Shu Feng said, "I’ve made an enemy of the Zhu Clan, so we can’t stay here. Chen Xue, come with me to the Mire Dragon Territory! It’ll be dangerous if you remain. As for your family, I’ll have people bring them all to Lei Jiang City."

Chen Xue was very clever and answered decisively, "Alright!"

Shu Feng and Chen Xue quickly left Holy Yuan City and returned to the Mire Dragon Territory.

「Inside a luxurious villa in the Beiling Realm, the little world that served as the Zhu Clan’s stronghold.」

"Oh, Zhu Hao, your death was so tragic! Zhu Hao! That animal, Shu Feng! To think he’d murder you over some lowly wench from the Lower Class! He’s worse than an animal! Zhu Hao! Zhu Hao! My lord, you must avenge Zhu Hao! You must have that beast Shu Feng torn to pieces! Death by a thousand cuts!"

A beautiful, middle-aged woman in lavish clothes, her appearance impeccably preserved, threw herself onto Zhu Hao’s corpse, wailing as she spoke with a face twisted by venomous hatred.

A tall, middle-aged man with short hair and a handsome, scholarly face spoke slowly, his expression grim. "Is the investigation complete? Was it really Shu Feng who killed my son? Was anyone else involved?"

This middle-aged man was Zhu Huan, the younger brother of the Zhu Clan’s Patriarch, and the beautiful, middle-aged woman was his wife, Dugu Ju.

A sharp, competent-looking man in black respectfully said, "My lord, aside from the wounds inflicted by Shu Feng, there are no other injuries on the Young Master’s body. There are no traces of Alien Power, either. It is 90% certain that Shu Feng injured the Young Master, causing him to bleed to death."

Zhu Huan’s brow furrowed slightly. He spoke slowly, "As a Noble Family Head, how could Shu Feng be so unwise? How could he dare kill a Legitimate Son of my Zhu Clan? Could there be something more to this?"

"Zhu Huan, what are you trying to say? Are you telling me you don’t want to avenge Zhu Hao? Young men are hot-headed and rash; what aren’t they capable of? Zhu Hao was clearly killed by Shu Feng—that little bastard even recorded a video! And you’re unwilling to avenge him? Are you even human? Are you even Zhu Hao’s father?"

"I must have been blind to marry a coward like you! If you won’t avenge Zhu Hao, I’ll divorce you! I’ll go kill myself in front of Shu Feng and let the whole world laugh at your Zhu Clan!"

Dugu Ju’s eyes were bloodshot. She glared at Zhu Huan as if she were a Fierce Ghost and shrieked hysterically.

Zhu Hao was Dugu Ju’s only child. His death made her feel as if her world had collapsed, leaving her with no hope for the future. Zhu Huan had over a dozen children by his other concubines, but in her eyes, they were all outsiders, not her children.

A bone-chilling killing intent flashed in Zhu Huan’s eyes. He said coldly, "Ah Ju, calm down. Zhu Hao was my son, too. I never said I wouldn’t avenge him! Shu Feng... even if he has condensed the True Dragon Heaven-Suppressing Phenomenon, the only fate for someone who dares to kill a Legitimate Son of our Zhu Clan is death."

The colossal machine of the Zhu Clan roared to life, and immense pressure began to bear down on the Mire Dragon Territory from every conceivable angle.

「The Lord’s Mansion, Mire Dragon Territory.」

"Ah Feng, you go out for one trip and end up killing a Legitimate Son of the Zhu Clan! You’re really something else! Now the Zhu Clan has placed a food embargo on us, the major corporations in Holy Yuan City have jacked up the prices of all goods sold to our territory tenfold, and Fatty Huang’s slave trade is over. He asked me to pass on his apologies."

Li Xuan Yi sat on the sofa across from Shu Feng, rubbing his temples. He spoke as if nursing a massive headache.

As soon as the Zhu Clan imposed sanctions on the Mire Dragon Territory, the vast majority of merchant associations in the Qianyuan Republic cut off all trade relations. The few corporations that still dared to do business with them increased their prices by more than tenfold.

Shu Feng said, "I was set up. Someone is trying to drive a wedge between me and the Zhu Clan."

Li Xuan Yi’s gaze sharpened. "Who? Do you have proof?"

Shu Feng said, "Zhang Keji. He’s the most suspicious one, but I have no proof. I’m investigating his background now, but it’s not going well. All his records have been erased."

Li Xuan Yi’s voice turned grave. "No proof... that’s trouble. The Zhu Clan will never let this go. These sanctions are just the beginning; they won’t stop here. You need to be careful. If I’m not mistaken, their ultimate goal is to kill you."

"Xuan Yi, don’t worry. The Zhu Clan doesn’t have what it takes to kill me. I have something to attend to, so I’ll be on my way."

A thought suddenly struck Shu Feng. He rose and strode outside.

Li Xuan Yi sighed softly. ’That guy is such a headache.’

Shu Feng entered a heavily guarded secret chamber and, with a mere thought, entered his Base Space.

CRACK!

A crisp cracking sound echoed as the large egg containing the Steel Beast split open. A flood of mucus gushed out, and the creature strode out from within.

"Steel Beast."

"Power: 670 (+200), Agility: 645 (+200), Defense: 750 (+300), Constitution: 665 (+200), Intelligence: 180 (+50), Spirit: 618 (+200), Badge Power: 4,020,000 (+1,000,000), Spiritual Power: 14,320,000 (+7,000,000), Charm: 5, High-level Soul Power: 3."

"Abilities: Steel Manipulation, Enhanced Ability in the Dark Night, Epic Extraordinary Defense, Epic-level Super-speed Regeneration, Spiritual Ghost Thunder."

"Capable of Three-stage Transformation."

Shu Feng’s eyes lit up, and he commanded directly, "A Three-stage Transformation? Transform and show me!"

The Steel Beast’s Spiritual Power surged. Its body swelled, finally transforming into a terrifying monster eight meters long. Its entire body appeared to be covered in a layer of golden armor, with a pair of golden, razor-sharp wings on its back. Sharp blades protruded from all of its joints, and it had a long tail that moved like a flexible sword.

"Great Sun Across the Sky!"

Shu Feng channeled his Spiritual Power, wielding a Fourth-Tier Spirit Sword. He slashed down, his Spiritual Power overlapping nine times, and a highly condensed Great Sun Sword Aura viciously struck the Steel Beast.

CLANG!!

A terrifyingly loud noise erupted. A golden light flashed across the Steel Beast’s body as it, without dodging or evading, met Shu Feng’s sword strike head-on.

The corner of Shu Feng’s mouth lifted into a slight smile. ’What incredible Defense! That one strike could kill a Grandmaster Level expert, yet it couldn’t even break the Steel Beast’s defenses. This Three-stage Transformation is truly terrifying!’

If an ordinary expert at the Spirit Venerable Realm had only deployed a Membrane of Spiritual Power and allowed that strike to land, they would have been sliced in two at the waist. The Steel Beast’s Defense had already far surpassed that of a typical Spirit Venerable.

’And her! Once she finishes evolving, even a Half-Saint Realm expert might not be a match for me!’

Shu Feng looked at Su Mi, still evolving quietly inside the Energy Evolution Tower, and a look of burning anticipation flashed in his eyes.

In high spirits, Shu Feng left the Base Space and headed toward the rear garden.

"Greetings, Master!"

As soon as Shu Feng appeared in the rear garden, several beautiful Sub-human maids bowed to him in greeting.