Chapter 81: Chapter 77: Becoming a Fish Dragon, Crashing the Dragon Gate, Attaining Epiphany! Jiangyin Shuipo Lake, Chaotic Heaven Righteous Army, Master’s Sect, Ancestral Master
"I thought, considering all the dirty work you’ve handled for the County Yamen over the years and the loyalty you’ve shown through your annual offerings of Incense and Candlelight, that he truly intended for you and that young whelp Ji to temporarily set aside your feud and make peace."
"And yet... who would have guessed it was a Banquet of Hongmen!"
"That bastard is a craven coward, terrified of death. To think Duan Chenzhou scared him that badly."
"He burned his bridges in an instant, pulling a ’Candlelight and Axe Shadow’ and planning to set up an ambush with Strong Bows and Crossbows to assassinate you in secret!"
"Fortunately, you had the foresight to leave the county town early. Otherwise..."
Beside Yang Daohan, a servant with a stooped back holding a lantern spoke in a low voice, recounting the turmoil that had swept through the county that day.
After hearing this, Yang Daohan just sneered:
"These young masters from the prefectural families... don’t I know their type? They’re experts at sucking up to the powerful and trampling the weak, always going with the flow."
"In front of me, they can’t hide that arrogance and domineering nature that’s in their bones. They’d love nothing more than to suck the very marrow from everything I’ve built."
"But towards a ruthless man like Duan Chenzhou, or a young pup with the potential to escape this five-hundred-li swamp, all they think about is roping them in..."
"Hmph!"
"Does he really think that in this whole five-hundred-li territory, his county town is the most powerful?"
A fierce light flashed in Yang Daohan’s eyes, but as he thought of his own son, a wave of grief couldn’t help but surface:
"Let him enjoy a few more good days."
"’Four Departures and Four Severances, the Erosion of the Abyss Ruins’ is approaching."
"When that time comes, the Great Demons from the Earth Dragon Cave and the Central Yellow Spirit Summoning and Saint Manifesting Generals of the Central Yellow Sect... they will all have their eyes fixed on these five hundred li of Anning County, ready to put on a show together, each taking what they desire."
"Hah. Young Master Jiu of the Wine Shop, one of the Jiangyin Thirty-Six Professions?"
"Even your father might not be able to handle what’s coming!"
"Just you wait!"
"Old Peng, take me to Big Brother!"
The stooped, lantern-bearing servant named Old Peng acknowledged the command and immediately rose.
Braving the bitter cold, he led two horses over. He and Yang Daohan rode on, traversing winding, narrow paths and trampling through mud and mire. After what felt like an eternity of twisting and turning...
Finally, upon hearing the SPLASHING sound of the tide, they came to a halt at a small, extremely well-hidden mountain village beside Shuipo Lake, far outside the county town.
The light tread of their horses’ hooves broke the village’s original silence.
SWISH! SWISH! SWISH!
In the dead of night, torches flared to life one by one. Immediately, dozens of figures appeared, densely packed, armed with sabers and swords, their gazes menacing.
However, when they saw Yang Daohan, they immediately relaxed, and the leader’s tone became even more respectful:
"Ah, it’s Master Qi!"
"On a dark and windy night like this, we thought you were the lackeys from the Northern Garrison Command, the Patrolling Outer Dao of Great Xuan..."
"The Big Boss is inside the Central Yellow Temple. I’ll take you there."
The man held up his torch, called someone over to take Yang Daohan’s horse, and then led the way toward a place resembling an Ancestral Hall in the deepest part of the village, near the river.
The moment he pushed open the door.
He saw two rows of dim candlelight flickering in the darkness.
At the far end, people from the Central Yellow Sect, dressed in yellow and white with earnest expressions, sat cross-legged around a massive Divine Shrine. They were muttering in low voices, circulating their Profound Skills.
On the Divine Shrine.
On the left was written ’Equality by Divine Decree’.
On the right, ’Peace Under Heaven’.
And written above was ’Central Yellow Spirit Summoning and Saint Manifesting General’!
The leader in the center, a man with a deep scar on his head and Qi and Blood so thick it resembled beacon smoke, sat with white vapor steaming from his body, making him appear as if in a celestial paradise. Hearing the noise, he glanced back and sighed:
"Old Seventh, I’ve heard about what happened."
"Follow me into the inner chamber."
Yang Daohan looked at this man, his heart filled with an anger he could barely suppress. Holding his breath all the way, he entered the inner chamber of the Divine Shrine. Seeing that there was no one else around, he immediately dropped to one knee, overwhelmed with grief and indignation:
"Big Brother!"
"You told me to be patient! You told me to go to Anning County and build our foundation, to facilitate the Sect’s business, to suck up to the County Magistrate... and through all these years of hardship, I never said a word."
"But Yang Yan... this one thing!"
"I can’t endure this!"
"He was my only son."
"If it had been anyone else, I could have let it go..."
"But..."
"It just had to be Duan Chenzhou!"
"Back in the day, in East Canghai of Jiangyin Prefecture, your Chaotic Heaven Righteous Army occupied Shuipo Lake! You raised the banner of Vigilante Justice! With a navy three thousand strong and three hundred warships, what magnificent spirit, what incredible might you had!"
"Even the Garrison Commander of Jiangyin Prefecture, Luo Daocheng, had to bow his head to the Celestial King in the seat of command. You stirred up winds and rain, acting as you pleased!"
"But then Duan Chenzhou’s accursed Master had to show up! He stormed Shuipo Lake all by himself, unleashing a bloodbath that completely shattered the valiant heroes of the Chaotic Heaven Righteous Army..."
"Afterward, that dishonorable bastard Luo Daocheng took advantage of the crisis, rebranding the Chaotic Heaven Righteous Army as the ’Chaotic Heaven Thieves’ and launching a vicious hunt. The five-hundred-li Chaotic Heaven Lake was left in utter ruin."
"That year, Duan Chenzhou nearly split your head in two! The Qi Essence from that blow is the reason the scar remains to this very day!"
"This grudge... even if I could swallow it, how can you possibly endure it?"
"I know the grand plan is important, and that the Great Demons in the Earth Dragon Cave still need another month or two, but this hatred for my son’s killer, how can I possibly bear it?"
He looked at the formidable Martial Artist before him and couldn’t help but dredge up the past. A crescent-shaped scar ran from the man’s brow to his forehead. His muscles and bones seemed forged from gold, and his Skin Membrane glowed with a jade-like luster.
Wei Changjiao, for his part, listened silently to Yang Daohan’s tale.
After a long moment, he closed his eyes.
"Of the original Ten Brothers of Shuipo, I was the youngest."
"My sworn brothers are dead or scattered... I will naturally never forget the feud between our brother, the Red-Beard Celestial King, and Duan Chenzhou’s entire lineage."
"But... Old Seventh."
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