Zhang Chen did not fuss over Shen Ling’s rudeness. Why bother with someone whose family was already destroyed and ruined?
Zhang Chen and Zhou Zhen walked towards the direction of the Exquisite Tower. Arriving in front of it, they saw Shen Ling in a red dress, holding an oil-paper umbrella, conversing with Zhang Gaoqiu in front of the tower. Shen Ling was whispering something, while Zhang Gaoqiu looked impatient.
Zhang Chen glanced at the two, just about to step into the Exquisite Tower’s door, when he suddenly heard a heart-wrenching shout coming from the mountain below: "Miss! Miss! Something terrible has happened to the Shen family, you must return and see!"
A figure, covered in blood, rushed up from the mountain, kneeling directly in front of Shen Ling, their voice filled with desolation.
Zhang Chen halted his steps as he recognized the person’s identity: the Shen family’s steward, Lai Changrong.
"Steward Lai, what happened to you?" Seeing Lai Changrong looking like a bloody gourd, Shen Ling hurriedly asked, her heart suddenly pounding rapidly, her eyes filled with panic.
"Miss, the Shen family is gone! The Shen family is gone!" Lai Changrong fell into the rainwater, his voice piercing like a blood-crying cuckoo.
"What do you mean the Shen family is gone?" Shen Ling’s voice trembled, her face turning pale in an instant.
"What happened to the Shen family?" Zhang Gaoqiu also quickly inquired.
"The Shen family was exterminated, all the direct bloodlines of the Shen family are dead, now only Young Master Shen Qiu and you, Miss, are left." Lai Changrong rasped.
"What? Impossible! The vast Shen family dominates seventy percent of the Water Fortune, how could they be exterminated?" Shen Ling couldn’t believe it, her face full of disbelief: "You must be lying to me, right?"
"Miss! The Shen family was exterminated by the Yellow Heaven Dao! How would this old servant dare to lie to you!" Lai Changrong said bitterly.
Rumble~
Upon hearing this, Shen Ling felt a whirl of the heavens and the earth, her vision darkened and sparkled with golden stars. Remembering the terrifying anomaly in Jinling City last night, a bad premonition surged in her heart. Her body staggered and she fell to the muddy ground, then a sliver of reason was awakened by the cold rain: "Where’s my father? My mother? The old lady? The ancestors? The ancestors are Tenth Tier powerhouses, how could they be killed?"
"The Yellow Heaven Dao and Demon Race dispatched an Eleventh Tier expert to descend, the five major families in Jinling City rebelled, Ancestor Shen Liang was killed by Zhang Xiaohua, Ancestor Shen Li was also slain by Hu Li the Immortal! The old lady also died in last night’s chaos, all the masters were massacred, the Shen family was exterminated overnight, now with the Shen family’s properties left vacant and no one in charge, the entire Shen family is thrown into chaos, those servants and stewards are absconding with the Shen family’s wealth, large estates and commercial properties are seized by the White Lotus Sect, Salt Gang, and Cao Bang, now the Shen family is about to be completely divided. If no Shen family member comes forth, the Shen family will be erased from Heaven and Earth!" Lai Changrong’s voice was full of anguish and wrath.
"You’re lying to me, aren’t you? You’re lying to me, aren’t you? How could the vast Shen family be wiped out overnight?" Shen Ling’s eyes were filled with disbelief, and in the next moment, she began to bleed from between her legs, having disturbed the Fetal Qi, and fainted on the spot.
"Call a doctor quickly!" Jiang Nan yelled urgently to the bystanders as he rushed forward to hold the fainted Shen Ling.
"Zhang Gaoqiu, quickly get a doctor!" Jiang Nan shouted to Zhang Gaoqiu.
Hearing this, Zhang Gaoqiu hesitated for a moment, then turned around and walked into the Exquisite Tower with his oil-paper umbrella, ignoring Jiang Nan and Shen Ling.
Zhou Zhen, nearby, couldn’t stand it and told the scholars beside him: "Go get Doctor Liu." Then he went forward to hold Shen Ling in the rain, "Let’s find shelter from the rain first to avoid further trouble."
This is Chongzheng Academy; he couldn’t let someone die inside it.
While speaking, Zhou Zhen guided Jiang Nan away, leaving the scholars to discuss among themselves. Shen family was the overlord of Jinling, ruling Jinling City for hundreds of thousands of years, and now suddenly being destroyed overnight shocked everyone.
Zhang Chen stood in place, looking at the blood left by Shen Ling on the ground, sighed softly, his voice full of lament: "What a doomed fate! That child is probably doomed."
Zhang Chen’s perception of the Qi Mechanism between Heaven and Earth was sharp. He could sense the life force within Shen Ling’s belly was rapidly fading along with her Qi Mechanism fluctuations.
"It’s perhaps a good thing for Shen Ling to lose the child in her womb. I don’t think Zhang Gaoqiu is a good match; there could hardly be a fruitful outcome between them." Tushan Qing, holding an oil-paper umbrella, came out of the crowd to Zhang Chen’s side and said.
"You see things quite clearly." Zhang Chen replied sulkily.
"It’s not just me who can see clearly, anyone who’s not a fool can see clearly. Zhang Gaoqiu is now trying to cling to the Great Victory Royal Family and has already gotten involved with the Little Princess Chai Wenji. Chai Wenji seems to be pregnant with his child, how can Zhang Gaoqiu marry Shen Ling again?" Tushan Qing leaned in and said.
Upon hearing these words, Zhang Chen was shocked in his heart: "How do you know Chai Wenji is pregnant with Zhang Gaoqiu’s child?"
"I naturally have my methods." Tushan Qing replied.
"Chai Wenji is a princess of the Great Victory Royal Family, how could she casually give away her body?" Zhang Chen’s voice was full of disbelief.
Tushan Qing shook his head at the words: "Covetous desire blinds one’s wisdom! It’s a passage to the Spiritual World. Chai Wenji is still too young, getting confused is normal. If Zhang Gaoqiu truly grasps the passage to the Spiritual World, it’s certainly worth Chai Wenji going all in! Plus, with Zhang Gaoqiu’s deep scheming and clever words, how could the Little Princess be his match?"
"Zhang Gaoqiu is now hitting a person when they’re down, causing Shen Ling a second blow, which is truly harmful." Zhang Chen exhaled but did not have any thoughts, how Zhang Gaoqiu acted, and the melodrama between him and Shen Ling didn’t matter much to him.
"How are things down the mountain?" Zhang Chen turned and walked towards the Exquisite Tower.
"Various noble families are fighting tooth and nail over the Shen Family’s industries, and for a time there was a river of blood. The people from Yellow Heaven Dao have also stepped in and begun to divide the Shen Family’s assets. Most critically, the five noble families of Jinling City have also been targeted by the White Lotus Sect and Yellow Heaven Dao and have been directly exterminated!" Tushan Qing said.
Zhang Chen was stunned at the words, and his eyes filled with disbelief: "The five noble families have already aligned with Yellow Heaven Dao, how could they be exterminated?"
"Because Zhang Xiaohua is dead! Yellow Heaven Dao must find all the masters who can kill Zhang Xiaohua and avenge her! You must know Zhang Xiaohua is tied to the Star God, Southern Dipper, and Beidou Seven Stars. If even one is missing, they can’t fall into place, they can’t achieve Perfection. Yellow Heaven Dao might be infuriated! For Yellow Heaven Dao, the death of Zhang Xiaohua is a heavy blow to their grand influence; they must find the culprit." Tushan Qing whispered.
Zhang Chen’s eyes flickered upon hearing this, and he exchanged a glance with Tushan Qing. Tushan Qing spoke in a low voice: "In recent times, you must absolutely not leave the mountain. Yellow Heaven Dao has set up a Heaven and Earth Net around Jinling City and plans to search all suspicious individuals. If not for Zhou Qiucheng’s presence within Jinling City, Yellow Heaven Dao might not just set up the Heaven and Earth Net around it but might turn Jinling City upside down."
Zhang Chen’s gaze hardened upon hearing this: "Yellow Heaven Dao is so tyrannical, are they not afraid of the court passing judgment?"
"The heavens are high and the emperor is far. The various noble families have obtained the Divine Enthronement method from Yellow Heaven Dao, long ago they have been in cahoots with Yellow Heaven Dao, why would they mind Yellow Heaven Dao’s business? Plus, an Eleventh Tier master has died, and Yellow Heaven Dao might go insane, who would dare provoke Yellow Heaven Dao at this time?" Tushan Qing said.
"What about Hu Li the Immortal?" Zhang Chen asked.
"He has already been chased and blocked by Yellow Heaven Dao and retreated back to the Great Wilderness! It’s said Yellow Heaven Dao has employed the methods left by the Great Virtuous Master; even Hu Li the Immortal cannot withstand it and could only flee to the Great Wilderness." Tushan Qing replied.
Upon hearing these words, Zhang Chen’s pupils shrank rapidly, and his gaze showed caution: "With the Great Virtuous Master not taking action, Yellow Heaven Dao merely with the methods left by the Great Virtuous Master has forced Hu Li the Immortal to escape, it seems I’ve underestimated Yellow Heaven Dao’s strength."
Yellow Heaven Dao worthy of being an all-encompassing major sect, truly has deep foundations.
The two walked into the Exquisite Tower, and Tushan Qing said: "Within Chongzheng Academy, it’s actually our best hiding and shelter. Let’s temporarily cultivate here, Yellow Heaven Dao’s search actions won’t last long. Once they stir up complaints from various families, they will naturally disperse under pressure."
Zhang Chen spoke with Tushan Qing for a while longer, then the two parted ways.
Walking within the Exquisite Tower, Zhang Chen looked at the strange patterns on the walls of the Exquisite Tower but couldn’t see any flaws. Even the underground space couldn’t reveal anything useful.
"It should be that my cultivation is too low. When my cultivation advances further, when I have a Tenth Tier skill, break through to the Tenth Tier, perhaps then I can see more things and help relieve the pressure of the Exquisite Tower." Zhang Chen stood inside the Exquisite Tower for a long time, reluctantly giving up. This Exquisite Tower is an Eleventh Tier Treasure, possessing unimaginable means and suppression power, his inability to see through its hidden rules is understandable, otherwise, the old guys of the Great Victory Dynasty would have studied the Exquisite Tower thoroughly long ago.
Zhang Chen’s gaze turned, and he saw Zhang Gaoqiu and Chai Wenji in the distance, the two standing in front of the jade wall like a celestial couple, looking very compatible.
"The Shen Family has been exterminated!" Chai Wenji said to Zhang Gaoqiu.
"I know!" Zhang Gaoqiu’s tone was somewhat heavy.
"You acted too slowly! I’ve told you long ago to annul the engagement with Shen Ling before the Shen Family’s destruction and handle everything cleanly. Yet now you leave such a tail, truly disappointing!" Chai Wenji’s voice was very cold: "Now the matter is a thousand times, ten thousand times more troublesome than before! If you annul the engagement at this moment, how would the world view you? If your reputation is tarnished, the Great Victory Royal Family will never agree to our marriage."