Chapter Ninety: You miserable cur, you dare still call yourself fit to live!

Watching Du Ruyue die beneath Chu Fei's feet, Tan Yingyao clenched his fists, filled with regret.

If he had known sooner that Chu Fei was the kind of man who would slaughter the innocent to achieve his ends, he would never have worked for him.

"I thought you were just a bad man. I never expected you not even to be human."

Tan Yingyao glared at Chu Fei. "He had already agreed to give you the Dewfall Herb. Why did you still have to wipe them all out...!"

Before he could finish, Chu Fei waved him off.

"Spare me the sanctimony. Not everyone pulled from the gutter is necessarily human."

"What do you mean?" Tan Yingyao frowned. "Then explain it. What possible reason could there be for killing them?"

Ever since Chu Fei had arrived, apart from the two younger members of the family, everyone in the Du household had placed their trust in him.

Both sides had already agreed that once Chu Fei cured Du Tianhan, they would hand over the Dewfall Herb. Tan Yingyao simply could not see any reason they had to die.

The only possibility was that Chu Fei had failed to cure him, and so had chosen the more direct path of murder and robbery.

But if that were the case, Tan Yingyao would only find him even less human.

"Scaleblood Syndrome."

Chu Fei spoke coldly. "That old man, and the people who just died, all had this illness."

"They just hadn't fully erupted yet."

When he had touched Liu Hanmei earlier, it had not been merely to take advantage of her; he had been testing whether she too suffered from the same condition.

The result was that not only she, but everyone in the Du family, had contracted it. That was why Chu Fei had killed without mercy.

Tan Yingyao looked puzzled. "So it's contagious, and you were afraid they would spread it to others, so you killed them?"

"No. It's not contagious."

Chu Fei shook his head. "It's a side effect of practicing the Blood Demon Hand."

"You are a martial artist yourself. You should know what the Blood Demon Hand is, shouldn't you?"

The Blood Demon Hand.

At those three words, Tan Yingyao's expression changed. "Isn't that one of the forbidden arts?"

Martial artists cultivated spiritual power and improved their strength through martial techniques.

Those techniques were also their primary means of attack.

The stronger the technique, the higher its ceiling.

After the establishment of the Martial Alliance, the world's techniques had been ranked from one star to ten stars.

One star was the lowest; ten stars, the highest.

For example, the Mountain-Splitting Fist Tan Yingyao had shouted during his first clash with Chu Fei was a one-star technique.

As for the so-called forbidden arts, they were a concept proposed by the Martial Ban Bureau, the Martial Alliance's archenemy.

Certain techniques were classified as forbidden because the methods required to cultivate them were too inhumane.

No martial artist was allowed to practice forbidden arts. Anyone who did so in secret would be treated as a heretic and blacklisted by the system.

That would then bring arrest and pursuit from the Martial Ban Bureau, which was an official organization.

While the two were talking, Du Tianhan seized the chance to flee the room.

Chu Fei had already locked onto him with his spiritual sense, so he knew Du Tianhan was not escaping, but running toward his secret chamber.

So he strolled downstairs at an unhurried pace.

Following the direction Du Tianhan had taken, he moved on ahead.

Behind him, Tan Yingyao hurried after him, unable to help asking, "Even if they practiced a forbidden art, didn't they deserve to die?"

Though forbidden arts were infamous in the martial world, to Tan Yingyao they were merely another means of growing stronger.

Who wouldn't like a powerful technique?

If a formidable forbidden art were placed before him, he would probably struggle not to be tempted as well.

Most importantly, this matter belonged to the Martial Ban Bureau.

Chu Fei didn't look like someone who liked meddling in other people's affairs.

He should not have reacted so strongly!

"I usually don't kill people, unless I can't help myself."

Chu Fei came to a corner of the estate and placed his hand against the wall.

Just as Tan Yingyao was wondering what he was doing, Chu Fei gave it a light push, and the wall opened to reveal a lightless underground chamber.

Tan Yingyao looked down and saw Du Tianhan crouching inside, drinking from a blood bag in his hands.

His grotesque appearance was just like those vampires that could not bear the sunlight.

Even more shocking were the cages surrounding him. In them, one fresh young face after another, all scarred and bruised, suddenly appeared before their eyes.

What a scene from hell this was.

Tan Yingyao was utterly stunned.

Those imprisoned children were skin and bone, bloodless, covered in wounds, and still they were being drained of blood through syringe after syringe.

"Blood Demon Hand uses other people's blood to increase spiritual power," Chu Fei said in an icy voice. "And it must be young blood. The younger, the better."

"Most of the orphanages in Dragon City are run by their Du family. Think about it. Really think about it."

Tan Yingyao stared in disbelief at the children.

The shock of it was overwhelming.

He had never imagined that the family he had called benefactors, the family known as moral exemplars, had in fact been secretly draining these children's blood all along, drinking it to strengthen themselves.

No wonder the Du family had produced so many martial masters in such a short time.

So that was the source of it all.

"Big brother... uncle... please... save us and get us out of here!"

A frail little girl who was being bled spotted Chu Fei and the others.

With a thud, she dropped to her knees, her eyes full of pleading.

The other children, half-dead in their cages, heard the noise and began to poke their heads out one after another.

Then the sound of frantic impacts against the bars erupted, and the entire underground chamber burst into a clamorous storm of cries.

"Big brother, save us! We don't want to die!"

"They fed Xiaomi to the dogs after she died. I don't want to become food!"

"Uncle, not only do they drain our blood, they whip us too. If we dare to cry for help, they cut out our tongues!"

"They're all demons, especially that vicious Du Ruyue. She was the cruelest of them all...!"

Crying and pleas for help instantly mingled into one.

The oldest among them had not even reached adulthood, while the youngest was not even as tall as Tan Yingyao's knee.

Seeing this, Tan Yingyao stood rooted to the spot, his teeth clenched.

"Still think I killed the wrong people?"

Chu Fei glanced at him. "What's so frightening about ghosts? I'll show you the human heart."

With red eyes, Tan Yingyao said, "I was wrong. You shouldn't have let them die so easily. Those scum deserved to go to hell!"

By this point, Du Tianhan no longer had any need to keep up the mask of hypocrisy.

He bared a face twisted with malice and shouted at the children, "Shut up! All of you, shut the hell up!"

"I've done so many good deeds. What's wrong with taking a little blood from you!"

"If it weren't for me, you'd all have been dead long ago. And now you still want someone to save you? You ungrateful parasites!"

Tan Yingyao could no longer restrain himself and sprinted toward Du Tianhan.

"You filthy dog, you don't even deserve to live!"

He struck with all his strength at Du Tianhan's hand.

It was utterly useless.

Du Tianhan gave a contemptuous snort and sent Tan Yingyao flying with a single palm strike, crashing down at Chu Fei's feet.

"Damn it, I lost my temper and forgot this old bastard is stronger than me."

Tan Yingyao spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, then looked toward Chu Fei as though it were only natural.

"If shouting and raging could solve problems, donkeys would have ruled the world long ago."

Chu Fei rolled his eyes.

Then he slowly walked toward Du Tianhan.

Du Tianhan had just consumed a large amount of blood, and his strength had been enhanced. Seeing Chu Fei now, he was no longer afraid.

"You little bastard, you'll pay for what you've done!"

Spiritual power surged through Du Tianhan's body as he roared and charged at Chu Fei.

"I'm going to kill you, drain your blood dry, tear you to pieces, and avenge my family!"