Chapter 531: Chapter 531: The Attitude of the Dugu Family
Dugu Sheng was beginning to panic. There were too many of them on the other side, all martial arts masters. If they genuinely started a fight, his side would stand no chance of winning.
Moreover, Dugu Sheng didn’t want conflict with the Pill Alliance. His hardline stance was just for his son to save face. He thought Mo Ziming would back off appropriately at some point.
Unexpectedly, Mo Ziming wasn’t playing around. You want to be tough? Well, I can be tougher.
Dugu Sheng wasn’t a fool. He and his son, Dugu Qingyun, might have some character flaws, but after forty or fifty years of life, he recognized when to advance and when to retreat.
“Mo Ziming, what are you trying to do? Are you trying to humiliate us just because the Pill Alliance is powerful?” Dugu Sheng quickly changed his tone.
Mo Ziming looked at him with apparent contempt. “You came here knowing full well the power of the Pill Alliance, yet you and your son still dare to act so arrogantly. Impressive.”
Dugu Sheng’s face turned from pale to red. The Pill Refiners on the field all had mocking expressions when they looked at him. This feeling was enough to drive Dugu Sheng near mad.
“You can take Dugu Qingyun away, but you can’t take Fang Lin.” Mo Ziming stated.
On hearing this, Dugu Sheng became upset. “No, I must take Fang Lin. The elders of the Dugu Family want to see him.”
Mo Ziming’s eyes narrowed, “Why do they want to see him?”
Ignoring the question, Dugu Sheng tried to change the subject, clearly hiding something.
“Since you can’t provide a reason, just take Dugu Qingyun and leave. Don’t waste words.” With this, Mo Ziming turned and left, no longer paying attention to Dugu Sheng.
Dugu Sheng’s expression changed. He had vowed to the leaders of his clan to bring back Dugu Qingyun and Fang Lin. How could he only bring back his son?
But now, there seemed to be no room for negotiation. They didn’t even care to listen to him.
“Let my son out.” Dugu Sheng said through gritted teeth. At the moment, he could only bring his son back first.
Soon, someone brought out Dugu Qingyun.
Dugu Qingyun was pale and injured but in no serious danger. Yet irritation showed in his face. This was due to his wounded pride rather than physical injury.
“You dare to harm my son?” Seeing his son injured, Dugu Sheng was instantly furious.
However, no one responded to him, which was quite humiliating.
“Why are you shouting? I’m the one who injured your son. Do you have a problem with that?” Fang Lin appeared saying this casually.
Dugu Sheng’s eyes locked onto Fang Lin as he coldly said, “Very well, Fang Lin. The Dugu Family invited you out, not only did you disobey, but you also injured my son. This is outrageous!”
Fang Lin scoffed, “The Dugu Family is quite bold. Didn’t you consider your son’s attitude? Did you invite me to the Dugu Family? Or is it more accurate to say you tried to take me there by force?”
Dugu Sheng seethed, “Who do you think you are? When the Dugu Family commands you, you should obey!”
Fang Lin found this highly laughable and frustrating. It seemed that in Xuan Country, people from the Lower Three Kingdoms like himself, attracted no respect. It seemed like he should be at their beck and call, obeying their every order without question.
This feeling infuriated him. He wanted to shatter everything.
“If not for Dugu Nian’s sake, I would break all four of your son’s limbs!” Fang Lin said coldly.
“Good! Good! Good! Fang Lin, I’ll remember what you’ve said. If you cross the Dugu Family, I hope you won’t regret it!” Dugu Sheng replied, filled with rage.
Fang Lin couldn’t be bothered to deal with Dugu Sheng, not even sparing him a glance.
Dugu Sheng bore a stern look, not lingering any longer as he left with Dugu Qingyun.
However, this caused Fang Lin to worry. Why did the seniors of the Dugu Family, want to see him?
He had very few dealings with the Dugu Family, only a close relationship with Dugu Nian. When the Dugu Family insisted on meeting him, he couldn’t help but suspect it had something to do with Dugu Nian.
But Dugu Nian had been missing for three days, leaving Fang Lin with no way to find out more.
The attitude of the Dugu Family disgusted Fang Lin deeply. Did this have to do with him being from the Lower Three Kingdoms?
Fortunately, Fang Lin held the status of a Pill Refiner in the Pill Alliance. He was under the protection of Mo Ziming within the Xuan Country’s branch of the Pill Alliance. Even the Dugu Family could not touch him.
After returning to the mansion with Dugu Qingyun, Dugu Sheng immediately went to see the old man and woman.
“What happened?” The old man asked as Dugu Sheng returned.
Dugu Sheng had a grimace on his face as he respectfully reported, “Sir Qi, I brought Qingyun back, but Fang Lin is behaving outrageously. He doesn’t respect the Dugu Family at all and even insulted us.”
Upon hearing these words, a cold light flashed in the old man’s eyes, and the old woman frowned.
“Didn’t you try to talk politely?” The old woman looked at Dugu Sheng with a skeptical expression.
Dugu Sheng quickly added, “I indeed approached him respectfully, but Fang Lin was extremely rude. He relied on the backing of the Pill Alliance and does not respect the Dugu Family at all.”
“Such audacity!” The old man was slightly angry. He was a high-ranking member of the family and was on the aggressive side dealing with the issue related to Fang Lin.
The old woman tried to smooth things over, “Maybe Fang Lin is just overly defensive, worried that we might do something harmful to him.”
The old man snorted, “No need for further discussion, since we’ve failed to invite him multiple times, then I’ll personally go. Let’s see how he dares to act arrogantly.”
Dugu Sheng was delighted upon hearing this, “With Sir Qi taking action, surely Fang Lin won’t be able to resist.”
However, the old woman shook her head, “Fang Lin is a Pill Refiner of the Pill Alliance. If the Dugu Family is too aggressive, Fang Lin will feel even more excluded. This could lead to a conflict between the Dugu Family and the Pill Alliance.”
The old man dismissed her worries, “It doesn’t matter. The Pill Alliance isn’t only up to Mo Ziming to call the shots. The Dugu Family also has some relationship with the Pill Alliance. They won’t risk breaking ties with us over a single Fang Lin.”
The old woman wanted to say something more, observing the old man’s stubborn expression, but she knew nothing more could be said, and she sighed heavily in her heart.
The next day, Dugu Nian came to the Pill Alliance. His usual lively and cheerful demeanor was instead replaced by a complex and gloomy one.
This time, Fang Lin didn’t avoid Dugu Nian and met him directly.