Chapter 68: Divine Slap
Chapter 68: Divine Slap
Chapter 68
Li Yuexin and the others froze the moment they heard the voice of the Clan Lord; for a few seconds, they all simply stood there, their minds looping around the same terrifying thought, although it was Li Xie who finally voiced it for everyone. "Guys... I think we’re cooked," he said.
The group knew that as well. Of course, they should have realized that the Clan Lord was already aware they were standing outside his hall... heck, he must have known the very moment they first stepped into Burnold City.
After all, compared to them, the Clan Lord’s abilities were vastly superior; the gap between the Mortal Stage and the Core Stage was not something even the greatest prodigies or geniuses could hope to overcome.
After a while, Li Yuexin steeled her heart. If she truly had no choice but to recite the Raging Dove Sutra, then as much suffering as it would bring to her poor mind, she would have no choice but to accept her fate.
"I really hope that isn’t my punishment though..." she couldn’t help but think as she finally pushed the large doors open and stepped inside, the other three following closely behind her.
The four walked forward, and once they arrived before the large elevated seat upon which the Clan Lord was seated, they all dropped to one knee and respectfully bowed.
"This disciple pays respect to the Clan Lord," the four of them spoke in unison, their faces filled with admiration and respect toward the middle-aged man calmly looking down upon them.
Li San quietly observed the four of them without saying a single word for quite a while, and that silence only made the already nervous group even more anxious.
"I believe you all know why I summoned you here." The group stiffened slightly. After a brief pause, Yuexin spoke: "Yes... due to our recklessness, we broke the rules and abandoned the cultivation chambers for selfish reasons. Please punish us as you see fit." As she finished speaking, she lowered her head until it touched the ground.
Li Xie’s expression instantly fell; what did she mean by asking the Clan Lord to punish all of them?
Seeing that Yuexin might end up dragging him down with her, Li Xie quickly spoke, "Sir... I believe Sister Yuexin forgot to mention that I wasn’t actually one of the rule breakers." A sheepish smile formed on his face as he continued, "I was... dragged into this entire thing."
Li Jie looked at his brother as though he had just witnessed the greatest lie ever told. Yes, Li Xie hadn’t originally planned to break the rules, but after hearing that Li Feng was going to have some fun, he had immediately volunteered to tag along.
Who would have known that the so-called fun would end up being them trying to survive inside a forest filled with countless powerful spirit beasts... a place teeming with creatures capable of ending their lives at any moment.
Even then, once he learned they were actually searching for Liyu, he still could have returned, but he hadn’t. He chose to continue following them, so he really shouldn’t be acting like the innocent victim here.
After listening to both sides, Li San finally spoke once more. His tone remained calm, yet somehow, it unsettled the group even more.
"You knew there was punishment for breaking the rules. And yet you still chose to break the one rule you should never have broken. Trust me... your punishment will be a grand one. Now... I will give the four of you four minutes to explain yourselves. If your explanations are convincing enough, I may allow you to receive the lighter punishment."
Hearing those words, the group immediately felt as though they had grabbed onto a lifeline.
Without waiting for one another, all four of them began explaining themselves, each trying their absolute best to paint themselves as people who had no other choice. Although, for someone like Li Feng, who didn’t know how to lie at all, things only became worse.
The more he spoke, the more his own words implicated him. After seeing the increasingly dangerous look in his father’s eyes, his lies only dug a deeper hole for himself; the others had already quietly distanced themselves from him. L
i Feng looked toward them with an expression of complete betrayal. Now... he was alone.
Seeing his father’s gaze locked firmly onto him, Li San finally asked, "Everything you just said... was a lie, wasn’t it?" Li Feng’s face froze. He was simply terrible at lying; he wanted to insist that everything he had said was true, but the moment he replayed his own explanation in his head... he knew.
He had completely messed up. What exactly did he mean when he claimed he had sleepwalked into the Beast Forest after leaving his cultivation chamber?
So that also meant... he had somehow sleep-beaten the guards unconscious as well? Yes... he knew it now. He was absolutely cooked. "Everything you just said... was a lie, wasn’t it?" Li San repeated calmly.
Li Feng instinctively looked toward Li Jie and the others for help, but all three immediately looked away.
Each of them was already trying their hardest to lie their way out of punishment; trying to help someone as hopeless at lying as Li Feng would only end up implicating themselves as well. Seeing that he had truly been abandoned... Li Feng slowly lowered his head.
In the end, he could only nod honestly... silently awaiting his judgment.
"I see..." The Clan Lord remained silent for a while before finally speaking. "You have been relaxing a lot these days that you’ve even learned to lie to your old man." He paused before a faint smile appeared on his face.
"No worries. These next few days... I will personally be your training partner." The moment Li Feng heard those words, his face instantly fell. He stared at his father in complete shock; his expression seemed to ask only one question: Why?
Isn’t that too much? Isn’t this beyond cooked? His head slowly lowered as his mood completely soured. For the next few days, his only concern would be how to survive his father’s brutal training sessions.
Li Yuexin and the others looked at Li Feng with pity in their eyes. They truly pitied him; one had to know that the Clan Lord’s training methods were something that could literally make a person question why they had ever decided to cultivate in the first place.
They were undeniably effective... but they were even more painful to undergo. The three silently wished him luck in surviving.
"Yuexin, Jie, Xie... The three of you will remain under house arrest for the rest of today. Starting tomorrow, all of you will return to the cultivation chambers."
"But this time... you will cultivate under much higher pressure. That shall be your punishment."
Li Xie and the other two almost sighed in relief. That didn’t sound like much of a punishment at all; they couldn’t help but think that today was simply Li Feng’s unlucky day.
Just as the three of them were beginning to relax after believing they had escaped with only a light punishment, Li San spoke once more. His tone remained calm... yet the words that came out of his mouth were anything but.
"The next time any of you break the rules... you do not want to know what kind of punishment you’ll receive. Jie... all your fabulous clothing will be confiscated. You will wear nothing but maid uniforms for an entire year."
Li Jie’s face instantly turned deathly pale. "Xie... you will be sent far away from the clan... and you won’t be allowed to hear a single word from Granny for one whole year." Li Xie’s cheerful expression completely crumbled. "
And Yuexin... you will have to completely master the Raging Dove Sutra."
The moment the three heard the punishments awaiting them should they ever break the rules again, they all gulped loudly before hurriedly nodding.
They would never dare break the rules again. Absolutely never. Soon, the three of them left together with Li Feng, who looked the most depressed out of everyone... he truly was the unluckiest one today. After the four youngsters had left... Li San couldn’t help but smile. Those kids have really grown up..." he couldn’t help but think to himself.
Sincerely speaking, he had only been putting on an angry facade from the very beginning; after all... they had done the right thing.
"You wouldn’t have punished them anyway, even if they broke the rules again for the same reason. So was there really any need to scare them like that?"
"A voice that seemed to come from nowhere suddenly echoed throughout the hall, causing Li San to chuckle softly. "So you’ve been there all this while. Come out." The moment he finished speaking, a man casually walked out from what seemed to be thin air.
He was dressed entirely in black before leisurely taking a seat right beside the Clan Lord. Without the slightest hesitation, he grabbed a nearby fruit and bit into it; the man also appeared to be middle-aged, although he looked slightly younger than Li San.
Yet... the aura surrounding him was even more powerful. "So... the kid survived after all," the man spoke calmly, his dark eyes revealing very little emotion. Li San glanced sideways at him before replying, "I’m glad he survived."
"He even reawakened and now possesses a spirit root." He paused briefly before looking directly at the man. "So tell me... will you finally be willing to see him now? After all... he is your son."
Meanwhile... back at the training grounds... the disciple who had gone to check on Li Zhu slowly stood back up. His legs trembled so violently that it looked as though they would give out beneath him at any second.
His lips quivered uncontrollably as he desperately tried to speak; again and again... his words got stuck in his throat.
Only after several failed attempts did he finally manage to force them out. "I... I think Brother Zhu... is dead. He... he has stopped breathing... I... I... I think Brother Yu killed him."
He swallowed deeply before finally finishing his sentence: "I think... Brother Yu killed him with a single slap."
Silence... absolute, terrifying silence. Everyone at the training ground could only stare wide-eyed at what had just happened; their brains were already struggling to understand what had taken place just a few seconds ago.
After all, not only had Zhu failed to knock Liyu out with his first attack, but he himself had been sent flying before any of them could even understand how it had happened.
And now... they were supposed to believe that Brother Zhu, someone at the very peak of the Body Refinement Realm, had been defeated and nearly killed by nothing more than an ordinary slap.
Really... it was simply too ridiculous. They wouldn’t have even entertained such an absurd idea if not for the one thing that made every single one of them tremble deep within their bones: Li Zhu... was no longer standing.
Heck, the guy didn’t even twitch; it was as though he was truly dead. Killed by a single slap. The more they repeated those words in their minds, the more unbelievable they sounded.
"Relax, everyone. He isn’t dead... at least... not yet," Liyu spoke calmly. "He is probably standing at death’s door, but if he receives treatment in time, then he shouldn’t die. Someone should quickly carry him to the infirmary."
One of the disciples immediately shouted as he rushed forward, yet before he could even take another step... Liyu was already standing right in front of him.
The disciple instantly froze, his boots trembling uncontrollably. Looking into Liyu’s eyes... he saw the latter grinning. "Sorry... but I believe your name is on this list."
Liyu casually pulled out the sheet of paper upon which everyone who had placed a bet earlier had written their names. "Anyone whose name isn’t written here can carry Zhu... and those who will soon end up in the same condition as him... to the infirmary as well."
The disciple shivered violently before hurriedly shaking his head. "P-Please... I’m no longer betting. You can keep my money. No need for the battle. Please..." He begged desperately, his legs shaking nonstop.
He had practically just watched this monster send someone at the peak of the Body Refinement Realm to death’s doorstep with a single slap, so what would that same divine slap do to someone who was only at the Fifth Stage? Well... if he had to guess... wouldn’t that simply be certain death?
Seeing the trembling disciple, Liyu slowly shook his head. "No. Everyone must abide by the rules. You attack first... or... I’ll attack first." The disciple’s body shook even harder as he suddenly dropped to his knees.
"Please don’t kill me! Please! We’re all members of the same clan after all!"
Liyu completely ignored everything related to the betting. "Since you aren’t going first... then I’ll go first." Liyu slowly raised his hand.
The disciple screamed; his heart nearly stopped from fear. "Art of Faceslapping... First Slap." Pah! The disciple dropped like a sack of potatoes; his face instantly swelled to an unreasonable degree.
"Another one for the infirmary," Liyu calmly remarked as he lowered his gaze back toward the paper, already searching for the next name on the list. The moment the surrounding disciples saw what he was doing... panic erupted.
After all, although the second disciple didn’t appear to be standing at death’s door like Li Zhu... he couldn’t even stand anymore.
He had been knocked unconscious with blood pouring out of his mouth. That kind of devilish slap... none of them wanted to receive it.
Without another thought, they all turned around and ran. Yet... they were simply far too slow for the current Liyu.
One after another, he caught up to every disciple whose name was written on the betting list and... he graciously served each and every one of them his divine slap. Pah! Another disciple collapsed.
Pah! Another one was sent rolling across the ground. Pah! Another unfortunate soul was pushed straight toward death’s doorway. Liyu beamed happily as he continued slapping more and more of those foolish enough to have written down their names.
At the very same time... more and more heavily injured disciples were carried toward the infirmary. Strangely enough... every single one of them suffered almost identical injuries.
Their faces were swollen beyond recognition; several had broken ribs; others had lost multiple teeth. It looked almost as though they had all gone to battle against a giant titan and somehow survived.
Who would ever believe... that the one responsible for all of this wasn’t some terrifying monster... nor a mighty titan... but rather... the divine slap of a certain troublesome heir who had only just returned.
_____________________________________
Author’s Note:
Sorry for the late update, everyone!
And yes... I know I’ve only been releasing one Chapter a day instead of the usual two lately. Before you send assassins after your gentle author, let me explain.
My PC has suddenly decided to betray me and has entered the legendary Lag Realm. It even awakened a forbidden skill called "Infinite Stuttering Technique," and my typing speed has been nerfed harder than an overpowered protagonist .
The good news is that I’ll be taking it to a repair shop tomorrow. With any luck, it’ll survive the operation, and after tomorrow, the update schedule should be back to normal and stable again.
Thank you all for bearing with me and for your continued support. I sincerely apologize for the inconvenience.
Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m off to negotiate a peace treaty with my rebellious PC.
Your gentle author,
Ultra