The Glory of the Tribe

"Even in the Starry Pavilion, Chen Yuanzhou is one of the top geniuses. Among his peers, he has no rivals, with only Shen Taiping from the Shen family being comparable," an elderly woman with silver hair spoke. "Let’s not even mention that he’s seven years older than Jiang Xuan. He wouldn’t regard Jiang Xuan as a true opponent. He’s merely a tool for gaining fame."

"The trick behind Jiang Xuan killing the Ge brothers, I’m sure Chen Yuanzhou understands better than any of us."
"It’s only natural for him to want to crush Jiang Xuan’s momentum."
The conversation continued with everyone adding their thoughts, and Wei Hongkuo’s smile gradually deepened.

At first, Wei Hongkuo had felt a bit uneasy upon hearing about Jiang Xuan. But as everyone lavished praise on him, he felt greatly pleased.
He didn’t interrupt.
With his growing power, Wei Hongkuo had started saying less in family meetings, letting others speak more.

"Speaking of Chen Yuanzhou… and his sister, Chen Yuanxuan."
The silver-haired woman spoke again. "The Chen family is truly fortunate. For several generations, they’ve been blessed with prodigies. Especially the younger generation, they have six people qualified to enter the Starry Pavilion, and there are at least a dozen more on the waiting list. The Chen family’s position as the first family is increasingly solid. The Shen family has always wanted to shake things up, but I think they’ll never succeed."
"The Shen family isn’t bad either. Besides Shen Taiping, there are talents like Shen Ling and Shen Binghe, but when compared to the Chen family, they’re still lacking."

"The Chen family has the strongest foundation."
"We don’t need to overly praise them."
The tall, lean man spoke again. "The Chen family may be lucky, but compared to the past, they’re already on the decline. Chen Yuanxuan was once known for her godly beauty, but after being injured in her teens, her talent was severely damaged. Now, even her brother, Chen Yuanzhou, surpasses her."

"Also, Chen Yanyang was killed. The Chen family lost their top prodigy, one they had spent over twenty years cultivating!"
"Now, there’s fierce competition between the Chen and Shen families. What will happen next is hard to say. Who knows, one day they might clash, and some of the calamity realm experts might be lost!"
"Now, look at our Wei family!"

The tall man glanced at Wei Hongkuo. "Although our Wei family is at the bottom of the four great families, after the death of the Third Master, we had to lower our heads and keep a low profile, and our family’s situation has been worsening. But... that’s all from half a year ago!"
"Under the Fourth Master’s leadership, our alliance with the Jinhe Dong family has reached unprecedented heights. In just half a year, our family’s income has increased by thirty percent! That’s a thirty percent pure profit! This money, when distributed among the family branches, will help us discover and cultivate talent. I believe it won’t be long before a new batch of prodigies is found!"
"Keeping a low profile has its advantages too! We won’t attract attention, allowing us to quietly grow. In less than ten years, a new generation of calamity realm experts will emerge! All thanks to the Fourth Master’s leadership!"

"Yes, all thanks to the Fourth Master!"
"The revival of the family depends entirely on the Fourth Master’s wisdom."
With the tall man leading the praise, several others joined in.
Wei Hongkuo, flattered by the compliments, felt a surge of excitement. His face flushed with pride, and he repeatedly waved his hands, saying, "Everyone, I’ve only contributed a small part for the family. Without all of you helping me, none of this would have been possible. Each one of you here is a hero to the family!"

"Fourth Master, don’t be so modest. With your plans, you might even uncover the 'godly talent' hiding within our family!"
"Exactly! The Chen family has such talent, so why can’t our Wei family have it too?"
"Ha ha ha! Only those with godly talent are true prodigies. If we can find just one, it’s enough! Our Wei family will be completely revived!"

"Not just revived, if we really find such a person, our Wei family might even ascend to become a divine family, eternal and everlasting!"
The conversation became more and more animated, and the room was filled with excitement.
On the eighth of March, news spread that Chen Yuanzhou had returned to Feixue City. The news that Jiang Xuan insisted on signing a death contract before accepting a challenge also spread, and the Chen family did not try to hide it.

In the Wei family’s old residence, in the back garden, the flowers were in full bloom, creating a picturesque scene.
"Uncle, just come with me to Heitan Mountain. It’ll only take two days at most."
Shen Taiping approached the elderly man in black who was drinking tea in the pavilion and asked, "What’s bothering you? If Jiang Xuan really killed the Ge brothers, how could Chen Yuanzhou dare to challenge him? If he dares to challenge, it just means he knows Jiang Xuan is faking it, right? You don’t really think Jiang Xuan has the strength to kill me, do you?"

The elderly man put down his teacup and shook his head at Shen Taiping.
"Uncle!" Shen Taiping’s tone became more urgent. "I know the family’s rules! But I’ve almost comprehended the ‘Divine Power of Heaven and Earth.’ Jiang Xuan is only at the late innate stage. Our power is at least three or four levels above him! What’s more, you’ve been in the Calamity Realm for forty years. If you’re there in person, you really think Jiang Xuan can hurt me?"
"Taiping," the elderly man finally spoke, "You can go to Heitan Mountain if you want. If you challenge Jiang Xuan, even if you accidentally kill him, the family will back you up. But the death contract, the family will never agree to it. Rules are rules. If we break the rules for you today, how can we control the others in the future? Once we open this door, do you know how many of our people will die because of pointless private duels?"

"Without the death contract, you can spar with anyone, even those much stronger than you, but they will never dare to kill you. That’s the family protecting you."
"But..."
"There’s no ‘but’." The elderly man shook his head. "Actually, you could find another way. The death contract was suggested by Jiang Xuan to Chen Yuanzhou, not to you."

Shen Taiping fell silent, contemplating.
In the afternoon.
At a bustling tavern in Feixue City, the first floor was filled with noise, with everyone talking about Jiang Xuan of Heitan Mountain.

"Those were the Ge brothers! The three biggest villains who terrorized for twenty years! And yet Jiang Xuan killed them alone! In the innate realm, who is his match?"
"I heard that there’s been a figure in the Jiang clan’s history who was just as powerful. His name was Jiang Zhengwu! He was called the Blade Master of Heitan!"
"Jiang Zhengwu is nothing. I think Jiang Xuan is even better! He’s a hero who saved his entire clan! When Jiang Zhengwu was around, it was a time of prosperity for the Jiang clan, but it’s not the same now."

"Jiang Xuan is truly a hero!"
"I think even the geniuses in Feixue City’s Starry Pavilion might not be able to match him!"
"The Wei family really has no foresight!"

People loved heroes, and everyone adored a hero’s story. The death of the Ge brothers caused an unprecedented stir in Feixue City. They had done too much evil, and their reputation was so bad that Jiang Xuan’s reputation soared.
On the second floor, in a private room.
Bang!

"What nonsense about heroes!" Wei Yuanlang slammed his cup down on the table, annoyed by the noise outside. "A bunch of ignorant fools!"
"They’re just ignorant," Cao Tai, eating some fried pastries, casually replied. "Most people in this city can’t tell the specifics of the innate realm’s different stages. They have no clear idea of the difference between the late innate stage and full innate, nor do they understand the individual power of the Ge brothers, let alone how powerful they were together."
"That’s why they don’t understand that someone at the late innate stage couldn’t possibly have killed the Ge brothers!" Cao Tai continued. "Young Master, you don’t need to be upset about this."

"Hmph!" Wei Yuanlang coldly snorted and grabbed his chopsticks.
"Actually, this is a good thing. The more famous Jiang Xuan becomes now, the harder he’ll fall later!" Cao Tai glanced at Wei Yuanlang. "I’ve heard that the geniuses from the Starry Pavilion are already planning to challenge Jiang Xuan! They want to use him to boost their own fame."
"When they defeat him, the truth about his fake kill will spread, and he’ll become a laughingstock. No one will say the Wei family was blind anymore."

"That’s true…" Wei Yuanlang smiled after thinking about it.
Two days later.
Chen Yuanzhou, who had been pestering his family, heard about Shen Taiping and a group of Starry Pavilion disciples secretly heading to Heitan Mountain. They had been traveling for over a day.

Chen Yuanzhou didn’t care that his family hadn’t agreed.
He immediately decided to return to Heitan Mountain.