"You never hit me before—"
Crack.
Another slap followed, heavier and merciless.
Fang Zheng staggered back, his lip splitting, the taste of iron flooding his mouth. His head rang; his breath came out ragged.
The silence that followed was unbearable.
Fang Yuan looked down at him — gaze devoid of warmth, as if he were studying a stranger. His voice came low, indifferent, cutting straight to the bone.
"Then start getting used to it."
"Brother!" Fang Zheng called out, voice trembling with fear and confusion.
Crack.
Another slap.
The sound cut through the room like a whip. Fang Zheng stumbled backward, hands clutching his reddened cheeks.
"Brother, what are you doing?!" he cried, his voice high and desperate.
Fang Yuan took a step forward. His eyes held no warmth, no anger — only an abyssal calm. He didn't speak. But his answer came as a strike.
Thud.
A fist drove into Fang Zheng's nose. The sound was heavy, wet — the dull noise of flesh meeting unyielding bone.
"Aaahh!" Fang Zheng's scream broke through the silence.
He fell hard onto the floorboards, blood spilling from his nostrils, his lips trembling as he tasted iron.
Fear finally set in. The childish defiance in his eyes shattered, replaced by raw, primal terror.
"B-Brother!" he gasped.
Fang Yuan's boot answered.
Thump.
The kick sank into Fang Zheng's stomach, folding him like paper. He retched, the air knocked out of him, tears mixing with the blood on his face.
He curled on the ground, coughing, choking — but Fang Yuan's shadow loomed over him, merciless as he took another step.
Instantly, Fang Yuan's foot connected with his brother's face.
Crash.
The impact sent Fang Zheng sprawling against the table; wood splintered, objects clattered to the floor.
Blood streaked his temple, a dark stain spreading beneath him.
Fang Yuan watched him without expression. His breathing was calm, measured.
While, Fang Zheng clutched his head, trembling, eyes wide with disbelief and pain. "A-ahhh—!"
Fang Yuan advanced slowly, each step measured, deliberate, like a predator closing in on its prey.
With a single, controlled motion, he seized Fang Zheng by his hair, lifting him off the ground effortlessly.
"Do you understand what you've done wrong?" Fang Yuan's voice was a chilling monotone, devoid of warmth.
"B-Brother, please…" Fang Zheng stammered, his voice cracking in fear.
Slap.
His head snapped to the side, smashing against the wall. Blood blossomed instantly, dripping down his temple.
But, Fang Yuan's expression never wavered.
"Do you understand what you've done wrong?" he repeated, cold as ice.
Fang Zheng's eyes darted up, confusion and terror written across his face — a silent, desperate plea that spoke only of ignorance.
Then, Fang Yuan's fist answered.
Crack.
Blood poured from his nose. The metallic tang filled his mouth. A sharp snap echoed — a tooth shattered, sharp shards biting into his tongue. Pain consumed him, yet Fang Yuan showed no mercy, no hesitation.
With another controlled motion, Fang Yuan yanked Fang Zheng's head upward by the hair, dragging him toward the door.
Fang Zheng's screams tore through the air, raw and guttural.
"Arrrghhh!"
"Brother, please!"
"Arrrghhh!"
His pleas fell on deaf ears.
Fang Yuan moved forward, ignoring the chaos, dragging him down the stairs.
Each thud of Fang Zheng's body against the steps, each scrape of skin against wood, reverberated like a drumbeat of terror.
The tavern patrons froze, wide-eyed, some hearts hammering, others narrowing their eyes in suspicion or morbid curiosity.
Fang Yuan's voice cut through the tension, calm, lethal.
"Do not concern yourselves."
He dragged Fang Zheng without slack, his words slicing through the stunned silence.
"I am merely disciplining a dog foolish enough to bark at its master."
Without another word, he hauled him into the warehouse.
...
The tavern was crowded, a mix of ordinary mortals and Rank 1 Gu Masters, their eyes flicking between Fang Yuan and the struggling Fang Zheng.
Shock, fascination, and revulsion rippled through the onlookers simultaneously.
Some could not comprehend such cold-blooded precision.
Some thirsted for a glimpse of such raw power. And some — like Gu Yue Mo Yan, granddaughter of Gu Yue Mo Chen, elder sister of Gu Yue Mo Bei — felt only a deep, instinctual disgust.
"Disgusting…" she muttered under her breath, lips curling in faint distaste.
She had heard whispers of Fang Yuan before. More than whispers — she had witnessed firsthand the day he executed the old man, a memory etched in her mind as it sparked interest in her.
From that moment, she had paid him attention, careful, subtle, never letting him out of her gaze.
Now, her curiosity drew her to this tavern again.
And here she stood, eyes fixed, heart uneasy, as Fang Yuan unleashed the same merciless force she had once seen — but this time, the victim was not a stranger.
It was his own brother, Fang Zheng, writhing beneath the crushing weight of Fang Yuan's deliberate, surgical violence.
The air reeked of iron and fear.
Every spasm of Fang Zheng's bloodied body, every metallic tang on the floor, every flicker of panic in his wide eyes only intensified the silent horror of the audience.
"Even though Fang Zheng is a mortal… can one truly be this ruthless toward their own family?" Gu Yue Mo Yan thought, a frown creasing her delicate face.
Her mind wandered to her own brother, Mo Bei: If he hadn't awakened his aperture… would I ever raise a hand against him?