Chapter 3174 — The Shocked Zhong Yongliang

"Jinxing, pull yourself together!" Though Dongfang Badao dimly understood that matters were dire and that Dongfang Yinxing had most likely met with foul play, he could not allow his own people to lose their heads now. He slapped Dongfang Jinxing hard across the face, snapping him back to his senses!

Without waiting for Dongfang Jinxing to say a word, Dongfang Badao snatched the phone away and spoke into it: "Feng Tianhu, is that you? This is Dongfang Badao. Tell me everything you know, in detail—what on earth happened!"

"Ah... Elder Dongfang, is it...? Truth be told, I don't know much myself. I only heard the rough outline from an informant over there..." As he spoke, Feng Tianhu relayed what he knew to Dongfang Badao. In truth, he was ignorant of the particulars; all he had was the outcome.

"So you're saying that Wei Zhao not only has the power to kill two experts at the peak of the late Heaven Rank in an instant, but can even hold his own against a master at the absolute pinnacle of the late Heaven Rank?" Dongfang Badao asked urgently.

"Exactly!" Feng Tianhu nodded. "Elder Dongfang, the deed is done now, and the evidence is irrefutable—those two are truly dead. Our next step should be to discuss how we might protect ourselves! This affair was led by our two houses. If Wei Zhao really comes knocking, my Feng family cannot withstand him, and your Dongfang family are no less than goods to be felled with a single blow of Wei Zhao's hand!"

"This..." Dongfang Badao's expression was exceedingly grim. Though Feng Tianhu's words were harsh to the ear, he had no choice but to admit it—Feng Tianhu was right! Wei Zhao could annihilate two experts at the peak of the late Heaven Rank at once and walk away without a scratch, completely unharmed. That alone was proof enough of Wei Zhao's fearsome power!

So the situation was clear enough now. If Wei Zhao wanted revenge, no one could stop him—the Dongfang family would suffer, and the ancient Feng family would suffer too! The matter at hand was no longer about taking revenge; it was about preventing Wei Zhao from taking his.

Yet old age had made Elder Dongfang crafty. Rather than give in to baseless panic, he pondered for a moment and then said, "From what I know, Wei Zhao has many enemies, yet he rarely goes out of his way to stir up trouble with others. He acts only when he has no choice. In the several assaults our Dongfang family launched, Wei Zhao was merely striking back—that proves the point. I have also investigated Wei Zhao before. Unless absolutely forced to it, he will not move against anyone of his own accord. In all this time, the only ones he ever took the initiative against were the Yu family of the secular world and the hidden Zhao family..."

"That may be so, Elder Dongfang, but have you considered what the secular Yu family and the hidden Zhao family each represent? One belongs to the secular plane and one to the hidden plane! Wei Zhao is killing a chicken to warn the monkeys. Perhaps the next one will be my ancient Feng family or your Dongfang clan!" Feng Tianhu had studied Wei Zhao as well, and this was the conclusion he had drawn.

"That was because they pushed him too far! As things stand now, not a single person at Wei Zhao's side has died or been wounded, while our Dongfang family has lost several fine experts. I doubt he will come trouble us—so long as we endure quietly and do not provoke him, that will be enough." Dongfang Badao spoke calmly. "To bear it for a while—that is nothing."

Hearing Dongfang Badao's tone, Feng Tianhu ground his teeth in fury, yet there was nothing he could do! When all was said and done, the Dongfang family were merely hired blades; the whole affair had begun with him, Feng Tianhu. If Wei Zhao sought revenge, he would certainly be the first under the knife, whereas the Dongfang family need only lower their heads and offer an apology and they would surely be fine—after all, Wei Zhao had lost nothing.

But Feng Tianhu was different. Make Feng Tianhu bow his head? Would that not mean acknowledging Xu Shilan's status, and bowing to Feng Tianqi as well? Then how could he still compete for the position of family head? And would not Feng Nitian have died in vain?

To give it all up—he could not accept it! But now the Dongfang family had plainly drawn back, and he himself was no match for Wei Zhao. There was nothing Feng Tianhu could do. His face darkened, but his voice did not change: "Very well, Elder Dongfang. Since that is how it is, I am reassured."

After hanging up, Feng Tianhu stamped his foot in hatred and walked toward the Feng family's ancestral shrine, where Feng Nitian's memorial tablet was kept. He needed to calm his mind and think of a better way to deal with Wei Zhao and Xu Shilan. Until Wei Zhao was dead, he would not rest!

Gazing at Feng Nitian's memorial tablet, Feng Tianhu swore silently in his heart that he would make Wei Zhao pay! Only now he had lost his ally, and with his own strength alone he could not shake Wei Zhao at all. Next, he would have to find a new outside backer—but who?

That's it! The Tomorrow Upon Tomorrow Sect! It suddenly occurred to Feng Nitian that the Tomorrow Upon Tomorrow Sect had also lost one of its own—and not just anyone, but an important disciple: Pure Yin Heavenly Worthy, the junior brother of the sect master, Pure Yang Heavenly Worthy! With this man dead, the Tomorrow Upon Tomorrow Sect would surely be enraged, would it not?

Heh heh—and that was a master at the absolute pinnacle of the late Heaven Rank! Feng Tianhu knew full well that walking this road to the bitter end was fraught with peril, but now that things had come to this, regret and fear were of no use. He had been driven to this point. Had Feng Nitian not died, he might perhaps have given up and stopped fighting for anything; but Feng Nitian was dead, and he too had been forced onto a dead-end road. Even in fear, he must walk on!

For his own sake, and for the sake of his dead son, a ferocious, crazed look flashed across Feng Tianhu's face.

The Tomorrow Upon Tomorrow Sect and the Five Luminaries Sect were both great sects that had descended from the altar of the ancient plane. The key figures of these sects all possessed soul jade tablets, which would shatter only upon that person's death. Now that Pure Yin Heavenly Worthy's jade tablet had shattered, the disciple in charge of inspections was instantly alarmed and hurried off to report it to Pure Yang Heavenly Worthy!

"What? Junior Brother Chunyin is dead?" Pure Yang Heavenly Worthy was greatly shaken as well. Setting all else aside, he rushed to report the matter to Zhong Yongliang.

Zhong Yongliang's expression was likewise very grim. He knew of the soul jade tablets—when he himself had fallen, his jade tablet had shattered as well; only, he had possessed a secret art to preserve his primordial spirit for a future body-snatching. But Pure Yin Heavenly Worthy had no such secret art. Dead was dead, and the jade tablet did not lie.

"Look into it—how did he die? Was it at Wei Zhao's hand?" Zhong Yongliang's face was dark. He truly found it hard to believe that Wei Zhao now possessed such fearsome power as to slay even Pure Yin Heavenly Worthy, a master at the peak of the late Heaven Rank. If so, just what caliber of expert was Wei Zhao?