“It’s the members of the Meng Clan, the Cloudy Morning Sect, and the Heaven Martial Sect.”
It did not take long for the members of the Qian family to recognize the newcomers. They were none other than the leaders of the other three major forces in Descent Mountain City: Meng Nian Yu, the head of the Meng family; Sima Kong Ming, the Sect Leader of the Cloudy Morning Sect; and Zhao Yi Feng, the Sect Leader of the Heaven Martial Sect.
‘Did they come to watch the show?’ Qian Yue Jin’s expression turned unsightly as soon as he saw the three newcomers. He knew the trio did not come with good intentions and was taking pleasure in his misfortune. In fact, he knew that if the Glorious Heaven Sect demanded the annihilation of the Qian family, the trio would not have any objections at all.
“Young Master Duan, we meet again.”
A voice rang in the air soon after. The voice belonged to Meng Qi You, the divine pill alchemist from the Meng clan. He greeted Duan Ling Tian with a smile while he stood behind the head of the Meng family. Perhaps, because of his familiarity with Duan Ling Tian, the people from the Meng family were the first to approach Duan Ling Tian.
“Alchemist Meng.” Duan Ling Tian nodded with a faint smile on his face. He had only met Meng Qi You once at the Still Water Pavilion when he bought the Psychic Pill, which helped him to attain godhood.
The truth was Duan Ling Tian had already attained godhood a few days ago. However, he did not emerge from his closed-door cultivation immediately since he was still not familiar with his new Divine Energy. He only came out after he had familiarized himself with his Divine Energy. After that, he had directly come to the Qian family estate to avenge the southern village of the Duan Clan Village. He was determined to deal with this matter before he left Descent Mountain City.
The members of the Cloudy Morning Sect and the Heaven Martial Sect watched enviously as Meng Qi You said, “This is the head of the Meng family…”
Meng Nian Yu took the initiative to say, “Young Master Duan, I’m Meng Nian Yu, the head of the Meng family.”
“Master Meng.” Duan Ling Tian nodded slightly with a faint smile on his face as a greeting.
At this moment, the two leaders from the Cloudy Morning Sect and Heaven Martial Sect respectively finally stepped forward to greet Duan Ling Tian.
The Sect Leader of the Cloudy Morning Sect said with a smile, “Young Master Duan, I’m Sima Kong Ming, the Sect Leader of the Cloudy Morning Sect.”
Sima Kong Ming was a middle-aged man. He was dressed in a scholar robe and held a fan with his hand. His ensemble made him look very elegant.
Following that, the Sect Leader of the Heaven Martial Sect chimed in, “Young Master Duan, I’m Zhao Yi Feng, the Sect Leader of the Heaven Martial Sect.”
Zhao Yi Feng’s appearance and build were as ordinary as the robe he wore. However, his eyes that shone as bright as the sun were anything but ordinary.
Zhao Yi Feng did not beat around the bust and bluntly asked, “Young Master Duan, how did Qian Fei offend you? Is there anything the Heaven Martial Sect can do to help you?”
Upon hearing these words, Qian Yue Jin’s expression changed drastically. Then, he said grimly, “Sect Leader Zhao, it’s inappropriate for you to speak when this matter has yet to be clarified. There’s a possibility that everything’s just a misunderstanding. I believe my second son, Qian Fei, doesn’t have the courage to offend someone like Young Master Duan. However, if he’s proven to have offended Young Master Duan, I’ll kill him with my own hands.”
Qian Yue Jin’s voice turned even grimmer nearing the end of his words. Based on his words, it was clear that he and the Qian family would not offend Duan Ling Tian, a disciple of the Glorious Heaven Sect.
Meanwhile, the leaders of the Meng family and the Cloudy Morning Sect regretted not showing their support to Duan Ling Tian before Qian Yue Jin interrupted their conversation. They were afraid this would make Duan Ling Tian favor the Heaven Martial Sect more. For the longest time, the four strongest forces in Descent Mountain City balanced each other out; they had been equally matched for many years. If Duan Ling Tian decided to help the Heaven Martial Clan, there was no doubt it would be disastrous for the other three forces.
When Meng Qi You saw Meng Nian Yu looking at him meaningfully, he hurriedly said, “Young Master Duan, after this matter is solved, the Meng family would like to invite you over as a guest.”
Before Duan Ling Tian could respond, Sima Kong Ming chimed in, “The Cloudy Morning Sect welcomes Young Master Duan with open arms as well. Please visit us. After all, the Cloudy Morning Sect and the Glorious Heaven Sect share the same values. It’s a good chance for us to learn a thing or two from you in regard to managing our sect.”
“Let’s discuss this later,” Duan Ling Tian replied to Meng Qi You and Sima Kongming.
Upon hearing these words, Zhao Yi Feng who was about to invite Duan Ling Tian to the Heaven Martial Sect swallowed the words at the tip of his tongue. Then, he looked at Qian Yue Jin and said impatiently, “Master Qian, how dare your second son, Qian Fei, make Young Master Duan wait for so long?”
Qian Yue Jin’s expression darkened immediately upon hearing these words. However, he did not retort in fear of incurring Duan Ling Tian’s anger. After taking a deep breath, he forced a smile on his face and said to Duan Ling Tian, “Young Master Duan, please wait for a moment. My unfilial son is on his way back…”
Qian Fei had returned to Endless Mountain with his new wife to visit his in-laws a few days ago. He was still in the Tie Clan Village when Qian Yue Jin asked Qian Qiu to send him a message.
“If I don’t see Qian Fei today, the Qian family will have to pay for it,” Duan Ling Tian said pointedly. He had said this to make sure Qian Yue Jin would not help Qian Fei escape in order to protect Qian Fei.
“Young Master Duan, my unfilial son will be arriving soon. I’m sure everything’s just a misunderstanding,” Qian Yue Jin hurriedly replied as his heart skipped a beat after listening to Duan Ling Tian’s words. A hint of panic could be seen in his eyes as he sent another message to Qian Qiu. Relief flooded his heart when he confirmed that his son was truly on his way back.
Qian Yue Jin, naturally, did not think Qian Fei had truly offended Duan Ling Tian. He was certain it was just a misunderstanding. After all, Qian Fei had not even seen Duan Ling Tian before. Previously, he had a portrait of Duan Ling Tian drawn up and showed it to Qian Fei so Qian Fei would not unknowingly offend Duan Ling Tian. Based on his son’s reaction at that time, he was confident his son had never met Duan Ling Tian before.
‘A misunderstanding?’ Duan Ling Tian sneered inwardly. There was no way that Qian Fei killing a few hundred people in the southern village of the Duan Clan Village was a misunderstanding. He was determined to kill Qian Fei today to avenge those from the southern village of the Duan Clan Village.
Suddenly, a gloomy voice rang in the air.
“What’s all this commotion about?”
Soon enough, a skinny old man dressed in a white robe appeared before everyone’s eyes. His hair and eyebrows were white. His eyes lit up immediately as soon as he saw Qian Yue Jin. “Yue Jin?”
On the other hand, Qian Yue Jin and the other members of the Qian family seemed shocked when they saw the old man.
“A-ancestor?! Is it really you?” Qian Yue Jin’s voice trembled slightly due to his excitement at seeing the old man.
Upon hearing Qian Yue Jin’s words, Meng Nian Yu, Sima Kong Ming, and Zhao Yi Feng frowned. A hint of fear could be seen in the depths of their eyes when they looked at the old man. Since they did not sense the old man’s aura prior to his arrival, they were certain the old man was stronger than an intermediate god. This was only natural since the old man was the ancestor of the Qian family.
There was an unspoken rule among the four major forces in Descent Mountain City: the strongest powerhouses in their forces were not to intervene in the matters between the forces. Otherwise, the force that broke the rule would have to suffer the wrath of the other three forces. Despite their momentary panic and fear, the leaders of the other three forces recovered quickly. After all, all of them had powerhouses, whom they could contact anytime, who were as strong as the old man in their respective forces as well.
“I was in the vicinity so I came over to have a look at what’s going on,” the old man said with a smile.
At this moment, the members of the Qian family greeted the old man in unison.
“Greetings, ancestor!”
The old man responded with a nod and a smile. After a moment, a confused expression appeared on his face when he saw Duan Ling Tian and the others who did not greet him. He asked Qian Yue Jin, “Are they not members of the Qian family?”
Zhao Yi Feng bowed slightly at the old man as he said, “Greetings, Senior Qian Shu Huan. I’m Zhao Yi Feng. I’ve not seen you for 10,000 years, but you still look the same.”
Upon hearing these words, the members of the Heaven Martial Clan hurriedly greeted Qian Shu Huan. After all, Qian Shu Huan was a powerful god. They did not greet him earlier because they did not recognize him and had yet to meet such a prominent figure like the ancestor of the Qian family..