Chapter 96: Vengeance

Zhaoying’s face suddenly darkened, and she growled, “Which of your eyes saw me being so lewd and joyous? I was treating someone’s wounds. Are you blind, can’t you see that?”

“Treat wounds? Can’t this broken city even find a doctor, needing the great young lady to do it?” Zhaofenglei sneered, “Fine, let me see where this brat is hurt!”

With that, Zhaofenglei charged forward, his hand reaching for Qian Ye’s back. His fingers glowed with a metallic sheen, emitting a whistling sound of sharp edges slicing through the air, indicating the sheer force of the blow, enough to pierce even steel armor if it connected.

“How dare you!” Zhaoying roared, lashing out. But she was still recovering from her serious injuries, and after forcibly driving out the foreign origin power from Qian Ye’s wounds, she was at her weakest. Zhaofenglei raised his left hand, creating an origin power barrier that blocked her and pushed her aside.

Nangong Xiaoniao screamed and threw herself in front of the bed.

“Get out of the way!” Zhaofenglei slapped Nangong Xiaoniao across the face, his anger fully ignited. The blow sent her flying, slamming into the wall, and blood immediately trickled down from her hairline.

Qian Ye sprang up from the bed, but the drug effects had not yet worn off, leaving him unable to channel origin power. He was just a fraction too slow to pull Nangong Xiaoniao away, only managing to raise his hand to block Zhaofenglei’s grab.

The two origin power vortexes on Zhaofenglei’s body glimmered, and he clenched his claws into a fist, delivering a powerful punch. Qian Ye grunted, flying backward, crashing through the wall, and tumbling into the next room with a resounding boom.

Zhaofenglei, having easily struck, was somewhat surprised. He sneered, “I thought you were something special, but you’re just a waste who practices the Bingfa Jue!”

As he looked, he saw Qian Ye’s naked body, confirming his suspicions. The unnamed fire in his chest burned hotter, turning his eyes crimson. Zhaofenglei kicked aside a pile of rubble, stepping forward, and once again reached for Qian Ye’s heart.

Outside, the sound of hurried footsteps and shrill alarms signaled that the Dark Flame guards had finally noticed something amiss. The first two warriors rushed in, holding their origin power rifles, and upon seeing the scene, immediately lifted their guns, their origin power patterns lighting up rapidly.

Zhaofenglei snorted, “A couple of ants, come to obstruct me?” He suddenly stopped, then retreated, ramming into the two warriors like lightning.

The dull thud of impact sent the two warriors flying, spewing blood mid-air, their chests caving in. Then, with a bang, two small fireballs erupted as the origin power rifles, which had their charging interrupted and hit by external force, exploded.

More warriors rushed in, sacrificing themselves to attack Zhaofenglei, but he easily dispatched them all. The disparity in strength was too great; their desperate attacks could not even slow him down.

Zhaofenglei frowned. He had just killed an entire patrol squad, and yet, despite the obvious disparity in power, none of them fled.

Turning, Zhaofenglei saw Qian Ye struggling to sit up, leaning against a table leg, seemingly ready to collapse again at any moment.

Qian Ye’s obsidian eyes had turned a deep blue, like the sea before a storm, with occasional flashes of deep red, resembling the blood of the warriors both inside and outside the room. His heart beat more slowly than ever, but the three-colored blood energy swirled and boiled, waiting for Zhaofenglei to get close.

The eruption of blood energy, the last resort of the Blood Race, was a final, mutual destruction. Qian Ye did not know if his pure blood energy could match an eleventh-level warlord, but he would find out by trying.

The metallic sheen of Zhaofenglei’s fingers grew dense, reflecting a cold light. Just as he was about to step over the rubble, a chill rose up his back, freezing his movement.

Then, he heard Zhaoying’s scream, “Zhaofenglei! If you dare touch him today, I swear I will join forces with Zhao Jundu and kill you tomorrow!”

Zhaofenglei’s whole body shook, and he turned around in disbelief, “You threaten to kill me? Even team up with Zhao Jundu? I am the grandson of the Duke of Yan. Duke of Youguo would never allow you to do this!”

Zhaoying laughed, “When you are already dead, what can Grandfather do to me? At worst, I’ll be locked up for ten years or exiled to the border to fight to my heart’s content.”

Zhaofenglei gritted his teeth, “Zhao Jundu would help you with this? By harming his own clan, he won’t have a good end either.”

Zhaoying’s voice turned icy, “Qian Ye is the person Zhao Jundu wants to recruit into his ‘Counting Palace.’ If you dare to make a move today, unless you hide in the Duke of Yan’s mansion for the rest of your life, I will make you regret ever being born!”

Zhaofenglei was shocked, staring at Zhaoying, his expression shifting. He had heard of the commotion Zhao Jundu caused to bring someone into the mansion, but he had never associated it with Qian Ye. Reflecting on Zhaoying’s sudden appearance in this remote place with an unknown mercenary leader, there must be some reason.

Zhaoying sneered, “As for Jundu, what will happen to him? Don’t think too highly of yourself. He won’t face any real trouble, at most, he’ll be confined for a few days.”

Zhaofenglei’s face became extremely ugly.

Although Zhaoying was currently stronger, in terms of status within the family, the Duke of Yan’s grandson was slightly higher than the Duke of Youguo’s granddaughter. However, Zhao Jundu was different. He was the recognized first genius of the Zhao family in the past three hundred years, and was on track to become the empire’s foremost young talent after Zhang Boqian.

If such a person really killed Zhaofenglei, the Duke of Cheng’en would surely protect him, and many of the elders within the clan would likely side with him. Why sacrifice a pillar of the future for a dead man? This was the general thinking of the aristocratic families.

Just as Zhaoying being injured by Nangong Xiaofeng, it was better to seek ample compensation rather than revenge. For the sake of the family, personal sacrifices were trivial.

Not long ago, Zhaofenglei himself had thought this way, but now, the same principle applied to him. To his surprise, the bitterness was particularly sharp.

“So, Zhao Jundu can kill anyone he wants?” Zhaofenglei laughed, but under Zhaoying’s icy, murderous gaze, his dry laughter abruptly stopped.

Zhao Jundu indeed could kill anyone, even the Duke of Yan’s grandson. In fact, anyone below the noble lords’ heirs, Zhaofenglei could also kill.

Of course, with Zhaofenglei’s status, killing one would be enough for the Zhao family to restrain Zhao Jundu, and the empire wouldn’t tolerate such chaos. But the first one would definitely die in vain, and Zhaofenglei didn’t want to be the first.

Zhaofenglei ground his teeth, “Fine, you win! You actually allied with the Count of Cheng’en’s faction, all for some country bumpkin. Let’s see how you explain this to the Duke of Youguo when you return.”

“That’s my business, not yours!” Zhaoying retorted.

Zhaofenglei took a deep breath, “Ying, you will be mine eventually. The elders have already decided this.”

Zhaoying spat disdainfully, “Unless all the men in the world are dead!”

Zhaofenglei turned to glance at Qian Ye, “Today, you’re lucky.”

Qian Ye sat in place, looking at him as if he were a dead man, his gaze making Zhaofenglei uneasy. Zhaofenglei roared, “What kind of look is that?”

“The look of a dead man.” Qian Ye replied calmly, grabbing something beside him, and slowly standing up.

Anger surged in Zhaofenglei’s eyes, and he wanted to kill Qian Ye regardless of the consequences. But a chilling feeling suddenly swept through him. Though Qian Ye’s movements were unsteady and he seemed ready to fall at any moment, Zhaofenglei had a strange feeling, as if he were seeing a wounded beast baring its fangs.

Zhaofenglei wanted to say more, but the sound of hurried footsteps and the hum of origin power rifles charging came from the corridor. Without another word, he smashed the window behind him and leaped out, vanishing in an instant.

A group of Dark Flame officers and soldiers rushed in.

With the help of his two guards, Qian Ye put on his clothes and went to check on Nangong Xiaoniao. Her face was swollen, and blood poured from her nose and mouth. However, her origin power was strong, and it had absorbed most of the impact, leaving her with only superficial injuries.

After tending to Nangong Xiaoniao, Qian Ye found Shiqi in the corridor. The girl was slumped against the wall, her head tilted unnaturally, as if asleep. A shocking trail of blood ran down the wall behind her.

Despite his expectations, Qian Ye still placed his hand on her nose.

There was no sign of life.

Qian Ye’s hand trembled slightly. Although Qi, Jiu, and Shiqi were initially bought as slaves, he treated them all equally. Qi and Jiu had already joined the military, capable of standing on their own. Shiqi, who arrived later, stayed by his side, caring for his daily needs, much like a devoted and kind maidservant.

The patrol squad members who had rushed in earlier were all dead, their bodies gathered to the side by their comrades. Qian Ye still walked over to check each one, hoping for a miracle. But miracles were rare for a reason.

Outside, the camp was in a flurry of activity. Seeing that Qian Ye was fine, the Dark Flame officers rushed to gather their subordinates, search the base, and re-establish defenses, with orders and footsteps blending into a cacophony. Inside, however, the room was deathly silent.

Qian Ye walked to the bed, starting to put on his clothes, but Zhaoying grabbed his arm.

“Lie down immediately and finish your treatment. Xiaoniao, you take care of it. Don’t let him leave until the wounds are properly cleaned. I’ll handle everything outside!”

Qian Ye tried to resist, but Zhaoying lifted him and pressed him back onto the bed, saying, “Treat your wounds, and you can fight tomorrow. Waste this hour, and it will take a week longer to heal. Understand?”

Qian Ye looked up, but met Zhaoying’s intense gaze, sighed, and obediently lay down.

Zhaoying said no more, striding out of the room and closing the door. Moments later, the sharp sound of assembly horns echoed through the camp, and squads of soldiers poured out of their barracks, gathering on the parade ground.

Zhaoying jumped into an off-road vehicle, speeding out of the camp, followed by several troop carriers carrying hundreds of soldiers. More soldiers rushed out of the base, heading to key strategic points, raising the alert level of Blackstream City to the highest.

Zhaoying drove around the city, finally arriving at Lord Yuanyang’s residence. As she got out of the car, the gate opened, and a guard bowed, saying, “Young Lady, the lord is waiting for you.”