Chapter 70: My Auntie Isn’t Ordinary (Part One)

Inside another secret chamber of the Tang Family, the Elders wore grave expressions, clearly waiting for something.

Fizzle!

Just then, a soft sound occurred as the barrier outside the chamber dissolved. Immediately after, a petite figure entered unhurriedly.

“She’s here!”

Feeling the barrier’s fluctuation, the Elders looked slightly relieved, murmuring softly among themselves.

“Well now, dear elders, apologies for keeping you waiting!”

The newcomer was Wang Hanyu. She stepped in unhurriedly, a light smile on her face. Without a glance towards the others or seeking their opinion, she went straight to the head seat and sat down. She then spoke up, “Sit, sit, everyone please sit; no need to be so formal.”

Though her face still held a smile, it lacked its usual playfulness and warmth.

“Well… Th-thank you, Vice President Wang.”

“Thank you, Vice President Wang.”

The Elders replied with weak, forced smiles, voices trembling like frightened cicadas in cold weather. Only after murmuring their thanks did they hesitantly take their seats.

“The reason for my visit, I presume you have already discerned?”

Wang Hanyu’s demeanor shifted in an instant. Gone was the petite charm; she transformed into an icy beauty, her face frosty like a frozen expanse of ten-thousand-year snow. She asked coldly.

Thud!

The Elders’ hearts lurched violently at her words. They started scrambling to their feet. The Great Elder, especially, swiftly knelt down.

Thump!

“Have mercy, Vice President Wang! Have mercy! This substandard one was wrong! This lowly servant never should have authorized the message!” Prostrating himself with a thump, the Great Elder began kowtowing desperately, begging for forgiveness.

“Oh? Are you implying that you intended to conceal this matter from me deliberately?”

Wang Hanyu’s eyebrow arched slightly, a faint, inscrutable smile playing on her lips as she gazed down at the Great Elder.

Thump! Thump!

Immediately following, two more sounds rang out as the Second Elder and Third Elder also knelt down hurriedly, pleading in unison.

“My deepest apologies, Vice President Wang! It was this servant who ordered Third Brother to activate the Message Talisman! Blame falls solely on me… I mean, on this humble one! Punishment should land solely on this lowly servant!”

“Vice President Wang, neither Big Brother nor Second Brother bears responsibility! This unworthy one acted on his own authority to send it out! Punish only me, spare the others!”

Thump! Thump!

“Please, Vice President Wang, do not punish the Great Elder! Discipline this lowly servant instead!”

“Vice President Wang, we implore you to calm your mighty anger!”

As the Second and Third Elders knelt, the remaining Elders too knelt one after another, joining the chorus of pleas.

“Hmph! Acting so unified and brotherly now? Punishment will be meted out! However…” Wang Hanyu’s icy tone held a hint of concession, “…considering no significant mishap occurred, and recalling your… acceptable performance earlier today in my sister’s presence… the punishment shall be suspended for now.” Her gaze sharpened again. “Now then: How were this year’s three slots selected? Tang Yilin and Tang Song are both geniuses; their selection is unsurprising. But Tang Jinbiao? Devoid of Spiritual Energy? Barely even initiated into Body Refining? How could such a candidate possibly win in selection trials? Could it be…” Her voice dropped dangerously, “…that you old fossils deliberately rigged it to flatter me?”

Wang Hanyu snorted coldly, seemingly not intending to pursue the matter further, but then she recalled the incident involving Tang Jinbiao and deliberately asked.

“This?”

After hearing this, the elders wore troubled expressions.

“Hmm? What? Did you actually go easy on him? You have quite the nerve!”

Seeing their expressions, Wang Hanyu felt she had guessed correctly. She slammed her palm on the table, a surge of anger flashing across her face.

“No, no! Vice President Wang, please calm your anger! Please calm down! Actually, Tang Jinbiao didn’t win because we went easy. He won on his own strength. After all, Tang Jinbiao isn’t a Tang Family member. Even knowing your relationship with the Family Head’s Madam, we wouldn’t deliberately go easy just to curry favor with you. That would surely breed resentment within the family!”

The Great Elder paled with fright upon hearing her words and hurriedly explained.

Who knows what expression Tang Jinbiao might have worn had he been present and heard the Great Elder’s defense?

“Hmm?”

Wang Hanyu’s interest was piqued instead, her brow slightly furrowed.

Thump!

Seeing Wang Hanyu frown, the Great Elder’s heart lurched, but he dared not hesitate. He continued speaking:

“Actually, Tang Jinbiao grew up in the Tang Family. Vice President Wang, you watched him grow up too. You must know about his unusual talent in the past. We originally treated him as a Tang family member. But later, he seemed to learn something and began deliberately distancing himself from the Tang Family. Then, after last year’s competition, though he won first place, he rejected it. He said he wanted to go dragon hunting in the Eastern Sea. Off he went, only to return exhausted and near death. It’s said he single-handedly slew three Core Formation Cultivators. The news caused quite a stir at the time. But after that, he fell into a coma. When he woke up, his Spiritual Root had dissipated, and he seemed to have lost his memory, acting strangely and chanting nonsense day in and day out… Later, somehow, he obtained the Body Refining Technique and began practicing it. In about a year, he made some small achievements, his strength comparable to an ordinary Qi Condensation Fifth or Sixth Layer cultivator… As for the competition, it was rather strange. On the first day, since there were few Tang Family Body Refiners, and we didn’t want any Body Refiner to rank high, we deliberately arranged a bye for him…”

Seeming afraid Wang Hanyu would be displeased, the Great Elder began recounting slowly, word by word. He started from Tang Jinbiao’s childhood and even mentioned Tang Jinbiao’s amnesia. When describing the competition, he was particularly earnest. He emphasized the strangeness: although Tang Jinbiao struggled desperately against two Qi Condensation Fourth Layer cultivators one day, on the final day, it was as if possessed by a ghost demon. The participating Foundation Establishment Cultivator immediately appeared soul-depleted upon entering and became utterly docile. Naturally, he omitted the part about the private betting and stripping.

This narration lasted nearly a quarter of an hour.

After finishing, the Great Elder lowered his head again, saying nothing.

“Hmm, I see.”

After listening, Wang Hanyu’s frown deepened. She nodded repeatedly, deep in thought.

“Hmm, Vice President Wang, this is all this humble servant knows. At the time, it seemed like there might have been a faint Restriction on the surface of the Platform Stage. This humble servant couldn’t sense it clearly; it might just have been an illusion. For various considerations, we didn’t go down to investigate further!”

The Great Elder seemed to understand what Wang Hanyu was pondering and hastened to add. However, he didn’t mention that the real reason was fear of losing his own mind if he descended.

“Hmph! Why wasn’t this reported earlier? And why, upon discovering something suspicious, did none of you go onto the stage to intervene?”

Just then, Wang Hanyu’s expression abruptly turned icy. She stared coldly at the men and demanded an answer.

The Great Elder hadn’t mentioned Tang Yilin’s stripping incident. Who knows what might happen if Wang Hanyu found out?

Thump!

The elders all trembled violently, utterly silent.

“Vice President Wang, this humble servant thought… this humble servant thought that Tang Jinbiao had paid a huge sum to Tang Shan and others to put on a show!”

Even the Great Elder himself didn’t believe this, but lacking a good excuse, he had to say it.

“Hmph! A show? Could they act that faithfully? I think you old fossils were just afraid of being controlled yourselves!”

Wang Hanyu let out a cold snort, her face etched with scorn.

“Well…”

The Great Elder naturally knew it was impossible to act their way out of that scenario.

Yet, while everyone else stood there trembling, only the Third Elder sneered inwardly: Fools! How could you begin to fathom the power of a Great God? Once that rotten kid forms his Nascent Soul, this old man will surely ascend to the Immortal Realm!

Silence reigned once more. After a while, Wang Hanyu seemed to grasp something and asked further:

“In this recent period, has Tang Jinbiao exhibited any other strange behavior?”

“Yes! Yes, Vice President Wang! This humble servant was just about to tell you! Please look!”

Hearing this, the Great Elder’s face lit up. He immediately retrieved a small black and white sword from his Storage Pouch.

“Oh?”

Seeing the small sword, curiosity flickered across Wang Hanyu’s face. She prepared to take it for closer examination. But just as her hand reached out, her expression changed drastically. She sprang to her feet and roared:

“You wretch!”

Thud!

As she spoke, her sleeve whipped out violently. The Great Elder was sent flying like a sandbag, crashing forcefully into the thick wall with a dull thud.

Puh!

Powerful Restriction barriers prevented the wall from cracking, but he was still injured, spitting out a mouthful of blood.

“Elder Brother!”

The other elders were stunned for a split second, but quickly regained their senses. They rushed to help the Great Elder, then turned back, faces flushed with fury, glaring at Wang Hanyu as if wishing they could tear her apart.

“Don’t be impulsive! Don’t be impulsive! It’s my fault! It’s entirely my fault! This isn’t Vice President Wang’s blame! Don’t blame Vice President Wang!”

Seeing their agitation, the Great Elder hurriedly stopped them, trying to soothe them.

“Hmph! Tang Huayuan! You deserve death!”

Wang Hanyu’s pretty face was covered in a thick frost. A sudden murderous intent flashed in her clear, bright eyes as she shouted angrily.

So, the Great Elder’s name was Tang Huayuan! Very few within the entire Tang Family even knew this.

“Heh heh… Please forgive this humble servant’s rashness, Vice President Wang!”

The Great Elder forced a bitter smile onto his face. After a pause, he continued:

“Vice President Wang, actually, last night’s commotion was caused by Tang Jinbiao. But for some unknown reason, by the time this humble servant arrived there, only Tang Jinbiao was found lying on the ground, along with an item left behind by… that individual. As for the thing that was Sealed… it had completely vanished without a trace. It was as if it had never existed!”

“What? You’re saying that thing was erased merely by a common Spirit Artifact left behind by that individual? No! Impossible! That thing is a Demon Emperor from the Demon Realm! No matter how heaven-defying that individual is, how could some left-behind item possibly destroy it?”

Hearing the Great Elder’s report, Wang Hanyu’s expression drastically changed. She absolutely did not believe it.

“Heh heh, this humble servant doesn’t know either. But when this humble servant entered, the thing was indeed gone. You can ask my brothers here – because we grew uneasy later, we returned again. There truly was nothing left then. Were it not for the Two Principles Spirit Trapping Formation still intact, we would have thought it a dream.”

The Great Elder let out a helpless, bitter laugh. Even having witnessed it, he found it hard to believe.

“Hmm?”

Wang Hanyu frowned and looked towards the other men. Seeing them all nod in confirmation, she sank once more into deep contemplation…