Chapter 2417 - 2417: Cowering in the Basement

Wanyan Hongsheng and his group were hiding in the basement, unfamiliar with the situation outside, and unaware of Ye Qing and Helian Tiehua's involvement in the matter. They only heard Nalan Jingwei speaking, and because Nalan Jingwei wanted to elevate the Wanyan Family's status, he exaggerated their crucial role in the affair, leading Wanyan Hongsheng to mistakenly believe that the whole incident was orchestrated by the Nalan Family. Naturally, his hatred towards the Nalan Family was immense.

In fact, this was precisely what Ye Qing and his team anticipated. To avoid attracting the Wanyan Family's attention, Ye Qing and his team gave Nalan Jingwei the opportunity to showcase himself instead.

Nalan Jingwei wasn't foolish. He knew that stirring up more trouble would only increase the likelihood of attracting resentment from the Wanyan Family. However, he had no other choice, understanding the principle of seeking wealth amidst danger. If he didn't seize this opportunity, the Nalan Family would never have another chance and would remain in a lukewarm state forever. Nalan Jingwei's decision put the entire Wanyan Family at stake, hoping the Sword Saint Sect would defeat Wanyan Hongfeng and elevate the Nalan Family's status.

Of course, Nalan Jingwei had another reason for urgently confronting the Wanyan Family: his deep-seated hatred towards them. The time he was captured by the Wanyan Family and turned into a puppet was the greatest humiliation of his life, which is why he wanted to destroy the Wanyan Family for revenge.

Wanyan Hongsheng was unaware of these matters, thus directed all his hatred towards Nalan Jingwei. Listening to Nalan Jingwei's constant boasting outside, Wanyan Hongsheng was infuriated, his body trembling with both regret and anger, and feeling some fear.

This time, Wanyan Hongfeng led a team to attack the Sword Saint Sect and left Hongsheng in charge in Shenchuan City, cautioning him against stirring up trouble during this period. The team left behind was sufficient to protect the entire Wanyan Family. However, eager for achievements and hoping to elevate his status within the family, Wanyan Hongfeng orchestrated the Panlong Valley incident and even retrieved a Divine Clan corpse from the Demon Hideout Cave.

The Panlong Valley incident led to the mere death of a Purple Robe Lama, but numerous peak masters perished on Hongsheng's side. That battle drained half of the peak master strength Hongfeng had left him; the remaining weren't enough to protect the Wanyan Family, triggering the current situation. This battle further cost him nine peak masters, meaning he lost 80% of the strength originally left by Hongfeng. He was at a loss as to how to account for this to Hongfeng.

The family wasn't protected, the strength left behind was almost entirely lost, and no objectives were achieved. So many stains pressed upon him, even if Hongfeng didn't punish him, his future standing within the family would be utterly ruined, demoting him from the family's second position to completely losing any standing, his ultimate fate.

Frankly, Wanyan Hongsheng deeply regretted the Panlong Valley incident. Had he not sought achievements and directed the affair, avoiding the loss of so many personnel, he wouldn't be in the current predicament. But with events transpired, regret was futile.

"Third Master, what do we do now?" a man quietly asked from behind. Not far behind him were eight individuals who were Sect Leaders of the South Ridge Sect.

These eight Sect Leaders practiced Demonic Sect Techniques, which Wanyan Hongsheng intentionally left for them. When he left these techniques behind, he also planted seeds of heart demons within them. As they practiced these techniques, the heart demons would gradually grow; their power increased with the strength of the heart demons, making them easily controlled by Wanyan Hongsheng.

Previously, outside the Patriarch Bodhidharma's room where he attained Nirvana, they were controlled by Hongsheng's Heart Demon Technique, causing their disappearance. Since then, they had been helping Hongsheng in his schemes. However, Hongsheng was unaware that his Heart Demon Technique had flaws; at least the Grand Sect Master wasn't fully controlled. Last time, when Ye Qing and his team were trapped inside the Tomb of Ghost Valley Master, it was the Grand Sect Master who discreetly informed Fat Wang, resulting in the latter's intrusion into the tomb, causing Ye Qing's team to escape.

Nonetheless, Hongsheng was oblivious to the Grand Sect Master breaking free from control. He had complete trust in the eight and carried them along, so they were present with him in the basement.

Wanyan Hongsheng glanced at the man, saying solemnly, "What can be done now? We'll hide here and wait until they retreat before we go out. Going out now is tantamount to seeking death!"

"But..." The man exchanged worried looks with the crowd behind him, saying nervously, "If... if they don't retreat, what then? This basement is temporarily dug out; it has little reserve supplies. We estimate the food and drink can last only a week."

"A week should be enough…" Hongsheng took a deep breath, speaking gravely, "Big Brother has already found the position of the Sword Saint Sect and has started the attack. According to Big Brother's estimates, he shouldn't take more than five days to return victoriously. Once he's back, I bet the Nalan Family bunch won't dare linger here! If they do persist, it saves Big Brother the trouble of finding them!"

Upon hearing these words, everyone's expression relaxed. If Hongfeng returned, there truly was no need to fear the Nalan Family.

In fact, Hongsheng was the most anxious. If Hongfeng returned, they would indeed drive away the Nalan Family. However, with his blunder causing this mishap, Hongfeng wouldn't easily forgive him.

Ye Qing and team searched outside but couldn't find Hongfeng, ultimately giving up. Upon returning to the manor, they saw Nalan Jingwei leading people to raid the estate, collecting and taking all the Wanyan Family's belongings from there. Nalan Jingwei understood well; even if they defeated the remaining Wanyan Family members now, once Hongfeng's people returned, they couldn't hold the territory. Thus, better to take the things away.

Ye Qing and Helian Tiehua didn't dispute with him; these external possessions were insignificant now. Moreover, even if Nalan Jingwei took these items, once Hongfeng returned, he wouldn't spare them. Whether they strip everything away, when Hongfeng's team returns, they'd reclaim them anyway; taking them was pointless. Conversely, if Hongfeng truly lost at the Sword Saint Sect, these items belonged to them entirely, making taking them or not futile—Nalan Jingwei was merely busying himself.

Everyone was somewhat exhausted from the battle. They rested within the manor for the day, while Ye Qing and Huangfu Ziyu accompanied Lin Tianyou back to the Lin family.

After the Medicine King Mountain incident, Ye Qing thought Lin Tianyou had truly died there and informed the Lin family of such. Due to this, the Lin family harbored a mental block against Ye Qing, and Ye Qing felt immense guilt towards them.

However, with Tianyou's survival coming to light, it was joyful news for Ye Qing and a monumental revelation for the Lin family. When Tianyou came to Shenchuan City previously—it was solely to assist Ye Qing in investigating the Wanyan Family—he didn't return to the Lin family. Thus, the Lin family remained unaware of Tianyou's survival. It was time to visit and inform them of Tianyou's existence.

The Lin family was quite prominent in Shenchuan City; Ye Qing's resentment with them ran deep. His first arrival saw him inadvertently rescuing Lin Huayu, the Lin family's daughter, while his brother Ye Jun's kidnapping related to Lin Tianhao. Subsequently occupied by numerous affairs, Ye Qing seldom visited the Lin family, yet their connection persisted. Setting aside differences, even Ye Qing's brother Zhao Chengshuang had family ties with them, showcasing his profound association with the Lin family.

Lin Tianyou's family wasn't as powerful as the Lin Corporation's family, yet remained influential in Shenchuan City. Tianyou resided in a villa within the Southern Suburb, developed by the Lin Corporation, with his parents living in a more than 600-square-meter villa. Despite not matching Ye Qing's current estate in size, such a house in the high-priced Shenchuan city was exceedingly valuable.

Ye Qing and the others slowly drove into the manor. Viewing the familiar house, Lin Tianyou's eyes turned teary. Having secluded himself on Medicine King Mountain for so long, his family presumed him dead, and Lin Tianyou pondered their current circumstances. How were his parents faring? How was the family doing? What was their life like?

Sitting beside Ye Qing, Huangfu Ziyu gazed at Tianyou's lavish mansion and chuckled lightly, "Brother Lin, with your family's wealth, wouldn't it be easier to quietly enjoy being a rich heir? Why pursue medicine? Being a doctor is both strenuous and thankless, and financially not as rewarding as managing family ventures. Why bother?"