Chapter 185 – The Missions of the Six Great Families

Xu Family Estate, Main Residence.

After leaving the venue, Su Ming noticed that Xu Wen, the esteemed Family Head of the Xu Family, had disappeared.

However, Xu Qianqian showed no surprise, as if long accustomed to this, and led Su Ming to the top floor of the Main Residence.

There, they entered an exceptionally spacious study.

This study was far larger than Xu Yongfeng’s, and unlike the latter’s modern decor and layout, it exuded an ancient, historical aura. Every piece of furniture appeared to be an antique, clearly reflecting the preferences of someone advanced in years.

Xu Wen had somehow arrived there unnoticed and was quietly waiting for Su Ming and Xu Qianqian.

Gao Xu and Xu Yanyan had arrived earlier and stood to the side, watching the two enter without any visible reaction.

Notably, Xu Yanyan, upon seeing Xu Qianqian, no longer displayed the bitter resentment, sarcasm, or pretentiousness from before. Instead, she appeared docile and composed.

Witnessing this change in Xu Yanyan, Su Ming couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

“Indeed, women are natural actresses.”

In the presence of Xu Wen, the Family Head, Xu Yanyan seemed unwilling to cause trouble, even offering Xu Qianqian a friendly smile upon her entry—an act that might mislead others into thinking the two shared a close bond.

Perhaps this was why the Family Head remained unaware that his granddaughters had recently engaged in a brutal fight to the death.

Unsurprisingly, Xu Qianqian did not mimic Xu Yanyan’s pretense.

Ignoring Xu Yanyan’s affected demeanor, she stepped before Xu Wen and stared directly at him, as if silently demanding answers.

Meanwhile, Su Ming and Gao Xu inadvertently exchanged glances—one raising an eyebrow, a playful smirk hidden beneath his mask; the other expressionless, only a cold glint flashing in his eyes.

As the saying goes, enemies see red at the sight of each other. Regardless of Su Ming’s feelings, Gao Xu undoubtedly still harbored resentment over being repelled by Su Ming last time.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t accept defeat, but because of Su Ming, he had spent a full month recuperating from his injuries.

The wounds, untreatable by alchemical potions or any external means, forced Gao Xu to remain bedridden for an entire month before he finally recovered.

Had Gao Xu not been a Four-Star Hunter and an Upper-Rank Professional with a powerful Physique and astounding stamina, it would have been uncertain whether he could have healed within that month.

But that wasn’t all.

Due to Su Ming’s 【Silver Arm】, not only did Gao Xu sustain injuries that could only heal naturally, but his cherished Qilin Blade—treated as his very Clone—was also damaged in that battle, nearly shattering to pieces.

Repairing the Qilin Blade cost Gao Xu dearly, nearly depleting his resources, and only now had it been restored to its original state, hanging intact on his back.

Losing the Qilin Blade would have reduced Gao Xu’s combat prowess by at least several tiers.

Under these circumstances, it would be strange if Gao Xu regarded Su Ming favorably.

Unfortunately, Su Ming paid it no mind.

If not for Xu Wen’s apparent intention to discuss important matters, Su Ming would have stepped forward to taunt him further, darkening Gao Xu’s expression even more.I have to say, after putting on the mask and cloak, completely concealing his identity, Su Ming felt a sense of liberation.

Perhaps he had been lying low for too long in the past, which was why he seized the opportunity to provoke like this?

After all, it’s Ming Wang who’s attracting the hatred—what does it have to do with me, Su Ming?

Once he shed his disguise, he would once again be that simple and harmless youth.

Unaware of the grudges among the people here, Xu Wen turned around.

And right away, he got straight to the point.

“Just moments ago, someone discovered a survivor from the Wang Family.”

As soon as Xu Wen spoke, he dropped a bombshell of a revelation.

“A survivor from the Wang Family…!?”

Xu Qianqian and Xu Yanyan were both shocked simultaneously.

Su Ming and Gao Xu also stopped staring at each other, turning their heads to look at Xu Wen.

Facing everyone’s gazes, Xu Wen spoke calmly.

“The survivor claimed to have escaped amidst the chaos and provided us with some very crucial intelligence.”

Hearing this, Xu Yanyan quickly asked, “What kind of intelligence, Grandfather?”

Upon hearing this, Xu Wen did not answer immediately. Instead, he took out a map and spread it on the old-fashioned desk in front of him.

The map was detailed and complex, but everyone could still recognize some familiar place names and layouts.

This was a map of Longyao City.

Xu Wen then pointed to one corner of the map.

“According to the survivor, he escaped from here and fled all the way, with the goal of seeking help from us, the Six Great Families.”

Here, it’s worth mentioning the power dynamics within Longyao City.

As is well known, various major forces exist in Longyao City, including transcendent academic organizations like the Sorcerer Guild and commerce-oriented forces like the ‘Cloudflow Commerce.’

However, the nature of these two major forces places them somewhat on the periphery of Longyao City’s true power structure. Although they possess extraordinary influence and status, in terms of actual power within Longyao City, they don’t hold much.

The authority over Longyao City’s power institutions lies with a council composed of high-ranking officials from the Base City.

And a significant portion of these Base City high-ranking council members come from various Family forces within Longyao City.

For instance, from the Xu Family, Xu Yongfeng holds a position among the Base City’s high-ranking officials.

The Family Head of the Mo Family, Mo Leng, is also one of the council members, though he has clearly betrayed them now.

Most of the other council members also come from various Family forces. Those of commoner origin are not only few in number but also inherently weaker when facing council members backed by Family forces.

Thus, aside from the two somewhat transcendent organizations, the power in Longyao City can almost be said to be held by those deeply rooted Family forces.

Under such circumstances, among the various Family forces, there are distinctions between strong and weak.

For example, the Mo Family, having only been in Longyao City for twenty years and lacking any Five-Star or above Professionals within their clan, can be considered a first-rate Family but cannot compare to the top-tier Families.

The same applies to other Family forces—some are first-rate, some third-rate; some are strong, some weak. Yet, compared to the top-tier Families, they still have a significant gap.

In Longyao City, there are only six top-tier Families with the longest, most ancient, and profound Bloodline Legacies.

These six top-tier Families are the Wang Family, Xu Family, Li Family, Bai Family, Duan Family, and Lu Family.The Six Great Families not only each possess a Six-Star Hunter, but their Bloodlines are also the most outstanding, noble, and pure within all of Longyao City. This has allowed these six families to pass down their Legacy to this day, with each generation producing one or two Six-Star Hunters without interruption.

While they certainly cannot compare to those Super Families that have inherited Nightmare Species Bloodlines and can cultivate Seven-Star Hunters, beneath the Super Families, they reign supreme.

Naturally, such Six Great Families also control the largest share of power and strength within Longyao City.

Among the Six-Star Professionals in Longyao City, there are only seven publicly known individuals. Of these seven, only one is the President of the Sorcerer Guild—the universally acknowledged strongest Sorcerer in Longyao City—while the remaining six are all the pinnacles of the Six Great Families.

Su Ming carefully recalled and realized that among the prominent figures who had appeared at the venue earlier, including Xu Wen, there were exactly five individuals.

Those five should represent the peaks of the Xu Family, Wang Family, Bai Family, Duan Family, and Lu Family among the Six Great Families.

As for the Wang Family, it appeared to be finished.

But now that the Wang Family had suffered such a catastrophe, their first thought for seeking aid would naturally be the other top families among the Six Great Families.

From their mouths, Xu Wen obtained some valuable intelligence.

“This area was originally an abandoned, uninhabited zone with no population. For a long time, it has been used by the Wang Family as a training ground and seems to have been protected by them.”

“However, according to the survivor, the reason this area has been consistently protected by the Wang Family isn’t because it’s a training ground, but because there is a cemetery within it.”

“The cemetery has always been the resting place of the Wang Family’s ancestors—the meritorious founders who established Longyao City as a Base City on this land.”

Xu Wen lifted his head and looked at everyone present.

“But beneath that cemetery, there is actually a Ruins.”

Upon hearing this, everyone was stunned.

“Ruins?”

Su Ming also blinked in surprise.

Xu Wen tapped on the location marked on the map and spoke thus.

“What kind of Ruins it is, no one knows.”

“Not even the Wang Family members were aware that there was a Ruins there; only the direct descendants of the Wang Family seemed to know this secret.”

“And now, that Ruins has been excavated by the people of 『Sin』.”

By the time Xu Wen reached this point, how could everyone not understand what was really going on?

“Could it be…” Xu Yanyan exclaimed in surprise, “that this Ruins is the reason 『Sin』 attacked the Wang Family?”

Without a doubt, yes.

Anyone hearing such hidden circumstances would think the same.

Xu Wen clearly thought so as well.

“What exactly the Wang Family was hiding, we have no way of knowing, but this Ruins clearly holds great secrets.” Xu Wen said calmly, “According to the survivor, after the Wang Family was attacked, the Wang Family members were taken by the Attackers into the Ruins, where a cruel ritual was conducted. He was on the verge of being sent to the ritual site when the ritual was suddenly interrupted, causing the Ruins to collapse and creating chaos, which allowed him to seize the opportunity to escape and report back.”

The disruptive magnetic field hindering the Mist Waves had caused such significant trouble for 『Sin』’s ritual—not only interrupting the ceremony but also giving the Wang Family a chance to escape.

This intelligence was undeniably crucial.”Those from Sin will likely attack this place soon to prevent variables from reoccurring.”

Xu Wen glanced at Xu Qianqian before speaking thus.

“Before that happens, I have a covert mission requiring someone to carry out.”

There was no need to elaborate on what this covert mission entailed.

“Infiltrate these Ruins and investigate thoroughly while Sin launches a full-scale assault and withdraws most of their combat forces from the site.”

“This is a covert mission jointly issued by our Six Great Families.”

Xu Wen’s voice gradually resonated, reaching everyone’s ears.

(End of Chapter)