Chapter Seventy-Four: Turning the Tables

The chubby fellow also looked up at Qin Feiyang, grinning cheekily and cupping his fists. "I am Situ Tianyu, at your service." His sarcastic tone made goosebumps rise all over Qin Feiyang.

Ji Jin glanced at Qin Feiyang, then glared angrily at the fat man and barked, "You damn fatso, can't you shut your mouth for once? Is that so hard?"

"Alright, alright, I won't say another word. You two carry on with your lovey-dovey business. I'll be the good guy for once and stand guard for you." The fat man gave them a knowing look, flashed a mischievous grin, twisted his hips, whistled a tune, and swaggered away.

Ji Jin shot the fat man a vicious glare, then turned to Qin Feiyang and forced a smile. "That's just the way he is—don't take it to heart."

Qin Feiyang replied coldly, "He's not the one you should be worried about. You should worry about yourself."

"Me?" Ji Jin feigned confusion. "What did I do? It was Ling Yan who complained about a stomachache earlier. Shouldn’t you be settling accounts with him?"

Qin Feiyang said, "Fine, I'll give you a chance. Did Cheng Yi send you to cause trouble?"

Ji Jin quickly waved his hands. "No, no, I was just curious, that's all. It has nothing to do with Senior Brother Cheng Yi."

A cold light flashed in Qin Feiyang's eyes; he wasted no more words and suddenly struck, reaching for Ji Jin’s head!

"Jiang Haotian, I advise you not to push your luck!" Ji Jin punched back fiercely.

A violent wind howled, sand and grit swirling. That punch carried the strength of six wild elephants. Clearly, he was well prepared.

"A third-star martial master—you're even weaker than Lu Hong, and you dare to attack?"

"Binding Tiger Hand!"

Qin Feiyang's fingers curled like an eagle's talons, brushed past Ji Jin’s fist, then twisted sharply to seize his arm.

At the same time, a fierce glint appeared in his eyes. With a surge of true energy, he exerted force and broke Ji Jin’s arm on the spot with a miserable howl.

"Why are they fighting?" The fat man, hearing the commotion, stopped and turned back with a look of surprise. Were they not lovers, but enemies? Or had one of them been unfaithful, and the other was acting out of jealousy?

Qin Feiyang demanded, "Speak—is it true Cheng Yi sent you?"

"No!" Ji Jin roared.

"Still not telling the truth?" Qin Feiyang sneered icily and kicked Ji Jin's knee with a sudden blow.

Crack!

His kneecap shattered instantly! Ji Jin collapsed to his knees, groaning in agony.

"How ruthless!" The fat man was so terrified by the scene that cold sweat poured down his back.

"Are you ready to talk now?" Qin Feiyang loomed over Ji Jin, his gaze icy and merciless.

Shuddering, Ji Jin hastily cried, "Alright, I'll talk! Yes, Cheng Yi sent us. He wants to know your talent in alchemy and told us to cause some trouble for you, to embarrass you."

"So that's how it is," Qin Feiyang murmured.

"I had no choice! Cheng Yi possesses sixth-level spiritual power and is favored by all the elders and the hall master. Among the disciples, he practically holds sway over everything! If I don't listen to him, I'll never have a good day again. Jiang Haotian, please, let me off this once. I swear I'll never bother you again."

"One hand covering the heavens—he really thinks he's something." Qin Feiyang snorted coldly, then, as swift as lightning, broke Ji Jin’s other arm as well. "I'll let you off this time, but if there’s a next—"

"There won't be, I swear!" Ji Jin cried hurriedly.

"It had better be so." Qin Feiyang sneered, glanced up at the fat man, and turned to leave.

"So that was Jiang Haotian," the fat man muttered, eyes full of dread.

At that moment, Gu Ba finally caught up. It wasn’t that he was slower than Qin Feiyang, but at this late hour, with only faint moonlight and candle glow, it was pitch dark everywhere. If not for Ji Jin’s screams, he might have lost them.

He blocked Qin Feiyang's path and asked, "What did you do to Ji Jin?"

Qin Feiyang replied, "Just broke both his arms and a leg."

"What?" Gu Ba was shocked and hurried to the rear of the main hall. When he saw Ji Jin lying on the ground, face twisted in pain and groaning, his expression turned grim.

"Jiang Haotian, what is going on here? You must give me an explanation, or I'll have to take you to the hall master."

"Fine, I wanted an explanation myself. Let’s go now," Qin Feiyang said coolly.

"You—" Gu Ba was fuming, but also felt powerless. He nodded. "Alright, let's go. He Wu, bring Ling Yan and Lu Hong to the hall master."

He called out, then picked up Ji Jin and strode down a small path towards the main hall where Luo Xiong resided.

The fat man darted a shifty glance at the three of them and tried to slip away.

"Stop," Qin Feiyang called.

"He can't possibly mean me," the fat man muttered, quickening his pace.

"Fatso, if you don’t stop right now, don’t blame me for not being polite!" Qin Feiyang’s voice rang out.

The fat man’s face changed, and he bolted. Qin Feiyang used his Swift Smoke Steps and, with a few quick strides, grabbed the fat man by the back of his clothes.

But the fat man, without hesitation, shrugged off his clothes and kept running!

Watching the flabby flesh jiggle madly, Qin Feiyang’s face twitched. He hadn’t expected this fellow to be so slippery.

Swish! He caught up again, hooked his foot lightly, and the fat man fell flat on his face, eating a mouthful of dirt.

"Pfah! Pfah!" The fat man scrambled up, spat out dirt, and looked pleadingly at Qin Feiyang. "Brother, just let me go. I'm just passing by. Pretend you didn’t see me, alright?"

Qin Feiyang couldn't help but want to laugh, though his face remained cold. "The problem is, I did see you, and you heard everything."

The fat man wilted like a withered eggplant, hanging his head.

Qin Feiyang tossed the clothes back at him and smiled faintly. "Put your clothes on and come along. As long as you tell the truth, there’ll be benefits for you."

"Benefits?" The fat man snorted as he dressed. "What use are benefits if I end up dead?"

Qin Feiyang was surprised—this fat man seemed smarter than he looked.

Feigning nonchalance, he smiled. "Don’t worry. No one will dare do anything to you."

After he finished dressing and tidied his hair, the fat man asked self-admiringly, "Jiang Haotian, am I handsome?"

"Very," Qin Feiyang nodded.

The fat man chuckled. "I knew it. Being fat doesn’t mean being ugly. But being handsome doesn’t mean being stupid."

"What do you mean?" Qin Feiyang feigned ignorance.

"Here in the Alchemy Hall, I get along with people, but I'm always a second-string character. Whether it’s you, Cheng Yi, Ji Jin, or that wretch Lu Hong, I can’t afford to offend any of you."

"But now, whichever side I testify for, I’ll offend someone and never have peace again." The fat man sighed, full of worry.

Qin Feiyang was genuinely surprised. He hadn’t expected this fat man to see so clearly. Most in the Alchemy Hall must have been fooled by his appearance—he looked simple, but was actually shrewd.

"Don’t worry, as long as I’m here, no one will trouble you," Qin Feiyang assured, patting his shoulder—and found the fat man’s clothes were soaked with sweat. He must really be nervous.

He comforted him, "Relax, relax. I’ve got everything under control."

"With you, things only get worse. The cold wind blows over the Yi River, the warrior departs for good, never to return. Well, it’s no use running—I’ll be the good guy for once, sacrifice myself for righteousness," the fat man said, giving Qin Feiyang a look, then trudged off down the path with tragic resolve.

Qin Feiyang’s face twitched—wasn’t this just to bear witness? Did he need to be so dramatic? What a character.

…

To the east, in a secluded corner, three separate courtyards stood side by side. Within the gardens, flowers bloomed and small trees thrived, full of spring’s vitality.

These were the residences of Luo Xiong, Feng Cheng, and Elder Mo. But all three courtyards were dark, showing they had already retired for the night.

Gu Ba, carrying Ji Jin, arrived outside the middle courtyard and called out, "Hall Master, Gu Ba requests an audience!"

After a moment, Luo Xiong’s voice drifted from the upstairs loft. "What is it?"

"Jiang Haotian seriously injured Ji Jin, Lu Hong, and Ling Yan. We ask for your personal investigation," Gu Ba said.

There was no reply, but a few breaths later, lights flickered on in all three courtyards. Luo Xiong, Feng Cheng, and Elder Mo each stepped out, draped in outer robes.

Seeing Ji Jin’s miserable state, Feng Cheng frowned at Gu Ba. "What happened to cause such a commotion?"

Gu Ba shook his head. "I’m not sure of the details—something to do with Jiang Haotian’s failed alchemy attempt."

"Hall Master, Elders, it was Jiang Haotian’s own alchemy that exploded, but he blamed us and broke both my arms and a leg. Please, you must see justice done for your disciple!" Ji Jin pleaded, tears in his eyes.

At that moment, He Wu arrived, dragging Lu Hong and hefting Ling Yan. Lu Hong knelt at once and bowed deeply. "Please, Hall Master and Elders, uphold justice for me!"

After setting Ling Yan down, the latter lay on the ground clutching his stomach, sobbing. "Hall Master, that Jiang Haotian bullies us too much—not only injuring us, but even trying to kill us! Please, punish him severely!"

"What is that boy up to?" Elder Feng muttered, clearly angry.

Elder Mo raised an eyebrow and asked, "Why were you in Jiang Haotian’s alchemy chamber at the time?"

Ling Yan replied aggrievedly, "It was his first time refining pills, so we went to offer guidance—out of goodwill. Who would have thought, after the explosion, he’d take it out on us? It’s just too much!"

The three leaders exchanged glances, frowning.

"Keep pretending. Let’s see how long you can keep it up," a mocking voice said.

Qin Feiyang strolled over, eyes full of ridicule. Behind him, Situ Tianyu grew more nervous than ever at the sight of the three elders. If Qin Feiyang hadn’t kept a firm grip on his clothes, he might have run for his life.