A Serious Miscalculation

"Something wrong?" City Lord Zhao Wuya's expression turned cold.

He feared Old Ancestor Tianyan, but not Lu Chen.

"It seems the City Lord has forgotten something!"

Zhao Wuya's eyes narrowed.

"It appears the City Lord truly doesn't want to get involved. I'll have to handle it myself then. But remember, if things get out of hand, don't blame me for not warning you!"

Zhao Wuya said stiffly, "I will give you an explanation!"

"No, I want to follow along and witness firsthand how you handle this matter!"

"Young man, know your limits. Some matters..."

"I've already died once, why would I care about that?"

Zhao Wuya fell silent, looking at Lu Chen, but his eyes seemed to be telling him to be sensible.

"Senior, I promise to join Tianyan Academy, but on one condition: dig three feet into the ground and unearth all the forces and accomplices colluding with Black Collar Prison Heaven Cave. Not a single one will be spared; their entire clans will be exterminated!"

Zhao Wuya's face changed drastically, and the elder from Tianyu Academy felt a chill run down his spine.

If that happened, Chixiao City would definitely be thrown into turmoil, and it might even affect Yanjing.

"Good, very good. I like your kind of spirit. Go ahead, stir up as much trouble as you can, haha..."

Old Ancestor Tianyan burst into laughter. "And I'll protect your safety!"

Zhao Wuya and the other two were completely unsettled.

"Old Ancestor, how can we trouble you? I'll handle it. I will definitely give you and Young Friend Lu a satisfactory explanation!"

Zhao Wuya quickly made a promise, truly not daring to confront them directly anymore.

Lu Chen knew this situation was complicated and certainly didn't want to dive in headfirst.

Seeing Zhao Wuya relent, he gave them a three-day deadline.

The next day, the Wan Family, the foremost family in Chixiao City, was completely wiped out.

A large number of private letters with Black Collar Prison Heaven Cave were found in the Wan Family's mansion.

After a brief interrogation, the high-ranking members of the Wan Family were taken to the South City execution ground and beheaded.

This greatly deterred other families and forces.

The King Yanbei's influence in Chixiao City suffered a severe blow.

Furthermore, it attracted the attention of the Great Yan imperial family, forcing them to halt their actions against Chixiao City.

Lu Chen, as the victim, even received some compensation: one hundred low-grade spirit stones.

This was a generous compensation for a Qi Surge Realm cultivator.

However, for Lu Chen, who had already plundered two treasuries, it was nothing remarkable and felt rather ordinary.

"Actually, you were a bit too radical!"

Afterward, Old Ancestor Tianyan offered belated advice.

"That was radical?" Lu Chen snorted coldly. "I'm sure if you dig deeper, the City Lord won't be able to escape involvement!"

"Sigh!" Old Ancestor Tianyan sighed. "You've essentially put yourself in opposition to Tianyu Academy!"

Lu Chen's scalp tingled, and he stammered, "N-no way?"

"The City Lord is a disciple of Tianyu Academy. Nowadays, Tianyu Academy's influence surpasses that of the imperial family, with disciples spread throughout the land, colluding with each other. Selling a slave is commonplace for them. What do you think they'll do?"

"Will they help you continue to eliminate the rot, or will they deal with you?"

Lu Chen's back tensed, his throat tightened, and he exclaimed, "Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"I couldn't dampen your fighting spirit!"

"But you pushed me into a pit!"

"The word 'pushed' isn't quite right. It's 'jumped.' You jumped in yourself!"

"Then... will you still accept me?"

"Yes, why wouldn't I? My Tianyan Academy doesn't fear Tianyu Academy, nor will we bow to evil forces."

"Don't worry, with me backing you, you can do whatever you want! Hehe..."

Lu Chen looked at Old Ancestor Tianyan suspiciously, feeling that the old man seemed a bit gleeful.

After the matter was settled, the two set off, heading straight for Yanjing, the capital of Great Yan.

As for the Lu Family, although most of their high-ranking members were dead, with Lu Ran as their strong signboard, other families wouldn't dare to do anything to them.

Many families even offered assistance, both in manpower and funds, seeing their weakened state. They would soon recover their strength.

However, Lu Ran's relatives and the elders gathered around him had all been stripped clean. This feud had become irreconcilable.

One was the revenge for the stripping of his bloodline, and the other was an irreconcilable hatred. What kind of sparks would fly?

Many people in Chixiao City were watching.

In the study of a mansion in the western part of Yanjing City, a refined young master put down the scroll in his hand as he listened to his subordinate's report, and chuckled, "You've all been so bored your brains are going numb, and finally there's something to do, hehe..."

The subordinate shivered uncontrollably.

Needless to say, this Lu Chen was going to be unlucky, and very unlucky at that.

The young master before him appeared harmless, but in reality, he could turn people to ashes with a mere word.

He could strategize and win battles from a thousand miles away.

If he became interested, there would be no end to it.

And before his astonished gaze, Young Master Qiu wiped his hand across the table, unrolling a scroll filled with information about Lu Chen.

Along the way, the two walked at an unhurried pace.

Lu Chen refined the energy accumulated in the Myriad Manifestations Furnace as he walked, showing signs of breaking through to the seventh level of the Qi Surge Realm.

Old Ancestor Tianyan paid no mind, but in his heart, he was overjoyed.

He had found a treasure, and his efforts during this period were not in vain.

Upon entering Yanjing, the two finally stopped before a desolate hill.

Lu Chen rubbed his eyes forcefully, almost losing his temper.

Amidst the ruins, a peeling plaque was tilted, on which the four characters "Tianyan Academy" could barely be discerned.

Wild grass grew rampant on the mountain path, and many stone statues were inserted diagonally into the earth, some holding swords to the sky, others wielding sabers to cleave the heavens, their heroic postures extraordinary.

Sword intent, saber intent, spear intent, and the like were scattered chaotically.

Light leaked through the roof of the main hall, and a cold wind whistled through, making the spiderwebs in the corners tremble.

"This is Tianyan Academy?" Lu Chen's voice was hoarse.

"You don't understand! This is called returning to simplicity!" Old Ancestor Tianyan kicked open the creaking main hall door, startling a nest of pigeons on the beam.

"Returning to what nonsense!" Lu Chen's face turned green.

"Old liar! Even mice would starve to death in this place, I swear..."

A miscalculation, a serious miscalculation!

"Wahaha, the old man's back!"

A booming voice erupted from behind the hall.

A tower-like woman rushed out, carrying a heavy iron hammer.

She wore a short beast-skin tunic that covered her muscular physique, and the ground trembled with every step she took.

Behind her followed a slender young man, an iron pot and wooden spoon hanging from his waist, a smile on his face. With a slurp, he said, "Dean, the food expenses, hurry up!"

Lu Chen's head spun as he looked at the woman before him.

So strong!

She was as thick as two of him, her muscles well-defined, and thankfully, she wasn't ugly. If one only looked at her face, she was definitely a beautiful embryo.

But this physique...

The man behind her gave off a sleazy impression.

Looking at the clanging iron pot and wooden spoon, he wailed inwardly, what kind of attire was this!

"Xiong Yao, the chief disciple of Tianyan Academy!" The woman slammed her iron hammer down, shaking loose half a windowpane and kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Fang Jiuding, the second-ranked disciple of Tianyan Academy, hehe, hello third brother, please pay the food expenses!"

Fang Jiuding unceremoniously extended his hand.

Lu Chen's face twitched, so direct!

"There's plenty more, I saw him collect a hundred low-grade spirit stones, hehe..."

Old Ancestor Tianyan chuckled, leaped onto the crossbeam, leaned against a wooden pillar with his legs crossed, and said contentedly, "The first part of the entrance examination is to guarantee the food expenses for the three of us for three months. If you can't guarantee it, I'm sorry, Tianyan doesn't accept you!"

Lu Chen stumbled, feeling a sense of being cheated and aggrieved.

"I can guarantee that without the Tianyan Academy signboard, you wouldn't last three days in Yanjing. Try it if you don't believe me, hehe..."

Old Ancestor Tianyan triumphantly raised his eyebrows.