Another chapter,

...

How terrifying Qin Fang's Yama's Eighteen Needles were, both Chen Shijie and Ling Feng had tried it before, and it's likely that they would never forget such excruciating pain in their lifetimes.

But compared to Li Tianyou before them, their experience was like child's play encountering a master sorcerer's.

Chen Shijie had endured barely less than ten needles, and that was after Qin Fang had intentionally weakened his nerve responses, significantly reducing the pain by many folds.

Ling Feng did try to withstand a complete set once, but as soon as the first needle pierced his skin, he immediately gave up, knowing his limits, for it was simply too terrifying.

Yet Li Tianyou had now endured the third needle, and his body's surface had already begun to ooze blood spots, clearly indicating that the pain had surpassed the limits his body could handle.

Once that threshold was breached, Qin Fang wouldn't even need to act; Li Tianyou's own body would burst all its capillaries, veins, and arteries…

Qin Fang was too enraged, his Mind Reading Technique constantly probing Li Tianyou's past, but the more he saw, the more shocking and infuriating it became. Although this man was a fraud and had not killed anyone, the number of people he had harmed was countless… it could be summed up in one phrase—intolerable by the heavens!

"Sigh..."

Finally, Qin Fang sighed softly, pulled out the Silver Needles from Li Tianyou's body, and ceased the trial of Yama's Eighteen Needles on him.

As the Silver Needles were removed, Li Tianyou seemed to be instantly relieved, his violently twisting body gradually calmed down, and the blood that had oozed out drenched what was left of his expensive designer couch...

"Let him go..."

Seeing Shen Liang and Chen Gang still restraining Li Tianyou, Qin Fang waved them off to let him go.

By this point, Li Tianyou was practically incapacitated; even if the door was opened for him to leave, he no longer had the strength to stand up.

By now, Qin Fang had lost any interest in further tormenting Li Tianyou. His body was on the verge of collapse, his will nearly shattered, having reached a critical point.

If Qin Fang were to strike again, firstly, Li Tianyou's will would break, and he would go mad; then, his body would collapse, his blood vessels would burst… Perhaps he wouldn't die outright, but he would, for all intents and purposes, be a living husk.

"Brother Chen, keep an eye on this man for me, I'll make arrangements later..."

Qin Fang quickly instructed Chen Gang, as by now Li Tianyou was nearly a broken man—Chen Gang overseeing him wouldn't pose any issue. At the same time, Qin Fang called Shen Liang aside, "Brother Shen, I need you to retrieve something for me… It's..."

In fact, Qin Fang already knew the location where the Qianmen Charm was hidden while administering the second needle; however, he was so appalled by what Li Tianyou had done that his fury led to an even harsher punishment...

After receiving Qin Fang's orders, Shen Liang left. Knowledge of the Qianmen Charm's hidden location naturally meant Qin Fang wouldn't allow the charm to remain there; he wouldn't risk any complications. This charm might just be his ticket to getting involved with the vast and ancient legacy of Thousand Gates, otherwise the title of Thousand Gates Acolyte on his head would be utterly pointless, wouldn't it?

Chen Gang, meanwhile, was left to watch over Li Tianyou. Despite Li Tianyou's torment, there was little chance he'd recover by night's end, let alone have the strength to escape… Moreover, this was the Chang'an Club; even if he managed to escape, he'd probably not make it out the door, and would simply be caught and brought back.

Qin Fang wasn't worried about him and returned to the room. In Su Yuan's presence, he sought help from Tang Zhi, the Boss of Tang Dynasty, planning to throw Li Tianyou into prison to let some "eager" inmates give him some "special treatment."

After a brief explanation, Tang Zhi agreed without hesitation. Being part of the system, he knew exactly how to handle things and arranged the time and place for the handover with Qin Fang. With this issue resolved, it also served as Qin Fang's promise to Su Yuan.

"Thank you… thank you..."

As Qin Fang hung up the phone, Su Yuan was inconsolable, her face tear-stained like pear blossoms in the rain, barely managing to utter a few words of gratitude to Qin Fang before breaking down in tears again.

Qin Fang could only ask Tang Feifei to console her. However, Tang Feifei herself ended up getting caught up in the emotion, and both girls continued to talk while wiping away their tears, leaving Qin Fang quite speechless.

Fortunately, Shen Liang's call came in good time. He had already returned with the item Qin Fang wanted, and Qin Fang quickly excused himself to go check on the required Qianmen Charm.

The Qianmen Charm was a wooden plaque that looked inconspicuous, yet the material it was made from was anything but ordinary—it was actually made from Phoebe zhennan wood...

Golden-threaded nanmu wood is a very rare type of timber, exclusive to the royal family in ancient times. Ordinary families using it would be committing a transgression, which could lead to a grave crime punishable by the execution of the entire extended family.

Since the Ming dynasty, this type of golden-threaded nanmu has largely gone extinct. There may still be some in modern times, but the quantity is extremely scarce, and it is outrageously expensive, often without a market due to its rarity.

However, the wood used for the Qianmen Charm in Qin Fang's hands was not cut from newly felled trees; the results shown by Qin Fang's Scouting Skill indicated that it was thousand-year-old golden-threaded nanmu.

In other words, the nanmu wood used for this Qianmen Charm was hewed a millennium ago, meaning that the charm has survived a thousand years of history.

Immune to decay over a millennium, this is a very prominent characteristic of golden-threaded nanmu wood. Perhaps only such material could enable a charm to withstand a thousand years of history—after all, the history of Qianmen is indeed too extensive.

This charm, aside from its unique material, doesn't seem to have any other special features. There are no inscriptions on it, at most there are some very strange carvings on it that reveal no anomalies.

Nevertheless, it is without doubt one of Qianmen's charms.

Li Tianyou has treasured it for twenty years, always protecting it carefully. Even when going out, he always carried it with him. Upon settling down somewhere, he would conceal it in advance.

The hiding place was known only to himself. Qin Fang did not learn of the charm's whereabouts from his mouth, but directly gleaned it from the deepest recesses of his heart, thus avoiding any possibility of error.

Moreover, having existed for over a thousand years, this charm could be considered an ancient relic. With the golden-threaded nanmu material, the charm itself has considerable value. Based on the ancient history of Qianmen, it is also essentially possible to determine the authenticity of the charm.

Nevertheless, Qin Fang still decided to conduct a test...

"Li Tianyou, did you really think that possessing a Qianmen Charm would let you turn the tide of Qian Kun? Too bad... now this Qianmen Charm is in my hands!"

Qin Fang took the Qianmen Charm, but did not hide it from Li Tianyou; instead, he conspicuously displayed the charm in front of him.

"You... you... you... pu~~"

Li Tianyou, having barely recovered some strength, was still very weak physically, his spirit exceptionally frail, but he was, after all, better than before. Yet, just at this moment, Qin Fang brought out the Qianmen Charm, which he had collected for nearly twenty years and never dared to use—almost costing him half his life on the spot.

A face already pale from extreme weakness turned even more deathly white, as if that of a corpse's. Li Tianyou managed to say "you" three times, then vomited a mouthful of blood, and his entire body slumped.

He wasn't dead, but his life was essentially over. If thrown into prison, he would merely be lingering on, and it was very uncertain how much longer he would live...

This could be considered retribution for the many evils he had committed in his lifetime!

Qin Fang had little joy, even if he had done a good deed, he did not have the inclination to note it down in a diary like Lei Feng would. He acted as though nothing had happened.

As for the Qianmen Charm, Qin Fang already knew from Li Tianyou how to use it, but clearly, Qin Fang was not currently in any great difficulty nor did he have any direct contact with Qianmen. He did not want to waste such a precious charm.

"You guys should put in some work tonight, and someone will come to take over in the morning... Brother Chen, I'll leave this matter for you to handle!"

Li Tianyou's reaction confirmed the authenticity of the charm. Although Li Tianyou himself was not very knowledgeable about the charm's effects, Qin Fang could explore its use slowly. There was no rush.

After handing Li Tianyou over to Chen Gang and Shen Liang, Qin Fang finally returned to his room. By the time he returned, Su Yuan seemed to have cried herself to exhaustion and had gone to rest. Tang Feifei also shed quite a few tears and went to rest as well. Left alone, Qin Fang could only retire to his room to sleep.

A night passed without words.

The charlatan case of Li Tianyou could be considered as completely over. The sky was barely bright when the people arranged by Tang Zhi came to take away the listless Li Tianyou to the prison. Although he wasn't formally sentenced through proper judicial procedures, Li Tianyou was destined to spend the rest of his life there...

In fact, Qin Fang's Yama's Eighteen Needles were too terrifying. After succumbing to despair, Li Tianyou's will quickly collapsed. Considering that in his twenty years as a swindler he had harmed so many people and so many families, when he began to repent, overwhelmed by shame and despair, he swiftly chose to commit suicide!

Qin Fang later found out about this, and all he could do was sigh softly. Good and evil ultimately meet their due reward. For the many deplorable deeds Li Tianyou had committed, such an end could be considered rather merciful for him.

Of course, that was a matter for the distant future, which had not yet occurred. Qin Fang was roused early in the morning by Tang Feifei, who wanted to accompany him for a stroll on the Great Wall, to play the role of a great man...

With her worries resolved, Su Yuan's mood also lightened considerably, smiles beginning to appear on her face. Persuaded by Tang Feifei, she decided to join the excursion as well. (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for it with recommendation tickets and monthly votes at Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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