Chapter 23: Slaughtering the Teng Family

Fang Zhiyi shook her head, yet Wang Lin saw clearly that her slightly upturned face bore traces of moisture.

Wang Lin’s heart felt as if it were being clawed by a cat. "Master, is there something wrong with these Five-Tiger Sumeru Needles?"

Fang Zhiyi choked back a sob. "It is because they are too 'right'." After a pause, she turned to look at Wang Lin. "If I were to despise Teng Family City, would you be willing to slaughter the city for your master?"

Wang Lin did not hesitate. With a firm tone, he nodded. "I am willing."

Fang Zhiyi knew well that the Heavenly Dao would not tolerate her; any change she attempted would bring upon her the punishment of Heaven. Reality was just as cruel; she was powerless to change anything. But Wang Lin was different. She had long since realized that he was the only one capable of altering the Heavenly Dao. What did one call such a person? Perhaps Wang Lin was the Son of Heaven. Since he was by her side, why not make good use of him? She wanted to see if Wang Lin, by defying the Heavenly Dao, would meet the same fate as she did.

"Good," Fang Zhiyi said. "I will support you from behind. Do not worry; your master will not let anything happen to you."

Even without Fang Zhiyi’s guarantee, Wang Lin would have believed her unconditionally.

The next morning, Fang Zhiyi went to find Teng Huayuan.

"I wonder what guidance Elder Fang has for me?"

Fang Zhiyi spoke flatly, "I want to know the origin of every item I purchased at the trade fair."

"This..." Teng Huayuan was put in a difficult position. Logically, the origins of such items should not be disclosed to outsiders, but the person before him was, after all, Fang Zhiyi.

Fang Zhiyi stared at him coldly without another word, yet the pressure radiating from her as a superior made it hard for Teng Huayuan to breathe. He could not even remember how many years it had been since he last felt such a sensation. Ultimately, he compromised. He had his subordinates bring the ledger, where the details of every item were recorded clearly.

Fang Zhiyi quickly found the origin of the Five-Tiger Sumeru Needles. So that was it—Teng Huayuan had hunted the tigers and extracted their hearts. It was exactly as she had suspected. The records were detailed: the tiger hearts had been extracted while the Tiger King was still alive. To ensure freshness, the Tiger King had been restrained but remained fully conscious. It watched, bit by bit, as its own heart was dug out.

Seeing this, Fang Zhiyi’s gaze grew colder. *Take a step back and the sea and sky will open up...* What nonsense. If Fang Zhiyi had a grudge, she would settle it on the spot. At first, she had worried that this matter might have nothing to do with the Teng family, but now it was clear they were inextricably linked.

Fang Zhiyi handed a bundle of rope to Wang Lin, the meaning clear. Teng Huayuan had not yet realized what was happening and asked somewhat bewilderedly, "I wonder what Elder Fang intends to do?"

No one answered him. When he regained consciousness, he found himself tightly bound. He tried to break free, but he soon realized it was a fool’s errand; the rope tightened every time he attempted to use a spell. Soon, Teng Huayuan felt as if he could barely breathe.

The next moment, Teng Huayuan’s eyes widened. "What are you doing?"

It was Wang Lin, walking slowly toward him with a long sword in hand.

Wang Lin sneered. "Teng Huayuan, I wonder if you still remember me? My surname is Wang, and my given name is Lin!"

Teng Huayuan’s pupils constricted. He would never forget the name Wang Lin.

"Back then, you annihilated my entire clan and tormented our souls. I remember every single debt clearly. Everything you inflicted upon the Wang family, your Teng family will pay back a hundredfold today! I will not spare a single member of the Teng family."

As Wang Lin spoke, Fang Zhiyi sat not far away, sipping tea.

Deep hatred burned in Teng Huayuan’s eyes. "I slaughtered your clan because you killed my great-grandson, Teng Li! Since you dared to strike, you should have been prepared to suffer the consequences!"

"No, Teng Huayuan. Some things you are capable of doing, I am capable of doing as well."

With that, Wang Lin grabbed one of the bound captives nearby and struck with his blade. Blood splattered instantly.

"They have nothing to do with this!" Teng Huayuan shouted in panic.

Wang Lin sneered, "What? Does that mean the members of my Wang family had something to do with that affair? Were the people of my Wang family not pitiful enough?"

Wang Lin’s rage grew, and he struck again and again. Soon, there was not a clean spot left in the room; blood was splashed everywhere. Seeing this, Teng Huayuan turned his gaze toward Fang Zhiyi, pleading, "Elder Fang, I beg you to help me."

Fang Zhiyi acted as if she had heard a hilarious joke. She sneered, "Teng Huayuan, he is my disciple. Who are you?"

Teng Huayuan’s face froze. He knew it was over—everything was finished. With a Spirit Severing stage expert aiding him, Teng Huayuan knew Wang Lin was not joking; every word was sincere, and he was fully capable of carrying it out.

"From tomorrow on, there will be no more Teng family, and no more Teng Family City," Wang Lin said with icy indifference. "How did you find the location of our Wang family back then?" Wang Lin knew Teng Huayuan did not have the ability to do so on his own.

Teng Huayuan shook his head, refusing to speak. Wang Lin let out a cold snort. Every time he asked and received no answer, he would kill someone. Most of those captured were central figures of the Teng family, faces familiar to Teng Huayuan. Not everyone had a backbone; facing such a gruesome and terrifying scene, their psychological defenses collapsed. The shrill, desperate wails of the dying reached Teng Huayuan’s ears.

Among them were children of the Teng family. They were still young, but Wang Lin did not spare them. Unlike Teng Huayuan, as Wang Lin listened to these wails, a sense of gratification he could not suppress welled up in his heart.

There is a saying: if you do not pull out the roots when cutting the weeds, they will grow again. He, Wang Lin, was the perfect example of this. If Teng Huayuan had killed him back then, none of this would be happening now. It was a mistake Teng Huayuan had made, but Wang Lin would not repeat it. He would never cause trouble for Fang Zhiyi.

"Gao Mingqi. He used the Art of Divine Calculation to locate your Wang family."

"Gao Mingqi... I will remember that." With those words, Wang Lin’s blade fell, and many more lives were extinguished.

Seeing Wang Lin’s frenzied state, Teng Huayuan gasped in disbelief, "You're mad. I can see you've truly gone insane."

"Yes. The moment you struck against our Wang family, I had already gone mad."

Just as he raised his hand to finish off Teng Huayuan, Fang Zhiyi spoke, "You go out first."

A flash of astonishment crossed Wang Lin’s eyes. He was terrified that Fang Zhiyi might let Teng Huayuan go.