Immortal-Exterminating Divine Venerable

"Second Elder, Elder Long is absolutely right. You were truly in the wrong this time! Setting aside the Saint Prince's strength, just consider his status! It is of the utmost nobility; how could you possibly slight him? Apologize to Elder Long at once! Do you really want him to abandon our Lu Family?"

The Lu Family's Great Elder, Lu Yunxiao, stepped forward and spoke.

As soon as he spoke, the expressions of the crowd, who had begun to waver due to Elder Long's resolute attitude, all changed.

"This…"

Only Lu Tianyun still wanted to say something.

But before the words could leave his mouth, he saw the coldness and warning in Lu Yunxiao's eyes.

In the end,

he shut his mouth.

And with him silenced, the others, though somewhat unwilling, could only lower their heads.

One by one, they stepped forward

to ask for Elder Long's forgiveness.

This included Second Elder Lu, Lu Tianyun.

In his heart, however, he was still not resigned to it.

'Although they knew Elder Long was right and the Saint Prince's status was indeed noble, the current Yang Xiao had no soldiers or generals under his command. Even his only True God was a member of their Lu Family.'

'Without power, no matter how high his status, how could they, as Martial Arts True Gods, willingly submit and bow their heads in service?'

Not only that,

some even began to resent Elder Long in their hearts.

They felt they were only bowing their heads because Elder Long had forced them to.

Elder Long was the Guardian of their Lu Family, but this time, he didn't side with them. Instead, he stood with an outsider. This was something they found even harder to accept.

This was especially true for Lu Tianyun. To this day, he believed his most outstanding grandson, Lu Fangxing, hadn't died by his own hands—he had died because of Yang Xiao.

But Elder Long didn't say a single word about it.

'He just uses his status to act high and mighty, pulling rank and speaking up for an outsider.'

It truly left him feeling indignant

and furious.

'After all, if Elder Long hadn't come out and made such a scene, he was confident his earlier words would have definitely put Yang Xiao in his place.'

'At the very least, he could have sabotaged the Lu Family's re-emergence into the world.'

'That would have at least aligned with his original intention for causing a scene.'

'Moreover, his words had been reasonable and well-founded, successfully stirring up hostility toward Yang Xiao among the crowd. This created an invisible sense of unity. With this, not only could he counteract the pressure from the Lu Family Patriarch's faction and their good relationship with Yang Xiao, but he could also marginalize the Patriarch's faction itself.'

'He would have gained the upper hand.'

'Even the Great Elder probably wouldn't have interfered in such a struggle.'

'But now, with Elder Long making such a scene…'

'The Great Elder was no longer on the Lu Family's side, let alone his side. His heart was filled with bitter resentment.'

'Yet he had no choice but to bow his head.'

'After all, the Lu Family's only two Divine Kings both supported Yang Xiao.'

'What could he do?'

'He could only watch as the Lu Family Patriarch's faction took full advantage of their friendship with this so-called Saint Prince.'

'If I had the Great Elder's strength, how could I have failed to even protect my own grandson? Let that little whelp be arrogant for now. I'll just see how long he can keep it up.'

Dissatisfied in his heart, yet forced to yield.

This was truly a difficult thing for Second Elder Lu.

Fortunately, he was a cunning old fox who had lived for hundreds of thousands of years; he had at least that much self-control.

'I'll endure it for now.'

Besides him, most of the other proud and arrogant members of the Lu Family shared similar thoughts.

Seeing them act this way,

Elder Long was very disappointed.

He even felt some regret.

'He regretted being deceived by the first ancestor of the Lu Family all those years ago, leaving the Rising Dragon Tower and the Greater Yang Pool with them. After so many years, the Lu Family's descendants were becoming more and more useless.'

'If this continues…'

'When will a Saint Emperor ever emerge?'

'When will my master's legacy ever be carried forward and glorified?'

Elder Long was also very displeased in his heart.

But in the end, these people were members of the Human Race he had guarded for over a million years. It would be a lie to say he had no feelings for them.

Although disappointed,

at this moment, Elder Long had not given up on them.

Seeing them come forward to offer their apologies,

he finally returned to his seat.

Instantly, all the Lu Family members breathed a sigh of relief.

"Now, do any of you have any other objections?"

Elder Long asked.

"We have none. Since Elder Long and the Great Elder have chosen to support the Saint Prince, the entire Lu Family will dedicate our full effort to the cause. We will absolutely not harbor any dissent. As for any potential friction between the Saint Prince and the younger members of the clan, we will go back and persuade them. We imagine most of the younger generation are obedient. They'll just have to endure it."

An Elder of the Lu Family spoke up in response.

Hearing his words,

both Elder Long and the Great Elder frowned.

His words were filled with resentment.

It was as if he was certain the Saint Prince would inevitably clash with their younger generation.

Anger flared in his heart,

and Elder Long was about to erupt.

But seeing that he was about to lose his temper, the Lu Family's Great Elder's expression changed, and he quickly cut in.

"What nonsense is this? The Saint Prince is a man of noble character. If your descendants don't provoke him or cause him trouble, why would he target them? Is my grandson Fang Liang not getting along with the Saint Prince perfectly well? Enough! We will speak no more of such things. However, reining in the younger generation is indeed necessary. We can't have their pride and arrogance lead them to offend the Saint Prince. When disaster strikes as a result, don't come crying to me!"

After speaking, he glanced at the silent Second Elder.

He said, "Second Elder, you stay behind for a moment. Although I've removed the Demonic Qi you were afflicted with, there might be some remnants. We should have Elder Long take a look just in case. The rest of you are dismissed."

Interrupted like this, Elder Long was still somewhat dissatisfied.

But in the end, he acquiesced.

He also knew that these members of the Lu Family were truly far too arrogant.

'Perhaps it's because they haven't had contact with outside forces for too long.'

'Perhaps, as descendants of a Great Emperor, the pride of their ancestor and their own strength have let them indulge for too long, until they look down on everyone.'

'Perhaps there were many other reasons as well.'

This made Elder Long very worried.

This was especially true now that it was confirmed Yang Xiao possessed the Divine-Demon Body.

'Once the Lu Family developed hostility and malice towards him…'

'...it would be an absolute disaster for them.'

'But for now, I've already made my stance clear. Scolding them further might be counterproductive. Fine. This isn't something that can be solved in a day or two anyway. Yang Xiao will probably be spending some time in the Rising Dragon Tower. I'll use that time to handle this matter properly.'

Elder Long felt a bit helpless.

Although he had always been revered by the Lu Family, he had always been a protector and rarely issued commands. Therefore, while they respected him, they probably didn't feel much awe for his authority.

If not for the fact that the Lu Family's Great Elder, Lu Yunxiao, was still reasonable…

…things probably would have ended on a sour note today.

Therefore, he also knew it wasn't wise for him to speak up for Yang Xiao again today. Otherwise, it would only make these people even more hostile toward him.

'They were like juniors vying for favor.'

'It was a ridiculous mindset, really.'

'But it was a mindset that genuinely existed within them.'

However, just as the crowd, feeling indignant and believing Elder Long was favoring an outsider, was about to leave…

A powerful aura

suddenly pressed down from the outside world.

The aura was so strong, its presence so overwhelming,

that even Elder Long was far from being its match.

In an instant,

everyone's expression changed.

They had never encountered such a powerful aura before; it definitely far surpassed Elder Long's.

And someone whose aura surpassed Elder Long's…

'Could it be… that a Great Emperor has descended?'

Involuntarily, some of them thought of something, and their hearts trembled.

This was especially true for Second Elder Lu.

His face turned ashen.