Free Web NovelChapter 347: Chapter 343: Your Capital Offense May Be Pardoned, but You Cannot Escape Punishment
As Qian Huixiong passed out, the courtyard fell so silent you could hear a pin drop.
Cao Yangming hesitated for a moment, then began to imitate Qian Huixiong, repeatedly kowtowing in Chu He’s direction.
His forehead struck the ground again and again.
In front of Chu He, Cao Yangming didn’t dare pull any tricks, so every impact of his forehead against the ground was brutally real.
The Martial Artists behind him in the alleyway also dared not hope for leniency and began to kowtow endlessly toward Chu He.
The collective sound of foreheads repeatedly striking the ground was almost spectacular in its own way.
Soon, they all started to feel dizzy. The ground even began to dent from the constant impacts. Before long, streaks of blood appeared.
But as long as Chu He remained silent, they dared not stop.
Cao Yangming couldn’t even begin to describe his regret.
He even started to wonder, ’Am I going to have to do the same as Qian Huixiong and knock myself unconscious before this can finally stop?’
Blood soon began to stream down from Cao Yangming’s forehead.
Behind Cao Yangming, a less powerful Martial Artist soon couldn’t take it anymore.
He passed out cold and collapsed, his body occasionally twitching. Blood had already stained the spot where his face met the ground.
Just as Cao Yangming’s entire face was dyed red with blood,
Chu He finally spoke. "Alright, stop kowtowing. You’re about to ruin this person’s property."
"Please don’t worry, Mr. Chu! I’ll pay to have the property repaired!"
Cao Yangming replied with a fawning smile, as if he’d received a pardon.
"Very well."
Chu He said, "You don’t need to worry. I’m not the kind of person who punishes people indiscriminately. Every wrong has a source, and every debt a debtor. However, while you may be spared death, you won’t escape punishment."
"Of course, Mr. Chu.
We were wrong, and that’s that.
It was you, Mr. Chu, who gave us this wake-up call, a chance to come to our senses completely.
You’ve allowed us to see the error of our ways and stop heading down the wrong path.
We have you to thank for all of this, Mr. Chu.
Please, pronounce our punishment. No matter what it is,
we will carry it out willingly and diligently."
Cao Yangming was so excited he was practically flailing his arms, his words tumbling out in a ramble.
As long as he wasn’t going to die, it was already the best possible outcome.
After all, there was hardly anyone who practiced Martial Arts who didn’t know of Chu He.
And those who knew of him more or less understood his personality.
He was known for being cold and decisive in killing, never acting like a soft-hearted Holy Mother.
Just moments ago, Cao Yangming had been terrified.
He had been genuinely afraid that Chu He would simply kill everyone present to make an example of them.
After all, their hands weren’t clean.
"There must be many children in Haitong City who have trouble finding a Martial Arts instructor.
I’ll give you twenty years.
Within those twenty years, each of you must find and guide at least
thirty children who are taking the Martial Arts college entrance exam each year.
I’ll have the Defense Team keep an eye on you.
If anyone dares to shirk their duties or feign compliance, there will be no need for them to continue living."
Chu He stated coolly, "During these twenty years, your work will be a public service. You won’t receive a single cent in payment. If anyone is dissatisfied, you can raise your objections now. We can talk it over."
"How could we be dissatisfied? This is already incredibly merciful of you!
Thank you so much, Mr. Chu, for being magnanimous enough to spare our lives!
You’re even giving us a chance to do good deeds!
This is like giving us a new lease on life.
Mr. Chu, I have no words to express my gratitude. Allow me to kowtow to you ten more times!"
With that, Cao Yangming acted decisively, kowtowing to Chu He with a series of loud THUDS.
The other Martial Artists’ heads were still spinning.
All they knew was that they weren’t going to die; they were going to live.
After being under the shadow of death just moments before,
any punishment that didn’t involve death now felt like the bliss of stepping into Heaven.
So, they quickly followed Cao Yangming’s example and began kowtowing to Chu He again.
Whether they were genuinely convinced or secretly resentful, they didn’t dare show it in front of Chu He.
They didn’t even dare to dwell on their resentment.
If even a subtle hint of their true feelings showed on their faces or in their body language, it would surely bring about their doom.
Sun Leibo and his son, Sun Yuzhe, stood there, utterly horrified and at a complete loss.
Their minds were buzzing, and they were filled with indescribable regret.
Sun Yuzhe, in particular, was sick with regret.
If he had known this would happen, he would have tried to stop his mother, Yang Ling, back then.
’I can’t believe I wasn’t mistaken.’
’This young man who looks so much like Blue Star’s number one expert really is Chu He.’
They had actually deluded themselves into thinking they could pull off a little scheme, using someone else to do their dirty work.
To the people of the Great Xia Empire, Chu He was no longer a mere man, but a god-like existence.
He had never been defeated since his debut, and his every appearance caused massive waves and a huge sensation.
He was a single man who could make a superpower on Blue Star, the colossal Lighthouse Empire, tremble in fear and suffer repeated setbacks.
What did a small family of three like them even amount to?
It was the difference between the blazing sun and a rat dropping.
