Li Guanqi's expression was grim in the extreme.
He had not expected the mastermind behind this to be brazen enough to destroy all evidence and silence the witness right before his eyes.
"Are you... really that confident?"
Moreover, the assailant's methods were extraordinarily covert. The spirit treasure that struck the soul had manifested without the slightest warning; even he had failed to detect a single trace of its approach.
A splitting headache throbbed within Li Guanqi's skull. His sea of consciousness had sustained several fissures under that strike, though fortunately, his foundation remained undamaged.
The Masters of the Four Towers all wore placid expressions, not a flicker of emotion stirring in their eyes.
Li Guanqi knew it would be futile to glean anything from the faces of these old foxes.
Even so, suspicions had already begun to take shape in his mind.
His gaze lingered casually on Yuan Hongyi for a fleeting instant.
Since arriving at Tianji Pavilion, Yuan Hongyi was the only person he had made any active moves against.
Thinking back, Yuan Hongyi had initially seemed fraught with anxiety in his detached courtyard, yet partway through, that urgency had abruptly vanished. That shift in itself was deeply suspicious.
If Yuan Hongyi had been worried about others misunderstanding that they were growing too close, why would he suddenly act so unhurried later on?
There was likely only one explanation...
He had found a way to break the deadlock. And judging by how events had unfolded, that countermove centered entirely around Song Yunshu!
He was using this method to utterly dispel any lingering doubts in the minds of the others.
*What a scheme!*
Li Guanqi's eyes turned freezing cold. He pivoted and walked slowly past the gathered crowd.
In a voice dripping with chill, he declared, "Since you want to play this way, fine by me."
*Buzz—!*
Li Guanqi hung the jade pendant from his waist, tore open a rift into the domain, and cast a glance back.
"The jade pendant hangs right on my waist. If you want it, come take it whenever you please."
The moment the words left his mouth, a terrifying pressure erupted with a roar!
Arcs of lightning lashed out from his body in an instant. A violent gale howled across the sky as thunderclouds surged and churned.
Deafening rumbles rolled endlessly through the air, sending waves of oppressive aura crashing outward in every direction.
In a breath, everyone inside the Four Towers was forcefully displaced outside. Immediately after, four torrential bolts of violet-black lightning—each over ten zhang thick—slammed down from the heavens!
*Rumble! Boom!*
The defensive barriers of the four grand towers shattered in an instant, and the towering edifices collapsed with a thunderous roar.
A dead silence gripped the world. Everyone thought Li Guanqi had lost his mind!
He had actually laid waste to the Four Towers with his own hands!
Yet at this moment, not a single soul dared step forward to stop him.
Li Guanqi turned around slowly, his voice saturated with murderous intent.
"From this moment forth, every department of the Four Towers falls under my direct control. Bring all matters to me first."
"Disobey, and you die!"
As the words fell, the silence became so profound that one could have heard a pin drop.
Li Guanqi continued, "I was willing to play a game of wits with you, yet you chose to resort to foul tricks? Then if I decide to play dirty, do not blame me for abandoning all reason."
With that, Li Guanqi strode slowly past the crowd.
Everyone bowed low, silently averting their eyes.
Confronted by Li Guanqi's blazing fury, not even the Masters of the Four Towers dared provoke him further.
Only after Li Guanqi vanished back into the Tianji Domain did the four of them quietly breathe a sigh of relief.
Ji Yuchuan calmly straightened up from his bow without exchanging a word with anyone, turning to head back into the domain.
As for Yuan Hongyi and the other two, they stood rooted to the spot in silence, looking down at the thousand-zhang chasm gouged into the earth beneath them and swallowing hard.
Their cultivation realms were on par with Li Guanqi's, yet this lethality of his...
Yuan Hongyi swallowed dryly. None of the three looked at one another as they turned and retreated into the domain.
Only Jiang Yi lagged behind, casting a cryptic glance at Yuan Hongyi.
The instant Li Guanqi stepped back into the domain, the jade pendant at his waist shimmered faintly, and Ge Er's voice reached his ears.
"Pavilion Master, a blade cultivator made a move against Miss Song... I... did all I could. She is alive."
Li Guanqi looked coldly at the bloody severed hand resting on his table, a burst of icy intent flashing in the depths of his eyes!
"Was only Song Yunshu's hand severed? Is her life in danger?"
"Reporting to the Pavilion Master, only her left hand was cut off. Her life is safe."
"Understood. Maintain your guard."
"Also, master the cultivation method I taught you as quickly as possible!"
"Yes! ...I apologize, it was my failure to carry out my duty."
Li Guanqi lowered the jade pendant and stared at the severed hand on the table, his expression dark as stagnant water.
He possessed absolute confidence that he could suppress everyone with force.
Yet he was well aware that relying solely on brute strength would not allow him to truly govern Tianji Pavilion...
Just like the six hall masters under the Yellow Tower, even if he subdued everyone, he still would not genuinely control the pavilion's operations.
Besides... those old foxes were all concealing their true cultivation. Their faint, elusive auras were extraordinarily well-hidden.
Forcing the issue... would definitely not work.
His only path was to raise his own people into positions of authority, just as he was doing with Su You.
Before long, Su You's voice floated steadily from the jade pendant.
"Yuan Hongyi has begun assigning me tasks. Carrying them out will inevitably harm Tianji Pavilion's interests. How should I handle this?"
A cold glint flickered in Li Guanqi's eyes, and he replied bluntly, "Do whatever needs to be done. Secure his trust first and take the hall master's seat. We will deal with the rest later."
He knew that Yuan Hongyi sitting in that high position had undoubtedly embezzled an enormous amount of wealth.
It was just that... the situation seemed to be slipping slightly out of control!
When Gu Yong was around, his formidable strength had been enough to hold everyone's petty ambitions in check.
Now, however, Gu Yong was in life-and-death seclusion attempting a breakthrough, his fate unknown...
Certain people could no longer keep their ambitions hidden!
Li Guanqi tapped his fingers lightly against the tabletop, his mind turning over how to deal with the others.
The method he had used against Yuan Hongyi could only work once. If similar incidents occurred in the other towers, those crafty veterans would surely deduce what was happening.
Thus, the tactic deployed against Huang Bin could not be repeated.
Li Guanqi murmured softly, "Jiang Yi, Yuan Hongyi, Tu Yongsi, Ji Yuchuan."
"Jiang Yi and Yuan Hongyi ought to be tied together. Tu Yongsi is Song Yunshu's Dao protector, but why do I keep sensing that something is off about him as well...?"
"Back when Song Yunshu revealed the Pavilion Master jade pendant, he was visibly startled—he clearly hadn't expected her to have it on her!"
"Right after that, an assassin appeared... Isn't that far too coincidental?"
"Jiang Yi was the one who captured the assassin. Is there truly discord between the Red and Purple Towers, just as Tu Yongsi claimed?"
"And what role is Ji Yuchuan playing in all of this?"
Rubbing the space between his brows, Li Guanqi felt that the interpersonal dynamics Tu Yongsi had described to him seemed plausible on the surface, yet somehow entirely hollow underneath...
He suddenly felt as though every step across this chessboard was fraught with hidden pitfalls!
Though he did not yet know who had orchestrated the attack on Song Yunshu, he had already laid the debt squarely at Yuan Hongyi's door.
Li Guanqi murmured beneath his breath, "Trying to threaten me?"
"The more you want to stop me from taking action, the more determined I am to act."
"Not only will I act, but I'll also shatter your rice bowls and flip the entire table!"
"If I end up slaughtering all four Tower Masters, Senior Gu shouldn't blame me, right...?"
A cold smile curved at the corners of Li Guanqi's lips, carrying a trace of ruthless demonic charm.
The Four Towers?
If they pushed him too far, he would simply tear all four down and rebuild Tianji Pavilion from the ground up!
Chapter 687