Chapter 55
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Chapter 55: The Zhou Family Steps In
"Nothing left to say, right?" Fang Lie sneered coldly as he watched Lin Tingzhi collapse weakly on the ground. "To be honest, I’ve shown mercy. When the first two groups ambushed me, I only executed the ringleaders. Their families were spared, and their ancestral sacred mountains untouched. I left them a path to survive!"
"But!" Fang Lie’s expression suddenly twisted savagely. "This incident made me realize my mercy was mistaken for weakness! You family clans keep trying to kill me. It’s clear now—scum like you deserve no pity! Let the Lin Family serve as a warning: anyone who crosses me again will face worse than annihilation. I’ll seize your ancestral sacred mountains, destroy your spiritual roots, shame your ancestors, and cut off your descendants’ path to immortality!"
The family clans silently cursed Fang Lie’s ruthlessness, but none dared speak up.
Having endured brutal torture, Fang Lie now radiated fury while clutching the Benevolence Token. His unstoppable aura terrified even seasoned masters, who kept their heads lowered.
Just then, an unwelcome voice rang out: "Fang Lie, you’ve gone too far!"
The crowd gaped. Who would dare challenge Fang Lie at his peak? They turned to see a young cultivator in his early twenties. Though plain-faced, his vivid blue hair crackled with lightning—proof of mastery over Thunder Law.
Recognizing him, the crowd buzzed. "Zhou Hongjian! This’ll be good!"
Fang Lie glanced at the youth and laughed. "Well! The Zhou Family isn’t entirely cowardly. At least you’ve got spine to face me. I’m pleased!"
Murderous amusement flickered in Fang Lie’s eyes, like a predator eyeing prey.
Onlookers thought: Zhou Hongjian’s doomed… but he had to speak now or lose face among the Eight-Hundred-Generation Families.
Zhou Hongjian, seventh-generation descendant of Mo Sect’s Ancestral Hall Leader Zhou Zhengqing, led the Zhou Family’s younger generation.
His talent was legendary. Even in the womb, Zhou Zhengqing had detected his potential, spending fortunes on prenatal nurturing through secret methods.
Zhou Hongjian gestated three years. His mother—a Purple Palace realm cultivator—died after birth, aged and drained, her essence fully absorbed by her son.
Zhou Zhengqing had sacrificed a Purple Palace-level descendant to create this cultivation genius.
Born with a partial Dao Body, Zhou Hongjian entered the world already cultivated. Years of training forged monstrous potential.
At nineteen, he remained at Qi Sea level by choice, building foundations. Mo Sect rumors claimed his Qi Sea spanned hundreds of miles, yet he aimed to expand it further before advancing to Golden Pool realm.
His magic reserves rivaled ordinary Purple Palace cultivators. While weaker in direct combat than them, he could effortlessly defeat ten Golden Pool opponents.
This heaven-defying talent earned him Inner Gate Core Disciple status despite his realm. As the Zhou Family’s crown jewel and future leader, he represented their interests.
He also happened to be Lin Tingzhi’s son-in-law.
Though Lin Tingzhi’s sons were worthless, his daughter Lin Yuting possessed a supreme Qingning water spiritual root. An overseas Immortal Mountain expert had taken her to the Pure Lotus Sect—a West Kunlun Tao Sect branch of female cultivators.
While mediocre in combat, the sect held high standing among righteous sects for their dual cultivation techniques, prized for purging Pill Toxin from high-level cultivators.
This was truly heaven-defying. High-level Cultivators struggled greatly to purge Pill Toxin, and renowned experts perished from its outbreaks almost yearly.
If one could disregard Pill Toxin concerns, merely consuming medicinal pills would allow their cultivation to skyrocket—an aspiration every Cultivator coveted.
Thus, female cultivators of the Pure Lotus Sect became prime marriage candidates for major sects. Many faced betrothal proposals even before completing training or formally joining the sect.
Though the Pure Lotus Sect maintained strict entry criteria, limiting its numbers to mere hundreds, their vast network of influential in-laws rendered them formidable.
Over generations, core Elders of all major sects—even demonic sect members—took Pure Lotus disciples as wives. This sprawling web of connections blanketed the entire world, creating immense influence.
Jests circulated: righteous sects rule righteousness, demonic sects dominate darkness, but only the Pure Lotus Sect truly commands the jianghu!
As future Ancestral Hall Leader, Zhou Hongjian required a Pure Lotus wife to aid his cultivation. Lin Tingzhi fulfilled both criteria—born of the Pure Lotus Sect and belonging to Mo Sect’s Eight-Hundred-Generation Families. Though her strength ranked lower, the match remained honorable.
Both families aligned perfectly in status and mutual benefit, swiftly sealing the engagement.
Originally inferior to the Yuan family, the Lin clan leveraged this Zhou family alliance to surpass their rivals.
The Lin family’s capture of Fang Lie stemmed from Zhou Zhengqing and Zhou Hongjian’s scheming—Lin Tingzhi merely served as their blade.
Not that they sought to frame the Lin family; they simply required proxies. All assumed guaranteed success until Fang Lie’s inexplicable escape triggered chaos.
Had Fang Lie only slain Lin Tingzhi’s household, Zhou Hongjian might have tolerated it temporarily, later compensating the Lin family to preserve his reputation and engagement ties.
But Fang Lie’s assault crossed all lines—annihilating Lin Tingzhi’s kin and severing the entire Lin family’s spiritual roots!
This forced Zhou Hongjian’s hand. Though unspoken, all recognized the Zhou family’s orchestration. Allowing his father-in-law’s clan to face eradication would shatter his standing and isolate the Zhou family among noble clans.
Such colossal negligence would deter future alliances. Reluctantly, Zhou Hongjian intervened.
Knowing Fang Lie’s obstinacy, Zhou Hongjian avoided flaunting Zhou family authority. Instead, he sought negotiation—compensation for sparing the Lin family’s sacred mountain, ideally saving some members.
Zhou Hongjian rumbled solemnly, "Fang Lie, the Lin family overstepped, yet you stand here unscathed. Why drive them to extinction? Compromise: accept their treasure vault as restitution while permitting their survival."
"Compromise?" Fang Lie scoffed. "Your words reek of dung!"
"You—" As Mo Sect’s rising Zhou family star, even Immortals treated Zhou Hongjian respectfully. Never had he endured such humiliation.
"Ungrateful wretch!" Zhou Hongjian roared. "The Eight-Hundred-Generation Families upheld traditions for millennia! Countless Lin family disciples sacrificed for Mo Sect! Can one misstep erase their legacy? Ask witnesses here—who denies the Lin family’s contributions?"
No novice, Zhou Hongjian enlisted crowd support. United against outsiders, the Eight-Hundred-Generation Families would pressure Fang Lie through collective opinion.
Indeed, sympathetic family disciples prepared to echo his claims.
Before their voices rose, Fang Lie slammed the judge’s wooden hammer. "Zhou Hongjian! You dare bellow in my court? Guards! Arrest this man!"
