"How is it? Have we arrived yet?"
Li Tianjiao was sitting in a hot pot restaurant, enjoying the traditional Tianjin-style boiled mutton.
He was holding his phone, sounding somewhat complaining.
The door to the private room was pushed open.
Ling Feng entered with Ji Yunyue.
"We're here!"
Having already seen Li Tianjiao, he spoke into the phone.
Li Tianjiao, feeling a bit speechless, hung up the phone and then pulled out chairs for Ling Feng and Ji Yunyue.
There was no one else around.
As soon as Ling Feng sat down, he asked Li Tianjiao, "What's up? You, the doting brother, why haven't you brought your sister out today?"
Li Tianjiao shot him a glare.
"Don't talk nonsense! I'm here in Tianjin on official business today! Come on, eat up, don't be shy. This is all freshly sliced lamb!"
Ji Yunyue shook her head at Li Tianjiao's greeting. "I don't eat lamb."
Ling Feng also put down his chopsticks. "Are you trying to apologize to me?"
Li Tianjiao's mouth twitched. "Apologize for what? Oh, you mean injuring your subordinates? It's just that I wasn't here at the time. Otherwise, how could something like this have happened?"
"Are you playing dumb with me?"
Ling Feng glanced at Li Tianjiao.
Sweat began to drip from Li Tianjiao's forehead. He gave Ling Feng a wry smile and shook his head. "Heh, I'm not playing dumb. Sigh, forget it. It's my fault, alright? I apologize. I was inconsiderate and didn't take the Huo family seriously, which led to this incident!"
As Li Tianjiao spoke, he poured three cups of wine in front of him and downed them all in quick succession.
Only then did Ling Feng's expression soften slightly. He picked up his chopsticks.
While eating the boiled mutton, he said coldly to Li Tianjiao, "How is it? Have you made contact with the Huo family?"
Li Tianjiao nodded. "Yes, we've made contact. They're quite stubborn and won't tell the truth. They only say they joined the Extreme Peak Martial Arts, never mentioning they were the initiators. They don't admit to anything. We don't have evidence, and you said we can't let the people from Hong Kong expose themselves to avoid retaliation, so..."
Ling Feng shook his head. "If they don't admit it, can't you make them admit it?"
Li Tianjiao gave a wry smile. "Do you think we're thugs? We're officials, righteous law enforcers. How can we fight people?"
He then changed the subject. "Don't worry, your brothers are more loyal than you. You protect your own, and they can't stand seeing their brothers get hurt. So, a secret martial arts competition has already begun in the Huo family tonight. They closed their doors, thinking that's the end of it? Let's see if they can withstand the challenge!"
Ling Feng was not surprised by any of this. He asked Li Tianjiao, "Why didn't you go!?"
"Me go? Wouldn't that be bullying them even more?"
Li Tianjiao shook his head with a wry smile, carrying a hint of self-importance.
Ling Feng, however, put down his chopsticks and stared at Li Tianjiao. "That's exactly what I want you to do – bully them!"
Li Tianjiao's mouth twitched. "This... isn't it a bit much? If we push these guys to the brink, it won't do us any good, right? You have to have a limit to how much you protect your own. We've achieved a great victory today. All that damn Extreme Peak Martial Arts has been suppressed by us. Some individuals have also shown their true colors, and we're monitoring them. The Huo family is definitely very important to them. If we anger them..."
"Yes, I want to anger them!"
Ling Feng directly cut off Li Tianjiao's words.
Li Tianjiao was stunned for a moment. "You really want to do this?"
"Yes. I don't plan to give them any more time. And those people behind the scenes, I need to dig some of them out now. I need to find someone!"
Ling Feng said casually, finishing a plate of boiled mutton in a few bites. After downing three cups of wine, he got up.
Li Tianjiao's eyes widened. "So, you still haven't found someone?"
"It's not that simple. The last one is either hidden very deeply, or has already been controlled by someone. I hope to get some clues from the Huo family."
Ling Feng said indifferently.
Ji Yunyue put down her teacup and followed Ling Feng out.
"Hey, wait for me! You came in and ate like a whirlwind, and I haven't finished yet!" Li Tianjiao called out and quickly followed them.
At this very moment, inside the Huo family mansion in Tianjin.
Twelve people were lined up, surrounded by all the Huo family disciples.
Opposite them, quite a few people were seated in a row, looking as if they were about to put the twelve people before them on trial.
"Friends, you came to challenge us during the day and were defeated because you were outmatched. Now you're causing trouble again at night. What? Have you no shame?"
An old man with a white beard in the center spoke coldly.
Several people beside him also showed expressions of disdain, except for a middle-aged man on the right who stared at the twelve people with a chilling gaze.
His name was Huo Tianzheng. He was the one who had fought that morning, defeating and injuring a warrior from the War God Group.
However, Huo Tianzheng had to admit that the opponent's strength was formidable.
At that time, he couldn't quickly activate his bloodline talent in front of others, so he had narrowly won. Even so, the sudden appearance of twelve people now, these twelve warriors were clearly as powerful as the warrior from earlier.
The combined aura of the twelve people put Huo Tianzheng under immense pressure. At the very least, he knew very well in his heart that even if he went all out, he wouldn't be able to defeat any two of them working together.
If it came down to a life-or-death struggle, he might not even be able to win against just one of them!
This chilling feeling made Huo Tianzheng truly restless!
One of the twelve warriors, a warrior with a scar still visible on his eye, stepped forward and glanced indifferently at Huo Tianzheng.
His gaze finally settled on the white-bearded old man in the center.
"You are the ancestor of the Huo family, Huo Yuan Chen, aren't you?"
Huo Yuan Chen's pupils suddenly contracted. How could the killing intent emanating from the other party be so strong?
Before Huo Yuan Chen could respond, a young voice suddenly emerged from beside him. "How dare you! You can't address our ancestor by name. Are you seeking death?"
The scarred warrior who stepped forward gave the young man a disdainful look.
"Since it's a challenge, we naturally wouldn't pick your time. Your Huo family has the right to refuse the challenge. But if you refuse, it proves that your Huo family's martial arts are inferior to ours. From now on, the Huo family is not allowed to open any martial arts schools in Tianjin! Existing schools must also be closed! Furthermore, we inform you to sever all ties with Extreme Peak Martial Arts, or face the consequences!"
The warrior's words were extremely domineering. Every syllable struck like thunder, hitting everyone's hearts!
The young Huo family member who had spoken earlier felt a suffocating sensation. Not only could he not speak, but he couldn't even breathe.