Looking at Elder Tie's clamoring, somewhat twisted face, Master Ye sighed inwardly. Having someone like Elder Tie as a high-ranking member of the Treasure Tree Sect was truly unfortunate.
Here was a high-ranking figure of a prestigious sect, yet in a mundane kingdom, he was losing his composure so spectacularly. To suffer such a humiliating defeat at the hands of a mere youth—Elder Tie was truly a unique specimen, unmatched in his absurdity.
In contrast, look at Jiang Chen. From beginning to end, he maintained an air of effortless calm.
Comparatively, Elder Tie, with all his years, had clearly lived them in vain.
Seeing Jiang Chen’s unruffled demeanor only fueled Elder Tie’s rage. The calmer Jiang Chen appeared, the more Elder Tie saw it as a profound provocation.
You brat, barely out of your diapers, playing the serene and detached one in front of me?
Elder Tie glared hatefully at Jiang Chen: "Jiang Chen, don't think that escaping today means you can rest easy. Yang Zhao is not Lü Wuji!"
Yang Xiaoqian also spat with hatred, "You killed my nephew, my Second Brother Yang Zhao, will definitely not let you off. Jiang Chen, if you ever fall into our hands, I’ll make sure you wish you were dead!"
Jiang Chen smiled faintly: "Yang Zhao? I hope he gets the chance in his next life."
"What did you say?" Elder Tie narrowed his eyes to slits.
Yang Xiaoqian sneered, "Have you lost your mind? You still think you can go up against my Second Brother? With your meager cultivation, you want to fight a Earth Spirit Realm powerhouse? Don't you think..."
Before Yang Xiaoqian could finish, a figure shot up from below with a *whoosh*.
It was none other than Qi Tiannan, the Third Deputy Steward of the Dragon Tooth Guard. His face was filled with panic, as if the sky had collapsed, and his complexion was ashen, as though he had seen a ghost.
He hurried over to Grand Steward Shangguan Yi: "Grand Steward, terrible news! Deputy Steward Yang Zhao, he... he..."
Shangguan Yi's expression turned cold. "What about him?"
His first thought was that Yang Zhao had rebelled, turning the Dragon Tooth Guard army against him.
Qi Tiannan looked as if he had truly seen a ghost. "He... he's dead! Died horribly!"
"What?"
Elder Tie and Yang Xiaoqian's faces changed in an instant.
Elder Tie shot forward, grabbing Qi Tiannan by the collar, his expression ferocious. "What did you say? Say that again!"
Qi Tiannan, held fast by Elder Tie, couldn't move.
Yang Xiaoqian also rushed over, her beautiful face filled with anxiety. "What did you just say? What happened to my Second Brother?"
Qi Tiannan looked miserable. Seeing the murderous glint in Elder Tie and Yang Xiaoqian's eyes, his teeth almost chattered. He feared that one wrong word would get him beaten to death by Elder Tie.
Shangguan Yi snorted. "Elder Tie, if you want to ask questions, perhaps release Deputy Steward Qi first? Is this any way to behave?"
Elder Tie roared viciously, "Shangguan Yi, don't give me that crap! If anything has happened to Yang Zhao, you are the main culprit!"
Shangguan Yi, seeing this man was completely unreasonable, finally reached the end of his patience after enduring so much. "Elder Tie, you may want to bully everyone, and I, Shangguan Yi, don't have as powerful a backer as you, so I put up with it. But if you try to slander and frame me, then let me tell you, I am not some pig or dog you can slaughter at will!"
"Oh? Are you thinking of rebelling?" Elder Tie's eyes glinted sharply.
Shangguan Yi was unafraid. "Elder Tie, everything has its limits. Don't push people too far."
Just as Elder Tie was about to explode, Yang Xiaoqian glanced at Ye Chonglou, signaling Shangguan Yi not to be impulsive.
"Brother Tie, release him first. Let's hear the full story."
Elder Tie snorted and let go of Qi Tiannan, shouting, "What exactly happened? Tell me everything in detail, don't leave out a single key word!"
Qi Tiannan's face was ashen. He stammered, "It's like this. This morning, Deputy Steward Yang Zhao came to the Dragon Tooth Guard headquarters and summoned some Commanders for individual talks. Later, those Commanders all came out. Deputy Steward Yang was in a private chamber, saying he wanted some time alone to think. Later, when that big commotion happened up front—the killing of Xin Wudao and Qi Fengxian—several subordinates hurried to report it, but no matter how they called, Deputy Steward Yang wouldn't open the door. Then... one Deputy Steward took the liberty of pushing the door open, only to discover..."
"Discover what?" Yang Xiaoqian's voice was trembling slightly.
"Discovered Deputy Steward Yang lying in a pool of blood, his body... as if something had gnawed on it, his features unrecognizable. Aside from his head, the rest had been gnawed down almost to the skeleton. Only his head, his clothing, and some personal tokens allowed us to identify him..."
"Impossible!" Yang Xiaoqian's expression changed drastically. She covered her ears with her hands and shrieked, "That's impossible! My Second Brother was at least an Earth Spirit Realm powerhouse! How could it happen? In the Tiangui Kingdom, how many people could possibly kill him? You must have seen wrong!"
Elder Tie also shook his head repeatedly. "Right, you must have been mistaken. Xiaoqian, come on, let's go down! We'll see for ourselves!"
He turned to glare hatefully at Jiang Chen. "Jiang Chen, if you had anything to do with this, you are an enemy of my Tie family. This grudge is irreconcilable—it will only end with death!"
Jiang Chen smiled faintly, unmoved by Elder Tie's threat. Even without Yang Zhao's incident, Elder Tie already hated him to the bone.
Hearing this news suddenly, Shangguan Yi, for a moment, didn't know whether to feel sorrow or joy.
On the whole, with Yang Zhao dead, his faction would naturally scatter like frightened birds. The major power bloc within the Dragon Tooth Guard would be thoroughly dismantled.