In the capital of the Silver Feather Dynasty, at the Zhang Family Estate that stood tall in the northern part of the city, everything there symbolized power and honor. Yet at this moment, within the grand hall adorned with intricate patterns and gleaming gold, the air was thick with the stench of blood that had yet to fade. The luxury that should have inspired awe was instead smothered by a suffocating pressure that made it difficult to breathe.
Inside the main hall of the Zhang Family Estate, carved wooden chairs were arranged in parallel on both sides, every seat occupied. Some were elderly men with white hair, others were middle aged figures with eyes filled with cunning. There were both men and women, yet regardless of who they were, every face appeared calm on the surface while their hearts churned with countless emotions beneath. Some only wished to flee this situation as quickly as possible. Some concealed killing intent within their gazes. Others chose silence, protecting their own interests.
Deep within the innermost part of the hall was a seat more plain than the rest. A middle aged woman sat there. She was the current head of the Zhang Family, Zhang Lingyue. Her face was as beautiful as a painting, her skin flawless and smooth, yet the aura that radiated from her body was dark and oppressive in an unsettling way, like calmness concealing a storm within.
She slowly looked forward, then spoke in a voice that sounded gentle, yet was cold enough to pierce straight into the listener's heart.
"Zhang Wen… are you truly going to force the Zhang Family into ruin?"
Her words plunged the entire hall into absolute silence. She closed her eyes for a brief moment before opening them again. Those eyes trembled slightly, as if she were suppressing something.
"Hand Zhang Lin over… consider it a plea from your mother…"
The moment her final words fell, every gaze in the hall shot toward the center as if by prior agreement.
There, an eighteen year old youth stood alone. In his arms, he held the body of a boy around fifteen years old. The boy's body was covered in wounds. A massive gash torn by fangs ripped from his shoulder down to his waist, fresh red blood staining his clothes. His eyes were tightly shut, devoid of any sign of life, as if his soul had already departed, leaving behind only a cold, lifeless body.
The young man lowered his head, staring at the pale face in his arms. He remained motionless. There were no tears, no sobs, yet his shoulders were tense and rigid, as though he was using all his strength just to keep himself from collapsing.
The pressure within the hall intensified. No one dared to move. No one dared to speak. Everyone waited for the young man's answer, waiting to see whether he would bow his head before the authority of the family.
Suddenly, the young man froze for a brief moment, as if all the strength in his body had been drained away at once. He collapsed to the ground, powerless, yet his arms tightened instinctively around the boy in his embrace, holding him close as if fearing that even the slightest loosening would cause the body to vanish before his eyes.
When the young man fell to his knees, Zhang Lingyue did not ease the pressure in the slightest. On the contrary, the oppressive force radiating from her grew even stronger. It bore down upon him with brutal cruelty, as if intent on crushing both his body and mind into pieces.
The stone floor beneath his knees began to crack. The faint sound of bones creaking echoed through the deathly silence. Yet the young man made no sound at all. He merely lowered his head, remaining eerily calm.
At that very moment, it was as if something slammed into his consciousness. His awareness, which seemed on the verge of slipping away, suddenly snapped back. He struggled to lift his head, his blurred eyes sweeping across his surroundings in confusion. The luxurious hall, the countless faces staring at him, and the crushing pressure bearing down on his body caused his heart to race chaotically.
"Where am I?"
The thought had barely surfaced when an enormous flood of memories surged into his mind like a raging torrent.
One fragment among those countless memories granted him knowledge of this world.
It was a world of cultivation.
A world where people could absorb the power of heaven, temper themselves to become stronger. Some could soar through the skies, split the seas with bare hands, or destroy mountains with a single thought.
And his own name was Zhang Wen, the eldest son of Zhang Lingyue, the head of the Zhang Family.
A top tier genius of the Silver Feather Dynasty, the possessor of the Sacred Water Physique, with his cultivation at the Spirit Formation realm, at its highest level.
The merging of memories did not stop there.
The boy he was holding in his arms was named Zhang Lin.
This child was his real younger brother, the second son of Zhang Lingyue. A child born with a sacred bone, a genius who did not fall short of anyone within the Silver Feather Dynasty.
But…
Zhang Lin's cultivation had already been destroyed, along with the sacred bone that had nearly been excavated. And the one who carried out this act was none other than their own mother, Zhang Lingyue.
Memories from just a few days ago surfaced vividly in his mind.
The origin of everything began within the secret realm of the Silver Feather Dynasty.
A territory filled with priceless treasures had been opened. It allowed entry only to those whose cultivation was below the Spirit Formation realm. Even so, to step into that secret realm, one still needed permission or had to pass the selection of the Silver Feather Dynasty.
On the day the secret realm opened, after the candidates had been finalized, geniuses from all directions poured in. Numerous forces appeared.
But most importantly, a force no one had anticipated also arrived.
The Gu Emperor Clan.
No one within the Silver Feather Dynasty could understand why that secret realm had drawn the attention of the Gu Clan to such an extent. Even the Sacred Daughter of the Great Emperor Clan, Gu Lanyue, had come in person.
Her arrival was no small matter. It shook the entire dynasty.
On the day she appeared, the sky above the capital seemed to fall into silence without prior arrangement. Three ancestors of the Silver Feather Dynasty, all of whom possessed cultivation at the Saint realm, personally stepped forward to receive her.
They lowered their lofty demeanor until nothing remained but utmost humility, even though under normal circumstances, figures of their level would never move unless the dynasty itself faced life or death.
The sight of the three elders standing before a young woman looked as though lesser beings were paying homage to the ruler of the heavens. Those who witnessed it could clearly feel the vast gap in power.
After a brief conversation whose details no one dared to inquire about, the ancestors of the dynasty officially announced that the Sacred Daughter of the Gu Clan would participate in this expedition into the secret realm.
As for what truly happened inside the secret realm, Zhang Wen did not know much.
His cultivation had already stepped into the Spirit Formation realm, which made him ineligible to enter the secret realm in the first place. At the same time, he had received an order from Zhang Lingyue to travel elsewhere and oversee the excavation of the Zhang Family's spirit stone mines.
The only thing he knew was the outcome.
The secret realm had ended in the worst possible tragedy.
When the gates of the secret realm finally closed, only five people emerged alive.
Gu Lanyue.Zhang Lin.The Crown Prince of the Silver Feather Dynasty.And two others from different factions.
Countless forces that had lost their geniuses immediately questioned the survivors about what had happened inside. Strangely enough, the testimonies of the three, excluding Zhang Lin and Gu Lanyue, matched perfectly, as if they had been rehearsed beforehand.
They all claimed the same thing.
That Zhang Lin had cultivated a demonic art, slaughtered everyone within the secret realm, and then devoured their life force until nothing remained.
Those words carried no real weight, no concrete evidence whatsoever. Many factions were filled with doubt, because after careful inspection, Zhang Lin showed no trace of demonic cultivation at all. Zhang Lin himself was even willing to allow everyone to inspect his memories.
However, before that could happen, Gu Lanyue stepped in and stopped it.
Afterward, she personally confirmed that every accusation was true.
All the forces fell into silence.
They did not dare to question her.They did not dare to investigate further.And no one dared to oppose her.
This was the authority of a Great Emperor Clan.
With just a few words, they could turn black into white, and right into wrong.