"What brings you here?" Upon seeing the figure before him, a look of disgust crossed Fang Jiutai's face.

"My Godfather instructed me to eliminate Ye Jingyu. I heard he was around here, so I came to check!" The newcomer was none other than Fang Zhuguo.

The news of Fang Jiutai embroidering human skin here was also leaked by Fang Zhuguo. Only he, having been an informant lurking within the Fang family for years, knew this secret that even Fang Zhentian might be unaware of.

When Ye Jingyu made his move, Fang Zhuguo was nearby, initially intending to offer assistance should anything go wrong. But when he arrived at the scene and saw the completely collapsed ground, a wave of worry washed over his eyes.

Such immense weight—even he couldn't withstand it. Even if Ye Jingyu's physical strength surpassed his own, he surely couldn't have survived? So much time had passed, yet there was still no movement. Perhaps he was truly gone?

If Ye Jingyu had really died like that, how would he explain it to Xiyang?

While Fang Zhuguo might be somewhat psychologically twisted in certain aspects, he was genuinely sincere toward friends like Xiyang and Xue Ming, who never treated him as someone beneath them. If Ye Jingyu hadn't been involved with Xiyang in that way, and had perished during the plot to kill Fang Jiutai, he would have felt nothing more than regret.

But now, with that connection established, he couldn't help but overthink the situation.

"Hmph, you bastard, how dare you show your face? Back then, Father ordered you to go to the Douhun Continent to kill the murderer of Fang Jiuyou. You claimed the mission was complete, but what was the result? The result was that you failed to kill him! The murderer of both Fang Jiuyou and Fang Jiuyan is the same person—Ye Jingyu! You wretched thing, look at your efficiency!" Fang Jiutai’s face was contorted in mockery.

Fang Zhuguo's expression shifted. How could Fang Jiutai possibly know that Ye Jingyu was the one who killed Fang Jiuyan?

"What? Are you still unconvinced? If you had truly killed him back then, how could this have happened? Jiuyan is dead, and I was nearly killed too! Tell me, isn't that your responsibility?" Seeing Fang Zhuguo’s change in expression, Fang Jiutai simply assumed his anger stemmed from being called a bastard.

"Fang Jiutai, I was only following orders to pursue the killer of brothers Jiuyou. According to the intelligence provided by Yuan Tian and the others, I had indeed killed the culprit. As for what you said about Brother Jiuyan, what does that have to do with him? Everyone knows he is Dugu Bachen's disciple; he absolutely cannot be a master of the Fire Element!" Fang Zhuguo stabilized his mind and stated coldly.

"Impossible? I heard it directly from his own mouth! Moreover, the two mechanical beasts by my side were melted by the flames emanating from him. Those beasts were forged from Primordial Gold! You bastard, you should know how strong Primordial Gold is!" Fang Jiutai snorted coldly, once again hurling the insult of 'bastard' at Fang Zhuguo.

Fang Zhuguo’s face went through a rapid series of changes. His fists clenched tightly, the veins on his forehead bulged, and his eyes filled with rage...

"What? Are you, a bastard, actually daring to strike me?" Seeing Fang Zhuguo’s rapidly changing expression, Fang Jiutai continued to speak coldly. The few experts flanking him subtly took a step forward, placing themselves between Fang Zhuguo and Fang Jiutai.

Even though they knew Fang Zhuguo was also a young master of the Fang family, they held no respect for such a young master.

"If I am a bastard, then what are you? Don't forget, we share the same father!" Fang Zhuguo muttered to Fang Jiutai with a low growl, no longer wishing to exchange words with the man. He turned and began to walk away.

"Stop right there! What did you just say?" Fang Jiutai roared in fury. Although he was aware of Fang Zhuguo's parentage, in the Fang family, who treated him as Fang Zhentian’s biological son? Even Fang Zhentian showed him little regard. In the end, he was merely one of the Fang family's dogs.

"I didn't say anything!" Fang Zhuguo replied apathetically. What he had just said was enough to ignite the anger of the elders in the Fang family. If those old fossils actually heard it, even if they didn't kill him, they would severely punish him.

Now was not the time to completely break ties with those old powers...

Ye Jingyu, I hope you can miraculously survive...

Sighing heavily inwardly, he paid no more attention to Fang Jiutai and transformed into a streak of light, soaring into the distance.

"You bastard, how dare you run! Fang Xing, Fang Zhan, Fang Long, Fang Hu, go seize him for me! I will teach him a lesson he won't forget!" Seeing that Fang Zhuguo completely disregarded him, Fang Jiutai’s rage intensified. He pointed toward the direction Fang Zhuguo fled and bellowed.

The four strongest guards beside him accepted the order simultaneously, rising up to chase after Fang Zhuguo. They too were disdainful of the arrogance displayed by this illegitimate son.

Meanwhile, the numerous guards remaining at the site were tirelessly digging through the ruins.

These were all high-level experts, the lowest being Grandmasters. Employing them for such manual labor meant the speed was astonishing, several times faster than using large excavation machinery. After about a quarter of an hour, the collapsed stone chamber was completely unearthed. The scrolls and equipment inside were indeed destroyed, just as Fang Jiutai had imagined, but there was no blood or gore present as he had expected.

Furthermore, the black banner had vanished without a trace.

How could this be? This stone chamber was sealed on all sides; how could he have escaped? Even if he possessed Earth Element abilities, he shouldn't have been able to flee!

Just as Fang Jiutai was pondering this confusion, a streak of cyan light shot out before him. An ancient bell rapidly expanded, growing to a height of ten feet in the blink of an eye.

With a deep "wummm," the ancient bell soared upward, revealing a figure within—it was Ye Jingyu, his face split by a wicked grin...

Upon seeing that face, Fang Zhuguo’s expression drastically altered. The guards, sensing the sudden change, were already rushing toward him.

But apart from the four initial-grade Heaven-level experts still by his side, the rest of the guards were further away from him than Ye Jingyu was now...

"You can die now!" A chilling voice issued from his lips. His figure darted forward, and the Heavenly Venerate Blade in his hand shot out a dazzling flash of light...

Sensing the might of that light, the four guards in front of Fang Zhuguo remained impassive. They drew their weapons and met Ye Jingyu’s blade light with all their strength. They absolutely would not allow their master to suffer the slightest injury under their watch...