Chapter 30: Dogs and Cats
Li Changqing stepped forward a few paces, a playful smile curling on his lips. "This is a matter between Liu Yiyi and Wang Yan. If they want to exchange, let them. Ye Fan, aren't you overstepping your bounds?"
*Slap*
Without a word, Ye Fan swung his right hand with force, landing a slap across Li Changqing's face. The sound stunned everyone. Li Changqing flew sideways like a scarecrow, landing more than two meters away—a testament to the sheer power of the blow.
He crashed to the ground, half his face instantly swelling, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. His mind went blank for a moment before he roared in fury, "You—!"
But Ye Fan didn't even glance at him. His contempt was absolute—utter disregard, treating him like air, as if he didn't exist.
"Hand it over!" Ye Fan repeated just two words, calmly fixing his gaze on Liu Yunzhi and Wang Yan.
Li Changqing struggled to his feet, seething with rage, and charged forward to grab Ye Fan's collar. Unfortunately, before he could even touch the edge of his clothes, Ye Fan backhanded him across the other cheek, still completely ignoring him, not sparing him a single glance, swatting him away like a fly.
Another solid slap, immense in force. Li Changqing flew sideways, crashing into a large tree, utterly dazed.
"Hand it over!" Ye Fan repeated those two words, still calm, looking at Wang Yan and Liu Yunzhi.
This time, Wang Yan was thoroughly intimidated. Her gaze wavered, unable to meet Ye Fan's eyes. She looked away, deflecting, "I didn't say I wouldn't give it to her. I was discussing it with her..."
But her voice lacked conviction, trailing off before she changed her tune. "Since Yiyi changed her mind, I'll return it to her, alright?"
She removed the string of crystal prayer beads from her wrist and was about to hand them to Ye Fan when Liu Yunzhi, who had remained silent until now, spoke up. "Ye Fan, aren't you being too domineering? What do you take Li Changqing for?"
Only then did Li Changqing snap out of it, shouting and screaming, ready to charge again. Pang Bo sneered from the side, "Asking for humiliation. Go ahead, try charging again if you don't believe it."
Hearing this, Li Changqing faltered, yelling from a distance but not daring to take another step.
"Why did you treat Li Changqing like that?" Liu Yunzhi demanded.
"What right do you have to hit me?" Li Changqing roared angrily.
"Do I need to explain or reason with a fly? Just swat it away." Ye Fan's words were directed at Liu Yunzhi, still not glancing at Li Changqing.
"You... what are you saying?" At that moment, Li Changqing's face was swollen, alternating between pale and red, so furious he nearly spat blood. He realized that Ye Fan held even Liu Yunzhi in contempt, and himself even more so—too lazy to bother arguing or speaking with him. It was a devastating blow to his pride.
Ye Fan reached out his right hand. Wang Yan quickly placed the prayer beads in his palm, not daring to meet his eyes, stepping back a few paces.
"We all know that Yiyi's life has been rough in recent years. She's suffered heavy blows, her personality and mindset have changed. She's become weak and lacking in confidence. This kind of psychological trauma takes time to heal. I hope you'll restrain yourself, watch your words and actions, and not bully her in this state. Don't be so shameless!" Ye Fan warned Wang Yan in a very low voice.
Hearing such harsh words, Wang Yan's face turned pale, a mix of shame and anger, but mostly fear. She stepped back a few more paces, not daring to say anything else.
"Ye Fan, you've gone too far!" Liu Yunzhi's face darkened.
The others watched in silence. Just as everyone thought Ye Fan would turn and leave, they saw him suddenly swing his fist, landing a heavy blow on Liu Yunzhi's face.
In an instant, blood sprayed from Liu Yunzhi's nose and mouth, his face a mess of red. He fell backward to the ground.
"You—!" He never expected Ye Fan to strike him too.
"I didn't bother with you, but you keep provoking me. Did you think I have a good temper?" Ye Fan gave him a cold glance, his eyes full of disdain, then turned and walked away.
"Ye Fan!" Liu Yunzhi gritted his teeth, lying on the ground, wiping the blood from his mouth and nose. "Just wait!"
Hearing this, Pang Bo rushed over, lifting his big foot to kick. "Who's waiting? What do you want? Tell me!"
*Thump, thump, thump...*
He kicked a dozen times, sending Liu Yunzhi rolling far away until he finally passed out.
The others watched without a word of protest. Many already disliked Liu Yunzhi. In their old environment, it might have been different, but in this new world, there was no need to care about his so-called status. Even the two or three who might have defended him chose to stay silent, knowing that once Ye Fan showed his edge, it was best not to provoke him.
"Did everyone see that..." Li Changqing, still oblivious to the situation, shouted and looked around.
No one responded except Pang Bo, who, after finishing with Liu Yunzhi, strode over and said, "Saw it. Saw it all."
*Thump, thump, thump...*
Pang Bo's big feet kicked Li Changqing like a sandbag, sending him rolling like a dead pig, screaming in pain.
The group didn't delay and continued on their way. Wang Yan helped Liu Yunzhi and Li Changqing to their feet, and the three trailed at the back.
At that moment, Liu Yunzhi and Li Changqing ground their teeth in fury. They had lost all face, utterly humiliated. They also felt a genuine urge to vomit blood—it was clear now that Ye Fan had never taken their previous actions seriously, never even considered them worth his attention. He seemed utterly indifferent to their schemes.
This casual contempt struck a severe blow to their pride. They felt like mere clowns, someone he couldn't be bothered with until he got annoyed, then swatted away like flies, never treating them as equals.
There was no greater insult than being treated like dogs and cats, never as opponents.
An hour later, the group crossed another low hill. They could now clearly see a cluster of buildings on a distant high mountain, while the roars of beasts in the surrounding hills grew louder. They were about to leave the Ancient Forbidden Land.
"Let's go a bit further, then rest for a while." After trekking through the mountains for most of the day, everyone was indeed exhausted.
When they crossed another peak, they finally saw birds appearing around them. Soon, they entered a vibrant world—birds singing, beasts roaring, lush vegetation, full of life, no longer the dead, desolate scene.
"There's a rabbit over there!"
"And a badger!"
Seeing wild animals, many people's mouths watered. Eating only wild fruit had left them craving something more substantial.
"Hey, there are words on that cliff!" Someone spotted a stone wall ahead, carved with several large ancient characters.
Everyone had seen the first three characters before: "Ancient Forbidden." The fourth character was now confirmed to be "Land."
"Why are we seeing these four characters again? Haven't we left the forbidden zone?"
"No, this proves we've made it out. This should be the edge of the Ancient Forbidden Land. We've finally escaped safely."
"Let's rest here. We should see signs of human habitation soon."
Among the group, two or three people gathered together, forming small circles, sitting down to consider what to do after leaving. Clearly, they were destined to part ways.
"I'll go see what Liu Yunzhi and his crew are up to. They seem to be sneaking around." With that, Pang Bo stood up and slipped into the nearby woods.
Before long, Pang Bo returned and whispered a few words in Ye Fan's ear.
"We're about to leave these mountains. Everyone will go their separate ways. This mysterious world likely truly has deities and immortal beings. If those three gain power, they'll be trouble sooner or later—a huge headache. Better to avoid that entirely." Ye Fan stood up, speaking casually, but he had already decided the fate of three people.