The Lin's Patriarch is weird.

Not wanting to cause a scene at the gate, Lin Xuan simply walked past the elders and ignored them altogether.

If this supposed individual really was the Empress, there was no way he or the Lin Family had what it took to go against her.

The best thing he could do right now was offer a sincere apology and be willing to use some of the family’s resources to make amends.

The elders remained kneeling on the ground, completely stunned by Lin Xuan’s reaction.

They had expected him to be angry, question them, or perhaps even agree to their request after seeing them kneel before him.

After all, in their eyes, elder Su Qinglan was someone he really treasured within the family.

Instead, he had simply walked past them.

Lin Shushu slowly raised his head and watched Lin Xuan’s back as he walked deeper into the family grounds.

"Patriarch?"

His voice carried a hint of confusion but Lin Xuan did not even turn around.

The surrounding family members exchanged awkward glances.

The elders had deliberately created such a grand scene, yet the person they had intended to pressure had simply refused to participate.

One of the elders clenched his teeth before quietly speaking.

"What are we supposed to do now?"

Lin Shushu’s expression darkened.

He had carefully arranged everything so that Lin Xuan would have to make a choice in front of the entire family yet Lin Xuan had simply ignored them and walked away.

This left the elders in an awkward position.

If they chased after him and continued begging, they would only make their intentions even more obvious.

If they remained kneeling, they would become a spectacle for the family members watching them.

For several breaths, nobody moved.

Then Lin Shushu slowly stood up and dusted off his robes.

"Everyone, return to your duties."

The elders exchanged glances before reluctantly following him.

However, a cold voice suddenly came from behind them.

"Who told you all that you could stand?"

Lin Zhaoyue slowly stepped forward, her expression calm, though a trace of coldness and anger could be seen in her eyes.

The elders turned around and looked at her in surprise.

Before any of them could respond, a powerful aura suddenly erupted from her body.

The pressure of a Golden Core cultivator swept across the courtyard.

The elders’ expressions changed instantly as their knees buckled under the overwhelming pressure.

Several of them were forced back onto the ground.

"What are you doing!?"

The elders gritted their teeth and tried to resist.

They were elders of the Lin Family.

How could they allow themselves to be suppressed by a child in front of the entire family?

Several of them circulated their spiritual qi and attempted to stand.

However, before they could move, two more powerful auras suddenly descended upon them.

The pressure increased several times over.

The elders’ bodies trembled violently as their legs gave out beneath them.

They were forced back onto the ground once again.

Two figures stood behind Zhaoyue.

Lin Zhaowen and Lin Zhaofeng had also released their Golden Core auras, joining Zhaoyue in suppressing the elders.

The surrounding family members stared at the scene in shock.

Three young Golden Core cultivators were standing together.

Meanwhile, the elders who had just been kneeling before Lin Xuan were now being pressed firmly against the ground.

The elders struggled beneath the combined pressure, their faces turning red with embarrassment.

They wanted to retaliate, they wanted to release their spiritual qi and teach these juniors a lesson but reality quickly reminded them of the difference between them.

Their cultivation was only at the Qi Refinement Realm. Against three Golden Core cultivators, they had no chance of resisting.

One of the elders clenched his teeth and struggled to lift his head.

"Zhaoyue, why are you doing this?"

Zhaoyue looked down at him without changing her expression.

"You were kneeling before my father a moment ago and now you are suddenly in such a hurry to stand? That’s not good, plus he never told you all to get up, did he?"

The elder’s face became even uglier.

Zhaoyue slowly swept her gaze across the other elders before her eyes landed on Lin Shushu.

"Why are you glaring at me? Do you want me to poke your eyes out?"

Lin Shushu stiffened and immediately looked away.

The other elders silently watched the exchange, none of them daring to speak.

Zhaoyue then turned toward Zhaofeng and Zhaocao.

"Can you two send everyone else away? I’ll have a peaceful talk with the elders here."

The two immediately nodded.

"Yes, young miss."

They turned around and began ushering the surrounding family members away from the courtyard.

The elders watched them leave with expressions that slowly became more desperate.

Three Golden Core cultivators, three children who had only recently begun their cultivation journey, and yet two of them were following Zhaoyue’s orders without the slightest hesitation.

The elders could not understand it.

Shouldn’t young cultivators their age be eager to show off their strength?

Meanwhile, Zhaoyue casually formed a chair out of spiritual qi and sat down crossing her legs.

"I’ll do the talking. Shake your head for no and nod for yes. Do you understand?"

The elders swallowed nervously before giving her a hesitant nod.

Zhaoyue nodded in satisfaction.

"Good."

She leaned back slightly.

"Now, how did Elder Qinglan get injured? Was it your doing? She’s an elder who has served the family for half a century.

She has lived for nearly a century, yet you expect me to believe that she would be stupid enough to attack someone who introduced herself as the Empress?"

The elders remained silent while their eyes shifted between one another, none of them willing to answer.

Lin Shushu’s face flushed with anger as he glared at Zhaoyue.

"This is treason! Do you even know what crimes you are committing right now?"

Zhaoyue’s expression immediately turned annoyed, and in a single motion, she struck him in the eye.

Lin Shushu cried out as he stumbled backward, clutching his face.

The other elders stared at her in horror as they watched her hold the eyeball in her hand.

She then stared at him coldly and said, "My father may be kind to you, but I won’t be."

Her Golden Core aura surged once again, pressing the elders firmly against the ground.

"Make one wrong move, and I will easily replace every one of you from your positions as elders."

The elders’ expressions suggested that they did not truly believe her.

Zhaoyue looked toward Lin Shushu and spoke calmly.

"Lin Shushu, your cultivation is only a meagre sixth layer of the Qi Refinement Realm."

"Many of the children in the Rising Dragon Courtyard have already reached or surpassed that realm by now."

"Even before the Rising Dragon Courtyard was formed, everyone under my command had already reached the sixth layer of the Qi Refinement Realm."

"Zhaofeng and Zhaocao have both reached the Golden Core Realm, while Zhaowen is also close to reaching the Golden Core Realm."

"There are also others, such as Zhaorui, Zhaoqing, and Zhaohao, who have reached the tenth layer of the Qi Refinement Realm."

Zhaoyue’s gaze swept across the elders one by one.

"Looking at all of you clinging to nothing more than the title of elder, I find it pathetic."

Zhaoyue suddenly laughed, her voice carrying a trace of madness as she kicked Lin Shushu, who was still horrified after losing one of his eyes. The force sent him tumbling a considerable distance away.

"Hahahaha! My father is in the Nascent Soul Realm! You all know that, and you still dare pull this shitty nonsense?"

Her smile remained on her face, but her eyes were filled with anger.

"Have you all lost the fear you should have for those who are stronger than you?"

The elders felt indignant, but they knew the truth. In the face of absolute strength, one’s age nor facts matter not.

"Pathetic," Zhaoyue muttered as she released the pressure on them.

But not even a second later, Lin Shushu suddenly leapt to his feet and launched a surprise attack.

His dagger struck Zhaoyue in the back.

To his horror, her response was laughter.

"Hahaha!"

Zhaoyue slowly turned around, her expression carrying an almost frightening calm.

In the next instant, she seized Lin Shushu and struck him with overwhelming force, splitting his skull apart.

She then pulled the dagger from her back and sealed it with her spiritual qi before turning toward the remaining elders with a smile.

"It was self-defense. You all agree, right?"

"Y-Yes!"

"Y-Yes, it was self-defense!"

The elders immediately nodded in agreement before scrambling to their feet and running away as quickly as they could.