Chapter 372

Chapter 372: Ten Thousand Flower Valley

"What about this?" The Head of the Jin Family hesitated for a moment before gritting his teeth and saying, "I don’t know the exact number, but there are still more than ten thousand left in the Green Fox Clan!"

"What?" Upon hearing this, Mo Qianxun immediately burst out in anger and shouted, "You scoundrel! Do you want to play a numbers game with me? I clearly remember that when I handed them over to you, the Green Fox Clan had over a hundred thousand! And in just ten years, you’ve managed to kill ninety thousand? What difference is that from exterminating their entire clan?"

"No, no, we didn’t kill them; we sold off most of them!" The Head of the Jin Family replied stubbornly.

The Green Fox Clan, both men and women, were extraordinarily beautiful and quite adored by those who favored their kind. But when the Fang Family lost their support, nobody dared touch them. With the Fang Family in decline, all sorts of scoundrels emerged, looking to the Jin Family to buy Green Fox slaves.

The Jin Family were not the leaders of the Green Fox Clan, and given their enmity with the Fang Family, they were naturally eager to profit. Thus, the Green Fox Clan began to suffer calamities, with a large number of their kin sold into slavery, while some old Green Foxes were even killed for their precious fur. It was precisely because of this that the Green Fox Clan had suffered such heavy losses.

After hearing the Head of the Jin Family’s explanation, Mo Qianxun was almost driven to the brink of fury. He began to curse loudly, "Then you are even worse! The Green Fox Clan is the servant of the Fang Family, and you are merely the caretakers. What right do you have to sell them? And to sell off ninety percent at that?"

"This…" The Head of the Jin Family knew he was in the wrong and hung his head. "Clan Leader, I admit the juniors have acted excessively, and I am willing to compensate Fang Lie for his losses. But right now, lives are at stake! I urge you, based on our past relationships, to bring Fang Lie back first, and then we can discuss things slowly, alright?"

"Hmph!" Mo Qianxun coldly snorted and said, "Now you know fear? Where were you before? Let me tell you the truth, it’s not that I don’t want to show past kindness, but it’s truly beyond my power. My Clan Leader’s Golden Token has some authority, but I can assure you, it’s completely useless to Fang Lie. Even if I send it to him, he will just throw it on the ground and stomp on it! He will not come back for anything!"

"But, how can that be?" The Head of the Jin Family hurriedly replied, "He is merely an Honorary Elder, not qualified to disregard the Clan Leader’s Golden Token, right?"

"You seem to have forgotten that he is also the substitute Token Lord. Although he has no real power, according to sect rules, if anyone threatens him, he can temporarily exercise the authority of the Token! And your actions undoubtedly give him that right! Right now, he is already the Supreme Emperor of the Mo Sect, and even I lack the authority he possesses!"

"That’s not fair! We only made a little trouble with the Green Fox Demon Clan in the past; when did we threaten Fang Lie himself?" The Head of the Jin Family protested. "This isn’t right!"

"The Green Fox Demon Clan is a servant of the Fang Family, and as the saying goes, ‘You must look at the owner when beating the dog.’ You have tortured them so badly; as the owner, Fang Lie has undoubtedly been provoked, even threatened!" Mo Qianxun said helplessly. "Let me tell you the truth; this incident indeed falls on a fine line. But the crux of the matter is whether the authority of the Token can be used. It’s not up to you and me; only the Token can judge! And right now, Fang Lie is charging in fiercely, so I feel that the Token has already silently supported him."

"N-no, how can this be? The Token must be reasonable!" The Head of the Jin Family protested loudly.

"Do you still have the face to talk reason with me?" Mo Qianxun said, speechless. "You sold ninety percent of their slaves; who do you plan to reason with?"

"This, this isn’t my fault; it’s the younger ones who don’t understand!" The Head of the Jin Family replied gloomily.

"‘Not understanding’ is not a valid excuse for wrongdoing, nor can it be used to dismiss Fang Lie and the Token, so this time, you are really in trouble!" Mo Qianxun frowned. "I must say, Fang Lie has held the authority of the Token for almost a year now, and recently, his reputation has skyrocketed, echoing throughout the world. Are you not wary of this at all? Why didn’t you handle the Green Fox Clan’s situation earlier? Even a little compensation would have prevented the Green Fox Clan leader from coming to accuse you!"

At this point, Mo Qianxun suddenly realized something. His expression shifted, and he hurriedly said, "You mean, you haven’t provided compensation, and instead, you have continued to worsen the situation for the Green Fox Clan?"

"This…" The Head of the Jin Family had a bitter look on his face. "After Fang Lie passed the Cycle of Fire, he became incredibly arrogant, killing countless family disciples, including members of the Jin Family! The juniors knew they couldn’t seek revenge from Fang Lie, so they directed all their anger at the Green Fox Clan, causing the remaining clan members to suffer even more losses over the past year!"

"I see!" Mo Qianxun said. "You saw Fang Lie was on the rise and knew that Ten Thousand Flower Valley would sooner or later return to him, so you planned to take advantage before he left, right?"

"Hehe…" The Head of the Jin Family smiled awkwardly, not explicitly admitting it but practically confirming it.

Mo Qianxun laughed in anger and said, "Truly, if you don’t seek your own death, you won’t die! Just wait for Fang Lie’s revenge! I must tell you, the Fang Family has a saying: they are fierce and stubborn. When they get truly infuriated, even the gods can’t stop them! Are you prepared to take him on?"

"No!" The Head of the Jin Family hurriedly replied. "Who would want to clash with someone who can’t be killed? We are trying to find a way to resolve this! I thought we would have a few more years to slowly think of a solution, but unexpectedly, the Green Fox Clan leader escaped our surveillance and went to accuse Fang Lie!"

"Hmph!" Mo Qianxun sneered. "Given a few more years, will there even be a Green Fox Clan left?"

"If I were you, I would go back now, apologize to Fang Lie, and make amends, rather than think of ways to oppose him!" Mo Qianxun shrugged. "I can responsibly tell you, at least within the Mo Sect, you will find no one or nothing capable of countering Fang Lie!"

"But now that it’s like this, how can I make amends?" The Head of the Jin Family lamented, furrowing his brow. "I can compensate for the loss of tens of thousands of slaves, but he definitely won’t accept easily!"

"Of course!" Mo Qianxun said solemnly. "The Fang Family values gratitude. The Green Fox Clan has been loyal to them, and even in the toughest times for Fang Lie, they have never betrayed the Fang Family. This kind of loyal servant is someone Fang Lie holds dear, akin to family. You have dealt violently with his family and expect to settle with some compensation of demons? That’s just a joke!"

"Can you come up with a way for me?" The Head of the Jin Family asked helplessly.

"To untie the bell, you must tie it first." Mo Qianxun said helplessly. "Buy back the sold demon foxes and return them to him; this will quell some of his fury. At least I can step in and mediate for you. If you can’t even manage this, you might as well brace yourselves for a fight! It’ll be either his death or yours!"

"Che!" The Head of the Jin Family scoffed and said, "Am I afraid of such a junior? If it weren’t for the backing of the Token, I would have slapped him dead already!"

"Hehe, you’re wrong; even without the Token, he would still be the one to slap you dead!" Mo Qianxun sneered. "Don’t forget, he possesses the Golden Bell of the Great Thunder Sound Temple, the Kunlun Sword Token from the Kunlun Sword Sect, and the Mo Token. Any one of these could wipe out your Jin Family!"

Hearing this, the Head of the Jin Family broke out in a cold sweat and quickly said, "That boy isn’t really that ruthless, is he?"

"That depends on his mood!" Mo Qianxun sneered. "From what I know of that boy, if you don’t give him an explanation, he will actually make a move! By then, the Five Great Family Clans of the Mo Sect might just become four!"

"Please, don’t! I’m already scared of him!" The Head of the Jin Family said bitterly. "I will send someone to redeem those Green Foxes right away, but this won’t be accomplished in a short time. However, the crisis at Ten Thousand Flower Valley is imminent. Could we ask the Clan Leader to help us stabilize the situation and rescue the hundreds of Jin Family disciples inside?"

"Alright, alright!" Mo Qianxun sighed helplessly. "I will have Wanfang make a trip! I hope we’re not too late!"

"Thank you, Clan Leader!" The Head of the Jin Family quickly expressed his gratitude.

"Don’t celebrate too early; I can only ensure he won’t start a massive slaughter, but I cannot erase his deep-seated hatred. If we can’t return those demon foxes, I can’t stop him from declaring war on your Jin Family!" After finishing, Mo Qianxun told everyone around him, "You may disperse!"

Then, Mo Qianxun’s figure dimmed and disappeared without a trace. The dozen or so Thunder Tribulation Immortals present stood in shock, unable to see how he left.

Meanwhile, Fang Lie drove the earth’s magnetic force boat, racing through the night, and finally arrived at the entrance of Ten Thousand Flower Valley.

This was the only passage, guarded by a treacherous pass. At the top of the pass stood hundreds of Divine Lightning Towers, clearly indicating a very tight defense.

There were three to four thousand people at the pass, all cultivators hired by the Jin Family, most with cultivation above the Golden Pool level. The leader, although seemingly inconspicuous, was just a dying old man. However, he exuded a sense of purity, as if he had been refined by Heavenly Fire; this was clearly the manifestation of the Thunder Tribulation Immortal.

The old man was originally drowsy, but when the earth’s magnetic force boat stopped, he suddenly opened his eyes, glanced at the earth’s magnetic force boat, and smiled, "A fine earth’s magnetic force boat indeed! I have served the sect for a thousand years, yet I have no right to ride such a high-grade treasure ship! Fang Lie, it seems the sect treats you well!"

Fang Lie accompanied Uncle Qing and slowly appeared on the deck. He said bluntly, "Which old fool from the Jin Family are you?"