"Brother Long Jian, reconciliation isn't out of the question, but it ultimately depends on whether Young Friend Chu Feng is willing."
"To be honest, things reaching this point was never our Eastern Imperial Clan's wish either. If Young Friend Chu Feng is willing to reconcile, I am prepared to personally apologize to him." At that moment, the Clan Chief of the Eastern Imperial Clan suddenly spoke up. As he said this, the Eastern Imperial Clan's Supreme Elders remained silent, their expressions one of tacit agreement — proof that they had already discussed the matter beforehand.
"What? They're actually agreeing to reconcile? And offering an apology on their own initiative?" The onlookers were stunned beyond words upon hearing this.
"Our Northern Hall Imperial Clan is willing as well." At that moment, the Northern Hall Imperial Clan also voiced its willingness to reconcile.
"Long Jian has already spoken for the Nangong Imperial Clan's position," said one of the Nangong Imperial Clan's Supreme Elders. As he spoke, the other Supreme Elders — including Clan Chief Nangong Beidou — all wore expressions of silent approval.
In truth, by this point they had long recognized Chu Feng's power. Otherwise, they would never have gone this far, stopping at nothing to try and destroy him.
Because they knew that if Chu Feng wasn't eliminated, sooner or later he would eliminate them. But… if they could truly reach a peace — and if Chu Feng was genuinely willing to reconcile with them — they were more than willing.
In fact, the Nangong, Northern Hall, and Eastern Imperial Clans had all harbored thoughts of making peace with Chu Feng for some time now. They simply felt that given Chu Feng's temperament, reconciliation was impossible. After everything they had done to him, suddenly proposing peace seemed entirely impractical.
On top of that, the Ximen Imperial Clan had been the most vocal in pushing for Chu Feng's destruction, so none of the others had dared raise the idea.
Now that Nangong Long Jian was advocating for peace, they felt this was a rare and golden opportunity.
"Young Friend Chu Feng, you've heard what they've said?" Nangong Long Jian turned his gaze toward Chu Feng.
"I never had any grudge against the four Great Imperial Clans in the first place. In truth, it has always been the four Great Imperial Clans trying to put me to death. When have I ever sought to kill them?"
"If they're willing to reconcile, then naturally I'm willing as well… It's just that the human heart is unpredictable. I've been hunted by them for so long — I'm truly afraid they'll go back on their word, agreeing to peace on the surface while stabbing me in the back." Chu Feng smiled.
He had a clear grasp of the current situation. Reconciliation was the best course of action. Besides, if Nangong Long Jian hadn't intervened, they would likely have been killed by the Dark Hall already — so in a sense, Nangong Long Jian had saved their lives.
And Nangong Long Jian, a member of the Nangong Imperial Clan no less, had suppressed all four Great Imperial Clans and forcefully demanded reconciliation. If Chu Feng were to refuse at a time like this, it would be terribly ungrateful and unwise. So this face… he absolutely had to give.
Moreover, when it came down to it, for Chu Feng, truly reaching peace with the four Great Imperial Clans would be nothing but beneficial.
Setting aside the fact that his cultivation was still too weak for him to stand against the four Great Imperial Clans on his own, even if he truly rose to power in the future, he would never ruthlessly exterminate them all. At most, he would only kill those who sought to target him.
After all, Chu Feng was no longer the brash youth he had once been. He had matured greatly and understood that no matter how deep the enmity, innocent people should not be harmed. Though the four clans were detestable, there were still good people among them.
Nangong Ya, Nangong Baili, Nangong Moli — they were all Chu Feng's friends. No matter how deep the hatred, how could he bring himself to kill them? How could he bear to destroy his friends' families, leaving them with nothing?
That said, Chu Feng genuinely could not trust the four Great Imperial Clans, and so he wanted Nangong Long Jian to give him some assurances.
"Rest easy on that count. If any of them dare go back on their word, whichever clan it is — I'll help you wipe them out," Nangong Long Jian said.