Chapter 189: Broken Patriarch, Scapegoat Son and The Desperate Plea to the Ancestor ( Bonus GT - IX )

Chapter 189: Broken Patriarch, Scapegoat Son and The Desperate Plea to the Ancestor ( Bonus GT Chapter IX )

The grand main hall of the Zhao Family estate was filled with an atmosphere of eager anticipation.

Dozens of family elders, branch heads, and core members were gathered, sitting in the luxurious chairs. They were sipping tea, whispering among themselves with smug, expectant smiles.

They all had seen Patriarch Zhao Feng leaving with Fifty Elite Armor Guards and retired elders joining him . In their minds, the matter was already settled. That arrogant rogue cultivator in the outer city was undoubtedly already a headless corpse, and his shabby restaurant was likely burning to the ground, they were just waiting here to continue their family metting which was stopped halfway.

Suddenly, the heavy wooden doors of the hall were pushed open with a weak, trembling creak.

The relaxed chatter instantly died.

All eyes turned to the entrance.

Walking through the doors was Patriarch Zhao Feng. But he was not the majestic, tyrannical overlord who had left at the morning. His robes were torn and stained with dirt and dried blood. His hair was disheveled, his face was as gray as ash, and his spiritual aura was fluctuating wildly, as if his foundation had been severely damaged.

In his arms, he was carrying a limp, drooling figure. It was the Third Young Master, Zhao Kuang. His head was wrapped in bloody rags, his eyes were rolled back, and his dantian was completely empty.

He was no longer a cultivator, he was a brain damaged mortal.

The hall fell into a dead, terrifying silence. The teacups slipped from the elders’ hands, shattering on the stone floor.

Zhao Feng didn’t say a word.

He just walked to the center of the hall and unceremoniously dropped his crippled son onto the ground like a sack of trash. Then, his legs gave out, and he collapsed to his knees, burying his face in his hands.

"Patriarch... what... what happened?" the Second Elder stammered and his voice trembled as he stepped forward. "Where are the guards? Where is Elder Hu? Did the rogue cultivator was really that strong or did someome interfere in our family matters?"

Zhao Feng let out a dry, agonizing sob. He slowly raised his head, his eyes were completely bloodshot and filled with a despair so deep it seemed to swallow the light in the room.

"He... he didn’t just have backing," Zhao Feng and his voice sounded just like a grinding stones. "He... is an Honorary Core Disciple of the Cloudwater Sect. Elder Hu is dead. Sowm of the guards are dead too. And... and I had to sign a shameful contract with him"

The elders stared at him not even able to comprehend what’s going on. "A Shameful Contract? For what?"

"For sixty percent," Zhao Feng whispered, his own words tasted like a poison in his mouth. "Sixty percent of all our properties. Including the Auction House, the three western spirit ore mines, the Blood Lotus pill workshop and the herb gardens... they are all his now. We... we have lost everything."

Boom!

The words hit the hall like a physical thunderclap.

For a full dozen of seconds, no one breathed.

Then, absolute chaos erupted.

"Sixty percent?! Are you mad?!"

"Our foundation! Our ancestral assets!"

"How could you sign such a thing?! You are the Patriarch!"

The elders were stunned, then furious. But as the initial shock wore off, a chilling realization washed over them. They were furious, but they couldn’t direct that fury at the person who had actually taken their wealth.

They couldn’t curse the Honorary Disciple.

To slander, curse, or speak ill of an Honorary Core Disciple was a direct violation of the Cloudwater Sect’s highest laws. If they dared to shout Yu Liang’s name with malice, the sect’s enforcement elders would descend upon the Zhao Family and exterminate them for rebelling against the sect’s authority.

Furthermore, after knowing the jist of the situation and escpecially how Elder Qian, a man they knew had terrifying, hidden connections, groveled before this young man, the Zhao Family elders were paralyzed by a deep fear.

Who exactly was backing this monster? If they cursed him, would his hidden protectors wipe them out tonight?

So, the fury had nowhere to go but inward.

All eyes slowly shifted from Zhao Feng to the drooling, crippled mess on the floor. Zhao Kuang.

"It’s his fault!" the Third Elder suddenly roared, pointing a trembling finger at their unconscious young master. "If this arrogant idiot hadn’t gone to the outer city to harass some lowly waitress, we wouldn’t have provoked a monster! He ruined us all!"

"Yes! He always acted like a tyrant! He brought this calamity upon the Zhao Family!" another elder joined in, his face twisted in hatred. "He is a scourge! A useless, brainless trash!"

Zhao Feng watched his family members curse only son, but he didn’t have the strength to stop them. He just sat there, a hollow shell of a man.

But the elders weren’t done. Their cold eyes turned back to Zhao Feng.

"Patriarch," the Second Elder said, his voice dropped to a icy tone. "You are the head of this family. You were the one who led the guards. You were the one who is responsible for this mess in the first place and signed the contract. You have lost the foundation our ancestors built over Hundreds of years. How do you plan to answer to the ancestors in the ancestral hall?"

Zhao Feng closed his eyes. A single tear of blood rolled down his cheek. He knew what was coming. In the ruthless cultivation world, a leader who lost the family’s wealth had no right to remain in power and just as expected it came too early.

Slowly, painfully, Zhao Feng reached into his robes and pulled out the Patriarch’s Token, a heavy, jade seal carved with the Zhao Family’s crest.

He placed it gently on the floor in front of him.

"I... have failed the family," Zhao Feng whispered, his voice devoid of all emotion. "I resign my position as Patriarch. I accept whatever punishment the elders deem fit to me."

The hall was silent for a moment.

Then, the Second Elder stepped forward and picked up the token. He didn’t look at Zhao Feng with pity, only with cold eyes.

"Your resignation is accepted," the Second Elder said. "You will be confined to the back mountain to reflect on your failures. Zhao Kuang will be sent to the mortal servant quarters. He is no longer a young master of the Zhao Family."

Zhao Feng nodded weakly. He didn’t resist as two guards stepped forward to dragged him and his son away. He was a broken man, his cultivation damaged, his pride shattered, his family ruined.

As the doors closed behind the disposed Patriarch, the remaining elders looked at each other with their faces turning pale and grim. The Zhao Family was now a crippled beast, bleeding out in the Inner City. The other Tier 4 families would soon smell the blood and move in to tear them apart.

"We cannot die like this," the Second Elder said, his voice trembled a little but soon turn into a resolute one. He looked around at the surviving elders. "We have lost our wealth and We have also lost our face. The Honorary Disciple has put a leash around our necks, and we cannot fight him directly without inviting the wrath of the Cloudwater Sect."

"Then what do we do?" the Third Elder asked as his arrogance was completely gone now replaced by sheer desperation. "Do we just wait to be slaughtered?"

The Second Elder’s eyes flashed with a dark light. He walked over to the ancestral altar at the back of the hall and lit three sticks of soul communicating incense. The smoke curled upward, forming a strange, complex pattern.

"We have only one card left to play," the Second Elder said as his voice echoed in the quiet hall. "We must bypass the sect’s normal channels and send a secret transmission to our supreme ancestor."

The elders gasped. "Ancestor Zhao Wuji? But he is an Inner Sect Elder of the Cloudwater Sect! He is in closed door cultivation! If we disturb him for a mere family dispute, he will be extremely furious!"

"This is no longer a mere family dispute!" the Second Elder hissed, turning to face them. "This is an existential threat! The Honorary Disciple has crippled us, but he also revealed his terrifying backing. If we do not act, the Zhao Family will be erased from history within a month or two by other families. Ancestor Zhao Wuji is the only one who has the status and the power to plead our case to the Sect Master, or... to find a way to deal with that monster without violating the sect’s laws!"

The elders looked at the burning incense, their faces turning a little normal but their eyes hardened with desperate resolve.

They had no other choice.

"Send the transmission immediately," the Second Elder commanded as his voice filed with heavy weight of their family’s survival. "Tell the Ancestor... tell him everything to the last detail. And pray to the heavens that he is willing to save us."