longer.

Moreover, the poison took effect slowly. When first poisoned, a person could not detect it at all. Without an antidote, the victim would gradually feel their spiritual power grow impossible to circulate, and after half an hour, their meridians would break inch by inch, killing them.

Qin Yi carefully sprinkled a little of the powder in Song Yunfeng's courtyard, took an antidote pill himself, and turned to leave. He then found Song Qingyun. Afraid that the good-for-nothing second-generation heir would be poisoned, he gave him an antidote pill and told him to take it and wait there for Song Yunfeng to die from the poison.

When Song Yunfeng heard that his elder brother would die from the poison in half an hour, he could not help asking doubtfully, "Will it work? If this fails, there won't be another chance."

Qin Yi merely replied coldly, "Are you questioning me? Believe it or not. I advise you to gather your men early and prepare to purge the City Lord's Manor."

Song Qingyun suddenly came to his senses, a cold smile appearing on his face. As soon as Song Yunfeng died, his trusted followers "would all die protecting him."

While Song Qingyun was busy "preparing funeral arrangements" for his elder brother, Qin Yi took the opportunity to leave Star City with Zhang Ningrong.