The End of the Jialie Clan

The clamor of the auction had finally faded away.

But the waves it stirred began to reshape the landscape of Wutan City in a far more ruthless manner.

The Aoba Clan's medicinal pill market was bustling with activity.

The rich fragrance of herbs, mingled with the roar of the crowd, was enough to nearly blow the roof off the entire street.

"Steward Wang! Give me ten bottles of Qi Recovery Powder! The usual, I want the highest quality you've got!"

A burly mercenary commander slammed a heavy coin purse onto the counter, his voice booming.

The man addressed as Steward Wang was a veteran shopkeeper for the Aoba Clan. He was currently beaming, his back straight as a rod, as he nimbly collected the money and shouted back.

"You got it! Don't you worry, Commander Chen! The quality of our Aoba Clan's pills is absolutely the best in the city!"

"That goes without saying! Ever since you switched to that new flame, the efficacy of the pills you refine is at least twenty percent stronger than before! Only a fool would buy from anyone else!"

The surrounding customers chimed in, their words filled with praise for the Aoba Clan's pills.

This explosive scene had been going on for a full half-month.

Ever since they connected with the mysterious Mr. Su and secured a stable, exclusive supply of the "high-quality Rock Fire Seed," the Aoba Clan's alchemy workshop had been given wings.

Their pill success rate had skyrocketed.

The quality of their pills crushed all their competitors in the city.

The market share that once belonged to the Jialie Clan was being devoured by them with a force that could topple mountains.

In stark contrast to the liveliness of the Aoba Clan was the deserted state of the Jialie Clan's market.

On the same street, barely a hundred meters away.

It was as quiet as a graveyard.

The gilded plaque that once hung high was now covered in a layer of desolate dust. Inside the shop, a few clerks lay listlessly on the counter with hollow eyes. Occasionally, one or two old customers would stop by, only to sigh and leave in a hurry after buying the cheapest medicinal salves.

Jialie Bi stood before a window on the second floor of the market, his face livid as he watched the booming scene across the street at the Aoba Clan.

His fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles had turned white from the strain.

A mere half-month.

Just half a month!

His Jialie Clan, a behemoth that had stood tall in Wutan City for decades, had actually been pushed to such a state!

"Trash! A bunch of trash!"

Jialie Bi turned abruptly and kicked over a precious purple wood table beside him.

The tea set and porcelain shattered across the floor with a piercing sound.

Inside the meeting hall, over a dozen core clansmen and stewards of the Jialie Clan stood trembling, their heads bowed so low they didn't even dare to breathe.

"That old fox from the Aoba Clan is riding on our necks and shitting!"

"And you lot! Every one of you eats the rice of my Jialie Clan, yet now you can't even let out a single fart!"

Jialie Bi's roar echoed through the empty hall like a wounded beast.

His chest heaved violently, and his eyes were bloodshot.

Ever since suffering a heavy blow at the auction, it wasn't as if he hadn't tried to find a solution.

He had attempted to spend a fortune to purchase higher-grade beast fires through other channels, but those goods circulating on the market were like the difference between a Fire Fly and the bright moon compared to the mysterious flame used by the Aoba Clan; they couldn't bridge the massive gap in pill quality at all.

He had even tried to poach the Aoba Clan's alchemists by offering triple their current wages.

But those alchemists were as stubborn as mules, refusing to even grant him an audience.

No one was a fool.

Following the Aoba Clan not only meant higher pay but also access to that magical flame, which provided immense benefits to their own alchemy skills.

Who would be willing to jump ship to the Jialie Clan, a sinking wreck?

"Pa... Patriarch..."

An elderly man with white hair and beard stood up tremblingly. He was the chief accountant of the clan and had worked for the Jialie Clan his entire life.

"Our... our capital chain is about to break..."

The old man's voice was dry and desperate.

"The extravagance at last month's auction drained most of our liquid assets. Now that business is sluggish, our daily losses are mounting, and several mines outside the city are on the verge of shutting down because we can't pay the guards' wages..."

"If this continues, in less than ten days, we... we won't even be able to pay the clerks' wages!"

These words struck the heart of everyone in the hall like a heavy hammer.

Jialie Bi's body swayed violently.

The ferocity and anger on his face faded like a receding tide, replaced by a coldness and fear that seeped into his very marrow.

The capital chain had broken!

He knew better than anyone what this meant for a massive clan.

It meant the beginning of the end.

"Father!"

Just then, Jialie Ao rushed in from outside, his face wearing a sickly pallor mixed with panic.

"It's... it's bad!"

"People from the Miteer Auction House are here! They say... they say we're a month behind on rent for three of our shops, and they demand... they demand we pay it all off today, or else... or else they'll forcibly seize the properties!"

Boom!

This final sentence was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Jialie Bi's mind went completely blank.

The Miteer Auction House!

He remembered now.

Before the auction, relying on his wealth and influence, he had indeed suppressed some of Miteer's businesses and even maliciously withheld rent on several shops to pressure that woman, Ya Fei.

Back then, how high-spirited he had been.

But now, the retribution had arrived.

It had come so quickly, and so ruthlessly!

The Miteer Auction House, the true titan of Wutan City, had merely flicked a finger, and it had already seized the Jialie Clan by the throat.

"Father... what do we do?"

There was a sobbing tone in Jialie Ao's voice.

He was utterly terrified.

Jialie Bi did not answer him.

This man, once a formidable figure who had dominated Wutan City, seemed to have aged twenty years in an instant.

He slowly, dejectedly, sank into the clan leader's throne behind him.

The chair that symbolized power now felt bone-chillingly cold.

He had lost.

He had lost completely and utterly.

He didn't even know who his enemy was or what they looked like.

He only knew that it was an invisible hand.

A hand that, through business tactics, through that miraculous flame, and through cooperation with Miteer and the Aoba Clan, had pushed his entire Jialie Clan into an abyss of no return while merely laughing and chatting.

Three days later.

On the busiest central street of Wutan City.

A large-scale, comprehensive market that had originally belonged to the Jialie Clan had a new plaque hung up today.

The plaque was brand new.

Two characters were carved upon it in bold, sweeping strokes.

Aoba.

The sound of firecrackers and gongs rang out to the heavens.

Aoba Pa, dressed in a brand-new brocade robe, stood at the entrance of the shop, high-spiritedly greeting the guests who had come to offer their congratulations.

In the crowd, no one mentioned the Jialie Clan anymore.

That former member of Wutan City's three great clans had already become a thing of the past.

Just outside this lively scene, at the entrance of a quiet alley.

A desolate figure stood silently.

It was Jialie Bi.

He wore old, faded clothes, and his hair had turned mostly gray at some point.

His clouded eyes stared fixedly at that glaring "Aoba" plaque, watching as everything that had once belonged to him now served as someone else's glory.

His body trembled slightly.

A surge of blood rushed violently to his throat.

"Pfft—"

A mouthful of blood sprayed onto the cold wall, a shocking sight.

He could no longer support himself, and he slowly slid down the wall to the ground.

The lion of the past was now nothing more than a stray dog with a broken spine.

No longer able to pose a threat to anyone.

In the south of the city, at that dilapidated little courtyard.

Su Chen sat quietly by the window.

On the table, a cup of clear tea sent wisps of steam curling into the air.

The courtyard gate was gently pushed open by a slender, delicate hand.

Ya Fei walked in, accompanied by an intoxicating breeze of fragrance.

She looked at that thin, hunched back sitting by the window, appearing as if he were isolated from the rest of the world, and a captivating curve touched her red lips.

"The Jialie Clan has fallen."

Her voice was soft and calm, as if she were speaking of a trivial matter.

"Their largest marketplace has been reclaimed by us and sublet to the Aoba Clan. Their remaining assets are being frantically liquidated, all in a desperate bid to cling to life."

"From this day forth, there is no such power as the Jialie Clan in Wutan City."

Su Chen did not turn around.

He merely picked up the teacup on the table and took a light sip.

The warm tea slid down his throat.

From beginning to end, he had not lifted a single finger against the Jialie Clan.

He had not even seen Jialie Bi or his son again.

Yet, this enemy that had once sought to put him to death had been silently and completely submerged by the commercial tide he had stirred up.

This was the power he desired.

A power that could control everything without drawing a drop of blood.

"Mm."

From beneath the shadow of his bamboo hat came a flat response.

"Understood."