Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains

"Those two, you're not just here to congratulate me on my breakthrough, are you?"

"Young Master, you still don't know the news about the Family Head in Jizhou, right?"

Family Head, the news from Jizhou...

As soon as these two things were mentioned, Hou Yuduan immediately realized what they were talking about. He frowned slightly and nodded; indeed, he didn't know the news from Jizhou.

"To be honest, Young Master, two years ago, Zhao Yulong and Li Tingzong returned from the Ten Thousand Demons Cave to Jizhou, intending to reclaim Jidu from the Family Head. Unfortunately..."

"Unfortunately what?"

Hou Yuduan immediately pursued for an answer, as he was indeed quite curious about the matter.

"Unfortunately, Li Tingzong had secretly pledged allegiance to the Family Head long ago. During the great battle for Jidu, Li Tingzong suddenly took action, and with the Family Head's cooperation, Zhao Yulong was successfully slain. Therefore, two years ago, all of Jizhou fell into the Family Head's hands!"

Li Tingzong's betrayal, Zhao Yulong slain, Jizhou's complete change of ownership...

Upon hearing this news, Hou Yuduan's face immediately displayed an expression of shock.

Before he could clear his thoughts, Zhao Yuan's voice came again:

"Although demons have been rampant for the past two years, the Family Head personally led the army, and now the demons around Jidu have been cleared. The reclaimed land almost reaches one prefecture. Without any accident, as long as we continue accordingly, reclaiming all of Jizhou is just a matter of time!"

Zhao Yuan and Wang Deng exchanged a glance, then turned to look at Hou Yuduan. Both took a slight step forward, their bodies, suspended in the air, directly knelt to the ground. Seeing their actions, Hou Yuduan realized what was happening, but he remained silent, continuing to stand and listen to the following words.

"For over ten years, our Hou Clan has been under external control. As a servant, it pains me to witness this, longing day and night for the Young Master to personally take charge. With your breakthrough to Breakthrough Saint, your strength is now unrivaled by that person. Taking advantage of our Hou Clan establishing this Holy Dynasty, the Young Master should rally Gao Hu to expel that person and reclaim the family's power. Forgive me for being blunt, but the position of Great Emperor of the Holy Dynasty can only be held by you, Young Master.

Once we regain the Hou Clan's power, after clearing the demons, we will unite with the New Moon Cult, defeat the Youye Emperor's army, and reclaim Hexi. By then, the Family Head in Jizhou will correspondly support from the north, and with this Shenzhou, our Hou Clan has never..."

"Uncle Zhao, Uncle Wang, you've said so much, but have you considered what if I'm not 'that person's... opponent? What should we do?"

Hou Yuduan suddenly interrupted them, his pupils glinting with a trace of intention. After pausing for a moment, he said with a grim face, "If I'm not that person's opponent and aggressively reveal my weakness, it could lead to irrevocable ruin..."

"Rest assured, Young Master. If we weren't absolutely certain, we wouldn't have come to you so rashly. Upon learning the Young Master was in seclusion to break into Breakthrough Saint, we had already sent word to Jizhou. The Family Head has been planning meticulously for many years, and he wouldn't let others occupy our rightful place. Now that you've broken through to Breakthrough Saint, the Family Head will take action upon hearing the news. The position of Great Emperor of the Holy Dynasty will undoubtedly be yours."

Upon hearing this, the grim expression on Hou Yuduan's face gradually relaxed. He looked forward to the two of them with a growing sense of anticipation, slowly revealing an emotional response; he seemed to see the position of Great Emperor of the Holy Dynasty within reach, and a hint of ambition slowly appeared in his eyes.

Seeing the change in Hou Yuduan's expression, Zhao Yuan and Wang Deng were not surprised at all. Over the years, they had watched Hou Yuduan grow up and understood his character well. Hou Yuduan was very refined and amiable, but not stupid or pedantic. Knowing that the one currently in power was not his elder brother, he naturally wouldn't be content with being sidelined.

Moreover, the title of Great Emperor of the Holy Dynasty, who in Shenzhou could resist such temptation?

The three of them discussed for a long time at Hanging Mirror Mountain before finally returning to Jianye Prefecture.

......

January 5, New Yu Era 1336

In the Great Jin Imperial Court, Yuwen Dongdu held a golden invitation letter in his left hand and a regular piece of letter paper in his right hand. After comparing them, he let out a cold laugh.

"The ascension ceremony of the Dazhao Holy Dynasty, Hou Yuxiao is truly audacious!"

Zhuge Yuan chuckled softly and shook his head, "One can't really call it audacious. Rising from the small county of Zhaoyang, the Hou Clan indeed possesses the strength of a Holy Land now. At a different time, establishing a Holy Dynasty and ascending as Emperor could be seen as reasonable. However, at this critical moment, it does appear somewhat conspicuous..."

Currently, demons in Shenzhou are not yet eradicated, and the human territory across the thirteen provinces hasn't even constituted one province. The Eight Great Powers are fully focused on reclaiming lost land, and the relationships among these powers are very subtle. Even the so-called ally, the Four Families of Hedong Holy Land, has some secret dealings. Hosting a Holy Dynasty ascension ceremony at this time seems rather like setting oneself up as a target.

"It seems Hou Jing has left someone in Hexi. Hou Yuxiao's invitation arrives first, and his letter follows, speaking confidently about Hexi's change of ownership, instructing us not to intervene. State Preceptor, who should we listen to?"

Yuwen Dongdu looked at the personal letter from Hou Jing in his right hand, his face first showing a hint of hatred, then revealing a trace of a smile full of meaning.

Hou Jing is really Hou Tong; two years ago, when Jizhou changed hands, Yuwen Dongdu already knew. It turns out that one of the Seven Kings, Wuwei King Hou Jing, had been secretly swapped with Hou Tong more than ten years ago, and even let Hou Tong seize Jizhou. Naturally, he hated this person to the core; yet now, with the world divided among eight factions, Hexi and Jizhou are both enemies. The current situation seems to him like a dogfight, which he finds quite delightful.