The middle-aged man, whose face was unnaturally pale, was Li Ziyao, the current head of the Li family. When Lin Feng entered, Li Ziyao had been silently appraising him, feeling quite surprised. He had assumed Zhang Fangzhou's 'Big Brother' would be a late Foundation Establishment cultivator, yet here was this young man. While he couldn't pinpoint the exact cultivation level, his experience told him the youth was likely only at the early Foundation Establishment stage—how could such a cultivator possibly have killed Li Sha?
Meanwhile, Lin Feng, unbothered by the open scrutiny, activated his Observing Essence Technique and swept his gaze over them. He saw the pale-faced man was at Foundation Establishment Stage 9. The foppish young man beside him was at Foundation Establishment Stage 3. Furthermore, the two guards standing behind the middle-aged man were at mid-Foundation Establishment, as were the two blocking the doorway.
Six Foundation Establishment cultivators in this room, besides myself, and I'm the lowest level… Lin Feng couldn't help but inwardly sigh at the sheer number of experts a wealthy family could command.
"Big Brother," Zhang Fangzhou whispered urgently beside Lin Feng, "That's the Li family head, Li Ziyao. The one next to him is his son, Li Renyao…"
Lin Feng had been expressionlessly observing the pair. Hearing Zhang Fangzhou's introduction, his expression faltered momentarily. He couldn't help but look at the foppish youth with a strange expression. "You're Renyao?!"
"Indeed! I am Li Renyao!" Li Renyao clearly missed the homophonic pun (in this world, no one likely knew what 'renyao' implied). He continued to stare at Lin Feng with arrogant disdain, sneering, "So you're their 'boss'? Did you kill Li Sha?"
The corner of Lin Feng's mouth twitched. Knowing laughter was inappropriate given the tense atmosphere, he forced a stern expression. "Young Master Renyao, what does it matter who killed Li Sha? Your Li family offered a bounty for his head. My men brought you the head. Claiming the reward should be the end of it. Yet, you detain my man. What is the meaning of this? Would the prestigious Li family truly renege on a mere fifty thousand spirit stones?"
"Hmph! Such insolence! 'A mere fifty thousand stones'? I doubt you've ever seen that many in your life!" Li Renyao scoffed contemptuously. "When did my Li family say we'd renege? The fifty thousand stones were already given to your men! However… an item on Li Sha's person rightfully belongs to my family. We demand its return!"
He glared at Lin Feng with open hostility. "I don't care if you killed Li Sha or not! Since you obtained his head, you likely took his belongings too! Be sensible and hand over my family's heirloom! Otherwise… Hmph!!"
Lin Feng acted as though the threat hadn't been uttered. He replied calmly, "Young Master Renyao, forgive my bluntness, but your family's bounty notice mentioned nothing of this matter. I merely brought Li Sha's head to claim the reward. As for your Li family's 'heirloom'… I'm afraid I've never seen it."
"Still trying to lie!" Li Renyao sneered. "If you claim you don't have it, then submit to a search!"
With that, he gave a sharp nod to the two burly men blocking the doorway behind Lin Feng. Immediately, they stepped forward, hands whistling through the air as they lunged to grab Lin Feng without ceremony—a blatant, forceful assault!
"Whoom!"
Their grasping hands never reached Lin Feng. They slammed into a shimmering golden barrier. Caught off guard, both men were violently repelled, stumbling back several steps, their hands stinging painfully.
Lin Feng lowered the golden jade talisman in his left hand, the protective radiance fading. He stared coldly at the stunned Li Renyao. "What? Attempting daylight robbery? Is this how the Li family bullies others with their power?"
"A spiritual light defense treasure!!" Li Renyao finally snapped out of his shock, staring incredulously at Lin Feng before recovering his sneer. "Hmph! So what if you have one?! You think that—"
"Enough, Renyao. Show some courtesy."
Li Ziyao, who had remained silent until now, suddenly spoke, cutting off his son. He looked at Lin Feng with a stiff 'smile'. "Young friend, my son was merely… joking. I hope you won't take offense. Please, have a seat."
"..."
Lin Feng suppressed a derisive snort. How shameless can you get? Your son threatened me repeatedly, even ordered his men to attack, and you just watched. Now that you see I'm not so easy to handle, you want to switch to a softer approach?
Still, standing while they sat did put him at a slight disadvantage. Lin Feng simply sat down in a nearby chair before replying, "A child's ignorance isn't worth my attention. Does the Li family head have anything else to say? If not, I have other matters to attend to and will not impose further."
"You!!" Li Renyao's brow furrowed violently, rage bubbling up, but a sharp glance from Li Ziyao silenced him.
Li Ziyao wasn't as 'ignorant' as his son. He recognized that the defensive treasure Lin Feng had just used was at least mid-grade treasure artifact level. This sent a ripple of caution through him. Someone possessing such an artifact couldn't be ordinary. Moreover, Lin Feng hadn't shown the slightest trace of fear since entering. This prompted Li Ziyao to probe deeper, wanting to ascertain Lin Feng's background before proceeding.
After quelling his son's outburst, Li Ziyao addressed Lin Feng again. "May I ask how to address you, young friend? You don't seem to be from this city?"
"My surname is Lin. I indeed arrived in Biquan City only yesterday," Lin Feng answered dismissively.
Hearing Lin Feng give only his surname, refusing even his full name, Li Ziyao felt a surge of anger but maintained his facade. He asked casually, as if making conversation, "Ah, then you must have come with your respected Master?"
—The probing couldn't be more blatant. Does he think I'm three years old? Lin Feng inwardly scoffed. He nodded. "Indeed. I came with my venerable Master."
Li Ziyao pressed on, "Oh? Then might I inquire where your esteemed Master is currently? Presumably, it was he who eliminated Li Sha, my family's enemy? He is a benefactor to the Li family. If possible, I would like to pay him a visit to express my gratitude."
Now he's really pushing his luck. Lin Feng waved a dismissive hand. "Unnecessary. My Master has no interest in meeting… insignificant people."
"..."
Li Ziyao was momentarily speechless, his anger simmering beneath the surface. Yet, he forced himself to remain 'patient'. "To be frank, young friend, that Li Sha stole a family heirloom from us. While it is a useless artifact now, it was left behind by our ancestors. We are thus desperate to recover it. If you, Young Friend Lin, obtained Li Sha's spatial ring, I implore you to return that item to my family. I am willing to offer an additional fifty thousand spirit stones as thanks. What do you say?"
Had Li Ziyao made this offer initially, Lin Feng might have considered it. The spirit artifact fragment was useless to him. If it genuinely was the Li family's 'heirloom', returning it to avoid trouble could have been an option. But their attitude from the very beginning had been deeply offensive. Switching to soft tactics only after the hard approach failed was far too late.
The talk of 'returning to its rightful owner' was just empty rhetoric. In the cultivation world, treasures changed hands countless times through struggle and theft. Whoever possessed it last could claim to be the 'rightful owner' – ultimately, it belonged to the strongest. Whether that fragment was truly the Li family's 'heirloom' was irrelevant. He had taken it from Li Sha. It was his now. Why should he 'return' it?
Seeing Lin Feng's apparent 'hesitation', Li Ziyao spoke again, his tone taking on a subtle edge beneath the politeness: "That item is surely of no use to you. Wouldn't it be mutually beneficial to return it to my family and receive an extra fifty thousand stones? If you return our heirloom, you will be considered a friend of the Li family. Should you encounter any difficulties in the future, the Li family will do its utmost to assist."
It sounded like a conciliatory offer, but the unspoken threat was clear: Refuse to return it, and you become an enemy of the Li family. You will need to watch your step very carefully from now on.