Chapter 108: Arthur Leaves

Lin Qi completely ignored the commotion around him. He focused all his attention on beating Arthur, entrusting his safety entirely to Enzo.

Enzo did not let Lin Qi down. His sword swept in front of Lin Qi, accurately blocking four vicious cold gleams of steel. The crisp clashing sounds made the surrounding people step forward together, but none of them dared to act rashly. Holding his sword in his right hand to block the four daggers, Enzo clenched his left fist and struck forward fiercely.

The sound of cracking bone was sharp and clear. The big man at the front had his nose bridge nearly punched into his face by Enzo. Blood spurted from his nostrils, splattering dozens of crimson spots onto the smooth floor. Enzo’s longsword drew a yellow arc through the air, sweeping sharply toward the chests of the four large men, who had no choice but to retreat three steps.

They never got a chance to step forward again because Leo had already rushed to their backs. A delicate axe, just over a foot long, slammed hard against their shoulders. Accompanied by shrill screams, the four men’s right shoulders were shattered by Leo. Everyone could clearly see their shoulders cave in by more than an inch—their right shoulders were completely ruined.

Unless they could immediately drink healing potions made by a Master of Secret Medicine, these four big men were thoroughly crippled.

But Leo did not let them off so easily. The small axe in his hand magically vanished. He grabbed the backs of the necks of two of the big men and lifted them overhead as if they were straw dummies, then slammed them heavily onto the ground.

Sounds of cracking bones echoed like popping beans. Before the remaining two men could even turn around, Leo had grabbed them and, following the same method, hurled them to the ground. More bone-cracking sounds ensued, and Leo, relentless, jumped up and stomped down fiercely with his right leg. The bones in the four men’s bodies were crushed inch by inch under Leo’s feet. The four men screamed shrilly but passed out from the pain after just two cries.

Leo breathed heavily and gave Enzo a deep look, then nodded. “Kid, you’re pretty good!”

Enzo stared back at Leo fiercely, extending his left hand with a grin. “Still not as good as you.”

The two chuckled darkly, and Leo thrust out his left hand to grip Enzo’s firmly. A faint yellow glow flashed briefly on Enzo’s fingers, while a dense green radiance suddenly appeared on Leo’s hand. This giant, who had followed Lin Qi since childhood, had actually reached the peak of the High Earth Rank, and he was only a few years older than Lin Qi and Enzo.

“Monster!” Enzo muttered under his breath. To have the strength of the peak High Earth Rank in his twenties—this was a real monster. Now Enzo understood why Lin Qi called Leo a genius in cultivating Combat Qi!

Lin Qi stomped viciously on Arthur. The hard soles of his crocodile-skin boots nearly ground Arthur’s face into a bloody mess. He kicked Arthur’s stomach fiercely and roared through gritted teeth, “Bastard, this is the New Year’s banquet. Can’t you let me be happy? Huh? Do you need me to beat you up to make you happy, to make the New Year feel wonderful?”

Arthur was beaten half-unconscious by Lin Qi, but his single purple eye stared venomously at Lin Qi. Since you know this is the New Year’s banquet, how can you still hit someone? Of course, Arthur had come with the intention of provoking Lin Qi, but you’re not supposed to actually start a fight! At a New Year’s banquet, you’re not even supposed to utter a single curse.

Lin Qi pressed his foot hard against Arthur’s throat. He wanted to just crush his windpipe and get it over with, to kill off this scum who infuriated him so much. He firmly believed that Ya and Ling were helpers brought by Arthur, and those Black Spirit Warriors were definitely connected to Arthur. Rather than letting Arthur scheme against him again and again from the shadows, he might as well take advantage of today’s situation to finish him off.

Pressing down with more force, Lin Qi said calmly to the silent family members around him, “You are my witnesses—his men attacked me first!”

The young people exchanged glances and nodded in agreement. Without a doubt, even if Lin Qi had provoked the fight, the blame had to be pinned on Arthur. No matter what, Lin Qi was the family’s only legitimate heir. Arthur, as an outsider, had failed to win the affection of many in the family over the years.

Arthur’s face turned crimson, his eyeballs nearly popping out of their sockets. His limbs twitched weakly, and he seemed about to lose consciousness.

Just as Lin Qi brazenly attempted to kill Arthur in public, a gentle yet extremely powerful gust of wind swept in from the side. Unable to withstand the force, Lin Qi stumbled backward a few steps. Blackbeard, followed by his trusted subordinates, pushed through the crowd. Blackbeard’s furry face was dark, and he bit down on his cigar as he said solemnly, “This is the New Year’s banquet. No matter how upset you are, you can’t make trouble here.”

Lin Qi spread his hands and sneered, “I’m not the one causing trouble. The Gods are my witnesses—it wasn’t me.”

Blackbeard took a deep breath, and half his cigar turned to ash. He exhaled a thick plume of smoke and said quietly, “Even so, you shouldn’t have beaten someone like this.”

He sighed lightly and shook his head. “Lin Qi, no need to wait for your winter break to end. In a couple of days, you’ll return to the Imperial Capital to continue your studies. Arthur, after the New Year, you’ll go back to your father’s territory. I’ll give you some money and twenty fully armed ships.”

Lin Qi indifferently crossed his arms over his chest. If he had to return to school, then so be it. With so much money on hand, he was eager to expand the Iron Fist Brotherhood as quickly as possible. Places like the Cripple’s Tavern and the Hunchback’s Shop would soon be no match for him.

Arthur gasped for breath, trembling as he struggled to his feet. His single eye swept over his four unconscious subordinates lying on the ground—they were completely crippled. Arthur didn’t have any life-saving Secret Elixirs worth a fortune to use on them.

Bowing deeply to Blackbeard, Arthur said dejectedly, “Father, I… I’m very sorry. I just wanted to share a drink with Lin Qi, but I truly didn’t expect things to turn out like this!”

Before he could finish speaking, a wine jar smashed heavily into Arthur’s head, cutting a large gash on his forehead.

Maria stood in the crowd and shouted angrily, “You’re lying, you despicable scoundrel! You were the one picking a fight with Young Master Lin Qi—we all saw it!”

The wine jar had been thrown by Maria herself, and the surrounding young people all nodded in agreement.

Arthur’s face flushed red with embarrassment. Without even glancing at the four big men on the floor, he lowered his head and hurriedly left the ballroom.

He strode directly out of Lin Qi’s Ancestral Residence and vanished into the swirling snowstorm.