Just as the old patriarch forced me to my death, I achieved the unity of Dao and fruition.

As night fell, the Shen family residence in Yunzhou Prefecture was already adorned with red lanterns.

From the main gate all the way to the inner courtyard, red silk and lanterns can be seen everywhere, and even the main gate, which is rarely opened on weekdays, is completely open.

Those who witnessed this scene quickly guessed the reason.

"Is there good news again in the Shen family?"

"I heard it's Miss Shen's engagement."

"So fast?"

"Heh, don't pry into the Shen family's affairs."

Someone clearly knew something, and immediately shut up halfway through their sentence.

The Shen family has been rooted in Yunzhou Prefecture for hundreds of years and is a well-known clan.

The clan not only has a ninth-level martial artist in charge, but more importantly, the Shen family has produced a true prodigy in this generation.

That person is now a disciple of the True Man Guarding Yunzhou.

Based on this relationship alone, very few people in Yunzhou would be willing to offend the Shen family.

As for how many times Miss Shen has been engaged.

What happened to all those fiancés after that...?

Some people know, but no one is willing to say anything.

In the inner courtyard of the Shen family, Shen Zhao, the head of the Shen family, and a rather beautiful young woman were sitting together around a round table.

The woman's name was Shen Yurong, and she was Shen Zhao's younger sister.

She held a portrait in her hand, glanced at it a few times, and her brows furrowed.

"Brother, is this the person you found for me?"

Shen Zhao was drinking tea.

"What? You don't like it?"

Shen Yurong threw the portrait directly onto the table.

"He's just average-looking."

"He's not as handsome as that Liu Langjun in my department."

"And from a small place like Blackrock Town?"

The disdain in her tone was almost undisguised.

Shen Zhao was getting a little impatient.

"It's not like I'm asking you to get engaged to him, but rather that I'm asking you to spend your whole life with him."

"Once we get the bloodline, whether you keep the person or not is up to you. But don't do what the previous ones did and ruin our family's reputation."

Hearing this, Shen Yurong's expression softened slightly.

She was originally just an ordinary person who couldn't even get past the basics of martial arts.

If it weren't for the Shen family's extremely special blood-changing secret technique, she might never have become a martial artist in her lifetime.

The bloodline of humans is not the same as the bloodline of demons.

Legend has it that in extremely ancient times, there once existed some divine beasts and strange creatures in the world.

Later generations of humans established contact with it, and their bloodline was passed down from generation to generation.

However, today, most of them have become so diluted that they are almost imperceptible.

Some people never awaken to their true nature in their entire lives, while others revert to their ancestral state by chance.

Once one reverts to their ancestral state, their blood, physical body, and even martial arts talent will far surpass those of ordinary people.

What the Shen family's secret technique does is to forcibly graft superior bloodlines from others onto their own people.

Shen Yurong has used it six times, with six different fiancés and six different bloodlines.

This is how an ordinary woman who was originally unable to cultivate was forcibly pushed to the fifth level.

Gu Changjin was the seventh.

The head of the Shen family put down his teacup.

"Zhao'er, are you sure he'll come tonight?"

Shen Zhao disagreed.

"Don't worry, Father."

I've made myself perfectly clear.

"I brought him here from Qinghe County to the prefectural capital."

"Now I'm working for the Demon Suppression Division again."

"If he dares to disrespect the Shen family, does he even want to stay in Yunzhou?"

Shen Yurong pursed her lips.

"What if he doesn't want to?"

"Then let him be willing."

Shen Zhao smiled faintly.

"Just a first-tier martial artist."

"The fact that the Shen family was willing to let him in is already a stroke of good luck for him."

"As long as everyone arrives tonight, the wedding will be settled immediately."

"As for his opinion, it's not important."

Upon hearing this, the head of the Shen family simply nodded.

Obviously, they have no objection to this.

Just then.

boom!

A loud bang suddenly came from the front yard.

The entire Shen family mansion trembled slightly.

The wine on the round table rippled.

The smile on Shen Zhao's face vanished instantly.

"What's that noise?"

Before the servants could even come in to report...

The sound of orderly footsteps could already be heard outside.

boom!

The main gate of the Shen family was kicked open.

Dozens of demon-suppressing guards dressed in black from the Demon Suppression Division filed in.

The Shen family guards tried to stop them, but were forced back several steps by the powerful aura.

"The Demon Suppression Division?"

The head of the Shen family suddenly stood up.

Shen Zhao also frowned.

This is the Shen family's residence!

Have the people from the Demon Suppression Division gone mad?

Why barge in with such a grand entrance?

Soon, an old man dressed in a dark gold robe walked into the inner courtyard.

Upon seeing the person who had arrived, Shen Zhao's expression changed slightly.

The Prison Envoy of the Demon Suppression Division in Yunzhou.

Cao Xuan.

Ninth-tier martial artist!

They were all truly high-ranking members of the State Demon Suppression Division.

The head of the Shen family had not yet spoken.

An aged voice came from deep within the Shen family compound.

"Cao Xuan."

"You brought so many people to break into my Shen family's residence; shouldn't you give me an explanation?"

As soon as he finished speaking, an elderly man in gray clothes stepped off the roof.

The soles of the feet made no sound when they touched the ground.

However, the blood and qi belonging to a ninth-level martial artist had already silently enveloped the entire inner courtyard.

The Shen family's pillar of strength.

Shen Chongshan.

Cao Xuan saw him but did not retreat.

Instead, he let out a cold laugh.

"Explain? Don't you know who your Shen family has offended?"

Shen Chongshan frowned.

"What do you mean?"

Cao Xuan's gaze passed over him.

It landed on Shen Yurong.

I glanced at it from top to bottom.

The disdain in his eyes was undisguised.

"This is it? Your Shen family is planning to use this kind of scum to curry favor with my master?"

Shen Yurong's face flushed red instantly.

"Who are you calling trash!"

Cao Xuan didn't even bother to look at her again.

"Six fiancés, and none of them survived the blood transfusion."

"I only managed to reach the fifth rank by piecing together bloodlines from various sources."

"You dare to challenge me?"

"presumptuous!"

Shen Chongshan took a step forward, and his ninth-level qi and blood erupted, instantly shattering large sections of the roof tiles.

"Cao Xuan! Do you really think that just because you're the Executioner of the Demon Suppression Division, you can act with impunity in my Shen family?"

"And another thing! Is this your personal decision, or the decision of the entire Yunzhou Demon Suppression Division?"

"Is the garrison commander aware of this matter?"

When talking about the True Man who guards Yunzhou.

Shen Chongshan's tone was noticeably more confident.

That prodigy from the Shen family is a direct disciple of the Guardian Master.

In terms of relationships, the Shen family should be the group of people in Yunzhou that you absolutely cannot afford to offend.

Before Cao Xuan could answer, another sound came from outside the courtyard gate.

"Old Ghost Shen".

"Who are you trying to intimidate with real people?"

Another ninth-level martial artist walked in.

Then came the second, the third, the fourth... in just over ten breaths.

Five more ninth-level martial artists have appeared in the inner courtyard of the Shen family.

And without exception, they all came from the Demon Suppression Division of Yunzhou!

Shen Chongshan's expression finally changed.

The head of the Shen family also subconsciously took a half step back.

What happened?

When did the Demon Suppression Division of Yunzhou become so united?

These people used to belong to different factions.

Some were close to powerful families in the prefecture, some were close to the lineage of the Guardian Immortal, and some had even been at odds with each other for many years.

Why are we standing opposite the Shen family's house today?

The strangest thing is that Cao Xuan just mentioned the word "my lord" repeatedly.

Who is their master?

Shen Zhao stood at the back of the crowd, his face growing increasingly grim.

Scenes from the daytime suddenly flashed into my mind.

In Gu Changjin's courtyard, Commander Chen walked out and, upon seeing him, subconsciously asked a question.

"Are you here to report to the adults as well?"

Immediately afterwards, two more ninth-level martial artists emerged from the courtyard.

At the time, he thought it was just a coincidence, but now... Cao Xuan, and these ninth-level martial artists in front of him, and the master they spoke of.

Shen Zhao's lips turned pale little by little.

A ridiculous idea, so absurd that even he couldn't believe it, suddenly popped into his head.

No way?

The "adults" these people refer to.

Could it really be... that "first-level martial artist" I brought back from Qinghe County?