Shattered

In the third-floor private room, Chen Xiao spoke with polite words but sat stiffly, showing no intention of going out to meet Nangong Wenyang. This was nothing short of naked contempt, or perhaps the petty bickering of spoiled, arrogant young masters.

Had it been Nangong Wenyang in his position, he likely would have done the exact same thing.

Furthermore, Chen Xiao had already gathered from Nangong Wenyang's words that Shadow and the others must have already moved to execute several experts of the Nangong Family.

Originally, Chen Xiao's initial purpose in having the three of them wipe out some of the Nangong Family's elders and deacons was merely to reconcile the conflicts between his three subordinates, forcing them to face a common enemy rather than continue their internal strife.

However, after wandering around the city, he discovered that many outside cultivators had arrived, including some from major factions. Having spent fifty years clawing his way through the Immortal World in his previous life, Chen Xiao naturally possessed a keen eye for reading people.

Therefore, upon meeting Bei Yu Xian, Chen Xiao conceived this plan: first, to have a good gathering with his three friends, and second, to lure the snake out of its hole and force the Nangong Family to expose themselves.

Although Chen Xiao did not know who this Nangong Xiangyan was, he knew the man was certainly deeply connected to the Nangong Family. The family itself was a spike driven into Moon-Gazing City by that faction. By taking this opportunity to draw the eyes of everyone in the city toward the Nangong Family and pushing them into the limelight, Chen Xiao would achieve his ultimate goal.

If the matter had nothing to do with the Nangong Family, Chen Xiao's actions would merely cause them a period of chaos. But the crux of the matter was that the Nangong Family's primary objective here was to scheme for the treasure within Mingyu Mountain. The Chen Clan might not have noticed the various clues, but how could members of these major outside factions fail to perceive them?

Ordinarily, if something extraordinary appeared in Moon-Gazing City, the Chen Clan would be the first to bear the brunt of the fallout. But after Chen Xiao's commotion, everyone would likely focus their attention on the Nangong Family, invisibly shielding the Chen Clan from a great deal of trouble.

"Young Master, it's terrible!"

The servant from the Nangong Family looked as pale as a sheet, his expression frantic, as if he had encountered a ghost in broad daylight.

Nangong Wenyang was currently in a fit of rage. Seeing the servant rushing desperately toward him, he felt an inexplicable wave of disgust and, without a word, raised his foot and kicked the man away.

"What's so terrible? Can't you see this young master is busy? Get lost!"

Nangong Wenyang was seizing the opportunity to properly teach Chen Xiao a lesson; he had no intention of listening to this servant.

Moreover, he was used to servants finding him in such a panic and shouting about disasters. Aside from his own trusted aides, Nangong Wenyang never cared for such people.

He didn't recall ever seeing this man in the family estate; perhaps he was just someone Chen Xiao had sent to confuse him... Nangong Wenyang smugly believed he had seen through Chen Xiao's ruse and felt quite pleased with himself.

Inside the Heavenly Abode, the local cultivators of Moon-Gazing City had mostly slipped away quietly, leaving only the outside cultivators sitting there to watch the show.

Tsk tsk, this was the true demeanor of a spoiled brat. Look at his posture, his movements, the way he spoke—it made one want to give his face a good beating. By comparison, the so-called "number one" spoiled brat of Moon-Gazing City, Chen Xiao, seemed a bit unworthy of the title.

However, many people wore expressions of schadenfreude. Couldn't he see that his own servant was on the verge of tears? This clearly meant something catastrophic had happened at home, yet instead of rushing back, he was here bickering. Truly, it was the behavior of a spoiled fool.

"Chen Xiao, get your ass down here! This young master is going to avenge the family deacons!"

Though Nangong Wenyang said this, he was already leading his men to charge toward the third floor.

At that moment, in the private room where Chen Xiao sat, a table was laden with delicacies—so many that the large table could barely hold them. Chen Xiao was busy sweeping the dishes into his Storage Ring while shouting, "Get lost, you son of a bitch! Do you think this young master is easy to bully? If your family has dead people, go home and hold the funeral. Why come here and annoy me?"

Chen Xiao's insults were fierce, his spoiled persona on full display, and Bei Yu Xian and the others, taking their cue from him, began to curse loudly as well, sounding no different from street thugs.

As for the three trusted aides of Bei Yu Xian and the others, they couldn't help but roll their eyes as they watched Chen Xiao stuff the untouched dishes into his Storage Ring.

They had never seen anyone so greedy for petty gains.

However, Chen Xiao's Storage Ring was merely a front; it was actually connected to the Golden Immortal Kingdom, and the food was being sent directly inside.

After all, there were five little ones in the Golden Immortal Kingdom. Although they were innate spiritual bodies and didn't need to eat, Chen Xiao didn't mind letting them taste the delicacies of the Immortal World.

He had done this several times before. He and Mengmeng didn't have much of an appetite, so a large portion of the dishes was always sent to the Golden Immortal Kingdom for the five little ones.

At this moment, Xianxian, Guigui, and the others beamed with joy as they saw Chen Xiao sending more food into the Golden Immortal Kingdom. After communicating with them through his divine sense, Chen Xiao withdrew.

There was still a Nangong Wenyang outside waiting to be dealt with.

By now, Nangong Wenyang had already brought his fifty-some guards to the second floor, where they stood in a standoff with the thirty-some attendants accompanying Bei Yu Xian and the others.

Although the Heavenly Abode was protected by arrays, if over eighty cultivators were to start a fight here, they would undoubtedly tear the restaurant to the ground.

Some of the outside cultivators in the Heavenly Abode couldn't help but curl their lips upon hearing Chen Xiao's words. A moment ago he sounded decent, but now his true colors were showing.

"What happened in the family?"

The head manager of the Heavenly Abode pulled the messenger servant into a dark corner and asked via voice transmission.

The head manager was, in fact, a deacon of the Nangong Family with a certain status; otherwise, Nangong Shenhe would never have put him in charge of this place.

"They're dead, they're all dead..." the servant from the Nangong Mansion trembled as he transmitted back: "The Primordial Spirit Jade Slips—sixteen of the eighteen Primordial Spirit Jade Slips belonging to the elders above the Body Integration Realm have shattered!"

The servant was on the verge of tears.

The Primordial Spirit Jade Slips were linked to a cultivator's soul. If a slip shattered, it could only mean one thing... those cultivators had perished.

Hearing this, the manager's face turned deathly pale. The Body Integration Realm was already considered a force to be reckoned with in the cultivation world; after all, those in the Tribulation Transcendence and Mahayana Realms were already preparing for immortality and rarely appeared.

The Body Integration Realm was the backbone of a cultivation family. Including Nangong Shenhe, the Nangong Family had thirteen such experts on the surface, with the others hidden in the shadows.

But now, sixteen out of eighteen Integrated Body elders had died in one fell swoop. If the Nangong Family were just an ordinary family, such a blow would be enough to erase them from Moon-Gazing City.

These eighteen Integrated Body cultivators were all part of Nangong Shenhe's personal faction, cultivated bit by bit in the shadows without any help from the Nangong Family's main headquarters.

If Nangong Shenhe were to learn of this news, he would surely vomit three liters of blood. This was his life's work, cultivated for the sake of the family's grand ambition!

"There's more..." the servant said timidly.

"What else?" The head manager felt his heart begin to tremble.

"Young Master Yue... his jade slip... has also shattered!"