In a dimly lit room where the only source of light was the one provided by the red lanterns hung on the walls.
There were six old men seated, facing each other in a pair of two with their faces filled with excitement.
"Hehehe…. It seems heaven still wants the first elder to successfully become the patriarch," one of the old men laughed wickedly
"Not only does heaven wants My future Patriarch to succeed, it even wants him to succeed with great results," another elder seated opposite this man added.
This old man that just spoke was the one whose wife was being treated like a sloth just a day ago.
Only God would have known how he would react when he knows that he had prayed and wished well for the person that had cuckolded him.
He was even the one doing most of the dirty jobs for him.
"Hehehe, the third elder is right."
The remaining elders also added happily.
The person addressed as the future patriarch was currently brushing his beards with his fingers while having a small smile on his face.
"I had thought the brat would never visit the Inn again since his father had thought he has been poisoned from there," with squinted eyes, one of the old men said thoughtfully.
"Hehe, that's why I said earlier that heaven wants the first elder to succeed."
All along, five groups of elders were busy giving the old man brushing his beards respectful gazes, and talking as if they were kissing up his a$$.
"We shouldn't be too happy yet."
Raising one side of his lips slightly, the old man who is the leader of this group brushing his beards added lightly while feeling deeply excited in his mind.
"Third elder," The old man continued, giving the old man adjacent to him a focused gaze.
"Yes, My future Patriarch."
"I would be concocting a potent poison a few days from now, have it delivered to the girl so that he would administer it to that bastard."
Everybody, except the leader, had become completely quiet by now while giving all their attention to the person talking.
"This poison I would be concocting works like magic, it would begin taking effect immediately after he took it, but no signs would be shown on his body.
But immediately he got back home and inhaled a single breath from within Lin's estate, his body would begin to rot from inside to the outside with a speed naked to the eyes," the old man said expressionlessly as if he was talking about two people joking.
The remaining elders couldn't help but feel a strong chill run down their spine.
'This man can't be offended,' They thought fearfully.
"When this happened," the ‹future patriarch› continued as if he did not notice the scared expression on the faces of the old fogeys in the room.
"That old bastard would lose all his reasoning as he would have known that it was the Plum Blossom Inn that had killed his son and trying to do it secretly...Heheheh… he would storm the place and cause huge trouble which would force out the other part's cultivators to deal with him. Hahahaha"
"Hahahaha," the remaining elders also laughed awkwardly when they saw their leader laughing.
"Knock... Knock…"
They all suddenly kept quiet and look towards the door that was being knocked on quietly.
"I would go check who is there…" the person seated nearest to the door volunteered.
"Okay…"
"My lord, the elder"
The person that entered, a middle-aged man had his head lowered respectfully.
"yes?" The first elder questioned coldly.
"My lord, we just received news that the patriarch had grounded his son to the cold palace until further notice," With his head still bowed, the middle-aged man reported respectfully.
"urgh… cough... Cough…"
The middle-aged man suddenly moaned in pain and coughed out blood profusely from his mouth.
He began to shake in fear and pain while sweat begin to ooze out from his body.
At this moment, the remaining elders in the room were too scared to say a word, as they felt the oppressive energy running amok.
They would also have been affected like the middle-aged man if they were a little weaker.
Still, it's not like the energy does not affect them, they were affected as they could feel that they were being oppressed by tons of weight.
Veins become visible all over the middle-aged man's face and neck already, with his eyeballs completely red.
The pain was too much that he almost couldn't take it anymore and was just about to collapse, and perhaps, due, the oppressive energy suddenly disappeared, as if it had never been there in the first place.
The middle-aged man who had been resisting the energy with all his strength wasn't expecting this at all, and with a bang sound, he collapsed on the cold floor while breathing heavily.
"You can leave first," A voice that sounded like it came right out from the lowest pit of hell suddenly sounded from the leader's mouth, without any emotion, not to talk of remorse.
"Ye- Yes my- my- my lord," the middle-aged man who had a blood stain all around his mouth responded strenuously.
He tried to stand from the floor but fell again as he couldn't muster any energy from his body.
But still, he did not stop at all, he kept trying and falling, all he hoped for was just to disappear from here as soon as possible.
After countless tries and failures, the middle-aged man was finally able to stand shakily on his feet.
And like an old man who was at the point of death, he saunters out of the room, breathing and sweating heavily like someone who was passing through hell or great torture.
"Close the door," the leader commanded expressionlessly.
Everybody could see how angry the leader was at the moment, it began to feel like they had sat on a pin, and they began to feel uncomfortable even though they knew the first elder would never attack them.
"Hehehehehe…"
The first elder began to laugh mournfully. Like a person whose family member had just died.
The remaining elders had their heads bowed at this moment, as they do not know what to say.
"It seems we are left with only one option now," The leader said with a coldness that could freeze one to death emitting from his eyes after he had finished his mournful laughter.
"Thump…. Thump..."
The hearts of all the remaining elders in the room began to beat very fast in their chests when they heard what was just said.
'Hai…. Wouldn't we be sending this family to ruin like this?!'
'Have we not chosen the wrong person to be our leader now?!'
'Why had we not stick to our original patriarch?!'
'Why are we too greedy of elevating our position?! Now we might even be demoting it if we were to do as this devil suggested?!'
'We are doomed!!!'
The elders all thought in respectively in remorse, fear, regret, and anger.
.....
"Little Li, now that I've been grounded, and I might not have any chance to go out for a while, loads of tasks shall be handed to you if you don't mind," Li Yu said lightly to Little Liu who was standing beside him in sadness.
Li Yu and Little Liu were currently in Li Yu's room, packing the things Li Yu would need during his time in the cold palace
"I don't mind master," She responded with a voice filled with loneliness.
Li Yu smiled a bit when he heard this, he took light steps beside her and patted her head gently.
"Little Liu, it's not like you won't see me again, you know? You can still see me once a day."
"Buhh!!!!! What can once a day do"
What Li Yu said finally acted as the straw that broke the camel's back as Little Liu suddenly broke into tears.
"Hahaha," Li Yu laughed mockingly.
"Look at you crying like a little kid," Li Yu mocked, but inside he was also feeling sad.
"Master, are you mocking me?!" She asked angrily with tears in her eyes, which looked extremely cute.
"No, no. I dare not mock my little miss?"
Li Yu raised his hands and joked, then he began to pacify and reason with Little Liu.
"Okay Master, it's not like I would miss you anyways," She said lightly after much talk, in an unbelievable tone.
"Yes… my mistress, I know that."
Li Yu surrendered.
"Oh… master, you said you have tasks for me, what are they."
"Yes, yes. They are...…."