I, the lazy prince, am the darling of the ladies of destiny.

At the core of the Lin family ancestral land, within the central array formation, the last and strongest protective array was fully activated.

Drawing upon the vast spiritual energy of the mountains and rivers of the Southern Territory, a gigantic barrier, vaguely resembling an umbrella frame, slowly took shape, covering only the core area of ​​the ancestral land within a radius of three hundred miles, barely keeping the sword cultivator and the spear saint out.

"Oh no! It's the Lü family! They've really come!"

"Damn it, we reacted too slowly! If we had received the message earlier, we would have activated all protection measures immediately, or simply..."

"Lin Zhan! Look at the good son you raised! He's brought such a terrible disaster upon the family!"

The elders who remained behind turned pale, filled with shock and anger, and pointed their anger directly at the family head, Lin Zhan.

Lin Zhan walked slowly out of the inner council hall, his face calm and composed, showing no sign of panic.

"What's the panic?"

His voice was calm as his gaze swept over the panicked crowd. "Two mere Dao Foundation Realm cultivators at the Great Perfection stage, how could they possibly shake a Dao Ancestor?"

Before the words were finished—

boom!

A terrifying aura, far more vast and profound than the previous two attackers, seemingly connected to the laws of the entire world, suddenly erupted from Lin Zhan!

As order flows and laws resonate, the spiritual energy within a thousand miles boils!

Dao Ancestor Realm!

Lin Zhan, the head of the Lin family who was always thought to be only at the Great Perfection of the Foundation Establishment Realm, was actually a Dao Ancestor Realm expert!

Three Dao Ancestors from One Family!

The Lin family is hiding a third Dao Ancestor! And he is the current head of the family!

All the Lin family members, including the panicked elders, stared wide-eyed at Lin Zhan in disbelief.

Lin Zhan coldly gazed at the two figures hovering in the air three hundred miles away, his voice icy and filled with supreme authority:

"Are the five sons of the Lü family truly outstanding generals?"

"Since we're here..."

He slowly raised his hand, his palm seemingly supporting the weight of an entire world. The surrounding space began to distort, and the power of laws surged and converged.

"Then stay."

Three hundred miles away, the green-robed swordsman and the spear-wielding martial saint exchanged a glance. There was no fear in their eyes, but rather a trace of solemnity and... expected understanding.

The five sons of the Lü family were all capable generals, and were never reckless.

Their coming tonight is both a demonstration and a test.

To test the true strength of the Lin family, and to find out just how many trump cards this patient patriarch has been hiding.

Lin Yan was confined to the Cliff of Repentance, feeling the terrifying fluctuations emanating from the ancestral land and his father's unfamiliar yet powerful aura. Regret, fear, and resentment intertwined in his heart.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Compared to the Lin family, which has temporarily stabilized its position due to its patriarch Lin Zhan's display of Dao Ancestor cultivation, the Jufu Chamber of Commerce, which is also at the center of the storm, is facing a true catastrophe.

The Lü family's "Five Elite Generals" were renowned throughout the northern regions.

Tonight, two of them, carrying swords and spears, rushed straight to the border of the Lin family, breaking through five major formations with overwhelming force and forcing Lin Zhan to reveal his hidden cultivation level.

The remaining three appeared silently above the headquarters of the Jufu Chamber of Commerce.

Jufu Chamber of Commerce is extremely wealthy, with a business network spanning four regions, but its true high-end combat power is far less than its wealth.

On the surface, the Chamber of Commerce only has two Dao Foundation Realm cultivators in charge.

Three powerful, abyssal auras enveloped the entire headquarters of the Jufu Chamber of Commerce without any concealment.

Those were three men dressed in the black armor of the Lü family, their auras as solid as iron and stone. They were none other than Yu Jin, Xu Huang, and Zhang Liao, three of the five elite generals of the Lü family!

All have reached the Great Perfection of the Foundation of the Dao!

Faced with this sudden and overwhelming power, the Jade Dragon Ancestor did not hesitate to bow deeply to the three figures in the air, his posture extremely humble, his voice hoarse with age and earnestness:

"I am Yulong, and I am here to serve as the revered ancestor of the Jufu Chamber of Commerce. The three generals of the Lü family have come in person; I wonder... if you could grant me and the Chamber of Commerce some time to expedite things?"

"I swear on my life that the Jufu Chamber of Commerce will give the Lü family a satisfactory explanation!"

The Dao Foundation Peak cultivator behind him also bowed, his face pale.

Despite being at the same Dao Foundation stage, he felt no desire to resist these three cultivators from the Lü family.

"Noisy."

Standing in the middle, Yu Jin frowned slightly and uttered only two words.

Without him making any move, a terrifying pressure, far more solid and heavy than that of an ordinary Dao Foundation Great Perfection cultivator, seemingly carrying a murderous intent, crashed down like an invisible mountain.

It precisely enveloped the Jade Dragon Ancestor's entire body!

Yu Long's body trembled, his withered skin turned red, and he felt a sense of suffocation. Even the decaying Dao foundation in his body faintly groaned!

Above the Nascent Soul stage, both are foundational stages of the Dao, yet there is a world of difference between them.

The ordinary Dao Foundation in the Northern Region is fundamentally different from the Dao Foundation of the Lü Family, which has been passed down for tens of thousands of years through warfare!

"You...you Lu family, you've gone too far!" Yu Long barely managed to hold on, hissing and growling, his eyes filled with despair.

"This is going too far!" Yu Jin said coldly, his eyes full of disdain. "It's because my Lü family has been dormant for too long, so long that you monkeys who rose up by taking advantage of the times have forgotten who the real masters are."

His voice suddenly turned sharp, like metal clashing, exploding through the night sky:

"Have you forgotten that tens of thousands of years ago, when humans fought a deadly battle against demons and evil forces, with the entire Southern Region's demonic and evil allied forces launching a fierce attack on the Eastern, Western, and Northern Regions with the strength of just one region!"

"The three defense lines collapsed one after another, causing immense suffering and loss of life; the human race's territory was nearly completely lost!"

"Who was it that managed to turn the tide at the last moment?"

"My Lu family ancestors lost one Dao Ancestor at the Great Perfection stage, two Dao Ancestors at the Peak stage, four Dao Ancestors at the Late Stage, and Dao Foundation and Nascent Soul cultivators fell like rain!"

"With the blood of their entire clan, they forcefully kept the demonic alliance at bay outside the Three Realms, reversing the tide of fate!"

Yu Jin's gaze, sharp as lightning, swept over the trembling Jufu Chamber of Commerce members below, finally settling on Yu Long's deathly pale face:

"In that battle, the Lü family suffered heavy losses and had no choice but to retreat to the northern border to recuperate, eventually becoming known as one of the 'Four Great Families' alongside the Yun, Ye, and Lin families..."

"The sleeping tiger still possesses its might and sharp teeth." Xu Huang, holding a halberd, stepped forward impatiently, pointing the tip of his halberd. "How dare you provoke and provoke a wild monkey in the forest?!"

"Why waste words with them?" Xu Huang's eyes blazed with fighting spirit, his voice booming like thunder, "One word—"

The halberd in his hand, which seemed capable of tearing the sky apart, suddenly stopped in mid-air!

"beat!"

boom--!

An invisible yet vast spatial confinement force suddenly spread out from him, instantly covering an area of ​​a thousand miles!

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth solidified, and the laws of space were forcibly suppressed and sealed!

"He...he has imprisoned the entire space!" Below, a knowledgeable elder exclaimed in horror, his voice trembling.

Jufu Chamber of Commerce is in grave danger!

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Northern Regions, Northern Border, Lü Family Ancestral Hall

In stark contrast to the tense and murderous atmosphere outside, the atmosphere inside the Lü family ancestral hall was solemn and dignified, yet it also exuded an indescribable... detached tranquility.

Lu Cangqiong, the patriarch of the Lu family who should have been in the highest position, stood respectfully side by side with the family head, Lu Yang, in the hall.

On the main seat of the ancestral hall, which symbolized the highest authority of the Lü family, sat an old man with a slightly hunched back, wearing a simple gray robe, and holding a wine gourd in his hand.

He was the old servant who usually guarded the Lü family's stables and was jokingly called "Old Yu" by the younger generation.