The Feng Family Rises

After sending disciples out to search for other Heavenly Demons, inside the Council Hall, Feng Shiren and several family elders discussed how to restrain Feng Qi and make better use of him for the Feng Family's service, without risking a backlash.

They didn't believe things had truly reached the critical point Du Ge had described.

Even if Feng Yunming said they were Heavenly Demons who couldn't be measured by ordinary thinking; even if Feng Qi and Feng Jiu had developed all sorts of strange abilities after being possessed by Soul Possession.

But their strength was right there—at that level, they couldn't even stir up a ripple in the martial world, let alone seize the Qiao Family Holy Land within half a year.

That was simply a huge joke; if word got out, people would laugh their teeth out. The martial world ran deep—how could two newly arrived Heavenly Demons grasp it?

Feng Shiren leaned more toward taking it slow, gathering as many different types of Heavenly Demons as possible, then figuring out their traits and using them to their fullest.

Unearthing the uses of Heavenly Demons within a year and helping the Feng Family climb a step higher—in his view, that was already quite impressive.

Before they could hash out a conclusion, Feng Yunming rushed in with news of Feng Qi's explosive power increase.

Learning the reason for Feng Qi's sudden surge in strength, Feng Shiren and the others were stunned on the spot.

It took a long while before Feng Shiren came back to his senses and asked suspiciously, "Yunming, is everything you said true?"

"Father, why would I lie to you?" Feng Yunming was still immersed in excitement, his voice rising an octave. "I saw it with my own eyes. In an instant, Feng Qi darted right in front of Third Brother. His speed was so fast that Third Brother was subdued before he even reacted. His movement speed is comparable to yours, Father—like a completely different person from before..."

"How is this possible?" Feng Shiren shot to his feet, wanting to go find Du Ge to verify, but quickly sat back down. "Yunming, tell me in detail what exactly happened. Don't leave out a single word..."

Feng Yunming recounted everything that had just happened.

After listening, Feng Shiren frowned deeply, his fingers tapping unconsciously on the table. "How is this possible? I sent people out behind his back—how did it get tied to his strength? This power increase makes no sense. Yunjie couldn't last a single round against him? Could he really be bound to the Feng Family? That doesn't add up!"

"Patriarch," one elder said, "Even demonic cultivators in the martial world who practice evil arts can't increase their strength this fast. Heavenly Demons are sinister—there's much we don't understand. We must be cautious, or the Feng Family might end up working for someone else's benefit..."

"Right, right—'a loss for one is a loss for all, a gain for one is a gain for all'—that all came from Feng Qi's mouth. What if it's not true? The Feng Family spent decades building up our current assets. We can't afford to be reckless, Patriarch. We must handle the Heavenly Demons with extreme care..." another elder said.

Feng Shiren picked up his teacup and set it down again, his face shifting between uncertainty and resolve. He had already made up his mind, but Du Ge's sudden power surge threw him back into hesitation.

Feng Yunming frowned. "Elders, there's no need for that. Feng Qi said that if we don't believe him, we can recall the people sent to search for Heavenly Demons, seal off the information, or even kill Feng Jiu, and wait for other Heavenly Demons in the world to grow strong to see if he becomes weaker..."

"Smooth talk," the elder who spoke first snorted, raising his voice. "He's betting we won't let other Heavenly Demons grow unchecked..."

Feng Shiyi, who hadn't spoken until now, coughed and looked at Feng Shiren. "Big Brother, I've thought of a possibility that might explain the current situation."

"What?" several voices asked at once.

"Speak," Feng Shiren said.

Ever since Feng Qi and the other appeared, the Feng Family's worldview had been under constant assault.

They desperately needed a reasonable explanation to convince themselves, to accept everything happening now without resistance.

Or a loophole, so they could kill Feng Qi with a clear conscience and return to normal life, instead of being stuck in this awkward limbo...

"Heaven's Mandate," Feng Shiyi said. After uttering those two words, he paused, looked around at everyone, and laid out the conclusion he'd been pondering. "I believe Heavenly Demons are connected to Heaven's Mandate. Fortune-tellers in the martial world often say there's a divine will in the unseen, but they also say fate isn't set in stone—different decisions lead to different outcomes.

So-called Heavenly Demons should be closely tied to Heaven's will and fate. Their strength doesn't lie in themselves, but in Heaven's feedback. Before, Feng Qi only made suggestions, so his power didn't increase much. But later, when the Patriarch actually sent people out to search for Heavenly Demons and put the plan into action, Heaven's Mandate detected the change in the Feng Family's future fate and fed the result back to Feng Qi. That explains why his power surged along with our decisions.

This isn't a coincidence, nor is it Feng Qi's deliberate setup. After all, we've all examined Feng Qi's condition. Besides, the martial world is vast—the Feng Family isn't worth someone setting up such an elaborate trap to frame..."

"Second Uncle's theory fits with Feng Qi's 'a loss for one is a loss for all, a gain for one is a gain for all,'" Feng Yunming praised.

"So, we can infer the family's future prosperity based on Feng Qi's power changes?" Feng Shiren asked in astonishment.

"If my theory about Heavenly Demons is correct, then yes, we can deduce the future from that," Feng Shiyi nodded, his eyes burning bright. The more he thought about it, the more convinced he became, because he couldn't find a single flaw in his reasoning—the logic all lined up.

"Then, does Feng Qi's explosive power increase mean the Feng Family is destined to rise?" Feng Shiren's tone was hesitant.

"The Feng Family will rise," Feng Shiyi and Feng Yunming said in unison, exchanging a glance. Throughout history, who didn't want their family to prosper? Besides, the various strange phenomena happening in the Feng Family already seemed like auspicious omens. In their eyes, Feng Shiren's hesitation was the abnormal thing.

"We still need to think this through carefully," Feng Shiren said, cautious as ever. He picked up his teacup, took a sip to steady himself. "Heavenly Demon, Heavenly Demon—the name still has 'demon' in it. Whether it's a blessing or a curse remains unknown. Come, Yunming, take me to see Feng Qi. Let's see how much his strength has actually improved, and also verify whether he really will take a hit for the Feng Family..."

"Father, how do we verify him taking a hit?" Feng Yunming asked in surprise.

"Just create an opportunity," Feng Shiren said, glancing back at him. "This is the Feng Family, after all. Setting up a trap in the Training Ground isn't hard. Yunming, here's what you'll do..."

I once thought that getting ranked number one would let me run rampant in this world, but I didn't expect I couldn't even beat the village chief of a starter town...

On the Training Ground.

Du Ge appeared calm and composed on the surface, but inside, a thousand curses were flashing through his mind.

Learning of his massive power increase, Feng Shiren brought a crowd of Feng Family members to test the Heavenly Demon's mettle.

Coincidentally, Du Ge also wanted to know where his strength stood in this world.

So, both sides agreed at once, cleared the Training Ground of unrelated personnel, and held a big sparring match.

The results of the contest dropped the jaws of the entire Feng Family, but left Du Ge somewhat disappointed.

Relying on speed and strength, Du Ge could overpower Feng Yunming, the eldest son who had trained in martial arts for over twenty years, while Third Young Master Feng Yunjie couldn't last three moves against him.

But when facing Feng Shiyi and others with deeper Internal Energy, Du Ge fell into a disadvantage.

Because Internal Energy also boosted speed and strength, not to mention that Feng Shiyi and the others had decades of combat experience and technique—things that couldn't be compensated for by physical ability alone...

Of course, all of this assumed the opponent wasn't using light-body techniques.

Once they started leaping high and moving fast, Du Ge couldn't do anything to them. No matter how strong his physical body was, he couldn't change the laws of physics—but Internal Energy could.

Damn Internal Energy!

However, when Feng Yunming used Lightness Skill against Du Ge, it was mostly for dodging.

Du Ge had sharp senses and was fast himself; even if they flew up, hitting him wasn't easy.

Maybe there were martial arts in this world that could release Genuine Qi externally, but a small family like the Feng Family clearly didn't have them.

When neither side could land a hit, it came down to endurance, and Du Ge had the advantage. In a low-martial world, no one could stay flying in the sky forever—besides, Lightness Skill consumed a lot of Internal Energy.

In theory, against an opponent who moved like a monkey, as long as Du Ge was willing to drag things out, he would still win...

But that clearly wasn't the result Du Ge wanted.

In a fight, while others flew in the sky, he could only chase on the ground—not elegant enough.

He didn't want to be just a land tank; if he was going to be anything, it would be an all-terrain fighter—land, sea, and air...