War God Long Ao

'They sure are fast.' Long Ao, of course, understood the Nebula Royal Family's intentions perfectly.

The Nebula Royal Family was doing this for no other reason than to win him over. What he hadn't expected was that they had already made their move a month ago.

"Ao'Er, we're pulling all of the Long Family's businesses back to Red Fire Town. With the Nebula Royal Family's help, we won't need to keep expanding into Thundercloud City in the future."

Looking at his excited grandfather and father, Long Ao made a firm promise to himself. 'No matter what happens, the family absolutely cannot come to harm. No one will be allowed to hurt my family.'

After a brief chat with everyone in the Long Family, Long Ao left for a while. He would first find Wang Yuyin, then head to the Thundercloud City Lord's Mansion to see Liu Mu.

Getting straight to the point, Long Ao took out the letter. After Liu Mu finished reading it, Long Ao asked directly, "Brother Liu, take a look. Do you have any ideas about this letter?"

After reading the letter, Liu Mu's expression also grew solemn. He asked, "Brother Long, has anyone been hurt?"

"Not yet."

"This is a bit tricky. If the other party came at us head-on, we could meet them soldier for soldier, general for general. But the problem now is that they're resorting to underhanded tactics. If they..."

Liu Mu didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear. If this person truly did something like that, they wouldn't even have a chance to defend themselves.

For this very reason, Long Ao felt a chill just thinking about it. It was hard to imagine what would happen if something were to befall his family. He wouldn't even have a chance for regret.

'Who could it be?'

Racking his brain, Long Ao felt there were many possibilities.

"Brother Long, I've just been thinking. I feel the most likely suspect in this matter is Ye Hao of the Liuyun Sect."

'Ye Hao?'

"Brother Liu, Ye Hao and I made a one-year agreement. The year isn't up yet. He wouldn't move against my family so easily, would he?"

With the Nebula Royal Family as a deterrent, Long Ao was fully confident that the Liuyun Sect wouldn't dare get involved. That being the case, would Ye Hao dare to do something like this on his own?

"Brother Long, hear me out. Although you and Ye Hao have a one-year agreement, he no longer has any confidence in himself. For this very reason, I suspect Ye Hao must be behind this. Brother Long, there's something I want to say, but I'm not sure if I should."

"Brother Liu, please say whatever's on your mind."

"Brother Long, as the saying goes, it's easy to dodge a spear in the open, but hard to defend against an arrow in the dark. With Ye Hao's strength, if he were to move against the Long Family... what do you think the consequences would be, Brother Long?"

How could Long Ao not understand the meaning behind Liu Mu's words? After thinking it over, Ye Hao did indeed seem to be the most likely suspect.

"Brother Liu, I have something to attend to. I'll take my leave."

Without lingering, Long Ao turned and left quickly.

「In a pavilion in the backyard of the City Lord's Mansion.」

Watching the disappearing figure, Liu Ji, who had suddenly appeared, wore a cold and sinister expression. "Father, why make this so complicated? Just kill him and be done with it."

"Hmph."

With a cold snort, Liu Mu expressed a deep sense of helplessness. "You were too reckless this time. If Long Ao finds out you wrote that letter, the consequences will be unimaginable. Jie'Er, Long Ao's status is different now. He's a Kingdom's National Protection Master. Once the Nebula Royal Family gets involved, we'll be in real trouble."

"Don't worry, Father. As long as we don't say anything, Long Ao will never know. With his current strength, going to the Liuyun Sect to get revenge on Ye Hao is practically a death sentence."

Thundercloud City was still unaware that Long Ao had defeated Yu Wei. As for his battle with Long Ming, the outside world knew even less. Otherwise, Long Ao's ranking on the Hundred Battles Ranking would have likely risen further, replacing Long Ming's position.

For this very reason, in the eyes of Liu Ji and Liu Mu, if Long Ao went to the Liuyun Sect seeking revenge on Ye Hao, it was a one-hundred-percent dead end.

"Jie'Er, the grudge between you and Long Ao isn't a matter of life and death. Why must you do this?"

"Father, ever since I was little, no one has dared to insult me. But Long Ao has defied me again and again. I must make him pay the price."

Liu Mu gave his daughter a long look and sighed deeply. Since things had come to this, it seemed he had no choice but to support her. However, for some reason, he had a bad feeling in his heart, a persistent sense that something was not quite right.

Leaving the City Lord's Mansion, the anger in Long Ao's heart was like a series of crashing waves. He had originally thought that since he and Ye Hao had a one-year agreement, Ye Hao wouldn't move against him or his family within that year.

But now, it seemed Ye Hao was nothing but a shameless villain who didn't honor his word. 'Since he's shown no mercy, he can't blame me for being ruthless.'

According to Long Ao's original plan, he would have personally gone to the Liuyun Sect a year later. But now, Long Ao had decided to go immediately. Regardless of whether he could defeat Ye Hao, he had to resolve this matter completely. Otherwise, Ye Hao was like a time bomb, and who knew when he would explode.

"Long Ao."

Long Ao was a bit surprised to see Mu He suddenly appear before him. Although they were relatives, his so-called cousins had never treated him as one growing up.

"Mu He, what is it?"

Mu He nodded. "Long Ao, Grandmother wants to see you."

'Grandmother?'

Of course, Long Ao knew who Mu He's "Grandmother" was. Mu Wanfeng, the Matriarch of the Mu Family, the one who had single-handedly supported the entire family. She was also his mother's mother—his maternal grandmother.

No matter how unpleasant his relationship with the Mu Family was, Long Ao knew very well that for his mother's sake, he had to make a trip to the Mu Family estate.

"Let's go."

「On the way to the Mu Family estate.」

"Long Ao, I have to admit, we really underestimated you before. I also know that with my current strength, I'm no match for you at all. I want to ask you for a favor, and I hope you can agree."

Seeming a little surprised, Long Ao smiled and nodded. "Tell me what it is first. If it's something I can do, I'll definitely agree."

"Cousin, you're now a National Protection Master of the Nebula Royal Family's National Protection Hall. Your status is paramount. I can clearly foresee you soaring to great heights in the future. I just hope that when you reach that high position, you can look after the Mu Family a little. No matter what, Aunt and you are both part of the Mu Family."

'Part of the Mu Family?'

'When did I become part of the Mu Family?'

Long Ao found this rather amusing. 'This is just how people are. When you're down on your luck, no one offers a helping hand—they just kick you while you're down. But once you start to succeed, the kicks turn into flattery.' The Mu Family was a perfect example. A million thoughts of refusal crossed his mind, but could he actually say no? After some thought, he realized he really couldn't.