Within the Lian Residence.

Lian Chengshan sat in his own seat, his expression dark, somber, and ugly.

An Origin Qi Scholar subordinate was standing in front of him. He said, “We’ve already confirmed that Patriarch Xiong Tianyue has indeed died near West Alley, and the people accompanying him are all gone. Corpses litter the alleyway, and blood has already stained the streets red.”

“Do you know who did it?”

The subordinate shook his head. “I didn’t see anything. However, the Investigations Bureau’s head deputy Chen came by. After investigating the scene of the crime, he took a bunch of people over to the western area of the city.”

“The western area of the city……” Lian Chengshan muttered.

Was it Lin Fengtang?

Su Chen, you move so quickly!

Lian Chengshan sighed in his heart.

Logically, he should have made a move as soon as he heard the news, sending reinforcements to the Lin Clan to surround Su Chen, just like what the others were doing at the moment.

However, he did no such thing.

He remained there, sitting completely motionlessly.

That subordinate was a bit surprised to see him act like this. He said, “Patriarch……”

“I know. You can step down now,” was all that Lian Chengshan said.

When the subordinate saw him still acting like this, he mustered up his courage and said, “Patriarch! Su Chen is obviously planning on taking us down one by one. He should be going to deal with the Lin Clan right now. If we don’t send reinforcements now, I’m afraid……”

“I said that I know already. Isn’t head deputy Chen already on the way? The other clans should also have received the notice. If that’s the case, what need do we have to hurry? You may leave. I have a handle on the situation.” Lian Chengshan waved his hand. His subordinate didn’t dare say anything else and could only retreat.

Lian Chengshan withdrew his hand and began to pace back and forth.

He was gripping a notice tightly in his hands.

Lian Chengshan glanced at the notice and let out a sigh, closing his eyes.

After an unknown period of time.

An underling called out from outside, “Patriarch, there’s a guest here for you.”

“Who is it?”

“Su…… Su Chen.”

The voice carried with it a bit of shock and trembling.

Lian Chengshan, however, wasn’t surprised at all.

He frowned. “So he came after all.”

He had actually known that Su Chen would come.

“Let him in,” he said.

A moment later.

Su Chen stood within the hall, all alone.

All around him were the Lian Clan’s subordinates, elites, and generals.

These people all stared at Su Chen, killing intent dancing in their eyes and bloodlust exuding from their bodies.

Su Chen, however, acted as if he were unaware of his surroundings. He smiled at Lian Chengshan and said, “Su Chen greets Patriarch Lian.”

“Bureau Head Su, you have a lot of nerve.” Lian Chengshan nodded. “You have already slaughtered three of our clans, yet you still dare appear in front of us?”

“Slaughter?” Su Chen shook his head. “I didn’t slaughter anyone. The word “slaughter” is only really fitting when referring to killing chickens and dogs. It also carries with it a sentiment of wiping out an entire family. The people I killed were not so weak that they couldn’t retaliate and were similarly not so innocent. I also didn’t wipe out the entire family – only those who posed a threat to me. Most importantly…… it wasn’t three clans, but two.”

He raised his two fingers.

Two slender, pale fingers.

“Two clans?” Lian Chengshan squinted his eyes. “The Lin Clan wasn’t harmed?”

“A few of them died, but not many, and those that died had no status to speak of.”

“They surrendered?” Lian Chengshan was stunned.

He wasn’t stupid. He knew exactly what Su Chen was implying.

“They surrendered!” Su Chen replied confidently.

Lian Chengshan sat in shock.

Someone off to the side said, “So you’ve come all this way just to strut around and brag?”

The speaker was called Ma Yuan, a Yang Opening Realm cultivator and a guest of the Lian Clan. He had quite a bit of status here and was often treated with respect, which was why he was allowed to interrupt.

“Strut around?” Su Chen laughed. “I wouldn’t go that far. I just wanted to tell you one thing.”

Someone else interjected again, “Even if the Lin Clan surrenders, there are still seven more clans. Su Chen, do you really think that you can swallow all of them by yourself?” Since one person had already taken the lead, the others were emboldened to continue.

Su Chen replied, “Seven clans? I don’t think so. Right, I forgot to tell you that Long Qingjiang is also listening to me now, so only six of the ten Bloodline Nobility Clans remain.”

What?

Everyone’s expression immediately changed.

Su Chen continued, “And even then, the six clans won’t be able to easily do anything. The Wang Clan is currently surrounded by City Lord An, so no one will be able to come out for a bit of time. When I attacked the Lin Clan, the Yu Clan’s members were on their way to reinforce the situation, but they weren’t able to get there in time because Lu Qingguang sent some people to stop them. After I finished off the Lin Clan, I sent Wang Wenxin and the others to the Lai Clan. Right now, they’ve probably already arrived. Lai Wuyi was once the Long Clear Gang’s master, but now their relationships is about the flip the other way. As for the Wei and Shen Clans, they were bullied by you guys into their current state, so their focus is on protecting themselves. They won’t make a move easily. However, to prevent any accidents from happening, I sent Long Qingjiang and Lin Fengtang to blockade their residences so that they don’t make any trouble for me. You won’t be able to count on any of your allies.”

Everyone sucked in a breath of cold air.

Had Su Chen’s influence really reached this point without them even realizing it?

Lian Chengshan harrumphed, “But if that’s the case, then you’re the only one here.”

“Yes!” Su Chen replied. “It’s just me. But I alone am enough.”

“Absurd!”

“Outrageous!”

“Arrogant!”

The main hall burst forth into an uproar. Everyone present was indignant and infuriated.

Su Chen, however, remained expressionless. “I’ve come here today to seek peace. The reason I chose to come here is because in the past, we all had a mutual agreement of nonaggression. These past few years, I have always honored this agreement and have never offended the Lian Clan. However, during the battle on Southern Mountain, your clan broke this agreement, and members of your clan attacked me.”

Lian Chengshan sighed. “Everyone else was pushing for that. There was nothing I could do.”

“Then what about now? Is this agreement still in effect? Basically, if I’m not persuasive enough, will Patriarch Lian again consider capturing me?”

Lian Chengshan was stunned. “This was the reason you dared come alone? You thought that an agreement alone would be enough to protect you?”

“I just wanted to see if Patriarch Lian has any intention of honoring that agreement.”

Lian Chengshan froze for a moment, then shook his head. “If I missed this opportunity just because of an agreement, I would be stupid.”

Su Chen nodded. “Unsurprisingly, you aren’t swayed by empty words and reputation. Patriarch Lian, are you rejecting my good intentions?”

Lian Chengshan was shocked. “Can you not even say anything else? You want me to surrender with just you coming on your own and offering a few sentences?”

Su Chen shook his head. “There’s not much to say. What needs to be said has already been said. The situation is now quite clear; anyone with a clear head should be able to tell what’s going to happen next. There’s no point in saying any more. Patriarch, please make your decision.”

“Then you are wrong. If you came with a large army to suppress me, you might have forced me into capitulating. However, right now you are alone. The current situation in Clear River City is due to you. As long as I kill you, the situation you have created will collapse. Su Chen, you are too arrogant, and it’s this arrogance that has caused you to make this fatal mistake. Do you really think that no one dares to touch you in this kind of situation?” Lian Chengshan said as he stood up.

As he stood, the members of the Lian Clan all closed in, surrounding him tightly.

Su Chen wasn’t surprised. He glanced at the people surrounding him and said, “So you’ve made up your mind?”

“Naturally,” Lian Chengshan replied quite confidently.

Su Chen laughed.

Lian Chengshan didn’t understand why Su Chen was laughing. Su Chen chuckled a bit before saying, “The reason you refused me was because you feel like me coming alone into the Lian Residence is just asking to get killed. The reason I’m here isn’t for any stupid agreement.”

He glanced at Lian Chengshan. “In this residence, yourself included, there are a total of five Yang Opening Realm, twenty-one Blood Boiling Realm, and forty-six Qi Drawing Realm cultivators, along with three hundred martial artists. Maybe you think that this kind of strength is enough to deal with just me alone. But you seem to have forgotten that I was facing this many opponents when I escaped from the Southern Mountain.”

Lian Chengshan’s expression changed slightly.

“Of course, you could say that the Lian Clan is much stronger than before, but I am not the same as I was before either.” Su Chen slowly unsheathed the Mountain-Beheading Blade. “The current me is much more prepared than before! That is why I dared to come here on my own. The only reason I need is …… I alone am enough to destroy you all!”