"Brother Chen, what happened? Why are the Su Family Members after you?" Long Xin, clad in a green dress that highlighted her graceful figure and charming face, ran toward Long Chen in a panic. She was the sixteen-year-old daughter of the Long Family's Second Elder, Long Hen. She had always enjoyed playing with Long Chen since they were children, a fondness that had never changed.
"Don't ask questions. Hurry back to the Long Family and tell my father I'm alright. He doesn't need to worry about me!"
Long Chen charged toward the pursuing Su Family Members. With his back to Long Xin, he shouted coldly, "Go!"
"Ah! I... I'll go back and get help right away!" Long Xin was startled. Her face drained of color as she turned and fled. She knew perfectly well that Brother Chen wasn't joking, and she didn't dare to disobey.
"Hahaha! Long Chen, I've waited for this day for far too long!"
A young man of seventeen or eighteen raised his hand, halting the dozen or so Su Family Members behind him. He then turned to Long Chen with a mocking gaze. "The grudge from back then will be settled tonight!"
He was Su Xun, son of the Su Family's Great Elder, Su Kun! Years ago, he had tried to abduct a commoner's daughter and had his men cripple her father. For this, Long Chen had beaten him senseless. If Su Miaoyu hadn't pleaded for him, he would have been crippled, if not killed.
"I didn't kill you then, but it's not too late to do so now!" Long Chen sneered, his pace unceasing.
Su Xun scoffed, "My cousin said she destroyed your Dantian. You're nothing but trash now! To deal with an ant like you, I only need one hand!"
"All of you, stand back! I'll deal with him myself!" As his words fell, Su Xun brandished a long spear and charged toward Long Chen with a sinister grin.
"To hear the word 'ant' from your lips is truly a joke!" Closing the distance, Long Chen reached out, grabbed the incoming spear, and threw a punch straight at his face.
CRACK!
In an instant, Su Xun's nose shattered. He was sent flying backward, blood spraying from his face.
With a heavy THUD, Su Xun crashed to the ground, rolling and screaming in agony.
"My nose! My nose... Kill him! Kill him now!" Su Xun howled, his order choked with sobs. He had even forgotten that Long Chen was supposedly a cripple.
The dozen or so Su Family Members obeyed the command and swarmed Long Chen together.
Four War Masters, the strongest at the Third Layer Heaven, and nine Warriors...
Long Chen narrowed his eyes. Wielding the spear he had snatched from Su Xun, he met the onslaught, his body emanating a fierce, domineering aura.
PFFT! PFFT! PFFT! PFFT!
Long Chen was now a War Master of the Fifth Layer Heaven. Even without awakening his Divine Demon Ancestral Dragon Body, he was far superior to anyone at the Third Layer Heaven. The battle was over in a matter of breaths.
The ground was littered with the corpses of the Su Family Members. Blood flowed freely, and its coppery stench filled the air.
"You! Weren't you crippled by my cousin? Why... how are you..." Clutching his blood-soaked face, Su Xun struggled to his feet. Seeing Long Chen walk toward him, he was so terrified that he immediately dropped to his knees. "Chen... Brother Chen! Don't kill me! I was wrong!"
"Killing a coward like you would only dirty my hands!" Long Chen thrust the spear into Su Xun's thigh, pinning him to the ground. Ignoring his squeals, which sounded like a pig being slaughtered, Long Chen bellowed, "Go back and tell Su Miaoyu that in three days, I will attend the Martial Ancestor's trial convention. I will make sure her blood spills three feet high! Before then, if she dares to trouble the Long Family, I will kill her most beloved cousin, Su Ao! That is the only reason I'm sparing your life!"
With that, Long Chen turned and left.
As long as I don't return to the Long Family and use the threat against Su Ao—who is already dead—Su Miaoyu won't dare use the Martial Ancestor's Earth Institute to annihilate the Long Family, even if they show up! Before the Martial Ancestor's trial convention begins, I'll find a place to hide and cultivate. I'll strive to reach the Third Layer of the Divine Demon Ancestral Dragon Formula and obtain the Secret Technique of Gods and Demons that Xia Duoduo mentioned—Dragon Blood Boiling! Once I master Dragon Blood Boiling and gain the power to fight across Realms, I'll be able to crush the Su Family's elders!
「One day later, in a rundown neighborhood of Dragon City.」
Through secluded cultivation, Long Chen successfully cultivated the Divine Demon Ancestral Dragon Formula to the Third Layer and obtained the Secret Technique of Gods and Demons that Xia Duoduo had spoken of—Dragon Blood Boiling!
Once Dragon Blood Boiling was unleashed, it could instantly boost his combat power by the equivalent of Nine Layer Heavens and even allow him to leap across an entire Great Realm! Although Long Chen was currently a War Master of the Fifth Layer Heaven, he could use Dragon Blood Boiling to contend with a War Maniac of the Fifth Layer Heaven. In fact, with his constitution that granted him absolute invincibility within his own realm, he could even defeat such an opponent with ease.
However, Dragon Blood Boiling had a drawback: it required burning his own Dragon Blood to use. With the small amount he had condensed so far, he could only use Dragon Blood Boiling twice at most.
Aside from that, the Divine Demon Ancestral Dragon Formula also possessed another powerful might.
Cultivating it to the First Layer grants a boost equivalent to the First Layer Heaven. The Second Layer grants a boost of Double Heavens, and the Third Layer grants a boost of Third Layer Heavens! Even without using Dragon Blood Boiling, just by relying on the Third Layer of the Divine Demon Ancestral Dragon Formula, my combat power is comparable to a War Master of the Eighth Layer Heaven! If I use Dragon Blood Boiling on top of that, my base power as a War Master of the Eighth Layer Heaven would be boosted by another Nine Layer Heavens—an increase that crosses a Great Realm! My maximum combat power would be equivalent to a War Maniac of the Eighth Layer Heaven!
The Martial Arts Realms were divided into War Disciple, Warrior, War Master, War Maniac, War Sect, War King, and Warlord, with each realm further subdivided into Nine Layer Heavens. Reaching the War Maniac Realm already made one a top-tier martial artist in Dragon City.
Right now, with Dragon Blood Boiling, Long Chen had the power to kill Su Miaoyu, but he was still no match for the Su family head, let alone Shangguan Pojun.
I have to at least reach the War Maniac Realm to have a chance to turn this situation around!
Suddenly, an urgent voice cried out, "Father, this is terrible! An executive from the Martial Ancestor's Earth Institute went to the Su Family! He proposed to Su Miaoyu on behalf of Shangguan Pojun, and she agreed on one condition: that Big Brother Long Chen be found and killed! Just a moment ago, that executive and Su Miaoyu went to the Long Family. They injured Big Brother Long Chen's father! Then they helped Second Elder Long Hen seize the position of Patriarch from him, proclaiming that if they don't see Big Brother Long Chen at the Martial Ancestor's trial convention, they will kill his father!"
At that, a lame, middle-aged man on the earthen bed struggled to his feet with a crutch. "Why does this cruel heaven always torment good people!"
"Benefactor! Please, you must be safe!" The lame man lit a stick of incense and knelt before a crude clay statue, joined by a young woman in her twenties. They both kowtowed repeatedly, praying fervently. The statue was unmistakably in the likeness of Long Chen, with the words "Benefactor Long Chen" carved at its base. They were the very same father and daughter whom Long Chen had rescued from Su Xun's clutches years ago.
Long Chen had never imagined that this was where they lived.
"Su Miaoyu..." Long Chen gritted his teeth. He took out a few dozen taels of silver from his Storage Bag, placed it on the family's doorstep, and departed in silence.
I had planned to stay hidden and cultivate until the Martial Ancestor's trial convention began. Who could have known that Su Miaoyu would bring an executive from the Martial Ancestor's Earth Institute to our home, injure my father, and even help Second Elder Long Hen seize his position as Patriarch? I can't hide anymore. My father's safety and the Long Family's situation are what matter most!
A short while later, Long Chen slipped into the Long Family's rear courtyard. On his way back, he had overheard the gossip everywhere. The Long Family had a new master: Second Elder Long Hen. The former Patriarch, Long Dou, was said to be gravely injured and unconscious. Furthermore, Long Hen's daughter, Long Xin, was now engaged to Su Jun—the elder brother of Su Xun and the son of the Su Family's Great Elder, Su Kun. The Long Family appeared unharmed on the surface, but in reality, it had become a vassal of the Su Family.
"Father..." His face ashen, Long Chen grabbed a Long Family servant. Through his questioning, he learned that Long Hen had indeed become a lackey for the Su Family, finally fulfilling his ambition of becoming the Long Family Patriarch. He had even thrown Long Chen's father, Long Dou, into the woodshed to let him die.
At that moment, in the woodshed of the Long Family's rear courtyard, a young man in a blue robe, carrying a long knife, cautiously approached. He was Long Tao, a disciple from a collateral branch of the family. Long Tao licked his lips and entered the woodshed with a cold expression. Spotting the unconscious, middle-aged man in a blood-stained white robe lying on the ground, he sneered, "Patriarch Long Dou, don't blame me. Who told you to be stronger than Patriarch Long Hen? Keeping you alive is too great a risk!"
BUZZ!
In an instant, Long Tao thrust the knife toward Long Dou's heart.
Long Chen, who had arrived just behind him, saw this and roared in fury, "You're courting death!"
Long Chen grabbed Long Tao's hair from behind, yanking him backward. He snatched the long knife from his hand and, without a word, slit his throat. Blood sprayed violently. Long Tao clutched his neck, blood pouring from his mouth as he stared at Long Chen in disbelief. He collapsed, dead.
"Father!" Long Chen dropped the knife and rushed to his side.
Xia Duoduo's voice suddenly reminded him, "Fortunately, Young Master, you arrived in time. The Master's injuries can still be healed. He will need some Spiritual Medicines combined with the medical techniques from the Divine Demon Ancestral Dragon Formula. Not only can this restore him, but it can even help him achieve a breakthrough in his Martial Path!"
Long Chen was overjoyed at her words.
Father's going to be okay! And treating him with the medical arts from the Divine Demon Ancestral Dragon Formula will even advance his cultivation! Father was already at the War Sect of the Ninth Layer Heaven. One more step and he'll be a War King! I heard that the executive from the Martial Ancestor's Earth Institute is only a Half-step War King, still a small gap away from the true War King Realm. As long as Father breaks through to the War King Realm, why would we need to fear that executive?
A cold light glinted in Long Chen's eyes. He knew this was his chance to turn defeat into victory and reverse the entire situation.