Watching the frenzied hundred-legged giant centipede charging straight at him, Li Pingcan, panting heavily, steadied his mind.  

Because he hadn’t found a suitable insect before, adhering to the principle of quality over quantity, his [Insect Tribe Contract] still had an empty slot.  

Now was the perfect time to use it to tame this hundred-legged centipede!  

He focused all his attention, casting [Insect Tribe Contract]. As the gentle breeze brushed over the centipede’s body, a spiritual network was established between the two.  

From the depths of the centipede’s mind came emotions of fear, unease, and panic.  

Li Pingcan grinned, his mindset naturally relaxing.  

If the centipede was nervous, then he had no reason to be.  

Using the power of his consciousness to soothe the centipede, probably due to the Druid’s affinity attribute, the centipede visibly calmed, its red antennae curiously swaying. The contract was completed smoothly and naturally.  

The entire process only took a moment.  

Li Pingfu arrived in an instant, raising his foot to stomp on the centipede!  

Li Pingcan hurriedly cast a sudden gust of wind to divert his elder brother’s stomp and shouted urgently, “Brother, don’t! It won’t hurt me.”  

Under Li Pingfu’s shocked gaze, Li Pingcan performed a true work of art. The fierce, vicious centipede in his hands acted like a harmless silkworm, unbelievably obedient!  

“It actually didn’t attack its own brother?!”  

Li Pingfu was amazed and proud. His younger brother truly was gifted.  

Then his brow furrowed, “Who exactly wants to harm me? The centipede wouldn’t just crawl in by itself, would it?”  

Centipedes like to hide under stones and soil. No matter how big, they could not change their insect nature and certainly wouldn’t crawl into hot clothing.  

Although he had vague suspicions, his pure youthful heart refused to think so badly of anyone.  

Seeing his elder brother shift between sudden realization and anger, knowing he was already suspecting Li Fang, Li Pingcan did not play riddles. “It’s exactly as you think.”  

After the contract, the centipede naturally trusted Li Pingcan. Their minds communicated, producing an effect similar to [Animal Speech].  

He thus learned that this centipede had a lifespan of ten years and was at the level of an ancestral elder in the centipede world. Among martial artists, its venom was a rare and precious medicinal ingredient beneficial to cultivation.  

Originally, the centipede elder enjoyed a comfortable life in Li Dahu’s household, living well, but was stolen by Li Fang, the unfilial grandson of the Li family, just to viciously bite Li Pingfu as revenge for a humiliating defeat.  

“Now it’s mine for cheap!”  

Li Pingcan felt gleeful inside.  

Apart from the first dangerous three minutes for his elder brother, it was all safe with an unexpected gain of “great medicine”!  

Even though Li Dahu forbade selling the venom, secretly using it at home—who would know?  

Let’s just say it was Li Fang’s interest payment for trying to harm elder brother!  

…  

This matter could not fail to alarm the head of the family, Li Rongzhou.  

Especially when Little Black gave a brief “caw caw caw” code—a family highest-level crisis warning.  

Having learned the whole story, Li Rongzhou looked at his eldest son, whose face was full of anger and confusion, and said, “You are the key to this matter. If you have any thoughts, speak them.”  

Li Pingfu was silent for a moment.  

Though he trained in the ruthless “Black Tiger Technique,” he was essentially a sunny, cheerful young man who admired and looked up to the straightforward, upright heroes in stories, dreaming of becoming a great savior.  

He thought martial artists used every means as tactics, not malicious intent. After all, his grudge with Li Fang was just the rivalry of peers, not expecting his fellow disciple to apply such ruthlessness to him.  

This made him feel both hurt and confused.  

“Could it be that I’m not ruthless enough?”  

Li Pingfu said blankly. If he had beaten Li Fang into submission, would Li Fang dare to use centipedes to harm him?  

Li Rongzhou smiled, “No matter how ruthless you are, can you kill him?”  

Li Pingfu shook his head.  

Killing is illegal. If he killed Li Fang, Li Dahu would never let it go—that was a lesson learned three years ago.  

But beating him into submission, with Li Fang’s prideful personality, would be extremely difficult; it could turn into a deadly grudge.  

“Tracing back to the root, the whole matter started from a moment of youthful pride.”  

Li Rongzhou said, “There’s nothing wrong with martial artists competing for victory, but the problem lies in Li Fang’s narrow-mindedness. His father is a major villager with extensive connections, turning a simple matter complicated. Your master Zhou agreeing to spar with you was meant to humble Li Fang’s arrogance, but you were just too outstanding.”  

The old father’s gaze was both proud and regretful.  

Sometimes being too excellent is a fault—standing out invites the wind’s destruction.  

Suddenly, he drew a dagger, its cold gleam sharp and glaring. “Look at this blade; when its edge is sharp, everyone fears it and pays close attention...”  

With a “shing” sound, Li Rongzhou sheathed the dagger. “But if the sword is hidden in the scabbard, restrained and unadorned, no one notices. Then Li Fang wouldn’t have tripped you out of jealousy.”  

“Hiding your sharpness—this is the first principle I want to teach you.”  

Li Pingfu’s anger gradually faded into enlightened calmness, no longer filled with disappointment, resentment, or fury.  

Without experiencing it personally, how could one understand his father’s painstaking intentions?  

Li Pingcan blinked. He used to dismiss this in his past life, but now he studied every word carefully.  

He still felt scared about today’s incident. If he hadn’t been vigilant and focused, Li Fang would have achieved his goal.  

This proved that human malice had nothing to do with age.  

But Li Pingcan understood the principle and was still angry and unwilling. “Father, elder brother almost got poisoned. Can this matter just end like this?”  

Li Pingfu hurriedly said, “It all started because of me. If I had given way to Li Fang earlier, this wouldn’t have happened. Now we might even make enemies with Li Dahu’s family. How could we bring trouble to the household?” He showed guilt.  

Then Li Rongzhou laughed heartily, picking up the youngest son. “Can’er is right. We definitely can’t just let this go!”  

In Li Pingcan’s delighted and Li Pingfu’s puzzled gaze, he said, “If it’s not a matter of principle, we can let it slide for now. But Li Fang tried to take a life. That is unforgivable!”  

“If anyone dares to harm my family, I’ll utterly destroy them!”  

“That’s the second principle I want to teach you.”  

Li Rongzhou stared at his eldest son solemnly. “Pingfu, never forget the ‘three parts of malice’ in a martial artist’s heart!”  

…  

Evening.  

The night breeze stirred the leaves on the branches. Little Black stood vigilant on a branch, its sharp eyes catching every movement from all directions.  

The family had finished dinner and was discussing serious matters.  

Lady Qin tightly embraced Li Pingfu, both scared and tearful, making Li Pingfu feel ashamed and restless.  

Li Ping’an disdainfully said to his elder brother, “Has your brain been replaced with muscle from training? Why pick fights with Li Fang for no reason? Their family is like dog shit; once tainted, you can’t get rid of it!”  

At the start of school, Li Fang’s younger brother Li Yuan had led the isolation against him, but Li Pingcan quietly resolved it all.  

Now it seemed the counterattack had been too conservative back then!  

In an instant, Li Ping’an’s mind filled with sneaky plans to mess with Li Yuan and give him a taste of his own medicine!  

Brother’s debts are younger brother’s to repay!  

“Elder brother already knows his mistake.”  

Li Pingcan squeezed Li Ping’an’s hand and noticed it was covered in cold sweat, secretly smiling. Today’s incident had clearly scared the second brother badly.  

“To seek revenge, the key is still on Can’er,” Li Rongzhou looked at Li Pingcan. “Are you sure you can fully control the centipede?”  

“Of course.”  

Li Pingcan’s confidence shone brightly.  

Finally, it was time for my insect partner to make its debut!