Ye Tian glanced at the black-robed man not far away and saw him trying to get up from the ground. But after several failed attempts, it was clear he was badly injured.
With a flicker, he appeared in front of the man. "Weren't you so high and mighty? Didn't you say it would be your honor to kill me? Well, get up! I'm waiting!"
A pained expression crossed the black-robed man's face. Perhaps Ye Tian's words had enraged him, because he suddenly scrambled up from the ground. He swayed precariously, unable to even stand steady.
He stared at Ye Tian and said with great difficulty, "Ye Tian... th-this is impossible. How can you be this powerful? Are you even human?"
Only then did Ye Tian get a clear look at his condition. Several of his wounds were so deep the bone was visible. The worst was on his abdomen, where his internal organs could be clearly seen, and some of them appeared to have been ruptured.
With such a grievous injury, his only hope for survival would be a very precious Spirit Medicine. A Three-leaf Golden Ganoderma might be able to save his life, but Ye Tian didn't have one—and even if he did, he would never give it to him.
"You know perfectly well whether I'm human or not. Are you regretting underestimating me now? Too bad there's no medicine for regret in this world. Your carelessness sealed your fate.
"I've now broken through to the One Vein Eighth Layer. For a Second Vein Second Layer Martial Artist to be defeated by a One Vein Eighth Layer Martial Artist... you must feel indignant, humiliated, don't you?" Ye Tian said, his gaze cold.
His icy tone was like a frost a thousand years old, as if it could blanket the entire land in white. The black-robed man couldn't help but shiver.
"You truly are a genius of the Ye Family. I never imagined you could defeat me in a single blow! But even if you kill me today, you won't live. The Grand Elder will take your life!" the black-robed man said with a hint of desperation, his indignation plain to see.
"Whether he can kill me or not, you won't be around to see it. Seeing you in such pain, I'll be merciful and send you on your way! In your next life, you'll remember who you can afford to provoke and who you can't!" Ye Tian said with a smirk, throwing the man's own words back at him.
The despair on the black-robed man's face now overshadowed his pain. Everyone wants to live; even ants cling to life, let alone a person.
"Ye Tian, can you spare me? From now on, I'll be at your beck and call! I'm just begging you to let me live!" the black-robed man pleaded helplessly.
"I don't keep trash around! I'm done wasting my breath on you; I still have to settle the score with that old geezer! Don't worry, it won't hurt much! It'll be over in a second!" Ye Tian said with a wicked grin.
As his words fell, the Black Glaze Sword in his hand swiftly chopped down at the man. The strike cleaved him in two. It was an exceptionally gruesome death.
Witnessing this, an indescribable feeling welled up in Ye Tian. This was the first time he had ever killed someone, and the sheer brutality of it was, for a moment, difficult for him to accept.
After taking a deep breath, Ye Tian's figure flickered, and he quickly left the area. His next target was the other black-robed man. With the Dragon Spiritual Power currently in his body, he could just barely manage to unleash his most powerful attack one more time.
Still, a lingering discomfort remained. In this world where the strong devoured the weak, killing was a normal occurrence. He believed that if he could just overcome this psychological barrier the first time, it wouldn't be so hard the next.
Ye Tian quickly chased after the other black-robed man. Killing this one had cost him a lot of time, so he pushed his speed to the absolute limit.
However, Ye Tian didn't know that when he had slain the man, the great Dragon's Roar from his Black Glaze Sword had traveled a great distance. The other black-robed man and the Grand Elder had heard it clearly, and even Ye Feifei, who was inside the cave, had heard it.
Ye Feifei was no longer a stranger to the sound of Ye Tian's Dragon's Roar, and she knew it only appeared when he was facing an enemy.
This meant he was likely in danger. Her heart immediately filled with worry, and she quickly left the cave to find Ye Tian.
But Ye Feifei didn't know where Ye Tian was. After surveying the surrounding terrain, she decided to choose the wider, easier path, believing that Ye Tian would surely choose this route as well.
Meanwhile, the Grand Elder and the other black-robed man were rushing toward the location of the fight. Before long, they ran right into Ye Tian, who was speeding toward them.
The Grand Elder, however, was unaware that a flying centipede had been following him from dozens of meters overhead. But upon seeing Ye Tian, the centipede suddenly descended and landed on his shoulder.
"Ye Tian, you've really made us look for you! Let's see you run this time!" the Grand Elder couldn't help but say.
The other black-robed man, however, seemed to have noticed something. "Ye Tian, what did you do to Protector Ye Guanhong? If you don't tell me the truth, I'll make you die a miserable, miserable death today!"
It turned out the black-robed man had seen the Black Glaze Sword in Ye Tian's hand, and the crimson blood still slowly dripping from its blade to the ground.
"You want to know where he is? I'll tell you in a moment! Or rather, I'll let you go and join him!" Ye Tian sneered, an expression on his face that showed he didn't take them seriously at all.
Even a fool could understand what Ye Tian meant by that. The black-robed man's face contorted with rage as he glared at Ye Tian. "You dared to kill him! You will die today!"
What Ye Tian didn't know was that the man he had just killed, Ye Guanhong, was the older brother of this man, Ye Guanxin. The two were very close and usually worked for the Grand Elder, making them his trusted confidants.
To think he had been slain by Ye Tian—this naturally sent Ye Guanxin into a fury. Without a second thought, he raised his Longsword and swung at Ye Tian, using his full strength. The surrounding space immediately trembled as Sword Qi flew in all directions, a truly formidable display.
Ye Tian had no intention of clashing with him head-on. With a quick flash, he easily dodged the attack. He didn't even look at Ye Guanxin, instead turning his gaze to the Grand Elder.
"Grand Elder, you've gone to such lengths to try and kill me. There must be another reason! Claiming it's because I injured your son is a flimsy excuse. You should know it would have been incredibly easy for me to kill him back then. I spared him only because we are both from the Ye Family. But you're treating me like this today. Shouldn't you let me know the real reason why?" Ye Tian said to the Grand Elder.
"Ye Tian, your progress is growing more and more frightening. The word 'genius' truly suits you. As for my son's matter, I'm not that petty. There is only one reason I want you dead: I believe you have something on you that is worth killing for!" the Grand Elder said, staring straight at Ye Tian.
It was as if his gaze could see straight through to a person's soul, making it impossible for one to meet his eyes. But Ye Tian was not afraid and met his stare directly, completely ignoring the other black-robed man.
"I don't think I understand. What could I possibly have on me that would interest you so much?" Ye Tian said with a faint smile, but it was the kind of smile that made him look like he wanted to kill someone...