Chapter 66

Song Moran inwardly smiled bitterly, thinking to himself, why wouldn't he dare to move? He almost broke all my bones! Pan Shaofeng, this troublemaker, why did he have to provoke this lord? Now, in the capital's circle of rich and powerful, there's a popular saying: It's better to offend the Grim Reaper than to offend Song Li. Cheng Zhengxiang and Little Levi provoked him and are still lying in bed, unable to get up; Song Moran provoked him and was beaten to a pulp in public. The Nine Gate Inspector, the Marquis of Wei, Levi, along with more than a dozen imperial ministers, went to complain to the emperor, but in the end, they couldn't even get a single hair of his. Prince Jing's reputation is so fearsome that even the Holy Emperor has to give him three points of respect, but Song Li beat his youngest son so badly, and in the end, nothing happened. What are you, Pan Shaofeng, anyway? Your father, Pan Shijian, may be impressive, but is he more impressive than the Nine Gate Inspector? More impressive than the Marquis of Wei? More impressive than Prince Jing?

Song Moran now understood clearly. Pan Shaofeng must have just returned from his sect and knew nothing about what had been happening in the capital recently. He probably didn't know that Song Xinghai had already been promoted to Ming Wang and was in charge of the three special task forces. He also didn't know that Song Li had transformed from a laughingstock to a feared prince. But in front of Song Li, he couldn't point this out to Pan Shaofeng. How could he say it? Should he tell him that Song Li's father is now a prince, and he is the prince's heir, appointed by the Holy Emperor, and that they can't afford to provoke him, so they should just leave? If he really said that, wouldn't it also embarrass the people of Prince Jing's mansion? Wouldn't it be like admitting that Prince Jing can't handle Ming Wang?

Prince Jing may not fear Ming Wang, but this young prince does fear Song Li! But he couldn't say this to Pan Shaofeng's face.

"Song Li, give me some face... let's just forget about this..." Song Moran mumbled, his words weak and lacking any confidence. If it weren't for their good relationship, he wouldn't have gotten involved in this mess.

"Little Prince, did I hear you right? You said we should just forget about this?" Pan Shaofeng's swollen eyes suddenly opened, looking at Song Moran in disbelief. He was confused. Song Moran was well-known in the capital's circle of rich and powerful, once a fearsome and imposing figure. Who did he fear besides his brother and a few princes? Why did he act like a mouse in front of Song Li, unable to speak clearly?

"Song Moran, according to the rules of the Holy Lion Empire, after our last duel, all past grievances are forgiven. I can overlook the bullying you've done to me for over a decade, but you should understand that you have no face with me." Song Li's tone was calm and collected, "Pan Shaofeng, I'm telling you openly, today I'm going to bully you and take away your face. You think your backing is strong? Go find someone else. Now I can tell you, Song Moran is no good. He has no face with me. Find someone more suitable."

Song Li's words were direct and cut to the heart. Song Moran's face turned red and then white, the alcohol in his system long gone. If there were a crack in the ground, he would have wanted to slip into it to hide his face. He had lost a lot of face, but he knew Song Li was telling the truth. Why should he give him face? Not continuing to trouble him was already a favor.

Pan Shaofeng's gaze shifted between Song Moran and Song Li. Even if he were stupid, he could see that Song Moran had definitely suffered at Song Li's hands, and it wasn't a small matter. No wonder he was so scared when he saw Song Li. Damn, Song Moran used to be so arrogant, looking down on everyone, but after being beaten, he became so obedient. What a coward!

"What are you looking at? Get lost!" Song Li shouted, "If you don't leave, I'll throw you out the window!"

Song Moran and Pan Shaofeng both shuddered. They knew Song Li was a ruthless and violent person, and he would act without hesitation, humiliating them in any way possible. They were both scared. They almost simultaneously took a step, heads bowed, walking out. As they passed Song Li, their body hair stood on end, fearing he might suddenly attack. However, Song Li wasn't in the mood to beat them up. When they reached the door, he coldly said, "Just leaving? Are you waiting for me to pay your bill?"

Song Moran hesitated, then turned back, his face pale, and left a gold coin on the table. When he turned to leave, he realized Pan Shaofeng had already disappeared. He cursed him for being ungrateful.

After these two left, Song Li smiled and said, "Miss Long, let's go have a drink. I hope these blind fools haven't ruined your mood."

Long Qiqi nodded and smiled, "Not bad, you were quite impressive just now."

While Song Li was dealing with Song Moran and Pan Shaofeng, Long Qiqi had been observing coldly. She increasingly felt that Song Li had a grand and impressive demeanor, despite his young age. He was different from most of the rich and powerful in the capital, having a sense of justice and compassion for the common people. He only showed his ruthless side when dealing with those young ruffians, and even then, it didn't feel repulsive but rather satisfying.

As the saying goes, it takes a bad person to deal with a bad person. Those arrogant young ruffians needed someone like Song Li to handle them.

Song Li smiled, "Miss Long, you're from the capital, right? You should have heard about it. Some second-generation rich kids, relying on their fathers' power, run rampant in the capital. I just can't stand their arrogance. Today, Pan Shaofeng was unlucky to run into me. I won't let him off easily this time."

Since participating in the plan to deal with the Loyal Prince, the Song family has been aligned with the Holy Emperor. Whether they liked it or not, they had taken a side. So, before acting, Song Li always considered the political benefits. The reason he was holding onto Pan Shaofeng was that simply overpowering him physically wouldn't make him completely submit. He still relied on his strong backing. Song Li was like this: if he was going to beat someone, he would beat them thoroughly. He wanted them to feel cold all over when they thought of him, to shiver at the sight of his shadow, and to feel deep fear from the bottom of their hearts. If he thought he was strong, he would beat him into a pig's head; if he thought he had a strong backing, he would take away that backing!

Seeing Pan Shaofeng's luxurious golden carriage, Song Li had this idea. Pan Shijian was a fierce general under the Loyal Prince. If he could take him down, it would undoubtedly remove another obstacle for the Holy Emperor. The position of the capital's governor was very important.

He wanted to create opportunities for his father to earn merit. Last time, his father helped the Holy Emperor eliminate the Yellow Chancellor and take control of the three special task forces, thus soaring in his career and earning the Holy Emperor's trust and the friendship of Chancellor Wen. If his father helped the Holy Emperor take the position of the capital's governor this time, it would undoubtedly be another impressive achievement. With more merits accumulated, he might even become a prince, and Song Li's status would rise accordingly.

He believed his father wouldn't waste the information he passed on.

The Holy Lion Empire was very strict in dealing with corrupt officials. Song Li believed that if he started from the golden carriage and investigated deeply, there would be some dirt under Pan Shijian's feet that couldn't be cleaned up.

If Pan Shaofeng wanted to cause trouble, let him. The bigger the trouble, the more attention the luxurious golden carriage would attract, and the faster his father, Pan Shijian, would fall. Song Li was letting him go to stir up trouble.

"Whether in personal strength or background, you have completely overpowered Pan Shaofeng," Long Qiqi's eyes sparkled with intelligence, "But have you noticed the green mountain embroidered on his chest? Do you know what it represents?"

"I heard that a year ago, Governor Pan sent Pan Shaofeng to a sect for training... what was the name of the sect? That mountain should represent the sect, right?" Song Li was never very interested in such matters, so he didn't bother to remember.

"Taiyue Sect!" Long Qiqi frowned, "Taiyue Sect is known as the top sect in Zhongzhou and ranks among the top three in the Holy Lion Empire. It has many talented disciples and formidable strength! Moreover, it's said that the current sect leader, Ning Leshan, is a very protective old man. Although the symbol on Pan Shaofeng's chest indicates he is an outer sect disciple, he is still a disciple. If you beat Ning Leshan's disciple, he will be very unhappy. If he is unhappy, he might come after you. Can you withstand the wrath of a peak Golden Core old monster?"

Long Qiqi clearly knew a lot about the Taiyue Sect, speaking about it as if she were reciting a list, even knowing the sect leader's quirks.

Families, sects, and the state are the three major forces in the Star Cloud Continent's cultivation world. The state is at the top of the pyramid, but the power of sects cannot be underestimated. In some small countries, the power of sects has already surpassed the government. Although the Taiyue Sect, with its many talented disciples, does not surpass the Holy Lion Empire, it still has some influence.

Sects and the state generally do not interfere with each other.

"Bullshit about a prestigious sect... as the saying goes, a glimpse of a spot reveals the whole leopard. If they can produce a disciple like Pan Shaofeng, I think this Taiyue Sect is just a reputation-seeking sect." Song Li sneered, "If they dare to come out for this unworthy disciple, I'll take them on!"

Long Qiqi laughed, seeing that Song Li was at the second level of the Qi Induction stage, which was already impressive for his age. But to say he could withstand a peak Golden Core old monster was a bit too much. However, Long Qiqi liked the boldness Song Li displayed. So what if he was at the peak Golden Core stage? So what if he was the leader of a prestigious sect? If you don't have any shame, I'll pull your beard!

Since he wasn't afraid, why should she worry for him? Long Qiqi thought, suddenly pausing, wondering if she was worried about him. How could that be?

The two found a window seat and sat down. The waiter brought the menu to Song Li, who pointed to Long Qiqi and smiled, "Ladies first."

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