In the Interstellar Era, everyone cultivates, and powerful individuals emerge one after another.

For the high-level nobles, other uncontrollable powerful individuals are all unstable factors.

Not to mention, the cosmos is so vast that dangerous alien races might pop up anytime, such as the Insect Race, Beast Race, or the eerie lifeforms from Negative Space, and so on.

Planetary humans like to build super metropolitan areas because there are too many uncontrollable dangers.

Humans must band together to minimize danger. Only then can security forces more efficiently protect humans.

Someone of Lan Chang'an's status would take security forces matching his level wherever he goes.

There are no cases of someone powerful dressing as a commoner to hide their identity.

Especially at Lan Chang'an's age, he cherishes his life even more.

As the core base of the Lan Family, how could Lanting Garden be easily breached!

Even if the Xiao Family organized armed forces to launch an assault, it wouldn't be possible to conquer Lanting Garden in a few minutes.

Thus, the entire affair is filled with inexplicable strangeness.

Bai Zhong and Yu Tianji were in Golden Source City, and they quickly set off to Lanting Garden on Starfish Island.

Naturally, they both brought a large number of powerful individuals to ensure their safety.

If Xiao Jun suddenly went crazy and wanted mutual destruction with the major noble families, they too would be able to fight back.

By the time Bai Zhong and the others arrived, Lanting Garden was already filled with high-level nobles.

The group of people had toured the underground Divine Hall and seen those three thousand young girls.

These girls had been imprisoned for nearly half a year, each looking haggard, their eyes filled with fear when they looked at people.

Even though noble families are high and mighty, with basic human empathy, seeing the girls in such a pitiful state made most people feel uneasy.

Even Bai Yue, a notorious villain, showed a look of pity on his face.

Most of those attending the gathering on Starfish Island were young people who were still relatively naive, not yet eroded by harsh realities.

They toured the underground Divine Hall and felt that Lan Chang'an deserved to die.

The group was also filled with righteous indignation, and their remarks were full of positive energy. However, distinguishing which among them were genuine or fake was difficult.

The young people were all very surprised to see Bai Zhong and Yu Tianji arrive.

Both patriarchs were top figures on Taurus; their presence at Lanting Garden carried significant implications.

In fact, such a shocking event caused all the noble families on Taurus to become busy.

Most noble families didn't yet know the true situation or how to take sides. They all cautiously contracted their forces, preparing to adapt to changes.

It was clear that the direct conflict between the Xiao Family and the Lan Family, for whatever reason, meant Taurus's political landscape was broken.

No one could predict how the situation would develop next.

Especially nervous were the small and medium-sized noble families, particularly those dependent on the Xiao and Lan Families.

This event directly affected the survival of noble families, making these small and medium-sized families extremely nervous.

The common people found it hard to understand the conflict between noble families. The tension among noble families was also difficult for the commoner class to feel.

Gao Xuan suddenly killing Lan Chang'an was akin to ancient times when two countries were in conflict, and an assassin from one country killed the leader of another country. No matter how justified, the situation was extremely dire.

In fact, all the major noble families on Taurus were on edge.

Even the military and other armed forces entered a state of emergency.

If anything went wrong, it might lead to Taurus's first civil war.

Fortunately, a noble family is still different from a country. The core leaders of the Lan Family were mostly destroyed, and half of the core elite were lost.

The remaining high-level Lan Family members all belonged to the faction resisting the Evil God rituals. As for other high-level members in the Outer Star Realm, they had no influence on Taurus.

Just like Lan Tiange and Lan Tianshou's father, Lan Changfeng, who represented the moderate faction of the Lan Family.

Lan Changfeng was 150 years younger than Lan Chang'an, separated by countless generations. In terms of kinship, they were cousins and both part of the direct lineage of the Lan Family.

Lan Chang'an was powerful and suppressed Lan Changfeng's faction, not allowing them to raise their heads.

Now that Lan Chang'an suddenly died, the faction's leaders Lan Changkong and Lan Changting also died.

As the only remaining high-level direct lineage of the Lan Family, Lan Changfeng naturally became the center. Moreover, nearly all the remaining powerful individuals belonged to their faction.

Naturally, the power of the Lan Family fell into Lan Changfeng's hands.

Xiao Jun also promptly contacted Lan Changfeng, and the two quickly reached a reconciliation.

On the afternoon of the same day, Lan Changfeng released a public video, announcing a series of crimes against humanity committed by Lan Chang'an and removed Lan Chang'an and others from the Lan Family genealogy in the capacity of temporary patriarch.

This public video not only expressed the Lan Family's stance but also confirmed Lan Chang'an's crimes against humanity.

With this, Lan Chang'an's charges were thoroughly cemented.

Regardless of other noble families' thoughts, it was impossible for them to act under the banner of standing up for the Lan Family.

The Yu, Bai, and Wang Families, among other major noble families, quickly made adjustments, and they all publicly condemned Lan Chang'an's crimes. They also placed some of the Lan Family's assets on a restricted list.

In terms of wealth alone, the Lan Family was undoubtedly the wealthiest family on Taurus. Their business spanned across the Twelve Star Domain.

Seeing the situation settled, with no chance to seize the opportunity to overthrow the Xiao Family, the other major families turned against the Lan Family.

They saw the Lan Family as a large piece of fat meat, determined to tear off a significant chunk.

Lan Changfeng had already prepared for this, as many industries were controlled by Lan Chang'an's faction, making it difficult for him to take over.

At this point, he wasn't worried about letting these lucrative opportunities slip away. The key was that he could seize several of the Lan Family's core industries.

If he didn't cooperate with Xiao Jun, Xiao Jun would indeed struggle, and he wouldn't gain any advantage either. He might even be killed in the conflict.

Someone as shrewd as Lan Changfeng naturally wouldn't do something so foolish as to cause mutual destruction.

That night, all the people from the major noble families on Starfish Island left.

The once bustling Starfish Island suddenly became exceptionally quiet.

Gao Xuan did not leave; he and Yun Qingshang both stayed on Starfish Island.

Killing Lan Chang'an was easy, but he wasn't adept at handling the various complex political and business struggles that followed.

Besides, it wasn't his place to handle such matters.

Xiao Cheng, Xiao Ting, and Xiao Wan, the elites of the Xiao Family, were all busy handling various affairs.

Before leaving, Xiao Jun met with Gao Xuan and chatted for a bit.

The old man didn't discuss anything specific with Gao Xuan, just casual talk and plenty of praise for Gao Xuan.

Gao Xuan understood that Xiao Jun was trying to win people's hearts.

At this stage, even Xiao Jun, the patriarch, couldn't afford to ignore him and had to show a gesture of respect.

Gao Xuan thought Xiao Jun wasn't too bad. Despite his noble family's flaws and the rigidity of a military man, which made Xiao Jun difficult to deal with.

But Xiao Jun had principles. Just that is enough.

Noble families fall not because they indulge in pleasures, not because they are aloof, not because they are foolish and shortsighted. They fall for a single reason: loss of principles.

Gao Xuan thought that the so-called principles did not truly exist.

Human moral and legal systems can only rely on strong constraints. They can't genuinely leave an unbridgeable boundary in everyone's heart.

Even human nature's goodness and compassion will gradually diminish in suitable environments.

For humans, there are only peaks that cannot be surpassed, never lines that cannot be crossed.

Falling is always easier.

Xiao Jun had no external constraints; his preservation of principles was based on humanity and self-discipline.

This was particularly remarkable in the decadent noble families.

Gao Xuan considered himself lucky to have chosen the Xiao Family. Had he inadvertently chosen the Lan Family, things would have been difficult.

The night was deep, and the waves on the beach came and went tirelessly.

Countless sea stars drifted in the near sea, their colorful bodies shining and undulating in the water, forming massive luminous bands encircling Starfish Island.

Looking from the beach, the deep sea appeared more brilliantly fantastic, unusually magnificent, and splendid.

Gao Xuan also called Bai Yutang out. The three of them strolled along the beach, admiring the unique wonders of Starfish Island.

Bai Yutang was in a good mood. She had recently acquired the Holy Light Wings, which she hadn't fully mastered yet, but her power had greatly increased.

Gao Xuan had progressed so quickly that even with her solid foundation, she struggled to keep up. With the Holy Light Wings, she could at least help Gao Xuan a bit in the future.

Yun Qingshang was also in a good mood. She always felt good when she was with Gao Xuan.

She even thought it wouldn't be so bad to continue this peaceful and serene life. Gao Xuan fought every day, constantly winning, but he couldn't always be victorious.

However, she didn't want to interfere with Gao Xuan. Whether he went to the Immortal Realm or Hell, she would follow.

Yun Qingshang didn't like to talk, and after Bai Yutang transformed her life state, she no longer had so many thoughts. She just liked being by Gao Xuan's side, whether they talked or not didn't matter.

Only Gao Xuan couldn't keep his mouth shut and kept talking.

"The sea stars are quite beautiful, but it's a pity that the party organizers have all left. With no one grilling or serving drinks, the atmosphere is lacking..."

Gao Xuan was muttering when someone shouted from behind, "I brought drinks."

A bottle of Crown of the Sea King was tossed in front of Gao Xuan.

Gao Xuan casually caught the Crown of the Sea King and turned to Lan Tiancheng, saying, "My friend, you wouldn't poison the drink, would you?"

Lan Tiancheng, holding a bottle of Crown of the Sea King himself, said with a peculiar expression, "Take a guess?"

Lan Tiancheng was still wearing the clothes from the day, his pants were torn, but the wound on his backside was stitched up.

His tattered pants fluttered in the wind, appearing both comical and carefree, exuding a unique style.

"I'll choose to trust my friend."

Gao Xuan unscrewed the bottle cap and took a big gulp, the complex and subtle taste of the Crown of the Sea King made him exhale long.

"The beautiful scenery indeed needs to be accompanied by fine wine to enjoy it fully."

Lan Tiancheng raised his bottle towards Gao Xuan, gesturing, "Cheers!"

With that, he gulped down the entire bottle and casually tossed it on the ground.

Gao Xuan curiously asked, "You won't be challenging me to a duel, will you?"

Lan Tiancheng said, "Do you think I would?"

"As a friend, I'd advise you to give up... I don't like attending friends' funerals."

Gao Xuan spoke the truth.