Chapter 1147: Open the Ancestral Hall, Light Incense, Invoke Family Discipline, Lu Family Founding Ancestor

Lu Ding's voice rang out: "I said before, if anyone dares to bring these things up in front of me again, I will definitely kill them."

"No one is an exception. This is the precedent!"

"If anyone is unconvinced, or has a problem with me, you're welcome to come to the Demon Continent. I'll be waiting at Lü Mountain."

As he spoke, he didn't even look back.

In that instant.

The entire Lu Family fell into deathly silence!

Until Lu Ding and the Lü Mountain group boarded the Flying Vessel, pulled by ten thousand demons, slowly receding into the distance, gradually accelerating until they vanished in the blink of an eye.

Only then did Lu Lin, the Lu Family Founding Ancestor, rise from the ground.

"Hahahahaha... good... good... very good!!!!!"

His gaze locked onto Lu Teng: "You knew and said nothing, causing such tremendous losses for the Lu Family, making the Lu Family the laughingstock of the entire Ji Continent. You're just wonderful!!!!"

"And how dare you blame Gongyang Qingrou for not telling you in advance?"

"Why don't you think about it—if you had informed me earlier, how could things have turned out like this!?"

If it were Lu Lin, he absolutely would never have let things get this tense. Just like back then, he would have chosen to help Lu Teng cover up the matter of Luo Qingshi.

He would have preserved that final shred of dignity.

Lu Teng was rendered speechless by the Founding Ancestor's words.

The chaos of his earlier thoughts, the turmoil of the situation, had prevented him from considering this aspect.

Now, the boomerang had struck him square in the head.

Only in hindsight did he understand Gongyang Qingrou's grievance and predicament.

He said Gongyang Qingrou hadn't told him in advance, hadn't notified him—but wasn't he himself equally guilty of not notifying the Founding Ancestor, not telling him?

Only now did he understand.

Some words weren't so easy to say just because you wanted to say them.

"I..."

Lu Lin waved his hand: "You don't need to explain yourself to me. Gongyang Qingrou didn't explain to you because she knew that even if she explained, you wouldn't listen. So now, you don't need to explain to me either, because just like you, I wouldn't listen to your explanations."

Lu Lin took a deep breath. He was furious!!!

But his nature simply couldn't bring him to hate Lu Ding. All he felt was admiration—admiration that Lu Ding had risen from obscurity, because Lu Lin himself had also grown from nothing.

As for Lu Ding killing the Lu Family Sixth Ancestor.

Lu Lin couldn't care less.

Because Old Six had long since stopped being of one mind with the other five of them. Cultivating Buddhism had rotted his brain.

Let alone Lu Ding killing him.

Even Lu Lin himself had wanted to kill him, but was constrained by lack of opportunity and fear that internal bloodshed within the Lu Family would cause chaos.

So, in Lu Lin's view, even though Lu Ding had completely cut ties with the Lu Family, he had still helped the family resolve its internal conflict one last time.

What a good kid...

His character, talent, disposition, life experience, and that magnanimity that looked down upon the Lu Family's secrets—he perfectly met every criterion for the Lu Family's helm.

What a pity, what a shame, that the Lu Family had pushed him away with their own hands.

Who could understand the bitterness in Lu Lin's heart? He had waited and watched for so many years. Finally, a descendant most worthy of nurturing had appeared, and then... and then!!!!!!

Lu Lin forcefully suppressed the urge to kill: "Open the ancestral hall, light the incense, invoke family discipline!!!!"

As the Lu Family ancestral hall opened.

Lu Lin, Luo Qingshi, Shui Ci, Lu Yansheng, Lu Yuexin, Lu Bing, and others were all summoned inside.

Compared to before, when six Lu Family ancestors sat in the seats of honor.

This time.

Only Lu Lin sat in the seat of honor!!!

Previously, letting the other five ancestors sit at the same height as him—that was because Lu Lin didn't mind. Now he minded, so everyone had to sit below him. He had to retake control of the Lu Family and salvage its lost reputation!!!

Looking down at Lu Teng's family below.

Lu Lin held the family codex in his hand.

"Lu Teng, for violating family rules and causing irreparable, tremendous losses to the Lu Family, the following punishment is hereby issued: cultivation sealed, imprisoned in the Water Prison for one hundred years!!"

"After a century, the situation will be reviewed!"

Facing such a punishment, although the Water Prison was treacherous, Lu Teng truly had nothing more to say.

He had lost one son, and another son had died...

What more could he say?

He kowtowed: "Lu Teng accepts the punishment!"

But this wasn't the end.

Lu Lin continued: "Shui Ci, you failed to properly educate your children, though you yourself committed no personal fault. As a minor punishment for a major warning: from today onward, you may not leave the Lu Family even half a step. All cooperation and support between the Lu Family and the Shui Family is hereby cancelled!!!!"

Shui Ci raised her head to look at Lu Lin above: "Founding Ancestor, Founding Ancestor... this has nothing to do with me. Even if it did, why would you make things difficult for the Shui Family?"

Lu Lin stared at her with a heavy expression: "You share in wealth and honor with Lu Teng. Because you married him, the Shui Family basked in reflected glory and received the Lu Family's support. Now that Lu Teng has fallen into calamity, do you still think you can stand aloof?!"

"Your Shui Family's glory came because of him. Now that he's fallen, does your Shui Family still expect to continue enjoying prosperity!?"

"And I know that you and he share deep marital affection. It's hard to guarantee that you won't harbor resentment toward Lu Ding after Lu Teng's punishment and stir up trouble. Although the Lu Family can't afford to offend Lü Mountain, the Great Han where Lu Ding once was is still weak."

"To prevent you from creating new incidents and using external forces to bring disaster upon the Great Han, dragging the Lu Family and Lu Ding's grudge back into the fray, I must issue this punishment!"

"Now I give you two choices: either kowtow and accept your punishment, or I will personally set out this very moment and annihilate your entire Shui Family, leaving you with no external forces to rely on!"

Being able to rise from obscurity and lead the Lu Family to its current scale proved that Lu Lin was absolutely not a soft-hearted or dim-witted master.

The Founding Ancestor's words made Shui Ci tremble with fear. She immediately kowtowed.

"Shui Ci accepts the punishment!"

Then Lu Lin continued: "Lu Bing, for falsely claiming unearned glory—from this moment on, you are confined to the Lu Family. Your resource allowance is reduced, seals are placed upon you, and you may not leave!"

"Lu Yuexin, Lu Yansheng—from this moment on, you are confined to the Lu Family. Your resource allowances are reduced, seals are placed upon you, and you may not leave!"

"Your sects will be contacted and given an explanation. From now on, you will stay in the Lu Family and cultivate diligently!!!"

Don't talk about who's innocent or not.

For the sake of safety, Lu Lin had no choice but to do this. What if one of these juniors lost their head—unable to deal with Lu Ding, unable to deal with Lü Mountain—and instead ran off to stir up trouble in the Great Han?

Wouldn't that spell disaster?

Right now, the relationship between the Lu Family and Lu Ding had already sunk to freezing point.

If they allowed such a possibility to exist any longer, then the Lu Family might face the risk of complete annihilation!

Although Lu Lin didn't know Lu Ding's specific personality or detailed behavior.

But putting himself in Lu Ding's shoes—if he had such power, status, talent, and had already reached the current state of conflict with the Lu Family, then absolutely, if the Lu Family dared to provoke him, he would explode, would annihilate the whole clan.

Since even he, in that position, would have such thoughts, he couldn't guarantee that Lu Ding wouldn't.

So it was better to nip it all in the bud!

Solve the problem at its root.

Lu Bing, Lu Yuexin, and Lu Yansheng felt extremely wronged.

Especially Lu Bing: "Founding Ancestor!! We're the ones who suffered! Why are we the ones being punished!?"

Lu Lin looked at her: "Because this is what family trade-offs mean. Without the Lu Family, how could you have achieved what you have today!? If you enjoy the benefits of the Lu Family, then you must accept the Lu Family's trade-offs. If you can't accept it, you're free to do what Lu Ding did—return your flesh to your mother, return your bones to your father, and give back every single resource the Lu Family invested in you!"

"If you can accomplish that, I can also permit you to leave the Lu Family, no further ties!"

"Do you have that kind of backbone!?"

Lu Ding was tough and impressive because he neither enjoyed the Lu Family's benefits nor used its resources. He himself had no connection to the Lu Family to begin with. Most importantly, his background was strong, his strength was strong, and his talent was strong!

As for Lu Bing...

Never mind whether she dared to return her flesh to her father and bones to her mother—even just repaying the resources the Lu Family had invested in her, she couldn't possibly pay it all back.

Even if she could repay everything and accomplish all those conditions, the final interpretation right would still belong to Lu Lin.

Lu Bing had nothing more to say.

This was also the reason Lu Ding had always practiced the principle of equal pay for equal return—he didn't want anyone to nitpick him over resource investments!

Finally.

Lu Lin turned his gaze to Luo Qingshi, the woman who had once given birth to Lu Ding.

...