Chapter 21: Izawa Lei!!

The voice was loud and resonant, like an ancient bell struck in a temple. It echoed far and wide, reaching every corner of the Lei family estate. Tap, tap, tap! Nine imposing figures in black followed Ben Xiao to the entrance of the hall. Ben Xiao raised his hand, "Place them." Thud, thud, thud! Nine coffins were neatly arranged under the eaves outside the hall. Lined up in a row, they were a spectacular sight. Ben Xiao stood in front of the nine coffins, hands behind his back, sweeping his gaze across the room, "Oh? Ryder Su, you've finally decided to wade into these muddy waters. Ah, what a pity for the Su family." Ryder Su snorted coldly, "You think with Vivian Zhou backing you, you can speculate on the rise and fall of my Su family? You're too naive!" "Heh, you'll soon see the outcome," Ben Xiao snorted, then turned his gaze to Roger Lei, the chief. "Roger Lei, hand over my aunt. Then, I'll let you die quickly." Roger Lei's face was cold and indifferent, "Release my son first, then we'll talk about your aunt." "Fine!" Ben Xiao didn't think twice, and immediately ordered, "Jacob, release him." Jacob hesitated, "Lord, we haven't even seen the aunt yet..." Ben Xiao remained calm, "It doesn't matter, let him go." "Yes!" Jacob yanked the crippled Lei junior and threw him out thirty meters, like a ball, crashing at Roger Lei's feet. Crack! Several bones were broken. Young Mr. Lei screamed in agony. "My son!!" Iris Chen hurriedly picked up Young Mr. Lei, her heart aching, "Don't be afraid, Mom is here. Don't be afraid..." "Mom, kill him for me, I want him torn to pieces!!!" Iris Chen was furious, "Roger, what are you waiting for? Our son is beaten like this, kill Ben Xiao now!" Bang! Roger Lei slammed the table and stood up. Swish, swish, swish! Suddenly, thirty-five burly men with bare upper bodies charged in. Their bulging muscles radiated explosive power, and they held gleaming long knives, brimming with killing intent! Each of them was a master of internal energy, comparable to Eric Ye! Roger Lei's face was filled with pride, "Ben Xiao, you really are a fool. I let you release my son, and you actually did it. You've lost your last card to restrain me. How will you fight me now?" "You killed Douglas Ye, exterminated Eric Ye's family, and even killed Master Chen. Do you think you're strong? These thirty-five warriors, all trained by my Lei family, each has honed internal energy, comparable to Eric Ye." "Can you fight thirty-five Eric Yes?" "Kill him!" As soon as the words fell, the thirty-five internal energy masters, with the ferocity of dragons and tigers, charged straight at Ben Xiao. "Dare to touch the Lord? Die!" Jacob suddenly stepped forward, charging toward the thirty-five internal energy masters. Roger Lei poured himself a glass of red wine and slowly began to drink, "Ants shaking the tree, overestimating themselves..." Before he could finish his sentence, or even swallow a sip of wine— The thirty-five internal energy masters were already on the ground. Unconscious! Dead! What? Roger Lei's eyes bulged, and his hand holding the wine glass trembled. Thirty-five internal energy masters acting together, how formidable? Even he, at the peak of his transformative energy, would need some effort to deal with them. And yet, they were all wiped out in one breath by Jacob? This... Silence! The whole place was dead silent! Iris Chen, Young Master Lei, Diego Su, Ryder Su, Ndubisi Chen, and others were all shocked. After a moment, Roger Lei called out, "Brother Su." Without thinking, Ryder Su said, "Twenty-three black guards. Kill!" Today, the Su and Lei families had joined forces, intending to kill Ben Xiao. The Lei family had already made their move and suffered losses. The Su family, now on the hot seat, had to act. Swish, swish! Twenty-three sturdy men charged again, long knives in hand, rushing at Ben Xiao. Each was no weaker than the previous thirty-five from the Lei family. "Dare to touch the Lord, die!" Jacob stepped forward, overpowering all sides like a tiger among sheep. Thud, thud, thud! In one breath, all twenty-three guards were killed. Not one survived! And Jacob, unscathed, not even a mark on his clothes. Ben Xiao, hands still behind his back, hadn't moved an inch, as steady as Mount Tai, "The Lei family, known as the first family of Jiang Bei, is that all you've got?" Roger Lei's gaze finally turned serious. "Good, very good! I have indeed underestimated you." Roger Lei said viciously, "I didn't expect you to have a transformative energy peak bodyguard. No wonder you dared to come alone." "But even at the transformative energy peak, can you withstand four hundred guns?" As soon as the words fell— Swish, swish, swish! Hefty footsteps sounded inside and outside the courtyard. All were armed mercenaries. Three hundred in total! On both sides of the hall, another hundred mercenaries appeared. Four hundred armed mercenaries, surround Ben Xiao in layers. The cold, dark muzzles all pointed at Ben Xiao and his party. A deadly silence filled the air! The air was sucked out, intimidating. As if death was dancing. Roger Lei was very pleased with this scene, his face full of pride, "This is the Lei family's method!" "Ben Xiao, now you should know how terrifying it is to provoke my Lei family, right? Any regrets?" "Regrets?!" Ben Xiao suddenly cracked a smile, "Do you really think I came alone?" Roger Lei, confident of his victory, "Otherwise? Did you invite Vivian Zhou? Useless. Don't forget, this is the Lei family, my Roger Lei's territory. Even if Vivian Zhou herself comes, it's useless." Ben Xiao raised his hand, pointing towards the main gate, "See for yourself." As soon as the words fell, countless military vehicles appeared outside the gate. Swish, swish, swish! Numerous legitimate soldiers alighted from the vehicles, completely surrounding the Lei family estate. Not just four hundred. But thousands! And they were a legitimate army! A young, beautiful, and extraordinary woman in camouflage strode into the Lei family gate. Swish! Seeing the newcomer, Roger Lei quickly stood up and went to greet her, "General Zhang. How come you're here?" Ryder Su, Diego Su, Ndubisi Chen, Iris Chen, and others were also surprised, quickly stepping forward to greet and bow. "General Zhang!" "Good day, General!" Everyone bowed their heads, not daring to breathe loudly. Zhonghai Military Command, the highest military authority in charge of local armed forces, maintaining peace and order. Besides the military commander, there were two deputy commanders. One of them was this woman. Daniel Zhang! Daughter of another star general of Zhonghai. Truly high-ranking and powerful! Though her status was not as high as Kwame Liu's, she controlled the local armed forces, which was terrifyingly powerful. Daniel Zhang walked swiftly, glanced at Ben Xiao with displeasure, but ultimately didn't say much. Instead, she turned to Roger Lei, "Roger Lei, you've privately amassed armed forces, violating the military command's laws." Roger Lei was shocked and quickly explained, "Vice Commander Liu is aware of this..." Daniel Zhang cut him off, "Shut up! Don't make unfounded accusations. Today I am here to convey the military command's order—seize the Lei family's armed forces, and take away all involved mercenaries." Roger Lei's forehead broke into a sweat. Privately amassing armed forces was indeed against the law. The Su family, Eric Ye, and the Lei family all engaged in such actions. That's why, unless absolutely necessary, they dared not use them. Today's Lei family lockdown was to prevent information leakage. But still... it had displeased the military command. But then, Roger Lei thought something was amiss. With Vice Commander Liu backing the Lei family, how could this... Seeing Roger Lei silent, Daniel Zhang snorted, "What, any objections? Or do you want to openly fight here, defying the will of the military command?" Faced with such a heavy accusation, Roger Lei quickly said, "I have no objections." "Good!" Daniel Zhang waved her hand, "Take them away." Swish, swish, swish! Soldiers rushed in, confiscated the weapons of the Lei family's four hundred mercenaries, and took them all away. As the dust settled, Daniel Zhang finally relaxed, "Roger Lei, your personal feud with Ben Xiao can be settled privately, I won't interfere. But large-scale armed conflicts are not allowed." Roger Lei, chastised, dared not retort, "Yes." Although he appeared submissive on the surface, he didn't take it to heart. He planned to contact Vice Commander Liu later to get the people back. Swish! Suddenly, Daniel Zhang turned around, looking down at Ben Xiao, "Ben Xiao, although I don't know how you managed to make our military commander issue such an order, I advise you, our military command is independent of all systems, directly under the jurisdiction of Binh Giang Province's War Department. The Xiao family of Dongyong Mountain has been annihilated, you, a discarded young master, should better not interfere in military affairs." "Otherwise, you can't afford the consequences!" Leaving these words, Daniel Zhang turned to leave. "Stop!" Just then, Ben Xiao called out. Daniel Zhang turned back, displeased, "Anything else?" Ben Xiao coldly said, "The annihilation of the Xiao family of Dongyong Mountain is not something you can talk about lightly. Go back to 1 Wenchang Road, and apologize." This statement shocked the entire room! What? Even Vice Commander Zhang, whom Roger Lei had to treat with the utmost respect, Ben Xiao actually asked her to come and apologize? This... was a bit too presumptuous, wasn't it? Swish! Daniel Zhang's temper flared up, "You? You're not significant enough to make me apologize. The Xiao family's annihilation is a hot topic. What's wrong if I mention it?" "Still talking back?!" Ben Xiao, unfazed and even more furious, "Your father is the star general of Jiang Dong, Christian Zhang?" Daniel Zhang was somewhat proud, "Correct." Ben Xiao sneered, "Christian Zhang's military merits were not obtained rightfully. Tell Christian Zhang—if he doesn't come to apologize within three days. He's finished!" "Arrogant! My father has dominated Jiang Dong for decades, with countless merits, personally conferred by the War Department of Binh Giang Province. How dare you slander him? I will request the military command to detain you, and you'll be charged with slandering a star general. Ben Xiao, you're finished!" With these words, Daniel Zhang angrily left. Four hundred mercenaries, and thousands of legitimate soldiers outside, all retreated cleanly in an instant. The Lei family's estate suddenly became much cleaner. However, the events that had just transpired left everyone trembling with fear. Roger Lei and Ryder Su's gazes toward Ben Xiao changed. Ben Xiao, even had a connection with Zhonghai's Military Commander? One Kwame Liu, one Vivian Zhou... already a bit scary. Now involving a Military Commander? And, Ben Xiao even dared to threaten Christian Zhang, the star general of Jiang Dong, with ruin?! Who exactly was this guy? A discarded young master from the Xiao family of Dongyong Mountain, how could he have such influence? "People leave, and it's indeed much cleaner," Ben Xiao said softly, then turned to Roger Lei, "Roger Lei, your Lei family's armed forces are gone. Better call out that martial arts master behind you... oh no, Izawa Nakten, come out." "How dare you! It's Roger Lei, where did Izawa Nakten come from?!" Roger Lei was furious. The Lei family had a martial arts master from Donghai state backing them. If this got out, the Lei family would be immediately ruined, and ostracized. This was the Lei family's biggest secret. Not many knew. Today, Ben Xiao had exposed it. How could Roger Lei not be angry? "You, dare to call out my Lei family's martial arts master?!" "I, Roger Lei, will personally take action, killing you is like slaughtering a dog!" With a roar, Roger Lei suddenly drew a mountain-splitting knife, leaping towards Ben Xiao. A knife, slashing down! Powerful and heavy, the compressed air from the burst of internal energy emitted a piercing roar. The knife's edge was like the moon, capable of cutting through metal and jade. Swish! Jacob stepped forward, his arm blocking in front of Ben Xiao. "Dare to use your arm to block my peak knife? You don't want your arm anymore?!" Clang! The knife solidly struck Jacob's arm. But Roger Lei clearly felt like he had struck a steel plate. The immense rebounding force flowed back, spreading throughout his body. Roger Lei felt his hands go numb, and his body involuntarily retreated several steps. "How is this possible?!" Roger Lei was dumbfounded. He had seen some masters who practiced horizontal training, indeed possessing extraordinary muscle strength, capable of lifting a thousand pounds, and breaking rocks with their fists. But none were this monstrous? Ryder Su, Ndubisi Chen, Diego Su, Young Mr. Lei, Iris Chen, and others were all dumbfounded. Like they had seen a ghost. "I don't believe it. I'm at the peak of transformative energy, and I can't kill you?!" Roger Lei roared, preparing to strike another blow. "Stop!" At that moment, a loud voice rang out. A bald man in a dark gold suit appeared in the courtyard. About 1.7 meters tall, with a square face and a goatee. His robust build was filled with a power that made people dare not look directly. He walked with his hands behind his back. Each step left a half-inch-deep footprint on the marble floor. Arriving next to Roger Lei, he stomped down. Boom! A rosewood armchair three meters away exploded. Roger Lei bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle, with the utmost respect, "Master, you've arrived!" The bald man nodded, "Step back, you're no match for him." This ultimate backbone of the Lei family, the martial arts master Izawa Lei, whom Ryder Su would even face Ben Xiao as an enemy for, finally made an appearance! Swish! Izawa Lei swept his gaze towards Ben Xiao, his eyes widening suddenly, shooting out sharp glints. At the same time, a knife on the ground slid towards Ben Xiao's feet. Izawa Lei spoke, "Will you disembowel yourself as an apology, or shall I do it?" ----------