Divine Emperor of Heavenly Destiny

Lu Chao ignored Cheng Gai and leaped down from the windowsill.

He strode toward Cheng Chuyan, step by step. ”Let’s talk some more about what you just said.”

At this moment, Cheng Chuyan was in no mood to talk about anything else. She shrieked madly, ”You killed Gai, I’m going to kill you!”

SHING...

Lu Chao’s Sword suddenly touched the forehead of the frantic Cheng Chuyan, instantly shattering the True Qi she was about to erupt with.

He asked again, ”Now, are you ready to talk?”

Gazing at the Sword so close to her face...

Cheng Chuyan’s shriek came to an abrupt halt. Her body began to tremble violently. The fear of death overcame her hatred for her son. ”Spare me,” she said, her voice quivering. ”I’ll tell you everything.”

She quickly repeated the story, then stammered, ”I... I only know this much.”

Lu Chao nodded and continued, ”What about my father-in-law’s birth mother’s family?”

Cheng Chuyan, still shaking all over, hastily explained...

”They’re all dead!”

”Gai’s maternal grandmother said they came to our door to cause trouble, so my father killed every last one of them.”

”He couldn’t let them spread the word and ruin the Cheng Mansion’s reputation.”

Hearing this, murderous intent flared in Lu Chao’s eyes. ’Cheng Weishan is truly the pinnacle of viciousness.’

Cheng Chuyan began to beg frantically again. ”Spare me! I’ve already told you everything... I can tell Cheng Chuming myself! I can expose this whole affair in front of my father!”

His gaze was dark as he let out a soft sigh.

”Even if you aren’t true siblings, after decades of living together, do you feel not even a shred of affection?”

A self-mocking smile touched Lu Chao’s lips as he thought of himself and Lu Dingtian’s son and daughter.

He had treated them like his own siblings, but they had treated him like an animal.

”Yes, yes, yes! There is! There is affection!”

Cheng Chuyan nodded hastily. ”If you kill me, my big brother won’t be able to bear it! He’ll hold a grudge against you, his son-in-law!”

Before, she hadn’t actually been that afraid of dying.

Because no matter how ruthless Lu Chao was, the worst he would do was cripple them.

Kill them?

Cheng Chuming and even Cheng Yunsu would plead for mercy on their behalf. As long as she exploited their soft-heartedness, she could do whatever she wanted to them.

’She still wants to exploit my father-in-law’s feelings.’ Lu Chao’s gaze turned impossibly cold.

”My father-in-law is the one who has feelings for you, not the other way around... Also, do you know where my father-in-law is right now?”

”He drank the poisoned wine you gave him and jumped into a lake.”

As soon as he said this, Cheng Chuyan’s pupils contracted wildly. She was dumbfounded.

She had never once imagined that Cheng Chuming would actually commit suicide.

She cherished her own life dearly and couldn’t fathom why anyone would take such a desperate measure. ’Only an idiot would do that,’ she thought.

What was even more terrifying was that if Cheng Chuming was dead, there would be no one left to plead for her.

PFFT...

Before Cheng Chuyan could snap out of her shock, Lu Chao’s Sword pierced through her chest.

He withdrew his Sword and turned to leave.

Just before she died, Cheng Chuyan suddenly burst out laughing. ”You killed me, but that little bitch Cheng Yunsu has lost her father! She must be in agony! She must regret not accepting our arrangement! She’ll hate you for this... HAHAHA!”

Lu Chao stopped in his tracks. ”My father-in-law... was saved.”

As his words fell, Cheng Chuyan froze in shock. Then, blood sprayed from her mouth as she died beside Cheng Gai, her eyes wide open, unable to rest in peace.

...

The night remained pitch black in Cheng Chugong’s courtyard.

Cheng Chugong’s wife asked in a low voice, ”Chugong, why are we suddenly packing?”

Indeed, they were packing their things...

With a grim expression, Cheng Chugong replied, ”That big brother of mine may be a coward, but when pushed to the edge, he might actually kill himself. We have to run, now. Otherwise, if that Life-taking Bone Calamity Star goes crazy, I’m afraid he’ll come to kill us.”

He too had received news that his big brother, Cheng Chuming, had suddenly left home.

”Bai Xin’s plan was vicious, but thinking about it, it was very likely to drive Cheng Chuming mad. We have to be prepared.”

”As long as my coward of a big brother is around, he’ll plead for us. But if he dies, it’s all over.”

As Cheng Chugong spoke, his wife’s face turned pale.

”Should we... should we notify the others?”

Hearing this, Cheng Chugong shook his head with a sinister grin...

”Notify them? My ass! If we notify them, how are we supposed to get away?”

”Of course, we let the others attract the Life-taking Bone Calamity Star’s attention first, and maybe even the attention of the City Lord’s Mansion.”

”That way, we can slip away easily.”

His wife heard his words and immediately understood.

But then she seemed to think of something, and a venomous plot formed in her mind.

”Chugong, I have an even better idea.”

”As her ’second aunt,’ I’ve never really voiced an opinion on Cheng Yunsu’s affairs. I’ll go to that little bitch Cheng Yunsu right now and tell her it was Bai Xin’s vicious plan, that they were the ones who forced Cheng Chuming to make an impossible choice.”

”Then, we’ll go with Cheng Yunsu directly to Tiger Flame.”

”Of course, if Cheng Chuming didn’t commit suicide, then I’ll be the one to poison him and kill his whole family.”

As she said this, Cheng Chugong’s eyes lit up.

’That’s right,’ he thought. ’Back when Cheng Yunsu was in her prime, my wife was always sucking up to her.’

’Maybe she can put on a big show. Then our branch of the family can poison them all and go to the City Lord’s Mansion to claim credit.’

’Bypassing Father and currying favor directly with the young lady Wu Xin... that would be thrilling!’

The more Cheng Chugong thought about it, the more excited he became, and he agreed at once.

”Good. For now, our family will go out into the streets to look for Cheng Chuming. Put some effort into it. We need to look anxious and scared.”

”We have to let Cheng Yunsu see that we’re full of regret and deeply worried about Cheng Chuming’s safety...”

And so, the couple called for their son and daughter, preparing to go out into the streets, weeping and wailing, to search for the man.

As long as their performance was good enough, even if Cheng Chuming was really dead, there was still the second soft-hearted one: Cheng Yunsu.

If they begged for their lives, she wouldn’t let the Life-taking Bone Calamity Star kill anyone.

In the end, no matter the outcome, they had a way forward and a way back. Either they would succeed in poisoning the others and curry favor with the young lady Wu Xin, or they would follow Cheng Yunsu to Tiger Flame... This was truly a win-win situation, a perfect strategy.

However, just as they opened the courtyard gate, a straight, cold figure was standing outside.

The once-excited family of Cheng Chugong all collapsed to the ground with a series of thuds.

They soiled themselves in terror.

Lu Chao stared at them with cold eyes, slowly raising the Sword in his hand...

”A very nice plan. I originally thought I might have to spare a few of you, but it’s a shame you’re all just animals.”

As his voice fell, Lu Chao’s Sword flashed.

Cheng Chugong’s family was wiped out. Lu Chao turned and muttered, ”Next up, Bai Xin.”

...

A short while later, Lu Chao arrived at the courtyard where Cheng Chuming lived, which was also Bai Xin’s residence.

Upon arriving, Lu Chao saw many people gathered around his father-in-law’s courtyard.

He took a closer look...

They were all from the Bai Mansion, one of the four great families of Yangzhou. A carriage was parked in front of the courtyard, and several Bai Mansion household servants were carrying Bai Wenrong out toward it.

At that moment, Bai Wenrong was incredibly weak, but he was fully conscious. Beside him was his son, Bai Heng.

Bai Wenrong had survived. His injuries had stabilized slightly, and he was preparing to return to the Bai Mansion.

Just as he was lifted into the carriage, Bai Wenrong weakly asked Bai Heng, ”Where’s your sister? Where did she run off to?”