The War God had arrived.
As always, the War God was dressed in his signature style: a military overcoat, seated in a wheelchair, with a blanket draped over his knees.
His aide pushed him slowly through the door.
“Your Forbidden City has such grand authority. Even daring to kill the Supreme Leader’s personal bodyguard—are you trying to challenge the Supreme Leader himself?”
The War God’s voice was soft, but with his opening words, he pinned a massive accusation on the Forbidden City.
Long Qi unclenched his fists, his cold gaze settling on the War God. “Your Hades Hall wants to meddle in this too?”
The War God said calmly, “This farce needs to end.”
Farce?
End?
Long Qi instantly grasped the War God’s intent and snorted coldly, “Easy for you to say. My Ninth Brother was killed, and you think it ends just because you say so? Are you bullying us because the Forbidden City has fewer people?”
“Then what do you want?” the War God asked.
“I want them dead.” Long Qi pointed at Ye Wudi, Ye Qiu, Master Longmei, and Master Du’e, then continued:
“My Ninth Brother can’t have died for nothing.”
“Once Ye Wudi and these troublemakers are dead, then this matter can end.”
The War God replied, “I came here to stop you from killing.”
“You, a cripple, think you can stop me? Who do you think you are?” Long Qi sneered. “Even if you called every member of Hades Hall here, you couldn’t stop me from killing today.”
The War God’s expression remained calm as he said, “You can’t kill any of these people.”
“Longmei is the head of Dragon Tiger Mountain, equal to the head of Wudang Mountain as leaders of the Taoist world. He’s highly respected and has made countless contributions to the nation over the years—a national hero. You can’t kill someone like him.”
“Master Du’e is the abbot of Dali’s Tianlong Temple. If you touch him, beware—Monk Kongjian won’t let it slide.”
Monk Kongjian.
At that name, a flicker of gravity appeared in Long Qi’s eyes.
He’d once heard from his eldest brother, Long Yi, that Monk Kongjian was a rare enlightened monk of this era, over a hundred years old, with cultivation that had reached the pinnacle. Were it not for his devotion to Buddhism, the top five of the God List would surely include Monk Kongjian.
Though Buddhism often preached that vengeance begets vengeance, if Long Qi killed Master Du’e, Monk Kongjian would not stand idly by.
After all, Master Du’e was his only disciple.
“Buddhists typically avoid worldly conflicts and pose little threat to our Forbidden City. Sparing him isn’t out of the question. As for Longmei…”
Long Qi glanced at Master Longmei.
Master Longmei lay unconscious on the ground, his face ashen, blood trickling ceaselessly from his mouth.
Long Qi could tell at a glance that Master Longmei didn’t have long to live.
“Fine, I won’t kill Du’e or Longmei, but he must die.” Long Qi pointed at Ye Wudi.
Long Ba followed, pointing at Ye Qiu. “This kid must die too. Everything today was caused by him. He has to pay the price.”
The War God said sternly, “Ye Qiu is a warrior of my Hades Hall, with the rank of colonel. He’s risked his life countless times and made immense contributions to the nation—a first-class meritorious hero.”
What?
The guests were utterly shocked.
“Ye Qiu looks barely twenty-something, and he’s already a colonel? Is this real?”
“The War God wouldn’t lie to us. It must be true.”
“Terrifying. At this rate, Ye Qiu could become a general before he’s thirty.”
“Didn’t you hear the War God? Ye Qiu’s a first-class hero. In peacetime, earning that honour is incredibly hard. He must have truly risked his life for the country.”
“…”
Bai Yujing felt his mind buzzing, unable to believe it.
“When did Ye Qiu get promoted to colonel? How did I not hear a whisper of this?”
“And a first-class hero—what’s that about?”
“He’s so young and already a colonel. Is the War God grooming him to be his successor?”
Bai Yujing’s face twisted into a grimace as he glared at the War God, his eyes blazing with killing intent.
“Old fool, which warrior in Hades Hall hasn’t made immense contributions to the nation?”
“Which mission isn’t a walk on a knife’s edge?”
“Why does Ye Qiu get all the honours alone?”
“I’ve made contributions to the country too. Why does Ye Qiu rise faster than me? Why?”
“With such blatant favouritism, aren’t you afraid of sparking outrage?”
Bai Yujing was practically exploding with rage.
At that moment, Long Qi spoke up.
“So what if he’s contributed to the nation? A first-class hero? No one can stop me from killing who I want.”
It was clear Long Qi was dead set on killing Ye Qiu.
“There’s another identity of Ye Qiu you might not know,” the War God said. “He’s the Supreme Leader’s grandson-in-law. Do you still want to kill him?”
Hm?
Long Qi’s brow arched, his face showing doubt.
The guests were puzzled too.
“Elder Tang’s granddaughter is married?”
“I haven’t heard anything about that!”
“We’d know if something this big happened. It seems the War God’s starting to lie to protect Ye Qiu.”
Ye Qiu stared at the War God in disbelief, thinking, This old guy’s spouting nonsense. Since when do I have a fiancée?
Bai Yujing shouted sharply, “War God, what kind of joke is this? When did Elder Tang’s granddaughter get married?”
The War God replied, “Elder Tang’s granddaughter isn’t married yet, but Elder Tang has told me Ye Qiu is her fiancé. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Elder Tang yourself.”
Bai Yujing’s face turned ashen instantly. A figure like Elder Tang wasn’t someone he could just question.
Not even General Bai would dare casually pry into Elder Tang’s affairs.
Did he think those in power were mere decorations?
In the past, Elder Tang would’ve been akin to an emperor. Meddling in an imperial family’s private matters was a death wish.
“He’s just a fiancé, not yet married, so he doesn’t count as Elder Tang’s grandson-in-law,” Long Qi said. “Today’s chaos was all stirred up by this kid. He’s clearly no saint. Killing him might even earn Elder Tang’s gratitude.”
“If Elder Tang’s displeased, I can promise to personally find him a satisfactory grandson-in-law until he’s happy.”
Long Qi shifted his tone. “Ye Wudi must die today too.”
“He’s disregarded the Forbidden City’s dignity and killed my Ninth Brother—utterly outrageous. If I don’t kill him, how can my Ninth Brother’s spirit rest in peace?”
“If I don’t kill him, where does the Forbidden City’s honour stand?”
“If I don’t kill him, how can I quench the hatred in my heart?”
The War God said gravely, “So, there’s no room for negotiation?”
“What’s there to negotiate? Ye Wudi and that kid must die today!” Long Qi’s stance was unyielding.
The War God wanted to protect them; Long Qi wanted them dead. Neither would budge.
Suddenly, the atmosphere grew tense.
After a thirty-second standoff.
A colossal aura erupted from the War God, like a tiger awakening from slumber, exuding a majestic ferocity as he declared:
“Since that’s the case, let’s be blunt. I’ll lay it out here.”
“Today, whether it’s Ye Qiu, Ye Wudi, or anyone else, you won’t kill a single one.”
“If you dare touch them, I’ll wipe out your Forbidden City.”
