In the silent banquet hall...

A youth appeared abruptly, slaughtering the Martial Monk with the fury of a tidal wave. Ouyang Long and the others froze in shock. Yet, true to his years of authority, Ouyang Long was the first to snap out of it.

Clapping slowly, he raised his hands, a twisted smile spreading across his face.

"Unbelievable. Truly unbelievable. My son... such power. Even the world’s fiftieth-ranked warrior fell to you. I’m... astonished."

"......"

Ouyang Ge shot his father a sidelong glance but said nothing. Wiping a trace of blood near his eye, he turned silently toward the exit.

"Tsk tsk. No respect for your father at all. Needs proper discipline, clearly."

Unfazed, Ouyang Long watched him leave with a broad grin. In that instant, countless schemes to control Ouyang Ge flooded his mind. If executed, the Ouyang Clan’s revival would—

"Your mind’s churning with something vile again, isn’t it?"

"Lijia... how can you say that?"

A flat voice cut in. Ouyang Long turned with a bitter smile—Ouyang Lijia stared at him, expressionless.

Only Ouyang Long, his wife, and a few close relatives remained alive in the hall. Every guest lay dead.

These weren’t ordinary visitors—nobles, dignitaries, influential figures from all walks of life. Their deaths at the Ouyang estate would ignite unstoppable fury. A hundred tongues couldn’t explain this away. Retribution would annihilate the Ouyang Clan the moment news spread.

Yet Ouyang Long felt no fear. Let others perish. As long as he lived, the Ouyang legacy would endure—bolstered by Zokilia’s backing.

*BANG!*

A deafening gunshot shattered his thoughts. The acrid sting of gunpowder filled his nostrils. His gaze snapped to its source—

—the pistol in Ouyang Lijia’s hand.

"Lijia! What are you doing?!"

Ignoring the fallen relatives, Ouyang Long fixed his wife with an icy smile.

"It’s that very attitude that makes you repulsive."

"Repulsive? What nonsense—"

Ouyang Long’s feigned confusion didn’t flicker her resolve. Her finger squeezed the trigger.

*BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG!*

Four shots. Four bodies crumpled beside him. Silence swallowed the hall. Only Ouyang Long and Ouyang Lijia remained.

"Two bullets left," she stated coldly, ejecting the magazine to check. "One for you. One for me."

"Lijia... you’d kill me?"

"Drop the act. It’s pointless."

*Heh.*

A dry chuckle escaped him. His mask slipped, revealing a serpent’s venomous gaze.

"I gave you the life you craved—wealth, comfort. Isn’t that what you wanted? What more do you seek?"

"*You* dare say that?" Lijia’s laugh was sharp with scorn. "Was I wrong to desire a better life? That’s why I—"

"**SHUT UP!**"

Her delicate face contorted into a snarl. She roared, cutting him off.

"You decided everything! Ignored my will! You destroyed my life, my love... even the one place I found redemption—you burned it all to ashes!!!"

She jammed the gun barrel against his forehead. Their faces nearly touched.

"What’s done is done. Let’s discuss how to handle this mess—"

"**SILENCE!** I’m sick of that face. At the Magic Exchange Tournament—what did you do?! You let Xiaofeng be toyed with by that Ouyang Shi! She’s a *person*, not a tool! Are you even human?!"

"*Ah~* That incident. I regret hurting Xiaofeng, but defeat is defeat. She lacked the skill—"

His indifference ignited her fury.

"You’re no father. No *human*. You forfeited that right!!!"

"Ouyang Lijia, you—"

"**I’M NOT OUYANG LIJIA!** My name is *Lijia*! It was always just Lijia—*nothing* to do with Ouyang!!!"

"Fine. Shoot me. If you hate me so much... pull the trigger."

Ouyang Long felt no real fear. *She’ll understand my sacrifices. She always does.*

This time, he was wrong.

"*Aaahhh—!*"

Tears burst forth. Her finger tightened on the trigger—

*BANG!*

A trickle of blood snaked down Ouyang Long’s forehead. The bullet hole stared blankly as he collapsed backward.

"Dad... Mom..."

Her legs gave way. *Ouyang*... no. Just *Lijia*. She sank to the floor.

Memories flashed: the forced marriage, her parents’ mysterious disappearance, the boy who’d grown up beside her in that quiet village...

Gone. All gone. She’d been a simple village girl once—cherished parents, a childhood sweetheart, a life of warmth. Ouyang Long had shattered it all.

"*Ha... hahaha... hahahaha...*"

A broken, wailing laugh escaped her. Not laughter. A sob.

"Sorry, Xiaofeng... but Mom can’t... go on anymore..."

Thoughts of her daughter brought no regret—only sorrow. Ten years of endurance. Ten years of waiting. Vengeance was hers. Emptiness filled her heart.

—*She’d already chosen death.*

*BANG!*

The gun spoke again. The tragic woman’s story ended here.

Ouyang Long’s methods weren’t objectively wrong. But he’d underestimated human resilience. People aren’t puppets—they rebel against injustice. Raising heirs through survival of the fittest held merit, yet his countless *causes* yielded no expected *effects*. He’d ignored the one variable too complex to control:

*the human heart.*

Had he been a true father... the outcome might have been different.