Heavenly Dao Engine
Chapter 1171 - 1171 0681 Triple Headshots_1

Chapter 1171: Chapter 0681: Triple Headshots_1 Chapter 1171: Chapter 0681: Triple Headshots_1 Chapter 0681: Three Headshots

Manager Chen had a fair number of subordinates. Under Manager Chen’s oppressive control, they appeared to be getting along fairly well, but in actuality, their relationships were far from harmonious. The reason was simple: the resources under Manager Chen’s command were finite. Granting favors to one individual meant another would go without, and this inevitably led to fierce underground competition among those who worked for Manager Chen. Even though they seemed to be in harmony, their rivalry was intense. This was especially true now that Manager Chen was on the cusp of a breakthrough to the Nascent Soul Stage. Should Manager Chen achieve this breakthrough, his future prospects would be boundless. At this juncture, whoever could curry favor with Manager Chen and perform exceptionally well in his eyes would inevitably become his confidant after the breakthrough. They would be promoted and heavily relied upon—perhaps even becoming the next to break through to the Nascent Soul Stage.

With such entangled interests, it was easy to imagine the extent of overt conflicts and covert struggles amongst Manager Chen’s underlings like Pan.

Among these subordinates, Shen Ziyu was the most outstanding. This was not only because Shen Ziyu was adept at reading people, but also an important factor was that Shen Ziyu’s personal strength was slightly superior to the others—a conclusion they had reached after many clandestine contests.

A disparity in strength was naturally disadvantageous in their competition. As such, Pan and the others were typically tight-lipped about this matter, never casually mentioning it to others, for it was a deep wound in their hearts. They had tried every possible means to narrow the gap with Shen Ziyu, but to little avail.

When they learned from Manager Chen that Shen Ziyu was dead, they remained outwardly calm, but inwardly they were overjoyed beyond measure. If they hadn’t feared Manager Chen’s punishment, they would have celebrated wildly with a three-day and three-night drinking binge.

They had originally thought that with Shen Ziyu’s death, he would no longer be an obstacle on their path forward, like a stumbling block that had been moved aside. However, they hadn’t expected Qi Tian to bring up the very topic they wished to avoid, bluntly stating that they were inferior to Shen Ziyu. How could Pan and the others tolerate such an insult?

Pan glared furiously at Qi Tian. When Qi Tian had been observing them, Pan had been observing Qi Tian in return. He had speculated about who had the capability to kill Shen Ziyu, considering everyone from Emperor Jianwu to several Princes, and had gone through each one in his mind. However, in no way did he expect Qi Tian to step forward, openly claiming to be Shen Ziyu’s killer.

In Pan’s eyes, Qi Tian was nothing more than a low-ranking cultivator at the Third Level of the Gold Core Realm—worlds apart from Shen Ziyu. This was clearly a scapegoat set up by Emperor Jianwu. No matter how one looked at it, Qi Tian was an insignificant ant. Yet, such an ant dared to directly hit their weak spot so shamelessly. How could Pan not be enraged?

“Kid, you sure have some nerve to be playing tricks on us. It seems you haven’t grasped the gravity of the situation. You will only learn your lesson by suffering a bit first. Then you’ll understand the price of toying with us.”

Pan shouted to Zhou Ping, “Deal with him, but be gentle. Don’t kill him. Just break his limbs and ruin his Dantian, that’ll be enough.”

Those hiding behind the tomb’s doorway, including Emperor Jianwu, all sneered at Pan’s words. Was Pan misunderstanding the phrase “be gentle”? Breaking limbs and ruining the Dantian was essentially crippling a person, and that was his idea of “gentle”? Pan really didn’t regard others as human beings.

Zhou Bing acted swiftly. As soon as he received Pan’s command, he mounted his flying sword, swooping down on Qi Tian like an eagle eyeing its prey, his arrogance boundless. He didn’t take any potential reaction from Qi Tian seriously, fully confident he could swiftly handle Qi Tian as Pan had ordered.

Emperor Jianwu and the others’ hearts raced. Although they had witnessed Qi Tian effortlessly eliminate Shen Ziyu, they had not forgotten that to defeat Shen Ziyu, Qi Tian had gone all out, paying a hefty price. It was only with great difficulty that Qi Tian had managed to overcome Shen Ziyu.

Perhaps Zhou Ping was not as powerful as Shen Ziyu, but the difference couldn’t be that vast. For Qi Tian to defeat Zhou Ping, he would definitely have to incur a massive cost. And for the current Qi Tian, facing Zhou Ping might well be more difficult than facing Shen Ziyu, given that Qi Tian was not in his prime condition and had fewer tricks up his sleeve than he did when he first entered the Saint’s Tomb.

Zhou Ping kept his eyes tightly locked on Qi Tian, with several jade talismans readied in his hand. Once he reached the optimal position to attack, he intended to let Qi Tian taste the flavor of his chain talismans. Zhou Ping had great confidence in his skill with talismans, and preparing them was notably easier than activating magical weapons. His Storage Bag was filled to the brim with various talismans. Using these talismans to deal with a mere Qi Tian at the Third Level of the Gold Core Realm would be a cakewalk.