Liu Xiaotian shocked everyone when he issued such an outrageous demand, forcing Liu Xiucheng to give up the patriarch’s position and commit suicide on the spot. It was a vicious ultimatum.
"Liu Xiucheng, I knew you'd say that," Liu Xiaotian replied with a mysterious smile, as though he had anticipated the response. "You're right—I'm not qualified to be the Liu Clan's patriarch. But there's someone else, someone whose seniority equals yours. He's the best candidate to lead the clan."
"Who?" Liu Xiucheng frowned. He couldn't think of anyone more suitable than himself for the patriarch's role.
"Please welcome the grand elder!" Liu Xiaotian said with a sweeping gesture.
Everyone froze in confusion. Hadn't the grand elder died long ago?
Very few people realized the Golden Cauldron Pavilion had taken control of him. Liu Xiucheng had informed everyone that the grand elder had passed away on the way.
The black-robed figure behind Liu Xiaotian stepped forward. Liu Xiucheng squinted—something about the aura felt familiar.
Before the crowd, the figure pulled back his hood, revealing his face.
"The grand elder!" gasped the crowd in disbelief.
The black-robed figure was none other than Liu Shen, the Liu Clan's grand elder. He still lived.
Liu Xiucheng staggered in disbelief, nearly collapsing before Liu Dashan rushed forward to steady him.
"Patriarch, long time no see. I hope you've been well," Liu Shen said calmly. His face appeared younger and healthier than before, and his cultivation had strengthened.
"Liu Shen... so you've been hiding all this time," Liu Xiucheng exhaled slowly, trying to suppress his shock. Now he knew, the man who had died in the canyon had been a puppet.
In terms of seniority, Liu Shen stood equal to Liu Xiucheng. Many disciples and elders had long supported him.
"Patriarch," Liu Shen said gently, "since we share the same bloodline, I hope you'll consider what's best for the clan."
His words carried no threat, but they struck deep—he used sentiment as leverage.
It was now clear to all. Liu Shen wanted the patriarch's seat and intended to align the Liu Clan with the three clans to ensure its survival.
Suddenly, Liu Xiucheng burst into laughter. He had trusted Liu Shen the most, and now the man finally revealed his fox's tail.
After someone poisoned him, Liu Wuxie had once saved him, and now, more than a year later, Liu Shen still refused to give up.
He had secretly allied with the Wang Clan and used them to undermine the Liu Clan from within.
Liu Shen said nothing; he simply smiled as he watched Liu Xiucheng suffer.
Everyone understood that the Liu Clan had no options left. Liu Shen would crush them if they refused. If they accepted, they would survive, but only as subjects under his rule.
"Liu Shen, I might have considered it if it were Liu Xiaotian," Liu Xiucheng said, clutching his chest. "But if it's you, I'll never hand the Liu Clan over to someone like you, even if it means dying with you."
He had grown up with Liu Shen. Though they weren't blood brothers, their bond had once been stronger than kin.
Liu Shen’s betrayal ignited Liu Xiucheng’s fury and grief.
He had once forgiven Liu Shen and even spared Liu Shen’s bloodline. But now he realized the dead man had only been a puppet; the real Liu Shen had been lurking in the shadows all along.
"Patriarch, why are you so stubborn?" Liu Shen asked calmly. "Is it worth dragging tens of thousands to the grave over your pride?"
"You beast in human skin!" Liu Dazhi roared. "Say one more word, and I'll fight you myself!"
He remembered how Liu Shen used to bring them treats and how the brothers had once respected him as if he were a member of their family.
"I gave you a chance," Liu Shen said coldly. His face darkened as he handed the matter to Liu Xiaotian. "Since you don't value my goodwill, don't blame me for being merciless."
Liu Shen had orchestrated everything; Liu Xiaotian was merely his pawn.
"See now?" Liu Xiaotian shouted, his voice booming across the Liu Clan. "Liu Xiucheng doesn't care about your lives! This is your last chance. Anyone willing to leave with us is welcome. It won't be long before we return and rebuild the clan!"
He opened his arms, ready to receive any defectors.
Once the three clans destroyed the Liu Clan, they would hand over the territory, just as they promised. The Liu Clan would remain, just under new leadership.
Many disciples exchanged uneasy glances. They stood on the edge of destruction. Staying meant likely death. Leaving offered a sliver of survival.
"I'm willing to leave the Liu Clan!" an elder declared, stepping forward with his entire branch to join Liu Xiaotian.
He had always kept a low profile, no one expected him to betray the clan now of all times.
Liu Shen had recruited him long ago—one more seed planted, waiting for the right time to bloom.
Ten years of scheming had come to this.
After that first step, more hesitant disciples followed one by one. One by one, they walked toward Liu Xiaotian's side.
Liu Xiaotian smiled as if he had foreseen it all. When death loomed, such decisions were only natural.
"I'm also willing to leave!" another deacon said, bringing his family with him.
"Patriarch, I'm sorry," he added, bowing in shame as he passed Liu Xiucheng.
"Enough. I won't stop anyone who wishes to leave," Liu Xiucheng said, closing his eyes. He could hear the whispers all around him.
"You traitors! Turning your back on the clan now of all times?!" roared several loyal elders.
The Liu Clan was vast, and it was impossible to command complete loyalty from its members. Those who defected were a minority; the majority remained, determined to live and die with the clan.
Over a hundred left within minutes, but then the movement stopped completely. Liu Shen had planted most of those who left. Only a few chose to defect because they feared for their lives.
Outside the city walls, the three clans' army had arrived, they unleashed terrifying pressure that blanketed the Liu Clan like an incoming storm.
"This is your final chance!" Liu Xiaotian bellowed. "Leave now, and you might live. Otherwise—"
Those without resolve had already gone. Those who stayed were unshakable in their loyalty.
"Everyone, prepare for battle!" Liu Xiucheng shouted. There was no more time to deal with Liu Shen or Liu Xiaotian. The war against the three clans was upon them.
Meanwhile, in the Spirit Jade Pavilion—
Experts from the Scarlet Dragon Cult and Profound Cloud Sect had already gathered.
"The battle at the Liu Clan should have started by now," said the Scarlet Dragon Cult's sect master, casually sipping his tea.
"It'll be over in two hours," replied the Profound Cloud Sect's sect master. "Then it'll be our turn."
Their plan was simple: eliminate the Liu Clan, then wipe out the Heavenly Dao Society.
Their main goal was to test the Heavenly Spirit Celestial Academy's bottom line.
If the academy intervened, they would back off. If not, they would crush the Heavenly Dao Society without mercy.
After all, the three clans could act against the Liu Clan in the name of a personal feud. But if the academy chose to intervene, they would have no choice but to spare the Heavenly Dao Society.
Liu Shen and his faction waited nearby, watching it all unfold. Once the Liu Clan fell, they would claim its territory, just as agreed.
"Shall we go and enjoy the spectacle?" suggested an elder from the Scarlet Dragon Cult. Battles between experts at the Heaven Profound Realm were rare, and many hadn't witnessed one in Astral Glory City since the last time it happened.
"Agreed!" the Profound Cloud Sect's elders echoed as they stood.
In a flash, a third of the experts in the Spirit Jade Pavilion's main hall emptied.
A thunderous rumble followed the arrival of Heaven Profound Realm cultivators, making the surrounding space tremble.
The ancestors of the Liao, Yuan, and Wang Clans unleashed a crushing aura that blanketed the Liu Clan like a storm cloud.
"Everyone from the Liu Clan, listen up! Kneel and surrender if you don't want to die! Resist, and we'll show no mercy!" bellowed the Liao Clan's ancestor.
He wore a gaudy red robe that clashed absurdly with his hulking figure. His voice boomed like thunder, shaking ears and hearts alike.
Then, Liu Hanyi emerged from within the clan. With a single wave of her aura, she erased the pressure from the Liao Clan's ancestor with invisible waves that swept across the sky.
"Liu Hanyi!" the Liao Clan's ancestor shouted. "Today will be your death! I'll capture you and ravage you thoroughly!"
He spewed filth with his voice like a degenerate beast.
Though Liu Hanyi had lived for millennia, she still radiated the grace of a woman in her thirties.
Cultivation could mask one's appearance, and while she wasn't a peerless beauty, she had once been famed in her youth, admired by countless men.
Coincidentally, the Liao Clan's ancestor had been among those admirers.
"You bastard!" Liu Hanyi roared, trembling with fury. "I'll peel your skin, tear your tendons, and rip that filthy mouth off your face!"
Her fly-whisk snapped open with a blinding gleam, echoing her fury.
The tension grew suffocating. Four Heaven Profound Realm experts hovered overhead—none dared interrupt.
Meanwhile, the experts from the three clans surrounded the Liu Clan, ensuring no one could escape.
War loomed on the edge. Once the fighting erupted, it would bring only devastation.
"Liu Clan disciples, listen up! Prepare for combat!" Liu Xiucheng shouted.
The entire clan mobilized, ready to fight to the bitter end.