Villains Aren't Stepping Stones!-Chapter 77: The Reactions

The Shen Clan Domain was not a mere estate or a sprawling city; it was a fragmented shard of a higher plane, a separate dimension the size of an entire world.

Within this realm, the laws of physics were secondary to the density of the spiritual qi that saturated the air.

Countless cities, floating mountain ranges, and infinite forests thrived under a sky that lacked a sun, instead lit by the collective radiance of the clan’s ancestral formations.

Millions of branch members and descendants lived out their lives here, all tethered by the golden blood that flowed through their veins, however diluted it might be.

In a city known as the Spear-Glow Fortress, a place where the architecture itself looked like a forest of upright blades, the First Elder of the Grand Enshrined Hall stood upon a high balcony.

His eyes, sharp and weathered like flint, were fixed on a lone youth in the central plaza below.

The youth was a blur of motion, every thrust of his spear caused the air to crackle with static, and the ground beneath him groaned under a localized gravitational pressure.

The first elder couldn’t help but nod in appreciation.

Suddenly, the space behind the First Elder rippled, and a figure draped in shadow emerged, kneeling with practiced subservience.

"First Elder, Young Master Haoran has been spotted leaving the Eastern Region. His Profound Ark has entered the central transit zones. He will be arriving back in the clan domain soon."

The First Elder’s brow furrowed, a sharp glint forming in his eyes. The heir’s return basically means that the tournament will begin soon. "Alright. You may go."

The shadow nodded and vanished as silently as a dying candle.

"Shen Fei!" the First Elder called out, his voice echoing with the resonance of a Heavenly Saint.

Below, the youth froze mid-strike.

This youth, Shen Fei, had a long, golden blonde hair tied back in a high ponytail and striking blue eyes that seemed to hold the weight of the sea.

He flicked his spear, and with a shimmer of spatial energy, the weapon vanished into his storage ring.

He then walked toward the balcony, jumping hundreds of feet upward to land gracefully before his master.

"Master, have I made a mistake in the rotation of the ’Heaven-Piercing’ form?" Shen Fei asked, his voice humble yet steady.

The First Elder stared at him, his heart swelling with pride, after all, this disciple was his masterpiece, someone he believed can defeat that youth and end the dominance of the main family.

After all, Shen Fei had begun his life as a nobody from a destitute branch family, bullied by his peers and neglected by his parents.

He harbors hatred to the main line due to the fact that he believes they are hoarding resources and corrupt, letting the branch family fight for scraps while they enjoy themselves.

At first he thought that he can only curse them silently, but two years ago, Shen Fei had Earth Suppressing Sacred Physique, a physique that when cultivated to perfection, gives one the weight of ten thousand worlds, distorting even space and time with casual movements.

And since that day, his cultivation had exploded in a way that defied the logic of the clan elders as he had reached the peak of the Golden Core Realm at a young age of 27!

Just this alone shows just how terrifying Sacred Physiques are, after all, they are only under the Divine Physiques, which are said to be born at the dawn of creation.

Then, for the past two years, through a series of brutal challenges and struggles, he had climbed to the 1st Rank of the Ten Crowns.

These Ten Crowns, within the Shen Clan, were the ten strongest and most talented descendants of the generation, ranked from 9th (the weakest) to 0 (the absolute).

The 0 Rank, of course, belonged exclusively to Shen Haoran.

"Shen Fei," the First Elder said, placing a heavy hand on the boy’s shoulder. "Shen Haoran has been reported to be returning in the clan soon, and with his return, the Heaven’s Choice Tournament will begin shortly after he finished a mission assigned to him. That will be your time to finally step out of the shadow of the main branch and defeat Shen Haoran."

Shen Fei’s blue eyes burned with a cold, ambitious fire as he grinned, his teeth white against his tanned skin. "Don’t worry, Master. My Sacred Physique had already achieved a Major Completion, along with everything you taught me, I will surely defeat that man and become the Heaven’s Chosen. The era of the main branch’s absolute rule ends with me!"

The First Elder smiled, a predatory expression. "Good. I am waiting for the day the heavens themselves bow to my disciple."

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While the First Elder nurtured his spear-wielding protege, the Second Elder of the Grand Enshrined Hall was in a different part of the domain—a city of hedonism and red jade.

He stood in a lavish penthouse, staring with a mix of frustration and resignation at his own descendant, Shen Jian.

He was a handsome man with short, spiky golden hair and eyes as red as fresh blood, and unlike Shen Fei who was training, he was currently reclined on a massive velvet couch, his hands draped over the shoulders of two barely clothed women who were feeding him spirit-grapes.

"Huh? Shen Haoran is returning? So what?" Shen Jian asked, his voice dripping with arrogance that he didn’t even look at his grandfather.

Just then, he flexed his fingers, and a faint, terrifying supreme qi emanated from his body, causing the wine in the glasses on the table to vibrate.

Despite only being ranked 2nd in the Ten Crowns, Shen Jian believes that he was strongest, and the reason why he was ranked below is because he didn’t even try.

After all, ranks means absolutely nothing to him, especially since the position of the Heir was basically already reserved for Haoran.

But now, with the Heaven’s Choice Tournament, he now have the chance to be the heir of the Shen Clan!

"Even if he and that ’Sacred Physique’ brat Shen Fei were to join forces, I would still crush them both under my heel. The Heaven’s Choice title is already mine. Tell my parents to save their breath."

The Second Elder sighed, the sound lost in the music of the penthouse.

He knew his grandson was arrogant, but in a world where might makes right, such arrogance was usually justified.

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Far away from the cities, in a secluded forest where a waterfall crashed over obsidian rocks, the Third Elder sat on a mossy stone.

He was watching a young man meditating directly under the crushing weight of the falls.

This youth was different, as unlike the vibrant, sun-like hair of the other Shen members, his hair was a dull, faded gold—almost like straw.

This is because in the Shen Clan, the brightness of the hair was a direct indicator of bloodline purity.

Those with the most concentrated blood, like Haoran, had hair that looked like spun gold and eyes of the same hue.

In fact, only those from the main line possessed golden eyes.

So for this young man to have such faded hair means his bloodline was so impure and diluted.

This was Shen Hao, the Third Elder’s great-grandson.

Actually, Shen Hao had been born a miracle, not only having the brightest golden hair, but also carrying a Supreme Bone that promised the talent of a future Emperor.

But that miracle had turned into a curse because the Second Elder’s descendant had coveted that power and, in a night of blood and screams, had literally dug the bone out of the then infant Shen Hao’s chest.

From that moment on, Shen Hao had lost his talent, his bloodline purity, his future, and nearly his life.

When Third Elder heard of this, he immediately flew into rage and went to fight the Second Elder, intending to kill the Second Elder’s descendant and take back what should’ve belonged to Shen Hao.

Unfortunately, the reason why he was the third elder is because he was weaker than the second elder, and in the end, he was defeated and humiliated.

Just then, the waterfall suddenly split apart as if hit by an invisible sword as Shen Hao stood up, letting out a roar that drowned out the sound of the crashing water.

He didn’t use Qi—he couldn’t, for his meridians were shattered—but the sheer physical force of his voice was enough to distort the air.

He jumped onto the bank, landing silently beside his grandfather before cupping his hands in respect, "Grandpa."

The Third Elder looked at the boy’s chest, where a jagged scar remained, and then at the powerful, dense musculature of his frame.

Deapite being a crippled, Shen Hao found another way to cultivated, and that through strengthening his body to an extreme that was considered impossible.

Through sheer will and determination, he became a Body Cultivator who had reached a level where his physical reflexes and strength could parry the spells of a Golden Core expert with his bare hands.

"Hao’er," the Third Elder said softly. "Shen Haoran is returning, so I believe that the tournament will begin soon. You have spent years years tempering your flesh in the most brutal environments... how confident are you in winning?"

Shen Hao looked at his hands, then toward the direction of the main line’s palace. "Grandpa, I care nothing for the title of Heaven’s Chosen, but what those people, the Second Elder and his descendant, did to me, and the shame he brought upon you... I will repay it. Not for the sake of revenge, but to prove a point."

He looked into his grandfather’s eyes, his own dull golden eyes filled with an iron-like resolve. "I want to prove to the entire clan that the Supreme Bone they care so much about, the bone they would kill for, is nothing but discarded trash in my eyes. I will show them that piece of bone, I can still become an Emperor!"

"Isn’t it just a piece of bone!? A Supreme Emperor isn’t a title to be bestowed, it is not something a piece of bone can decide. It’s something that you must achieve yourself by taking one painful step at a time!"

The Third Elder stared at him for a long moment before letting out a boisterous, lung-bursting laugh. "Hahahaha! That’s right! That is what a real man of the Shen Clan should be like! Go prove it to them, Hao’er! I, your grandpa, will always have your back, even if I have to fight the entire Enshrined Hall myself!"

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At this moment, one by one, through the myriad cities, the floating palaces, and the hidden cultivation caves of the Shen Clan domain, the word spread.

Like a ripple across a pond, the news reached every elder, every servant, and every ambitious descendant.

The Prince was coming home.