"You actually dare show your face here?"
Cindy Hong strode forward in a few quick steps.
Her voice wasn't exactly quiet.
But the real Ancient Martial clan members on the other side didn’t even bother to acknowledge these vassal families, and with the Lu Family’s seats shoved way off in the corner, nobody over there even glanced this way.
Cindy had planned to say a few more words, but then she noticed something weird about Ethan Lu and the others.
They were all sitting there, silent, but their faces were clearly turning pale.
"Why shouldn’t I come?"
Evan Lin didn’t even look at her, exhaling a deep breath.
Just now, all his attention had been on the Abyssal Sphere over there.
But the distance was still a little too far.
From this spot, it was still hard to make out the intricate runes covering the Abyssal Sphere’s surface.
"Coming here is basically asking to die, isn’t it?"
Cindy Hong let out a cold laugh.
She finished her line, waiting for Evan Lin to say something.
But to her surprise, Evan Lin didn’t even bother to acknowledge her.
"Hey, are you the Rowe woman who keeps him?"
Seeing Evan Lin stay silent, Cindy Hong shifted her gaze to Lily Liang: "Your Ancient Martial Rowe clan can barely protect itself now."
"And you still have the nerve to chase after some pretty boy like him?"
"What’s so good about him anyway? Are you blind or something?"
Cindy Hong wasn’t bothering with politeness.
Anything about Evan Lin always set her off—just hearing his name made her blood boil.
And now, with the Rowe clan basically marked as public enemy number one, Cindy Hong suddenly felt way more guts—otherwise, she’d never have had the nerve to mess with the Ancient Martial Rowes before.
"Are you talking to me?" Lily Liang’s voice was cool, but her eyes flashed with a hint of amusement.
Lily Liang glanced at Cindy, her expression oddly calm—almost mocking.
"Who else would I be talking to?" Cindy Hong tried to act tough, but deep down she was a little rattled—still, she refused to back down even an inch.
Lily Liang looked like she wanted to clap back, but held her tongue.
For a second, she was at a loss for words.
She glanced at Evan Lin—he stayed silent, so she just zipped it too.
"Not gonna say anything?" Cindy pressed, trying to provoke her.
"Cat got your tongue?"
"Did this punk scam you or something?" Cindy kept piling on, her tone sharp.
She kept going: "Your Rowe clan’s in ruins, and you still have time for romance?"
"Guess Rowe women aren’t all that special after all, huh?" Cindy sneered.
"I don’t carry the Rowe surname." Lily Liang shook her head.
Cindy was instantly choked up, stunned speechless for a second, not even getting a chance to retort.
On the Ancient Martial Clan side, Douglas Jiang stood up and looked at the Rowe Patriarch, cupping his hands: "Rowe Patriarch, since the Liu and Qin clan heads are both in the Heavenly Phenomenon Realm and can’t spar, why don’t you and I have a friendly match?"
There’s no way a Pointing-to-Mystery expert can fight a Heavenly Phenomenon Realm master.
The Rowe Patriarch sat there, wrestling with himself, then finally got up with a defeated look and cupped his hands to Douglas Jiang, ready to just go through the motions.
But before he could move—
"Leave the Rowe Patriarch to me." A cold voice rang out.
A raspy voice echoed from the distance.
Soon enough, everyone saw an old man clad entirely in gray step off the elevator and stride boldly toward them.
"Who are you?! How dare you barge in here!"
The Vajra experts stationed nearby instinctively rushed forward.
They were the backbone of the vassal families.
Originally kept as household guardians, today they’d been brought to play gatekeeper for the Ancient Martial Clans.
Seeing a stranger barge in,
the group didn’t waste a single word. They instantly gathered their inner force and charged in, hoping this was their chance to impress the patriarchs of the Ancient Martial Clans.
If they could catch the patriarchs’ eye and get accepted into an Ancient Martial Clan—even as a gatekeeper—they’d be revered outside!
"A bunch of bugs."
The old man snorted coldly, and with a single breath sent everyone flying!
The Vajra force they’d gathered shattered before his breath, visible currents ripped apart like paper.
To the onlookers,
the inner force looked solid and tangible before the old man, but he tore through it one by one.
His overwhelming strength left everyone around quaking in their boots.
The Vajra experts who’d charged in were all sent flying, knocked unconscious and severely injured.
"Ma Patriarch, long time no see."
Xavier Liu smiled at the old man.
"Yeah, it’s been about thirty years."
The old man grunted, and while he spoke, he’d already reached the front.
He took a seat in a solitary chair.
"That’s the Ma clan’s old patriarch?"
"Another Heavenly Phenomenon powerhouse!"
"The old patriarch of the Ancient Martial Ma clan—he might just be the strongest of all the patriarchs!"
A wave of shocked whispers rippled through the crowd.
Over the years, aside from the monster fish incident a few days ago, the most talked-about figure was the mysterious Ma Patriarch—never seen, but always looming like a storm cloud over everyone’s heads.
Heavenly Phenomenon Realm!
And he’d emerged from a death seclusion as Heavenly Phenomenon!
His power was probably unmatched.
But most importantly...
Many people were already glancing at the Rowe Patriarch.
There was still old bad blood between the Ancient Martial Rowe and Ma clans.
Right now, the Rowe Patriarch’s face was drained of all color.
The whole Rowe clan radiated utter despair.
It was already miserable enough being targeted by everyone.
Now, the old Ma Patriarch had actually shown up.
The Rowe clan’s situation had gone from bad to worse.
"Why did you come alone today?"
Xavier Liu glanced behind the Ma Patriarch—there wasn’t a single person there.
"Everyone in the Ma Family, except for me, is dead."
The old patriarch’s voice was icy cold.
His words froze the whole room.
Along with his voice came a chilling aura that made everyone uneasy.
"How could that happen?"
Xavier Liu feigned surprise.
Actually, the patriarchs of the Ancient Martial Clans had already heard some rumors.
But no one had ever brought it up in public.
Now that the Ma Patriarch himself mentioned it, it stirred up quite a commotion.
"Why not?"
The Ma Patriarch’s face was icy: "Someone took advantage of my seclusion and slaughtered my Ma clan juniors!"
"I’ve spent all this time searching for clues about that bastard!"
"Once I find them, I’ll make sure they die a miserable death!"
The Ma Patriarch slammed his palm down, smashing the chair armrest to bits.
Everyone around went silent, not daring to utter a word.
"I came here today for two reasons."
The Ma Patriarch cut straight to the point: "First, obviously for the heavy treasure."
"Second, I want to trouble the Rowe Patriarch with something."
He looked at the Rowe Patriarch, his eyes flashing.
"Please, go ahead."
The Rowe Patriarch tensed up, his face full of caution.
"From today onward, the Rowe clan will change its surname to Ma."
Erase the Ancient Martial Rowe lineage—give the Ma clan its chance to be reborn!