Chapter 1700 — The First Strike, Part One

As for the other clans, there were no great grudges to speak of. They were all old established families, forever running into one another, and each was willing to give the others a little face. Many of them were even joined by marriage, so there was nothing worth calling a real conflict. And so, one after another, they all put on expressions of innocent amiability.

Only An Jianwen, standing behind his father An Mingyue, watched the assembled company through narrowed eyes, like a starving wolf scenting its prey.

The An family's overall strength was not to be underestimated. They had no practitioners, true, but their finances were formidable, and behind them stood the support of the Fire Wolf Gang. There was no question at all of their holding on to their place among the Five Minor Clans. Yet An Jianwen seemed to care nothing for any of that. In his eyes, every one of these clan folk was a target — a fat sheep, waiting for his knife.

An Jianwen's ambition had long since swollen beyond all bounds. With Dr. Yin's backing, he no longer took ordinary clans seriously at all.

Of course, even the Yu family did not know that the Fire Wolf Gang was nothing but a front. Behind the Fire Wolf Gang stood a far greater patron, and though Dr. Yin had come to help An Jianwen make money, in truth the results of his research were meant for that patron behind the Fire Wolf Gang. The money they earned, that hidden power scarcely deigned to look at — it was left to the Fire Wolf Gang to build up its own strength with it.

Even An Jianwen did not fully understand these matters. He knew only that once Dr. Yin could produce a drug that sustained the Mystic rank for long periods, he would be able to move against the great clans. His one regret was that the drug could not be taken by himself — otherwise he too might have tasted what it was to be a true expert.

"The third stage will be the contests among the younger generation. For the victors of these contests, our Yu family has prepared some pills — the Minor Qi-Gathering Pills of the hidden Yu family. I imagine everyone has heard of them; they are excellent for raising one's strength!" Yu Shuixing announced.

"Hwah—" At the news that the prize was the Minor Qi-Gathering Pill, everyone's face lit with envy and greed. But they all knew that among the younger generation, the Yu family's Yu Feng was the strongest, and that no one else could possibly stand against him.

And so the prize was less a prize than a showpiece — for in any contest of arms, Yu Feng was certain to win, and the pill would remain in the Yu family's own hands.

Thus, after their amazement and envy had passed, the assembly settled into calm. What was not theirs, they need not think too much about — and how easy was it, after all, to lay hands on anything the Yu family held?

"Since no one has any objections, we shall begin the first stage now. Each clan will report its profits from last year, the ranks of its practitioners, and whether it has any backing or patron." Yu Shuixing said, "There is no need to speak of our Yu family. The earnings of our auction house alone match those of several of your clans combined, and as for our strength, that need not be elaborated either — I am at the peak of the late Mystic rank, and Yu Feng is at the mid Mystic rank! And our patron is the hidden Yu family!"

Yu Shuixing had said there was no need to speak of it, yet he had laid out the Yu family's strength in great detail all the same. And indeed, by the standards of these clans, the Yu family's strength was the greatest of them all.

"Our Xiao family had no profits to speak of last year, but recently we have taken on several large ventures. I estimate that next year our earnings will reach several billion — counting fixed assets, of course!" Xiao Ji said proudly. "Though our Xiao family has no practitioners for the moment, our patron, the hidden Pi family, has said they will instruct my son and my nephew in cultivation!"

The Xiao family's situation left everyone present sighing in wonder. A clan that had once been shown no particular regard even at the auctions had suddenly risen to prominence. It seemed that the support of a hidden clan truly made all the difference.

It would not be long, they were sure, before the Xiao family stood on equal footing with the Yu family. And apart from the Yu family, the Xiao family now had the greatest backing of any here — so it was only natural that the Xiao family should speak first.

Of course, the Fire Wolf Gang behind the An family was no weakling either, but An Mingyue was a low-key man — especially since he and the Fire Wolf Gang were engaged in certain unlawful dealings — and so it was best to say as little as possible.

"Our Liu family's fixed assets grew by roughly three billion last year. As for practitioners, we have none for the time being," Liu Zhenhu said. With the Liu family's strength, holding on to their position was no problem, but they would certainly remain one of the Five Minor Clans.

"This old man is an expert of the mid Mystic rank. Our Wu family's business is not large, but we still managed an asset growth of over a billion..." Wu Gonggao felt a pang of sorrow. If nothing had happened to Wu Chengtian, the Wu family would surely have become second only to the Xiao family this time. But as things stood, whether they could even enter the ranks of the Four Great Clans was far from certain.

The Yu family's place among the Four Great Clans was assured, and the Xiao family, rising like a latecomer overtaking the rest, was certain to be one of them as well. As for the Sun family — a clan of the auxiliary healing discipline, to be sure — their position was unique, and so long as Old Master Sun lived, the Sun family would certainly remain one of the Four Great Clans.

As for the final place, Wu Gonggao did not think he had much hope of contending for it. The An family was no weakling either: not only did they have the Fire Wolf Gang behind them, they were also very rich. Before, the An family had not had much money, yet merely with the Fire Wolf Gang's support they had become the foremost of the Five Minor Clans — and now, they would likely enter the ranks of the Four Great Clans.

And even setting that aside — even if the An family gave up the place, there was still the Song family. If they agreed to a marriage alliance with the Yu family, then the Yu family would surely reserve a place among the Four Great Clans for them. In that case, the Wu family would have no hope at all.

One had to understand: though the Four Great Clans and the Five Minor Clans were all clans alike, in the eyes of the world their standing differed by a wide margin. The Wu family would certainly never be as glorious as before.

Afterward, the remaining clans likewise reported their strength, and when it came Old Master Chen's turn, Chen Kuanglan thought of his injured grandson Chen Yutian, and his heart twisted like a knife. He could only sigh helplessly and say, "The Chen family has no industry. Chen Yutian was originally of the early Mystic rank, but he has been crippled. All we have now is the backing of one ancient sect!"

"An ancient sect? Which ancient sect?" Before Yu Shuixing or anyone else could speak, Divine Physician Kang was the first to open his mouth.

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