Chapter 8

"Ridiculous!"

The four knife-wielding guards standing by the entrance were the first to react. As the lord's mansion guards, they saw Ye Zhong unsheathe his sword at this moment and instinctively shouted in unison. Simultaneously, four knife shadows transformed into streaks and swept out.

"Hmm—"

At this moment, a series of inexplicable laughter echoed in the hall. Who didn't know Ye Zhong's reputation as a waste? Although no one knew what was wrong with him today, since he was seeking death, neither the Ye family nor the Su family would stop him. Su Kui's eyes were filled with a fierce light and a murderous aura.

However, Ye Zhong didn't care about others' thoughts at this moment. He just smiled slightly, squinting his eyes as he looked at the four knife shadows that resembled streaks. He didn't bother to use any of his trump cards; instead, he casually stepped forward, raised his right hand, and a sword like a bolt of lightning pierced through the knife shadows, directly stabbing into the wrist of the guard on the far right. In the next instant, Ye Zhong casually drew his sword and slapped it on the knee of another guard.

A crisp "snap" was heard, and the guard's kneecap shattered, causing him to kneel on the ground. At this moment, the sword in Ye Zhong's hand flashed again, piercing through the gap exposed by the fallen guard and stabbing into the right rib of the guard on the left. With a casual flick, a large amount of blood splattered.

Liu Qingmeng, holding a pile of swords and knives, watched Ye Zhong's plain and unadorned sword strikes. Surprisingly, each strike felled one of the three guards in her mansion. She was unusually not angry but rather astonished. In Liu Qingmeng's view, Ye Zhong's sword strikes were extremely ordinary, like someone practicing in a training ground, but such sword strikes were something the battle-hardened guards couldn't block at all!

Such skills, such swordsmanship, were like a thousand hammer blows, plain and unadorned yet astonishingly impressive. Liu Qingmeng considered herself a skilled fighter among the young generation in Jiangzhou City. She asked herself, if she were in Ye Zhong's position, although she could defeat these four guards at the second stage of Body Tempering, she definitely couldn't do it so effortlessly. She would probably need to use offensive spirit techniques to achieve this.

At this moment, Liu Qingmeng was almost certain of Ye Zhong's identity as a spirit talisman master! Who would have thought that this Ye family waste, the greatest disgrace in the Ye family's history, was actually such a skilled fighter!?

However, Ye Zhong himself didn't feel anything. Although these four guards had the second stage of Body Tempering and were battle-hardened, in terms of combat experience, he was far more experienced. To him, their skilled attacks were full of flaws. Facing these four guards, he saw them as only slightly stronger than Ye Yu from earlier.

Casually felling the last guard, Ye Zhong, considering Liu Qingmeng's position, didn't kill the guards but stepped over the four lying on the ground, groaning in pain. His indifferent gaze fell on the front of the hall. The real battle was about to begin.

At this moment, the hall was silent. Many people who had been mocking were now shocked, their mouths agape, their laughter suppressed.

The time it took for Ye Zhong to deal with the four guards was incredibly short. He only struck four times, but each strike felled a second-stage Body Tempering, battle-hardened guard, rendering them completely unable to fight. This speed left many of the young generation from the three families, who were also at the second stage of Body Tempering, stunned. The three people sitting at the head of the table now had serious expressions, carefully observing Ye Zhong, especially when they saw the person holding the pile of swords and knives behind him was Liu Han's daughter, Liu Qingmeng. Their expressions became even more bizarre.

Regardless of how Ye Zhong managed to get Liu Qingmeng to hold the swords for him, it wasn't enough to make them take him seriously. However, the way Ye Zhong dealt with the four guards in the blink of an eye was enough to surprise them!

Who didn't know Ye Zhong's reputation as a waste? But what this waste did today was something none of the three families' geniuses could do so easily.

"Ha ha, truly interesting... Brother Wu Yan, is your Ye family not interested in this marriage? Or were you planning to embarrass my Su family today!?" Su Hao smiled strangely. The originally boring wedding banquet suddenly became interesting. He looked at Ye Wu Yan with a playful expression and said with a smile.

However, at this moment, Ye Wu Yan had no interest in analyzing Su Hao's thoughts. His face turned extremely dark, his eyes flashing with a mix of rage and doubt!

Today's situation shouldn't be like this! Today, Ye Zhong should have obediently picked up the wedding invitation from the ground, and the Ye family would have smoothly expelled this thorn from their side, out of sight, out of mind! The first young genius of the Ye family would then be engaged to Su Wenqing, the most beautiful woman in Yanjing, and the Ye and Su families would form a beautiful alliance, a cause for celebration!

However, Ye Zhong's actions today disrupted this perfect plan. What shocked Ye Wu Yan the most was that Ye Zhong, who was supposed to be a waste with the Six Yin Meridian Blockage, had just displayed sword skills like a hanging antelope's horn or a meteor from the sky, indicating that he was not a waste and that few in the current generation of the Ye family could match him.

The feeling of losing control made Ye Wu Yan extremely irritable. If he had learned about Ye Zhong's abilities in another setting, he might have felt happy, but now he felt a surge of anger.

"Brother Su Hao, you're joking. Our Ye family wouldn't do such a foolish thing. It's probably just the young generation being upset about their beautiful fiancée being replaced!" Ye Wu Yan, not an ordinary person, suppressed his anger and laughed, "But it's fine. Let the young generation handle their own affairs. We'll just enjoy the wine and the show."

Saying this, Ye Wu Yan suddenly looked at Liu Han, "But Brother Liu Han, it would be better to take your daughter away. If she gets hurt, it might not be good for the host."

After he finished speaking, Su Hao also looked at Liu Han with a smile. Liu Qingmeng holding the swords for Ye Zhong and disrupting the event was indeed interesting.

"Thank you for your concern, honored guests." Liu Han gazed at the scene, seemingly deep in thought. After a moment, he waved his hand, "Today's matter has nothing to do with my Liu family. As for what my daughter wants to do, I, as her father, can't really control her! Besides, letting the young generation handle their own affairs isn't a bad idea."

With that, Liu Han waved his hand, and the guards from the lord's mansion quickly retreated.

"Is that so?" Su Hao's eyes narrowed slightly, then he smiled and drained his wine glass, "Since both of you have said so, let's wait and see!"

As he spoke, Su Hao's gaze fixed on Ye Zhong with a hint of interest. To be honest, although Ye Zhong's performance exceeded his expectations, and the smooth sword skills were somewhat interesting, he didn't think a side-branch young genius of the Ye family could cause any significant disruption at a wedding banquet that the two families had carefully arranged!

At most, it would just add some excitement.

As almost everyone in the hall focused on Ye Zhong, Ye Zhong also raised his head and looked at Ye Wu Yan, Su Hao, and Liu Han with a calm gaze.

With Ye Zhong's keen eyesight, he could basically see the strength of these three people at a glance. Ye Wu Yan was at the fifth stage of the Meridian Passage period of the ninth stage of Body Tempering, while Su Hao and Liu Han were at the fourth stage of the Muscle Changing period of Body Tempering!

Ye Zhong was clear about the strength gap between these three and himself. If it came to a direct confrontation, he wasn't a match for any of them. However, even so, Ye Zhong had no intention of retreating.

Then, Ye Zhong's gaze fell on the sides. This time, some people from the Ye and Su families slowly stood up after the initial shock. With just a glance, Ye Zhong recognized some rather "familiar" faces. These people, who could attend this small family banquet of the Ye and Su families, clearly held significant positions in their clans, all here for the engagement of Ye Yufeng and Su Wenqing. However, it was also possible that they came to see the outcome of the Ye family's waste, Ye Zhong. But none of that mattered now!

At this moment, about sixty people stood up, all squinting their eyes and staring at Ye Zhong. Their expressions varied, some mocking, some puzzled, and some openly hostile. When these sixty strong young generation members from the five major families of the Ye and Su families stood up together, the momentum they emitted was like a tidal wave, overwhelming.

This scene was somewhat unexpected for Ye Zhong. According to the vague memories he had from Little Ye Zhong, the outstanding talents from the two families combined should be around a hundred. Today, more than half were present, indicating that this exchange wedding banquet was highly attractive and represented the sincerity of both sides!

Ye Zhong's breathing unconsciously quickened, but in the next moment, he smiled wryly. This reminded him of the past when he and his master fought against a group of enemies alone! That time, they were in a desperate situation, but with a shared resolve, they still managed to carve out a bloody path. He wondered if today, with a different person behind him, he could also escape unscathed?

Thinking of this, Ye Zhong's heart calmed down. Compared to his past opponents, these people were nothing.

In the next moment, Ye Zhong stepped forward and walked straight toward Su Wenqing and Su Kui, his purpose clear.

Liu Qingmeng, who was behind Ye Zhong, also reacted. Her lips parted slightly, and she looked at the scene in front of her with surprise. She didn't know what Ye Zhong intended to do, but she suddenly understood! He was going to resolve the exchange marriage between the two major families with his own strength!? And he had her bring some swords and knives to forcefully resolve the matter? Facing nearly a hundred strong fighters from the Ye and Su families, this Ye family waste, Ye Zhong, had no fear at all?

In this moment, countless thoughts flashed through Liu Qingmeng's mind. Her expression changed rapidly, but in the end, she remembered her mother, who was not allowed to attend the banquet in the back garden. Impulsively, Liu Qingmeng followed Ye Zhong, taking a step forward...