In the spacious hall, the atmosphere was so quiet that one could hear a pin drop. The wails of agony outside the door made all the Xiao family members clench their fists tightly, with a mix of relief and vindication on their faces. The recent upheaval in the Xiao family had left them seething with resentment. Now, with Xiao Yan’s return, the fate of the family, which seemed to be headed for ruin, had finally turned around. The grievances suffered over the past few days gradually dissipated as the wails outside the door diminished.
The wailing lasted for less than a minute before it slowly faded away. As the screams ended, all eyes in the hall once again converged on Xiao Yan, who sat quietly with his back to them. In those gazes, there was now a fervent respect.
“Junior Patriarch,” the Great Elder stepped forward, breaking the silence with excitement.
“Great Elder, just call me Xiao Yan. I don’t deserve the title of Junior Patriarch,” Xiao Yan stood up from his chair and turned to smile lightly.
Looking at the smiling face that was vastly different from the earlier murderous expression, the Great Elder was slightly taken aback, then nodded and smiled, “In this family, your words are now the commands of the Patriarch.”
“Father might not agree with that…” Xiao Yan shook his head playfully, and with a flick of his finger, a dozen small jade bottles appeared on the table, “Here are some medicines for internal injuries. Give them to the injured family members first.”
Hearing this, the Great Elder quickly nodded and waved his hand. Two family members hurried forward to collect the bottles and distribute them.
Xiao Yan picked up the Heavy Scale Ruler and stuck it behind his back, then walked towards the door.
“Creak…” As he opened the door, sunlight poured in, dispelling the gloom in the hall.
Stepping out of the door, Xiao Yan stood at the entrance, looking around. The scene of corpses littering the ground did not materialize. In the sunlight, only the Queen Medusa was seen lounging lazily against a tree, casually playing with the green leaves. Her graceful figure, reflected on the ground, was extremely enticing.
Seeing Xiao Yan emerge, the Queen Medusa raised her head, glanced at him, and said coolly, “There is no trace of any corpse, not even a single one… Remember, that Eightfold Mysterious Needle Fruit is mine.”
“What a ruthless woman…” Sighing inwardly, Xiao Yan nodded, then turned to look at the family members following behind him. They were also surveying the empty ground with surprised looks, but held back by the terrifying presence of the seductive woman not far away, even the hot-tempered Third Elder dared not ask any questions.
“The Jia Lie and Ouba families will no longer exist in Wu Tan City.” Xiao Yan’s words brought a sense of relief to the hearts of the Xiao family members.
“Oh, right,” Xiao Yan suddenly remembered something and frowned, “Great Elder, where are the rest of the family? The Xiao family should have more people than this, right?”
“Haha, don’t worry. If the Xiao family only had this many people left, I would have no face to meet our ancestors.” Shaking his head with a smile, the Great Elder explained, “I had anticipated that someone might take advantage of our situation, so I had already arranged for the family dependents to be moved to the back mountain. There, they are guarded by many capable family members.”
Hearing this, Xiao Yan finally felt a bit relieved. He turned to see a little girl pushing her way through the crowd, her two big, starry, admiring eyes fixed on Xiao Yan.
“Little one, go to the back mountain and call everyone out. Your cousin is back, and the Xiao family is safe now,” Xiao Yan called to Xiao Qing, smiling.
Following Xiao Yan’s instruction, Xiao Qing hurriedly squeezed through the crowd, crisply acknowledged, and then ran off to the back courtyard, her joyful laughter echoing along the way. In her heart, the infallible cousin had not let her down, solving in under an hour what even the elders found impossible.
Taking a deep breath, Xiao Yan turned to the Great Elder, “Now, can you tell me in detail what has happened to the Xiao family recently?”
Sighing, the Great Elder’s face, which had been smiling, turned bitter, “Alright, come inside first.”
As he led the way into the hall, the Second and Third Elders exchanged a glance and followed, their faces grave. Looking at the three, Xiao Yan’s fingers trembled, and he followed.
Back in the hall, the disarray had been quickly cleaned up by the family members. The four of them sat down, and hot tea was promptly served.
Holding the teacup, feeling the warmth seeping into his body, Xiao Yan glanced at the Great Elder, whose face was dark, and said softly, “Tell me, what happened?”
The Great Elder nodded, about to speak, but paused, his gaze falling on the chair next to Xiao Yan. Following the gaze, Xiao Yan saw that the Queen Medusa had silently seated herself there.
“Pay no attention to her, go on,” Xiao Yan said, shaking his head.
Nodding bitterly, the Great Elder took a deep breath and sighed, “Since you left Wu Tan City, the Xiao family, with the help of the large amount of healing medicine you left behind, has gradually strengthened its power. Although the Jia Lie and Ouba families tried to suppress us, thanks to Miss Ya Fei’s support, we managed to survive. However, due to the huge profits from the healing medicine, the conflict with the Jia Lie and Ouba families intensified. Three months before your return, they finally resorted to force, but fortunately, the Xiao family’s strength had grown significantly. Even if they joined forces, they did not gain much…”
“But,” the Great Elder’s face suddenly became uncertain, his grip tightening, the creaking sound indicating the anger he harbored, “Three days ago, the Xiao family suffered the most devastating blow.”
Xiao Yan’s eyes twitched, and he sipped his tea slowly.
“It was late at night, when the defenses were weakest. Three unexpected black-robed figures descended from the sky. Though they did not attack directly, they caused great destruction. This alerted the entire family. The Patriarch, enraged, led a group of us to confront them, but their strength was too overwhelming. We were severely injured after just one move. We know they held back, or we wouldn’t have survived.”
The Great Elder’s body trembled slightly, bowing his head.
“Crack!” A sharp sound echoed, and the Great Elder and others looked up to see Xiao Yan’s face contorted with rage. The teacup in his hand had been crushed into powder, which mixed with the tea and dripped through his fingers.
“Where is my father?” Xiao Yan’s gaze was fixed on the three Elders, his breathing rapid, and his voice hoarse.
The three Elders’ faces turned grim, and they shook their heads bitterly.
“Is my father not in the back mountain?” Xiao Yan’s face was frightening as he stared at the three elders, standing up abruptly, “Tell me!”
“The three mysterious figures came for the Patriarch, and he seemed to understand their intentions. To avoid casualties, the Patriarch led them away alone and has not returned since,” the Great Elder bit his lip and forced a bitter smile.
A fierce aura suddenly erupted in the hall, and the nearby table shattered. The family members, who were cleaning up, froze, staring at Xiao Yan, whose face was twisted with fury.
“Do you have any information about those three mysterious figures?” Xiao Yan’s body was enveloped in a blazing green flame, his voice sounding like it came from the netherworld, filled with cold, mad killing intent.
“N-no,” the Great Elder gritted his teeth, staring at the approaching heat, and shook his head bitterly.
“Although we do not know the exact situation of the Patriarch, we can be sure that he is at least not in mortal danger.” The Great Elder carefully took out an ancient box from his chest, opening it to reveal a green jade tablet. At the center of the tablet, a light point was moving slowly, as if it had a spirit.
Carefully picking up the tablet, the Great Elder examined it closely, then breathed a sigh of relief, “This jade tablet is a legacy from our ancestors. Each Patriarch leaves a bit of soul energy in it. If the Patriarch dies, the light point will dissipate. Since the light point is still strong, he is not in mortal danger.”
The Great Elder’s words calmed Xiao Yan’s heart, which was on the verge of exploding like a volcano. Taking the tablet, he caressed it gently.
“Can it show me where my father is now?” Xiao Yan’s voice was icy.
“No…” the Great Elder shook his head bitterly.
Xiao Yan took a deep, icy breath, closing his eyes filled with killing intent. The madness in his heart threatened to overpower his rationality.
“They have traces of Cloud Mist Sect energy in their bodies,” the Queen Medusa, sitting quietly beside, suddenly glanced at Xiao Yan, “Some of it belongs to the Chief Elder of Cloud Mist Sect…”
His eyes snapped open, and a chilling, murderous aura seeped out of Xiao Yan, making even the Queen Medusa look at him in astonishment. Lifting his head, his usually gentle face was now filled with ferocity and madness!
“This time, he must die! Anyone who stands in my way, dies!”
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