Chapter 8

"Ah~~~~! It hurts so much!"

"You bastard, you actually dare to hit me? Do you know who I am? Do you know who my father is? Do you know who my grandfather is? You're going to die, you little punk!"

"Damn, my mother has never hit me, and you, a little punk, actually dare to hit me? I won't let you off!"

The cries and shouts of these guys had no effect on the Heavenly Soldiers enforcing the law. Seeing that they did not respond according to the rules, all the Heavenly Soldiers increased their force and struck again even harder!

This was one of the rules of the punishment for defiance. If the answer was wrong when being hit, the force would be increased until the correct answer was given!

This time, the first strike left all the delicate and pampered young men from the noble families with torn and bleeding skin. The second strike, with increased force, almost cracked their backbones!

The young men could no longer hold back and quickly changed their tune, crying and begging for mercy, "I was wrong, I confess, please spare me!"

The punishment for defiance was specifically designed to deal with all kinds of defiance. As long as one confessed and showed submission, it would automatically stop.

With the first one, there came a second. Seeing others' severe punishments stop, the other young men from noble families followed suit. Thus, the severe punishment came to an end, with the most severe case being only five strikes.

However, these few strikes were absolutely a form of torture for the disciples from noble families. All of their backs were torn and bleeding, with blood flowing freely. Coupled with their tears, the scene was incredibly tragic!

Seeing their own children beaten so badly, the high-ranking members of the noble families could no longer hold back.

They had all maintained their dignity earlier, unwilling to get involved in the disputes of their juniors, thinking that their own children would be enough to teach Fang Lie a lesson. They were all happy to see Fang Lie humiliated.

But they never expected that Fang Lie would be so resolute, completely disregarding the consequences, and actually beat over three thousand young men from noble families in one go. It was as if each strike was a loud slap on the face of the eight hundred noble families! How could they bear it?

"Fang Lie, you've gone too far!"

"How dare you hit my son? I won't let you off, old man!"

"I, this old man, also don't submit to you. If you have the guts, hit me too!"

With each angry roar, over a thousand Golden Pool cultivators and several hundred Purple Mansion cultivators all stood at the front, cursing Fang Lie one after another!

"Your father is a scoundrel, and you are even worse than your father!"

"Is your old Fang family trying to cut ties with the noble families?"

"Rebellion! Rebellion! A little bastard like you dares to be so arrogant!"

Faced with the anger of so many experts, the tens of thousands of ordinary disciples around couldn't help but worry for Fang Lie!

Ordinary disciples from noble families were one thing; after all, they were all at the Qi Sea realm, so they were considered peers.

But these experts were all elders! Offending so many elders at once, how could he continue to stay in the Mo Sect?

Any one of these experts had the cultivation to easily kill Fang Lie. If any of them decided to harm Fang Lie in the future, he would have no place to hide!

Thinking of this, almost everyone believed that Fang Lie would have to bow his head. In the cultivation world, strength was always respected, and it was not unusual or shameful for junior disciples to bow to senior cultivators.

Faced with the scolding of so many seniors, it would not be strange for Fang Lie to bow and apologize, and it would be considered very normal.

However, this time, everyone was wrong again. Fang Lie's resolute character had completely exceeded their imagination. Just like the ancestral precept of the old Fang family, he was truly 'unwilling to turn back even if he crashes into a wall'!

"Slap~" Fang Lie slammed the gavel again, his face twisted with anger, and he roared, "Since you want to die, I'll grant your wish. Bring them in, beat them!"

Immediately, the Ancestor Hall was filled with golden light as thousands of Heavenly Soldiers appeared in unison. Four Heavenly Soldiers automatically seized each cultivator and pressed them down in an orderly manner.

The space in the Ancestor Hall also expanded automatically, creating a new area for the punishment.

Then came the sound of整齐的板子声！

"Slap~" The sound was deafening!

The water and fire rods in the hands of the Heavenly Soldiers were heavier the higher the cultivator's level. Despite the experts' bodies being as hard as iron, they were no match for the water and fire rods.

One strike left the skin torn and blood gushing!

The intense pain spread throughout their bodies, and some of the experts with weaker mental fortitude screamed in agony on the spot.

Others gritted their teeth and endured, but they groaned continuously, their faces ashen.

This strike not only hit the bodies of the experts but also the pride of the noble families and the hearts of the tens of thousands of cultivators around!

At this moment, Fang Lie used his iron-fisted methods to show everyone just how resolute he was!

Those who could cultivate to the Golden Pool or even the Purple Mansion realm were no fools. Even if they were fools, this strike woke them up. They no longer dared to defy Fang Lie and immediately confessed and showed submission!

They knew that defying Fang Lie would only harm themselves. Since he dared to enforce the rules, he would also dare to use the most severe punishments, such as cutting tendons and destroying meridians. After so much hard work to reach their current realms, who would want to become a cripple?

As the saying goes, a gentleman takes his revenge when the time is right. They would deal with Fang Lie later!

With these guys submitting, the Heavenly Soldiers stopped the punishment.

However, although they submitted verbally, they were not convinced in their hearts. Instead, they all hated Fang Lie to the core, staring at him with intense hatred.

If looks could kill, Fang Lie would have been turned into minced meat!

Fang Lie naturally knew that these people hated him, but he didn't care at all. Since he was falsely accused and almost killed, he knew that he and these so-called noble families were not on the same path. There was only enmity between them, with almost no possibility of reconciliation!

Since that was the case, why should he humiliate himself to please these scoundrels?

In fact, Fang Lie had already made up his mind. To protect himself and his younger siblings, relying on submission was useless. It was better to teach them a lesson, to make them understand the consequences of provoking him, so they would naturally back off.

Understanding this, Fang Lie knew what he had to do!

"Humph~" Fang Lie sneered and said disdainfully, "This is the so-called eight hundred noble families? What a big mouth! A mere five strikes, and you're all crying and begging for mercy, a bunch of wimps! You call yourselves the backbone of the Mo Sect? Pah~"

The noble family disciples present were so angry at Fang Lie's words that their faces turned red, but under the threat of the punishment for defiance, none of them dared to stand up and refute him. They could only lower their heads and sulk!

Fang Lie, however, was not satisfied and continued to curse, "You useless scum, you act high and mighty, but what are you really? Besides bullying ordinary disciples, what else can you do? All kinds of embezzlement, all kinds of corruption, harboring filth, even rape and plunder! You've turned the noble and righteous Mo Sect into a den of evil! Look at yourselves, what are you?"

"Today, I will teach you a lesson, I will beat you! I will not only beat your butts, but also your faces! Who dares to defy me?" Fang Lie roared, "I ask you again, the so-called 'eight hundred noble families,' who dares to defy me~~~?"

"Who else, who else dares to defy me?" Fang Lie glared at the thousands of noble family disciples below and roared again, "Anyone else?"

Faced with Fang Lie's repeated roars, the eight hundred noble families were humiliated and silent, all becoming like turtles with their heads tucked in!

For a moment, the Ancestor Hall was so quiet that a pin could be heard dropping!

Seeing that no one spoke, Fang Lie sneered disdainfully and said, "I knew you so-called noble families were all cowards!"

After that, Fang Lie slammed the gavel and asked, "Left and right, these scoundrels are shouting in the court, defying the Ancestor's command. What punishment should they receive?"

A Heavenly Soldier beside Fang Lie immediately said, "According to the rules, they should receive a flogging, at least ten strikes, at most a hundred!"

"Then what are you waiting for? Give them a hundred strikes!" Fang Lie immediately shouted, "Beat them hard!"

Since they had confessed, they naturally had to accept the punishment. This was beyond doubt. The noble family disciples were also aware of this and had prepared mentally.

However, they did not expect that Fang Lie would use the maximum punishment! A hundred strikes with the water and fire rods meant a hundred strikes, each of which must draw blood. After a hundred strikes, their backs would be nothing but torn flesh!

Even with the best healing elixirs, it would take months to recover!

Most importantly, the pain they would endure during this period was not something ordinary people could bear! Especially for the pampered noble family disciples, even if they didn't die from the beating, they would likely die from the pain!

Of course, the Heavenly Soldiers didn't care about any of this. Once they received the order, they would execute it without any hesitation.

Thus, the noble family disciples in the Ancestor Hall were in for a terrible ordeal. The water and fire rods fell mercilessly on their precious butts, each strike causing blood to spurt, and the intense pain made them feel as if they were better off dead.

At this point, none of them maintained the dignity of noble family disciples. They all cried and wailed, tears streaming down their faces, their cries shaking the heavens.

With thousands of people being punished and crying out together, the scene was incredibly shocking, and the tens of thousands of ordinary disciples around were all stunned.