Chapter 842: Chapter 842: Not Even Seeing the Dead in Their Eyes (10 Updates)

"It’s not about favoritism, just that Zixuan hasn’t indicated that he would oppose us. Acting rashly might ruin the harmony."

The man stared directly at the Gu Patriarch and said calmly, "So perhaps the Gu Patriarch could calm down on account of me, Shi?"

Shi, is it?

Upon hearing this, Liu Zixuan immediately understood that these people who came later were from the Shi Family, one of the Eight Great Powers, and naturally, the speaker was the Shi Patriarch who had previously reached an agreement with Liu Zixuan.

The Gu Patriarch’s face revealed a strange expression, and after a moment, he smiled like a sly old fox, "Since the Shi Patriarch has spoken, how could I not adhere to reason!"

With that, the Gu Patriarch flicked his sleeve and coldly snorted, leading the Gu Family members to the other side.

The Shi Patriarch watched them leave and turned to Liu Zixuan: "Little friend Zixuan, the real contest hasn’t started yet, don’t let small figures ruin your mood."

Liu Zixuan smiled meaningfully: "They’re among the Eight Great Powers, but even before starting, the Gu Family is already seen as insignificant by you?"

"Hahaha." The Shi Patriarch burst into laughter: "The Eight Great Powers is a title given by others; those within know well who is strong or weak. The Gu Family only managed to squeeze into the powers by using some less-than-honorable tricks!"

At this point, the Shi Patriarch’s expression suddenly changed, seemingly teasingly asking, "Putting aside my opinion, little friend Zixuan, do you even regard the Gu Family?"

"I never regard the dead!"

"The dead!" The Shi Patriarch savored Liu Zixuan’s words, then raised a thumb towards him: "I understand!"

Then, the Shi Patriarch looked at a man beside him and said, "Do you remember who pointed the sword at little friend Zixuan just now?"

"I remember, it was the Gu Family’s Outer Elder. In recent years, he’s done a few things that pleased the Patriarch, and the Gu Patriarch intends to promote him to Inner Elder!" the man replied.

"By noon, I want to see his corpse, you know what to do, right?" The Shi Patriarch said with a smile hiding a murderous intent.

The man paused, then nodded heavily and exited the crowd immediately.

The Shi Patriarch handed Liu Zixuan a cigarette and lit it for him: "I’ve shown enough sincerity, haven’t I?"

Liu Zixuan took a puff of the cigarette: "I enjoy working with smart people like the Shi Patriarch."

"The people of the Four Great Clans and Eight Great Powers have mostly arrived. Yesterday, most of us already met in Fengtu City; the consensus is that it’s best to recruit you to this camp during the martial arts tournament. Once it ends, we’ll strike while the iron is hot and publicly announce the Martial Realm’s unification." They all sat down in a corner beside them, the Shi Patriarch remarked.

"That urgent?" Liu Zixuan scratched his head: "Just waiting for the tournament to end, but not for the Hidden Sect to finish selecting people?"

"Given the current circumstances, who do you think the Hidden Sect can select?" The Shi Patriarch smiled strangely.

Liu Zixuan frowned: "Are you saying there’s something fishy about this martial arts tournament?"

"It’s simple; those sent to the Hidden Sect must be strong contenders to break through to the Emperor Realm. They aren’t Imperial Realm, Profound Realm, or King Realm but the Emperor Realm, which Martial Artists chase madly after."

"The Four Great Clans, Eight Great Powers, and those sects can’t pass up the chance to enhance their power, so they long ago chose suitable candidates within their families and conducted secret training."

Then, Liu Zixuan continued the Shi Patriarch’s thought, "Then they rig the tournament so these individuals advance smoothly, occupying all the slots for Scattered Sects. This way, no matter who wins or loses, those selected by the Hidden Sect are all their own people; even if the Martial Realm unifies in the future, those strong individuals would still belong to them."

"Your analysis is correct. It’s just the simplest reasoning; no one wants more strong opponents, after all."

The Shi Patriarch spread out his hands: "Of course, these are their plans; whether there will be unexpected changes is unknown."

Hearing this, Liu Zixuan smiled with a hidden meaning: "Seems like the Shi Patriarch has done some things in secret that others are unaware of, huh."

"I didn’t intentionally hide it from you; time is tight. During the festival period, I contacted some Scattered Sect members and offered them some help. Naturally, I don’t have high hopes for them. If they advance, it’s a pleasant surprise; if not, it’s expected."

The Shi Patriarch said, patting Liu Zixuan’s shoulder: "Therefore, more hope can only be placed on you."

"Then the Shi Patriarch has really overestimated me; you’ve already mentioned the families, powers, and sects bringing trained elite participants, strong among the strongest. How could I possibly defeat them all!"

Liu Zixuan said with a laugh.

The Shi Patriarch rubbed his chin and laughed: "To my knowledge, little friend Zixuan isn’t alone; you seem to have a few brothers who you’ve been through thick and thin with, and their prowess isn’t weak either!"

Liu Zixuan squinted slightly: "Shi Patriarch, sometimes being too smart is annoying!"

The Shi Patriarch paused: "Sorry, for the bigger picture, I can only learn more about you to make better arrangements."

"Doesn’t that mean you’ve already planned that after defeating them all, you’d kill me too? After all, then you’d be the strongest!" Liu Zixuan asked with a smile that wasn’t a smile.

"I believe I’ve shown enough sincerity; little friend Zixuan, there’s no need to continue doubting at this stage!" The Shi Patriarch’s expression also became unpleasant.

Liu Zixuan flicked ash from the cigarette: "It was just a joke; don’t take it seriously."

"The current situation isn’t clear yet; I can’t always be by your side, lest they become suspicious." The Shi Patriarch stood up and said, "The martial arts tournament will last two days; today should be calm, I’ll talk to you about the next steps tonight."

"Alright!" Liu Zixuan nodded and watched the Shi Patriarch and others leave.

Ye Lianyi whispered quietly: "I always feel this Shi Patriarch is strange, giving a creepy feeling."

"I didn’t feel that; he seemed quite respectful to Brother Xu!" Zhao Yi scratched his head and said.

Liu Zixuan snorted: "They’re all foxes who have cultivated for a thousand years, hiding their tails, but they can’t hide that sleazy stench."

Turning around, he patted Zhao Yi’s shoulder: "He’s not truly respectful to me; if you keep thinking like that, you might end up counting the money after being betrayed!"