Chapter 136: Song Tianyu and Song Kui
The atmosphere inside the Song Clan’s Council Hall was suffocating as Patriarch Song Tianming sat slouched in his ironwood chair with a solemn expression, while every single surrounding clan elder sat in dead silence without daring to speak a word.
The tense quiet stretched on for what felt like hours since no one wanted to be the first to address the elephant in the room.
Finally Song Tianyu decided to speak first. He brushed the dust off his silver robes and finally broke the silence.
"Father, is Elder Song Kui going to visit us before he returns back to the White Bone Hall?" Song Tianyu asked calmly, his polite voice echoing across the stone hall as he looked at the Patriarch.
"Do not hold your breath for that man, Tianyu," Song Tianming sighed while rubbing his temples, "Elder Song Kui has severed his mortal ties to this clan decades ago to pursue the martial Dao."
"He does not care about his bloodline anymore, his allegiance to this clan."
"He definitely won’t bother visiting us just to catch up."
But the second the Patriarch finished speaking, the heavy silence in the room finally shattered.
And finally the pent-up frustration of the clan elders got an opening to erupt, and soon became a blame game directed at the young master.
"This is all your fault, you foolish boy!" the Second Elder roared as he slammed his fist onto the table, his face turning purple with indignation. He had just watched the greatest opportunity for their clan slip out of their hands, "Why did you willingly surrender your match and jump off the stage for Bai Bing?!"
"Do you have hidden feelings for the Ice Fairy, or did your brain just rot out of your skull?!" another elder shouted, pointing a shaking finger directly at Tianyu’s face to berate him.
"You had the perfect chance to fight that masked bastard and show off your wind arts to the scouting elders, but you just threw your reputation into the dirt like a lovesick dog!" Another elder complained.
"You humiliated our clan and spat on the faces of our ancestors."
"If you had actually fought and shown your true strength, Elder Song Kui might have given our family some face and taken you into the White Bone Hall!" a third elder yelled, spitting a glob of saliva onto the floor.
"Not just White Bone Hall, even the Thousand Beast Mountain would have been a massive boost to our backing, but you threw it all away just to act like a gentleman for a girl who doesn’t even care about you!"
"Enough... All of you shut up," Finally the Patriarch has had enough of their pointless screaming. But even though he shut them up, from his furrowed expression it was obvious he wasn’t happy with his son’s performance either.
"Despite whatever happened today, we are still merchants with deep pockets," Patriarch Song Tianming sighed as he turned his gaze back to his son, "You are the most promising of all the juniors in the family and till now, you have worked with the the Clan’s good fortune in your heart."
As Song Tianming spoke, his words were directed more towards the elders accusing his son, than Song Tianyu himself.
"I can still use our wealth and trade connections to buy you a spot in any of those major sects. Your performance would do the rest."
Song Tianyu didn’t say a word for a long moment, keeping his face perfectly blank as he tapped his fingers against his knee, which instantly caused the clan elders to lose their minds all over again since they firmly believed they knew what was best for the young master’s future.
"Are you deaf and dumb now?!" the Third Elder barked, completely ignoring Tianyu’s silence, "I say he should obviously need to follow Elder Song Kui to the White Bone Hall since we already share a bloodline, so we can quickly solidify our standing!"
"You short-sighted fool!" the Fourth Elder spat right back, pointing his cane across the room, "The Thousand Beast Mountain is a far superior choice for our political backing. If he becomes a beast trader, leave Poison Valley, no one in this region can raise their head against us."
The chaotic argument raged on for several minutes as the elders furiously bickered and threw vulgar insults at each other, practically threatening to draw their swords over the decision.
And seeing no end to this pointless discussion, Song Tianyu finally had enough. He suddenly stood up from his chair and raised his voice, getting their attention.
"You can all stop arguing over what fate has stored for me."
"I have already made up my mind," Song Tianyu declared with a cold certainty that lacked his usual polite demeanour.
The elders blinked in surprise as the Second Elder narrowed his gaze with a suspicious glare, asking, "What exactly did you decide, boy, and you better speak up clearly so we can evaluate if your choice actually benefits this family!"
"Stop this bickering and let the boy answer," Patriarch Song Tianming commanded, leaning forward in his throne to urge his son. "Speak up, Tianyu, and tell these elders which sect you will join to fulfill your duty to this family."
Song Tianyu just looked around the room at the scheming faces of his supposed family, took a long breath to steady his Dao heart, and dropped an earth-shattering bomb directly onto the Council Hall.
"I recently met a powerful, mysterious senior who showed me the truth of the martial world, and I wish to abandon my position in the clan," Song Tianyu announced.
"And I want to follow him in his journey."
As Gu Fan declared his insane decision to the clan elders, entire hall instantly descended into pin-drop silence as the elders and even the Patriarch himself stared at him with their jaws literally hanging open, unable to process the absurdity of the clan’s top genius openly wanting to run away with some unnamed vagabond.
"You what?" One of the elders could not believe his ears and asked again.
"I want to follow my big brother..." Song Tianyu repeated himself without any hesitation and his eyes burning with unwavering committed to his new sworn big brother.
"And no one can change my mind."
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