A Dish Best Served Cold (The Man In Rage)
Chapter 1787

As he spoke, Li Er cast a surreptitious gaze toward another beautiful woman clad in a kimono not too far away.

In stark contrast with Xu Lei's maturity, this younger woman exuded the levity of youth.

When she first arrived, Li Er and the others who had arrived earlier wondered if she had stumbled upon their gathering by accident.

It was only after a series of close questioning that they had learned that the young woman was Chiike Shizuka, the chairwoman of Sango Corporation which was the largest financial conglomerate in Japan.

"I have to hand it to Mr. Chu," Li Er lamented as he gazed at the two beautiful women with nothing but respect and admiration for Ye Fan. "He has Ms. Qiu governing Jiangdong in his stead and placed Ms. Xu in charge of Yanjing. Not content with restricting his dealings within the domestic market, he has this lovely young lady keeping his business in Japan running! What is Mr. Chu still fighting for? He should just relax and let his ladies run everything for him. All he has to do is to keep them satisfied."

He is what every man should aspire themselves to be.

Aside from Li Er, Chen Ao and Lei San felt the same way.

Before, Chen Ao and the others had thought that Ye Fan's influence was only contained within Jiangdong and Yanjing.

It soon became apparent to them that they could not be more wrong.

The net of Ye Fan's influence had already been cast all over the world years before his operations took off, as evidenced by the diversity standing by Lake Elterton that night.

The people gathered there did not only come from China and Japan. There were even nationalities from Smealand and Epea.

"After following him for so long, I had thought that I knew everything about him. It appears that what we do know about him is only the tip of the iceberg."

Chen Ao heaved a great sigh.

I betrayed Ye Fan years ago to save myself, being worried that he would fall to the aristocrats of Yanjing.

It is only after witnessing the sheer number of his followers tonight that I finally learned how shortsighted I was being back then.

It was only then that he finally learned the true extent of what the son-in-law of the Qiu family was capable of.

As the group waited in silence, the wintry gale bit a little more sharply.

At last, the figures of a man and a woman emerged out of the darkness at midnight.

"Mr. Chu! Is that you?"

"Why is there two of them?"

Li Er and the others frowned as they squinted into the darkness. Their subordinates readied their rifles in preparation for a defense.

"Halt!" Long Baichuan called out warily. "State your name and business here at this time of night!"

Being a seasoned fighter, he was particularly receptive to the aura of other fighters.

Back then, Ye Fan's presence bristled with energy so tangible that one would recognize him even with their back turned.

However, the figure standing before him at Lake Literton emitted no such presence.

It feels like a civilian. Maybe he had wandered In here by accident.

Long Baichuan's query went unanswered.

"State your business," he repeated, "or we'll be forced to act in self-defense."

Li Er and the others became nervous. Long Baichuan's fingers closed around the hilt of his sword.

Just when the crowd was about to lunge at the figures before them, a faint ripple of laughter reached their ears.

"Have I become that unrecognizable over the course of a couple of days?'

That laugh! I've heard it before!

Xu Lei and Chiike Shizuka froze in disbelief at the sound of the voice.

None was affected more than Xu Lei. In an instant, she was already sprinting toward him.

"Ye Fan!" she exclaimed.

The woman who had ruled Yanjing in his stead ran toward Ye Fan like a wispy maiden who desired nothing more than the protection and love from her man. Throwing herself into his arms, she nuzzled against his chest.

"I thought that I'd never see you again. It was stupid of you to go on a suicide mission by yourself. Why didn't you tell me before you went?"

Xu Lei's tears streamed freely down her cheeks. The bitterness of her sobs rang loud and clear through the night sky.

As her parents were deceased, Ye Fan was the closest person in the world to Xu Lei. It was he who she lived for.

Upon learning that Ye Fan had departed to face the Chu Sect alone, the grief and worry in Xu Lei's heart had not abated until she saw with her own eyes the proof of his wellbeing.

Haunted with dreams that Ye Fan would die in the attempt, it scared her to consider the slim chances of his return.

As Xu Lei was sobbing in Ye Fan's arms, the members of the Dragon God Hall from all corners of the globe fell to their knees in reverence.

"All hail Dragon Master!"

The deafening chorus rang out through the expanse of the lake and past the horizon.

Every single follower present that night was once a spark.

At last, the three thousand members of the Dragon God Hall had met their master on the banks of Lake Elterton.

As their voices faded into the night, the only sound that remained was the heaving sobs, muffled under his arm.

The lake stirred in agitation as if to reflect the impatience of Ye Fan's followers for action.

As he gazed at his disciples on their knees before him, Ye Fan saw his life for the past fifteen years flash before his eyes as if they had belonged to someone

else.

This is my life's work. Every single one of them is a reflection of myself.

Instead of feeling pride for what stood before him, Ye Fan had nothing but desolation in his heart.

"Friends," he began, "forgive me for my loss at Mount Chumen. I know that I had let you down. I had robbed you of the achievement of our glorious hope. Not only had I failed to push Dragon God Hall to the forefront of the martial world, but I had also caused all of you to be in danger because of me."

Every word in Ye Fan's speech dripped with remorse.

As sweet of a reunion as it was, Ye Fan's loss to the Chu Sect was a sign that his prime has passed.

As the largest stakes were already lost, the outcome could not be changed no matter what else they did.

"No!" somebody in the crowd shouted. "You've done your best, Dragon Master. If Chu Yuan had not appeared, you would have razed the Chu family and Chu Sect. For crying out loud, you've managed to subdue the entire Chu family on your own!"

"Well said!" barked another, his voice alight with admiration and reverence. "Besides, so what if we lose this time? We'll just try again in ten years! By then, the sparks of hope you've cultivated will grow into a roaring flame and burn down everything in your path. By then, nothing will stop you from attaining dominance all over the world! We've already waited ten years. Another ten or twenty wouldn't make a difference. As long as you are still willing to fight, we will always be by your side. The world will fall to its knees, trembling before you!"

Ye Fan gazed at them, mollified.

I'm not alone in this. So many still believe in me.

"Brothers, thank you for your support," Ye Fan proclaimed. "I will not let you down. In fact, I hereby vow to return to form within three years. I will repay the humiliation and defeat I suffered in Chu Yuan's and Chu Sect's hand to them a hundredfold by then!"

Ye Fan clenched his fists as his eyes burned with renewed fervor.

Next, he gave the order for all of them to return at once to defend China.

As the rendezvous between Ye Fan and Li Er was taking place, the Chu Sect was assembling its army as well.

"We have issued emergency summons to all of our members stationed across the world, Mr. Tang," reported a messenger to Tang Xian who sat cross-legged in Chu Sect Castle with an imperious gaze at the former. "As of today, we have over three thousand able-bodied men ready to fight."