Captivating and Soul-Stealing, Traitor Executed [Please Subscribe]

Chapter 81 Captivating and Soul-Stealing, Traitor Executed [Please Subscribe]

Pagoda Peak, Zhongping Hall.

Looking at Zhou Mingde, who resembled an enraged lion, Zhou Zhengkang on the ground was terrified and nearly died of fright.

This was the first time he had ever seen Zhou Mingde so angry since he could remember, and that anger was directed at him.

Looking at the jade bottle held in Zhou Mingde's hand and the large amount of spirit coins pointed out by Zhou Daoyi, he was utterly horrified and his mind was in turmoil. How could he possibly come up with a reasonable explanation for such a short time?

The saying goes, "to catch a thief red-handed," and he is now a foolish thief caught red-handed with stolen goods, unable to defend himself no matter what.

"Spare me! Great-uncle, spare me! I was foolish enough to be led astray and commit such a terrible mistake!"

"Grandson now knows his mistake. Please, great-uncle, spare my life for the sake of my deceased great-grandfather."

"My grandson will definitely turn over a new leaf and start a new life!"

Terrified, Zhou Zhengkang finally admitted his mistake and begged for forgiveness, hoping that Zhou Mingde would spare him this time because of their blood relationship.

But he didn't notice that after he said that, Zhou Daoyi's eyes twitched and he turned his head away with some reluctance.

Clearly, Zhou Zhengkang's understanding of Zhou Mingde was not as thorough as Zhou Daoyi's.

He had no idea what kind of personality Zhou Mingde had, and he was completely unaware of how serious his act of betraying the family was, or what kind of blow it would be to Zhou Mingde.

He actually dared to dream of turning over a new leaf and becoming a new person!

It's simply a horror of slipping the world!

Zhou Mingde's anger intensified. He strode up to Zhou Zhengkang, looked down at him intently, and roared, "Honestly confess how you colluded with outsiders! If you dare to conceal even the slightest thing, I'll kill you right now!!"

As he spoke, he raised his palm, and spiritual light pulsed within it, like flames.

This scene left Zhou Zhengkang utterly bewildered, and he dared not hesitate or conceal anything further.

He hurriedly recounted how the Spirit Beast Manor had sent people to lure him, how he was furious with Zhou Mingde and Zhou Daoyi for preventing him from joining the Qinglian Temple, and how he had agreed to their attempts to recruit him in a fit of anger.

After hearing his words, not only Zhou Mingde, but even Zhou Daoyi was almost laughing out of anger.

Enraged, Zhou Mingde kicked Zhou Zhengkang away on the spot, then roared, "Fool! My elder brother was a clever and quick-witted man back in the day, how could such a fool be born into his descendants!"

"That vile woman Xiao Lingyan is over two hundred years old, and you still want to become her Daoist partner!"

"And what makes you think she'd even look at an idiot like you? Do you know what she's done in the past?"

"A fool like you, once you reach Foundation Establishment and go to sleep with her, you'll probably die of exhaustion in less than three days!!"

No wonder Zhou Mingde was so angry.

According to Zhou Zhengkang, Xiao Lingyan, the Purple Mansion stage cultivator who had been the mastermind behind winning him over at the Spirit Beast Manor, showed great "sincerity."

Once he successfully establishes his foundation and joins the Spirit Beast Manor, they will become cultivation partners and she will support him in opening his Purple Mansion and even reaching the Golden Core stage.

As for the promised Foundation Establishment Pills, magic weapons, and spiritual items, there's no need to say more; these are all things that ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators could only dream of.

Any normal cultivator, unless they were stupid, would know that this was impossible, yet Zhou Zhengkang actually believed it. How could this not enrage Zhou Mingde immensely?

Even Zhou Daoyi looked at Zhou Zhengkang with a face full of disappointment and said, "Zhengkang, if you betrayed your family for your own path, although I cannot forgive you, I can understand your actions to some extent."

"But you are so shallow as to be bewitched by that woman Xiao Lingyan, so foolish as to believe her promises. This truly disappoints me!"

At this moment, Zhou Mingde seemed to remember something and suddenly glared at Zhou Zhengkang, saying, "So your virginity, you idiot, wasn't taken by some rogue female cultivator at all, but by that slut Xiao Lingyan?"

Zhou Zhengkang was so frightened that he couldn't speak at all.

But Zhou Mingde knew from his expression that he had guessed correctly.

Enraged, he roared repeatedly, "That vile woman! How dare she humiliate my Zhou family like this! I will make her pay for this!!"

Now he understood why that idiot Zhou Zhengkang had believed Xiao Lingyan's nonsense.

After all, Xiao Lingyan was indeed a stunning beauty, one in a million, not to mention that she had also cultivated a seductive art.

Zhou Zhengkang, that fool, had his virginity taken by Xiao Lingyan when he was in his early twenties. He was used to being arrogant and conceited. In his disappointment, he was seduced by Xiao Lingyan and impulsively betrayed his family. It's not surprising that he did so.

"And what about Jia Hui? How is she now? If you want a lighter sentence, confess everything truthfully!"

Zhou Daoyi stared intently at Zhou Zhengkang, and soon asked about Zhou Jiahui.

However, upon hearing his words, Zhou Zhengkang turned his head away, not daring to meet his gaze or answer.

Upon seeing this, Zhou Mingde roared, "You wicked child! Confess the truth at once!"

But how could Zhou Zhengkang dare to tell the truth!

Even if he were stupid, he would know that if Zhou Mingde and Zhou Daoyi found out that he had killed Zhou Jiahui and fed her corpse to wolves, his fate would be extremely miserable!

Faced with their interrogation, he could only bite the bullet and make up a lie: "I... I don't know either. I just gave the information to Yu Deguang, handed over the tracking insects to him, and then left it at that!"

But how could his words fool these two seasoned veterans of the cultivation world?

Zhou Daoyi immediately said in a deep voice with a grave expression, "It seems he's unwilling to tell the truth. I'm afraid the real situation is far worse than we imagine!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Mingde coldly stared at Zhou Zhengkang and said, "You refuse to tell the truth, huh? Then I'll make you tell the truth!!"

After saying that, he raised his hand and knocked Zhou Zhengkang unconscious.

Then he reached into his storage pouch at his waist and took out a jade box.

Once the jade box was opened, a small white worm crawled out from a honey-like substance inside. It looked somewhat like a maggot, but it had two long tentacles.

As Zhou Mingde made a hand seal, the small white worm immediately transformed into a white line and disappeared into Zhou Zhengkang's nostril.

Not long after, Zhou Zhengkang, who had been in a coma, "woke up".

At this moment, his eyes were dull and lifeless, his pupils unfocused, like a mindless puppet.

Zhou Mingde looked at the flesh puppet in front of him, a strange light flashing in his eyes, and slowly asked, "How is Zhou Jiahui now?"

"He's already dead."

Zhou Zhengkang opened and closed his mouth, answering Zhou Mingde's question in a low voice.

Upon hearing this, both Zhou Mingde and Zhou Daoyi's expressions darkened.

Then Zhou Mingde continued, "How did you die?"

"He died from a single sword thrust through the heart!"

Zhou Zhengkang answered every question, seemingly completely unaware of how detrimental his answers were to him.

Zhou Mingde, barely suppressing his anger, asked again, "Why did you kill her?"

"Because she discovered I was following her and recognized me, I had to kill her to silence her!"

At this point, Zhou Zhengkang tilted his head back and fell unconscious again.

It turned out that Zhou Mingde was so angry that he didn't want to ask any more questions, and directly took back the "Mind-Stealing Insect" that had been controlling his mind.

"What does your great-uncle plan to do with him?"

Looking at the unconscious Zhou Zhengkang on the ground, Zhou Daoyi asked the most crucial question.

Now that the truth is clear, all that remains is to settle accounts.

"What use is a traitorous beast? He should be publicly executed in front of all the clansmen as a warning to future generations!"

Zhou Mingde glanced coldly at Zhou Zhengkang and stated his plan of action in a chilling tone.

He used to dote on Zhou Zhengkang, but now he loathes him just as much. All he wants now is for this fool who has brought shame upon him to atone with his death!

"He deserves to die!"

Zhou Daoyi first nodded, agreeing with the decision.

He then shook his head and said, "However, I think it's inappropriate to publicly execute someone in front of the clansmen. That would not only incite hatred towards the Spirit Beast Manor among the clansmen and exacerbate the conflict between the two sides, but it would also be detrimental to your reputation, Grand Uncle!"

After saying this, he cupped his hands in a respectful gesture to Zhou Mingde and said, "In my humble opinion, we should secretly execute him under the pretext of him going missing, and then send the body to Yu Jinghua so that he can give us an explanation!"

That's why Zhou Daoyi was able to become the patriarch of the Zhou family!

Zhou Zhengkang betrayed his family and should be publicly executed according to clan rules to deter others and serve as a warning.

Especially after the Zhou family settled in Jiufengling, they have never used clan rules to execute any clan member.

If Zhou Zhengkang, the original foundation-building seed of the family, could be brought out and punished in a public manner at this time, it would definitely have an excellent effect of "killing the chicken to scare the monkey".

This will serve as a strong deterrent to those who are not loyal enough to the family and whose hearts are wavering, letting them know how serious the consequences of betraying the family are.

However, the downside of doing so is also obvious. As a descendant of the Supreme Elder Zhou Mingde, Zhou Zhengkang has always received preferential support and resources from the entire family.

Now, this promising Foundation Establishment seed, on whom the family has placed high hopes, has betrayed the family.

What will those members of the Zhou family who have always been dissatisfied with Zhou Zhengkang's various extraordinary treatments think?

How will they view Zhou Mingde, the Supreme Elder?

Will they still be able to trust this Supreme Elder's judgment in the future?

It's likely that Zhou Mingde's previously accumulated prestige will be greatly diminished as a result.

This is extremely unfavorable for both Zhou Mingde himself and the family's senior management.

Once a crisis of trust arises, its impact on a power can be catastrophic!

Even though Zhou Mingde knew this, as Zhou Zhengkang's great-uncle, he couldn't bring himself to say it to avoid suspicion.

However, Zhou Daoyi, as the clan head and the supervisor and enforcer of the clan rules, was also a third party.

He could absolutely say that, and it would be perfectly reasonable.

Therefore, after hearing Zhou Daoyi's words, Zhou Mingde hesitated only slightly before nodding and replying, "Alright, do as you say, Daoyi. I will personally carry out the execution of this beast!"

He immediately used magic to awaken Zhou Zhengkang, whose mind was injured.

Then, he angrily rebuked Zhou Zhengkang, who had woken up with a terrified expression, "You beast, for the sake of your elder brother, get out of the Zhou family right now and never set foot in Jiufeng Ridge again!!"

Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhengkang was slightly taken aback at first, then his face lit up with wild joy as he repeatedly kowtowed and replied, "Thank you, Grand Uncle! Thank you, Grand Uncle! I'll get out of the Zhou family right now!!"

After saying that, he hurriedly scrambled out of the hall, afraid that if he was too slow, Zhou Mingde would change his mind.

Once outside, he discovered that his storage bag and spirit beast bag were gone.

This caused his expression to change. He couldn't help but glance back at the "Zhongping Hall" behind him, then bit his lip and hurriedly left the mountain gate without saying a word.

Clearly, he knew his own life was more important than those external things.

After leaving Jiufengling in such a hurry, Zhou Zhengkang identified the direction and headed straight for Hongyafang Market.

He still hasn't repented and is clinging to the hope that if he goes to the Spirit Beast Manor for help, he will still be welcomed.

Little did he know that even if he survived and made it to the market,

Once he has completely lost his usefulness, he will be discarded like trash.

It's simply impossible for him to be given a more important position in his imagination again.

Of course, he definitely won't have that opportunity.

Because less than a hundred miles after he left Jiufeng Ridge, a fiery red figure suddenly appeared in front of him and blocked his way.

"Vulcan Jackal!!"

Upon seeing the giant jackal beast with fiery red fur before him, Zhou Zhengkang's expression changed drastically, and he collapsed to the ground.

"No, Grand Uncle, you broke your promise! You said you'd spare my life!"

He let out a desperate howl, finally realizing the significance of the Vulcan's appearance.

But what responded to him was a burst of blazing flames spewed from the mouth of the Vulcan.

A ball of crimson flames spewed from the mouth of the Fire God Jackal, instantly landing on Zhou Zhengkang and burning this murderous, patricidal beast to ashes in the blink of an eye.

"Without the body as evidence, Yu Jinghua probably won't admit to anything!"

Inside the Zhongping Hall, Zhou Daoyi shook his head slightly and sighed with regret as he watched the Fire God Jackal return from his mission.

Zhou Mingde, however, said coldly, "Whether Yu Jinghua admits it or not is unimportant. What matters is that I have indeed lost my most beloved descendant because of their Spirit Beast Manor. If he doesn't give me an explanation, the Zhou family will naturally give them one in the future!"

Zhou Daoyi fell silent.

He could see that the Supreme Elder's anger had not dissipated with Zhou Zhengkang's death, but had instead grown stronger because he had personally executed his own descendant.

If this anger wasn't directed at the Zhou family members, it could only be directed at outsiders.

Soon, after giving Zhou Daoyi some instructions, Zhou Mingde, filled with anger, went alone to the gate of the Spirit Beast Manor.

There's another chapter at 8 PM tonight! Seriously, the subscription drop is terrible! Yesterday, the highest subscription was chapter 79, which is over 100 chapters higher than the lowest, chapter 77! That's a tenth of a chapter lower!! I'm so upset!

(End of this chapter)