Looking at the back standing in front of him, Xiao Chen felt his emotions surge!
He knew that everything this man was doing was so that the people in this room would not dare look down on him! These were all his clan elders, and many were people he would usually have to stop and bow to whenever he encountered them. Yet just now, when he entered the grand hall, not a single one had greeted him, nor had anyone stood up to welcome him.
Their attitude had been made abundantly clear. Many of them likely believed Xiao Chen was unworthy of great responsibility and unfit to inherit the position of clan patriarch!
Ye Feng's overbearing attitude and actions were meant to tell every last one of them that the man in blood-red robes before their eyes was someone not a single soul in this hall could treat lightly!
At the same time, he was making it clear that Xiao Chen was the rightful successor of the Xiao clan!
Gradually, someone broke under the suffocating pressure bearing down on him and was the first to stand up.
It was the elder by the entrance who was only at the Nascent Soul realm—the very one who had looked first toward the elder wearing the jade thumb ring.
Once there was a first, a second followed.
After all, Ye Feng's pressure was not aimed at just one person, but at everyone present!
In all likelihood, only Xiao Chen's great-uncle, Xiao Ding, could remain seated where he was, as steady as Mount Tai.
Creak! Creak!
The harsh scrape of chairs against the floor rang out one after another as figure after figure rose to their feet. Some even had to lean heavily on walking sticks to stand. Soaked in sweat, their robes clung tightly to their backs.
In the end, out of more than thirty people in the grand hall, only Xiao Ding remained seated!
Ye Feng's gaze finally settled on the old man, not bothering to conceal the killing intent in his eyes in the slightest. His narrowed eyes fixed on him like a ravenous beast choosing its prey.
Two immense pressures collided in midair, causing the tables and chairs throughout the hall to tremble faintly. The teacups on the tables rippled with waves, sloshing out spiritual tea under the violent vibrations.
Bang!
The teacup shattered, and along with it, the chair beneath Xiao Ding exploded!
Under the terrifying pressure, the old man wavered, nearly toppling to the ground as a flicker of fury flashed through his cloudy eyes. His brows twitched, his face pale, only to realize that the crushing pressure had enveloped him so completely that he could not even stand!
Sweat poured down the pale elder's forehead. Xiao Chen's eyes narrowed slightly at the sight.
Standing behind Ye Feng with a cold, stern expression, he knew he could not afford to back down now! If he did, everything Ye Feng had done for him up to this point would have been in vain!
Remembering the look in his father's eyes just before death, Xiao Chen squeezed his eyes shut in anguish.
When he opened them once more, the pressure of the middle Void Refining Realm erupted with a deafening roar!
The combined force of both auras bore down fiercely, instantly flattening the old man to the ground, rendering him unable to move.
Stepping out to the side, Xiao Chen crushed the threshold beneath his foot with a heavy stomp.
The Blood God Spear in his hand radiated chilling murderous intent. Pivoting with his body, he gripped the spear in his right hand and hurled it forward with violent force!
Boom!
Tearing through empty air, the Blood God Spear slammed into the floor right beside the old man's ear!
Drip! Drip!
Propped up halfway on the ground, the elder had wanted to rise, but the searing heat and pain grazing his ear sent a bone-deep chill through his entire body. His throat bobbed as he swallowed with great difficulty...
The composure in his cloudy eyes was nowhere to be seen, replaced entirely by sheer terror!
A silence so absolute that one could hear a pin drop fell over the grand hall. Everyone stole a glance at Xiao Ding, then bowed with clasped hands and proclaimed:
"We welcome the clan patriarch!"
Ye Feng felt immense gratification upon seeing Xiao Chen make his move. He understood that Xiao Chen's feelings at this moment were surely complicated and bitter, but if he let them look down on him now, establishing authority in the future would be harder than ascending to the heavens!
With his hands hanging loosely at his sides, Xiao Chen strode along the two deep sword gouges toward the master seat that had once belonged to his father. Ye Feng followed silently behind him.
As Xiao Chen walked past Xiao Ding, he merely lowered his gaze to glance down at him, never once truly looking the old man in the eye. He knew Xiao Ding had a grandson who was slightly older than himself, yet that grandson was an even more complete, irredeemable scoundrel... Xiao Chen could never sit by and watch the Xiao clan be ruined in the hands of someone like that.
Taking his place on the seat, Xiao Chen looked out toward the entrance. All that met his eyes was ruin and desolation. Who would have thought the sword trenches on either side would serve as the red carpet for his ascent to the seat of Xiao clan patriarch?
A trace of despair and exhaustion inevitably weighed on his heart.
Xiao Chen had chosen not to bring his mother out just yet; he wanted to wait until everything had settled before doing so.
What he had to announce was very simple.
First, the Xiao clan would enter seclusion from the world.
Second, he would assume the seat of clan patriarch, but he would soon depart.
As soon as these words were spoken, an uproar erupted below.
Even Ye Feng had not expected him to do this, but glancing at Xiao Chen's blood-soaked robes, he understood the reasoning behind it. However, it was unlikely Xiao Chen would leave the Xiao clan in the next few years; at the very least, he would have to cultivate a core group of trusted confidants before he could go. Otherwise, relying on Xiao Chen's mother alone, the crowd below would soon reduce her to a mere figurehead.
Xiao Chen addressed a few more matters afterward, though Ye Feng did not pay much attention to them.
In the end, the old man lying on the floor spoke up in a deep, gravelly voice.
"I wish to leave the Xiao clan and establish my own branch!"
Hearing this, Ye Feng thumbed his sword slightly out of its scabbard with a snap!
Yet unexpectedly, Xiao Chen agreed. "You may."
"However... you cannot take a single thing belonging to the Xiao clan."
The elder immediately scowled and bellowed, "On what grounds?! Let me tell you, Xiao Chen, my monumental contributions played a part in everything the Xiao clan owns! What I choose to take with me isn't for a brat like you to dictate!"
Not stopping there, the old man turned and glared furiously at everyone in the hall. Pointing an accusing finger at Ye Feng, he roared, "This fellow's power is cut from the exact same cloth as those fiends! For all we know, the catastrophe that befell the Xiao clan was brought about by him! And you, Xiao Chen, dare to consort with someone like this and call him brot—!"
Splat!
Before Ye Feng could even flare with rage, a blood-red spear beam cut the old man off mid-sentence!
The spear violently skewered through the elder's half-propped shoulder, its point piercing straight out through the flesh and impaling the bluestone floor below. The tremendous impact sent a heavy shudder reverberating through the entire hall.
Beside himself with fury, Xiao Ding mobilized his primal energy and drew his sword, intent on rising to fight.
Swish!
Xiao Chen's figure flickered and vanished, only to reappear holding the Blood God Spear, forcefully pinning the raging elder back into the floor once again. The Great Sky Rosy Flame transformed into several fiery chains, wrapping tightly around the man in an instant. The scorching flames charred the elder's skin and flesh in mere moments.
With a ferocious expression, Xiao Chen snapped the elder's wrist underfoot!
He slowly twisted the shaft of the Blood God Spear, the spearhead grinding against bone with a spine-chilling crunch. The old man howled in agonizing pain.
"Ahhh! Xiao Chen, how dare you lay a hand on me?!"
Slap!
A resounding slap struck the elder across the face. Immediately afterward, Xiao Chen slammed his hand down onto the old man's head, smashing it violently into the floor!
Chapter 607