The countdown was like a death knell.
The members of the Tianshan Hall, one by one, looked hesitant and troubled.
Sun Lianhe was their master, the person who had enabled them to possess their strength.
To act against their master was not in line with the rules.
"How dare you..."
Sun Lianhe straightened up and reprimanded them furiously.
He had nothing to say about dying at Chu Fan's hands.
But to be killed by the subordinates he had raised would be a true injustice.
"Four..."
"Patriarch, I am sorry!"
One of the Tianshan Hall members suddenly stepped forward, and before Sun Lianhe could curse out loud, he kicked him in the shoulder.
A crisp sound echoed as Sun Lianhe's shoulder blade broke.
A pig-like scream resounded through the air above the stronghold.
These people were all Grandmaster level; killing Sun Lianhe was no different from crushing a chick.
However, no one would kill Sun Lianhe directly.
As per Chu Fan's instructions, they just needed to strike.
With someone taking the lead, the others naturally no longer hesitated.
There were over thirty Tianshan Hall members present. Even though each of them only kicked Sun Lianhe once, it was still more than he could bear.
With over thirty people striking, not a single one held back.
They knew that Chu Fan's strength far surpassed that of a Grandmaster, and his eyesight was exceptionally sharp.
In front of such a person, it was best not to feign compliance, otherwise, there was no doubt that they themselves would be the ones to die the next second.
When the last person withdrew their foot, Sun Lianhe, the Patriarch of the Sun family, had his eyes wide open, his body struggling to twist, and his expression full of unwillingness slowly solidified.
He had never imagined that he would one day die at the hands of the people he had nurtured.
The courtyard fell silent once more.
The over thirty Tianshan Hall members looked at Chu Fan expectantly, wondering if he would keep his promise and spare them, or go back on his word and kill them.
"Bravo, bravo..."
Chu Fan clapped his hands and said with a smile, "Very good, I keep my promise and spare you all."
Everyone's hearts relaxed, and they secretly rejoiced at being able to live.
They did not notice that the Five Great Battle Emperors had already begun to move.
Chu Fan might have spared them, but that did not mean the Five Great Battle Emperors could just pretend nothing had happened.
Originally, they were wondering how to explain Sun Lianhe's death to the higher-ups of the Dragon God Kingdom. Now, they had an explanation.
With the Patriarch dead and themselves no match for Chu Fan, the Tianshan Hall members exchanged glances and prepared to retreat.
"Everyone, please accompany us to the Battle Emperor Hall," the Central Plains Battle Emperor suddenly spoke coldly, his imposing aura beginning to seal the surroundings.
Everyone was stunned, and then their faces turned grim.
They had fallen into a trap!
Everyone knew that they had just been tricked by Chu Fan and had become his scapegoats.
They gritted their teeth, resentful of Chu Fan but helpless.
"Brothers, charge!"
One of them suddenly shouted.
The Tianshan Hall members were well aware of the multiple punishments they would face for killing Sun Lianhe.
Entering the Battle Emperor Hall was also a dead end.
Therefore, they might as well fight their way out.
The more than thirty people charged in different directions simultaneously.
"Hmph!"
"Seeking death!"
While the Five Great Battle Emperors were submissive to Chu Fan, it did not mean they were the same in front of these lesser figures.
The surroundings had already been sealed off by the Five Great Battle Emperors.
Everyone was just a cornered beast struggling in its final moments.
The Central Plains Battle Emperor flashed and punched the head of the person who had shouted to charge.
Bang...
Like a bursting watermelon, blood splattered everywhere.
For the Five Great Battle Emperors to deal with the Tianshan Hall members was no different from hungry wolves breaking into a flock of sheep.
However, because they wanted these people to serve as scapegoats, the Five Great Battle Emperors did not strike to kill, but merely crippled them.
Chu Fan had no interest in how this matter would be concluded.
When the Five Great Battle Emperors made their move, he had already left the stronghold and returned to the Shanhai Pavilion in Ji Ningyue's car.
Halfway there, Chu Fan suddenly received a call from his aunt.
"Xiao Fan, are you at Shanhai Pavilion?"
Qin Xue's tone was filled with nervousness, as if something urgent had happened.
Chu Fan's brows twitched, and he replied, "Aunt, I'm not at Shanhai Pavilion. What's wrong? Did something happen?"
"Xiao Fan, something big might be about to happen. Where are you? I'll come find you. We can talk when we meet."
Seeing that something was indeed wrong, Chu Fan said, "Aunt, where are you? I'll come find you."
Learning that his aunt was at her company, Ji Ningyue immediately drove him there.
Knowing that her young master was in a hurry, Ji Ningyue drove extremely fast along the way.
Upon arriving at the company and entering the office, Qin Xue's worried expression visibly lessened when she saw Chu Fan.
Nan Baixuan was also there. Upon seeing Chu Fan, she let out a displeased hum and lowered her head to continue playing with her phone.
Because Chu Fan had specifically instructed Qin Xue, Nan Baixuan still did not know that he lived in Shanhai Pavilion, nor that Qin Xue was able to re-establish her company thanks to Chu Fan's help. She had always thought that Ji Ningyue had taken a liking to her mother, which was why she had the opportunity.
The little girl held a strong grudge.
After Qin Xue proposed separation and left the Nan family with Chu Fan that day, the Nan family had said quite a lot.
The general meaning was that Qin Xue's sudden proposal to separate from the Nan family was definitely at Chu Fan's secret prompting, as he had considerable connections in Shanhai City, and even if Qin Xue left the Nan family, he could help her stand up again.
She had originally wanted to confront Chu Fan, but he had kept avoiding her, which had completely confirmed her suspicions and made her believe Chu Fan was guilty and afraid to see her.
Chu Fan had nothing to say to Nan Baixuan, who had a princess complex. He completely ignored her and walked with Qin Xue to a corner of the office.
"Xiao Fan, have you heard?"
Qin Xue asked nervously.
"Heard what?" Chu Fan asked curiously.
"Sun Lianhe of the Sun family in Qingzhou has brought people to Shanhai City."
"Didn't Sun Hongji, who had a conflict with you at the medical exchange conference, die earlier?"
"That Sun Lianhe is Sun Hongji's father."
"The Sun family is a major clan in our Dragon God Kingdom, ranked on the Hundred Clans List."
Seeing that her aunt was worried about this, Chu Fan smiled casually and pretended to be ignorant, saying, "So what if he's here? What does it have to do with me?"
Qin Xue shook her head nervously, "Xiao Fan, you had a conflict with that Sun Hongji before, and not long after, Sun Hongji died. That Sun Lianhe will definitely come looking for you."
"We really can't afford to offend the Sun family. What should we do?"
To Qin Xue, the Sun family was a behemoth on par with the Medical Emperor Hall, an existence they truly could not afford to offend.
Little did she know that Sun Lianhe had already become a corpse.
Telling her that Sun Lianhe was dead would surely shock her aunt. Chu Fan patted her hand to comfort her, "Aunt, don't worry."
"It's true that Sun Hongji had a conflict with me, but that doesn't mean Sun Lianhe has to trouble me. Everything requires evidence, doesn't it?"
"Besides, if he dares to come and trouble me, I'll make sure he never returns!"
"Tch..."
A disdainful scoff came from not far away.
Nan Baixuan could no longer stand listening. She stood up and walked over to the two of them, glaring at Chu Fan and questioning him, "Are you going to keep bragging?"
"Relying on your mediocre skills, you really think you're the best in the world?"
"Open your eyes and see. This is the strength of the Sun family."
"How long are you going to be so arrogant?"
Nan Baixuan placed her phone in front of Chu Fan, displaying some information about the Sun family.
"Oh..."
Chu Fan's eyes suddenly widened, and then he said with a smile, "Aunt, you don't need to worry anymore."