Li Buyan felt a surge of fear.
Fortunately, Li Tiannan saw through Chen Jinzhao's true strength. Otherwise, under the Li family's underestimation, he might have died by Chen Jinzhao's blade.
He immediately looked at Li Tiannan and asked, "Tiannan, do you have the confidence?"
Li Tiannan nodded and replied, "Yes, Chen Jinzhao's power came too quickly, so it's destined not to last."
"Grandfather, you and elder brother leave first. I'll deal with him," Li Tiannan said in a low voice.
Li Buyan nodded.
With Li Tiannan holding Chen Jinzhao back, Chen Jinzhao could not attend to Li Buyan and the other. He could only watch as the two left the pavilion from under his nose.
Inside the pavilion.
Only the two were left locked in combat.
Li Tiannan had initially thought he could quickly subdue Chen Jinzhao. To his surprise, Chen Jinzhao's strength was significantly greater than before. Both his reaction speed and power were now on par with Li Tiannan's. As Chen Jinzhao gradually adapted to this sudden surge of power, his overall strength continued to climb.
From being at a disadvantage at the beginning, Chen Jinzhao eventually fought Li Tiannan to a standstill.
This made Li Tiannan's expression turn extremely grim.
*Bang!*
They exchanged a punch and quickly separated.
Chen Jinzhao steadied himself and drew his blade to attack again, while Li Tiannan responded in a flurry.
He soon discovered that Chen Jinzhao was not fighting with his full strength, and seemed to be deliberately holding back. This made Li Tiannan enraged, "Chen Jinzhao, do you really think you're my match? I admit I was caught off guard at first, but that won't happen again."
"I am not your opponent," Chen Jinzhao said.
Li Tiannan was taken aback.
He didn't understand what Chen Jinzhao meant by this.
As Chen Jinzhao engaged Li Tiannan in close-quarters combat, he suddenly said, "Li Tiannan, I know you are an ambitious person. Are you truly content to let Li Tiance firmly control the Li family's power?"
"Shut up!" Li Tiannan's expression shifted slightly at these words, and he immediately told Chen Jinzhao to stop talking.
Chen Jinzhao ignored him.
He continued, "As long as Li Tiance dies, you will be the sole heir to the Li family. At that point, the Li family's power will fall into your hands. I know you care about kinship, but do you think Li Tiance will show you any such sentiment? Look at how he treated Meng Zhi, and you'll know your fate."
Li Tiannan's mind was in turmoil, and he continued to reprimand Chen Jinzhao for talking nonsense.
"You can consider it nonsense, but this is genuinely an opportunity for you," Chen Jinzhao continued to disrupt Li Tiannan's thoughts.
Li Tiannan shook his head frantically, trying to suppress these unwanted thoughts.
Chen Jinzhao chuckled, "The world says that Qin Fengwu is Li Tiance's biggest opponent. But have you considered that you are actually Li Tiance's biggest stumbling block? If one day he looks back and discovers that you, his brother, have taken away his power, what do you think he will do to you?"
"Li Tiannan, I know your heart is not bad."
"The more this is the case, the easier it is for Li Tiance to deceive you. Moreover, I believe that if you were to become the head of the Li family, you would do a better job than Li Tiance."
"Chen Jinzhao, shut your mouth!" Li Tiannan threw a punch, which Chen Jinzhao blocked with a palm strike.
Li Tiannan's punch had clearly slowed down.
This meant to say.
His mind was indeed in disarray.
Chen Jinzhao knew his plan had worked and struck while the iron was hot, "You consider him a brother, but he may not consider you a brother. Do you remember your second grandfather? Back then, because his prestige within the family once surpassed your grandfather's, your grandfather later harmed him until he became disabled."
Li Tiannan's mind went blank.
His second grandfather, who was also Li Buyan's brother, was indeed a favored son of heaven back then.
He was even called the Twin Jewels of the Li family.
Later, Li Tiannan's second grandfather suffered an accident, resulting in the amputation of his legs. From then on, he gradually distanced himself from the Li family's power center.
Just last year.
Li Tiannan's second grandfather passed away from melancholy, unable to see the spring of the following year.
A chill ran from the bottom of his heart.
"Impossible, my grandfather didn't do this," Li Tiannan was not deeply scheming, unlike the malicious Li Tiance, nor did he possess Li Buyan's many calculations.
The next moment.
Chen Jinzhao's blade sliced across Li Tiannan's chest, causing him to feel intense pain.
He suddenly snapped back to reality and glared at Chen Jinzhao, "Are you trying to disrupt my mind?"
Chen Jinzhao did not deny Li Tiannan's words and even added, "I want to kill Li Tiance because he wants to kill those around me. Li Tiannan, if your mind is clear, you should understand that having me kill Li Tiance now is the best option."
"He is a madman, a demon in human skin."
"Shut up, stop talking. I won't let you kill my elder brother. If I do that, what difference would I have from a demon?" Li Tiannan gritted his teeth, refusing to be swayed by Chen Jinzhao's words. Chen Jinzhao attacked while sighing, "If you have such thoughts, then you are gravely mistaken."
"Isn't the purpose of law to punish demons?"
"By your logic, is the law also a demon?"
Li Tiannan was trapped by Chen Jinzhao's words, unable to immediately grasp the issue.
However, he still refused to yield.
Seeing that Li Tiannan was about to leave the backyard, Chen Jinzhao felt a sense of urgency. Once Li Tiannan left the backyard, he would have no opportunity.
"Li Tiannan, having me kill Li Tiance now is the best option. After Li Tiance removes Qin Fengwu, that obstacle, he will definitely move against you! If you miss this opportunity, you will surely regret it in the future!" Chen Jinzhao roared.
The two had been conversing inaudibly.
Li Tiannan glanced at Li Tiance, who was about to leave the backyard, and hesitated for a moment.
Should he make a move?
Chen Jinzhao did not speak as if he were negotiating, but rather stated, "You can send me flying towards Li Tiance, and I will deal with him directly. This serves both our interests. As they say, there are no eternal enemies, only eternal interests."
Li Tiannan's heart grew increasingly anxious.
In fact, he didn't know that Chen Jinzhao was even more anxious than he was.
The next moment.
The two once again engaged in combat, the sound of fists colliding echoing like beating war drums.
Li Tiannan's blows were noticeably lighter, and he and Chen Jinzhao were putting on an act. He immediately made a decision and wanted to move against Li Tiance. Li Tiannan asked in a deep voice, "Can you spare his life? Let me kill my own brother. I can't get past this hurdle in my heart!"
"You can..."
He paused.
Li Tiannan's expression was dazed.
Clearly, he had not expected to draw his blade against his own elder brother one day.
No!
This served his interests!
If one does not live for oneself, heaven and earth will destroy them!
This was also the philosophy of life his grandfather had taught him.
Therefore.
A murderous glint appeared in Li Tiannan's eyes, and he said to Chen Jinzhao, "You can cut off my brother's right arm or a leg, making him disabled! Preferably, keep him alive!"
Chen Jinzhao looked at Li Tiannan with a meaningful gaze.
Now, he was one hundred percent certain that he had awakened the demon deep within Li Tiannan's heart.
Only heaven knew what kind of person Li Tiannan would become in the future.
As for this.
Chen Jinzhao felt no remorse.
"Why not kill him?" Chen Jinzhao sneered, then added, "You are quite indecisive."
Li Tiannan said coldly, "Consider it a deal between us. As long as you don't kill my brother, I can guarantee that I won't harm anyone around you."
Chen Jinzhao agreed without thinking.
"Good!"
"It's a deal!"