The seventh day of the first lunar month.
The Su family had not been this lively since the last wedding ended.
Su Liumeng’s succession ceremony was currently in full swing.
Quite a few ignorant people were secretly questioning the Grand Elder’s decision.
“Even though Su Liumeng is the Scion, isn’t she a bit too young now?”
“How can a little girl not even twenty years old handle such a heavy responsibility?”
“The Grand Elder of the Su family is truly going senile. No matter how talented a nineteen-year-old is, what realm could she possibly reach? At most, the Seventh Realm, which would already be an incredible feat.”
“Having a succession with such fanfare so early—can she hold down the fort like the original Grand Elder?”
“There’s going to be a good show.”
“In past succession ceremonies, there was always an opportunity for other families to issue a challenge. The intention was to promote relations between families and give the newly appointed Grand Elder a chance to display their strength.”
“We might actually see a good show this time.”
“Logically, no one from other families would dare to wreck the ceremony; they would send someone of comparable strength.”
“But the Su family’s Elder lineage and the Head of House lineage have never seen eye to eye.”
“This time, it’s Su Liumeng taking the position. Perhaps there’s some hidden instruction from the Head of the Su family.”
“In any case, we’ll definitely see a good show.”
“I’ll make a bold prediction: this ceremony will be an utter farce. No matter what, the new Grand Elder is just a nineteen-year-old girl. What strength does she have to convince the masses?”
A group of people was heading toward the secret realm’s small world.
A young man bowed before an old man. “Grandfather, are you certain you want to challenge the newly appointed Grand Elder this time?”
The old man’s eyes were indifferent, filled with confidence and a mocking smile. “Naturally. A green girl who’s still wet behind the ears is the perfect stepping stone.”
“If we can’t deliver a certificate of loyalty this time, our Feng family will be completely annihilated in the long river of time.”
The young man spoke hesitantly, “But the Head of the Su family rejected your allegiance last time.”
“Wasn’t that because we didn’t show enough sincerity? Although he hasn’t said anything this time, everyone knows the Head of the Su family and the Grand Elder are at odds. As long as I can make Su Liumeng lose all face at the succession ceremony, I will surely be able to board this Noah’s Ark smoothly.”
“The world will be in great chaos in the future. Grandfather must take this gamble to win a future.”
“Furthermore, she’s just a yellow-haired brat. I have been in the Ego Realm for thirty years. Do you think I will lose to a junior who is only nineteen?”
“Since I’ve already prepared to surrender my loyalty, I will definitely make her lose all face.”
Similar scenarios were unfolding in different places.
Kicking someone while they are down is a deep-seated flaw in human nature.
There were many who wanted to hitch a ride on the great ship that was the Su family.
Therefore, the person who seemed relatively easiest to handle became the target for everyone to squeeze.
The main gate of the Su family had been opened wide.
A grand palace, the tallest of them all, stood quietly amidst a sea of clouds.
Countless experts stood suspended in the air, manifesting the power belonging to the Su family.
A continuous stream of people arrived to observe the ceremony.
The palace, which could usually be seen clearly, appeared exceptionally tall today, like an unreachable, towering mountain with the sea of clouds sinking and floating around its middle.
Countless golden steps formed a path leading to the heavens.
“Su Liumeng, you look truly beautiful today.”
The young girl wore a golden robe embroidered with her nine true dragons, looking like the most noble princess in the world.
A red hair ribbon was wound around the end of her hair, fluttering in the wind.
“Today is my important day.”
“I prefer to hear another name.” She took the initiative to tighten her grip on my fingers.
“Meng… Mengmeng?” My eyes dazed.
“Xiao Yan.” She squeezed the spot she just held, lifting it so I could see. “Now, you are mine.”
A hint of a blush colored my face. “How annoying.”
“On a day like this, you still don’t forget to charm me.”
I repeated irritably, “I’m yours, I’m yours. Haven’t I been yours for a long time already…”
Si Zhiruo’s head suddenly popped out, squeezing between the two of us to loudly declare her sovereignty. “Mama clearly belongs to Zhizhi.”
My eyes were innocent as I weakly suggested, “Can’t I belong to myself?”
Si Zhiruo tilted her head. “That seems more reasonable.”
The noise was constant.
The largest square of the Su family was bubbling with the sound of voices.
Countless experts gathered, and the invisible aura they produced had already formed a terrifying vortex of energy.
“It’s time for us to make our entrance.”
Su Liumeng walked at the front.
I stared at my clothes. “Baby, do you think Mama’s dress today isn’t dignified enough?”
“Not at all. I think it’s very formal and very beautiful.”
My heart settled slightly.
This light blue ancient-style fairy dress was the result of Su Liumeng’s careful selection.
Even so, when it was truly time to appear, I still subconsciously worried.
“Don’t worry.”
Si Zhiruo had grown a little taller; she didn’t look any smaller than other two-year-old babies, and she was currently skipping along ahead of me.
She was still looking forward to this kind of lively scene.
Perhaps it would be very interesting?
In the vast square, countless observers stood within the surrounding sea of clouds.
The closer one got to the palace, the more Su family members there were.
Some were shocked by the deep foundation of the Su family. Experts as strong as the Ego Realm were like ants, only qualified to stand in the secondary seats to watch.
What a terrifying sight this was.
The Su family was the number one family, and furthermore, they were a family possessing the bloodline of the ancient True Dragons. They could no longer be considered ordinary humans, and their combat power at the same rank was terrifying beyond common understanding.
The former Grand Elder was only in the Ego Realm, yet even Source-level experts wouldn’t dare say they could steadily suppress him.
Dragon-shaped phantom, half-dragon form, True Dragon body.
Each would only be stronger than the last.
In the massive council of elders, any single expert possessed combat power sufficient to rival a Source-level expert.
And this was only the power shown on the surface.
The world knew that the Su family only had one Thirteenth Ancestor guarding them.
Was that truly the case?
Most likely, no one would dare use their life to provoke, to try, or to test the final depths of their foundation.
For many small families and small sects, their strongest member was merely at the Unity Realm.
Yet in the Su family’s observation party, those qualified to stand in the sky were, at the very least, at the Unity Realm.
These people occupied the entire sky in dense numbers. Some were shivering with fear, no longer daring to count exactly how many experts there were.
With systematically extracted True Dragon bloodlines and a cultivation model of constant survival-of-the-fittest, the Su family’s way of eternal survival was more cruel than all other forces combined.
Other families still cared about bloodline inheritance.
But the Su family would unconditionally absorb anyone with talent into the clan.
Over such a long period, how could the number of experts be scarce?
It was just that breaking through to the Source level required not only talent but also opportunity.
Otherwise, under the Su family’s internal competition-style training model, Source-level experts would have long ago become as common as street grass.
“The succession ceremony officially begins.”
All the guests had arrived.
The Second Elder acted as the master of ceremonies, standing at the very front of the palace.
Behind him was a large tripod containing several long sticks of incense that had not yet finished burning.
“Sacrifice to the ancestors, to comfort our predecessors!”
Su Liumeng lit three sticks of incense, bowed three times in worship, and inserted them into the tripod before her.
“Sacrifice to the Heavens, to inform the world!”
One could see the Su family’s ambition from this.
Placing the sacrifice to the Heavens after the sacrifice to the ancestors.
As the number one family, its unfathomable foundation had long ago caused its ambition to swell into an unknown shape.
A single corner or a single province could no longer satisfy the desires of those in power.
As the new pinnacle of power for the Su family, how would Su Liumeng balance the internal conflicts of the entire family, and how would she perfectly realize the oaths she made in the past? Standing at the very bottom of the sea of clouds, among the countless observers, I silently watched the girl’s most glorious moment and asked this in my heart.
In the past, the girl who once swore to slay the dragon finally stood at the center of power.
How will you choose?
I quietly clenched my small hand.
Su Liumeng, please, please do not disappoint me…
I was probably the person who least wanted her to become the version of herself she hated most.
“Climb the Heavenly Stairs.”
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