Cleaning House
Su Zhan seemed oblivious to their expressions and continued, extending a second finger. "Second, tell me, how did the Black Demon Sect members sneak in? The Yuan Household's Secret Realm is always heavily guarded; I don't believe they could have slipped in silently. Your main branch had better give me a reasonable explanation."
His gaze sharpened, like two daggers piercing the White-haired Elder's heart.
"Otherwise..." Su Zhan paused, a cold smile curving his lips, "I wouldn't mind helping your Yuan Household clean house."
These words caused an uproar in the audience.
Clean house? He's an outsider, what right does he have?
But looking into Su Zhan's deep, unwavering eyes, no one dared to voice their doubts. Because they had no doubt that Su Zhan could do it, and was capable of it.
The White-haired Elder's face turned from green to purple, then from purple to white, and finally turned ashen. He knew that they had failed today, completely and utterly defeated. In the face of absolute power, all dignity and rules were worthless.
He took a deep breath, as if using all his strength, and slowly nodded, saying in a hoarse voice, "Okay... I promise you. But I have one condition."
"Oh?" Su Zhan raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.
The White-haired Elder raised his head, his eyes filled with a struggle and determination. "The Black Demon Sect harbors treacherous intentions and has become a major threat to our Yuan Household family. I hope... we can temporarily join forces with Young Master Su completely eradicate the Black Demon Sect's influence from the Secret Realm! After this is accomplished, our main branch is willing to offer a generous gift and guarantee that we will never cause you or anyone around you any further trouble!"
These words are tantamount to publicly admitting defeat and begging for peace.
Everyone in the Yuan Family Main Branch was stunned. They couldn't believe that the usually arrogant Supreme Elder would actually ask an outsider, an enemy with whom they had just been at war, to join forces.
Yuan Yuan and Yuan Chou exchanged bewildered glances, unable to figure out what the old man was up to.
Su Zhan narrowed his eyes, looking at the White-haired Elder. He could sense that the elder's words were not merely a delaying tactic, but rather a genuine expression of feeling threatened. For this stubborn old man to lower himself like this, it seemed the Black Demon Sect's scheme this time was far more ambitious than imagined.
In his mind, the Chat Group was buzzing with activity again.
[Blazing Dragon Venerate]: Join forces? With these old bastards? Boss, don't trust him! Once he's used us, he'll be the first to turn on us! Let's just roast them all now and be done with it!
[Immovable Wisdom King Wall]: Inappropriate. The situation of the Black Demon Sect is unclear. Keeping them alive can at least serve as cannon fodder and provide information. Killing them would mean facing all the unknown dangers alone.
[Nine Heavens Divine Lightning]: The cannon fodder's suggestion is good. I've just used up a lot of energy and need to replenish it. These main lineage people seem to have a lot of resources; squeezing them dry should give me a lot of energy back.
Su Zhan ignored the cacophony of voices in his head, looked at the White-haired Elder, and suddenly smiled.
"Join forces?" he repeated with amusement. "Sure. But not in a joint effort."
The White-haired Elder was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
Su Zhan's smile vanished, replaced by an undeniable air of authority. "From this moment on, all of you, including you as Elder, must obey my commands. If I tell you to go east, you cannot go west. If I tell you to beat a dog, you cannot chase a chicken."
"What I say is the rule."
"If you can accept it, we'll cooperate. If you can't," Su Zhan pointed to a road outside the Palace, "Get out now."