Promise!

Chapter 204, The Supreme Being

West of the city, the headquarters of the Medicine King Gang.

"Your leader, Shi Yong, is dead. Why don't you surrender immediately?"

Shen Xianhong, Zhuang Jin, and Mu Yuantu unleashed their full power, releasing an immense presence that seemed to reach the heavens and the earth. Their innate true energy permeated the primordial energy of heaven and earth, transforming into three domain-like tornadoes of cyan-purple, silver-white, and fiery red. Their overwhelming pressure was like that of a primordial beast, and for a moment, the air in front of them seemed to become heavy and viscous, as if it were the prelude to a summer storm, extremely oppressive.

After the explosion at the government office, the Medicine King Gang had already ordered the activation of the highest level of alert. Not long after, Zhuang Jin and his two companions arrived. Upon hearing this, the members of the Medicine King Gang inside became restless.

"My lords, would you be so kind as to grant us a day or two to confirm the information?"

One of the eleven deputy hall masters who was in charge of the operation stepped forward and said that he could not believe that his leader had died so quickly. He was afraid that it was a bluff. If Shi Yong had just escaped and they surrendered without firing an arrow, Shi Yong would definitely retaliate and settle scores afterward.

The ruthlessness of Shi Yong was well known to everyone in the Medicine King Gang.

"It's a pity that Shi Yong self-destructed, leaving no trace of his body or head; otherwise, things would have been much easier."

"Yes, even a centipede dies but does not fall down. To expect the Medicine King Gang to surrender with just a few words is wishful thinking."

"If we give things some time to ferment, things can be handled much more easily. However, it would also give Shi Yong's younger brother, Shi Jie, the opportunity to hide with the Qingyuan Pot from the Medicine King Gang, or even to go all out. If he breaks through to the Innate Realm, this will cause endless trouble!"

Shen Xianhong looked at Mu Yuantu and Zhuang Jin: "My intention is to charge in immediately! Prefect Mu, don't be reluctant to part with some wolf cubs and bottles and jars."

"Now that the west of the city has been assigned to me, it's only right to clean it up," Mu Yuantu said with a laugh.

Listening to the conversation between Shen Xianhong and Mu Yuantu, Zhuang Jin keenly realized that with Shi Yong's death, according to the previously agreed distribution, Mu Yuantu would convert public resources into private wealth and establish the Xiantian Family. In a sense, this would replace the Medicine King Gang and oppose the Shen family, which would become the main conflict in the city. At this moment, the two had already begun to test each other.

His attitude, as the future son-in-law of the two, is to not interfere in their cause and effect, to maintain a balance, and to remain detached.

However, even if I don't get involved in their cause and effect, there are some things I have to do, like right now.

"Patriarch, Prefect Mu, the previous battle was quite exhausting. Let me take charge this time!"

Having acquired the dragon-patterned golden armor, Zhuang Jin naturally had to get things done. He thought to himself, 'Before, Shi Yong was an opponent of equal strength, using numbers to bully the weak, and I was merely his assistant. But this time, I have some experience with challenging opponents of higher levels!'

Swish!
Zhuang Jin swayed forward and stepped forward, with Shen Xianhong and Mu Yuantu following behind at a leisurely pace.

"put!"

Seeing the three men forcibly break in, the deputy hall master gritted his teeth and ordered his men to fire arrows.

Swish swish!
In an instant, a barrage of arrows was unleashed, including some mithril crossbows.

Zhuang Jin erected a three-foot-high wall of qi, his chest trembled, and a large number of arrows exploded and fell. He raised his hand and unleashed a silver dragon shadow, causing a section of arrow emplacements to collapse, from which screams of agony erupted.

"Master, Prefect Mu, let's head straight for the inner courtyard."

Zhuang Jin said something, ignoring the henchmen, and sped away, with Shen Xianhong and Mu Yuantu following closely behind. The three of them quickly moved forward.

When he encountered resistance, he raised his hand and unleashed a silver dragon shadow, which was no match for any of them. In an instant, hundreds of martial artists perished.

At this moment, these martial artists from the Medicine King Gang also fully understood the value of a Xiantian martial artist. Wherever they went, there was a scene of people crying out for their parents and fleeing in all directions.

Soon, the three arrived at the only path leading from the outer courtyard to the inner courtyard of the Medicine King Gang. Suddenly, a loud bang was heard, and semi-transparent ripples descended from the clock tower above.

'That move was actually quite interesting!'

Zhuang Jin paused, raised his foot and stretched out his arms, drawing a Tai Chi symbol. A black and white Yin-Yang fish pattern, about ten feet long, took shape in mid-air, absorbing all the semi-transparent ripples. The next moment, with a turn and a push, he returned the attack to the enemy.

boom!
The translucent ripples were incredibly powerful, causing the bell tower to collapse and revealing a bronze bell several meters tall. The bronze bell roared loudly, cracking as it burst open. The eight hall masters and deputy hall masters of the Medicine King Gang, who were at the level of meridian opening, were also shaken by the residual force and vomited blood, scattering and fleeing in all directions.

—It turns out that the previous move was a combined effort of these eight martial artists who had opened their meridians, using the power of this huge bronze bell to unleash their power.

"Want to leave?!"

Zhuang Jin's sleeves trembled, tearing into pieces of cloth. With a wave of his hand, the pieces transformed into streaks of silver-white light that shot swiftly away.

Swish swish!
With just one move, seven martial artists who had reached the Qi Refining stage... died!

There was one left alive, a survivor that Zhuang Jin had deliberately left behind. This was the highest-ranking martial artist among the eight, a master of the Six Meridians Opening Realm. The arrow struck his right leg, causing him to fall from mid-air.

"Zhuang Sheng, you have quite the skill. I just taught you the Yin-Yang Two Elements Palm technique last night, and you've already mastered it to a minor degree today. Your comprehension is far beyond my reach!"

"Good son-in-law, not bad! When you're killing, you chop down the martial artists below like cutting melons and vegetables, quite like my style back in the day!"

"Haha, this kind of battle against someone of a higher level is indeed exhilarating."

Zhuang Jin didn't think anything of it. On the contrary, he believed that this was the right way of military strategy. In his opinion, wasn't his hard work in cultivation and breakthroughs just so that he could crush his opponents and dominate them at will when needed?

The three of them flashed forward and surrounded the martial artist who had opened six meridians.

This is Xie Feilong, the leader of the Medicine King Gang's Battle Hall. He is currently surrounded by three Xiantian experts, and cold sweat is pouring down his forehead. Especially when he thinks about the fate of his other colleagues, he chooses to beg for mercy from the bottom of his heart: "Patriarch Shen, Prefect Mu, and this... Grandpa Zhuang!"

Shen Xianhong and Mu Yuantu's faces twitched slightly upon hearing this person's address, but they were too lazy to argue and went straight to the point: "Where is your Medicine King Gang's Azure Origin Pot?"

"I don't know the specifics, but I do know that each time the medicinal herbs are delivered to a certain place in the inner courtyard, that place is..."

"lead the way!"

Zhuang Jin and his two companions arrived and stopped at the entrance.

"There must be some kind of mechanism inside, which will cause some trouble."

"It's alright, we can just take it apart once."

Zhuang Jin raised his hand and a silver-white dragon shadow flew out, violently demolishing the structure. Amidst a rumbling sound, only one stone chamber remained after a short while.

Shen Xianhong and Mu Yuantu channeled their true energy into their swords, cutting through the stone wall. Inside, Shi Jie sat cross-legged, bleeding from his seven orifices, already lifeless. Not far from him was a three-foot-tall, wide-mouthed, double-eared, and broken azure-colored pot.

……

Shi Jie's sudden death, a clear failure to break through to the Innate Realm, saved Zhuang Jin and the others some trouble. As for the aftermath, nothing unexpected happened. Shen Xianhong obtained the broken, mid-grade Qingyuan Pot from the Medicine King Gang, verified its authenticity, returned to the Shen family, and handed over the Shen family's low-grade Qingyuan Pot to Mu Yuantu.

It can only be said that the triangle is indeed the most stable structure. Considering Zhuang Jin's position and feelings as a third party, Mu Yuantu did not compete with Shen Xianhong after discovering the broken mid-grade Qingyuan Pot of the Medicine King Gang. After obtaining the broken mid-grade Qingyuan Pot of the Medicine King Gang, Shen Xianhong did not break his promise or resort to any tricks.

Subsequently, the government dispatched personnel to clean up and take over the western part of the city, while Shen Xianhong summoned the Shen family's retainers and held an impromptu high-level meeting.

……

Because Zhuang Jin and his two companions were too fast, even by this time, the news of the Medicine King Gang leader Shi Yong's death and the three of Zhuang Jin and his two companions' massacre of the Medicine King Gang had not yet spread completely. There were only some true and false rumors: some said that the explosion at the government office was an attack on the government office by the Medicine King Gang, who wanted to rebel, and that Zhuang Jin and his two companions rushed into the Medicine King Gang and started a killing spree; others said it was an internal strife within the Medicine King Gang...

However, once you reach the level of a worshipper, you have your own channels of information and you already know roughly what happened. But even knowing this, you still find it hard to believe. What you can't believe is the key figure who turned the tide—Zhuang Jin!
According to their message, Zhuang Jin had broken through to the Innate Realm, becoming the decisive factor in the outcome of the situation. However, just last night, they were attending the banquet celebrating Zhuang Jin's promotion to Purple Robe Attendant... This contradiction made them doubt whether they had received false information, leaving them uncertain and alarmed.

At this point, during the high-level meeting, Shen Xianhong's position at the very front was moved to the left, leaving a chair to stand side by side on his right.

"There are three things to discuss at today's high-level meeting."

Shen Xianhong and Zhuang Jin stood side by side, looking down: "Firstly, Zhuang Sheng has broken through to the Innate Realm. From this day forward, he will serve as the Supreme Respect of the Shen Family. His status and treatment will be equal to that of me, the head of the family. All cultivation resources will be provided and borne by the Shen Family."

This clarifies the conditions for Zhuang Jin's cultivation resources. Such generosity reflects not only Zhuang Jin's intrinsic value but also some competitive factors. Given the future rise of the Mu family, he naturally wouldn't push Zhuang Jin away.

Zhuang Jin nodded slightly, took a step forward, and unleashed an immense presence that seemed to reach the heavens and the earth, a vast aura sweeping out to demonstrate his cultivation level.

"Congratulations on your honor, Your Excellency!"

Amidst such a unified sound, the expressions of all the worshippers below were complex.

Mu Mingxi sighed inwardly. He had only thought that Zhuang Jin had a sliver of hope for innate talent, but he never expected that Zhuang Jin would actually succeed, and so quickly!

Fu Shousong looked at Zhuang Jin, his expression momentarily dazed. The events in the east of the city seemed like yesterday, yet their statuses had already undergone such a dramatic change.

As the fourth young master Shen Xujing watched Zhuang Jin reach the level he had always dreamed of, a feeling of jealousy subconsciously arose in his heart, but he quickly suppressed it with reason.

After the eldest son, Shen Xuhong, failed to break through and died suddenly, he had already regarded himself as the only candidate to become the future head of the Shen family. However, now that Zhuang Jin has broken through to the Innate Realm and is on good terms with the Eighth Son, Shen Xuchen, he feels a great threat and secretly decides to endure and win over Zhuang Jin.

Even the Eighth Young Master, Shen Xuchen, was only at the second stage of the Meridian Opening realm. Looking at Zhuang Jin, he felt the undeniable and immense gap in their abilities and sighed inwardly: 'Brother Zhuang's talent is unparalleled in the world. Compared to him, I, an ordinary genius, am like a firefly compared to the sun and moon, utterly humiliating.'

Then he thought that Zhuang Jin had broken through to the Innate Realm and was now on the same level as his father. Logically, he should now call him "Uncle Zhuang." Thinking of this, the smile on his face stiffened slightly.

The other worshippers had relatively little contact with Zhuang Jin because he had only recently broken through to the Meridian Opening Realm and had gone down to the county town. Now that Zhuang Jin had returned from the county town, he was like a dragon soaring to the sky. The contrast was so great that it caused many sighs.

"Secondly, Shi Yong, the leader of the Medicine King Gang, attacked the government office and was killed by me, Zhuang Sheng, Prefect Mu, and others. The government office will retaliate against and purge the Medicine King Gang. The western part of the city will be occupied by the government from now on... With the destruction of the Medicine King Gang, this long-running war has come to an end."

In fact, it was clearly Shen Xianhong, Zhuang Jin, and Mu Yuantu who conspired to kill Shi Yong. However, the public narrative is that the Medicine King Gang was stubborn and attacked the government office, intending to rebel, which led to the Shen family's alliance with the government being destroyed. This is how history is written by the victors, and this is how it will be passed down in the future.

These worshippers are all shrewd people; they naturally understand what the real truth is, but they will all tacitly follow suit and whitewash the situation, pretending that's how things are—it's nothing more than a matter of self-interest!
The government's move to the west of the city was also something that had been agreed upon long ago. After that, Mu Yuantu would gradually convert public assets into private assets, using it as the foundation for establishing the Xiantian family.

However, what the worshippers cared about most was the last sentence: The war is over!
This means that they are now safe and no longer need to fight on the battlefield or risk their lives. They can return to their former status as high-ranking worshippers and enjoy wealth and peace.

"The patriarch is wise!" This time, the voices of the worshippers were noticeably lighter and more unified.

"Thirdly, ten days later, on the fifteenth of August, the grand ceremony for the Supreme Lord to worship the Primordial Being will be held together with his marriage to my Miss Shen and the seventh Miss of Prefect Mu as his secondary wives!"

After the death of Shi Yong, the leader of the Medicine King Gang, Zhuang Jin, as one of the only three Xiantian masters in the city, was married off in a political marriage. The many retainers naturally understood this, but they all noticed a very interesting point in Shen Xianhong's words. The Mu family had clearly stated that it was the seventh young lady, but the Shen family had given a vague answer.

There are three young ladies in the Shen family who are of suitable status and age: the third young lady Shen Xuyun, the fifth young lady Shen Xujun, and the seventh young lady Shen Xuhan. But the head of the family didn't seem to say which young lady it was just now.
'Could it be that the Supreme Elder is such a coveted prize, being fought over by the three young ladies, and hasn't been decided yet?' Many of the elders had strange expressions, and this thought arose in their minds at the same time.

……

"So, which of you three is willing?" Madam Shen asked, looking at her three daughters.

"Yun'er?"

"This... I'm willing to let my mother decide."

Shen Xuyun was a typical well-bred young lady, with a gentle and unassuming nature. At this moment, however, she changed her previous statement, "I want to spend more time with my mother," to "I am willing to let my mother make the decision."

The reason behind this was that her best friend, her fourth brother, appealed to her emotions and reasoned with her, saying that Zhuang Jin was a good match and that she should do her best to win him over.

"Jun'er?"

“I met Young Master Zhuang yesterday and found him very agreeable. I also had a very pleasant conversation with Madam Zhuang.”

Shen Xujun's words are extremely bold and proactive in this era, and she also feels the pressure of competition.

To put it simply, yesterday she was still thinking that Zhuang Jin had a glimmer of hope for innate cultivation, and today Zhuang Jin revealed his innate realm and accomplished great things. She was pleasantly surprised and also grateful, secretly glad that she had established a relationship with Chen Yun last night.

"Han'er?"

“If both of you are willing, then I am too,” Shen Xuhan said, her eyes darting around.

Yes, she changed her mind too. Today she no longer said things like, "My future husband must like me very, very much, and only like me." The reason was also because Zhuang Jin had broken through to the Innate Realm.

Yesterday, Zhuang Jin was still outwardly practicing Eight Meridians Breathing and wearing a purple robe, which made her, as a secondary wife, feel somewhat wronged. But now that Zhuang Jin has attained the Innate Realm…

The only innate martial artist she had come into contact with since childhood was her father, who was like a towering mountain to be revered. Even her several brothers, who were outstanding individuals, were still of little hope and unattainable. As a result, her mindset changed, and she developed a sense of admiration and worship for Zhuang Jin.

Another point is that, seeing the attitudes of her third and fifth sisters, she realized that someone was a good thing and subconsciously tried to snatch him away.

"Well... before, all three of you were unwilling, but now you're all willing. How can one person be divided into three parts to marry each of you separately?"

Madam Shen sighed in embarrassment and joked, "How about this, let that Supreme Elder hold a celestial marriage ceremony, blindfold him, and whoever he catches will be the winner?"

If Zhuang Jin were here, he would definitely think to himself, "Are you treating me like Pigsy from Journey to the West?"

……

(End of this chapter)