CHAPTER 153: 153- FAMILY TOKEN [2]

The beasts Fang Chen was referring to were none other than the Saberfangs.

Words about the Saberfangs had already spread around town. There were whispers in taverns that four Saberfangs had torn through Phungrei City a long time ago.

Back then, the beasts’ ranks were made public for all to gasp at.

Their realms were no secret now, every cultivator in Phungrei still remembered the stench of blood and the screams that followed those four Saberfangs.

At the time, even the cities neighbouring Phungrei City had lived in a haze of fear, each citizen wondering if they would be next to vanish beneath those claws.

After all, the damage the city took was nothing to be scoffed at.

The best city to live in within the northern region instantly went down to the least desired place to live in after that.

And then, just as suddenly, the beasts had vanished. No one saw them again. Whispers faded into uneasy silence.

Yet now, Fang Zhaoyue stood with those very monsters at her peck and call.

Somehow, she had tamed them.

But to openly claim such creatures as tamed?

That wasn’t a show of power. That was an invitation, no, a provocation to every wrong kind of attention.

The royal family’s bonds with the Gu clan ran deep, especially in the military. And the Fang family... had no shortage of bad blood with them.

On his last visit to the Gu estate, Fang Yuan had not merely visited their city, he had guided the Saberfangs straight into them.

The beasts left ruin in their wake, and the Gu clan was still living amidst unrepaired scars.

And now, to crown that insult, Fang Yuan held both their clan head and his father as captives.

Then there was Gu Xie. The Gu clan head’s own daughter, and, more dangerously, the personal disciple of Xiao Bai, sect leader of the Divine Ice Sect.

That sect already had all the justification it needed to move against the Fang family, if word goes out that on top of it all that they had full control of the beast that once attacked Phungrei City, the divine Ice Sect would not hesitate to come for his clan... and the Divine Ice Sect was not a foe one handled lightly.

Which was why, unless the clan itself faced a true and immediate peril, Fang Yuan decided not to deploy the "moving giants."

It wasn’t just a restraint but it was also a strategy.

A way to avoid pressing every hostile force into action at once, and to keep ties alive with families the Fang clan could not yet afford to alienate.

And with Fang Yuan’s earlier instructions, Fang Zhaoyue staged an encounter that didn’t feel out of place.

The Saberfangs would appear on the clan’s surveillance as if they were merely wandering beasts passing through.

To make it believable, she’d let the lead Saberfang, a peak Nascent Soul realm brute, slam against the clan barrier a few times before allowing its kin to tear into the soldiers laying down outside.

Fang Yuan hadn’t stopped her.

He felt no pang of guilt.

Those soldiers had been plotting against the Fang Family while he was trapped in the Lin Family’s northern stronghold.

Fortunately, they were intercepted before any real damage could be done. Now, they lay sprawled where they had fallen, still unconscious.

Good thing my first brother helped... Fang Yuan’s lips curved in quiet relief.

There was no proof, no sightings, no whispers, no trace of rumor yet he was certain it had been his sworn brother’s handiwork.

Turning back to Fang Chen, Fang Yuan’s smile was polite enough to be unsettling.

"Elder Chen," he began, voice warm but laced with amusement, "as much as I admire your... ah, golden core enthusiasm, those beasts out there are Nascent Soul realm. They won’t go easy on you."

Then, leaning back slightly, his grin curved into something sharper. "On the other hand, I can hold back."

The small, deliberate giggle that followed was so darkly amused it sent a cold ripple down Fang Chen’s spine.

Fang Chen’s eyes widened instantly at the suggestion. "Ah—no, no, Clan Head. My knees aren’t what they used to be."

Fang Yuan chuckled, the sound warm but edged with amusement. "That’s unfortunate, Elder Chen," he said lightly. "But if you’re not well, I won’t press the matter."

Then, without warning, his gaze snapped to Fang Mei.

"Mei’er," his tone was casual, but the sudden attention carried weight. "Stay behind after the meeting."

"Huh? Oh... okay," the stunted girl replied, blinking in confusion.

The discussion rolled onward, shedding its stunned silence for the grim urgency of strategy.

"For now," Fang Yuan stated, his voice cutting through the low murmur of the elders, "the royal family’s gaze is fixed firmly on their border war. They lack the teeth to bite us directly."

A ripple of wary acknowledgment passed through the hall. Everyone understood the unspoken truth: this reprieve was temporary, bought with blood spilled elsewhere.

"Expect a messenger soon," he added, a flicker of cold amusement in his eyes. "Don’t disrespect them and make sure to look like a worried citizen who has no clue what it is going on."

The focus shifted, landing heavily on the clan’s bruised finances.

Relief, thin but palpable, eased some of the tension in the room.

"Next, let’s talk about our trades, the immediate crisis is going to be resolved," Fang Yuan confirmed.

"The Lin Family trade channels will be open to us, free of use." His gaze briefly touched Fang Zhaoyue beside him. "Fully. Immediately."

For now, the royal family would not dare touch the Fang Family, not while their attention was consumed by the conflict with the neighboring kingdom.

Fang Zhaoyue rose next, her voice steady.

She announced that Matriarch Lin Xi, head of the Lin branch in Coldwind City, would relocate to Phungrei City in the north, bringing her people with her to oversee the region.

At last, Fang Yuan brought the meeting to its close. His voice dropped to a measured, almost careless drawl.

"As for the Gu Family... they’re heading for ruin." His lips curled faintly. "But it won’t be because of us."