Chapter 146: Yielding

Zong Dawei and Ruan Haibu were stunned by Wan Rong's first sentence. Before they could process anything further, Wan Rong's second sentence struck like a falling boulder.

"Feng Wenhu has also been killed by Hua Tianyu!"

After uttering these words, Wan Rong began to stare at them coldly. A full minute later, the third sentence burst from his lips.

"Therefore, I am now the master of this hall!"

The world of underground martial arts dojos is brutally direct. It is not like the corporate offices of white-collar workers, where people need to put on hypocritical pleasantries and probe each other with veiled words.

By the time you finish probing, the opportunity has already vanished.

In Wan Rong's circle, there is never any preliminary probing with subordinates. I am simply telling you straight to your face: I am going to be the boss, and you can figure out what to do about it!

"I refuse to submit!" The moment Wan Rong's voice fell, Ruan Haibu loudly voiced his objection.

The minute of cold staring from Wan Rong earlier had given him just enough time to digest the first two sentences. Now, upon hearing the third sentence, Ruan Haibu could no longer stand still!

Putting aside how the hall master could have inexplicably been killed by Hua Tianyu, how could Feng Wenhu have been killed by him as well? One had to remember that on that night not long ago, his master Feng Wenhu had gone along too. When they returned, wasn't Feng Wenhu perfectly fine, just like you, Wan Rong?

Why is Feng Wenhu dead now, while you are still sitting here safe and sound?

Chances are that both the hall master and my master were murdered by you!

Even a minor character possesses the wisdom of a minor character. Although he had not witnessed it with his own eyes, relying solely on his reading of human nature, Ruan Haibu had already deduced the approximate truth.

However, it was of no use.

Ruan Haibu had prepared himself for a physical confrontation with Wan Rong, but unexpectedly, Wan Rong did not pursue the matter further and merely shifted his gaze toward Zong Dawei.

"Do you submit or not?" Wan Rong asked in a cold voice.

"I..." How could Zong Dawei possibly submit in his heart? Yet at this moment, he chose to yield. "I submit!"

The corners of Wan Rong's mouth twitched upward slightly. He motioned with his chin and said, "Go to the back and sign your name with your thumbprint!"

Wan Rong could not be bothered to waste many words on these incoming subordinates. The faction most loyal to him had already been gathered earlier; apart from a few dissenters, the rest posed no problem.

Almost half of the subordinates arriving now were opposed to him. If he had to exchange words with every single dissident, he would never finish sorting out the matters here tonight.

Just like the two men standing before him, he could not even recall their names, which was why he was unwilling to spare a single extra word.

Zong Dawei opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something to Ruan Haibu, but ultimately no words came out. He simply walked away in the direction Wan Rong had indicated.

Before he even stepped out of the main hall, he heard Wan Rong's voice echoing from behind: "Drag him out, cripple his four limbs, and throw him in the dumpster!"

Then, a flurry of chaotic footsteps sounded from an unknown direction. When he entered earlier, he had only seen three people; he had no idea where all these others had been hiding.

Yet Zong Dawei did not dare to look back, fearing that if he turned his head, he would meet the exact same fate as Ruan Haibu.

As expected, Ruan Haibu's shouts and struggles rang out for only a brief second before vanishing completely. By the time Zong Dawei finished signing and pressing his thumbprint, he never heard the man's voice again.

Only after signing and affixing his fingerprint did Zong Dawei retrieve his belongings and receive permission to leave Yongxing Hall.

After turning several street corners and confirming that no one was tailing him, Zong Dawei let out a long, heavy breath. He had finally made it out alive.

This Wan Rong, ambitious as he was and possessing some ruthless methods, was still far too foolish!

The Yongxing Branch of the Jiang Family Martial Arts Dojo was neither the Yongxing Martial Arts Dojo nor the Wan Family Martial Arts Dojo. Did he really think he could just change its surname on a whim?

Did he truly think the Jiang family was that simple to deal with?

As for the others, I cannot say, but I am Jiang Lifu's direct disciple. Although my martial arts skills are mediocre, staying at the Yongxing Branch meant guarding against bastards like you!

Want to be the hall master? Wan Rong, your surname is not Jiang, and you are not worthy!

Zong Dawei plunged back into the dark night, pulled out his mobile phone, and dialed a number...

The Yongxing Branch of the Jiang Family Martial Arts Dojo was destined to know no peace...

No matter how deep the darkness of the night had been, it could never halt the footsteps of dawn. As the sky grew faintly bright, Hua Tianyu was already jogging and exercising in Jinhai Garden as usual.

"Hua Tianyu!" A familiar cry made him halt his steps. It was Shu Yue!

As Shu Yue hurried up from behind, Hua Tianyu resumed his pace, though he deliberately slowed down to match hers side by side.

"Thank you for yesterday! For teaching that Cheng Feng a lesson on my behalf!" Shu Yue said as she ran.

Hua Tianyu smiled silently without speaking.

"Still, since you knew all along that the thief was Cheng Feng, why didn't you say anything sooner?" Shu Yue asked. She was quite displeased that Hua Tianyu had kept them in the dark for so long; her cheerful personality meant she preferred to settle scores on the spot.

"To catch a bigger fish. Unless I uncover who is targeting Swan Group from behind the scenes, I can never truly rest easy. A mere Cheng Feng is nothing more than a pawn at the front lines," Hua Tianyu replied.

"Sigh!" Hearing this, Shu Yue let out a sigh and gradually came to a halt.

Hua Tianyu stopped along with her and asked, "What is it?"

"I'm starting to regret taking on this research project. Ever since I started it, I feel like I've been bringing all sorts of endless trouble to Xueying and myself!" Shu Yue looked somewhat melancholic.

Hua Tianyu shook his head slightly. "It is not your fault. The emergence of a new technology and the birth of a new theory are inherently without any flaw."

"The fault lies within human hearts. There are always people who, under various pretexts, frantically dance on the edge of self-destruction!"

"Even if you hadn't researched this project, someone else would have targeted Swan Group for some other reason!"

"Hua Tianyu, why does hearing your words of comfort make my mood feel even heavier?" Shu Yue glared at him and said.

Hua Tianyu turned solemn. "Because I am not comforting you; I am merely stating a fact. I want to tell you through this fact that science is blameless, technology is blameless, and you are blameless! The blame rests solely in the hearts of certain individuals!"

"Well, that does make some sense." Shu Yue pondered for a moment, nodded in agreement, and slowly resumed her jog.

Seeing that Hua Tianyu had quickly fallen into step beside her again, Shu Yue's eyes narrowed into slits. A mischievous, teasing smile appeared on her face as she asked, "Did you offend Han Yan yesterday?"

Hua Tianyu was momentarily startled, but understanding dawned immediately. Since Han Yan and Shu Yue were both Wei Xueying's best friends, they naturally knew each other well.

Shu Yue hadn't come over for dinner last night; could it be that she had gone to listen to Han Yan pouring out her grievances? It was hard to imagine such a fierce, tomboyish girl crying and complaining.

Hua Tianyu smiled faintly and said...