Free Web NovelChapter 225: Chapter 223: A Miraculous Transformation
As soon as Qin Li walked in, over a hundred pairs of eyes in the reception hall shot toward him with a SWOOSH. When they saw Shangguan Shiyu, looks of amazement appeared on many faces.
Then, seeing the sleek, glossy black leopard following closely at Qin Li’s side, many people couldn’t help but narrow their eyes, an involuntary look of fear flashing across their faces.
Just moments ago, this was the very leopard that had slapped a Celestial Embracing Realm martial artist from the Cui Family to death with a single paw!
Most of the representatives from the various families who had come to Fengsha City were not overwhelmingly powerful. They were generally at the Celestial Level or the Celestial Shattering Realm; there were very few martial artists at the Celestial Embracing Realm.
After all, once one’s strength reached a certain level, most of their time would be spent in secluded cultivation.
Strength wasn’t something you could gain just by drinking cold water.
Qin Li strode quickly to the front of the stage, thinking, ’The fight should be over by now, right?’
Then, with a smile, Qin Li said something that left everyone dumbfounded and their faces aghast, "Heh, thank you all for giving me face by coming here to join this grand endeavor of resisting the Cui Family’s tyranny!"
"What? Are you spouting nonsense?! When did we ever agree to resist the Cui Family’s tyranny?"
"Kid, is there something wrong with your head? You think just because you have a little power, you can get cocky enough to fool anyone you want?"
"Hmph, I think he’s just a madman. Trying to drag us through the mud in front of so many important figures from Profound Island? Dream on!"
"Exactly! What does the fight between your Qin Family and the Cui Family have to do with us?"
"If you don’t give us an explanation, don’t even think about getting off easy, Qin Family!"
At that moment, Shen Le and Lin Heng, who had just walked in, were both slightly taken aback. They saw many familiar faces in the reception hall, all glaring angrily at the young man on the stage.
Their arrival caused the hall to gradually quiet down, and many people began to greet them.
"Well, if it isn’t Fourth Young Master Lin? Oh, and Young Master Shen! A pleasure, a pleasure!"
"Young Master Shen, I never thought you’d come here!"
"Greetings, Fourth Young Master!"
"Greetings, Young Master Shen!"
A wave of enthusiastic greetings instantly rose from the crowd. Everyone’s expressions changed in a flash as they beamed at the two young men with faces full of the utmost sincerity.
One had to know that among the younger generation of Profound Island’s Seven Great Powers, this young master of the Lin Family and Shen Le, the only son of the Thousand Mechanism Sect’s Sect Leader, were quite famous!
They were the ideal husband for countless unmarried young women—young, handsome, charismatic, from powerful families, and formidably strong... one could list a basketful of their merits!
These people were all incredibly surprised that these two scions of great clans had appeared at the Qin Family’s residence.
Normally, even when ordinary High Level families and sects held celebrations and wanted to invite members of the Seven Great Powers, people of Lin Heng and Shen Le’s status rarely made an appearance.
Yet the Qin Family was merely a mid-sized family, previously only known for its skills in alchemy. It could be said that even most families and sects of similar mid-level strength didn’t take the Qin Family seriously, let alone the stronger High Level families and sects.
But what happened next was even more jaw-dropping.
Shen Le and Lin Heng smiled and nodded in response to everyone, maintaining the reserved and graceful demeanor of scions from great clans, along with a hint of pride.
But no one dared to call them arrogant!
Because they had earned that right!
Yet, these two young men of noble status walked toward the stage with broad smiles.
"Qin, I didn’t expect we’d meet again so soon! Haha, Miss Shangguan is a heavenly beauty, and only a man like you is worthy of her. Qin Li... congratulations to you both! When your wedding day comes, you must send your big brother an invitation. If you forget, I won’t let you off the hook!" Lin Heng said, giving Qin Li a slight wink.
Shen Le was also all smiles. He looked at Qin Li and chuckled. "Qin, you move too fast. Alas, what a shame that I missed out on a peerless beauty like Miss Shangguan. My heart... it’s filled with regret!"
At once, the expressions on many faces shifted from surprise to schadenfreude. It seemed this Young Master of the Thousand Mechanism Sect was a little different from the Fourth Young Master of the Lin Family! freeweɓnovel.cѳm
But Shen Le’s next words left them completely petrified.
"To express my indignation, um... Qin, on your wedding day, you must first penalize yourself with three drinks. You’re practically the public enemy of all men!"
Sunlight streamed through the mottled, rust-stained windows of indeterminate age, casting rays into the simple, ancient reception hall and bringing with it a trace of warmth.
Yet everyone inside felt a chill rise from the bottom of their hearts!
A deep sense of confusion clawed at their hearts like a cat’s paw. At the same time, they were filled with regret for their earlier reactions. ’Why didn’t we just wait for the young man to finish speaking? Why didn’t we wait for Fourth Young Master Lin and Young Master Shen to arrive and see how they reacted before saying anything?’
This thought rose in many people’s minds: ’No wonder the Qin Family dared to act so unscrupulously against the Cui Family and slap them in the face. It turns out they have the backing of two other great families!’
’Heavens, this is earth-shattering news! It’s enough to pierce the very sky! Could it be that the political landscape of Profound Island is about to change?’
Qin Li hadn’t expected Lin Heng and Shen Le to show him such immense goodwill. This was truly something he hadn’t anticipated. As a result, the tactics he had prepared to deal with these families and sects now seemed unnecessary.
Qin Li had already predicted this. He had killed people from the Cui Family, held a grudge with the Cui Family’s secular royalty, and sown discord in Four Seasons Valley, creating a rift between Sword Concealment Manor and the Cui Family. Given the Cui Family’s typical methods and style on Profound Island, it would have been strange if they had let a thorn in their side like him go.
That’s why Qin Li had persuaded Qinling Mountain and several Qin Family ancestors, asking them if they wanted to take a gamble—a gamble on the Cui Family’s reaction. Once the Cui Family sent people to kill Qin Li, his actions would count as a counterattack!
More often than not, interactions between families were about exchanges of benefits and compromises. Therefore, many matters were classified as personal grudges.
If every little thing escalated into a confrontation between families, Profound Island would likely never see a day of peace and would have long since become a battlefield.
Besides, Qin Li still held many trump cards!
For example, Xiaohai by his side, a powerful Spirit Beast from a forbidden land on Profound Island, could be used to his advantage. If Xiaohai were to personally claim that Qin Li was connected to Profound Island’s forbidden land, who would dare to treat the Qin Family as a weak, mid-sized family?
Then there was Qin Li’s own shocking strength. Could the Qin Family have produced such a disciple? Clearly not! Therefore, with just a little guidance from Qin Li, the topic of his master’s sect would be enough to let people’s imaginations run wild.
In this world, there are no eternal enemies, only eternal interests!
These families had come here for no other reason than to gain benefits. And Qin Li still had many imitation elixirs that Leng Yao had refined based on Ancient Pill Formulas. Though they were imitations with potency dozens of times weaker than the originals, if brought to Profound Island, they would still be far superior to the new elixirs the Qin Family had developed!
These were Qin Li’s trump cards!
He would use benefits to unite these families and firmly suppress the Cui Family! This would create a situation where a single move could affect everything, making them terrified to bet their entire family’s fate!
Although the Cui Family had many allies, there were also plenty who disliked them and were constantly looking for a chance to take their place.
As long as this succeeded, the Qin Family would inevitably rise!
No one would be able to stop the Qin Family’s ascent to power!
Even if this plan failed—if the representatives of the families and sects gathered here today weren’t tempted, and the Cui Family became as reckless as the Qin Family, ignoring their secular schemes and the reactions of other families and sects, and sent out their Venerable Realm ancestors to retaliate against the Qin Family...
...the worst-case scenario was that the Qin Family would just leave Profound Island entirely!
That Mysterious Land in the Paradise Celestial Palace was where Qin Li could make his stand! It was also the biggest trump card he held!
The Qin Family ancestors had deliberated for a whole night. They also sent people to investigate the identities of the Cui family members in Fengsha City. They finally found that the most prominent one was just that young woman, Cui Ying, a lady from a branch family five generations removed from the main line. It was only because her father held some status in the Cui Family and managed some affairs that this Miss Cui had become so arrogant.
As for the middle-aged man, he was just a high-ranking steward of the Cui Family. The Cui Family had hundreds of such high-ranking stewards!
Not a single one was from the direct line.
That was why the Qin Family ancestors were truly tempted. Although the Cui Family was a behemoth, the larger a family was, the more cautiously it had to act. They truly feared no one, but they would never dare to attack anyone recklessly!
If a young lady from the Cui Family’s direct line had been here, Qin Li’s crazy plan would have been absolutely impossible to carry out!
Because any family’s treatment of those from the direct line versus branch lines was completely different!
Killing these people of ordinary status was merely like slapping the Cui Family in the face. They would certainly want to slap back, but they would absolutely not do it at any cost!
But killing a legitimate son of the direct line would definitely provoke the family’s wrath. It might even cause a Venerable Realm expert to come out and take revenge personally!
Although Qin Li didn’t know why Lin Heng and Shen Le were showing him goodwill, he had no reason to refuse it. After all, these two noble young men represented two great powers with transcendent status!
’However, it’s impossible if they want to use me as a pawn!’
With this thought, Qin Li cupped his fists toward the two, had someone guide them to their seats, and then said in a deep voice, "Although the Cui Family is cruel and unjust, as the host in Fengsha City, I must condemn the perpetrator of this incident even more!"
