Chapter 1777 — Each with Their Own Designs
The Blossom Guardian · Page 2 of 2
Thus Old Master Zhao's breakthrough to Heaven-rank was both good and bad news for the Yu Family Ancestor. The good: the two families were bound by marriage and counted as allies. The bad: the Yu family could no longer hope to control the Zhao family.
The Yu Family Ancestor's original plan had been to wait until the child of Yu Xiao Jin and Zhao Guangyin grew up and took charge of the Zhao family. Then, with him, the maternal grandfather, present, he could more or less interfere in the Zhao family's decisions. But now that the Zhao Family Ancestor sat at the helm, even if his own grandson became the young family head, the boy could not make decisions on major matters on his own.
It was the same with Yu Xiao Chen of the Yu family: where the Yu family's own interests were concerned, matters still had to be referred to him, the Ancestor.
The Zhao Family Ancestor's breakthrough to Heaven-rank left the old family heads of the other hidden clans somewhat puzzled. They had no idea what fortuitous encounter Old Master Zhao had had over the past year, but such things were not easy to ask about. How they themselves had broken through to Heaven-rank was something they kept closely guarded from others, and they could hardly expect anyone to tell them.
"Congratulations to my old friend Zhao!" This time it was the Pi Family Ancestor who spoke. The Pi Family Ancestor was also a Heaven-rank expert, though an external-path Heaven-rank expert. To break through to Heaven-rank by external-path strength alone was exceedingly rare!
"Congratulations!" said the Right Family Master. Though the Right Family Master focused on alchemy with martial arts as a supplement, no one could underestimate his Heaven-rank strength and his control over pill fire. When an alchemist reached Heaven-rank, even without any special martial techniques, the killing moves he could unleash simply by driving his pill fire were enough to give anyone a headache.
Unless one was a practitioner of the water, ice, or snow elements, which could restrain fire, and thus handle him with composure, other practitioners might well have their clothes burned clean off before they could even close the distance.
Of course, apart from the Yu Family Ancestor, the Ancestors of these hidden clans had all broken through to Heaven-rank in recent years. Back then, the Hidden Clan Arbitration Association had been able to overawe them precisely because the Yu family had only one Heaven-rank expert, the Yu Family Ancestor, and stood alone and weak, so the Arbitration Association could completely overpower them all.
But in recent years, as the founders of the Hidden Clan Arbitration Association vanished and the Chief Grand Elder also fell silent, these Ancestors who had broken through to Heaven-rank began to stir restlessly. They no longer wished to be held in check by the Hidden Clan Arbitration Association, and so this grand gathering of the hidden clans had come about.
Yet the few old fellows seated here were all shrewd veterans, and none was a fool. Though their aim this time was the same, none was willing to be the one to stick his neck out. After all, what if the Grand Elder of the Hidden Clan Arbitration Association was still alive? What if he returned and punished the hidden clans that violated the rules?
So the several old masters sat around the conference table, all rather silent.
"My dear in-law, you were the Second Elder of the Hidden Clan Arbitration Association in those days. Now that the Grand Elder is absent, you, the Second Elder, should say a few words?" Seeing everyone silent, Old Master Zhao pondered for a moment and then spoke.
At present, among the hidden clans, the strongest were still the Hidden Yu family and the Hidden Right family. The Hidden Yu family had two Heaven-rank experts, while the Hidden Right family, though outwardly possessing only the Right Family Master as a single Heaven-rank expert, in truth had no telling how many Heaven-rank retainers in the shadows.