Protect Our Patriarch

Zhuhui Lake.

Shuiyue Pavilion.

Crystal-clear glass lamps were embedded everywhere, emitting a soft yet bright light.

These lamps were powered by the Wang Clan's self-developed array lighting system, which was brighter and covered a larger area than ordinary spirit stone lamps. Over the years, through a series of technological innovations, the energy consumption of these glass lamps had been further reduced, requiring only minimal energy to provide continuous illumination, making them one of the Wang Clan's signature products.

On the specially reinforced dock, a large fish was resting its head on the dock, playfully splashing water with its tail.

This fish had a large, round head and big, round eyes. Most of its body was still half-submerged in the water, vaguely revealing a length of seven to eight zhang, with a broad, streamlined body resembling a dragon whale of the sea.

This big fish was naturally Wang Zongkun.

However, he hated being compared to dragon whales. He had learned from the spiritual beast compendium that those creatures with mixed bloodlines couldn't compare to the noble Kun.

As an immortal beast-level juvenile, Kun grew rapidly during its early years, only slowing down after reaching the seventh or eighth stage. Therefore, although Wang Zongkun was just over a year old, he had grown significantly larger, and his strength had increased rapidly.

At the moment, he was idly swishing his tail, occasionally sucking in water and then spitting it out, sometimes forming an "S" shape, sometimes a "B" shape.

This vulgar pastime, who knows where he learned it from.

Still in his juvenile phase, he was very attached to his parents. With his father and An Ye, who was in charge of feeding him, not at home, he naturally clung to his mother.

To take care of Wang Zongkun's "young and sensitive heart" and prevent him from developing the psychological shadow of being a "left-behind child," Liu Ruolan temporarily moved to Shuiyue Pavilion to stay with him.

Wang Zongkun was naturally very touched by this, but he couldn't understand what was so fun about mahjong.

His big, round eyes were full of confusion.

At this moment, on the waterfront platform beside the dock, several women were gathered around a table playing mahjong, the sound of tiles clattering and the cries of "chi," "peng," "gang," and "hu" echoing continuously.

"Bang! Three bamboos."

"Chi~ Nine circles."

"I won."

"Wait a minute, I played the wrong tile, I'll play one circle."

"Mother, using divine sense is strictly prohibited when playing mahjong~~ Also, once a tile is played, it cannot be taken back." Wang Liyao, with her stunning beauty and still looking like a young girl, pouted slightly, casting a resentful glance at her mother, "That's cheating."

Such a coquettish and spoiled demeanor, where was the imposing presence of Miss Liyao, the Peerless Prodigy, who dominated the outside world? She seemed more like a little girl. Recently, Wang Liyao's master, Tianhe Daoist, was "invited" by the Wang Clan to use his divine abilities to extract some scattered spiritual veins from the outer regions and refill them into the Wang Clan's main residence to lay the foundation for the spirit-gathering array.

Her master was very busy, and Wang Liyao couldn't help much, so she could only stay home and play mahjong with her mother.

"I just habitually scanned, even your father never says anything about it." Liu Ruolan rolled her eyes at Liyao, "And I didn't take it back at will, I just played the wrong tile and took it back. Have a little conscience, it's not easy for your mother to give birth to and raise you."

Liu Ruolan had a standard oval face, a slightly rounded, high nose, a broad forehead, and a full forehead, a typical prosperous family's matron appearance.

Due to her high cultivation, her appearance naturally did not age, and her temperament became more mature, more "domineering," "dignified," and "charming."

However, dignity was for outsiders, charm was for her beloved husband, and as for domineering, it was naturally for her children.

Wang Liyao rolled her eyes helplessly.

Unable to argue with her mother, she could only secretly stir up her divine sense, carefully guarding her tiles, and then drew a tile: "I play ten thousand."

"I win."

Opposite, a beautiful woman in a green long dress pushed her tiles, smiling, "Liyao, you really need to practice your tile calculation."

This woman had a baby face, a pure aura like a forest elf, and her appearance and temperament gave no hint of her actual age. This woman was the rumored biological mother of Wang Zong'an, "Lu Wei."

She would come to stay at the Wang Clan for a while each year to relax, not caring about the rumors outside.

"Senior Sister Lu Wei..."

Wang Liyao looked at her with a sigh.

Putting aside talent for the moment, Senior Sister Lu Wei, as a research talent, was incredibly precise in calculating tiles. At this table, she won the most games.

"Liyao, don't complain, let's continue, I've lost more than you." On the other side, a veiled woman with a frosty aura spoke to comfort her.

The only one wearing a veil on the scene was naturally Ancestor Long Yan. Since that incident, she had never removed her veil.

"Clatter~"

The sound of mahjong continued. The rhythmic and orderly sound made Wang Zongkun a bit sleepy.

Not far away, a plump Yuan Shui Old Turtle occasionally poked its head out of the water, holding a spirit fish it caught in its mouth, showing off in front of a slightly smaller, beautifully shelled female Yuan Shui Spirit Turtle.

However, the female turtle arrogantly ignored him, with an air of "Miss doesn't care for this."

This female turtle was naturally "Miss Nine."

Further away, on the railing, a fiery red fourth-stage Li Fire Sparrow was grooming the feathers of a blue and white fluffy ball.

The fluffy ball hadn't fully grown its flight feathers yet, looking plump and round, very adorable and silly, clearly a Yuanshui Sky Sparrow that hadn't been born long.

It seemed this Yuanshui Sky Sparrow was the chick hatched from the egg An Ye found.

The Li Fire Sparrow, after decades, had long since outgrown its juvenile phase. Except for the relatively short crown feathers on its head and the lack of flame-like patterns on its brow, it was almost a mature bird.

The two birds, one large and one small, snuggled together, looking very affectionate, and their appearances were quite similar, except one was fire-type and the other water-type, both possessing seventh-stage potential.

Among avians, their growth potential was already quite good, much stronger than the vermilion-crowned cranes at the academy.

However, compared to the Profound Ice Phoenix with a growth potential of up to the eleventh stage, they were still weaker, and their juvenile growth speed was naturally much slower.

In contrast, the Profound Ice Phoenix, Wang Anfeng, though hatched later than the Yuanshui Sky Sparrow, had already grown into a brightly colored, beautifully exquisite large bird like ice and snow, though its phoenix crown and tail feathers were still short, far less magnificent than an adult phoenix.

Of course, this was mainly because the phoenix species itself was large.

Currently, Wang Anfeng was still in a rapid growth juvenile phase, and its feathers hadn't fully changed. It would take until it reached the seventh stage, with a wingspan of about one or two zhang, to truly outgrow its juvenile phase.

Now, it was obediently crouching beside Ancestor Long Yan, forming several ice blocks and gently massaging her shoulders, looking very filial.

Clearly, Wang Anfeng was a bird with a keen sense of observation.

Everything seemed quiet and peaceful.

Until two faint, almost imperceptible fluctuations appeared in the surrounding space, breaking the tranquility of the scene.

"Ruolan, are there guests tonight?" Ancestor Long Yan frowned slightly, but her hands didn't stop, casually playing a tile, "White dragon."

"Kan one. I didn't invite anyone else, maybe it's an uninvited guest~" Liu Ruolan said lazily, then also played a tile, "Three bamboos."

"I chi. Mother, should I go deal with them first?" Wang Liyao was also calm, "Nine thousand."

"Let's finish this round first, I'm already waiting for a tile..." Senior Sister Lu Wei said with a slight impatience, "It's rare to have a chance to take a vacation in Ping'an Town, play some cards, and still not have peace."

The women chatted casually, as if they had all sensed the unusual fluctuations in the space.

It's no wonder, none of the women present were simple figures.

Although Senior Sister Lu Wei wasn't a Peerless Prodigy, her bloodline had significantly improved with the full support of Changchun Valley, making her quite formidable among great prodigies.

Moreover, her current cultivation had reached the later stages of the Celestial Realm, her divine sense was very keen, and after Ancestor Long Yan's guidance, she also noticed the anomaly.

Meanwhile.

The Wu brothers were so angry that their profound energy was unstable, almost falling out of the distorted space.

These four women playing cards clearly had the aura of Celestial Realm cultivators, yet they somehow sensed them and were speaking so arrogantly.

These women probably mistook them for some small-time thieves with no real power, relying solely on spatial techniques.

Just as the brothers were about to reveal themselves, showcasing their Purple Mansion Realm aura to intimidate these ignorant country women.

Suddenly.

A water column shot up from the other side, hitting the Wu brothers directly.

The water column seemed to have a space-shaking effect, and with one spray, the spatial force around the brothers shattered like an eggshell, causing them to fall out of the distorted space, drenched by the lake water.

The Wu brothers scanned with their divine sense, finally noticing that the big fish by the dock, which had been playing with water and ignored by them, had somehow also discovered them. Its big, round eyes were staring at them intently, as if it had found a fun toy.

Their expressions instantly became quite colorful.

They had to use small divine abilities to distort space, blocking divine sense detection, and also hide their aura while flying, so their speed and agility were naturally affected, far from their normal state.

However, being sprayed out by a seemingly silly big fish was not very harmful, but it was extremely insulting.

"Is this... some subspecies of a dragon whale?"

The Wu brothers couldn't help but twitch their lips. Did this country family have a problem? Keeping a dragon whale in such a small lake?

Dragon whale... or a subspecies?

Wang Zongkun's nostrils on his head flared in anger, emitting an "ooo" sound of furious snorting, as if expressing: "Dragon whale! Your whole family is a dragon whale subspecies! Open your dog eyes and see, where do I look like a dragon whale?"

"Poof poof!"

Wang Zongkun opened his big mouth and sprayed another water column towards the Wu brothers in the sky.

The Wu brothers, now on guard, wouldn't suffer again.

Their figures flickered slightly, disappearing from the original spot, avoiding the water column. In the next instant, they appeared above Shuiyue Pavilion.

They stood with their hands behind their backs, looking down at Liu Ruolan and the others who were still playing mahjong, "You must be Wang Shouzhe's family, right? We brothers advise you not to act rashly, lest we accidentally hurt you and get punished."

Two powerful Purple Mansion Realm auras surged forth. If not for their sleazy appearance and the water stains all over them, they might have had a bit of a strong presence.

"Awooo~ You're really not taking me, Young Master Zongkun, seriously." Wang Zongkun was so angry he was "ooo"ing, his little temper flaring up.

He was just about to leap into the air and give them a "Kun Tail Whip" when Liu Ruolan's slightly lazy voice sounded: "Kun'er, don't be impulsive, you're still young, not their match."

As she spoke, Liu Ruolan had somehow appeared beside Wang Zongkun, gently stroking his huge head.

"Awooo~" Wang Zongkun complained like a child, but his anger quickly dissipated.

Only then did Liu Ruolan coldly glance at the Wu brothers, "It seems my husband was wise not to choose to support Commandery Prince Kang."

"How do you know we're with Commandery Prince Kang?" The Wu brothers were slightly stunned, "Could it be you know us? No, even if you know us, you wouldn't know we joined Commandery Prince Kang, right?"

"Turns out you're a couple of idiots, no wonder you were foolish enough to join Commandery Prince Kang. It seems my husband's plan in Shangjing City is going well, already forcing Commandery Prince Kang into a corner." Liu Ruolan shook her head, sighing with evident pity, "Indeed, birds of a feather flock together, all the same kind."

These words naturally infuriated the Wu brothers.

"Brother, let's not waste words with this little lady. I'll grab her, you get the others. His Highness instructed to capture as many as possible, in case that Wang Shouzhe refuses to negotiate, we can use them to exchange for his wife." The younger Wu brother said.

"Brother, you go grab them, I'll get this little lady, I want to show her my power."

"You go."

"No, you go. I think this little lady is feisty, tsk tsk, that Wang Shouzhe is quite lucky."

Liu Ruolan's face had turned as dark as water, just about to make a move, when Wang Liyao angrily shouted first: "You two are courting death."

"Zheng!"

A clear sword hum sounded.

The Divine Spirit Artifact "Xian Ge" sensed its master's anger and battle intent, and without needing a command, it suddenly unsheathed.

With a fiery gaze, Wang Liyao said nothing, gripping "Xian Ge," and slashed out with her sword.

In an instant.

A violent water-blue sword intent surged forth.

It seemed as if the sound of waves crashing echoed in the heavens and earth.

The terrifying sword intent recklessly crushed through the air, emitting a whistling sound, like a mighty river, or a raging sea, fully displaying the violent and destructive side of water.

Recently, Wang Liyao had made great progress. Through repeated battles and tempering, and the significant evolution of her bloodline, her combat power had long surpassed the time she swept through Shangjing City, and her understanding of sword intent had reached another realm.

Water can be as soft as it is hard.

The softness of water is like the spring breeze turning into rain, nourishing silently.

The anger of water is like the Tianhe pouring down, leaving corpses floating for miles.

This is the essence of the Tianyi True Water Method, its most core profound meaning.

At this moment, Wang Liyao's heart was filled with rage, unconsciously aligning with the mindset needed for "Water's Fury," and with one sword strike, it was like a flood dragon emerging from the water, earth-shattering!

"This is... perfected sword intent?" The Wu brothers' sleazy faces froze.

This woman's aura should be that of a Celestial Realm cultivator, how could she comprehend such a powerful Yuan Shui sword intent? Even a great prodigy couldn't do that.

They had fought many great prodigies at the Celestial Realm, but had never seen anyone as outrageous as Wang Liyao.

However, the Wu brothers were clearly not easy opponents.

Facing the incoming sword intent, they remained calm, their figures flickering as the surrounding space rippled. They moved like fish swimming in space, easily dodging Wang Liyao's Yuan Shui sword energy.

With their Purple Mansion Realm cultivation, they had repeatedly committed crimes in the Immortal Dynasty and escaped, surviving even after being listed on the wanted list, relying on their joint attack technique and exquisite spatial small divine abilities.

"Jie jie jie~ The little girl is quite formidable." The Wu brothers' voices echoed from all directions, "It's just a pity, your speed is too slow, let your Wu family grandpas teach you a lesson."

"Bah!" The Divine Spirit Artifact "Xian Ge" was displeased, spouting trash talk, "Just you two sleazy old scum, not even worth a piss, with your wrinkled, shriveled old faces, can't even get it up, still dreaming of **%, why don't you ***, with your twisted personalities, surely because *** was *** greened, wanting to *** from a little girl, come teach me if you dare~ I'll definitely *** you."

Xian Ge's trash talk was so fierce, it was even more outrageous than that scoundrel Qianqiu, writing it all out would surely invite the river crab beast's wrath.

Wang Liyao's hand trembled as she listened, nearly throwing it into the water.

Xian Ge's words were too vulgar, far surpassing the shamelessness of the romance novels she secretly kept. Especially in front of her family, it truly gave her a sense of social death despair.

However, perhaps Xian Ge hit the Wu brothers' psychological weak spot, as they were directly provoked into a rage, roaring: "You Divine Spirit Artifact, your mouth is too foul, too much!"

With that, they revealed themselves, each launching a claw shadow, aggressively grabbing towards Wang Liyao.

They were, after all, Purple Mansion Realm powerhouses, with extraordinary strength, and this claw, though not a divine ability, still exuded a terrifying aura.

With one claw, even the space trembled.

"Good opportunity!"

Wang Liyao's eyes lit up slightly, instead of being surprised, she was delighted, raising her sword to meet them.

"Suspended Water Divine Ability Fifth Form—Sudden Torrential Rain!"

"Boom!"

A thunderclap resounded in the sky, and a torrential rain poured down instantly, each raindrop containing a strand of Tianyi True Water sword intent.

The dense "raindrops" fell from the sky.

A suffocating, terrifying pressure spread across the heavens and earth, even darkening the sky.

Even though Wang Liyao's bloodline awakening had reached the Sacred Body level, and her primordial spirit was already very strong, she was still in the Celestial Realm, and using the "Suspended Water Divine Ability" was quite taxing.

For a moment, under the massive consumption of profound energy, her delicate face turned slightly pale, and fragrant sweat slid down her jade neck.

But the power of this move was quite terrifying.

"Boom boom boom!"

The two claw shadows were shattered first.

Then, the "rain" poured towards the Wu brothers, the "raindrops" continuous, with overwhelming momentum!

The Wu brothers hurriedly stirred up their protective qi, enduring the bombardment of the "raindrops."

However, the Tianyi True Water Method not only had a violent side, but also the yin and softness of water. When Wang Liyao's understanding of the true method reached a high level, the "Tianyi True Water" she condensed already had the effect of corroding and dissolving protective qi.

Under continuous erosion, the Wu brothers' protective qi grew thinner.

So much so that the Wu brothers had to exert themselves, constantly strengthening their protective qi, investing more profound energy.

"Yao Yao, blast them! Blast these shameless old things to death!" Xian Ge was extremely excited, assisting Liyao in casting the divine ability while letting out a series of villainous laughter.

The Wu brothers' expressions changed slightly.

However, they were ultimately Purple Mansion Realm powerhouses, with an advantage in realm. Even though Wang Liyao had the upper hand, dragging them into an endless consumption of profound energy, they could still free up their hands to each draw a Purple Mansion Treasure.

In their hands, each held a golden half-blade treasure knife, channeling their profound energy, and together twisted their respective treasure knives.

In an instant, the golden light from the two treasure knives intertwined, merging into a giant golden scissor, cutting towards Wang Liyao.

The golden scissor exuded an extremely sharp aura.

This cut seemed to slice the space into a smooth, flat black crack.

Mandarin Duck Scissors!

A legendary lost Divine Spirit Artifact, requiring a couple with a deep connection to use, capable of surpassing levels to kill enemies when fully unleashed.

This pair of "Mandarin Duck Scissors" was clearly not the genuine article, but still very powerful, not to be underestimated. The Wu brothers had even used this top-grade Purple Mansion Treasure to jointly kill a mid-Purple Mansion Realm Basalt cultivator.

"Yao Yao, be careful." Xian Ge warned softly, transforming into a sword rainbow to slash at the Mandarin Duck Scissors' shadow.

At the same time, a slightly hoarse shout came from the side.

"Ice Fiend Divine Ability Second Form—Sea Severance!"

With the shout, a snow-like sword light suddenly cut through the air, sweeping across.

Under the cold sword intent, the lake water froze, and black-tinged snowflakes began to fall from the sky, filling the area with a dense ice fiend aura.

It was as if summer had suddenly turned to winter.

It turned out that Wang Long Yan, seeing the situation change, had entered the battlefield with the [Lingdong Sword].

Her snow-white hair danced wildly in the wind, her clothes fluttering, and the massive Profound Ice Phoenix manifestation behind her exuded a fierce and domineering pressure, her entire being radiating a dense aura of killing intent, like a fiend in the snow, unmatched in might.

Sword energy crisscrossed.

One move of Sea Severance, though coming later, arrived first.

"Boom!"

Under the intense energy collision, shockwaves spread like a storm, causing waves to rise on the water.

Wang Long Yan stood with her sword, her clothes fluttering in the night breeze, coldly saying: "Yao'er, let's each take one, solve it quickly, I'm still waiting to win back my losses."

She hadn't acted earlier to give Wang Liyao the opportunity to further hone her combat experience, as Liyao's future path was long, requiring her to face various challenges.

But the Wu brothers seemed quite troublesome, so she stepped in to take one.

With her greatly enhanced strength, Wang Long Yan had already slain a Purple Mansion cultivator, and now she exuded an indescribable confidence, unless facing a great prodigy-level early Purple Mansion, she had no fear.

"Yes, Ancestor." Wang Liyao, having been apprenticed to a Divine Ability Master from a young age, had a strong sense of confidence and vision.

Immediately, she joined Wang Long Yan in attacking the Wu brothers.

The two of them together were not only not inferior to the Wu brothers, who specialized in joint attacks, but even held the upper hand.

This truly made the Wu brothers begin to doubt life. Clearly, they were two Celestial Realm cultivators, yet they were stronger than them!

Wasn't the Wang Clan just a country sixth-grade family? The family's strength was said to be due to sheer luck, having produced two young great prodigies?

Was this a great prodigy?

How could a Celestial Realm great prodigy be this formidable?

Meanwhile.

In the sky, inside a flying carriage pulled by two sixth-stage peak dragon eagles, the dignified-looking "Old Xin" wore a serious expression.

Although his vision was limited, and his divine sense couldn't probe clearly, the energy fluctuations below were intense, indicating a fierce battle.

The Wu brothers, working together, hadn't immediately secured victory? Could it be that the Wang Clan had hidden cards and methods?

It seemed that His Highness's concerns were very thorough this time, specially sending him, a mid-Purple Mansion Realm powerhouse, as a trump card to suppress the Wang Clan...

Suddenly!

The sixth-stage peak dragon eagles, hovering with slightly flapping wings, had their feathers standing on end, necks lowered, and pupils contracted, as if encountering a terrifying predator, falling into extreme fear.

"This esteemed guest has graced our Changning Wang Clan, why not come down for a chat?" Liu Ruolan's voice echoed around the dragon eagle flying carriage, "Could it be, you think our Wang Clan's temple is too small to accommodate a great Buddha like you?"

"What?"

Old Xin's expression changed instantly. Who could it be? To so easily invade his divine sense domain!?