Chapter 141: Overnight Fame

"Knowing that I am a Grandmaster, do you still think Ding Tai died unjustly?" Lin Yang asked coldly.

Ding Tai had provoked a Grandmaster and deserved his death, leaving Ren Huaxiong with nothing to say. However, with everyone watching, he represented the Haitian Gang and Jiang Haisheng's dignity; he could not simply back down easily.

"Ding Tai indeed deserved to die, but after all, he was a member of the Haitian Gang. To beat a dog, one must look at its master. Since you show such utter disregard for the Haitian Gang's prestige, we will surely remember this debt."

Lin Yang sneered and said, "There is no need for such trouble. Go back and tell Jiang Haisheng that another day, I will personally visit him and request a sparring match. When the time comes, if he wishes to avenge his disciple, he is free to kill me."

As soon as Lin Yang uttered these words, the crowd was left completely dumbfounded.

Jiang Haisheng was the second-ranked warrior among the Four Grandmasters, second only to Wei Zhong. For Lin Yang to boldly proclaim that he would personally visit and challenge him—was that not courting death?

Unless, of course, he was confident in his ability to rival Jiang Haisheng.

Yet Lin Yang was only in his early twenties. To have become a junior grandmaster was already the mark of an exceptional genius.

Jiang Haisheng, however, was a well-known sixth-rank grandmaster, belonging to the intermediate grandmasters.

Among the nine ranks of grandmasters, the lower three ranks were junior, the middle three were intermediate, and the upper three were senior grandmasters.

Of the Four Grandmasters, only Wei Zhong, ranked first, was a supreme senior grandmaster.

For a junior grandmaster to challenge an intermediate grandmaster was absolute suicide.

Yet at this moment, no one regarded Lin Yang as a suicidal fool, nor as a madman spouting empty boasts. Since he dared to declare it publicly, he undoubtedly possessed the confidence to back it up.

Ren Huaxiong himself was stunned, stammering in shock, "What did you say? You want to challenge my master?! Who the hell do you th—"

Ren Huaxiong did not dare to finish his last word, cut short by the murderous glare in Lin Yang's eyes, which forced him to swallow the insult back down.

"This is none of your business anymore. You can get lost."

Lin Yang waved his hand, fully displaying the majesty and aura of a Grandmaster.

Ren Huaxiong did not dare to linger any longer, lest he needlessly throw away his life. Supported by his disciple, he left in dejected defeat, forming a sharp contrast to the grand procession with which he had arrived.

Liang Jian had completely lost all hope. Even without the Murong family's sanctions, Lin Yang's identity as a Grandmaster alone was something he could never contend with.

This was truly a case of a mayfly trying to shake a giant tree, utterly overestimating oneself. Escaping with his life intact was already a supreme blessing amidst misfortune.

The ones filled with the deepest regret throughout the entire hall were undoubtedly Liu Chengzhi's family.

Now that the truth had come to light, they finally understood that Lin Yang was someone they had long needed to look up to, and they realized how ridiculous and pathetic their previous actions had been.

"Xiaoyang, Auntie Yu was wrong. Please don't take revenge on us. Auntie Yu apologizes to you, okay?"

Even if Liang Jian could no longer establish a foothold in Luocheng, by selling off his property and company, he could at least live comfortably for the rest of his life.

The Liu family, however, could not afford such a fate. Previously, Hong Changhai of the Hongxing Chamber of Commerce had been relentlessly pressuring the Liu family, and had they not joined the Wanhao Chamber of Commerce, Hong Changhai would never have let the matter rest.

Now, without the backing of the Wanhao Chamber of Commerce, the Zhicheng Group would certainly be indefensible, and the Liu family's fate would be miserable.

Yu Ping felt a shudder of lingering fear at the thought, immediately changing her attitude and begging Lin Yang for mercy.

"I am not taking revenge on you. This is Murong Yun's disposition of your family, and it has nothing to do with me."

Lin Yang had long since seen through Yu Ping's true colors and was even less inclined to show any softness.

"You are Mr. Lin! With just a single word from you, President Yun will surely let us off. Why, if you just speak up, Uncle Liu could even become the vice president!"

Yu Ping's greed was truly written all over her face; at a time like this, she was still plotting after the position of vice president.

"Xiaoyang, your Uncle Liu and I watched you grow up since you were a child. You even drank my milk when you were little—can't you show any shred of old affection?" Yu Ping pleaded.

Yu Ping's words instantly placed Lin Yang in a rather awkward position.

Frowning, Lin Yang said, "When on earth did I ever drink your milk? Stop spouting nonsense."

"How could you not have? You were very mischievous when you were little, and even at three years old, you still wanted milk. Since your mother didn't have any, you drank mine. The left side of my chest was even bitten by you, and the scar is still there. That is the proof!" Yu Ping declared with absolute certainty.

"Enough, enough! Shut your mouth!" Lin Yang rebuked coldly.

Standing nearby, Murong Yun could only suppress her laughter upon seeing Lin Yang's profound embarrassment.

Everyone else likewise struggled to hold back their amusement, none daring to laugh out loud.

Seeing Yu Ping losing her composure in her panic and starting to blurt out utter nonsense about such matters, Liu Chengzhi hurriedly grabbed her arm.

"Stop talking!" Liu Chengzhi scolded.

"Why shouldn't I speak? It's all the truth, and he cannot be ungrateful! We were indeed in the wrong before, but to err is human—who among us is without fault? If you had made it clear earlier that you were Mr. Lin, would we have treated you that way? Come to think of it, this can't entirely be blamed on us either," Yu Ping argued.

Lin Yang smiled faintly and said, "So, by your logic, it is all my fault."

"Xiaoyang, if you had revealed your identity earlier, how could things have come to this?" Liu Chengzhi could not help chiming in.

"Brother Lin Yang, why didn't you tell me all of this sooner? If you had said so, I wouldn't have treated you that way or said those harsh things. Everything I did was actually just to prove myself in front of you."

The person consumed by the deepest regret was none other than Liu Fuyu.

She was supposed to be Lin Yang's fiancée, and at this very moment, she should have been standing beside Lin Yang in the spotlight, basking in the respect and adoration of the crowd.

This was the status and position she had dreamed of, yet unfortunately, it was ultimately not meant to be. How could Liu Fuyu not feel a piercing regret in her heart?

At this moment, Liu Fuyu shed tears of remorse, weeping bitterly over her past mistakes, wishing she could turn back time.

Lin Yang smiled faintly, shook his head, and said, "I told you, but did you believe me? Just outside the hotel entrance, I made it perfectly clear. You refused to believe me, and now you blame me instead? How laughable!"

With tears streaming down her face, Yu Ping grabbed tightly onto Lin Yang's arm.

"Xiaoyang, give us another chance! I promise that from now on, I will obey your every word. Your marriage with Xiaoyu can be finalized immediately—you cannot treat us this way!"

Unwilling to give up, Yu Ping frantically begged for mercy and tried to curry favor.

"Brother Lin Yang, I'm sorry, I was wrong. Please give me another chance, will you? I'm begging you."

Liu Fuyu grabbed Lin Yang's other arm, acting coquettishly to win his favor. She was even less willing to lose all of this and be forced back into the life of an ordinary person.

Standing to the side, Murong Yun frowned and said, "Noisy! Security, throw this family out."

This time, the security guards did not hesitate in the slightest, directly driving the Liu family out of the premises.

With this, the celebration banquet essentially came to an end.

What was originally meant to be a banquet celebrating Liang Jian's promotion to vice president had ultimately turned into Lin Yang's showcase.

After tonight, Lin Yang's name would inevitably spread far and wide throughout the upper circles of Luocheng.