That night.
Every rising power and established family in Jiangcheng received an invitation from Yu Feng.
Tomorrow at eleven in the morning, the City Lord’s Mansion would convene a grand assembly.
Although Yu Feng hadn’t mentioned the content of tomorrow’s meeting over the phone,
everyone knew perfectly well — it had to be connected to the Ma family affair that had shaken the entire city today.
Never mind the four great families and the various rising powers — even among the common folk, quite a few people had already heard that the Ma family had colluded with evil cultivators, planning to achieve immortality through corpse liberation. The rumor was spreading like wildfire.
This time, the Ma family was thoroughly finished — no chance of recovery.
However, anyone with eyes could see that tomorrow’s meeting likely carried another layer of meaning.
Jiangcheng, it seemed, was about to gain another rising power.
And the most unbelievable part was that this rising power had gone from an ordinary commoner to joining those ranks in just… half a month.
Such a speed of ascent — even looking across history, it was unheard of, unprecedented!
Enough to go down in the annals of history!
…
South of the city, the Sun family villa.
In the brightly lit living room, the atmosphere was slightly tense.
Sun Dechang, Sun Qingcang, Sun Yourong, and the others each sat in their own spots, and for a long while no one spoke.
Finally, Sun Qingcang let out a long sigh and broke the silence: “To think so many things could happen in a single day… The Ma family must have lost their minds. Of all the paths to take, they chose this dead end. Even if they’d swallowed their pride and begged Little Chen to extend his father’s lifespan, there might have been a turnaround.”
“Dad, the timeline doesn’t add up.” Sun Yourong gently reminded him: “Ma Shilong made his move nearly a month ago. At that time… Lu Chen was still unknown.”
Sun Qingcang nodded in sudden realization: “True enough.” He leaned back into the sofa and said with emotion: “It really feels like a different era. Half a month ago, I was at the Zhao family temple discussing your grandfather’s illness with him. And now, in the blink of an eye, I’m about to witness him ascend to rising power status. Really… the new waves of the Yangtze push the old ones forward.”
From the side, Sun Xingwen muttered under his breath: “That’s no new wave — that’s a tsunami.”
At those words, laughter broke out among the people in the living room.
Sun Qingcang nodded: “Right, this time you actually got it right — it’s a tsunami! Look at you, then look at Little Chen — how is the gap this big?”
Damn, caught in the crossfire again?!
Sun Xingwen was absolutely speechless.
He simply clamped his mouth shut and played dumb.
“However, Rongrong…” Sun Dechang, seated in the main position, spoke slowly: “Little Chen’s military merit for ascending to rising power status should be sufficient, but regarding funds… is he well-off? If he’s short, tell him our Sun family can provide him a ‘bridge loan’ — not a single cent of interest.”
Though a billion wasn’t a small sum, for the Sun family it was still within bearable range — it wouldn’t cripple them.
Sun Yourong nodded: “Alright, I’ll ask him about it later.”
Sun Dechang instructed: “Try to do it sooner rather than later. Don’t let the Wu family find an opening — when that old fox schemes against someone, there are few in Jiangcheng who can match him.”
“Yes, Grandfather.”
“Ah, that child Little Chen really does us proud.” Song Shi, standing nearby, couldn’t help but sigh: “His parents must be so proud.”
As she spoke, her gaze fell upon her daughter.
Sun Yourong felt a bit uncomfortable being looked at this way: “Mom, why are you looking at me like that?”
Sun Qingcang picked up the thread and asked with a smile: “Rongrong, be honest with your dad — how are things really between you and Little Chen? I’ve heard there’s a girl who’s quite taken with him, and she’s not bad-looking either. If you’re really interested, you’d better hurry — don’t miss your chance.”
Sun Yourong’s expression shifted slightly: “Which girl?”
“Seems her surname is Li? I can’t remember exactly.” Sun Qingcang waved his hand.
Sun Yourong’s face first darkened, then she realized she’d lost her composure and hurriedly smoothed her hair, forcing herself to stay calm: “Stop guessing, all of you. Lu Chen and I… are just friends, or maybe comrades-in-arms. Don’t go playing matchmaker.”
“Alright, alright, whatever you do, your mom and I will support you. But Dad has one more thing to say — if you really like him, there’s nothing wrong with a girl making the first move. Back in the day, your mother was the one who—”
“Sun Qingcang! What nonsense are you spouting!” Song Shi’s willow-leaf eyebrows shot up.
“Alright, alright, I made the first move, I did.” Sun Qingcang hurriedly begged for mercy.
After the laughter subsided, Sun Qingcang’s expression turned serious again, his fingers lightly tapping the sofa armrest: “However, once Little Chen ascends to rising power status, his open and covert struggles with the Zhao family will probably truly come to the surface.”
Sun Dechang responded in a heavy voice: “Given the Zhao family’s consistent way of doing things, if Little Chen wants to continue as smoothly as before… that’ll be difficult.”
Sun Qingcang looked at his father, his tone firm: “Dad, rest assured. Little Chen has done our Sun family a great service. If the Zhao family dares to use underhanded tricks, I will absolutely not stand by and do nothing.”
Sun Dechang nodded: “Maintain our relationship with Little Chen well. This may well be a great opportunity for our Sun family. Don’t forget — to advance to a great family, a rising power must ‘Break the Temple’! Given the current situation, the Zhao family is the most likely target… They will certainly stop at nothing to suppress Little Chen. This is exactly the time for us to lend him a hand.”
— Breaking the Temple!
The moment those two words were spoken, everyone in the living room felt a chill in their hearts.
To ascend to rising power status, one only needed to meet the threshold.
But after becoming a rising power, every step forward was a mountain of blades and a sea of fire.
To advance further and become a great family, one must tread upon the “corpse” of a higher-ranked family, destroy their temple — only then could one succeed.
And this was — Breaking the Temple!
This was also the chasm that the vast majority of rising power families could never cross in their entire lifetimes.
Not only because advancing to a great family required even more terrifying military merit and accumulated wealth,
but even more because this “Breaking the Temple” hurdle was extraordinarily perilous.
It wasn’t just about conflicts between mortal families…
“Let’s hope Little Chen can work another miracle. This old man… has high hopes for him.” Sun Dechang’s gaze was firmer than anyone else’s in the room.
Sun Yourong remained silent, but her hands, hidden in her sleeves, quietly clenched tight.
…
At the same time.
East of the city, the Wu family residence.
“Dad, looks like the north of the city is going to be lively from now on.”
Wu Jingzhi, the current head of the Wu family, offered his father Wu Zhong a cup of clear tea.
Wu Zhong took it, sipped lightly, and nodded slightly: “The young are to be feared — like a fierce tiger charging up the mountain. But the Zhao family has been entrenched for many years — they’re a powerful dragon on their own turf. In the future, these two families will likely engage in quite a dragon-tiger struggle.”
Wu Jingzhi sat down in the master’s chair and said with emotion: “But this young man really is ridiculously capable. For someone bearing such great fortune to appear in our Jiangcheng — I truly don’t know whether it’s a blessing or a curse.”
“Oh?” Wu Zhong raised his eyes, showing an interested expression: “What do you mean by that?”
Wu Jingzhi chuckled: “No particular insight, Dad. I just feel this kid’s luck is too good, and his methods are mysterious and unpredictable — completely different from any genius or extraordinary person I’ve seen before.
I actually looked into the things he’s done before — whether it was bringing rain in Longhu County or treating the former prefect’s wife, behind each of those seemed to be deadly traps.
Yet even so, he cracked them all.
You can imagine what kind of methods he must have.
And supposedly, his success rate in enshrining deities is one hundred percent.
The first time he enshrined the Lord of Wealth, his侍神度 shot up to 5%. The second time it soared to thirty or forty percent.
Same with the King of Hell later.
The first time already triggered anomalies.
You say the first time was luck — I’d believe it.
The second time was luck — I’d believe that too.
But the third time… that definitely isn’t luck.
There’s only one explanation!”
“What explanation?”
“He must have mastered some unique method for enshrining deities. That’s why he’s been unstoppable.”
“Mm, your reasoning isn’t without merit. But… you’ve missed one point.” Wu Zhong slowly set down his teacup.
Wu Jingzhi was taken aback: “Please enlighten me, Father.”
Wu Zhong stroked his beard: “This young man is invincible when it comes to obscure deities, it seems. But for those popular, highly worshipped gods with flourishing incense… it may not be so miraculous. From what I know, he once went to the Sun family temple to enshrine the Thunder Ancestor. And guess what happened?”
“What happened?”
“He suffered a spiritual power backlash.”
“What! Spiritual power backlash?!”
Wu Zhong nodded: “And very likely suffered the backlash on his very first attempt, because he prepared twenty sticks of incense in total, but there were nineteen left in the trash bin, and there was clearly his blood on the ground.”
“Such a thing actually happened!” Wu Jingzhi was greatly shocked: “The… the probability of suffering a backlash on the very first enshrinement is much lower than succeeding on the first prayer! Why?”
Wu Zhong smiled slightly: “This shows that his invincible methods for obscure deities may not work against a great god like the Thunder Ancestor with flourishing incense. Otherwise, why would he have gone to such lengths back then — ignoring the Zhao family’s Lord of Wealth with its flourishing incense and instead enshrining the Lord of Wealth from the Jun family?”
Wu Jingzhi nodded as if suddenly enlightened: “Father is absolutely right! If that’s the case, then it means this kid isn’t as omnipotent as he seems!
Even if he’s good at tending to cold stoves, a cold stove doesn’t necessarily burn hot.
And running a temple isn’t as simple as just praying to gods yourself — there are many intricacies involved.
Whether the worshippers acknowledge it or not is still up in the air.”
But Wu Zhong shook his head: “Whether they acknowledge it or not — it’s too early to say for certain.
After all, temples have their own exclusive missions. If this kid has other tricks up his sleeve and shines brilliantly in temple missions,
perhaps he really can forge a unique path of his own.
Don’t forget — we still haven’t cracked his冥币 business.”
Wu Jingzhi said reassuringly: “Father, you needn’t worry too much. After all, we don’t have that kid Lu Chen’s divine abilities.
But I believe that as long as the few spiritual practitioners we’ve been cultivating raise their侍神度,
we in the Wu family can eventually get a piece of the冥币 business. After all, there’s no such thing as an absolute monopoly in this world.”
Wu Zhong nodded: “Have them push harder.
Right now, the winds are about to rise in the north of the city. We’ll watch and wait.
When necessary, we can also help the Lu family boy.
After all, the Zhao family is currently at its zenith, momentum at its peak.
They’re not like the Ao family that our Wu family replaced back in the day.
Back then, the Ao family’s fortune had run out, and they’d been abandoned by the gods — that’s how our Wu family succeeded in Breaking the Temple and picked up the advantage.
But the Zhao family…
Wu Zhong paused, and a trace of anticipation and amusement crept into his eyes: “If this kid really has the ability to challenge the Zhao family’s position,
then we’re in for quite a show.
After all, it’s been a full sixty years in Jiangcheng since a proper 【Breaking the Temple】 has occurred.
I wonder if this old man will live to see such a grand spectacle again!
If that day really comes…”
His gaze was filled with boundless anticipation as he said with emotion: “That — that would be a true clash of immortals!!”
Hearing this, Wu Jingzhi also looked wistful, murmuring: “Breaking the Temple!…”
“But come to think of it, the Ma family’s downfall this time is really too strange. This old man suspects there may be more to it than meets the eye.”
“Father means… the Zhao family?”
“No evidence, no reckless words. At tomorrow’s assembly, listen carefully — and watch carefully.”
“Yes, Father!”
