Chapter 36: Chapter 36 - Swift Justice
The exaggerated sounds of mockery filled the villa, bouncing off the walls around me.
Xavier Hill seemed thoroughly pleased with himself. He shot me a challenging look and said, "Oh my, it’s hard to imagine that a man could live such a humiliating life!"
"Yeah, wearing a green hat for three years and having to swallow his pride, that’s really pitiful," someone chimed in.
"What a spineless life, utterly lacking backbone," added another.
The voices kept piling on, relentless in their mockery.
I noticed Lyla watching me, her eyes gleaming with satisfaction.
My face remained cold as I shook my head. "Lyla, you don’t feel shame, but instead feel proud. How do you manage to have such thick skin?"
Lyla snorted. "The one who’s disgraced is you, not me. What do I have to be afraid of?"
I didn’t bother arguing with someone like her. Closing my eyes, I decided to ignore everyone around me.
The noise continued unabated, clearly meant to disrupt my concentration. What they didn’t realize was that I was using this moment to cultivate. I wanted to train my mindset under these harsh conditions.
Amid their mocking words, I found it incredibly difficult not just to cultivate but even to remain calm. The qi around me condensed and dispersed repeatedly, causing sweat to trickle down my forehead. This was proving extremely challenging for me.
"What, pretending not to hear it means nothing happened?" Xavier Hill continued his taunts. Nearly everyone present followed his lead, some even taking out their phones to record the scene, eager to post it online.
I forced myself to remain calm, opening my pores and breathing in the surrounding qi.
After a few minutes, my mind finally began to settle. It was as if the noise around me had disappeared completely, and I found myself submerged in my own world. Strands of qi slowly entered my body with each breath.
"Is this fool closing his eyes to pretend he can’t hear?" Xavier sneered.
The white-haired young man beside him frowned slightly. He seemed to notice something unusual about my breathing but couldn’t quite place what it was.
"Mr. Hill, Mr. Raymond isn’t saying anything anymore, so why don’t you just let it go?" Woods Walters stood up, trying to ease the tension.
Xavier Hill gave Woods a dismissive glance. "Who are you?"
"My name is Woods Walters," he quickly replied. "I am the boss of Concordia Realty."
"Woods Walters?" Xavier thought for a moment before recognition dawned on his face. "Ah, I remember now, the famous old rascal from River City, right?"
"Yes, that’s right." Woods seemed delighted to be recognized. "I didn’t expect Mr. Hill to have heard of me. Please give me some face and let them go."
Xavier looked at Woods with an amused smile. "Give you face?"
Without warning, Xavier suddenly slapped Woods across the face!
The sound echoed through the room with a crisp "pop" that reached everyone’s ears.
"Who do you think you are, asking for face from me? You’re nothing but a lowly scoundrel, pretending to be important," Xavier scoffed.
Woods’s face flushed with humiliation.
Meanwhile, I noticed Harvey Brown watching with obvious delight. I remembered that Harvey had previously asked Woods to deal with me, but Woods had taken the money without following through. Harvey clearly held a grudge and was enjoying Woods’s embarrassment.
Xavier reached out and patronizingly patted Woods’s face. "A dog dares to forcefully demand face. You want face, huh? Fine, kneel down and kowtow three times to me, and I’ll give you that face!"
He stepped back, gesturing for Woods to kneel.
The expression on Woods’s face turned ugly. He was clearly unwilling to kneel in front of everyone, but he also knew Xavier wouldn’t let him go if he refused.
"I’m giving you ten seconds," Xavier warned coldly. "If you don’t kneel down, I’ll break your legs."
"Kneel, kneel, kneel!" The crowd began chanting, making the atmosphere even more oppressive.
Woods’s face turned red as he clenched his fists. I could see him gritting his teeth, clearly wishing he could strike Xavier.
"Will you kneel?" Xavier’s voice grew colder as Woods hesitated.
Woods took a deep breath and with a strained expression said, "Mr. Hill, I... I’ll kneel."
"That’s more like it." Xavier laughed with satisfaction and waved his hand, signaling Woods to proceed.
Woods bit down hard on his teeth, visibly suppressing his anger as he slowly bent his knees.
Just as his knees were about to touch the ground, I moved forward and grabbed his arms.
"You deserve someone to kneel down to you?" I supported Woods with one hand and with the other, delivered a sharp slap to Xavier Hill’s face.
The sound cracked through the air, and Xavier’s lip split, blood staining his mouth.
"This slap is on behalf of Woods Walters," I told him coldly.
