Seeing the four men charging at him with reckless abandon, a wicked smile curled on Ye Jingyu's lips. He suddenly pointed a finger toward the sky.

The four figures paused, simultaneously looking up, only to see the Azure Ancient Bell, which had been merely a high moments before, now towering at ten. The massive bell body descended straight down…

Before the four could even recover their senses, the azure ancient bell crashed heavily onto the ground, trapping them beneath its expanse. The sheer weight of the bell caused the earth to tremble violently, sending massive fissures radiating outward.

Fang Jiutai was startled. How had he failed to notice this artifact earlier? This must be the same artifact that shattered his father, Fang Tianya, back then. His father had relentlessly pursued Ye Jingyu precisely for this artifact, hadn't he?

Unfortunately for him, before the greed for the artifact could fully ignite in his heart, Ye Jingyu’s body was already before him.

“Farewell, Young Master Fang!” he murmured softly. The Tianzun Blade in his hand flashed, and a blinding gleam of blade light directly split Fang Jiutai in half.

A spray of crimson blood mist erupted, and pieces of flesh scattered everywhere. Fang Jiutai’s soul attempted to flee, but the blade light, laced with arcs of lightning, pulverized it into nothingness…

It was at this moment that the surrounding guards rushed over. Ye Jingyu had no intention of engaging with them. He immediately recalled the East Emperor Bell, his feet flashed with silver light as he employed the Phantom Star Step, and in just a few strides, he vanished without a trace.

His spirit had already been severely injured by the illusionary attack, and to him now, the East Emperor Bell was merely a weapon whose size he could arbitrarily change, not some ultimate treasure. His current combat strength was simply insufficient to allow him to annihilate so many people, even though the highest among them was only at the Fourth Heaven realm.

Moreover, this was Fang family territory, only a few hundred kilometers from Kunlun Mountain. If Fang Zhentian, who was in seclusion at Kunlun Mountain, were to learn the devastating news of his son's tragic death and rush over, Ye Jingyu would never escape.

As for the four men covered by the East Emperor Bell, they had expected certain death. But when the bell disappeared, they found themselves completely unharmed, whereas their young master had been cleaved into minced meat.

Seeing the shattered body and the pooling blood, the faces of the four turned deathly pale. Their young master was dead just like that—how would they explain this to the Family Head?

But no matter how anxious they felt in their hearts, they simply could not catch up to Ye Jingyu. After all, the Phantom Star Step was the fastest divine ability in existence.

The entire scene descended into chaos. The old man who had been assisting Fang Jiutai in managing the area, upon witnessing Fang Jiutai's slaughter, drew a dagger and cleanly plunged it into his own chest. He had brought this young master here; now that the young master was dead, how could he possibly survive?

Setting aside the pandemonium at the scene, Ye Jingyu fled maniacally, covering thousands of kilometers before finally stopping on a small island outside the Ancient Glory Continent.

If not for the severity of his mental damage, he might have escaped all the way back to the Douhun Continent in one continuous burst.

Slaying Fang Jiutai this time relied somewhat on luck. If he hadn't possessed the East Emperor Bell, he likely would have died already. But luck wasn't something that guaranteed persistence. With two sons killed consecutively, he couldn't guarantee that Fang Zhentian wouldn't go berserk. If the Fang family mobilized all their masters to hunt him down, even with his Chaos Physique, he might still be torn to shreds.

Completely concealing his aura, he plunged into a stretch of jungle, found a large tree, and sat down cross-legged in its branches, beginning to regulate his breathing.

However, after circulating his energy for just a few cycles, his eyes snapped open abruptly. A man clad in a long, cyan robe was standing directly before him…

Seeing this man, Ye Jingyu’s expression twisted violently. His body instinctively wanted to leap up and flee, but he forcefully suppressed the urge. Since this person had appeared here, escape was futile regardless of his efforts.

“Fang Zhentian, why… why is it you?” Ye Jingyu asked in stunned disbelief. He had to be shocked. Killing Fang Jiutai was an extremely secretive affair. Even if Fang Zhentian found out later, he shouldn't have been able to catch up so quickly.

“Why shouldn't it be me? You've killed three of my sons in succession. If I still couldn't catch you, what kind of Fang Family Head would I be, and what kind of Alliance Master of the Asia Alliance?” Fang Zhentian’s face was utterly devoid of expression, and his voice was icy cold.

“But… but how did you…” Ye Jingyu's mind was still reeling with shock.

“But why I found you so quickly, right? Did you really think I was an idiot? Do you truly believe that your collaboration with that unfilial brat Fang Zhuguo to kill a member of the Fang family could be concealed from me?” A trace of mockery flickered across Fang Zhentian’s cold face.

Ye Jingyu’s face changed again. He… he actually knew?

“When Yan’er was killed, I suspected you might be involved. But you alone couldn't possibly know his movements, and that bastard Fang Zhuguo happened to have been to the Douhun Continent, leading me to suspect a connection between you two. I reasoned that if he sought cooperation with you, the only motive would be his desire for everything in the Fang family; only through you could he act against his own brothers. Given that, his next most likely target to eliminate would be Tai’er. Of course, this was just my speculation, but I never imagined you two would coincidentally appear right where Tai’er was!” Fang Zhentian sneered.

“So, you knew everything Fang Jiutai was doing, and you were lurking nearby the whole time?” Ye Jingyu grew colder the more he listened. Connecting all that information to deduce his partnership with Fang Zhuguo—he truly was the head of the Fang family.

“Do you think secrets known even to that bastard Fang Zhuguo could be hidden from me?” Fang Zhentian retorted sarcastically.

“Then why didn’t you strike? You just watched him die?” Ye Jingyu was both shocked and confused.

“Whatever happened there would surely have been detected by those few old guys. They must be rushing to that location now. If I had acted there, wouldn't the artifact on you have ended up benefiting them?” Fang Zhentian let out a cold laugh.

A chill crept over Ye Jingyu. Just to monopolize the artifact on him, he watched his own son be murdered? Was his heart truly that venomous?

“Your cultivation technique is very unique. If I hadn't stayed nearby, I wouldn't have been able to pinpoint you. Therefore, they couldn't have detected you, nor could they chase you here. So, hand over the artifact you possess obediently, and perhaps I’ll spare your life!” Fang Zhentian ignored Ye Jingyu’s shock and spoke again.

“Do you think that’s possible?” Ye Jingyu straightened his body, the light in his eyes flickering wildly as he frantically calculated how to escape…

“If that is your decision, then go to hell!” Fang Zhentian sneered, extending a hand directly toward Ye Jingyu to seize him…