Sovereign of the Three Realms

Tong Kun knew that the young lord was of a mind to work over the Wei father and son when he heard those words. He chuckled and put on a scathing tone, “There might be some things you’re unaware of, young clan lord. That father and son across the street are actually people of some importance. They’re actually a ninth ranked aristocratic house—House Wei under the Coiling Dragon Clan’s banner.”

“House Wei?” Wang Teng was nonplussed. “Isn’t House Wei a premier house beneath the Coiling Dragon clan? How could they sink to such a depth?”

“Who knows? Perhaps they’ve been irrelevant in the area of pills for too long and have thrown away the dignity befitting a ninth ranked aristocratic house. Maybe the desire for money has driven them crazy?” Tong Xianwei chuckled. “Young clan lord, please come this way. There’s no need to dirty your ears with this kind of talk.”

Wang Ten sighed on purpose, gracing the Wei father and son with a look of grave disappointment as he lifted his feet to walk inside.

“Pretentious posers,” Jiang Chen smirked coldly. House Wei didn’t even bother accompanying those two words; it was everything they wanted to say. Everyone present heard him, as the words hung in the air like an iron weight Wang Teng’s look of noncommittal elegance instantly dropped off his face as the Majestic Clan group simultaneously halted, glaring back over at House Wei with looks of concerted fury.

“Who was that?!”

“Which bastard spoke just now?!”

“Step out if you dare!” Those of the Majestic Clan were more than used to getting their way in Veluriyam Capital. The seven emperors rarely intervened in the mundane world, so the capital was normally left in the hands of the great clans, of which the Majestic Clan stood at the foremost. House Wei didn’t dare say anything in front of them, even at a situation like today’s. Therefore, while Jiang Chen’s insult had been a sweet thrill, it undoubtedly set the scene ablaze.

Jiang Chen smiled faintly in the face of such an imposing atmosphere and walked forward, his tone as casual as ever, “Did I speak incorrectly? My Taiyuan Tower has spent at least a month preparing for our opening and sent out the invitations long beforehand. We also thought of the store’s name well in advance. Who’s the one copying here? Who’s the one shamelessly imitating the other? Don’t try to talk yourself out of this in such a ludicrous fashion. Everyone here knows what’s really going on. Alright then, you copied us, so what’s with this act huh? You won’t be satisfied until you grind your imitation in our face, huh? You’ll die if you don’t strut around like you’re actually something, is it?”

Jiang Chen had been harboring a bellyful of rage, and he would’ve cussed out the clan lord of the Majestic Clan himself, much less their young clan lord. Their usage of “Taiyuan” had deeply triggered him. How could such vile, base characters defile his father’s title? He felt so much better after letting loose on them. He’d kept a low profile ever since he’d entered the Capital, and had held it all in even if he’d experienced a bit of suffering. But now, he would stay quiet no more! It was one thing for the Majestic Clan to use the Longevity Pill to stir up waves, and another thing to imitate Jiang Chen and open a Taiyuan Lodge. Even then, they would compete on basis of true skill, and Jiang Chen might have been fine with that in the end. However, these fellows had gone too far. They’d stolen his shop name, robbed him of the Longevity Pill, and then wanted to follow up all that with a kick to his head! This was the spark that set alight all of Jiang Chen’s accumulated rage! If even this can be tolerated, then what else is left?!

Pin drop silence reigned for a long moment after Jiang Chen’s words, and was promptly shattered by the loud abuse rising from the other side after they gathered their wits.

“And who the hell are you, brat? What kind of right do you have to speak here?”

“No respect for your superiors, ah? I think you’re looking to die, brat!”

“Young clan lord, I’ll go destroy that brat and teach House Wei some manners!”

Jiang Chen snorted coldly and readied himself. He wouldn’t give a damn even if they erupted in open hostility today. The gods fought over each worshipper, and humans fought over their principles. He truly couldn’t take this lying down any longer. There was no need for him to endure things. Just as the situation started to reach a dangerous precipice, a loud shout broke the air. “Wang Teng, you’ve been quite full of yourself lately! What show are you planning on putting on today?”

House Wei was delighted; they recognized that voice. It was young master Ji San’s voice!

Ji San was striding in from the distance, a large group of people with him. His retinue was a good six times greater than Wang Teng’s. Not only did they include his personal guards, but many of them were also Coiling Dragon Clan confidantes. Quite a few of them were all great personages in Veluriyam Capital, and they were all walking over to Taiyuan Tower.

When he saw Ji San appear, Wang Teng’s face sank. “Ji Ole Third, there seems to be none of your business here, hmm?”

Young master Ji San laughed heartily, “What nonsense are you sprouting? House Wei is a ninth ranked aristocratic house under my clan’s banner. I’ve specially come here on the day of Taiyuan Tower’s opening to prevent any riffraff from making trouble. Just as I thought, I happened upon some unsavory scenes.”

He was someone from the great clans alright. Ji San had taken control of the situation as soon as he opened his mouth, instantly clapping Wang Teng with the label of “riffraff”. When it came to throwing his weight around as a rich second generation, young master Ji San was an acclaimed adept in the Capital. It would be exceedingly difficult for Wang Teng to gain the upper hand against Ji San.

“Ji Ole Third, this is the opening day for Taiyuan Lodge, I can’t be bothered to bicker with you!” Wang Teng snorted coldly.

Ji San wasted no time in firing back, smiling lazily, “Taiyuan Lodge? Never heard of it. I’ve only heard of Taiyuan Tower opening today. What kind of cheap imitation is Taiyuan Lodge? Wang Teng, this is another one of your harebrained schemes, is it? Your Wang family always loves playing these dirty little tricks. Can’t you actually amount to something instead of wasting time and effort on these petty schemes? Can’t you be a bit more aboveboard? Do you think the likes of you actually has a chance of replacing my Coiling Dragon Clan as the top clan in the Capital?” Young master Ji San’s eloquence was quite off the charts, and everyone’s hearts trembled as the barbs kept coming. The Majestic Clan and Coiling Dragon Clan had always fought overtly and in the shadows, but no one had ever dared to openly speak of it. Young master Ji San was acting out of the ordinary today!

Wang Teng laughed coldly, “Ji Ole Third, you seem to be sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong! You can’t even handle affairs at home, and you want to interfere in my clan’s matters? You better go back and make your preparations. Who knows, your own backyard might be set afire one day.”

These words were obviously picking at the Coiling Dragon Clan’s wounds, hinting that they would lose power soon and fall into the shambles of internal conflict. As soon as the clan lord’s cultivation dissipated, they would surely sink into civil conflict. Young master Ji San waved his fan with a smile, “Even if we’re on fire, we’ll certainly take you down burning with us. Of that you can be sure of.”

These words were a blatant threat. You think your Majestic Clan is something? If my Coiling Dragon Clan falls into disarray, we’ll drag you straight down into hell with us! Indeed, Wang Teng’s face changed slightly. He really didn’t dare fire back. It wasn’t as if similar things hadn’t happened in the Divine Abyss Continent before. Some experts would crazy things right before they died. Sometimes they would hack their way into their enemies’ home and slaughter whoever they saw, committing suicide and taking down the strongest character on the enemy’s side. In this way, the enemy would be hurt almost as equally as them, and both sides would come out even in the end. This would prevent one’s own faction from being suppressed after the expert’s death. This kind of destructive ending was prohibited by the rules, but no one could guarantee that something like this really wouldn’t happen.

“Ji Ole Third, don’t try that shameless act with me. It’s useless on me! Today is the Taiyuan Lodge’s grand opening. You say that the Lodge is copying the Tower? I say the Tower is copying the Lodge! We can sit here and trade empty words all day, but it’s all just talk. We should have a contest of pills! If I recall correctly… House Wei has always been a non mainstream force when it comes to pills?” Wang Teng’s words took a turn as he diverted his firepower into another direction. Aren’t you trying to prove that you’re actually something? Have a contest of pills if you dare then! One had to say, this was quite a vicious move. Everyone knew that House Wei almost had no standing in the world of pills, and House Tong had always had a decent level of achievement in this arena. With the Taiyuan Lodge’s grand opening today, all of the guests had basically gone over to their side and hadn’t chosen Taiyuan Tower. This was evidence of House Tong superiority over House Wei and an example of how the Majestic Clan had surpassed the Coiling Dragon Clan! This was why Wang Teng was acting so triumphant.

Tong Xianwei also called out, “The young clan lord is right. Justice is determined by the people, and the fact that most chose to enter our Taiyuan Lodge explains everything.”

One had to say, the truth was very disadvantageous for House Wei, but it had also been carefully manipulated. Firstly, many of the customers had heard that Taiyuan Lodge was going to introduce an earth shattering pill today, and everyone wanted to be the first to lay eyes on it. Secondly, they all knew that the Majestic Clan was behind Taiyuan Lodge, and only House Wei stood behind Taiyuan Tower. There was no other power supporting it in the shadows. Thirdly, House Wei was in an awkward situation in Veluriyam Capital. They’d fallen out of favor with the Coiling Dragon Clan, and hadn’t switched to the Majestic Clan. Without a backer, House Wei was in a very delicate position. With House Tong and the Majestic Clan on one side, and only House Wei on the other, the natural risk averse tendencies of people would lead them to choose Taiyuan Lodge. This was the cruel nature of reality.

Young master Ji San also knew that the Coiling Dragon Clan had to bear a large portion of the responsibility for why House Wei was in this awkward position. Jiang Chen cast a glance at Wei Jie and the latter immediately understood. He spoke loudly, “The guests have only been hoodwinked. You say your pills are much better and that you didn’t copy us, but just what kind of pills can you bring out, hmm?”

Ji San also fixed his gaze on Wang Teng after he heard Wei Jie speak, “Right, Wang Teng, how can you prove it’s not you copying us after all that talk?”

Wang Teng was delighted to hear all this. “What, is a mere House Wei really planning on challenge House Tong to a contest of pills?”

Jiang Chen spoke faintly, “Stop bringing House Tong into this again and again. Just say the Majestic Clan already. Who doesn’t know that they’re actually the ones behind all this? House Tong? And what is House Tong? Dare you swear to the heavens that the true boss behind Taiyuan Lodge isn’t the Majestic Clan?”

Ji San laughed loudly, “Well said! Straight to the point. Wang Teng, everyone knows that your Wang family likes to play these shallow tricks!”