"Grandpa, I... I failed. It was that Zhang Hao. He stole my pass, causing me to fail in Awakening my Bloodline!" Zhang Wensong said hatefully.
"What!" The Seven Executives' body swayed.
"Zhang Hao..." The Seven Executives gnashed his teeth.
Subsequently, Zhang Qixian, Zhang Feng, Zhang Gaoyuan, and Zhang Zongwei also walked out, supporting each other.
"Feng'er!"
The Supreme Elder saw that Zhang Feng's appearance was somewhat off and raised his eyebrows. He immediately went before Zhang Feng, looked at him, and asked with concern, "Feng'er, what's wrong with you?"
Zhang Feng gave a tragic smile, knelt on the ground, and said painfully, "Grandpa, that damned kid from the branch Family, he not only ruined our Bloodline Awakening but also crippled our Dantian. Now... now we've become cripples."
"Supreme Elder, you must uphold justice for us. We were all harmed by that kid. We are now completely crippled."
Zhang Qixian and Zhang Gaoyuan also knelt and kowtowed like pounding garlic.
"Bastard, where is that kid?" The Supreme Elder roared towards the sky, his expression extremely furious.
A palpable killing intent emanated from the Supreme Elder's body. Even those standing beside the Supreme Elder felt extremely terrified.
"Grandpa, as soon as the barrier opened, he was the first to run. We originally wanted to catch up and stop him, but our speed was far inferior to his," Zhang Zongwei shouted loudly.
"I want him dead!"
The Supreme Elder knew that he would be stuck in the Martial King Realm for his entire life and unable to break through. His potential was exhausted. Upon learning that his grandson's potential was far above his own, he focused on cultivating his grandson, hoping he could achieve his unfulfilled wish in his place. He never expected that his grandson would not only fail to awaken his Bloodline during the Blood Pool Refining but also be crippled and become a sinner. This was absolutely unacceptable to the Supreme Elder.
"Supreme Elder, this subordinate knows where that kid is from. He not only crippled your grandson but also caused this subordinate's grandson to fail in Awakening his Bloodline. This subordinate is willing to be the vanguard and make that kid pay his blood debt with blood," the Seven Executives said. He knew this was an opportunity to retaliate against Zhang Hao and Ninghai City, so he naturally wouldn't let it go.
"Good. This time, that kid must pay with his life," the Supreme Elder said coldly.
The Family Head, Zhang Shiyi, standing nearby, frowned. He sighed inwardly: He actually greatly admired Zhang Hao and knew that if the Supreme Elder personally intervened, some matters would become irreversible.
"Supreme Elder, I think there might be some misunderstanding?" Zhang Shiyi still didn't want conflict between the main Family and the branch. He hoped to ease the situation as much as possible.
"Misunderstanding? What misunderstanding could there be? Even if there is a misunderstanding, it's no reason for him to cripple Feng'er's cultivation," the Supreme Elder said, giving Zhang Shiyi a cold glance.
"Supreme Elder, Family Head, we are all victims! That guy was arrogant and snatched our qualification for the Blood Pool Refining. Please, Supreme Elder and Family Head, uphold justice for us!" Zhang Wensong knelt on the ground, crying piteously.
"That's right, we are also victims. We were originally Awakening our Bloodline in the Blood Pool, and it was all because of that kid that we failed this time."
Zhang Heng, Zhang Zichong, Zhang Jinliang, and Zhang Yueyuan also knelt down. These people were all victims of this Blood Pool Refining. Naturally, they hoped Zhang Hao would pay the price.
"Family Head, what do you think now?" The Supreme Elder glanced at the Family Head, Zhang Shiyi, lightly.
Zhang Shiyi sighed inwardly. He also didn't want to conflict with the Supreme Elder. After all, the Supreme Elder's Foundation within the Family was deeper than his own. Offending him would be a great challenge to his position as Family Head.
After leaving the Zhang Family Main Clan, Zhang Hao rushed back to Ninghai City without stopping. He knew that with the Supreme Elder's ability, he would definitely be ambushed on the way. At this moment, Zhang Hao had no confidence in dealing with a Martial King. He had to return to Ninghai City first to think of a countermeasure.
These past few days, he traveled during the night and rested during the day, avoiding several attempts by the Supreme Elder and his men to intercept him. It was a close call but without major incident.
Seven days later, Zhang Hao returned to Ninghai City.
Ninghai City Zhang Family
When Zhang Hao told his Grandpa what had happened in the Blood Pool Forbidden Ground this time, including how he had crippled Zhang Feng and the others' cultivation, his Grandpa, Zhang Yaobang, was furious. He clapped his hands and said with a booming voice, "Good job crippling them! These disciples from the main clan really think our branch Family members are easy to bully."
Zhang Hao thought his Grandpa would be angry upon learning that he had crippled the Supreme Elder's grandson and offended the Supreme Elder, but he didn't expect his Grandpa to react this way.
"Grandpa, aren't you worried that the Supreme Elder will be enraged and blame our Ninghai City branch?" Zhang Hao asked, looking at his Grandpa somewhat confused.
"Hmph, the Zhang Family has an ancestral rule: the main Family and branches are not separate families, and infighting is not allowed. Therefore, even if the Supreme Elder blames us, he won't attack other members of our branch. At most, it will be just the two of us, Grandpa and grandson. And you, Zhang Hao, did nothing wrong. It was the other party who wanted to kill you. It was already lenient of you not to kill them. If they still want to trouble you, then they are truly shameless," Zhang Yaobang sneered.
"Grandpa!"
This time, he had caused such a big trouble, yet his Grandpa didn't blame him at all and even encouraged him. This made him very touched by his Grandpa and feel an even stronger sense of belonging to the Zhang Family.
"Grandson, leave! The farther you go, the better. Although the Supreme Elder is very overbearing, as long as he can't find you, I don't think he'll have a way. What if he's a Martial King? Can a Martial King just bully people casually?" Zhang Yaobang snorted coldly.
Zhang Hao frowned and said, "Grandpa, what about you?"
Zhang Yaobang said nonchalantly, "Grandpa is also a Supreme Elder of the branch, after all. Although Zhang Wanggu is the Supreme Elder of the main Family, I presume he wouldn't dare to easily attack me."
Zhang Hao looked at Zhang Yaobang's casual demeanor and knew his Grandpa was lying; the truth was not like that at all. Perhaps Zhang Wanggu wouldn't attack the entire branch, but he wouldn't be so hesitant towards Grandpa, who was also a Supreme Elder. It wasn't even impossible for him to kill Grandpa to vent his anger.
Therefore, Zhang Hao said to his Grandpa, "Grandpa, I'm not leaving. Your grandson has a way."
"Zhang Hao, why are you so stubborn? Didn't Grandpa tell you that Zhang Wanggu wouldn't dare to attack Grandpa?" Zhang Yaobang was a little anxious.
"Grandpa, your grandson has a trump card and is not afraid of the Supreme Elder," Zhang Hao said with great confidence.
"Trump card? Zhang Hao, Grandpa knows you have some tricks. But a Martial Warrior in the Martial King Realm is not just anyone. Even if Grandpa is a Great Martial Master, in front of a Martial King, I am nothing. Don't joke with your life," Zhang Yaobang said to Zhang Hao seriously.
"Grandpa, please trust your grandson this once." Zhang Hao's expression was very firm.
Zhang Hao wasn't lying. On the way back to Ninghai City these past few days, he had been pondering how to deal with the Supreme Elder's threat. He naturally knew that even if he avoided the Supreme Elder's interception on the road, he couldn't escape forever. If the other party didn't intercept him on the road, they would definitely come to Ninghai City to find him. However, these past few days, he had indeed thought of a method. He remembered that he still had two trump cards he hadn't used.