Su Qiong reacted swiftly. He rolled across the ground and dodged the cold arrow.
He spun around sharply, his expression turning utterly grim.
On the surrounding rooftops, figures clad in black robes had appeared at some unknown time, sealing off the entire Side Room so tightly that not even water could pass through.
The doors slowly opened...
A tall, imposing old man slowly walked in, surrounded by several black-robed cultivators.
"The Su Family's youngest Body Realm cultivator, Su Qiong?"
The old man recognized Su Qiong at a glance and narrowed his eyes as he spoke coldly.
Su Qiong naturally recognized the old man as well. He was none other than the Li Family's Second Elder, Li Xuanzhong. In an instant, his heart sank into ashes.
If the Li Family had managed to find this place, then the Jiang Family must have sold him out.
Their families had been bound by marriage for generations. Su Qiong gave a self-mocking laugh.
"Su Qiong, you have nowhere left to run. If you surrender without resistance, I can leave you with some dignity."
Li Xuanzhong spoke indifferently.
Su Qiong sneered. "In your dreams!"
"Then you cannot blame me!"
A chilling killing intent rose in Li Xuanzhong's eyes.
He said no more. The aura of Great Perfection of Body Realm suddenly erupted, and Li Xuanzhong attacked Su Qiong directly.
Sensing that overwhelming aura, Su Qiong's heart jolted. This was... Great Perfection of Body Realm?
Since when had the Li Family's Second Elder broken through to the Body Cultivation Grand Perfection realm as well?
He had no time to think. In the blink of an eye, Li Xuanzhong was already before him.
He threw a punch, its fierce wind howling through the air.
Su Qiong wanted to dodge, but it was already too late.
Gritting his teeth, he could only brace himself and block it head-on.
But how could a Body Realm Great Accomplishment cultivator possibly contend against one at Great Perfection of Body Realm?
Li Xuanzhong's punch directly broke Su Qiong's arm before crashing heavily into his chest.
The tremendous force instantly blasted Su Qiong away, sending him smashing hard into a beam inside the room.
Pfft!
He spat out a mist of blood. At that moment, Su Qiong felt as though all his internal organs had been shattered.
He struggled to rise from the ground, but he could no longer summon even the slightest strength.
His life force was draining away at a frantic pace...
Vaguely, he seemed to see his elder brothers waving at him.
"I'm sorry... Second Brother... I let you down..."
Watching as Su Qiong gradually lost his breath.
Li Xuanzhong said expressionlessly, "I'll leave the remaining Su Family remnants to you."
"Yes."
Behind him, the Li Family's black-robed cultivators stormed into the Side Room.
The remaining sparks of the Su Family were mercilessly slaughtered in their sleep.
A moment later...
"Elder, the Su Family remnants have all been executed!"
A black-robed cultivator reported respectfully.
Li Xuanzhong nodded in satisfaction. Now he could return and report to the family head.
The group withdrew from the Side Room.
They ran into a group from the Jiang Family hurrying over.
At their head was the Jiang Family's old ancestor.
When the Jiang Family's old ancestor saw Li Xuanzhong, he hurried forward in large strides and said respectfully, "Jiang Zhonghe of the Jiang Family greets the Li Family Elder."
"So it is Old Jiang, the family head. This time, we must thank your Jiang Family for helping us purge the Su Family remnants."
Li Xuanzhong replied politely.
"You praise us too highly. It is my honor to be of service to the Li Family."
Looking at the humble Jiang Zhonghe, Li Xuanzhong could not help but sigh inwardly.
Both were cultivators at Great Perfection of Body Realm, yet the Jiang Family's old ancestor had to bow his head before him. That was the confidence brought by having a powerful family at one's back.
"I will report this matter to the family head. The Li Family will not forget your merits."
Jiang Zhonghe's eyes lit up, and the smile on his face deepened.
After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Li Xuanzhong finally left with his men.
After watching Li Xuanzhong and the others disappear from sight, Jiang Zhonghe let out a long breath.
At his side, Second Master Jiang could finally no longer hold back. He said:
"Father, these Li Family people certainly put on airs. Is a mere Li Family Elder really worth—"
Before he could finish, he saw the increasingly icy look in Jiang Zhonghe's eyes and wisely shut his mouth.
Only then did Jiang Zhonghe say, "The one I respect is not him, but the Li Family behind him, and that monster behind the Li Family."
After saying that, he looked at the Jiang Family head, who had remained silent at his side, and said blandly, "You should thank your second brother for this matter. If not for him, our Jiang Family would have been ruined by your hands."
Jiang Chenghe glanced at the smug Second Master Jiang and sighed. "Father, the Jiang Family and the Su Family have been friends for a hundred years. Why must we drive things to such extremes?"
"Shut up."
Jiang Zhonghe berated him furiously.
"Acting on impulse, softhearted as a woman. How did I never realize before that you were such an idiot?"
Facing his old father's merciless public rebuke, Jiang Chenghe's expression turned extremely ugly, yet he did not dare retort.
"I heard Su Yue has always been in poor health?"
Jiang Zhonghe suddenly said something Jiang Chenghe could not make heads or tails of.
"Yue'er's health has always been..."
Looking into Jiang Zhonghe's indifferent eyes, Jiang Chenghe suddenly seemed to understand something.
It was as though he had suddenly fallen into an ice cellar, and a chill ran through his entire body.
His voice trembled. "Father, she is my wife, Min'er's mother."
"So what? Our Jiang Family cannot leave behind any hidden dangers."
"Do not say I forced you. I will give you two choices. First, you personally send her on her way. Second, you relinquish your position as family head and have your name removed from the Jiang Family genealogy. I will allow you to take her and fly far away together."
Jiang Zhonghe said.
"Think carefully, Chenghe."
With that, he turned and left with his people.
Only Jiang Chenghe remained behind, standing there like a statue.
The next day.
News spread through the Jiang Family.
The Jiang Family's mistress, Su Yue, had suddenly fallen gravely ill and died beyond treatment.
Green Maple Valley, the family head's courtyard.
Li Xinge looked at Li Xuanzhong before him. His aura seemed to have grown considerably stronger.
After checking his cultivation, he asked with some surprise, "Second Elder, you broke through?"
Li Xuanzhong laughed heartily. "After that bloody battle last time, I gained some insight. Not long after returning to the family, I broke through."
Li Xinge clapped his hands and laughed, saying "Good" three times in a row.
"Our Li Family has gained another Great Perfection of Body Realm cultivator. This is truly cause for celebration."
Second Elder laughed loudly. "It is all thanks to the family head's good fortune."
"Since when did the dignified elder of the Hall of Law Enforcement learn to flatter others?"
Li Xinge said helplessly.
"Family Head, I am speaking the truth."
Li Xuanzhong said with a serious expression.
"If the family head had not turned the tide, let alone breaking through in cultivation, the weeds atop our graves would probably be three feet high by now."
"Enough, enough."
Li Xinge waved his hand, cutting Li Xuanzhong off.
Then he changed the subject. "Second Elder, did you come to see me for something?"
"Reporting to the family head, it concerns the Su Family remnants. I came specifically to report it to you."
Li Xinge stood up and asked, "Have you found news of the Su Family remnants?"
"Yes. Moreover, I personally took action and completely eradicated the Su Family remnants. Not a single one escaped."
Li Xuanzhong said with a smile.
Hearing this, a satisfied smile appeared on Li Xinge's face.
"You handled this matter well."
The smile on Li Xuanzhong's face deepened.
"Family Head, it was merely my duty. The reason we were able to catch all the Su Family remnants in one sweep so smoothly this time was thanks to the Jiang Family sending us word. Otherwise, they might truly have escaped."
"Oh?"
Li Xinge raised a brow, intrigued. "Tell me about it."
As Li Xuanzhong recounted the matter in detail.
Li Xinge shook his head with a soft laugh. "This Jiang Family certainly knows how to trim its sails to the wind, but only such a family can endure for the long term."
"Since the Jiang Family helped us this time, our Li Family cannot be stingy either. Give them all of the Su Family's businesses in Qishan Town."
"If Third Elder learns of this, he will probably come complain bitterly before the family head again."
Li Xuanzhong said with unconcealed delight at another's misfortune.
Hearing that...
Li Xinge rubbed his forehead helplessly and sighed.
This Third Elder was good in every way, except that he was too miserly and loved haggling over every last detail.
Even though the Li Family was now wealthy and powerful, he still could not change that miserly nature of his.
However, Li Xinge also knew that when it came to major matters of right and wrong, Third Elder was never vague.
For instance, last time when they had gone to the prefectural city to purchase Qi and Blood Pills, he had handed over twelve thousand taels of gold without a word.
Seeing such a youthful side of the family head was rare. Li Xuanzhong could not help but sigh inwardly.
While the children of other families still hid beneath their elders' wings, shielded from wind and rain, his own family head had already single-handedly held up the sky for more than a thousand members of the Li Family.
In the end, it was these old fellows who were incompetent.
"Oh, right, Second Elder. Tomorrow morning, I will convene a meeting of the family's upper ranks at the Council Hall. Every senior member of the family must attend. I have already informed everyone else. You are the only one left."
Li Xuanzhong nodded solemnly.
"I understand, Family Head. I will certainly arrive on time."
"All right, if there is nothing else, go back first. I will not keep you. There is still a mountain of family affairs waiting to be handled."
Li Xinge said with a headache.
During this period, the family had expanded tremendously. Many matters required him, the family head, to make the final decision.
Li Xinge was suffering and enjoying himself at the same time.
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