Immortal-Exterminating Divine Venerable

Greater Yang God Hall.

Elder Long sat in the seat of honor, his expression impassive.

Below him, the Lu Family's Great Elder sat to his right, and the Lu Family Master to his left.

The other Elders, starting with the Second Elder, were seated in descending order of rank.

In total, there were over a hundred people.

Nearly everyone in the Lu Family with any modicum of power or strength was present.

"I have gathered you all here today to announce something."

Elder Long spoke faintly once everyone had arrived.

"Please speak, Elder Long."

The Lu Family's Great Elder said respectfully.

Although Elder Long was not a member of the Lu Family, not a single person from the family dared to show him the slightest disrespect or treat him as an outsider. This was true even for the Lu Family's strongest expert, the Great Elder, who was himself a Divine King.

This was because Elder Long was the Guardian of the Rising Dragon Tower.

And the Rising Dragon Tower was the very foundation of the Lu Family's rise to power and the root of its heritage.

It was no exaggeration to say that without the Rising Dragon Tower, without Elder Long, the Lu Family could never have achieved its current glory. Therefore, Elder Long held a position of paramount importance in their hearts.

Especially over the many years, no matter what befell the Lu Family, Elder Long had always stood as its protector.

He had guaranteed the continuation of the family.

In the hearts of the Lu Family, Elder Long was even more revered than their own ancestors.

If he had not been unwilling, they would likely have called him "Old Ancestor" instead of Elder Long.

Thus, the moment Elder Long began to speak, everyone fell silent, waiting with respectful solemnity for his words.

"I have considered the matter of the Lu Family officially emerging from seclusion to pledge allegiance to Saint Prince Yang Xiao, and I find it feasible. Saint Prince Yang Xiao possesses immense potential and has the Human Emperor as his backer; he shows the makings of a future Human Emperor. When our Lu Family emerges, we must do everything in our power to assist him. If I learn of anyone harboring malicious intent toward the Saint Prince again, I will personally act to eliminate them. Do you all understand?"

Elder Long said faintly.

"Elder Long! This..."

The moment he spoke, the expressions of every person in power from the Lu Family changed.

Even the Great Elder and the Lu Family Master, who had always supported this matter, were no exception.

Previously, although they had supported the Lu Family's emergence, their plan for Saint Prince Yang Xiao was merely to borrow his influence. There was absolutely no talk of genuine allegiance.

It was only for mutual benefit—or more accurately, it was exploitation.

But now, hearing Elder Long's words, it seemed he wanted them to assist with all their might, to truly become subjects under His Highness, the Saint Prince. How could the Great Elder and the Lu Family Master accept this?

To say nothing of Second Elder Lu.

Although he had been placed under confinement, he still had to appear for a matter of this magnitude. He was seated right below the Lu Family's Great Elder, and upon hearing Elder Long's words, his face turned terrifyingly grim.

'Although my grandson Fangxing died by my own hand after I was tainted by Demonic Qi and my Heart Demon was triggered, none of this would have happened if not for that brat, Yang Xiao! How could I, Lu Tianyun, ever serve him as my lord?'

Second Elder Lu was unreconciled.

"What? You all have objections, is that it? Fine. Those with objections, stand up. Voice all of your opinions. I'm all ears."

Elder Long's expression remained impassive.

And that expression of his was enough to make many retreat.

Although they were unwilling and unreconciled in their hearts, Elder Long's words were still extremely intimidating.

Especially now, seeing his determined look, it seemed he had set his mind on enforcing this matter. Many suppressed their thoughts and dared not speak out.

However, others were eager to speak up.

They were just waiting for someone to take the lead.

Elder Long acted as if he didn't see this and said faintly, "Is no one going to stand up? If no one voices an objection after three breaths, then this matter is settled."

As soon as he said this, the expressions of those who were still hesitating changed dramatically.

Finally, Second Elder Lu could sit still no longer.

He shot to his feet.

"Elder Long, I, Tianyun, do not accept this!"

Seeing him stand, Elder Long actually smiled and looked over. "And what is it that you do not accept?"

"My... my grandson, Lu Fangxing... Elder Long, you should have met him. His character and cultivation were both outstanding among the younger generation. But just because he didn't get along with the Saint Prince, he was nearly beaten to death by him... Although it was I who ultimately killed my grandson Fangxing by mistake when my Heart Demon flared up, I, Lu Tianyun, simply cannot swallow this humiliation! Besides, if the Saint Prince treated my grandson Fangxing this way, it's unlikely that the other young members of the Lu Family will fare any better with him. Are we supposed to make them all bow and scrape before the Saint Prince, to just swallow their anger and say nothing?"

Lu Tianyun made no attempt to hide his feelings.

However, the first half of his speech had no effect on the crowd; in fact, it was almost laughable.

But the second half was a different story.

Who among those present didn't have one or two juniors they doted on?

If their descendants were to be humiliated just for provoking the Saint Prince, not a single one of them would stand for it.

"Elder Long, the Second Elder is right. It's one thing for us old folks, but our juniors... which one of them isn't young and impetuous? If they were to provoke the Saint Prince or be oppressed by him, I fear the younger generation of our Lu Family would be ruined. This matter requires careful reconsideration."

"That's right. The Saint Prince may show the makings of a Human Emperor, but he is not the Human Emperor yet. Our Lu Family can be considered an Emperor Race, and we even have a top-tier Divine King like Elder Long presiding over us. Even the current Human Emperor wouldn't dare to look down on us, would he? Why should we devote the entire family's strength to suffer this person's temper at a time like this? The fact that he was willing to strike at Fangxing proves his character is flawed. Elder Long, this matter cannot be decided so rashly!"

With the matter now concerning their descendants, the powerful figures of the Lu Family began to speak up one by one.

And their arguments were well-reasoned.

Hearing this, even some who had been indifferent at first began to think they had a point.

They started to chime in with their agreement.

Even the Lu Family Master and the Lu Family's Great Elder nodded slightly.

If not for the long-standing friction between the Lu Family Master and Second Elder Lu, and the Great Elder's own sense of propriety, they too would have likely voiced their agreement by now.

In response to this, Elder Long remained completely unmoved.

He gave them a faint glance, rose to his feet without a word, and began to walk away.

"Elder Long, what are you...?"

This time, it was the Lu Family's Great Elder and the Lu Family Master who couldn't sit still.

The rest of the crowd fell silent.

All of them wore looks of confusion.

"Since you are all so noble and arrogant that you think a Saint Prince favored by the Human Emperor is inferior to your own descendants, you must naturally feel you are nobler than the Human Emperor himself. In comparison, I, Old Dragon, am but a mere Divine King. Since you look down on even the Human Emperor, I imagine you must look down on me as well. If that's the case, what is the point of me sitting here?"

The moment he said this, the members of the Lu Family, who had just been enthusiastically asserting how right they were, all shut their mouths.

The Lu Family's Great Elder and the Lu Family Master, in particular, were shaken to the core.

They knew the full details of the incident with Lu Fangxing; one could say they had watched the whole thing unfold.

Yet just now, when Second Elder Lu spoke, they had actually found themselves agreeing with him.

When it came down to it, wasn't it just as Elder Long had said?

They were arrogant and conceited.

They even looked down on the Human Emperor. Otherwise, how could they possibly think their own junior descendants were comparable to the Saint Prince?

But this notion was utterly laughable to anyone with a brain.

Let alone the fact that the Lu Family had only ever produced a single Great Emperor who had already fallen, even if a Great Emperor were still among them now, what right would they have to look down on the Human Emperor?

To look down on the Saint Prince?

Worse, if word of this were to get out, they couldn't even imagine how outsiders would mock them.

'Besides, as the Saint Prince, if he had to tolerate provocations from mere juniors, what kind of spine would he have? What could he possibly accomplish? Why would our Lu Family even need to pledge allegiance to such a person?'

A thought flashed through the Great Elder's mind.

He understood.

He understood what Elder Long meant.

And with that, he stood up.