Chapter 1224: You Have to Accept It, No Matter What
Zhu Yunzhou trained in his secret chamber. Usually, he would be well-removed from the outside world. However, his left eyelid kept twitching uncontrollably today. With his strength, he should easily be able to control any part of his body. Yet, something like that happened. It distracted him and prevented him from focusing on his training.
“Strange. Why do I feel like something’s going to happen today?” Thinking up to this point, Zhu Yunzhou slowly stood up and walked out. His daughter, Zhu Ningyu, ran over with a panicked expression. “Father. Something’s wrong. There are people from above here. They’re in the living room.”
“People from above?” Zhu Yunzhou frowned. “Who are they? People from the Astral Alliance?”
“I heard that it’s the Deputy Chief of Staff from the Astral Alliance’s Dimensional War Department. He’s waiting for you.” Zhu Ningyu looked extremely worried. She knew that for someone of such status, they would not come to visit unless they needed something. This Deputy Chief of Staff suddenly visited together with those from the Hong Family. It was obvious that they did not bring good news.
“I’ll go right now.” Zhu Yunzhou inhaled deeply before hurriedly walking toward the conference room.
He soon reached the conference room and felt a gush of cold air rush at his face. Soon, he saw Dick sitting at the center seat in the conference room. He hurriedly walked forward and cupped his fists. “I’m Zhu Yunzhou. Sir, you are...”
“Pengyun Astral Alliance Dimensional Warfare Department Deputy Chief of Staff, Dick.” Dick did not stand up as he looked at Zhu Yunzhou. “I heard that you and Hong Xingyu have a Marriage Annulment Challenge. Is that right?”
He came for the Marriage Annulment Challenge!
Zhu Yunzhou’s heart skipped a beat. His intuition told him that this was really bad. However, he could not deny it. Hence, he immediately nodded and replied, “Yes. Sir Dick, may I know what you are here for today?”
“The Marriage Annulment Challenge ends.” Dick tore up the agreement singlehandedly with no room for negotiations. “Your Zhu Family can think about how to compensate the Hong Family economically. I’ll say this. Hong Dali has been brought back to our Astral Alliance headquarters for further training by Lieutenant General Lei Zhe. Hong Family will be related to a military official in the Astral Alliance in the future. I don’t care about what grudges your families hold. This time, your Zhu Family has to accept this. If you dare not to accept this, I can destroy your entire Zhu Family within three days. You can make the decision. I’ll give you thirty seconds. If you take longer than that, your Zhu Family will disappear in the future.” He then added on one final sentence, “I’m not kidding. Lieutenant General Lei Zhe is determined to get Hong Dali. Any and all of his requests will be fulfilled.”
“Plop—” After hearing Dick’s words, Zhu Yunzhou weakly collapsed on a chair.
He was really screwed this time. The most unfortunate thing was that he had no chance to recover from this. Once Hong Dali went for further training at the Astral Alliance headquarters, the Hong Family would never be touched in the future. Not only would the Zhu Family suffer, but the Bei Family would also probably fall as well.
“Hehe, Old Zhu.” Hong Xingyu finally opened his mouth. “Actually, I feel like you should thank Sir Dick. Otherwise, your Zhu Family will lose everything if we do reach the date of the duel.”
“Haha, what good is there in talking about that?” Zhu Yunzhou shook his head helplessly. “If we do have a duel, at least I’ll stand a chance. Now, I’ll never have the chance to recover. Hong Dali, Hong Dali. Haha, I underestimated him. That’s my mistake. Sigh. One false step brings everlasting grief.”
He never paid much attention to Hong Dali previously. When Hong Dali finally revealed his talents, Zhu Yunzhou realized that everything was too late.
Obviously, Hong Xingyu was not so easy to talk to. “Stand a chance to recover? Hehe, Old Zhu, you really think that your few moves can defeat me?”
He stood up and casually activated his strength. Instantly, air currents filled the entire conference room. A blood-red color surrounded Hong Xingyu’s hands. His fragile and old arms were slowly recovering!
“Rejuvenation! This is rejuvenation!” Zhu Yunzhou’s expression instantly changed as he analyzed the terrifying energy in the room. He never imagined that Hong Xingyu could reach the level of Rejuvenation! This phenomenon proved one thing. Hong Xingyu’s strength had finally broken through the peak of Star Sector-level. He was truly an Astral-level warrior now!
That was because Rejuvenation was the symbol of Astral-level warriors. After that breakthrough, his lifespan could be extended significantly!
“That’s right.” Hong Xingyu looked at Zhu Yunzhou. He no longer thought that Zhu Yunzhou could be his match. “This is all thanks to our Dali. Hehe, he gave me a great book. A true top-grade secret manual from the cultivation dimension!”
“Primordial Blood Emperor Log”! After Hong Dali discovered this book on Azeroth, he immediately scanned the contents and sent it to Hong Xingyu. After a few days of training, Hong Xingyu finally broke through his bottleneck and officially stepped into the Astral-level!
“Sigh. Seems like I lost. I lost completely.” Zhu Yunzhou slumped on his chair weakly. He had no chance of recovering from this. Hong Dali went to the Astral Alliance headquarters for further training. Hong Xingyu broke through to the Astral-level and learned Rejuvenation. What could he do?
“Tell me. How should I compensate?” Zhu Yunzhou looked at Hong Xingyu. “Just state your terms. I’ll agree to them unconditionally.”
“The terms are simple,” Hong Xingyu said with his hands behind his back. “90% of the Zhu Family’s wealth will go under our Dali’s name. You can have the remaining 10% for your retirement. I won’t touch anyone from your Zhu Family.”
“Alright. I agree.” After all, Zhu Yunzhou was the head of the Zhu Family. He was a decisive and capable person, so he instantly nodded in agreement. “Thank you for sparing me. I will settle my businesses and give you a reply within three days.”
“Good, you’re straightforward.” There was a glimmer in Hong Xingyu’s eyes. “I’ve decided to let the Ye Family inherit your position. Any problems?”
“No problem.” What else could Zhu Yunzhou say at this point? He directly agreed. “You can make all arrangements from here on. Keep this estate as my personal gift to him. Haha, I lost everything in one go. This is god’s sign. Sigh. I’ll leave here once everything’s settled and look for a place to live out my remaining days. Thank you for sparing me, Old Hong.”
He stood up and bowed deeply to Hong Xingyu.
He was completely genuine this time.
Hong Xingyu indeed spared his and the Zhu Family’s lives. Otherwise, if Hong Xingyu directly requested for a duel, the Zhu Family would certainly disappear directly from this world. He still gave Zhu Yunzhou a way out and spared his life.
Hong Xingyu was not really feeling merciful. He did this mainly because he wanted to accumulate some good karma for Hong Dali. Hong Xingyu would do anything for his sweetheart.
Once the Zhu Family’s matters were settled, the Bei Family was next. Before Hong Xingyu could make a move, the head of the Bei Family, Bei Mingxuan, rushed over. Once he entered the door, he hurriedly said, “Head of the Bei Family, Bei Mingxuan, here to see Sir Chief of Staff!”
“Humph, you came pretty fast.” Dick humphed coldly. “You plotted together with the Zhu Family to take down the Hong Family. You should have an explanation for that, yes?”
Since Lei Zhe asked him to stay here, Dick must settle everything properly. He was already aware of everything that happened. Hence, once he saw Bei Mingxuan rush over, he did not spare him any face.
“Compensate! I’ll compensate!” Bei Mingxuan’s face turned pale white. He lost all his pride and dignity. Instead, he hurriedly said to Hong Xingyu, “Half of our Bei Family’s assets will be gifted to Old Master Hong. Please, Old Master Hong, forgive and spare us.”
He directly offered half of his assets. That was a decisive and brutal move.
“Humph. Compared to Old Zhu, you are even more despicable.” Hong Xingyu humphed coldly. “However, our sweetheart is kind. He doesn’t like to kill others so easily. I’ll let you go this time. However, you need to remember this. If you ever dare to scheme against me, I’ll exterminate your entire Bei Family!”
“Understood. Understood!” Bei Mingxuan exhaled deeply. He was paying to avoid a catastrophe, as he was well aware of the situation. Hong Dali was brought to the Astral Alliance headquarters for further training, which meant that he would surely soar high in the ranks. No matter how amazing Bei Mingxuan became, his maximum rank would be the leader of this Astral. However, once Hong Dali returned, he would become, at the very least, an Inspector-level official. It would be so easy for him to destroy Bei Mingxuan. Hence, Bei Mingxuan admitted defeat in exchange for his family’s safety.
“Alright, since everyone agreed to the terms, this is settled then.” Sir Dick slowly stood up and glanced condescendingly at Zhu Yunzhou and Bei Mingxuan. “How did the two of you become heads of your families? You can judge someone so wrongly. That’s impressive.”
As he said that, he walked out of the house. Hong Xingyu hurriedly followed behind. Only Zhu Yunzhou and Bei Mingxuan remained as they sighed with gloomy expressions.
This time, the Bei Family and the Zhu Family were completely finished. The Zhu Family was uprooted. They could not even remain on Shenglong Star. The Bei Family was also heavily injured. It would be near impossible for them to recover in the future.
As for the Hong Family, they made their ally, the Ye Family, into one of the three major families. They became the indisputable and absolute sole leader of the entire Shenglong Astral!
On the internet, news about the Zhu Family being exiled from Shenglong Star quickly started trending. Within half an hour, everyone was discussing it—
“Have you heard? The Zhu Family is screwed this time. Hong Dali from the Hong Family is soaring straight for the sky now. He’s being brought back to the Astral Alliance headquarters for further training. Once he comes back, he’ll at least become an Inspector. Wow, that’s amazing.”
“I heard. I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t know about such major news! This time, the Zhu Family is leaving Shenglong Star. They’re being replaced by the Ye Family. The Bei Family is also badly hurt. From now on, they can only bow down to the Hong Family.”
“Hong Dali is amazing. He destroyed everyone else so easily. The Bei Family and the Zhu Family’s alliance was such a formidable force. Yet, within just two months, they’re finished completely. I was still waiting on the duel!”
“Duel for what? Who still dares to piss off the Hong Family now? Won’t they be asking for death? Old Master Hong mastered Rejuvenation. Old Madam Hua Yueling is probably close too. Sigh, one can really anger oneself to death if we compare ourselves with others...”
This 𝓬ontent is taken from f(r)eeweb(n)ovel.𝒄𝒐𝙢