Chapter 1517: Chapter 1167: The Imperturbable Mingzhu! Divine Martial Imperial City!

"Clan Leader!"

"Honored Elders!"

On the suspension bridge, the crowd hastily parted to make way, all respectfully watching as a woman with a graceful figure and regal bearing, yet radiating extreme majesty, stepped out, flanked by two old men clad in moon-white robes.

This woman had a pair of very large eyes, brows thick as knife sheaths, and a nose that was high and broad; her thin lips were tightly pressed together, proclaiming that she was absolutely a woman of immense will and resolve. It was as if she was born with an awe‑inspiring authority that compelled others to bow their heads and submit, making even the most domineering of men feel fear before her.

In fact, looking at the expressions of fear and respect on the faces of the many Wan Family Members all around at this moment, one could easily imagine the methods and prestige this woman possessed.

This woman was indeed a once‑in‑a‑million extraordinary figure among women, and she was precisely the current Clan Leader of the Wan Family, a Returning to Truth Realm level 9 expert, hailed even within the Holy Dynasty as an Iron Maiden‑like peerless powerhouse—Wan Mingzhu.

Apart from the old ancestor "Wan Manxin," who had long maintained a Primordial Spirit State within Wanling Pond, borrowing the family’s Qi Fortune to extend his lifespan while closing himself in a Death Gate, the five generations of Family Heads of the Wan Family were all far from mediocre.

Each generation of Family Head had governed the clan for nearly two hundred years, yet they had all been men—only in this generation did a woman, Wan Mingzhu, sit in this seat.

However, the reason Wan Mingzhu was able to assume the position of Family Head was precisely because she displayed an incomparably formidable cultivation talent and leadership ability. Only thus did she gain the support of the two Elders more than fifty years ago and firmly secure the position of Wan Family Family Head.

Fifty years ago, Wan Mingzhu had only been a Returning to Truth Realm level 5 expert.

Fifty years later, she was already a bona fide level 9 Returning to Truth supremo.

Within the entire Holy Dynasty, those capable of reaching such strength numbered only three to five dozen; without exception, each one was the absolute figurehead of some top‑tier great power or faction.

And in the past Wan Family, counting the five Returning to Truth Realm experts who had died of old age or gone missing in deadly places, only one had ever reached the level 9 tier of the Returning to Truth Realm.

At this moment, with Wan Mingzhu’s appearance, the previously noisy and tumultuous scene swiftly quieted and grew solemn. Everyone seemed to have found their pillar; even though they were likely facing a clan crisis, they nonetheless calmed down.

Wan Mingzhu stood with a composed aura, looking down at the ripples on the surface of the pond below gradually subsiding. Her voice sank as she spoke, "For our clan’s Qi Fortune to issue a warning, unless something has occurred that will shake the clan’s very foundations, it makes no sense. My Wan Family’s position within the Holy Dynasty is deeply rooted, and we are greatly favored by the Regent King—what matter could shake the clan’s foundational heritage?"

The two Elders at her side had also been unable to figure it out despite racking their brains, but upon hearing this question from Wan Mingzhu, which clearly carried some hidden meaning, one of them, a goateed old man, suddenly furrowed his brows, having caught the undertone in her words.

The Wan Family’s position within the Holy Dynasty was deeply rooted, yet it was precisely because they were relying on the Holy Dynasty that they could remain stable.

If something went wrong on the Holy Dynasty’s side, the Wan Family would naturally also fall into crisis.

But how could anything go wrong with the Holy Dynasty? The only one that could meet with an "accident" was the Wan Family that relied on the Holy Dynasty, and the only one that could bring crisis upon the Wan Family was the Holy Dynasty itself.

When a lord demands his minister’s death, the minister must die.

If the Wan Family had violated the Holy Dynasty, then, of course, a crisis would arise.

And at this very moment, the clan was indeed secretly engaged in actions that gravely violated the laws of the Holy Dynasty, an undertaking of extreme risk.

Aside from this, only if some Returning Truth Expert within the clan had encountered an accident would it similarly damage the clan’s Qi Fortune and thus cause Wanling Pond to issue a warning.

After all, the Wan Family, having developed for so many years, had produced only sixteen Returning to Truth Realm experts. Excluding the five who had died of old age or gone missing, only eleven remained alive.

One could say that to cultivate any single Returning to Truth disciple was exceedingly arduous, demanding tremendous resources and even the undertaking of enormous risks. Once any one of them met with misfortune, it would, of course, be a tremendous blow to the clan.

At this thought, the minds of the two Elders, as well as those of some of the high‑ranking figures standing nearby, all became active; their expressions shifted slightly as they thought of Wan Zhongchen, the Direct Lineage descendant who had been quietly sent to a vassal state.

As one of the two most outstanding descendants of this generation that the Wan Family had devoted themselves to nurturing, Wan Zhongchen, although indeed possessing excellent aptitude, had also cost the clan an enormous amount of resources. Recently he had even been sent to the vassal state to seize yet more resources.

But this trip of Wan Zhongchen’s had been fraught with risk from the very start. Even if his strength was extraordinary, enough for him to walk sideways in the vassal state, that did not mean the vassal state had no true top‑tier experts—among a very small number of individuals there, some could have become great figures even in the Holy Dynasty.

"Could it be that something has happened to this child Zhongchen in the vassal state? Yet this child has been clever and quick‑witted since childhood, his own strength is not lacking, and he also has that life‑saving trump card prepared for him when he broke through to the Returning to Truth Realm—how could he possibly meet with an accident?"

"Indeed. Besides, we already admonished him that any expert who has reached the Returning to Truth Realm, even if weaker than him, must not be provoked. As for some of the top powers in the vassal state, I had him avoid all of them. If he acted accordingly, he should by no means have met with an accident."

The two Elders both looked toward Wan Mingzhu, sending their words via Primordial Spirit Transmission.

Wan Zhongchen’s identity was extremely special; only the two of them and Wan Mingzhu knew the truth of it. Even Wan Zhongchen himself was unaware. If something truly had happened to Wan Zhongchen, they were worried that Wan Mingzhu might make some irrational decision.

Yet seeing Wan Mingzhu’s calm face now, the two Elders also understood that this woman was, as always, cool‑headed and rational—so much so that her calm and reason were almost inhuman.

Wan Mingzhu coldly transmitted back, "From beginning to end I did not approve of him going to the vassal state to do this, nor did I approve of the two of you pulling such little tricks. But unfortunately, the general trend was already set back then; once this Choice was made, I no longer had the power to stop it. Now that Zhongchen has met with an accident, that too was his own Choice; he must bear the consequences himself, and under no circumstances may this implicate the clan. To prevent this matter from completely coming to light, you two Elders should know what must be done."

The hearts of both Elders turned cold; they silently exclaimed at her ruthlessness, yet at the same time they completely set their minds at ease.

From the standpoint of human feeling, this decisive move of sacrificing the pawn to preserve the king was indeed exceedingly cruel to Wan Zhongchen and chilling to behold. But from the standpoint of the clan’s interests, it was nothing but beneficial and harmless to the family.

"Wan Zhongchen is, after all, your......"

One of the Elders wanted to utter a polite reminder.

Wan Mingzhu gave a cold snort, turned on her heel, and swept her sleeves as she left, causing him to immediately run into a wall of cold indifference.

The two clan elders exchanged a look, both sighing inwardly. Watching Wan Mingzhu’s tall back as she left, they could vaguely see the scene from years ago when that little pearl used to circle around them, playing and laughing, calling them "Grandpa."

In a blink, the long years had passed. The two of them had grown even older, while that once little pearl had grown into the very pillar of the family. Even they now mostly followed her decisions. All of a sudden, from the bottom of their hearts, they felt the family truly owed her far, far too much.

"What happened back then became the scar of her life. Otherwise she wouldn’t have become the now-famous Iron Maiden... Zhongchen, that child, is probably the person she values most now. Though she appears calm on the surface, this time it’s obvious she has once again chosen to sacrifice herself for the family."

"It’s my fault too. Zhongchen may be clever and quick-witted, but he still lacks experience in the Martial World, and he’s been pampered since childhood. Maybe after going to a vassal state, he would be flattered into recklessness, and that’s how accidents might happen. It’s my fault; I shouldn’t have let Zhongchen choose this path back then."

"Now that it’s already happened, and we don’t even know what Zhongchen’s current state is, we’d better first figure out the situation."

"Though we were indeed wrong this time and must immediately deal with all contraband in a low‑profile manner, that doesn’t mean if someone from my Wan Family really has met with an accident, we’ll just ignore it. No matter who in that vassal state it is, anyone blind enough to offend my Wan Family like this must pay the price."

"Investigate. Investigate thoroughly!"

...

"Achoo!"

High above the Divine Martial Imperial City, Jiang Dali let out a fierce sneeze. Streams of airflow shot out of his mouth and nose, like high‑pressure mist from a water cannon, tearing open the air ahead before dissipating.

"Hm?"

He rubbed his nose and looked at the prompt that popped up on the panel.

"The incident where you severely injured the Wan Family Direct Lineage member Wan Zhongchen of the Holy Dynasty’s top clan continues to ferment. The Wan Family high‑ups are furious and are very likely to launch retaliation. Your relationship with the Wan Family remains Hostile."

"The Wan Family... looks like the follow‑up effect has come out. Although the distance from the Divine Martial Country to the Holy Dynasty isn’t far, it’s been less than half a day, and they already know Wan Zhongchen had an accident. Seems they really have some powerful methods unknown to others."

Looking at the prompt on the panel, Jiang Dali kept it in mind but didn’t take the so‑called Wan Family retaliation too seriously.

No matter how strong the Wan Family is, can they really send a Returning to Truth Realm stage 8 or 9 peerless expert to swagger into a vassal state and come looking for trouble with him?

And as long as it’s not a top expert at Returning to Truth 8–9, even if a Returning to Truth 7 expert comes, they still won’t be able to do much to him. What’s there to be scared of?

Perhaps the only thing to be careful about is that in the future, if he goes to the Holy Dynasty and steps onto someone else’s turf, he’ll need to keep a low profile and guard against retaliatory strikes.

So he also decided that before heading to the Holy Dynasty, he must first lie low in the vassal state until he reaches Returning to Truth 7. Otherwise, going to a new place and having to act timid wouldn’t fit his style.

Calming his thoughts, Jiang Dali let his eyes observe in all directions and his ears listen on all sides.

He saw that below, the Divine Martial Imperial City was bustling with people. The Capital City was linked by a crisscrossing rectangular road system, and the roads were wide.

But the closer it was to the Inner City, the more crowded the roads became. Carriages and horses flowed like a river, people jostled in a lively throng, a scene of utter prosperity. From this alone one could tell that this Divine Martial Country indeed had flourishing Qi Fortune and the bearing of Qi Fortune heading toward a sacred dynasty.

Looking deeper in, at the true Imperial Palace, it carried a transcendent air of being surrounded within and without.

Only to see that the palace buildings rose lofty and towering, their Momentum majestic. Gardens, ancestral temples, temples and Taoist halls, pavilions, main halls, and multi‑story towers stood in dense profusion yet in clear order. Within the city, there were also lakes, waterside pavilions, and gardens meticulously designed by masters to regulate the air, leaving people with no sense of oppression at all and instead a noble, elegant aura.

At this moment, many people below had obviously noticed the Demon Dragon in the sky. All of them were stunned speechless by that enormous dragon shadow coiling across the heavens, craning their necks, pointing and talking as they looked up.

Some Martial World people and Players had already guessed the identity of the person atop the Demon Dragon. All were discussing in excitement, expressions wonderful to behold.

"The Black Wind Village Chief has come to our Divine Martial Imperial City, and it looks like there’s someone on that dragon’s back too. Can’t see who it is though?"

"I wonder if our Divine Martial Emperor will be trembling in fear. Anyway, I’ve already started shaking first."

"The Black Wind Village Chief’s entrance is way too domineering and cool. This full‑to‑bursting BOSS aura has deeply captivated my tender heart from ’82."

"The Black Wind Village Chief’s gear has changed too. Looks like the BOSS has leveled up? Sigh, dressed so tightly now, we can’t see the village chief’s charming pecs anymore."

"Truly third‑rate gear, second‑rate mount, first‑rate body, and low‑down me."

"Actually... if Brother Da Li isn’t ugly, he should be pretty handsome too."

Under the Players’ gazes—necks almost bent back ninety degrees—Jiang Dali rode the Demon Dragon with a clear destination, flying straight toward the Imperial Palace.

At once, the tense bells rang out within the Divine Martial Imperial Palace. Large numbers of Divine Martial Guard, led by their commanders, were rapidly assembled, forming an enormous formation to greet the honored arrival as though facing a great enemy. Even the Divine Martial Emperor deep in the palace was alarmed. He quickly walked out from the harem and, surrounded by a large group of Inner Palace Experts, looked solemnly up at the uninvited guest in the sky...

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(Extra Chapter at dawn. End of the month—begging you to clear out those monthly tickets!)