Fang Cunshan’s laughter was incredibly eerie, sending shivers down everyone’s spines.
Ye Zeyun shouted coldly, “Fang Cunshan, answer me!
Are you just bluffing?”
“Want to know?
Let that boy come over.
I’ll only tell him.” Fang Cunshan turned his head to look at Ye Xuan.
This simple movement caused blood to stream from his eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.
Ye Xuan frowned but still walked over.
Yet, Fang Cunshan remained silent.
Understanding his intention, Ye Xuan leaned in and lowered his head.
“Xuan’Er, be careful!” This scene left Ye Yizhou on pins and needles.
What if Fang Cunshan bit off Ye Xuan’s ear?
Ye Xuan waved his hand, signaling his father not to worry, and brought his ear closer to Fang Cunshan’s mouth.
Only then did Fang Cunshan speak.
His voice was incredibly faint, as if he was using his last ounce of strength to transmit the message.
After listening, Ye Xuan asked in confusion, “Who is he?”
Fang Cunshan didn’t answer.
He chuckled twice more before he stopped breathing.
Fang Cunshan was dead.
“He’s dead!
Xuan’Er, what did he just say to you?” Ye Yizhou’s bewildered voice rang out immediately.
Ye Xuan didn’t answer directly.
Instead, he asked, “Father, Grandfather, have you ever heard of Fang Dade?”
“Fang Dade!”
“Grandfather, you’ve heard of him?”
“Yes, he was a genius of the Fang Family with immense talent.
But twenty years ago, the Fang Family suddenly released news that Fang Dade had gone out to gain experience and was recruited by a major sect.”
“Recruited by a major sect?
So, this is what Fang Cunshan was relying on?”
“Relying on?
Heh!
It’s just a bluff!
In this world, I’m probably the only one who knows that Fang Dade is actually dead.”
“Dead?
Grandfather, are you sure?”
“I’m sure!
Because the one who first discovered his corpse back then was a good friend of mine!
At the time, he happened to run into me on his way back and told me the news.”
“Then why would the Fang Family spread fake news?”
“That’s because the Fang Family couldn’t afford to offend the person who killed Fang Dade.
Since they couldn’t avenge him, why announce his death?
It would only make them a laughingstock and damage the Fang Family’s prestige.
To prevent the news from leaking, they even slaughtered my friend’s entire family.
But what they didn’t know is that I also knew about it.” Saying this, Ye Zeyun stomped heavily on Fang Cunshan’s corpse.
“Fang Cunshan, still trying to bluff right before death, hoping to scare the Ye Family into fleeing Hongtu Town overnight, weren’t you?
What a pity.
You old fox could never have dreamed that I knew the truth!”
The more he spoke, the angrier Ye Zeyun became, stomping down with even greater force.
Off to the side, Ye Xuan remained silent.
He couldn’t shake the feeling that Fang Cunshan’s final smile and expression hadn’t been an act.
He wondered if there was some other hidden crisis looming over the Ye Family.
Otherwise, this old geezer’s acting skills were simply too good.
“Yizhou, since Fang Cunshan is dead, hurry and catch up with Yihe and the others,” Ye Zeyun instructed.
“They shouldn’t have gone far.
Tell them to return to the Ye Family.
I’ll take Ye Xuan back first; I need to brew him some medicine to heal his injuries.”
His eyes were filled with affection and approval as he looked at Ye Xuan, but mostly, they shone with pride.
This demon-like prodigy standing before him was his, Ye Zeyun’s, own flesh-and-blood grandson!
With Ye Xuan around, the rise of the Ye Family was just around the corner.
Half an hour later, at the Ye Family estate.
The entire Ye Family had returned.
Ye Zeyun and Ye Xuan stood on the steps, while the rest of the clan gathered in the courtyard below.
“You all should have heard on your way back,” Ye Zeyun’s voice boomed over the crowd.
“Ye Xuan has successfully slain Fang Cunshan, who had stepped into the Frenzy Spirit Realm!”
As soon as his words fell, the entire clan erupted into a frenzy.
“Ye Xuan!
Ye Xuan!
Ye Xuan!”
In that moment, everyone was chanting Ye Xuan’s name.
The younger generation looked at Ye Xuan with eyes sparkling with unadulterated worship.
Ye Zeyun smiled and continued, “Ye Xuan is only twenty-five years old.
He is merely at the 7th Layer of the Strong Spirit Realm, yet he was able to kill an opponent across an entire major realm.
Tell me, is this not a peerless demon?”
“A demon!
A demon!” the clansmen roared again.
On the steps, Ye Xuan rubbed his nose, wondering if that was an insult or a compliment.
“Today, Ye Xuan wiped out the Fang Family, which means our Ye Family has become the true master of Hongtu Town!
Everything the Fang Family owned now belongs to the Ye Family!
All the credit for this goes to Ye Xuan.
Therefore, I announce right here and now: from this moment on, I am stepping down.
Ye Xuan shall become the new Patriarch of the Ye Family!”
An uproar swept through the crowd as Ye Zeyun’s words plunged the scene into a brief silence.
No one had expected Ye Zeyun to step down at a time like this.
Moreover, according to the Ye Family’s rules, the position of Patriarch was passed down from generation to generation.
Even if Ye Zeyun stepped down, he should have passed it to Ye Yihe’s generation.
Yet now, Ye Zeyun was skipping a generation to pass it directly to his grandson.
This was a cross-generational succession!
After the brief silence, Ye Yihe, Ye Yitu, and the others began to speak up one by one.
“Father, I have no objections!”
“Ye Xuan truly deserves it!”
Their voices snapped the rest of the Ye Family out of their daze, and everyone immediately burst into applause.
“We all agree!”
On the steps, Ye Xuan was slightly taken aback.
He hadn’t expected his grandfather to step down right now, either.
“Grandfather, is this really appropriate?
I just got back, and you’re still so robust and healthy.
How about you stay in the position for a while longer?”
Ye Zeyun smiled and said, “There’s no need for you to refuse.
The reason I am passing the position of Patriarch to you right now is because I am absolutely certain that you can protect every single member of this clan.”
“Every single one?” Ye Xuan suddenly sighed.
“I didn’t manage to protect Ye Fei, Ye Tian, and the others…”
Ye Fei, Ye Tian, and the others he mentioned were the ones who had died at the hands of the Fifth Elder and the Third Elder.
Even though they belonged to the Side Branches, they were still members of the Ye Family.
If a family wanted to grow strong, they had to take good care of everyone, whether they were from the Side Branches or the Direct Lineage.
Otherwise, the family would eventually fracture and split apart.
This was exactly why the vast majority of families failed to rise to greatness.
Most families couldn’t maintain their familial bonds past three generations.
How could such a family ever become truly powerful?
“Ye Xuan, you did your best.
None of us blame you.”
“That’s right, Ye Xuan, we don’t blame you!”
“You’ve already done incredibly well!
Without you, we would have suffered a much worse fate!”
“Ye Xuan, just take up the mantle of Patriarch.
When the youth are strong, the family is strong.
As long as you truly have the family’s best interests at heart, we will all support you.”
At this moment, regardless of whether they were elders or juniors, everyone was speaking up for Ye Xuan.
This scene moved him deeply.
The Ye Family might be small, but it was incredibly warm.
“Do you see now?
The entire family supports you, so just take up the position of Patriarch.
But before that, Grandfather wants to tell you something.
Being the Patriarch is not just an honor; it is a profound responsibility.”
Ye Xuan’s expression turned solemn as he declared, “Since everyone has chosen me, I won’t run from this responsibility.
I swear to do everything in my power to bring glory and prosperity to our family.
This is my promise to all of you, and my promise to our ancestors!”
Ye Zeyun laughed.
“You rascal, even bringing the ancestors into this.
Alright, your promise is enough.
Here is the Great Seal of the Ye Family.
Starting today, you are the Patriarch of the Ye Family!”