Chapter 681: Whoever Begs Is Useless

All eyes followed Jiang Fan. Their gazes met. He Jiuzhang's expression drastically changed, especially when stared at by the cold eyes of Concubine Yunxia and Sea Charm Demon King. He was trembling with fear.

Severely injured as he was, how could he withstand a casual blow from them? Fortunately, the two had been waiting for Jiang Fan's command and hadn't dared to dispose of him as they pleased.

Realizing this, he looked up at Jiang Fan, his face stern, and said, "Jiang Fan, we are both human. There's no need to be so ruthless, is there?"

*Smack*! The words had barely left his lips when Jiang Fan punched him in the face, his own face filled with murderous intent. "When you tried to kill me, did you consider me human? When you mocked Elder Qin and tricked her into kneeling and begging you, did you consider her human? Now that it's your turn, you suddenly remember we're all human?"

Hatred swelled in his heart! He hated He Jiuzhang's despicable shamelessness, and even more, his utter lack of consideration for his own kind. When facing foreign races, why couldn't they unite against a common enemy? Instead, they turned on each other? He was cruel and merciless to Qin Wangchuan and Jiang Fan, toying with them. Yet to the demon race, he was obsequious, calling them "demon friends" repeatedly! Jiang Fan utterly loathed this kind of behavior – brutal towards his own, tolerant of outsiders! He had no doubt that if He Jiuzhang were in Fang Taiji's position, he would unhesitatingly act exactly as Fang Taiji did!

He Jiuzhang's face was filled with humiliation. In front of the nine sects' Grand Elders, Jiang Fan had humiliated him so thoroughly! He growled: "Jiang Fan! Do you really think you can kill me? Colluding with demons and unauthorized killing of a sect's Grand Elder. Will the Pavilion of Heavenly Secrets let you go? Will they spare your Azure Cloud Sect?"

Qin Wangchuan's expression darkened slightly. This was what she worried about most. Causing such consequences just to avenge her wasn't worth it. "Jiang Fan, it's not worth risking yourself for someone like him." Qin Wangchuan said gratefully: "Once we return to human territory, I'll find a way to get my revenge. You're just a junior; don't bother yourself with this."

Jiang Fan shook his head. The murderous intent on his face did not diminish; instead, it grew even stronger. "Elder Qin, do you think if I let him go, he'll be grateful for my leniency? That he'll turn over a new leaf? That he won't cause trouble for me or the Azure Cloud Sect anymore? Quite the opposite. The humiliation he suffered today, he'll repay tenfold, a hundredfold, a thousandfold! You shouldn't have any illusions about the people of the Giant Sect."

Jiang Fan had never dismissed an entire group because of one person. But among the people of the Giant Sect he'd encountered so far, was there a single one worthy of respect? It could only be said that the Giant Sect's ethos had long been corrupt, applying from top to bottom.

Qin Wangchuan and the Grand Elders of the other sects were startled by his words. If Jiang Fan's words were applied to other Grand Elders, they might seem arbitrary. But applied to He Jiuzhang, they seemed entirely reasonable! Everyone clearly remembered how he had treated Qin Wangchuan throughout the journey. Simply because of Fang Taiji's death, he had taken out his anger on the innocent Qin Wangchuan. He had repeatedly injured Qin Wangchuan, even breaking her legs. Now, He Jiuzhang himself had suffered immense humiliation and nearly perished. With such resentment, would he simply settle for minor retaliation? It was unthinkable. If he were allowed to return, how would he seek revenge? Killing him would certainly cause trouble, but not killing him would undoubtedly harm Jiang Fan and the Azure Cloud Sect!

Qin Wangchuan gritted her teeth, no longer tried to stop him, and said: "You... you handle it as you see fit!"

What? Jiang Fan was really going to kill him? Even Qin Wangchuan wasn't persuading him otherwise? He Jiuzhang frantically looked at the other Grand Elders. Most of them averted their gaze, staying out of it. A few who wanted to plead for He Jiuzhang, after seeing the murderous look on Jiang Fan's face, wisely chose to keep silent.

*Thump-thump*! He Jiuzhang's heart pounded furiously; only then did he realize the severity of his situation. He shed his previous arrogant demeanor and put on a sincere expression: "Jiang Fan, I never said I'd retaliate against you. These are all your groundless assumptions. Let's pretend today's events never happened. Once we're back in human territory, no one mentions this, how about it?" In his heart, his resentment grew even deeper. Being forced, a dignified perfected Core Formation ninth-level expert, to beg for his life like this. This humiliation must be avenged with blood!!!

"Stop pretending." Jiang Fan said indifferently, "Even without probing your thoughts, I know exactly what you're thinking. The Giant Sect's ethos has always been that when you bully others, it's perfectly justified. But if others resist even a little, you unleash a furious rage and overwhelming murderous intent. In that case, I won't leave myself any trouble." He took a slight step back. "Kill him."

He Jiuzhang's pupils contracted sharply. Facing two demon king-level beings simultaneously, how could he possibly survive? Facing death, he stopped begging for mercy. His eyes blazed with monstrous malice as he roared, "If I die, you won't have it easy either!"

*Thud*! He leaped forward, unleashing terrifying fist winds, and charged towards Jiang Fan! Before he could get close, two figures simultaneously flashed into existence, giving him no chance to resist. They struck his left and right chest simultaneously.

*Splatter*! Even though he possessed a body strengthened through cultivation, his left chest was shattered, turning into a bloody mist. His right chest was frozen solid. His head, also frozen, bore a face filled with bitter resentment and unwillingness. The perfected Core Formation ninth-level expert, whom the Giant Sect had spent five years' worth of resources to recreate, had thus perished.

The Grand Elders present let out a collective sigh. Not out of sympathy—He Jiuzhang's fate was entirely his own doing. They didn't ask him to save Jiang Fan; if he had merely stood by, Jiang Fan would have shown consideration for their shared humanity. But his actions were no different from actively courting death. What they sighed about was that Jiang Fan had actually grown to the point where he could kill a perfected Core Formation ninth-level expert.

Previously, when rumors circulated among the nine sects that the Azure Cloud Sect would greatly prosper because of Jiang Fan, the Grand Elders themselves hadn't paid much attention. They had seen too many astonishing prodigies in their lives and heard too many rumors of a certain sect rising due to a certain prodigy. However, most prodigies perished halfway, and the few who cultivated to the end didn't lead their sects to glory as the rumors claimed. Only Jiang Fan made them have a strong premonition that the rumors would come true!

"Elder Qin, your Azure Cloud Sect has truly produced a dragon." An extremely senior Grand Elder congratulated her with a mix of envy and emotion. "I've heard countless times about sects about to prosper, but now, I feel like I'm hearing it for real for the first time." Another Grand Elder said enviously. "This is truly annoying, why isn't it our Grand Supreme Sect?" "Exactly, what's wrong with our Myriad Sword Gate? Why does such a disciple belong to your Azure Cloud Sect?"

Qin Wangchuan's face glowed with pride. Never before had she been envied by so many Grand Elders like this. She cleared her throat and said, "You flatter me, you flatter me. I believe your sect's disciples also have talents like Jiang Fan. They're just hiding their true abilities, like Jiang Fan did in his early days."

The Grand Elder of the Spirit Beast Sect nodded and said: "Alright, I'll go back and string them all up for a beating. Let's see who's hiding their true abilities." Qin Wangchuan's lips twitched a few times. She was intimidated by these people whose faces were contorted with jealousy. She quickly changed the subject. Looking at Jiang Fan, she said, "You can come back with us now, right?"

Jiang Fan tugged at the chains on his hands: "I'm still a captive, you know."

*Pah!* Someone, identity unknown, spat. But the Grand Elders' gazes towards him were uniformly contemptuous. Accompanied by a group of peerless beauties, with the West Sea Crown Prince calling him "brother"—how dare he claim to be a captive? Shameless! Jiang Fan rubbed his nose. Suddenly, he remembered that he had forgotten to ask an important question. He looked at the Grand Elders with a puzzled expression. "Oh right, how did you all end up here?"