55: Chapter 55 Revenge

Squire Wang froze for a moment, seemingly unable to believe his eyes. He rubbed them, and indeed, he saw Su Jiuchuan looking at him with a smile, with no one else around.

"Old... Young Master Su is alone?" He hadn't quite figured out the situation. He had almost blurted out a question about the Old Ancestor, but quickly changed his words.

Had the Old Ancestor changed his mind at the last minute and spared his life? But even if that were the case, why hadn't the Old Ancestor come out with him?

Su Jiuchuan laughed heartily and asked, pretending to be ignorant, "That Ape Monster has already been killed. Unfortunately, it turned into a pool of yellow water. Otherwise, I could have brought it out to broaden Squire Wang's horizons."

"There was... no other discovery?" Squire Wang was unwilling to give up. He thought to himself that the Old Ancestor was simply too important to the Wang family, so he simply asked directly, "My family's ancestor is injured and had just come out of seclusion. Hearing that Young Master Su had gone to the Gold Mine to eliminate the monster, he worried that something might happen to you, so he went to assist."

"I wonder, did Young Master Su see him?"

Hearing this, Su Jiuchuan couldn't help but want to applaud. This Squire Wang was indeed a smooth talker. That old man Wang Chenghu had wanted to steal the fruits of his labor, yet now it was spun as going to save him. Truly impressive.

"So that Senior was the ancestor of the Wang family. I must apologize for my lack of respect then." Su Jiuchuan said with a sigh, "When I found the Ape Monster down in the mine, that Senior suddenly appeared, and in the end, he and the Ape Monster perished together."

"What?" Squire Wang shuddered, his body going limp as he collapsed to the ground. The Old Ancestor was actually dead. The Wang family was finished.

The few servants nearby hurriedly stepped forward to support Squire Wang.

Su Jiuchuan sneered inwardly. Since they dared to plot against him, they naturally had to be prepared for the backlash. Without even looking at Squire Wang, he continued, "Oh, and that Senior said he was grateful for my help to the Wang family. In addition to the remaining silver, he hoped you would gift me another hundred thousand taels of silver."

There was no reply for a long while. Su Jiuchuan looked and saw Squire Wang's face was deathly pale, as if he hadn't heard a thing. He couldn't help but say coldly, "What? Does Squire Wang not care much about your ancestor's instructions?"

Squire Wang instantly felt a wave of killing intent. Shuddering, he felt deep grief, but he also understood that the Wang family was now on the edge of a cliff, and the slightest misstep could lead to ruin.

He quickly pulled himself together and said, "Since the ancestor has given this instruction, I will definitely not disappoint him. Please give me a few days, Young Master Su. I will immediately have people arrange the auction of this Gold Mine."

Hearing this, Su Jiuchuan cast a surprised glance at him, thinking to himself, *This man is indeed quite a character. What a pity he was born in this world where martial strength reigns supreme.*

Now that the Wang family had lost their Xiantian Realm Old Ancestor, it was impossible for them to keep the Gold Mine. Squire Wang immediately thought of auctioning it, meaning he wanted to throw away this hot potato as quickly as possible. This was probably the only way to save the lives of the entire Wang family.

A Gold Mine like this yielded at least a million taels of silver a year; even Su Jiuchuan was envious. But he knew that without a Xiantian Martial Artist, such wealth could not be defended. That was why he only asked for an extra hundred thousand taels.

Surely the big shot who ultimately acquired the mine wouldn't make things difficult for him over this small amount of silver.

However, seeing Squire Wang like this made Su Jiuchuan feel a bit uneasy. It really was a world where the strong devoured the weak; once your strength was insufficient, you had to spit back out the resources you held.

For no apparent reason, a deep sense of urgency washed over Su Jiuchuan. High-grade Martial Artists were still too weak.

...

Heavy rain poured down, accompanied by flashes of lightning, on an island somewhere in the vast sea.

A young man was kneeling outside a stone cave, letting the rain wash over his entire body, stubbornly remaining motionless.

An oil-paper umbrella opened over his head. A woman in a yellow dress tried to pull him up, advising, "Senior Brother Lan, you should get up. My father won't let you leave right now."

This young man was none other than Lan Heguang, the eldest son of City Lord Lan Sheng of Hechuan City. A few days ago, news had arrived that the murderer who killed his younger brother was already a First-grade Martial Artist and was currently in Tianshui City. He had immediately come to seek an audience with his Master, Nan Ruotian, wanting to go and seek revenge.

The woman was Nan Ruotian's only daughter, Nan Haiying. She sighed and continued, "Didn't my father already say? You should wait until after the Spirit Tide erupts in three months before you go!"

"You are already a Half-Step Innate. Once this Spirit Tide erupts and you make a breakthrough to the Innate realm, wouldn't that be the perfect time to seek revenge?"

Lan Heguang kept his head lowered, struggling to suppress the tears in his eyes.

"My younger brother Lan Guping and I were born of the same mother, and we have been close since childhood. When we were young, our father searched the world for rare treasures to nourish our qi and blood and stimulate our inner qi. My brother always said his talent wasn't as good as mine, so he would always give his share to me."

"When I was preparing to leave home to study under our Revered Master, he told me that once I completed my training and returned, we brothers would assist our father together to build a great enterprise. I never thought..." As he spoke, the tears in Lan Heguang's eyes finally flowed down, mixing with the rain.

"Since the terrible news of my brother's death arrived, I have been unable to quiet my mind to Cultivate. The only thought in my heart is to tear that Su Jiuchuan into ten thousand pieces."

As he spoke, a deep hatred flickered in his eyes.

"Foolish child." A sigh echoed from within the cave. "Your hatred is too heavy; I originally wanted to suppress it for a while."

"But since you insist, I will not stop you."

Hearing this, Lan Heguang's expression eased slightly.

"However, you must absolutely not miss the Spirit Tide in three months. Go and return quickly."

Seeing that her father had actually agreed, Nan Haiying was also delighted and couldn't help but chime in, "I heard that man has only just advanced to a First-grade Martial Artist. Senior Brother is a Half-Step Innate, so dealing with him should be effortless."

Lan Heguang shook his head, however, and said, "I received a letter from my father. When he killed my younger brother two months ago, he was only at the Fifth Grade."

"Now, in just two months, he is already at the First Grade!"

Silence fell. The three of them did not speak for a long time. There was only the occasional rumble of thunder in the sky and the rustle of rain falling on the soil.

After a long while, Lan Heguang continued, "Therefore, I must kill him before the Spirit Tide erupts, because... I don't know if he will have already entered the Innate realm by then."

Nan Haiying quickly covered her cherry-red mouth, afraid she might let out a gasp.

All along, she had thought that Senior Brother Lan was the most Genius Martial Artist in the world, achieving the Half-Step Innate stage at the age of eighteen. But it turned out there was actually someone else who could pressure this Senior Brother to the point of constantly worrying about being overtaken.

Just what kind of person was that Su Jiuchuan?

An object suddenly shot out from the cave. Lan Heguang hurriedly reached out to catch it; it was a dusty grey jade pendant.

"This jade pendant can block one attack of the Xiantian Realm for you. Take it with you for self-defense!" Clearly, Nan Ruotian was also somewhat shaken.

"Thank you, Revered Master!"