C1 The Losers

A soft sigh echoed through the study of the Lau family patriarch in Esherough City. The Lau family, one of the four great families in Esherough, wielded immense power. No one in the city dared to cross them, yet there were still matters that left them powerless.

"Yiheng is missing, you say?" The speaker was Lau Changxiong, the Lau family patriarch. Facing him was his fourth brother, Lau Changyun.

"Yes, he's been gone for a day now. Big brother, should we start searching for him?" Lau Changyun asked, a note of helplessness in his voice.

"We must. He's the only legacy our third brother left behind. It's just such a shame..." Lau Changxiong's voice trailed off as his eyes conveyed a mix of helplessness, warmth, and affection, overshadowed by a profound sadness.

Lau Changyun nodded in agreement. "Big brother, try not to be too heartbroken. We've done all we could over the years, exhausting every possible method, but Yiheng... Let's not dwell on this now. I'll take charge and lead the search myself. After all, in the entire Lau family, it seems only you and I still care about the boy's fate."

"Indeed, go ahead," Lau Changxiong replied.

A day earlier, on a hillside at the edge of the Gloomy Tops, a voice spoke with chilling indifference, "Lau Yiheng, you are nothing but trash, a broken soul and a burden. You've squandered so many of our family's pills and resources, bringing us nothing but humiliation and ridicule. You are the Lau family's greatest liability. If I were you, I would've taken my own life long ago."

Another chimed in, "Exactly. I can't fathom how someone like you, a complete waste, can have any will to live. If I were in your shoes, I'd have found a piece of tofu to feign death or drowned myself in a basin by now."

On the hill stood five individuals, four of whom were clustered together, all in their late teens. The two who had just spoken were among them.

These two were members of the Lau family, and among the most promising of the family's younger generation: Lau Yihao and Lau Yihan.

Standing opposite them was a boy who appeared to be about fifteen or sixteen years old, with delicate features that promised a handsome future. His large eyes sparkled with stubbornness and determination, though his slender frame and pale complexion hinted at malnutrition.

This boy was none other than Lau Yiheng, the one labeled as trash and a waste by those around him.

After enduring the taunts of the two, the boy pressed his lips together before asking, "Is this why you summoned me here today?"

"Why? Do you think that's not enough?" came the mocking reply.

With a blank expression, Lau Yiheng responded, "If you're done, then goodbye."

"Kid, who said you could leave? You've made no progress in your cultivation, but your temper sure has flared up! Have you forgotten the feeling of pain after not being disciplined for a while?" Lau Yihao's eyes turned cold as he glared at Lau Yiheng.

"Proud of yourselves for bullying someone who can't fight back?" Lau Yiheng's retreating figure halted and spun around, his gaze icy as he faced Lau Yihao. There was no trace of fear, only a resolute defiance.

Lau Yihao was momentarily taken aback by the challenge, and Lau Yiheng's frosty stare only fueled his anger. He lashed out with a kick, sending Lau Yiheng tumbling to the ground, and bellowed, "What are you staring at? You're nothing but superfluous trash!"

As an ordinary person, Lau Yiheng stood no chance against a cultivator like Lau Yihao, but he managed to rise from the ground, maintaining his cold stare.

Lau Yihao was about to strike again when Lau Yihan intervened, addressing Lau Yiheng with a chilling tone, "Do you have any idea how much medicine and resources the Patriarch and fourth uncle have wasted on you? Had I received those, I'd have become an Innate Spiritual One long ago. You're a burden to our family. Don't you feel any remorse?"

Lau Yiheng met their cold gazes silently, offering no response.

Lau Yihao scrutinized his frail, handsome cousin and said, "Being born into a martial family, a person with your deficiencies shouldn't even receive medicine and resources. You should have volunteered to give them up, yet you shamelessly continue to drain our family's assets. A selfish waste like you is utterly contemptible. I am determined to rid our family of this blight."

"Presumptuous!" In response to the other party's self-righteous diatribe, Lau Yiheng uttered just two words, succinct and powerful.

Over the past few years, the majority of the resources allocated to him had been forcibly taken by his so-called cousins, who also frequently resorted to physical violence against him, showing no fraternal compassion.

Naturally, his reputation in Esherough was less than stellar. In fact, he was infamously known throughout the city, albeit for all the wrong reasons.

The useless young master of the Lau family!

Confronted with this label, Lau Yiheng couldn't deny it. At present, he was indeed unable to cultivate. However, he had never lost hope and was convinced that one day, he would surely succeed.

"Hehe, we're only stating the facts! I truly don't understand how third uncle, a legendary hero of unparalleled talent, could have a son like you. But then again, it's his own arrogance to blame. Had he not stubbornly left the Lau family, he wouldn't have ended up this way, nor would he have a son like you, an uneducated offspring!" Lau Yiheng retorted with a cold laugh.

"Shut up! You have no right to speak about my father!" Lau Yiheng, who had remained mostly silent, suddenly burst out in anger.

Though he had never experienced much fatherly love and had barely seen his father, he was well aware of his father's deeds and held him in high regard.

He couldn't stand these scoundrels slandering his father behind his back!

"Enough, don't bother talking to him!" Lau Yihao gave Lau Yiheng a pat on the shoulder and glared at Lau Yiheng with a menacing look.

"Heh! So you just want the pills and resources I received today? Fine, take them. Consider it as if they've been devoured by dogs!" Lau Yiheng scoffed, pulling out several jade bottles from his pocket and tossing them over before turning to walk away.

He had become accustomed to such occurrences. Though it pained him to let go, he realized he was powerless to retain them and decided it was best to simply let them go.

"Heh! Kid, you're far too naive. If it were just about this issue, why would we bother bringing you here?" Lau Yihan said, catching the jade bottles and shaking his head.

"What more do you want from me?" Lau Yiheng's brow furrowed, sensing that something was amiss today.

"We don't want much. Just to let you know that you're no longer welcome in the Lau family," Lau Yihao said, his gaze icy as a flicker of malice passed through his eyes.

Hearing this, Lau Yiheng stepped back, his face etched with gravity.

He had the sinking feeling that these people intended to kill him today! He might be considered worthless, but he certainly didn't wish to die!

Yet, if they were indeed set on murder, he was powerless to stop them. Even if the family were to investigate later, the consequences would likely be minor.

Such was the harsh reality of their world—a world where the strong devoured the weak. Even if the family head and his fourth uncle cared for him deeply, they wouldn't sacrifice the family's prodigy for someone who was already as good as dead.

"Alright, you two, see if he's got anything else of value on him. Then break his limbs and tendons. Let's see if he can still crawl back after that!" Lau Yihao commanded, gesturing dismissively to the others.

The two other young men approached with wicked grins. Although they were merely from a collateral branch of the Lau family, they held no fear towards a direct descendant like Lau Yiheng.

They pounced, one seizing Lau Yiheng's hands while the other started to frisk him. Quickly, they retrieved a pendant from his chest pocket.

The pendant was entirely black, yet it exuded an air of ancient grandeur, resembling a small boat with a slightly pointed bow adorned with two spherical objects.

A surge of panic gripped Lau Yiheng; he couldn't afford to lose that pendant!

But he was acutely aware that he might not escape today's ordeal unscathed. If they were to break his limbs, he would be more than useless—he'd be completely crippled, without any hope for the future, a fate worse than death.

With this grim thought, Lau Yiheng mustered all his strength to struggle.

With a sharp tearing sound, his sleeves were ripped off, allowing him a momentary escape. He spun around and dashed away!

But he didn't get far before a cliff loomed ahead.

Lau Yiheng steeled his resolve. If he couldn't escape today, he'd rather die than fall into their hands. At the very least, they couldn't get their hands on his pendant!

"Humph! You lot aren't fit to kill me!" Lau Yiheng scoffed, then leaped into the abyss without a second thought.