Chapter 10: Tu Hai Saber Sect, Grandmaster of the Celestial Phenomenon Realm.
Leiyun Commandery, although one of the many hundred commanderies of the Great Xia Dynasty, was not particularly large and was quite far from the imperial capital. Even so, it was not to be underestimated.
Within the commandery, four major clans held sway, controlling the various resources of Leiyun.
Originally, among the four clans, the Ye Clan had always been the leader.
In terms of strength, the Ye Clan had consistently held a faint superiority over the other three. At its peak, it took all three rival clans joining forces to barely contend with it.
However, due to a misstep by the previous clan head, the Ye Clan’s strength suffered a great blow.
Now, the Ye Clan had fallen to the bottom among the four great clans.
In fact, if not for fear of the Ye Clan’s deep foundation and three elders at the Divine Sea Realm, they would have already been exterminated.
After the decline of their power, most of the Ye Family’s resources were swallowed up by the other three clans, and even minor families took advantage to get a share.
Fortunately, in the past two years, thanks to a marriage alliance with the Yue Family and the breakthrough of two elders to the Divine Sea Realm, they barely managed to stabilize the situation.
Still, in terms of peak strength, the Ye Clan remained the weakest.
At this moment, within the Chu Clan—one of the three rival families—three major decision-makers had gathered.
The Chu Clan’s patriarch looked at the patriarchs of the Jiang and Wang Clans, his expression rather solemn.
“I didn’t expect the Ye Family to be so tenacious. I thought they’d spiral into decline, but in just two years, they’ve regained their footing!”
Hearing this, the Wang Clan’s patriarch revealed a trace of worry on his face.
“In that case, won’t the Ye Family seek revenge in the future?”
He was worried. After all, when they seized the Ye Clan’s resources, they had killed quite a few members of the Ye Clan.
The Jiang Clan’s patriarch also grew serious at these words.
He said, “The Ye Family is, after all, a family that survived that incident back then.
Their foundation is nothing to scoff at. Now that they have the Yue Family protection, it would be difficult to wipe them out in one go.”
This was no exaggeration. A century ago, during the Great Xia’s imperial succession crisis, the Ye and Yue Families were among the families that supported different royal heirs.
In the end, the heir they backed failed, and they were almost purged in retaliation.
Fortunately, they managed to stabilize the situation. After paying a heavy price in resources and lives, they eventually calmed the new emperor’s wrath.
Since then, both families had kept a low profile.
The Yue Family, however, managed to prosper due to one of their members earning the emperor’s favor after entering the palace.
The Ye Family, on the other hand, remained cautious and kept a low profile to avoid further ire.
Because of their close ties with the Yue Family and their discreet growth, they had managed to survive.
The Ye Family’s deep foundation was well known to the three other clans.
Upon hearing this, the Chu Clan’s patriarch suddenly sneered in disdain.
“Hmph, if it were just us three clans, we really might not be able to eliminate the Ye Family. Unfortunately for them, they’ve provoked someone they shouldn’t have.”
The other two patriarchs were stunned and looked at him curiously.
Seeing this, he didn’t bother to hide the truth and spoke directly.
“Do you really think that secret realm alone could kill more than a dozen of the Ye Family Divine Sea Realm experts? That was only possible because an external force intervened!”
“That secret realm contained a Nine-Flavored Xuanhuang Lotus, and the Ye Family obtained it. But news of it leaked and attracted the attention of other forces, leading to all the Ye Family members who went being slaughtered.”
Hearing this, the two patriarchs were both shocked.
The Ye Family had no shortage of powerful cultivators. Their former grand elder and clan head were both said to be just a step away from the Celestial Phenomenon Realm Grandmaster level.
To destroy them all in one stroke, it could only be the doing of a force with Grandmasters at the Celestial Phenomenon Realm.
The Nine-Flavored Xuan huang Lotus was a rare middle-grade Earth-tier spiritual medicine.
It could help a peak Divine Sea Realm cultivator break through to the Celestial Phenomenon Realm, with a 100% success rate.
With such a treasure, who wouldn’t covet it? Destroying a clan for it would not be considered excessive.
“So, which force destroyed them?” asked the Wang Clan’s patriarch cautiously.
The Chu Clan’s patriarch replied with a calm smile: “Tu Hai Saber Sect.”
At those words, both patriarchs were visibly shaken, their expressions filled with shock.
Tu Hai Saber Sect—that was an old powerhouse of the Celestial Phenomenon Realm.
It was said they had nearly a hundred Divine Sea Realm experts.
More importantly, they publicly had three Celestial Phenomenon Grandmasters.
And that was just what was known. Rumor had it that the sect still housed a not-yet-deceased Supreme Elder—some even claimed to have seen him.
Regardless of the truth, the Tu Hai Saber Sect’s strength could not be underestimated.
Among all the commanderies around Leiyun, the Tu Hai Saber Sect was undoubtedly one of the most untouchable forces.
After recovering from his shock, the Wang Clan’s patriarch couldn’t help but ask:
“I heard their Fourth Elder just broke through and became a Celestial Phenomenon Realm Grandmaster. Don’t tell me…”
The Chu Clan’s patriarch nodded. “Exactly. He broke through because he consumed the Nine-Flavored Xuanhuang Lotus.”
Upon hearing this, both patriarchs fell silent.
Indeed, a Celestial Phenomenon Grandmaster was not someone to be trifled with.
Even in the capital, such figures would be granted proper respect by the royal family.
The rise of a Celestial Phenomenon Grandmaster was a momentous event.
At the same time, the two clan leaders looked at the Chu Clan’s patriarch with complicated expressions—envy mixed with a trace of jealousy.
They knew very well that the Chu Clan patriarch’s younger sister was the concubine of one of Tu Hai Saber Sect’s veteran inner sect elders.
“Secrets can’t stay hidden forever. My sister already sent word—Tu Hai Saber Sect has the intention to wipe out the Ye Family. If we help them do it, we’ll surely gain favor with the sect!”
Upon hearing this, the Jiang and Wang patriarchs both fell silent.
“But the Ye Clan just formed a marriage alliance with the Yue Clan less than two years ago. Wouldn’t this offend the Yue Clan?”
The Yue Clan was no weakling. Their power was not inferior to that of the Tu Hai Saber Sect.
As the top clan of Jianghuai Commandery, they could go toe-to-toe with Tu Hai Saber Sect.
Jianghuai Commandery was worlds apart from remote commanderies like Leiyun.
Without a Celestial Phenomenon Grandmaster sitting in, most forces wouldn’t even survive there.
While the Tu Hai Saber Sect might not fear the Yue Family, they dared not provoke them lightly.
Seeing their concerns, the Chu Clan’s patriarch let out a scornful chuckle.
With a sneer tugging at the corner of his lips, he spoke again.