Staring intently at Gu Feng's outstretched palm, Gu Chunfeng was furious, his whole body trembling. After cultivating for over three hundred years, when had he ever suffered such humiliation?
"How dare you treat me like this, you brat?"
"What about you?" Gu Feng withdrew his hand, shrugged, and shouted as he looked around, "A life for a life! A debt must be repaid! This is an eternal truth!"
He took out a spiritual soul contract from his white jade ring storage, the very one that the Wang Family had signed with the Loan Treasure Pavilion!
Gu Feng looked at him coldly and chuckled, "Fifth Uncle, if you're in trouble, you could have just told me! You and Aunt are both my elders! Consider these spirit stones as my respect to you both!"
With that, he turned and tossed the contract into the air, casting a simple Fire Ignition Spell, which shot out!
In the air, the spiritual soul contract instantly turned to ashes!
Gu Feng laughed heartily, saying, "The debt! It's forgiven!"
"At your command!" Manager Wu wisely bowed and crushed the jade slip in his hand to pieces!
The true core within him surged wildly! Seeing this, Gu Chunfeng was consumed with rage. His cultivation had reached the eighth stage of Spirit Dividing, and he was on the verge of a breakthrough. This incident damaged his spirit, disrupting his eight meridians, and he could no longer hold back, spitting out a mouthful of golden blood!
"Poof!"
"Fifth Elder!!"
"Fifth Brother!"
"Fifth Younger Brother! Quickly, someone! Take him to the back courtyard to rest, summon the Medical Officer!" Gu Liantian immediately ordered upon seeing this.
Several low-level cultivators hurried into the hall, supporting the fainted Gu Chunfeng as they left the meeting hall.
"Grandfather!" Gu Kun, the second in sequence, shouted anxiously, turning to Gu Feng with a look full of resentment.
"Gu Feng! In the name of the second in the Gu Family sequence, I challenge you!"
Gu Kun's face was dark as he shouted angrily, "As the first in sequence, do you dare to fight me?"
"You're not worthy!" Gu Feng didn't even look at him directly.
"You!"
"What do you mean, 'you'? I am your uncle, and you are my nephew!" Gu Feng lightly waved the folding fan in his hand, raising his chin as he scolded, "Do you not understand respect for elders? Do you not understand the heavenly principle and human order? Such an ill-mannered thing!"
"Ah! I'll kill you!"
Gu Kun, humiliated and furious, his aura surged, and a silver sword light flew out from above his head, pointing directly at Gu Feng in an instant!
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The change happened too quickly; no one expected Gu Kun to act so crazily in front of all the family elders!
The sword light of a Golden Elixir stage cultivator was not something Gu Feng, in the Qi Refining stage, could withstand!
Seeing that Gu Feng was about to be in grave danger!
A shadow swiftly moved, perfectly blocking in front of Gu Feng.
Jiu Long coldly extended two fingers, easily catching the sword light, which emitted an unwilling roar before revealing its true form—a gracefully designed silver flying sword!
"Courting death." Jiu Long said coldly, flicking his fingers, and the silver flying sword broke with a sound, falling to the ground in two pieces of scrap metal.
This Silver Dragon Sword was Gu Kun's destiny artifact, and being destroyed so easily by Jiu Long almost shattered his Golden Elixir. His eyes rolled back, and he fainted on the spot.
"What audacity! Do you really think I'm dead?" Gu Liantian suddenly stood up, his overwhelming cultivation spreading out, scaring everyone into a shiver!
All the cultivators present were intimidated, bowing to apologize.
Only Gu Feng and Jiu Long remained standing tall.
Seeing Gu Feng unmoved, Jiu Long coldly praised, "Not bad composure, to remain still even with a mountain collapsing above. You do have some courage."
Damn it! I'm just too scared to move! Courage, my ass!
Gu Feng smiled bitterly, cursing inwardly.
After a pause, Gu Liantian sat back on the Kylin chair and instructed, "Announce, Gu Kun of the family sequence, reckless and daring, attacked his kin in the meeting hall, punish him with half a year's salary, and imprison him at Quiet Contemplation Cliff for a year!"
"Obeying the City Lord's order!" everyone quickly responded.
Two low-level cultivators stepped forward, carrying the unconscious Gu Kun out of the hall.
The atmosphere was awkward for a moment.
Gu Huaisheng stroked his long eyebrows and stepped forward first, "Gu Feng, no matter how eloquent you are, your cultivation is weak, and your talent is limited. The Gu Family sequence must bear the responsibility of the Heroic Spirit City’s millennia-old foundation. How can you bear it with such cultivation? Second Uncle advises you to step down and let the worthy take your place. The family will ensure you live a life of wealth and worry-free, never going back on its word!"
On the high seat, Gu Liantian looked sorrowful. Although he wanted to protect Gu Feng's position, his second brother's words were not without reason.
For tens of thousands of years, the first in the Gu Family sequence was not only a key cultivation target but also a candidate for the City Lord!
Although the life of a cultivator is long, it is not eternal. Gu Liantian, now over three hundred years old, would gradually wither if he did not break through to the Body Fusion Realm within a hundred years. By then, the burden of Heroic Spirit City would fall on Gu Feng.
But his cultivation...
In all the heavens and worlds, strength is revered!
This is an unchangeable truth!
"Second Uncle! How about we make a bet?" Gu Feng suddenly said.
"Oh?" Gu Huaisheng touched his long eyebrows in suspicion and asked, "What kind of bet?"
"Give me a year!"
Looking at the City Lord, his father, on the high platform, Gu Feng knelt and said, "If I break through to the Golden Elixir stage within a year, the matter of stepping down will not be mentioned again!"
Everyone, including Gu Liantian, was a bit surprised.
You must know, a year is not long. For an ordinary cultivator to advance from the third stage of Qi Refining to the Golden Elixir stage would take decades or even a century. Even someone with great talent, with the support of family resources, would need at least five or six years!
Gu Feng, with mediocre talent, had been stuck at the third stage of Qi Refining for ten years. Breaking through to the Golden Elixir stage in a year?
It's simply a fool's dream!
"And if you can't break through to the Golden Elixir stage?" Gu Huaisheng asked with interest, not at all worried that this good-for-nothing could achieve it!
Gu Feng smiled, "I will willingly give up the position of first in sequence, leave Heroic Spirit City, and never return!"
The elders discussed among themselves, and finally, they all looked at the Second Elder, Gu Huaisheng. Clearly, today, they all followed his lead, waiting for his decision.
"Very well!" Gu Huaisheng stroked his long eyebrows. He only wanted Gu Feng to step down so that his line's Gu Kun could smoothly take the position, ensuring the future City Lord's seat was secure!
"Feng!" Gu Liantian was full of worry, secretly transmitting his voice, "Think it through! This is no joke! Whether or not you are in the sequence doesn't matter, as long as I'm here, I won't let you suffer!"
Feeling touched, Gu Feng quickly kowtowed three times to his father, the City Lord, and replied through voice transmission, "Father! I am unfilial, having brought you shame all these years! Let me be willful this once! I have some confidence!"
Seeing Gu Feng so insistent, Gu Liantian did not stop him, only instructing him to meet in the back courtyard afterward.
Knowing the two were communicating secretly, Gu Huaisheng feared changes and quickly said, "Words are not enough! Bring the writing materials!"
Two maids immediately brought paper and ink.
Looking at the large brush handed over by the maid, Gu Feng hesitated, wondering if he should take this opportunity to show off!
Seize the moment to show off, lest the silence brings sorrow!
He thought hard about the scenes from the fantasy and xianxia films and novels of his past life, pondering how to make this show-off high-end and classy!
"What?" Gu Huaisheng pressed, "Regretting it?"
Shaking his head, Gu Feng's eyes lit up, smiling slightly, and he waved off the pen and paper offered by the maid.
He dramatically spread his legs, lifted the hem of his white robe, and tore off a piece of white cloth!
The next moment, he deliberately put on a tragic expression, smiled wryly, and bit his finger!
Using his blood as ink, he quickly wrote on the white cloth!
Everyone present was moved, wondering what kind of determination it took to do such a thing!
After a while, Gu Feng finished writing and tossed the white cloth to Gu Huaisheng.
Gu Huaisheng held up the cloth and looked, revealing a shocked expression!
The cloth was densely written with the terms of the bet between Gu Feng and the family elders, and at the end, there were several lines of blood-red characters!
"I, Gu Feng! Live as an outstanding person! Die as a hero of the dead! As cultivators, what is there to fear in a fight?"