Direct Action, Exterminate Their Entire Clan!

"Hmm?"

"A soul fluctuation?"

The sudden soul fluctuation caught Xiao Ze by surprise, and his gaze involuntarily fell upon Xiao Yan.

Is that Elder Yao?

He pondered for a moment, remaining silent, his expression calm.

Just as Xiao Yan was about to grit his teeth and agree, the voice suddenly dropped.

"Nonsense, when did this old man say I would take Xiao Yan as a disciple?"

"This old man only said I was willing to take him as a nominal disciple!"

Xiao Zhan, standing to the side, smiled apologetically. "It's all the same, all the same."

"Either way, he will be by your side, Ancestor..."

Xiao Ze: "..."

Hearing that he was only being taken as a nominal disciple, Xiao Yan felt a sense of relief in his heart.

Compared to becoming an official disciple, being a nominal disciple was undoubtedly acceptable to him.

To him, although Elder Yao was only a soul entity, he was still a teacher on his path of cultivation; if he were asked to switch allegiances, he would still be somewhat unwilling.

"It is this junior's honor that the Ancestor is willing to provide guidance!"

"This junior thanks the Ancestor for his great kindness!"

Xiao Yan turned around and spoke respectfully to Xiao Ze.

Xiao Ze, with his hands behind his back, accepted the thanks with pleasure.

"Alright, Yan'er, your injuries have just healed, so you shouldn't engage in strenuous activity. You should hurry back to bed and get some more rest."

"I have other matters to attend to, so I won't disturb you any further."

Watching his son, who had returned to his lively self, Xiao Zhan felt the weight in his heart gradually lift. After giving a few final instructions, he led his men out of the room.

As soon as he stepped out of the room, a ball of rage rose in his heart.

"Jialie Clan, since you have no mercy, do not blame this old man for being unjust!"

"You were the ones who started this fight!"

He flicked his large sleeve, immediately intending to convene a clan-wide meeting to discuss how to retaliate against the Jialie Clan.

In the council hall, all the high-ranking members of the Xiao Clan gathered together to listen to the Clan Head, Xiao Zhan.

"That old thief of the Jialie Clan has gone too far. Not only have they been encroaching on our Xiao Clan's market business for some time, but today they even allowed their son to openly injure my child!"

"To act in such a manner is to show absolutely no regard for our Xiao Clan!"

"Elders, I have convened this meeting to discuss how we should deal with the Jialie Clan..."

"Do you have any suggestions?"

Xiao Zhan's booming voice echoed through the hall, and the expressions of all the Xiao Clan members present turned grave after hearing him.

Judging by the Clan Head's tone, it seemed he intended to wage a full-scale war against the Jialie Clan?

One elder stood up and asked, "Clan Head, may I ask how our Xiao Clan intends to retaliate against the Jialie Clan?"

"Are we using force? Or are we using commercial means?"

Xiao Zhan sat in his chair with a bold and decisive posture, saying in a deep voice, "Both force and commercial means!"

"The Jialie Clan has bullied us too much. If we do not strike back now, it will only make them more unscrupulous!"

Another high-ranking Xiao Clan member asked with concern, "Does the Clan Head mean that you are prepared to wage a war against the Jialie Clan?"

"This... would that not be somewhat inappropriate?"

Xiao Zhan glanced at him and let out a cold snort. "Inappropriate? What is inappropriate about it?"

"That old thief of the Jialie Clan is already riding on the heads of our Xiao Clan, lording over us!"

"And you are still here talking about what is inappropriate?"

"What? Is our Xiao Clan not allowed to fight back?"

A sharp gaze suddenly fell upon this high-ranking member, and the powerful aura pressed down on him so hard he could barely breathe, causing cold sweat to break out instantly.

The next second, Xiao Zhan's chilling voice rang in his ear: "Sixth Elder, as far as I know, you seem to have been getting a bit close to one of the elders of the Jialie Clan!"

"Furthermore, a cousin of your wife's family seems to have married the grandson of that very elder..."

"Does the Sixth Elder not find this action somewhat inappropriate for our Xiao Clan?"

As these words fell, the Sixth Elder's face turned deathly pale, and cold sweat instantly drenched his entire body. He cried out, "Clan Head, please see clearly! I have never once betrayed the interests of the Xiao Clan!"

"It is true that I have grown close to an elder of the Jialie Clan, but that was entirely for the sake of our Xiao Clan's business!"

"I, Xiao Qi, swear that I have absolutely never betrayed the Xiao Clan!"

He hurriedly raised his hand to swear, his panicked voice echoing throughout the entire hall.

"Hmph! You had best hope so. If it is discovered that you have betrayed the Xiao Clan, I, as Clan Head, will surely sever your dog head to uphold the clan's discipline!" Xiao Zhan's voice suddenly rose in intensity.

The pressure of a five-star Great Dou Master instantly permeated the hall.

The formidable Dou Qi pressed down on the shoulders of everyone present, causing their hearts to tremble in unison.

Everyone understood.

Xiao Zhan seemed to have made up his mind to go to war with the Jialie Clan.

Just as the atmosphere in the hall reached a stalemate, the Great Elder, who had remained silent until now, spoke up leisurely: "This old man agrees with the Clan Head's proposal!"

This statement immediately caused many of the high-ranking members present to reveal expressions of surprise.

Even Xiao Zhan, the Clan Head, looked at him with some astonishment.

One must know that the Great Elder's status in the Xiao Clan was second only to Xiao Zhan.

This was not only because he was the most senior in age, but also because he was one of only two Great Dou Masters in the Xiao Clan!

Although his strength as a two-star Great Dou Master could not compare to Xiao Zhan's five-star level, he was still an absolute powerhouse within the territory of Wutan City.

Therefore, to a certain extent, he represented the entire Xiao Clan.

Like most families, the Xiao Clan was divided into many factions, the two largest undoubtedly being those of Xiao Zhan and the Great Elder.

In many instances, the two sides were like oil and water.

Yet, for the Great Elder to agree with Xiao Zhan's proposal today could not help but surprise everyone.

Just as everyone was feeling puzzled, the Great Elder stated the reason for his support.

"The Jialie Clan has indeed gone too far during this period."

"Especially regarding the business in the Xiao Clan's market, which has shrunk by a full thirty percent compared to before!"

"According to my investigation, the lost business is mostly concentrated in the pharmacies."

"Based on the information gathered, the Jialie Clan seems to have reached a cooperation with a first-grade alchemist, and now the Jia Lie Pharmacy has already squeezed out much of our market share..."

"They are even gradually gaining the reputation of being the largest pharmacy in Wutan City."

"If we do not respond, I fear there will be no place left for our Xiao Clan in Wutan City in the future."

Profit!

That's right, the fundamental reason the Great Elder supported Xiao Zhan in taking action against the Jialie Clan was still profit!

During this time, with the help of that first-grade alchemist behind them, the Jialie Clan had encroached upon a significant portion of the business from the Xiao Clan's market pharmacies.

If this continued, the tripartite balance of power in Wutan City would be broken.

Would the Xiao Clan not have to live under the mercy of the other party in the future?

This was something the Great Elder could not accept under any circumstances.

Therefore, taking action against the Jialie Clan had become an urgent necessity!

With the top two figures of the Xiao Clan speaking in unison, it formally represented the unification of opinion throughout the entire clan.

Since they had decided to confront the Jialie Clan, the next step for the Xiao Clan was to discuss a foolproof strategy.

In an instant, the entire council hall became a buzz of noise.

The high-ranking members began to voice their own opinions one after another.

Some proposed launching a sneak attack on the Jialie Clan's transport caravans to cut off their resource supplies.

Others suggested assassinating the younger generation of the Jialie Clan to sever their future hopes.

Still others recommended directly gathering the experts within the clan to storm their gates and force the Jialie Clan to concede.

And so on—

In short, the suggestions were as varied as they were numerous.

The clamor gave Xiao Ze, who had been sitting silently to the side, a massive headache.

Seeing that no consensus could be reached, he finally couldn't sit still any longer and let out a thunderous roar: "What are you all bickering about?"

"A mere Jialie Clan is enough to keep you all arguing endlessly?"

"In this old man's opinion, we should just strike and wipe out their entire clan!"

"Wutan City is too small; it cannot hold all three great clans!"

"..."