Nie Li slowly drifted back to consciousness, the gentle rocking of the wagon beneath him pulling him from his dream.

A poking sensation roused him further, and he groggily turned toward the source, finding Nie Yu, his little cousin, smiling down at him. But something was amiss—Nie Yu was sporting a bandage wrapped around her head.

"What happened?!" Nie Li exclaimed, concern lacing his voice as he sat up abruptly.

"Nie Yu just fell down," came Nie Ming's calm voice from somewhere nearby.

Looking around, Nie Li found himself surrounded by his family inside the cart.

His mom, aunt, uncle, and cousin were all there, with his dad pulling the cart from the front. Nie Li immediately offered, "I'll take over."

"No, you stay. You need to save your strength for the tournament," Nie Ming insisted, not willing to put any additional strain on Nie Li.

About to protest, Nie Li was silenced by his mom's comforting hand on his shoulder. "Nie Li, don't worry. Your father is strong," she reassured him.

Nie Li's gaze shifted to his uncle, who offered a strained smile in return.

"Sorry, but I accidentally broke my leg," he admitted, explaining his inability to help.

"How about I do half?" Nie Li proposed, eager to contribute.

"You know, I'm a demon spiritualist now, and I heard we need to warm up our muscles."

After some persistent pestering from Nie Li, Nie Ming relented.

To everyone's surprise, Nie Li took to pulling the cart with remarkable ease, a testament to his newfound strength as a 1-star Bronze rank Fighter.

Nie Yu, delighted by the turn of events, hopped onto Nie Li's shoulder.

"Come on, Yu. Don't bother your big brother," Miao Ling chided gently.

"Don't worry, Aunty. I don't mind," Nie Li assured, a smile on his face as he accepted Nie Yu's weight with ease.

Miao Ling nodded.

"Yay!" Nie Yu cheered.

Nie Li noticed something odd; his mother was wearing makeup, something she rarely did.

His aunt sat uncomfortably on the edge of her seat, avoiding leaning against the wall. His uncle had a broken leg and wore a scarf oddly.

And his father was deliberately keeping out of sight.

"Is something actually wrong, or am I just overthinking because I'm worried?" Nie Li wondered.

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As they neared the main family's castle, Nie Li felt an uneasy sensation.

He noticed another family glaring at them with what seemed like genuine hatred, not just rivalry.

"Why would they look at us like that?" Nie Li thought, puzzled.

He felt even more uneasy when he noticed his cousin Nie Yu trembling with fear from the hostile stares of people around them, all from the branch families.

"Shouldn't they be at least indifferent, given their kids also have a chance to become the heir? These looks of hatred don't make sense," Nie Li thought.

Then, Nie Yu whispered to him, "Big brother, can you help me down?"

Nie Li could feel her fear as he helped her. But the moment he turned his back, he sensed danger—a sharp weapon aimed at him.

Reacting quickly, Nie Li spun around, his soul force strengthening his shoes, and deflected the weapon.

It was a dagger.

"Who did that?" Nie Li wondered, turning to face the crowd. What he saw shocked him. Hundreds of people, men and women, were glaring bloody murder at him and his family.

Suddenly, chaos erupted as some women in the crowd screamed out, "You bastard!" hurling a stone towards Nie Yu.

Nie Li's reflexes kicked in, and he caught the stone just in time, preventing it from hitting her.

He looked at the stone in his hand and then back at the crowd.

With a simple squeeze, he crushed the stone into dust, showcasing his strength. The crowd instinctively stepped back, fear taking over their anger for a moment.

Nie Li, fueled by protective rage, drew his Dao sword and yelled, "Try anything like that again and see if my blade doesn't cut you down!"

A voice called out.

"I suggest you reconsider harming your own family—it would be treason."

Nie Li turned to the voice; the crowd parted, making way for Elder Nie Wei.

[ Name: Nie Wei ]

[ Status: Grand Elder of the Heavenly Marks Family ]

[ Cultivation Level: 3-Star Silver Rank ]

[ Physique Level: 2-Star Bronze Rank ]

[ Class: Fighter, Demon Spiritualist ]

[ Race: Human ]

[ Health Points: 2000 ]

[ Soul Force: 3100 ]

[ Battle Power: 154K ]

[ Class Features:

- Perception

- Soul Manipulation ]

[ Allies: The Heavenly Marks Family ]

[ Equipment: ]

- [ Snake Scaled Armour ]

- [ Storage Ring ]

- [ Grand Elder Uniform ]

[ Description: Born to the main family of the Heavenly Marks Family, Nie Wei always wished to see his family succeed. But seeing its fall, Nie Wei blamed everything on the Patriarch for the problems of the Heavenly Marks Family. Seeing this, Nie Wei believes that if he is in control, the Heavenly Marks Family will succeed. ]

Nie Li's frown deepened upon seeing him. "Silver rank? And he's what, 70? Shouldn't he be stronger?"

Nie Li thought.

Despite the elder's presence, Nie Li stood firm.

"I don't care. If they try to harm my family again, my blade will move," he declared. Elder Nie Wei scoffed, "Arrogant trash."

Nie Li remained unfazed, even as Elder Nie Wei pointed out Nie Yi's bandage, implying harm had already come to the family.

Nie Li turned, noticing his family's guilty looks.

"Come with me. I'll explain the rules for the tournament," Elder Nie Wei said, his tone making it clear he'd rather be anywhere else.

"Can my family come with?" Nie Li asked.

"I don't care," replied Elder Nie Wei, indifferent.

With that, Nie Li and his family made their way into the coliseum.

Nie Wei gave a quick nod to a guard and said, "Show him to his room."

The guard understood immediately, just as Elder Nie Wei was turning to leave.

"Hey, what about the rules?" Nie Li called out after him.

"You lose, you die. That's all you need to know," Elder Nie Wei said sharply before walking away.

Nie Li, filled with confusion and concern, turned back to his family, ready to demand answers.

But he stopped mid-sentence when he saw his father more clearly.

His dad's face was heavily bruised, one eye completely swollen shut. It was clear now why his father had been trying to stay out of sight.

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Nie Li looked at his family members with a newfound urgency.

"Tell me, everything."