Chapter 236: Strange, Very Strange
The obedient Armored Beast had grown significantly over time. Now nearly 1.6 meters long, its head tentacles had elongated and hardened, making it even more formidable than before.
Upon receiving Ye Jiamei’s command, the beast leaped from Tao Ming’s arms, landing firmly on the ground before charging straight toward Old Madam Chen’s grave. Without hesitation, it began digging furiously, using both its claws and limbs to tear into the dirt.
The force of its digging was relentless—large stones stacked atop the grave were swiftly dislodged and scattered, and the fresh soil covering the burial mound was already forming a deepening pit.
Seeing his mother’s grave about to be unearthed, Yu Zhengqing’s eyes turned bloodshot with fury. Without a second thought, he raised his long sword and hurled it directly at the Armored Beast!
Yu Luo, who had just pulled out her crossbow, was preparing to intercept the attack—when suddenly, a dark shadow flashed past.
The next moment, Yu Zhengqing’s sword was sent flying, soaring dozens of meters before clanking against a nearby rock.
Both Yu Luo and Yu Haojie turned in shock—only to see a man standing there.
Their gazes immediately snapped toward Ye Jiamei in displeasure.
“Mother, why did you bring him here?”
Ye Jiamei’s lips twitched, and she quickly shook her head. She had been about to explain, but upon noticing the crowd of onlookers, she reconsidered and chose to remain silent.
But there was no time for explanations.
Yu Zhengqing, realizing his sword had failed to stop the beast, lunged forward in desperation.
Moving with remarkable speed, he reached for the Armored Beast’s tail, attempting to yank it away from the grave!
However, before he could even touch the beast, the man who had just intervened struck again—this time with a swift kick to Yu Zhengqing’s chest!
Yu Zhengqing had no chance to react.
All his focus had been on stopping the beast, leaving him completely unguarded.
The force of the kick sent him soaring backward, his body slamming hard into the ground.
At the same time, his sons, Yu Xiaoran and Yu Xiaoxuan, had been locked in combat with Yu Luo’s guards. Upon turning their heads and seeing their father sent flying, Yu Xiaoran momentarily lost focus.
In that split second of distraction—
Slash!
A sword cut deeply into his arm, sending blood splattering into the air.
But Yu Xiaoran didn’t care.
Ignoring his own injury, he swiftly leaped forward, using light footwork to catch his father before he hit the ground.
Yet, just as Yu Zhengqing landed in his arms, he opened his mouth—and suddenly, a gush of blood spilled from his lips.
“Father! Father!”
Yu Xiaoran’s face paled, panic flashing in his eyes.
He fumbled for a medicine pill, forcing it into his father’s mouth.
Tears welled in his eyes.
He had never felt so helpless.
For the first time, he questioned everything.
For the first time, he doubted his own convictions.
Was it possible… that Yu Luo had been telling the truth all along?
Was it too late to realize this now?
Meanwhile, across the battlefield, Yu Xiaoxuan was faring even worse.
Of the three men, his skills were the weakest.
Without the support of his father and elder brother, he quickly became overwhelmed.
In mere moments, his sword was knocked away, and a deep gash was sliced across his chest.
Staggering backward, he collapsed into the wet soil, blood and mud staining his clothes.
Yet, as the battle raged on—
The Armored Beast continued digging relentlessly.
Dirt flew in all directions, forming a mound even taller than the original grave itself.
Watching in despair, Yu Xiaoxuan’s face twisted in horror.
It was over.
They had underestimated Yu Luo’s ruthlessness.
When they had devised their plan, they had never expected Yu Luo to stoop this low—
To do something as insane as desecrating his grandmother’s grave.
Yu Luo… you’re truly ruthless!
Even with their desperate struggle, the Yu family had failed to protect the grave.
Now, they were left beaten and bloodied, humiliated before a crowd of onlookers.
Among the watching exiles, there was an undeniable tension in the air.
Everyone knew Yu Haojie was a bastard son, and that the late Madam Chen had despised his family.
But even so—No one had expected this level of enmity.
Did Yu Haojie really kill Madam Chen?
Some doubted it.
After all, even before their exile, it was no secret that Madam Chen had treated them harshly.
Take, for example, the time when Yu Yingying had been mauled by a wild beast—
Ye Jiamei hadn’t even lifted a finger to help.
That alone proved how much resentment she held toward them.
So, was it really so far-fetched to think that the Yu family had taken revenge?
But now, seeing Yu Luo personally unearthing the grave, the crowd was left speechless.
Meanwhile, Lady Lan and Yu Meiyao stood frozen in disbelief.
They had thought Yu Zhengqing’s intervention would stop the madness.
But despite everything—despite their husband’s struggles—
Yu Luo had refused to back down.
And the worst part?
Their calculations had failed.
Not only had they failed to frame Yu Luo—
They had also pushed Yu Zhengqing into suffering a near-fatal injury.
For Lady Lan, nothing else mattered anymore.
She no longer cared about what Yu Zhengqing would do next.
All she wanted… was for her husband to survive.
Staggering toward Yu Xiaoran, she dropped to her knees beside them, eyes filled with tears.
She reached out to touch her husband, only for Yu Zhengqing to violently shove her away.
His eyes were cold.
No warmth.
No affection.
Only seething rage.
Yet his fury wasn’t directed at Lady Lan.
It was aimed at the freshly dug grave—
A grave that, despite being two meters deep…
Contained no body.
A chilling silence fell over the area.
Yu Zhengqing let out a bitter laugh.
“Ha… This is interesting… Very interesting indeed.”
His mocking gaze slowly lifted to Yu Xiaoxuan and Lan Shi.
“You mean to tell me…”
His voice was hoarse, filled with undeniable sarcasm.
“That my Armored Beast has dug two meters down…”
“And yet… there’s no corpse?”
Yu Luo, standing beside the pit, smirked as she called out—
“Well, well… How strange, isn’t it?”
She let out a mock sigh, then turned her eyes toward the pale, trembling figures of Yu Xiaoxuan and Lady Lan.
“It almost makes you wonder…”
She tilted her head, voice dripping with mockery.
“Did you all bury a person—”
“Or just a pile of dirt?”
