That evening,
During the gathering, though
For any parent, every child is a treasure. They are flesh and blood, born of their own bodies.
The thought of his son being cast out by the Lunar Goddess Sect, wandering the world with no one knowing whether he was alive or dead—it cut Jiang Feng's heart like a knife.
More than once, he had wanted to leave the Young Lord's Manor to go searching.
Though so many years had passed and the hope of finding him had grown exceedingly slim, Jiang Feng refused to give up. Deep down, he was a stubborn man.
Just like when he had searched for his wife all those years ago, an iron will drove him forward.
"Father, rest assured. I will always keep this matter in mind. As long as he's… as long as he's still alive, I will find him."
Jiang Chen had made this promise the first time his parents were reunited. Now, he solemnly made it again.
Now, sensing her parents' longing for that lost son, the chord of family in her heart was struck as well.
She felt a twinge of guilt about this. Not guilt for herself, but guilt on behalf of her master.
If not for her master's actions, her brother would have been able to live under the protection of the Lunar Goddess Sect no matter what. It was because of her master's stubbornness that he had been driven out.
She even worried, in the back of her mind, whether her master might have secretly sent someone to kill him long ago. Given her master's methods, it wasn't impossible.
But she didn't dare voice this fear, afraid of breaking her parents' hearts.
She could only resolve inwardly to find some way to locate this brother—for her parents' happiness, for the family's reunion, and to make atonement for her master. She had to do it.
…
The next morning, Jiang Chen gathered all the Great Emperors of the Glazed Royal City first thing and briefed them on the current relationship between the Glazed Royal City and Pill Fire City, as well as the overall landscape of the Upper Eight Domains.
The Panlong Great Emperor was furious. "Pill Fire City has gone too far! We still haven't settled the score with them over what happened to the Peacock Great Emperor, and now they've made an assassination attempt on Young Lord Jiang Chen. Do they really want an endless, irreconcilable war with our Glazed Royal City?"
"Young Lord, in my opinion, we need to be on our guard against this. Emperor Dan Ji is a man who never forgets a grudge. Even Senior Peacock was wary of him back in the day. After suffering such a crushing loss this time, he absolutely will not let it go." The Ji mie Great Emperor also offered his counsel.
"Young Lord, why don't we strike first and catch Pill Fire City off guard?" The Panlong Great Emperor proposed an aggressive strategy.
The suggestion was immediately opposed by the Niandie Great Emperor. "Brother Panlong, we absolutely must not. Pill Fire City's strength is formidable, and its territory lies in the northern reaches of the Upper Eight Domains, surrounded by first-rank sects that rally to its banner at a moment's notice. When it comes to the number of Emperor-realm cultivators, our Glazed Royal City simply cannot match them."
The Niandie Great Emperor was a cautious and steady man, firmly opposed to reckless gambles.
The Zhankong Great Emperor pondered for a moment before speaking. "A war between Pill Fire City and the Glazed Royal City is inevitable. But it certainly won't be now."
As he spoke, the Zhankong Great Emperor glanced at Jiang Chen. "Right now, the Young Lord holds Emperor Dan Ji's son in his hands. So when the war begins, the initiative will rest with our Glazed Royal City."
Among the Emperor-realm cultivators of the Glazed Royal City, the Canghai Great Emperor had been left by Jiang Chen in the Central Region of Chi Ding to reorganize the three great sects, while the Wushuang Great Emperor remained at the Dan Qian Palace to assist Palace Master
As for the two Huaishan brothers, they were essentially Jiang Chen's personal guards and generally had no desire to voice their opinions.
This time, however, the Huaishan brothers clearly couldn't hold back. "Young Lord, that Emperor Dan Ji is going too far. The two of us have crossed paths with him many times. That man is absolutely petty and vengeful. You've captured his son, so right now he's afraid to make a move. But he will definitely try to capture your family members as well. You need to watch out for that."
Jiang Chen nodded. "Rest assured. I'll keep my eyes open."
"Still, we two brothers truly admire Young Lord Jiang Chen's audacity. Infiltrating Pill Fire City and capturing Young Lord
The way Jiang Chen had captured Young Lord Tian Lin this time had indeed been somewhat unbelievable, and by all appearances, wildly audacious.
But precisely because of that, he now held an excellent card to play. It restrained Pill Fire City and denied them sufficient motivation to launch an invasion of the Glazed Royal City.
Without this deterrent, Pill Fire City would likely have marshaled the armies of the four great sects and marched on the Glazed Royal City before long.
The Ji mie Great Emperor pondered for a moment, then said, "Young Lord, right now the Tianlong Sect, the Undying Heavenly Capital, the Tianhe Palace, and the Tianyin Temple all appear to have thrown in their lot with Pill Fire City. This situation is extremely unfavorable for our Glazed Royal City. The Young Lord must act quickly to win over the Heavenly Sword Sect, the Celestial Cicada Ancient Court, the Lunar Goddess Sect, and even the Nine Sun Heavenly Sect. Only then can we counter Pill Fire City's ambitions."
Among these four great sects, the Heavenly Sword Sect and the Celestial Cicada Ancient Court were allies of the Glazed Royal City. Given the current political landscape, there was no way they would defect to Pill Fire City's side.