The Master and His Wealthy Fiancée

The Chief Steward hurriedly replied, "Young Master, I've come to see you about two things. First, the Old Ancestor has issued an order naming you the current Patriarch of the Chen Family."

As he spoke, he took a Jade Talisman from his clothes, held it reverently above his head with both hands, and said, "This is the Chen Family's Patriarchal Talisman Order. The Old Ancestor has instructed me to deliver it to you!"

This scene shocked everyone present to their core. The patriarchship of one of the six great families represented supreme power, and Chen Dong had been appointed directly at such a young age.

But on second thought, given that Chen Dong had reached the Inner Scenery Realm at such a young age, his appointment as Patriarch was perfectly understandable.

At this moment, the Murong Family was filled with immense regret. 'If only we had known the man Murong Qing chose for herself was not just from the Chen Family, but their current Patriarch! Why did we ever pressure her?'

After all, there was still a massive gap between the Wu Family and the Chen Family.

Without even glancing at the Jade Talisman, Chen Dong said coldly, "I have no interest in it. Take it and get out!"

Instantly, a wave of sharp gasps echoed through the conference room.

The Chief Steward seemed to have anticipated this. He carefully put the Jade Talisman away and said, "The Old Ancestor said it makes no difference whether you accept the Jade Talisman. He has already sent word to every member of the Chen Family that you are the Patriarch. Furthermore, the Old Ancestor has expelled Guo Lingtong from the Chen Family and removed her from the family registry. The people she brought with her have been dealt with as well."

Chen Dong snorted coldly. "That's your Chen Family's business. You don't need to report it to me. When I find Guo Lingtong, I'll still drag her to the Chen Family's ancestral hall to be dealt with alongside that man!"

The Chief Steward swallowed hard and didn't argue. He took another rectangular box from his clothes, opened it, and presented it above his head, saying, "This is the Black Feather, the hottest and most sought-after item in the Martial Artist Realm right now. The Chen Family spent a fortune to acquire it, and the Old Ancestor specifically had me bring it to you!"

Chen Dong glanced at it from the corner of his eye. Inside the box was a palm-sized black feather, and it looked very familiar.

He gently picked up the feather to examine it. 'It still has the aura of a Corpse Dove. This feather, like the one I already have, must have come from a Corpse Dove.'

'In other words, the Corpse Dove was behind the Black Feather incidents in the Northern Region.'

Chen Dong focused his thoughts, sensing a Cultivation Technique hidden within the Black Feather. He quickly scanned it. 'Just a basic Cultivation Technique, useless to me. But the Black Feather can rapidly absorb the surrounding Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi. This must be why people with a Black Feather can cultivate so quickly!'

'This effect and the Cultivation Technique are absent from the Black Feather I already have. Then again, this ability is of little use to someone at the Inner Scenery Realm. At that level, one can already sense and manipulate Spiritual Qi far more effectively. For anyone below the Inner Scenery Realm, however, it's a wondrous artifact.'

Sensing no traps or ill effects from the Black Feather, Chen Dong glanced at Murong Qing—the woman who pestered him nightly about dual cultivation—before saying to the steward, "I'll accept this. You may leave."

Upon hearing this, the Chief Steward took out his phone and dialed a number. Chen Dong's phone started ringing. The Chief Steward immediately hung up and said, "Patriarch, that is this old servant's phone number. Please feel free to give me orders at any time!"

Chen Dong grimaced. 'The Chen Family's tactics were infuriatingly effective, leaving him speechless. They just forced things on you, wanted or not, saddling you with them completely.'

Seeing Chen Dong's displeasure, the Chief Steward quickly rose and bowed. "This old servant will take his leave now!" Without lingering, he practically jogged out of the conference room.

Chen Dong casually tossed the Black Feather to Murong Qing. "This is for you!"

Murong Qing caught the Black Feather, intrigued. It was because of this very item that countless newcomers had appeared in the Martial Artist Realm. She didn't yet know why Chen Dong had wanted the Black Feather; if she did, she would surely be filled with wistful complaints.

Murong Wang Clan watched, her eyes filled with envy for the Black Feather. 'If my relationship with Murong Qing weren't so strained, I might have been able to ask for it. But now, that's impossible.'

'Under the circumstances, it was not the time to discuss anything else. If we anger Chen Dong, he might just keep the entire Murong Family here forever. We can only make plans for the long term.' She then said to Murong Qinghong, "Help them up. We're leaving!"

Some supporting, others carrying the injured on their backs, the members of the Murong Family departed the conference room in a wretched state.

Chen Dong didn't stop them. 'It wouldn't be right to kill them all. I just hope they don't bother Murong Qing in the future.'

Once everyone had just about cleared out, Chen Dong said to Wu Haichao, "I'm preparing to leave Nanhai. If you find any trace of the Evil God, call me."

Wu Haichao nodded. "All we know so far is that Wu Haiqiang and Wu Hai Zhi left on a Wu Family yacht. The yacht's signal vanished the day Wu Haigang died. We've been investigating for days without any leads. We have no idea which country they fled to, or which island!"

Chen Dong nodded faintly. "Take your time. I imagine that thing needs time to recover anyway. You can start by investigating population sources. Call me if you get a lead."

"Yes, Mr. Chen!"

Murong Qing said, a little wistfully, "Are we leaving already? I haven't even had a chance to put on a swimsuit and go for a proper swim."

Chen Dong chuckled lightly. "There'll be other chances. I have some things I need to verify. We'll come back another time!"

Murong Qing tilted her nose up and said, "Fine. But you'd better not lie to this young lady!"

Chen Dong quickly agreed with a smile, but a hint of turmoil flickered in his eyes. The memories he integrated upon breaking through to the Inner Scenery Realm were a chaotic jumble, and most of them concerned Li Wang.

At the thought of Li Wang, Chen Dong's fists clenched unconsciously.