Chapter 84: A Bountiful Harvest

Afterward, the women bid their farewells one by one, and Chu Tianfeng returned to his room to continue cultivating.

The next day, he received another call from Du Jingjing, who said that Du Sancai insisted on giving him shares in the company. Moreover, as further compensation, Du Sancai was prepared to present him with a grand gift, though Du Jingjing confessed she had no idea what the present would be.

Chu Tianfeng promptly refused. He lacked money, not sense—who could tell if Du Sancai wasn’t simply dangling a carrot before him?

For the next few days, no one disturbed him, allowing Chu Tianfeng to cultivate in peace.

That evening, feeling his injuries were nearly healed, Chu Tianfeng went to bid farewell to Liu Qianqian.

She was visibly reluctant to let him go, walking him all the way to the gates of the Liu family estate. Seeing her sorrowful expression, Chu Tianfeng felt a pang of sympathy and gently urged her, “Go back now. I’ll come see you often in the future.”

Liu Qianqian looked at Chu Tianfeng, hesitating as if to speak but stopping herself.

“If there’s something you want to say, just say it. If it’s within my power, I’ll do it for you.” After these days spent together, Chu Tianfeng had come to understand and feel a certain tenderness for this younger sister.

“I... I heard from Senior Xu Yan that you were my brother’s classmate, his close friend, is that true?” Liu Qianqian asked timidly.

Chu Tianfeng paused for a moment. “Uh...”

“If you see him, please tell him that the family has arranged a marriage for him. The girl is quite cold and distant. If he doesn’t like her, he should try not to come home and instead find someone better, someone who truly understands him.” Her voice was low, nearly breaking.

Moved, Chu Tianfeng patted her gently on the back of her head. “You seem to care a lot about your brother.”

“To be honest, I didn’t use to like him much,” Liu Qianqian said, lifting her gaze to the distance. “But now, he’s the only family I have left.”

Her face was marked by helplessness and resentment.

Chu Tianfeng suddenly felt a deep ache in his heart.

Bidding her goodbye, he made his way directly to the Zhu family.

He intended to destroy them—not only for Liu Qianqian, but for himself as well.

The Zhu family lived in a small villa, whose address Chu Tianfeng had already obtained from Liu Qianqian. Perhaps it was still early, for only an old housemaid was in the kitchen; Elder Zhu and the others were nowhere to be seen.

Chu Tianfeng headed to a nearby teahouse to wait patiently.

To his surprise, it was after ten at night before Elder Zhu finally returned, accompanied by a tall, square-faced young man. Zhu Shangwu, however, was still nowhere in sight.

Growing impatient, Chu Tianfeng slipped in unseen, knocked the old maid unconscious, then strode into the living room and revealed himself.

With a wave of his hand—whoosh!—several icicles shot through the air.

“Ah!” Elder Zhu, startled, leapt up to dodge.

Yet his speed was nothing compared to the flying icicles.

Hiss, hiss—

He barely left the sofa before the icicles pierced his body.

Covered in bloody holes, Elder Zhu collapsed back onto the sofa.

The young man beside him trembled in terror, paralyzed with fear, not daring to move.

“It’s you—” Elder Zhu only now realized who his attacker was.

Faced with this signature hidden weapon, Elder Zhu could no longer feign ignorance.

“Where is Sima Lin?” Chu Tianfeng walked over, his voice icy.

“I don’t know,” Elder Zhu replied with a disdainful snort.

Chu Tianfeng raised his hand, sending another volley of icicles flying.

A scream erupted beside him—the young man’s.

“Father, just tell him!” the young man cried desperately.

Elder Zhu glanced at his son and sighed deeply. “The president is at Villa 18, Egret Lake Palace.”

A cold smile flickered across Chu Tianfeng’s face. Lightning-fast, he knocked both men unconscious and then conjured two fireballs, burning them to ashes.

Since that youth was Elder Zhu’s son, he must have been Zhu Shangwen. Chu Tianfeng felt no need for mercy toward this family.

Afterward, he hailed a cab straight to Egret Lake Palace.

Egret Lake Palace was one of Tianhai’s earliest affluent neighborhoods, located in the suburbs, not far from his own small courtyard.

Again choosing stealth, Chu Tianfeng slipped in and quickly found Villa 18.

It was a detached house, with no surrounding wall, but with decent security: tall trees circled the property, with guards stationed in each direction atop the branches.

Yet their martial skill was pitifully low—mere ants in the world of inner strength. Chu Tianfeng dispatched them all with ease.

Then, slipping in through an open window, he entered the villa.

With his powerful spiritual sense, he soon located Sima Lin, who was lying in a large third-floor bedroom, attended by two guards at the peak of their abilities.

Seven or eight people occupied other rooms; one was a master, the rest merely possessed minor skill.

Such strength, Chu Tianfeng found contemptible.

He’d once been wary of Sima Lin, but now the old man was gravely wounded; the rest were nothing to fear.

With his plan set, Chu Tianfeng rushed up to the third floor.

Bang!

Sima Lin’s door shattered to dust as Chu Tianfeng leapt inside.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Sima Lin, the strongest among them, reacted the quickest. He knew this hidden weapon all too well.

He also knew that, gravely injured as he was, he was no match for the intruder.

With both hands, he flung aside the bedding and rolled off the bed.

The icicles tore through the quilt, their speed slightly slowed, giving Sima Lin a chance to tumble to the floor.

Clink, clink!

The icicles clattered onto the ground, ringing like silver bells.

The two guards were not so lucky. They had never faced Chu Tianfeng before, nor did they know the terror of his hidden weapons.

Moreover, their skills were limited; there was no way to dodge the rain of ice.

Screams rang out as the two men fell.

Swish!

Sima Lin sprang to his feet and lunged for the nearby window.

Chu Tianfeng could not allow him to escape. In a flash, just as Sima Lin neared the window, another volley of icicles was already upon him.

Sima Lin was forced to abandon his plan, dodging to the side.

But Chu Tianfeng’s icicles clung to him like shadows, following relentlessly.

A thousand curses flitted through Sima Lin’s mind, but he dared not pause, only leaping again to escape.

“Stop!” Sima Lin shouted as he dodged.

Chu Tianfeng ignored him, his hands whirling, unleashing endless icicles.

He knew Sima Lin’s skill far surpassed his own, and the old man’s mastery of hidden weapons was formidable; giving him even a moment’s respite could end in mutual destruction, as before.

He must strike while the iron was hot!

Gritting his teeth, Chu Tianfeng sent an even denser swarm of icicles flying—like a plague of locusts—toward Sima Lin.

Had Sima Lin been at full strength, he might not have feared this onslaught; as many and as swift as Chu Tianfeng’s icicles were, they would not have been enough to bring him down.

But now, every leap tore at his wounds, sending fresh agony through him.

Soon, his old injuries reopened, bleeding profusely.

At that moment, the sound of hurried footsteps echoed up the stairs.

Swish! Swish! Swish!

The ice storm raged on.

Sima Lin stared hopelessly at the door. He knew this time, he was truly finished.

A sizzling sound filled the air.

Sima Lin grunted, casting a venomous glare at Chu Tianfeng.

The room was dark, the lights off; Sima Lin could only make out a shadowy figure, hands still whirling with relentless fury—not giving him the chance to utter a single curse.

Sizzle—

Icicles stabbed relentlessly into Sima Lin’s body, turning him into a bloody mess.

Eyes wide, Sima Lin’s trembling hand reached for his waist.

There, more than ten willow-leaf throwing knives were hidden.

But as his hand touched his belt—

Crack!

A bullet tore through the air, striking him squarely between the eyes.

That bullet had been meant for Liu Zuo, but last time, pressed for time, Chu Tianfeng hadn’t had the chance to use it—so he saved it for Sima Lin.

With a thud, Sima Lin’s body crashed to the floor, dead as stone.

“Who’s there?” The last remaining master finally appeared at the door.

Chu Tianfeng did not reply—another volley of icicles shot forth.

“Retreat!” the man shouted, scrambling backward.

But the hallway was narrow, crowded with seven or eight people; escape was impossible.

Another round of screams erupted.

Chu Tianfeng remained unmoved, the ice storm continued.

And then, at last, silence fell.

He swept his spiritual sense over the corpses, confirming there were no survivors, and began to search the villa at his leisure.

Soon, he found his way to the basement.

It was cold, like a giant freezer, with a more secluded room in the corner.

That wasn’t what drew his eye—the key was, inside that room sat a massive safe!

Delighted, Chu Tianfeng burned open the door with a burst of true fire.

Inside, shelves lined with all manner of guns and ammunition, as well as several large refrigerators packed with white powder.

None of this interested him in the least—he headed straight for the huge safe.

Whoosh!

He circled the safe’s door with true fire.

With a wave of his right hand, his true essence formed into a palm.

Bang!

The safe door flew open.

Wow—Chu Tianfeng was astounded.

Money! Piles and piles of money!

Renminbi, Hong Kong dollars, even US dollars!

All kinds of currency, stacked high, easily more than ten million by his estimate.

Chu Tianfeng could only curse his own inability to enjoy such fortune—there was no way for him to carry it all.

Helpless, he turned his gaze elsewhere.

Suddenly, his eyes widened again.

He had discovered several blocks of metal—one huge chunk of secret silver, far larger than what he’d gotten from the Salt Society’s Hangzhou branch, at least twice the size!

Alongside it, another large piece of Void Stone, and even Star Sand!

Void Stone—the only material from which storage rings could be crafted; Star Sand, essential for setting up formations. Both pieces were sizable, especially the Void Stone, enough for two rings.

At the bottom of the safe, there was also a trove of gold, silver, jewels, diamonds, and all manner of precious items.

It was a bountiful harvest—truly a magnificent haul!

Overjoyed, Chu Tianfeng packed away the secret silver, Void Stone, and Star Sand, and selected a few pieces of jewelry at random.

He would have taken more cash, but at that moment, police sirens wailed outside.

With no time to lose, he stuffed a few hundred thousand into his clothes and pockets until they bulged, then, though reluctant to go, vaulted over the wall and slipped away into the night.