(Yong Gong's Uncle POV)
I felt a little conflicted when I saw my nephew challenge the boy to a duel.
The Ancestor Phoenix might have endorsed this boy but if the boy himself accepted an official duel, then even it cannot complain about the results of such a duel.
This boy should know that fact and if he had some sense he would reject the duel.
If he did, it might save him from being crippled but that would also invalidate the bet between them.
The boy tilted his head at my nephew, "Why should I accept this duel? You made a bet and now you're not willing to pay up so you want to beat me to get out of it? Is that how you do things? If I borrow money from you but beat you up, that means I don't need to return it, right?"
"This and that are two different things!" Yong Gong protested.
"Different? How is it different? They're both agreements that were rendered null because you simply beat the other party up. Am I wrong?"
This kid... Was he really the useless grandson of the Gui family? Or is it really true that he has been hiding his talent all this while?
This doesn't make any sense. Why would anyone willingly endure years of torment just to show off now? There must be another reason behind this.
My nephew pointed his finger at the boy, "You're threatening to cripple me right now! Who would accept such conditions?!"
"Did you forget? You were the one who suggested crippling me as a bet first. Now you're rescinding the bet because the terms don't favour you. Would you have allowed me to do the same?"
"Enough talk, Wugui! If you can't even beat me fair and square, don't even think about breaking my finger!"
"Pffft, fair and square you say? Like there's anything fair here about rescinding on a bet you made. Can I trust the old men behind to not take revenge on me even if I win here?"
I looked back at the Elders, most of them looking quite relaxed since they didn't believe Yong Gong would lose.
One of the Elders stood up, "This is a duel between two juniors, of course we old men wouldn't interfere."
The boy nodded, "Alright then. I accept this duel. For the record, I still think it's stupid to settle this using fists. You could have just come up with a counter offer or something to change the contents of this bet. Oh well."
The boy then took a few steps back to create a bit of distance before looking up at me, "Can we get a count or something? Just so that you guys don't say I attacked while he wasn't ready?"
This boy... Does he really think he can win?
Some of the Elders also felt the boy was being insufferable at this point.
I raised my hand, making sure both of them were ready before shouting, "Begin!"
I almost missed it. The boy had leapt forward and reached Yong Gong before my nephew could even fully materialise his Phoenix Flames around his fists.
The boy's fist went straight for my nephew's jaw and the loud crunch told me he had shattered it with that punch alone.
Yong Gong was sent crashing into the far wall, already unconscious.
All of us just stood there in disbelief.
He had not used any Techniques, everything he had done was using pure physical strength.
I don't doubt that if he had used his Techniques, Yong Gong would have more than just a shattered jaw to worry about.
The boy then walked up to the unconscious Yong Gong and reached down to grab his wrist.
I gasped, "STOP!!"
The boy ignored me and twisted his hand, snapping my nephew's wrist like he was snapping a twig.
Yong Gong was roused out of his unconsciousness and screamed out in pain. But with his broken jaw, even that brought about more pain for him.
Heedless of his fellow Sect mate's cries, he brought up his foot and stamped down on Yong Gong's arm, breaking it at the elbow.
"YOUNGSTER YOU DARE?!" The Elder behind me roared.
This must be quite embarrassing because he was the one who said they wouldn't interfere just moments ago.
The boy turned to look the Elder in the eye, "What am I doing wrong now?"
"Do you think you can just hurt a member of our family right in front of us and get away with it?!" The Elder screamed.
He tilted his head, "Didn't you say that this is a duel between youngsters and old men shouldn't interfere? Guess the problem of ignoring agreements runs in the family, huh?"
I couldn't even refute the boy, the face of our family was completely thrown away.
"YOU! I'LL TEACH YOU--"
"ENOUGH!" I roared, slamming the table hard enough to break it in half.
The others immediately quietened down, though it was clear that they thought I was going to punish him.
I took a few steps towards the boy but stopped when he moved to pick up my nephew's other arm, my nephew already reduced to a sobbing mess.
"Disciple Wugui, you have already humiliated him enough. Not only have you broken his arm, you have also broken his pride and face. Is that not enough?"
He smiled at me, "Pride? If he valued such a thing he would have simply stepped forward and fulfilled our bet, except that he did not and even tried to wriggle his way out of it. Tell me, if I was the one in this state, would any of you come forward to stop him from doing this?"
"Yes, I would," I answered him honestly. I did not want my nephew to become one of those heartless Practitioners after all.
He narrowed his eyes at me before his smile widened, "Oh? You actually would. Interesting... Fine, I'll give you some face, I was intending to break all his limbs but I'll settle with just his arms. Just give him some healing herbs, let him rest a few weeks and he'll be fine. Does that sound alright to you?"
"You've already broken his left arm, is that not good enough?"
"He was planning to cripple my meridians. Do you not think this is lenient enough?"
I shifted my gaze to my nephew looking up at me with pleading eyes.
Unfortunately, the boy was right. He was indeed giving us a lot of concessions already.
"Please do it quickly," I conceded.
There was a loud crack as my nephew's other arm was broken followed by a wail of pain.
The boy stepped back and allowed the Elders to rush towards my nephew, bringing him to the back in order to receive treatment.
He looked at me with a refreshing smile, "You are Master Hui, yes? I will remember you."
Without so much as a second glance, he turned and strolled out of the building casually.
For some reason when he said those words to me, I did not feel like I was talking to someone younger than I was.
I sighed.
I hope the rest of my family isn't dumb enough to go try to seek revenge....
