15: The Li family was destroyed; the punishment of destroying one's spirit.

"Who else?"

These three words, spoken lightly, felt like three massive mountains pressing down on the hearts of every Li Family member.

The entire courtyard instantly fell silent.

Even the sounds of crying, wailing, and pleading stopped, leaving only heavy panting and the chattering of teeth.

No one dared to look up, let alone answer.

Answer what?

Say "me"?

That would be asking for death!

Even Li Zhentian, armed with the spirit-breaking divine crossbow, was obliterated by a mere thought. Trash like them, in the Qi Gathering Realm or Body Tempering Realm, wouldn't even be enough to fill the gaps between his teeth.

After several breaths passed with no one daring to make a sound, the eldest Elder, the Grand Elder who had earlier advised Li Zhentian to calm down, mustered his courage. Kowtowing, he stammered, "No... no one else! There is no one else! My Li Family, from top to bottom, submits wholeheartedly to you, Senior! We harbor no disloyalty! From this day forward, my Li Family is willing to serve you faithfully, going through fire and water without hesitation!"

"Oh?" Chu He raised an eyebrow. "Can you represent the Li Family now?"

"Yes! Yes! That rebellious traitor Li Zhentian is dead. According to clan rules, I, as the Grand Elder, should temporarily assume the position of Family Head!" the Grand Elder hurriedly replied, afraid that if he spoke too slowly, this opportunity would vanish.

"Very good." Chu He nodded.

What he wanted was someone who could get things done.

Killing all these people would be simple, but what he wanted wasn't just slaughter.

To truly kill, one must shatter the heart.

"Since you can make the decisions, then things are easier." Chu He's voice returned to its calm state. "What I said before still stands."

"Within three days, the Li Family's entire assets—deeds, registries—are to be delivered to my Chu Family."

"Now, it is the third day. I have come personally to collect."

"Where are the items?"

Hearing this, the Grand Elder felt as if granted a great pardon!

So he just wanted money!

Wanting money was good! Money lost could be earned again, but a lost life meant losing everything!

"Here! Here! They're all in the treasury!" The Grand Elder's voice trembled with excitement. "I... I'll have someone fetch them immediately! No! I'll go myself! I'll personally bring them to you, Senior!"

He scrambled up from the ground, ready to run towards the treasury in the rear courtyard.

"Wait." Chu He spoke again.

The Grand Elder's body stiffened, nearly kneeling again. His voice quivered as he asked, "S-Senior, what further instructions do you have?"

"Bring him over as well." Chu He's gaze fell upon the stretcher in the corner of the courtyard, where someone had lain unconscious from fear since the fight began.

It was Li Wei.

The Grand Elder was momentarily stunned, not understanding why Chu He wanted to see the already crippled Young Lord.

But he didn't dare ask. He quickly nodded and bowed, replying, "Yes! Yes! I'll take care of it immediately!"

Soon, with several Elders bustling about, heavy chests were carried out one after another.

When opened, the chests revealed neatly stacked gold bricks and silver ingots, along with dazzling jewels and treasures that made one's eyes blur.

There was also a thick stack of land deeds, still smelling of fresh ink, and property deeds for various shops.

These were the entire wealth accumulated by the Li Family over a century of plunder.

At the same time, Li Wei, whose limbs were all broken and who resembled a dead dog, was also carried over by two servants and thrown at Chu He's feet.

Perhaps stimulated by the cold ground, Li Wei slowly regained consciousness.

The moment he opened his eyes, he saw Chu He standing before him and, not far away, the severed head of his father, Li Zhentian, whose eyes were wide open in death.

"Fa... Father!!"

Li Wei's mind went "boom," blanking out, before he let out an inhuman, piercing shriek.

He wanted to struggle, to crawl over, but his limbs were already crippled. He could only writhe futilely on the ground like a maggot, making strange guttural noises in his throat.

Chu He paid no attention to his wails. He leisurely picked up the stack of deeds, examining them one by one.

"Thirty acres of Spirit Farmland in the Southern City, originally Chu Family property..."

"The 'Fortuna' cloth shop on East Street, originally Wang Family property..."

"The 'Hundred Refinements Pavilion' weapon shop in the Western City, originally Zhang Family property..."

With each name Chu He read aloud, the faces of the Li Family Elders grew paler.

These were all assets they had seized over the years through trickery and force, snatched from the hands of other small families in Qingyang City using unsavory methods.

Chu He pulled out the spirit farmland deed belonging to the Chu Family and tossed it aside casually. Then, he handed the remaining deeds to the Grand Elder.

"Before sunrise tomorrow." Chu He said indifferently. "Return these things to their original owners. With interest."

"Huh?" The Grand Elder was dumbfounded.

Return them to their original owners? And with interest?

This... this was more than half of the Li Family's assets! Just give them back like that?

"What, you have an opinion?" Chu He glanced at him.

"No! None! Absolutely none!" The Grand Elder shuddered in fright and hurriedly took the deeds, holding them as if they were scalding hot potatoes. "I... I will definitely get it done tomorrow! Definitely!"

Chu He's move had completely emptied out the Li Family.

Not only that, by returning these assets to the oppressed small families, he instantly gained unparalleled prestige and goodwill throughout Qingyang City.

This move was far more brilliant than simple plunder.

After finishing all this, Chu He finally turned his gaze back to the pile of rotten flesh that was Li Wei on the ground.

Li Wei had cried himself out of strength, only staring despairingly at his father's head with hollow eyes.

"I promised I would let you live, to watch properly how the Li Family meets its end."

Chu He's voice sounded in his ear, like the whisper of a demon.

"Now, do you see?"

Li Wei's body trembled violently. He raised his head, glaring at Chu He with eyes filled with the utmost venom.

"You... you kill me! If you have the guts, kill me!" He roared with all his remaining strength.

"Kill you?" Chu He smiled. "That would be letting you off too easily."

He extended a finger, a point of golden light glowing at its tip, and gently tapped it on Li Wei's Dantian.

"Pfft!"

A soft sound, and Li Wei's Dantian was directly destroyed.

The last remnants of his Body Tempering cultivation within his body dissipated instantly, like air leaking from a punctured ball.

From now on, he would be a completely useless cripple, inferior even to an ordinary person.

"Ah—! My cultivation! My Dantian!"

Feeling the change within him, Li Wei let out a howl even more miserable than when his father died.

For a Cultivator, having one's cultivation destroyed was more painful than death!

"Weren't you fond of watching others in despair?" Chu He retracted his finger, looking down at him from above. "Starting today, you will go to the streets of Qingyang City and become a beggar."

"Live well. Use your own eyes to watch how my Chu Family rises step by step to glory."

"Go tell all those friends of yours, tell everyone who has designs on my Chu Family."

"This is the consequence of provoking my Chu Family!"

After saying this, he no longer spared Li Wei a glance, turned around, and walked towards the main gate of the Li Family.

He only took the thirty acres of spirit farmland deed that originally belonged to the Chu Family, along with a few chests of gold and silver as compensation.

As for the remaining mess of the Li Family, he was no longer interested.

The Li Family was finished.

Not wiped out by slaughter, but stripped of all wealth and dignity in full public view, thoroughly reduced to dust in the history of Qingyang City.

As Chu He's figure disappeared beyond the Li Family's main gate, the entire Qingyang City fell into an eerie silence.

Everyone was utterly stunned by his ruthless method of "killing the person and shattering the heart."

They knew that from today onward, the sky over Qingyang City had truly changed.