Martial Dao: Peace by Force

Chapter 318: Chapter 183: There’s More to the Martial World Than Fighting and Killing, but Are You Worthy of My Respect?

The father and son exchanged a glance without a word. Then, they lowered their heads and began to clean up the scene.

Tie Feiyang’s hands were trembling. The night had been a rollercoaster, and he still hadn’t fully processed it all.

He had thought his father and the entire Tie Family were done for tonight, but he never expected it to be over just like that.

”Dad?”

”What is it?”

”Hey... if I joined Dragon Eagle and became some Grandmaster’s disciple, do you think anyone would dare to mess with us anymore?”

”Don’t think about it.”

”Why not?”

”When I left Guandong, I swore an oath that no one from the Tie Family would join a hall for Cultivation. Otherwise, there would be big trouble.”

Tie Feiyang fell silent. His father was always unwilling to talk about his past.

’Who the hell is in Guandong, anyway? They must be something else if they can still control our Tie Family all the way from the Holy City.’

’But right now, Tie Feiyang wanted to ask something else... Is it too late to change my last name?’

But after a moment’s thought, seeing his father’s grim expression, he didn’t dare to say it out loud.

’I’ll bring it up later, when Dad’s in a better mood.’

...

「Outside.」

Zhai Jia helped Wan Ze into the car and started the engine.

Wan Ze looked back, stunned. ”Wait, aren’t you bringing Brother Yu with us?”

”Him?” Zhai Jia suddenly remembered that Brother Yu had come with him in this car. ’Right, how’s he going to get back?’ He was just about to roll down the window and yell.

Just then, Brother Yu called, his voice calm. ”Take Ah Ze to get his injuries treated. I’ve arranged for someone to come over and invite our two friends here for a chat at the base.”

Zhai Jia knew things were under control. ”Take it easy. Don’t kill them too quickly.”

”I know.”

”Also...”

”Cut the crap and shut up.”

Zhai Yu cut him off dismissively and ended the call.

Zhai Jia pouted. ”Such an impatient guy!”

He then started the car and sped out of the manor.

He cracked open a window.

The night wind poured in through the opening.

He glanced over and saw Wan Ze leaning back in the passenger seat with his eyes closed, so he closed the window again.

He had no idea what Wan Ze was thinking.

”Brother Jia...”

After some time, Wan Ze suddenly spoke, his voice sounding abrupt in the quiet car.

”Hm?” Zhai Jia glanced over, confused.

Wan Ze opened his eyes and couldn’t help but ask, ”Do you think... Dragon Eagle is on the decline?”

Zhai Jia was so stunned he nearly lost his grip on the steering wheel. ”Shit, what kind of question is that?”

Wan Ze tilted his head, watching the streetlights fly past the window, orange streaks of light flashing across his face.

Then he looked back at Zhai Jia and shrugged. ”It just occurred to me. First, the Secret Palace kept provoking us, and now the Divine Martial Society is doing the same. It’s like they have no respect for Dragon Eagle at all. It made me wonder if everyone just sees Dragon Eagle as a pushover now.”

Zhai Jia listened, was silent for a couple of seconds, then let out a snort of laughter.

”Jeez, you sure have a way with examples, kid. The Secret Palace? That’s a top-tier international assassin organization. And the Divine Martial Society is a top dojo in the Jiangnan Martial Dao Association. Both of them are heavy-hitters with more Grandmasters than you can count, but you make them sound like a bunch of nobodies. If the Master were here, you’d definitely be in for a beating tonight.”

Zhai Jia shook his head with a laugh. Keeping one hand on the wheel, he gestured with the other in front of Wan Ze. ”Let me give you a simpler example. Take our East Sea Federation and the Chaos Empire. Both are superpowers on their respective continents, right?”

Wan Ze nodded.

Zhai Jia smiled. ”But look at Chaos—they provoke us all the time. Their warships loiter on the edge of our territorial waters, they hold military exercises every year, and they’re always aimed at us. Why? Because we’re strong enough to be a threat to them. If we were some small, dirt-poor country with a rundown military, you think they’d bother? They wouldn’t even give you a second glance. If they wanted something of yours, they’d just take it. That’s how it is—big fish eat small fish.”

He glanced at Wan Ze. ”And look at Dragon Eagle. If we weren’t strong, the Secret Palace wouldn’t keep testing us like this. They could have sent one or two masters to wipe us out ages ago. Why go to all this trouble? The fact that they’re not willing to give up their turf in the Holy City means they still have business here. And the Divine Martial Society sending people to investigate on the sly? That’s also because they’re wary of Dragon Eagle. Otherwise, they’d just march right in. What could you do then? Right?”

”So, it doesn’t matter if we’re talking about the martial world or just life in general, or whether you’re an individual or an organization. As long as you exist, someone will come after you. You can make sure you’re a good person and don’t bully anyone, but you can’t stop others from trying to bully you. It’s like driving. I can be following all the rules in my lane, but some bastard can just jerk their wheel and try to crash into me. I can’t just sit there and let them hit me, can I?”

Wan Ze listened quietly, nodding slowly.

”You’ve just been influenced by outsiders,” Zhai Jia said, his tone softening as he explained. ”Take the Tie Family. In the Holy City, they’re considered new money—they have wealth, people, and connections. People show them respect wherever they go. But they’re a far cry from the truly established families in the big cities. When they run into trouble, they get scared, they panic, and they think about how to buy their way out of it. We don’t need to do that.”

He turned the car into a narrow alley, slowing down. The tires rolled through puddles on the road, making a SPLASHING sound.

The alley was so narrow the walls on either side nearly scraped the side-view mirrors, but Zhai Jia navigated it with an expert hand, as if he could drive this route with his eyes closed.

”You just need to remember one thing: if anyone messes with us, it’s their own damn fault if they end up dead. And if the sky falls, the Elder Grandmasters back at the organization will be there to hold it up.”