Bang!
A thunderous crash jolted everyone awake: Ian Song had grabbed Master Mingxiang by the neck, swung him up, and smashed him hard into the floor, blasting out a pit more than a meter deep.
"You little thief! How dare you humiliate me like this? I swear I'll fight you to the death!"
Master Mingxiang hauled himself out of the human-shaped pit, snarling in a venomous voice. At the same time, his aura surged again, blanketing the entire banquet hall.
Under the pressure of his aura, even the Innate Ninth-Layer experts felt overwhelmed, while everyone else was gripped by a deep, primal fear.
At the same time, three flying swords appeared above Master Mingxiang's head.
One green, one purple, one black.
"Kill for me!"
Master Mingxiang formed a hand seal, and the three foot-long flying swords swelled in the wind, instantly transforming into three giant blades a full meter long. The next moment, all three swords swept up and slashed toward Ian Song!
"Fall back! Get back now!"
Although the three giant swords were aimed at Ian Song, everyone else in the banquet hall felt a chill in their hearts and instinctively retreated, secretly worrying whether Ian could block such terrifying blades.
Screw you! You really don't know what's good for you!
Ian spoke up. Facing the three overwhelmingly powerful swords, he showed not a trace of fear—only a hint of calm disdain. Then he raised his hand and swung it once more.
A transparent giant hand appeared as he swung.
This giant hand was formed from pure spiritual energy. With a single grasp, it caught all three swords easily, then gently squeezed.
Crack, crack, crack!
He actually broke all three giant swords right in his grip.
Puh, puh, puh!
With the swords broken, Master Mingxiang spat out three mouthfuls of blood. His face instantly grew haggard, his black hair turned white, and his youthful features rapidly aged.
Boom!
At that moment, the giant palm swept upward, sending Master Mingxiang flying with no resistance.
While airborne, his Golden Core shattered with a bang, dissolving into streams of pure spiritual energy that vanished into the void.
Bang!
When Master Mingxiang crashed to the ground, he was already on the verge of death, transformed into a frail old man with white hair and a deeply wrinkled face.
Master!
Master Qingyan rushed over and lifted Master Mingxiang, his eyes filled with grief and anger. He had thought that once his master broke through to Golden Core, they could dominate Yanhuang. He never expected that the thief named Song would become so fearsome—even his newly advanced Golden Core master was no match.
Thinking this, his hatred deepened—but even more, he regretted everything.
Grandmaster!
The disciples of Highspring Valley Sect stared blankly at the now white-haired, elderly Master Mingxiang. Before coming, they’d felt confident with a Golden Core master backing them. Now, their invincible master had been utterly crushed—they felt as if the sky had collapsed, with no hope left.
Meanwhile, the Head of State, Cabinet Elders, and the ten family heads all watched in stunned silence.
Just moments ago, Master Mingxiang had seemed terrifying—even under his aura, they couldn’t muster any resistance. Yet such a powerful figure was defeated by Ian Song with ease.
What realm has Ian Song reached?
For a moment, everyone looked at Ian Song with newfound awe.
But in the eyes of the Head of State and others, a strange expression appeared.
Suddenly, Ian Song waved his hand, and the dantians of all Immortal-Dao disciples present exploded, leaving them screaming in agony—their cultivation abolished, reduced to cripples.
Everyone, I’ll leave things here to you. I’m off to deal with the aftermath!
With a flicker, Ian Song vanished from the spot and appeared inside the Immortal Gate.
He’d sensed Master Mingxiang’s tribulation earlier, but hadn’t cared—a mere Golden Core was no different from an ant to him.
But now, since they dared to cause trouble for Yanhuang, he was annoyed—so he crippled all of them to prevent future problems.
Arrest them all!
In the banquet hall, the Head of State coldly waved his hand, and a group of martial artists surged forward to restrain all the Immortal-Dao cultivators.
Although they had been crippled, the cultivation methods they possessed were still highly valuable.
This was why Ian Song left the Immortal-Dao cultivators for them to deal with—in effect, gifting the state a batch of cultivation manuals. Of course, the main reason was that he considered those crude techniques beneath him.
The Head of State, Cabinet Elders, and others hurried off with the Immortal-Dao cultivators, all looking rather grim.
Ian Song’s display of overwhelming power made them far more wary.
If Ian Song had no ambitions, it would be fine—but if he did, he might become a second Supreme Emperor, which made them uneasy.
Back at the Inner Palace, the Head of State convened a secret meeting with the nine Cabinet Elders.
The meeting lasted a full two hours, with only one topic: how to handle Ian Song in the future.
Their final decision: court Ian Song at all costs and watch his ambitions closely. At the same time, confer on him the title of Supreme National Marshal, a rank equal to the nine Cabinet Elders.
News of Ian Song’s appointment as Supreme National Marshal quickly spread among the Ten Great Families.
The Zhao Family was overjoyed, while the other nine families could only sigh in envy at the Zhao clan’s luck. The Lee Family, in particular, felt deep anxiety—they’d always been at odds with Ian, and now even the state was courting him. If he decided to target the Lee Family, could they possibly resist?
After some thought, Martin Lee prepared a lavish gift and personally visited Edward Zhao to seek reconciliation.
The other eight families quickly followed suit, with each family head personally bringing gifts and their most attractive younger members to congratulate the Zhao Family.
The gifts were for congratulations, while the beautiful younger members were brought because they’d learned Ian Song was still single—if they could marry into his line, their family would benefit greatly.
In just a quarter of an hour, Ian Song wiped out the Immortal Gate.
He crippled every sect master and disciple, looted all sect resources, and handed them to the Zhao Family.
He didn’t give the resources to the Zhao Family to curry favor—now, the Zhao clan already revered him. If he wanted to take over, Edward Zhao would happily step aside.
Rather, the resources were simply too low-grade for him to care about.
The Zhao Family was nearly driven mad with joy at their windfall.
The next day, Ian Song received a call from Faye Shangguan inviting him to dinner.
After hanging up the phone,
Jason Zhao entered with a delighted expression.
Boss, it’s done! All ten cooked-food factories are willing to accept our acquisition, and the prices are ridiculously low!
Oh, you’ve worked hard! Ian Song praised.
Jason Zhao looked a bit embarrassed. “Boss, you misunderstood. Our team only just contacted them—we didn’t even quote a price. But today, all of them called to say they’re willing to sell, and every offer is so low it’s basically a giveaway!”
As he spoke, Jason Zhao handed over a price sheet.
The sheet had three columns: company name, their own assessment, and the seller’s asking price.
For the first company, their assessment was fifty million, but the seller’s price was only one million.
For the second company, the assessment was forty-eight million, but again the seller’s price was just one million.
For the third and fourth companies, the highest assessment was eighty million, the lowest thirty million, but all the offers were uniformly one million.
In other words, companies worth nearly five hundred million could be acquired for just ten million.