Chapter 20: Ultimatum

In reaction to Li Wei's bold reply, Patriarch Liu Feng angrily gritted his teeth, allowing his Nascent Soul Realm aura to leak out. The servants were quick to clutch their chests, finding it hard to breathe, while all the elders and young members of the clan showed concerned expressions. If a fight were to break out within the Liu clan residence between two Nascent Soul Realm experts, it would prove disastrous. 

Lady Chen Xi shifted from her flirtatious expression to one of concern. "Darling, please wait," she tried to call out, but it was useless. Patriarch Liu Feng waved his sleeve, causing a large gust of wind to blow through the scene, almost knocking over those unprepared.

Despite the tense atmosphere that had been created, Li Wei broke out into laughter. "So you want to fight me? So be it. If you win, I will give you 10 Heaven Grade elixirs. However, if you fail, I will slaughter this entire clan," Li Wei confidently revealed before turning his attention to Jia Lin, Mei Yu, and Ning Xue. "You three, step aside. Leng Yue, ensure they don't accidentally get killed by my powerful strike," Li Wei instructed, his words causing immense fear to spread among the elders present, even Zhou Wen, who had wanted this from the beginning.

'Just how powerful is his attack for him to tell his escort to protect those three women?' Zhou Wen wondered.

Despite the raging anger Patriarch Liu Feng was feeling, Li Wei's words greatly demoralized him. What madman could easily take out 10 Heaven Grade elixirs? but even worse, the threat of slaughtering the entire clan was grave. 

The patriarch was prepared to lose a duel, but if his loss meant the loss of lives in the Liu clan, it really wasn't worth it. So in the next moment, Patriarch Liu Feng angrily yelled out, "Coward! Why are you including others when it is I who is challenging you? Not them. Should I lose, I will gladly forfeit my life."

At this time, Li Wei didn't immediately respond. Instead, he took out his Mystic Jade Sword from his spatial ring. Its appearance and aura were incredibly ominous, causing everyone present to feel a tightness in their chests. For the first time since coming to the Azure Sky World, the arrogant and smiling Li Wei actually frowned, looking visibly upset, which only made his appearance even more intimidating. 

Li Wei proceeded to perform a brief sword art before resting the tip of the blade on the ground. Once the tip made contact, the entire Liu clan residence rumbled as cracks spread from that very spot to the surrounding area. The shockwave alone caused everyone below the Core Formation stage to fall to the ground, with Jia Lin, Mei Yu, and Ning Xue only being protected because they were behind Leng Yue.

After Li Wei performed this skill, he looked Patriarch Liu Feng straight in the eyes and said, "Since you want to be treated as my equal, then I shall treat you as such. Like with all my enemies, once I defeat them, I slaughter their entire bloodline so that their stupidity cannot be allowed to spread. I am simply doing the heavens' work. You can only blame your patriarch's stupidity."

From start to finish, everything Li Wei had done was an incredibly well-orchestrated bluff. At his current level, he knew it was impossible for him to beat the patriarch using only his own skills and techniques. However, why would he, as a young master, why use such tactics when his loving, powerful mother had given him an incredibly powerful artifact that left him untouchable in the entire Azure Sky World? Although using this Mystic Jade artifact would mean he could easily defeat the patriarch, Li Wei felt it would be more humiliating for the patriarch if his own clan members turned against him. 

'How could they not? Just a moment ago, they were about to receive extravagant gifts, and now they are being told they might get slaughtered because their patriarch refused to lower his head in front of a big shot. No matter how loyal clan members are, none will simply accept that they have to die,' Li Wei thought. 

Zhou Wen, the most shameless, didn't even hesitate to defend his own life. "Sir Li Wei, this humble servant requests that you spare his life, for I do not condone or support anything Patriarch Liu Feng does or says. In fact, as you can tell by my name, I am not a member of the Liu clan, only a visiting guest. And as of this moment, I am ending my alliance with the Liu clan due to the great disrespect they have shown you," Zhou Wen didn't hesitate to get on his knees and kowtow deeply yet again as he politely revealed this.

One elder looked at the sight and simply shook his head. 'Never in my life have I ever seen a more versatile snake. Truly, even the dragons that roam that skies must be jealous of Zhou Wen's thick skin,' the elder thought.

As shameless as Zhou Wen's action were, Li Wei knew he could capitalize on it. In the next moment, he looked at Zhou Wen and nodded, "You lack talent, but you have a good head. Now, move away before I accidentally cut you."

Seeing Zhou Wen get spared, everyone else basically felt that if they too begged for mercy and renounced the Liu clan, they would be spared. One didn't need to be incredibly smart to use the fight-or-flight instinct that all humans had against them. In such a situation, it was already a given that a good number of people would renounce the Liu clan, while a few would stay loyal to the patriarch.

None of this was an outcome Li Wei really wanted. In fact, if he could help it, he wanted to avoid killing any notable characters this early, especially when they didn't have any huge grievances. It would only prove counterproductive to his reputation. Instead, he felt he had more to gain by making them submit, and what better way to do this than to have his own Liu clan members turn against him? Leaving him no choice but to abandon his dignity and honor.

"Patriarch Liu Feng, since I am feeling too lazy to start chopping the heads of chickens, I will give you a chance to apologize quickly. Kowtow like Zhou Wen did and confess your wrongs. Otherwise, I will cripple your cultivation and make you watch as I slaughter your whole clan," Li Wei threatened.

And as if he completely meant every word, he then turned to face Leng Yue and instructed, "Leng Yue, after I cripple this fool, strip and loot him so that when the other clans come to see what happened, they may take it as a lesson."

A second didn't even need to pass before the panicked cries of the Liu clan members could be heard as they each began to direct words toward the patriarch. "Patriarch, what are you doing? Kowtow now!" 

"Patriarch, I have served this clan even before you were born. Your father was wise enough to know when to step back. I think you should do the same."

"Lord Patriarch, our children have done nothing wrong. Why should they die because of you? Please do the right thing!"

Whether they said it or not, Li Wei knew that the patriarch had little choice in the matter. One option meant he would watch his entire Liu clan die while he was left crippled and humiliated, and the remnants for everyone to see. What honor and dignity was there in that? However, if he kowtowed now, the lives of his clan would be spared. Though he would lose his dignity and honor among them, much of the outside world likely wouldn't know what occurred. 

With those factors in mind, Patriarch Liu Feng didn't need to think long. He answered by lowering his head and clenching his fists, inwardly thinking, 'This humiliation I shall carve into my heart and one day repay tenfold.'