I can only beat noobs.

Chapter 38 Lenient Treatment
Early in the morning, a group of menacing martial artists, carrying knives and swords, arrived outside the Chen residence on Xiushui Street. The leader, a young man in his early twenties, with an arrogant expression, shouted, "Kick the door open!"

A burly henchman stepped forward and kicked the door, snapping the latch with a loud crack.

With another kick, the gate collapsed.

"Brother Zhang is awesome!"

Immediately, the martial artists who had come with him cheered.

"What are you doing?"

When the gatekeeper Zhang Li came out and saw that the gate had been kicked open, his eyes widened in fury, and he clenched his fists, wishing he could rush up and fight to the death.

They had just moved to a new house when their door was vandalized the very next day.

What a shame!

The arrogant young man shouted, "Li Xiangrong of the martial arts guild has come here today to demand an explanation. Bring Chen Ming out here."

"Bring Chen Ming out here!"

"Bring Chen Ming out here!"

"..."

A dozen people shouted in unison, and their voices carried far and wide.

Old Li was intimidated by the men's imposing manner, his legs went weak, and he collapsed to the ground.

The commotion quickly alerted the nearby residents, who all sent their servants out to investigate. They soon learned that a martial arts guild had come to cause trouble for the Chen family, who had moved in the day before.

Those who are timid will keep the door tightly shut.

Those who were bolder sent out their servants to keep an eye on things.

Some, not afraid of trouble, even went outside to watch the spectacle.

"Martial arts guild? Never heard of it. I only know about the cloth guild and the tea guild..."

"How many martial arts schools are there in Qingfeng City? It's normal that you haven't heard of them. They don't usually cause trouble for anyone, as long as you don't mess with them..."

"It seems the newly moved-in Chen family is in for some bad luck."

"I don't know how the Chen family got into trouble with this martial arts guild..."

……

Martial arts guilds are formed by a group of martial artists. Why mess with them? It's practically suicide.
Finally, a young man emerged from the Chen residence. He was tall and slender, with a striking and handsome appearance. He was Chen Ming, the second son of the Chen brothers. He walked out slowly, showing no fear in the face of the dozen or so menacing men outside.

Li Xiangrong stood with his hands behind his back, his expression arrogant, showing no regard for the other party, and only asked one question, "You are Chen Ming?"

Chen Ming ignored him, staring at the two collapsed doors, a cold glint in his eyes, and asked, "Who did this?"

At this moment, Old Li, the gatekeeper who had been frightened, saw the second young master come out and suddenly felt reassured, jumping up from the ground. Pointing at the burly man behind Li Xiangrong, he said in a voice trembling with tears, "It was him, it was this damned bastard who did it. In broad daylight, he kicked down someone's gate, he'll be cursed with a cursed lineage..."

Chen Ming finally looked at Li Xiangrong and said coldly, "I wonder if I have a grudge against you?"

Li Xiangrong said, "No."

"Is there an old grudge?"

"nor."

Chen Ming asked, "Then why did you demolish my front door for no reason?"

Li Xiangrong raised his chin slightly and said sternly, "Just because you broke the rules of our martial arts guild by opening a school and taking on students without permission, we are here today to demand an explanation."

Chen Ming wasn't angry. He said, "I'd like to hear how you plan to interrogate me."

Li Xiangrong held up one finger and said, "First, immediately dismiss the disciples you've taken in."

After saying that, he stretched out a second one, "Second, you need to go to the martial arts guild to apologize."

"Third, compensate the martial arts guild with five thousand taels."

"The guild leader is only giving you a chance to reform because you're Elder Huo's disciple. Otherwise, he wouldn't have given you a chance to speak; he would have just arrested you and sent you to the guild. Don't make a mistake!"

Li Xiangrong's expression suggested that he had already been treated leniently.

……

"This martial arts guild is truly domineering."

"What martial artist isn't domineering? That's why it's said, 'It's better to offend a merchant than a martial artist.' Having a sharp blade in one's heart naturally breeds a murderous intent; this isn't just talk. They really will kill..."

"This Chen family's second son is really unlucky. If Elder Huo were still alive, the martial arts guild would definitely not have come to question him so directly."

"..."

The onlookers began to murmur amongst themselves. Suddenly, the second son of the Chen family burst into laughter, as if he had heard something ridiculous.

Everyone thought to themselves, "Is he out of his mind?"

Li Xiangrong snapped, displeased, "What are you laughing at?" Chen Ming laughed until tears streamed down his face. "Shouldn't I thank your president for his magnanimity?"

Li Xiangrong could naturally see the sarcasm in his tone, and a sinister smile appeared on his face. "Looks like you're not convinced?"

Before coming, he asked the chairman what to do if this Chen family's second son refused to accept punishment.
The chairman only said one thing: "Don't let it escalate to the point of causing a death."

He understood that as long as the other person's life was spared, it didn't matter if they were crippled or maimed.

This was probably to save face for Sun Shicai. After all, the two were from the same school, so they had to be given some respect.

Chen Ming said coldly, "I'll give you two choices. First, repair my gate and apologize to me in public. I don't want your five thousand taels, just five hundred."

"Second, or none of you should leave."

Li Xiangrong flew into a rage, "You're courting death!"

He's here representing the martial arts school, how dare this kid talk to him like that?
"Junior Brother Liu, go and teach him a lesson."

Junior Brother Liu was the burly man who kicked open the Chen family's gate. He was from the Xiangyang Martial Arts School, a ninth-rank cultivator with astonishing natural strength, and was virtually unmatched among ninth-rank cultivators.

His only weakness is that he's not very bright.

This time, a total of three ninth-rank martial artists came, which already shows that they attach great importance to Chen Ming.

Li Xiangrong believed that Liu Shidi alone could handle this person.

Without saying a word, Junior Brother Liu rushed towards Chen Ming.

The onlookers were excited to see that a fight had finally broken out. Some of them had seen the big man kick down the door with both feet and knew that he was incredibly strong.

I'm afraid the second son of the Chen family will get injured.

The thought had barely crossed his mind when he saw the burly man fly backward at an even greater speed, crashing to the ground on his back, clutching his leg, and letting out a piercing scream.

Everyone was shocked.

Li Xiangrong's expression froze; he hadn't even seen how Junior Brother Liu lost.

How could this be?
Just then, he heard his junior brother Wang exclaim, "Eighth Rank—"

what?
Eighth grade?

This is impossible!

Li Xiangrong refused to believe it was true. How old was Chen Ming? How could he possibly have an eighth-grade cultivation level?

Didn't he only reach the ninth rank a year ago?
How could he possibly break through to a higher level in just one year?

It is absolutely impossible.

He roared like a madman, "Impossible... Attack... Everyone attack together..."

“But…” Junior Brother Wang hesitated. If the opponent was really an eighth-rank, even if everyone were tied together, they would not be his match.

Li Xiangrong glared at him fiercely, "Are you going to disobey orders?"

Junior Brother Wang's lips curled into a bitter smile. "I wouldn't dare."

"Then let's go."

So, Li Xiangrong led everyone and rushed towards Chen Ming.

"Humph!"

Chen Ming sneered. Facing the attack of more than a dozen people, he didn't make any move. With one punch, someone would fall. With one kick, someone would be sent flying.

In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen people had fallen.

Only Li Xiangrong remained standing there, his face devoid of its previous arrogance, replaced only by despair, his voice trembling, "You...you...you actually..."

boom!
Before he could finish speaking, Chen Ming kicked him to the ground.

Overwhelmed by excruciating pain, Li Xiangrong's eyes rolled back, and he fainted.

Chen Ming looked at his junior brother Wang and said calmly, "You, send someone back and tell your boss to fix my door before you talk to me."

……

On the street, the onlookers were all dumbfounded, never expecting such a reversal.

Someone exclaimed in a trembling voice, "This second son of the Chen family actually has an eighth-rank cultivation level! How old is he?"

"It seems like he's only twenty..."

"A twenty-year-old eighth-rank official... My God..."

"The Chen family is something else!"

(End of this chapter)