1569 Southern Ridge Yuan Mansion

"Grandpa Hou, we don't have any evidence." Situ Hang smiled wryly.

"Don't we have this Master?" Situ Hou looked at Duan Ling Tian. It was obvious he had faith in Duan Ling Tian.

Naturally, this was due to Duan Ling Tian's technique that alleviated Situ Hang's illness that had convinced him. The matter that stumped Four Star Saint Inscription Masters in the palace was actually solved by this young man.

"According to this Master, it's apparent the Devil Inscription is extremely rare. On top of that, the trace that it leaves behind is also negligible… The fact that Master managed to find it and identify it as a Devil Inscription is because he's knowledgeable. However, the others might not believe his words," Situ Hang voiced out his worries.

"As long as he can treat you, why are you afraid they'll doubt you?" Situ Hou thought otherwise.

"Even if he can treat me, they can still deny the existence of the Devil Inscription… After all, if Master didn't tell us about it, both of us would still be unaware of its existence in this world. In fact, Situ Zhou might use this chance and claim I'm slandering him." Situ Hang sighed.

"Young Master Situ is right. We must not act rashly… Even if we want to catch Situ Zhuo, we need more time to consider the matter," Duan Ling Tian finally chimed in.

Although he had no idea who Situ Zhuo was, from Situ Hang and Situ Hou's attitude earlier, it was obvious they were certain Situ Zhuo had something to do with Situ Hang being cursed with a Devil Inscription.

"You have a point, Master." Situ Hang nodded in agreement. He struggled as he climbed off his bed and bowed to Duan Ling Tian, expressing his gratitude. "Thank you, Master, for helping me. Otherwise, it would've been unlikely I would live to see the next month."

Although the purple-clad young man had not fully cured him, his condition had improved a lot thanks to his miraculous hand.

"You're welcome, Young Master Situ." Duan Ling Tian smiled nonchalantly.

"May I know your name, Master?" Situ Hang asked politely.

"Duan Ling Tian." Under the gaze of Situ Hang and Situ Hou, Duan Ling Tian smiled in response.

He was quite fond of the Great Young Master of Situ Clan.

After living two lives, Duan Ling Tian had his own way of judging people. He could see Situ Hang was an open-hearted and upright person, unlike those ordinary good-for-nothing rich kids.

"Oh, so it's Master Duan." Situ Hang only stood for a moment before his face began to turn pale again because he had not fully recovered.

"Little Hang, rest for a while," Situ Hou chimed in when he saw this.

"Alright," Situ Hang replied after he greeted Duan Ling Tian. He smiled apologetically before climbing back into bed to lie down.

At the same time, Duan Ling Tian and Situ Hou left the room and returned to the big courtyard.

"Master Duan, I apologize for my rudeness earlier." Situ Hou apologized as soon as they came out. He was obviously referring to the incident when he ordered Manager Fu, the inner mansion's manager, to test Duan Ling Tian.

"I understand, you're merely concerned about Young Master Situ, Elder Hou," Duan Ling Tian replied.

When Situ Hou heard Duan Ling Tian's reply, a smile appeared on his face instantly. He asked hesitantly, "If I may, Master Duan, are you a Heaven Ranking's powerhouse?"

"Heaven Ranking's powerhouse?" Duan Ling Tian was also confused when he saw Situ Hou staring at him. "What's that?"

He had heard of Earth Ranking before, but what was the Heaven Ranking?

"Master Duan, y-you don't know about the Heaven Ranking?" Situ Hou could tell Duan Ling Tian was not pretending based on his reaction. His eyes widened in surprise.

"This is my first time hearing it," Duan Ling Tian replied, "I've heard of Earth Ranking, it's a ranking for powerhouses at the peak of the Mortal Shedding Stage."

"The Earth Ranking and the Heaven Ranking are at totally different levels… In the Dao Martial Saint Land, there are many Earth Rankings, but there are only several dozens of Heaven Rankings." Situ Hou shook his head.

"Can you please explain more of this to me?" After hearing Situ Hou's words, Duan Ling Tian began to get interested in the Heaven Rankings.

He learned more about the Heaven Rankings through Situ Hou. It was a ranking that could only be created by a fifth-rate force in the area under their control for powerhouses at the peak of the Saint Rudiment Stage.

Although Windfall Nation was a sixth-rate Saint Nation, it was under a fifth-rate force called the Southern Ridge Yuan Mansion.

In the land that the Southern Ridge Yuan Mansion ruled, there were a total of eleven sixth-rate forces. Windfall Nation was one of it.

Due to this reason, powerhouses at the peak of the Saint Rudiment Stage who entered the Heaven Ranking were all top Saint Rudiment Stage powerhouses in the land ruled by the Southern Ridge Yuan Mansion.

The Heaven Ranking had 100 people, and very few people from Windfall Nation made it into the list.

"I can't believe you've never heard of the Heaven Ranking, Master Duan. I wonder where you're from?" Situ Hou asked curiously.

"I'm from the Nine Sect Alliances' district," Duan Ling Tian replied truthfully. Since he was going to ask the Situ Clan to help to find Bai Li Hong's whereabouts, there was no need for him to keep this a secret.

"The Nine Sect Alliances' district?" Situ Hou finally understood. "I've heard of that place, it's situated at the frontier after the southern desert. I can't believe such a place would produce such an outstanding person like you, Master Duan," Situ Hou mused.

"Elder Hou, I wonder who is this Situ Zhuo that you and Young Master Situ mentioned? What enmity does he have with Young Master Situ?" Duan Ling Tian was curious about this.

In fact, Situ Hang was the Great Young Master of Situ Clan and the successor of the Clan Leader of Situ Clan. It was surprising that someone would want to harm him.

Judging from his name, Situ Zhuo was obviously a clan member.

"Situ Zhuo is also a lineal disciple of Situ Clan. He's also the Second Young Master… However, he has no blood relation with Little Hang at all. Well, if you really want to talk about blood relation, I guess we'll have to trace several dozens of generations back," Situ Hou answered unhurriedly.

Duan Ling Tian understood what Situ Hou meant. Situ Hang and Situ Zhuo were both lineal disciples, but they were not from the same bloodline.

"The inheritance of Situ Clan is not decided by bloodline. Instead, the selection is done by picking the most outstanding lineal disciple and nurturing him to be the next Clan Leader. The current Clan Leader is Little Hang's father, and Little Hang does indeed live up to expectation. That's why it's decided he'll become the successor of the Clan Leader," Situ Hou continued to say, "However, in Little Hang's generation, there's another person who's extremely outstanding… If Little Hang's not around, he would definitely become the successor of the Clan Leader."

"This person is Situ Zhuo?" When Duan Ling Tian heard Situ Hou's explanation, he had finally grasped the situation. He also knew for what reason Situ Zhuo wanted to kill Situ Hang. There was no doubt he wanted to replace Situ Hang and become the successor of the Clan Leader of Situ Clan. After all, as long as Situ Hang was alive, he would not stand a chance at all.

"Exactly!" Situ Huo's eyes gleamed coldly as he said in a deep voice, "I can't believe he's crazy to this extent… He's breaking our Situ Clan's law!"

The first law of Situ Clan prohibited clan's disciples from fighting one another.

"Ordinary people won't be able to see the Devil Inscription." Duan Ling Tian shook his head.

"Master Duan, please stay at Little Hang's residence… I must first inform the Clan Leader about this. I won't bother you any longer." After Situ Hou finished speaking, he ordered a servant in the huge courtyard to take care of Duan Ling Tian before he left.

"Master Duan, please follow me." As the Great Young Master of Situ Clan, there was, naturally, many servants in his courtyard. After hearing Situ Hou's order, one of them quickly brought Duan Ling Tian to a vacant room.

The room was tidy. Although it was empty, it was very clean. It was obvious it was frequently cleaned.

"Master Duan, please let me know if you need anything else. I'll be right here outside the door," the young servant said as she cast flirtatious looks at Duan Ling Tian. Although she did not know if this purple-clad young man would be able to cure the Great Young Master, it was enough for her seeing the way Elder Huo treated him. If she could get someone like him to fall for her, it would be an opportunity for her to soar up into the sky. Duan Ling Tian directly ignored her. Although the servant was quite good looking, she was still lacking a lot when compared to Duan Ling Tian's two fiancées.

'I wonder where Senior Brother, Uncle Feng, and the others are… I hope they've come to Windfall Nation as well,' Duan Ling Tian thought to himself.

"I'll ask the Clan Leader of Situ Clan if he knows any fifth-rate force that houses many people with the surname Han." This was the only clue he had regarding Xue Nai's origin.

It was apparent the sect Xue Nai was in was a huge clan. Even the Ancient Han Clan on Cloud Continent was built by ordinary disciples who left the clan 10,000 years ago.

The reason he suspected the clan behind Xue Nai was a fifth-rate sect was due to the Saint Stones Xue Nai had given him previously.

90% of those Saint Stones were fifth-grade Saint Stones while the remaining ones were fourth-grade Saint Stones.

These fit the descriptions of a fifth-rate Saint Stone reserve. Usually, a fifth-rate Saint Stone reserve was controlled by a fifth-rate sect.

Duan Ling Tian sat quietly on the bed. He did not rush into the Seven Treasures Exquisite Pagoda to cultivate. This was because he knew he would not be able to cultivate for long even if he entered it.

Just like Duan Ling Tian had predicted, not long after he sat down, the servant's voice resonated from outside. "Master Duan, the Clan Leader is here. Please come out."

This was the reason Duan Ling Tian did not enter the Seven Treasures Exquisite Pagoda to cultivate. He was waiting for the Clan Leader of Situ Clan to visit him. As Situ Hang's biological father, naturally, he would come to confirm this when he found out someone could treat his son's peculiar illness.

This was the burden of being parents! There were no parents who did not love their children.

Duan Ling Tian walked out of the room and saw Situ Hou again. A middle-aged man with average built was next to Situ Hou. He was dressed in a blue robe. He was handsome. He had dashing straight eyebrows, emitting the aura and prestige of a leader.

It was obvious he was the Clan Leader of Situ Clan, Situ Hao.