"Don't bother with him. Why waste your time on trash like that? Come on, Senior Brother will take you to have some fun."
Yang Kai halted mid-step, then turned around and walked straight up to Fang Tai. He looked up at him. "Brother Fang, have you taken the wrong medicine today?"
Fang Tai replied, "I'm not sick, so why would I need medicine?"
"If you're not sick, then why are you spouting nonsense and insulting me for no reason?"
Fang Tai looked genuinely surprised. "When did I ever insult you? Oh… I was talking about that piece of trash — I wasn't talking about you. I meant someone else. But if you insist on taking it upon yourself, there's nothing I can do about that."
Yang Kai stared at him steadily. Fang Tai's eyes were filled with mockery and derision.
Yang Kai nodded. "Looks like you really are quite sick, Brother Fang."
Fang Tai was about to say something when he saw a fist rapidly growing larger in his field of vision! The next instant, his head buzzed as if struck by tremendous force, and his entire body went flying backward. For a long moment he saw stars, his vision spinning.
The woman standing beside Fang Tai was completely dumbstruck, staring blankly at Yang Kai, who still held his punching stance in her line of sight.
If she hadn't witnessed it with her own eyes, she never would have believed that this seemingly warm and affable Senior Brother had such an explosive temper — throwing a punch the instant words failed to agree. Didn't he know what the consequences of such an action would be?
No sooner had Yang Kai thrown his punch than the women in the main hall activated their movement techniques and dashed out through the door, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
There were still a few Qiaodi disciples who had come here for entertainment watching the spectacle with great interest. How many years had it been? How many years since a menial worker had dared to throw a punch in private? Today they were finally getting to see some entertainment.
On the other side, Fang Tai scrambled unsteadily to his feet. His nose and mouth felt sticky; he reached up and wiped them, finding nothing but blood. He glared up at Yang Kai in fury. "You dare hit me?"
He'd been completely stunned. He never expected Yang Kai to make a move on him — otherwise, with his strength, Yang Kai wouldn't have landed that blow so easily. In that moment, humiliation and rage surged through him simultaneously, and his aura erupted with a thunderous roar.
"You dared insult me, so why wouldn't I dare hit you?" Yang Kai sneered.
"Very well!" Fang Tai roared, kicking aside the table and chairs in his path. He lunged toward Yang Kai like a rampaging primordial beast, both fists the size of grinding stones dissolving into a sky full of fist shadows that bore down on Yang Kai.
Fang Tai was also a newcomer to the Outer Expanse, and his strength was on par with Yang Kai's. As a result, the clash between them was dead even.
Several Qiaodi disciples in seven-colored robes watched from the side, never ones to shy from stirring up trouble, cheering loudly.
But the two had exchanged blows for only a dozen or so breaths before a group of people filed in from outside. The one in front had his hands clasped behind his back. His gaze swept left and right, and he narrowed his eyes and bellowed, "All of you — stop right now!"
Yang Kai and Fang Tai, deep in the heat of battle, ignored him entirely and continued fighting without pause.
"You've got some nerve!" The leader's face twisted with fury. He waved his hand sharply, and the Qiaodi disciples on either side hurled out ropes. The ropes — forged from some unknown material — coiled around Yang Kai and Fang Tai like spirit serpents, binding them into tight bundles in the blink of an eye.
Yang Kai strained with all his might, but couldn't break free. Instead, the rope's constriction intensified, squeezing him until his entire body ached.
"You've got some nerve — brawling in private! Have you forgotten the rules of Qiaodi?"
After binding the two, the leader approached Yang Kai and Fang Tai, looking at one and then the other, his face cold as ice.
"Senior Brother…" Fang Tai had finally come to his senses. His earlier recklessness had been driven by the shock of being hit by Yang Kai — if not for that burst of blind fury, he never would have acted so brazenly. Realizing the gravity of the situation — one misstep could spell doom — he immediately begged for mercy. "Senior Brother, I only arrived here a few months ago and still don't know the rules of Qiaodi very well. Could you perhaps take pity on me as a first-time offender and let me go this once? I'd be endlessly grateful."
"Hmph!" The leader snorted coldly. "Rules are rules. Nobody cares whether it's your first offense or not! Take this loss now, and next time you'll know to behave."
Fang Tai grew frantic. "Senior Brother, I'm innocent! It was that bastard who hit me first — I was forced to fight back! If you don't believe me, ask those Senior Brothers over there. They saw everything clearly."
The leader regarded him with cold indifference. "All I know is that when I walked in, you and this kid were going at it like your lives depended on it! As for who threw the first punch — I have no interest in knowing. Take them both away!"
With that, he turned and headed outside. Fang Tai and Yang Kai, bound like dumplings, were prodded along behind him. Fang Tai kept trying to explain, but only earned himself a tongue-lashing from a nearby Qiaodi disciple. Seeing this, Yang Kai abandoned any thought of wasting his breath.
On the second floor, Old Fang's face had gone pale. "It's over, it's over, it's over…"
He'd heard the commotion below loud and clear. The moment Yang Kai and Fang Tai had started fighting, he'd hurriedly thrown on his clothes and rushed out — but he'd been a step too late. He could only watch helplessly as Yang Kai was bundled up and dragged away, powerless to intervene.
The ones who'd taken Yang Kai were Qiaodi's patrol squad stationed at the market. As a mere menial worker, Old Fang had no standing whatsoever before them. After racking his brains, he realized the only person who could save Yang Kai now was Zhou Zheng. As the orchard's steward and a cultivator of the Open Heaven Realm, if he was willing to step in, he should be able to help.
Steel himself for a hefty price, Old Fang didn't even have time to straighten his clothes before rushing off toward the Fire Spirit Land.
In a crude prison cell, dark and damp, Yang Kai and Fang Tai were locked inside, each occupying a corner of the room.