Chapter 137 Cruelty

Chapter 137: Cruel

Xie Mingyuan felt as if disaster had struck from nowhere, completely bewildered as to why the Beidi people had suddenly targeted him.

He could only steel himself and reply, "I... I do indeed serve as Vice Minister of the Dali Court, but I don't..."

"Then it's you! Stop the nonsense! Prove you're a man!"

Xie Mingyuan: "???"

Xie Mingyuan's legs went weak, and he turned to Zhou Mingqi, about to beg for help.

However, Batur was impatient and gave him no chance.

Just as his knee was an inch from the ground, Batur leaped off the fighting platform without hesitation.

In two or three strides, he reached Xie Mingyuan, grabbed him by the scruff of his neck, and hoisted him onto the platform with brute force.

Batur grinned, showing his wide mouth, his knuckles still smeared with Cui Jing's blood.

He deliberately cracked his knuckles, his burly figure standing like an iron pillar in the center of the arena.

"You... no need to be modest... fight me to the death!"

Batur crouched low, spread his hands wide, and fixed his piercing gaze on Xie Mingyuan, assuming an offensive stance.

Gulita had warned them that this man looked like a pushover but was in fact incredibly fierce, and they must not underestimate him.

Xie Mingyuan: "???"

Only now did Xie Mingyuan finally realize that the Beidi people were not joking with him!

In an instant, his legs trembled uncontrollably, and cold sweat soaked through the back of his robes.

He had never imagined himself standing on the martial arts platform, let alone facing a Beidi man who was eight feet tall and heavily muscled.

"Wait, wait!" Xie Mingyuan waved frantically and backed away repeatedly, trying to explain. "There must be a misunderstanding! I—"

But Batur refused to listen. The Khan had once said, "The Great Zhou people are cunning and treacherous—masters of disguise."

"Enough talk!" Batur roared, his huge fist whistling through the air straight toward Xie Mingyuan's face.

"Bang!"

"Ow—" Xie Mingyuan couldn't dodge in time; the bridge of his nose broke, and blood gushed out instantly.

He staggered back a few steps, seeing stars, and before he could steady himself, Batur delivered a sweeping kick that landed hard on his stomach.

"Ugh—" Xie Mingyuan doubled over, falling to his knees. His stomach churned violently, and he vomited bile mixed with blood onto the ground.

The entire arena fell silent; everyone was stunned.

What... what kind of grudge was this? Had Xie Mingyuan pissed on the graves of the Beidi?

Batur looked at Xie Mingyuan, sprawled like a dead dog, and felt a flicker of doubt. This man seemed rather fragile? But then he thought, it must be a deliberate show of weakness to trick him into dropping his guard.

"Cunning Zhou people!" Batur bellowed, grabbed Xie Mingyuan by the hair, and lifted him up.

"No, no..." Xie Mingyuan, face covered in blood, shook his head in terror. "I really don't know any martial arts—"

"Still pretending?!" Batur sneered, pulled back his right fist, and slammed a heavy punch into the side of Xie Mingyuan's face.

With a "crack," two of Xie Mingyuan's wisdom teeth were knocked out, flying through the air in a graceful parabola.

Xie Mingyuan's vision went black, he couldn't even let out a scream, and he collapsed like a ragdoll.

"Geez..." the onlookers winced and looked away, unable to bear the sight.

But Batur was relentless; he grabbed Xie Mingyuan's arm and performed a shoulder throw.

"Boom!" Xie Mingyuan slammed hard into the ground, dust flying.

Xie Mingyuan stared up weakly at the sky, foaming at the mouth, a look of sorrow on his face.

Even now, he still couldn't figure out when he'd ever offended these Beidi people.

"Get up! Keep fighting!" Batur shouted in broken Mandarin.

Xie Mingyuan: "..." No way.

Below the platform, Cheng Ge lowered his head, his eyes intense, his expression serious.

Carefully, he used his chopsticks to pick up the goji berry that had fallen back into the soup bowl, placing it on his spoon, ready to down it in a single swallow.

The goji berries in the palace were indeed special—rounder and plumper than the ones from outside herb shops.

One gulp, and he would regain his vigor!!!

Yang Guanlan, watching, clicked his tongue in amazement: "Did these Beidi people mistake him for someone else? Since when does Xie Mingyuan know any martial arts?"

Cheng Ge stared at the goji berry with reverence without even lifting his head: "No idea..."

On the martial arts platform, Batur got angrier by the second—why wasn't this man fighting back? Was he insulting him?

"Courting death!" he bellowed, grabbed Xie Mingyuan by the ankle, and swung him like a sack of grain—

"Thud! Thud! Thud!"

Xie Mingyuan's body slammed repeatedly into the wooden posts of the platform, each impact with a dull thud.

Xie Mingyuan lay limp, like a dying chicken with plague, his chest barely rising and falling, the only sign he was still alive.

"Get... up! You were... so arrogant before!"

Batur looked down at Xie Mingyuan from above, issuing a final challenge.

Xie Mingyuan said nothing, just rolled his eyes at Batur.

Batur: "!!!" This man truly was courting death.

Feeling provoked by Xie Mingyuan, Batur's rage flared up.

He suddenly lunged, grabbed Xie Mingyuan by the collar, and flung him across the room.

Xie Mingyuan's body flew through the air and crashed heavily onto the table in front of Cheng Ge.

Cheng Ge, mouth wide open, was just about to enjoy that half-spoonful of goji berry when...

A deafening BANG!, dust flew everywhere.

The spoon in Cheng Ge's hand jerked abruptly, and that plump, glossy goji berry trembled on the edge before finally falling to the ground with a soft "plop."

The entire venue fell silent.

Cheng Ge's spoon hung in midair, his mouth half-open, his eyes locked onto the rolling goji berry.

My... imperial tribute... kidney-strengthening miracle!

Batur sauntered over with a vicious grin, his mud-caked boot stomping down on the goji berry and grinding it in with a malicious twist.

"The men of Great Zhou," he said slowly, drawing out each word, "are just like this red fruit—all show and no substance!"

Cheng Ge's hand holding the spoon slowly tightened, his knuckles whitening from the strain.

He slowly lifted his chin to look at Batur, his lips set in a thin line.

Xie Mingyuan lay sprawled on the edge of the table, pushing himself off the ground twice with both hands, struggling but unable to rise.

"All you have in Great Zhou is the Cui family—" Batur kept stoking the fire.

He even used the tip of his boot to flick the mashed-up goji berry, cocking his head in a challenging stare at Cheng Ge.

"Hahaha—" Alutai glanced at Zhou Mingqi and let out a wild laugh, "What Cui family is left? They're all dead and gone!"

The other Beidi people joined in, laughing uproariously.

The Great Zhou officials around them suddenly rose, glaring angrily at Alutai.

Back then, the direct line of the Cui family was poisoned—though investigation showed it was the Southern barbarians' doing.

Everyone knew full well that the Beidi had a hand in it.

The Cui family was the foundation of Great Zhou. If not for that poisoning, how could the Beidi get away with being so brazen today?

In an instant, the atmosphere became tense, with national and personal grievances surging in their hearts.

Yet Alutai had no intention of backing off. He ambled over to the deer, raised his foot, and stomped on its head.

"Oh, and you still have Cui Ji."

"But unfortunately, he's fated to end up like that deer—"

His gaze swept around, a mocking smile on his face as he enunciated each word provocatively.

"—dying at the hands of a Beidi warrior!"