Chapter 70: Punishment
Chapter 70: Punishment
Chapter 70
Liyu found himself feeling rather troubled when the memories of his past suffering, disguised as punishment, surfaced in his mind.
He must have overlooked them since it had been so long, but now that he remembered that the Clan Lord could be more than cruel whenever the situation demanded it, he suddenly got cold feet.
Should he just... not go? He could certainly try that, but he was more than certain that it would only make things worse because if there was one thing he had learned, it was that running away only tended to implicate him even further.
That was why he simply stood there, staring blankly at the man who had come to escort him to the Clan Lord.
"Young Lord... are you alright?" the man asked after waving his hand in front of Liyu’s face several times without receiving any response. After a while, Liyu finally came back to his senses.
"You said that the Clan Lord is waiting for me... why?" he couldn’t help but ask.
Although... that seemed like a rather stupid question; after all, he himself knew exactly what he had done and the kind of punishment that might be waiting for him.
Now, the System’s earlier words.. that he was very, very, very cooked... didn’t seem like an exaggeration anymore.
The young man who had come to escort Liyu merely looked at him with pity before shaking his head. "Sorry, Young Master... but perhaps this is simply your destiny."
Liyu’s face twitched; this bastard looked as though he was telling him to simply bear with it. The man’s gaze practically spoke all his inner thoughts: *You probably won’t die... at least that’s still something.*
After giving himself a few words of encouragement, Liyu slowly stood up. He could do this. After all... what was the worst that could happen?
Actually... now that he thought about it, there were a lot of things that could go wrong, and just how bad they became would depend entirely on the kind of punishment waiting for him.
Still... Liyu steeled his heart; his face gradually turned calm, hiding every trace of nervousness. He couldn’t let himself keep freaking out; after all... he was no longer a child. No... he wasn’t even Liyu anymore... he was Rayden.
Someone who feared nothing. So why should he fear that man as well? Clan Lord or not... he was ready to face whatever trial lay ahead with a calm mind and sharp gaze.
Liyu stood up; his previously trembling self seemed to vanish in that instant, replaced by a calmer counterpart. His gaze became composed and clear as he spoke: "Come on. Lead the way."
The man was taken aback by the sudden change. After a while, his eyes lit up slightly as though he had figured something out; he slowly shook his head in pure pity. "The Young Master must have resigned himself to fate."
It was a cruel thing, but he had no choice except to accept it. What else could he possibly do? Fight against fate? Perhaps he could have in another situation, but not in this one; not when the Clan Lord was involved.
The saying you can never escape fate had never felt more fitting.
Soon, the two of them began making their way toward where the Clan Lord resided. However... their journey was unexpectedly interrupted by a certain someone. It was a dark-skinned man standing around six and a half feet tall.
Of course... it was none other than Gong, the very same disciple whom Zhu had knocked unconscious yesterday. He stared at Liyu for several long seconds, almost as though he wanted to challenge him.
Liyu merely gave him a glance that clearly said... "You aren’t worth my time." If this guy really tried to provoke him right now... Liyu honestly wasn’t sure he could stop himself from killing him.
After all, one had to know that his mood was already sitting at the highest danger level; he had no time for pointless battles. The man escorting Liyu was just about to step in when Gong suddenly moved.
Surprisingly... he didn’t charge at Liyu; instead... he dropped to both knees. Looking at Liyu with pleading eyes, he spoke sincerely: "Please... bless me with the Divine Slap like you did to everyone else. I am the only one who missed it. Please... give it to me now."
He spoke with such sincerity that Liyu genuinely began questioning whether this guy’s mental faculties had completely stopped working. Who else would actually beg to be sent to death’s door if not a madman?
Still... seeing the utterly sincere expression on Gong’s face, coupled with the fact that Liyu really had no time to waste, he didn’t know how much longer he could maintain his composure.
So... he decided to fulfill the fool’s request. Using only a quarter of his usual strength... he slapped him. PAH! The sheer force sent the huge man flying through the air before crashing heavily onto the ground with a thunderous
BAM! He didn’t get back up again. The man following behind Liyu couldn’t help but stand there in complete shock. At first... he had found it difficult to believe the rumors about one slap, one collapse; but now... he had witnessed it with his own eyes.
He couldn’t help but feel both shocked and awed by Liyu. Deep inside... he couldn’t help but admire the new Liyu. Finally... he was worthy of being called the heir of the Li Clan.
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Meanwhile... inside a small pavilion located within the vast compound of the Clan Lord’s residence... two figures sat opposite each other. One of them was naturally Li San, the Clan Lord himself. Seated across from him was a man dressed entirely in black: black gloves, black shoes, black robes.
The only visible part of his body was his face... a face that could only be described as otherworldly handsome.
Despite being quite old himself, he looked no older than a man in his late twenties, and yet... he carried an elegant aura and a calm domineering presence that only someone who had lived through countless experiences and witnessed the many storms of life could possess.
"It’s been quite a long time since you last visited... are you here for the kid?" Li San finally asked after serving the other man a cup of tea. The man dressed in black accepted it and drank calmly.
His eyes slowly closed as he savored the bittersweet yet nourishing taste of the tea. His expression gradually turned solemn as he looked at the cup with a somewhat somber gaze. "Must you always serve me this every time I visit?" he couldn’t help but ask.
Li San merely shrugged. "It was your favorite back in the day. And even if Shiyuen is no longer here, I will continue treating you well in her place," he said. "After all, I have been unable to share your burdens throughout these years. The least I can do is serve you a cup of tea."
The man smiled faintly before shaking his head. "Still, you could at least add a grand feast along with it. Or is it a rule that every time I come here, all I get is a spoonful of tea? That doesn’t sound like how a good host should treat his guest." He gave Li San a sideways glance.
Li San couldn’t help the twitch in his eyes after hearing that. Hadn’t he offered to prepare food for him countless times already? Every single time, this fellow had refused, saying he was already full.
And now... he was actually complaining that he wasn’t being served any food. If this had happened years ago, Li San would have already rushed over to teach him a lesson; regrettably... he couldn’t.
Not because he was trying to be a good host who didn’t want to beat up his guest... no. It was simply because that very guest was so overwhelmingly powerful that the gap between them could only be imagined.
"Hey... Little San." Hearing his old nickname, Li San looked toward his guest. The man’s expression had changed; the previous solemnness had disappeared, replaced by one filled with genuine appreciation.
"Even if you aren’t exactly a good host... you are still a great brother-in-law to have. Thank you for taking care of the kid. I’m... grateful." A small smile appeared on his face; he meant every single word he had just spoken.
If it hadn’t been for Li San choosing to raise his little boy, he couldn’t even imagine how the child would have survived. Li San waved his hand dismissively. "No... it really isn’t that big of a deal. After all, it is my responsibility as well. I failed to save my sister from that disaster. The least I can do is make sure her son grows up into someone who would make her proud."
Hearing those words, the man revealed another faint smile; there was both pain and another emotion hidden within it, one that Li San couldn’t quite identify.
Li San wanted to ask him a question, however... the man spoke first: "The kid is here." The moment those words fell... his body seemed to fade from existence. Not a single speck of dust remained; it was as though he had completely vanished or teleported away.
Yet Li San knew that he was still sitting there; after all, the man’s voice continued to echo: "I’m not ready to meet the kid yet." Li San could only shake his head, and it wasn’t for just one reason... there were three.
The first was the fact that he couldn’t help but feel incredibly small. One had to know that Li San was already a cultivator at the latest stage of the Silver Core Realm; he was the strongest cultivator in the entire Night Region.
And yet... in front of this man, he couldn’t help but feel insignificant. He had even tried extending his spiritual sense toward the seat where the man currently sat, but... he couldn’t sense a single thing. It was as though no one was sitting there at all, yet he knew someone was.
The second reason was because he couldn’t help but remember the past: there was once a time when his cultivation had surpassed this man’s, yet now... the other party could probably defeat him without even raising a single finger.
As for the third... he still couldn’t understand why this man refused to meet his own child. He had never once held him, never once spoken to him; he had only watched him silently from afar.
Li San would have almost believed that this man wasn’t Liyu’s father... if not for the fact that he knew with absolute certainty that he was. And yet... he still couldn’t understand the reason why he continued hiding from his own son.
Unfortunately... he didn’t have the time to ask because at that very moment... two figures stepped into the large compound.
Of course, the two were Liyu and the disciple who had escorted him. Liyu, who was still trying to calm himself down, couldn’t help but feel his heart beat slightly faster the moment he saw the expression on the Clan Lord’s face. "Is he in a really bad mood right now? Or what is with that complicated expression on his face?"
The system’s voice rang inside his head, sounding rather pleased at the moment: "Host, I believe that you are cooked. After all, he seems to be thinking of myriads of ways to punish you. Remember, you not only left the clan to commit suicide, which is already a grave offense... but you also forced the hands of the top disciples, making them enter the Beast Forest to search for you, wasting both their time and the clan’s resources."
The system paused before speaking again: "And that is not even the end of it. The moment you returned to the clan, you went ahead and sent over a hundred disciples to the infirmary, forcing the clan to sacrifice even more resources just to heal them."
The system paused once more before delivering its final verdict: "So yes... I believe the Clan Lord is probably thinking of thousands of ways to punish you and simply hasn’t found one cruel enough yet. But judging from that expression... it is only a matter of time before he finds one that will make you regret transmigrating."
Liyu couldn’t help but feel his eyes twitch after hearing the system’s words. He would’ve loved to curse the system for further ruining his mood... and much more, but he couldn’t; the reason was rather simple: he kind of felt that the system was right about some things.
Especially the fact that the Clan Lord truly looked as though he was trying to come up with the perfect punishment for him. And that... wasn’t good news at all. Still, Liyu forced himself to calm down once more before dropping onto one knee.
"Time to go with Plan One." Liyu currently had two plans on how to escape whatever punishment his uncle had prepared for him, and he was about to use the first one.
Hopefully... he wouldn’t have to resort to the second because there was one very simple reason: it was extremely risky and utterly crazy. So he chose the safer option.. he was going to talk his way out of punishment.
Without anyone needing to tell him what to do, Liyu immediately knelt on one knee; his expression instantly transformed into one filled with admiration and reverence. He clasped his hands together and bowed deeply.
"This disciple pays respect to the wise, mighty, unparalleled, earth-shaking, heaven-defying, benevolent, and extraordinary Clan Lord!"
Li San raised an eyebrow; ever since he had known Liyu... from the very moment the brat was bornthe boy had never praised him this much. Yet... that wasn’t even the end of it.
With a perfectly straight face, Liyu continued his flattery: "This disciple has spent countless sleepless nights reflecting upon the Clan Lord’s wisdom. The more I reflect... the more I realize just how small I am in comparison to your greatness."
Li San couldn’t help but feel his brow twitch ever so slightly. ’This brat is trying to flatter me to reduce his punishment, isn’t he?"
Liyu, however, continued as though he hadn’t noticed anything. Lines upon lines of praise poured endlessly from his mouth; it was almost as if he had rehearsed them beforehand.
"Your vision stretches thousands of miles. Your wisdom rivals that of the ancient sages. Your leadership has guided our clan toward a prosperity unseen throughout generations."
"Liyu... enough. You may rise now," Li San said, already beginning to feel tired of the brat’s antics. Did this kid seriously think he could talk his way out of punishment? Unfortunately... Liyu felt he needed to push it just a little further.
His tone became even more respectful, even more flattering: "To be honest, this disciple sometimes wonders whether the Clan Lord is truly human..." He paused dramatically before continuing, his voice filled with awe and admiration.
"Perhaps... you are an immortal who descended from the heavens... "
"If you don’t stand up and shut your mouth right now... your punishment will be increased by fifty times." Liyu’s mouth instantly snapped shut, swallowing the remaining mountain of prepared flattery.
A fifty-times increase? Hell nah! He quickly stood up, looking toward the Clan Lord with the most pitiful puppy-like expression he could muster. "If talking my way out doesn’t work... then I’ll use the puppy eyes."
Yet the very moment Liyu raised his head... he suddenly felt that something wasn’t right. His gaze instinctively shifted toward the seat beside the Clan Lord; he clearly saw that no one was sitting there.
And yet... for some strange reason... he felt as though someone was there. His intuition screamed that something... or rather someone... important occupied that empty seat.
Unable to suppress his curiosity any longer... Liyu silently gave his system a mental command: "Scan."