Subduing the Speed Clan

Lin Fan remained unhurried as he continued, "Clan Head Bai, I know your Speed Clan has always thought highly of itself and refused to join any faction. But you know perfectly well how you've been getting by these days."

Bai He's expression darkened further, and the girl behind him could not help speaking up. "What does Spirit Hall want? Our Speed Clan will never join you!"

Lin Fan glanced at her, utterly uninterested. This girl certainly had quite the temper, but unfortunately, she was far too weak—not even worthy of a second look from him.

"Clan Head Bai," Lin Fan could not be bothered to beat around the bush any longer, and his tone turned cold. "I'll only offer this chance once. Join Spirit Hall, and your entire clan will live free from want. You may even restore your former glory. Refuse..."

He paused, his gaze sweeping over the surrounding Speed Clan members. "Kill all the men. Take the women back to Spirit Hall. They'll be useful somehow."

Bai He flew into a rage, his Soul Power erupting instantly. "Arrogant! Do you really think the Speed Clan is so easy to bully?!"

"You clearly don't understand the situation!"

Lin Fan and the five Titled Douluo behind him released their martial souls together. A terrifying pressure instantly enveloped the entire Speed Clan. Bai He's face turned deathly pale, and his legs trembled uncontrollably. Bai Chenxiang behind him had it even worse—she was forced directly to her knees, her forehead pressed into the dirt, unable even to lift her head.

Fuck! Bai He cursed inwardly.

Five Titled Douluo and a freakish Young Master—this lineup would have been enough to fight the Clear Sky Sect. Using it to bully a bunch of impoverished nobodies like them was like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

Dugu Bo took out a bottle of Poison Pills and tossed it to Bai He. "Agree to join Spirit Hall, then take one Poison Pill. From now on, you'll need to take an antidote every month. Otherwise, the poison will flare up and kill you."

"Old White Bird, surely you don't want your granddaughter to be treated as..." Gui Mei said coldly.

Bai He's face went pale as he trembled all over. "You... you're going too far!"

Yue Guan sneered. "Too far? Clan Head Bai, we've already been very polite. Do you know why only six of us came? Because we don't need any more people."

Lin Fan pushed the Sea God's Trident forward, its icy tip pressing against the back of Bai Chenxiang's head. "I'll count to three."

"One."

Watching his granddaughter's trembling back, Bai He nearly ground his old teeth to pieces.

She was his own granddaughter!

The only descendant of his branch!

"Two."

Dugu Bo shook the bottle of poison in his hand. The clinking of glass made everyone's skin crawl. Old Poisonous Creature's medicine—taking it would probably be worse than death.

Bai He's face was ashen as he looked at his granddaughter lying on the ground, his heart filled with despair.

He understood that the Speed Clan would not be able to escape this trial today.

"Three!"

"We'll join!" Bai He roared until his voice cracked.

The pressure vanished instantly, and Bai Chenxiang collapsed to the ground, gasping for breath.

Lin Fan curled his lip and withdrew the trident. "Wouldn't it have been better if you'd done that from the start? You just had to take a beating before behaving."

"Someone, distribute the Poison Pills to them."

Xue Ying stepped forward with a smile and handed out Poison Pills to the Speed Clan members.

Everyone obediently swallowed them. They knew this was their only way out.

"Since the Speed Clan has submitted to Spirit Hall, Spirit Hall naturally won't mistreat you." As Lin Fan spoke, he took out a black card from his Soul Tool and handed it to Bai He. "There are 150,000 Gold Soul Coins on this card. Use them to improve the Speed Clan's situation."

After wielding the stick, one naturally had to offer a carrot.

Bai He accepted the black card, his hand trembling slightly.

He knew that 150,000 Gold Soul Coins was no small sum. To the desperately poor Speed Clan, it was practically help in their darkest hour.

After breaking away from the Clear Sky Sect, they had become the poorest among the four single-attribute clans!

In the original timeline, they did not even have enough money to buy a Godly Zhuge Crossbow. They could only produce 100 Gold Soul Coins, and had to borrow the rest from the Breaking Clan. (Note: A Godly Zhuge Crossbow sold for 120 Gold Soul Coins.)

The greatest problem plaguing the Speed Clan was their lack of offensive power.

If they possessed sufficiently strong offensive power, then even by specializing in hunting Soul Beasts, they could support their clan's survival.

Unfortunately, they did not. The Sharp-tailed Swallow martial soul's advantage was its speed, while its drawback was that it could not gain sufficient offensive power until one became a Soul Saint.

But how many resources would it take to cultivate a Soul Saint?

With innate Soul Power, it was not impossible to cultivate a Soul Saint through normal training, but it would be very slow. Not everyone was like Tang San and the others.

"Old Poisonous Creature." Lin Fan turned and called out, "Give them two months' worth of antidotes first."

Dugu Bo curled his lips and flung out a medicine pouch, smacking Bai Chenxiang on the forehead. Her furious yet silent expression made Xue Ying giggle.

"You're coming with us to the other three clans." Lin Fan kicked aside a rotten wooden board blocking his way. "Since you've joined Spirit Hall, you must serve Spirit Hall. You, Old White Bird, will be our negotiator. Next stop, the Defense Clan."

He suddenly leaned close to Bai He's ear. "If you dare play any tricks..." His gaze swept over Bai Chenxiang, who was rubbing her forehead. "I hear the western mines are short on female workers."

Bai He's expression changed, but he still nodded. He knew he had no room left to choose.

The group left the Speed Clan's territory and continued toward the Defense Clan.

Along the way, Lin Fan looked at Bai He and said calmly, "I know you're unhappy, but you need to understand that joining Spirit Hall is the best choice for you. At the very least, you won't go hungry anymore."

Bai He remained silent.

Lin Fan seemed to see through his thoughts, the corners of his lips lifting slightly. "You don't need to think about betraying Spirit Hall either. Those Poison Pills are no joke. But as long as you remain loyal, Spirit Hall won't mistreat you."

Two days later.

Star Dou Empire, Longxing City.

Yue Guan leaned closer and said in a low voice, "Young Master, Longxing City's lord secretly pledged allegiance to Spirit Hall last year. Should we have him arrange a place for us to stay?"

Lin Fan waved a hand. "No rush. We'll celebrate after we deal with the Defense Clan first." His eyes narrowed. "Same rules as always—anyone who refuses to obey, kill all the men."

Bai He followed behind them, his face livid.

Over the course of the journey, he had come to understand. Spirit Hall's people could not be bothered with pretenses. If they could settle things with force, they would not waste another word.

He had been lucky, too. If war had not been about to break out soon after the Soul Master Tournament, when Spirit Hall was desperately short of scouts and intelligence couriers—

Lin Fan would not have bothered saying so much to him.

The Defense Clan's compound was far more imposing than the Speed Clan's. At the very least, its courtyard walls were intact.

The Defense Clan excelled at construction. Most of the clan's Soul Masters also worked as craftsmen, and the majority were defense-type Soul Masters, so their combat strength was not particularly formidable.

Lin Fan kicked the front gate open. The Defense Clan members inside, who had been practicing their fists, all turned to look.

"Who the hell—"

Before a burly man could finish shouting, Gui Mei had already flashed before him and slapped him flying. The burly man smashed through half a wall and passed out on the spot.

"Enemy attack!!" someone screamed.