leonardwarren Chapter 48 The Su Family's Secret Meeting: Old Master Su's Entrustment
Chapter 48 The Su Family's Secret Meeting: Old Master Su's Entrustment
The Su family's residence is situated on a spiritual vein in the eastern suburbs of Tianlan City, in a classical garden covering hundreds of acres.
The garden was filled with pavilions and towers arranged in a harmonious and orderly fashion, with winding streams and small bridges. The air was filled with the faint fragrance of plum blossoms and a rich spiritual energy. Two guards dressed in cyan martial arts attire stood at the entrance. Both were mid-stage Qi Refining Realm martial artists with sharp, eagle-like eyes. Upon seeing Su Muyue and Su Qingyue, they quickly and respectfully bowed, saying, "Eldest Miss, Second Miss."
Su Muyue nodded and led Lin Chen into the garden.
After passing through a long corridor and around a pond filled with lotus flowers, the three arrived at a courtyard called "Tranquility Hall". The courtyard was filled with century-old plum trees, and although it was not the flowering season, their vigorous branches still exuded a sense of pride.
An elderly man with gray hair and wearing a gray robe sat at a stone table, boiling spring water to make tea. His movements were slow and elegant, and every detail exuded the weight of time.
He is Su Zhennan, the head of the Su family.
Su Zhennan is eighty-two years old this year. He is a powerful expert in the late stage of the Void Breaking Realm and one of the few top experts in Tianlan Province. He joined the army at the age of sixteen and fought against ferocious beasts and evil races on the border for forty years, carrying an aura of iron-blooded killing intent from years of battlefield experience. Thirty years ago, he was the garrison commander of Qingyang City and witnessed Chen Feng's sacrifice.
Seeing Lin Chen enter, Su Zhennan put down the purple clay teapot in his hand and said with a smile, "Young friend Lin Chen, we've finally been waiting for you. Please have a seat."
"Grandpa Su." Lin Chen respectfully bowed to his elders and sat down at the stone table.
Su Muyue poured Lin Chen a cup of freshly brewed Longjing tea. The tea was clear and emerald green, with a fragrant aroma. "Try it. This is a pre-Qingming Longjing tea that Grandpa has treasured."
Lin Chen picked up the teacup and took a small sip. A sweet tea aroma spread in his mouth, flowing down his throat and into his stomach, making the Star Martial Core in his dantian even more active.
"Excellent tea," Lin Chen exclaimed.
Su Zhennan looked at Lin Chen, his eyes filled with admiration, and a hint of barely perceptible guilt. "Young friend Lin Chen, Mu Yue has told me everything about you. To have such strength and responsibility at such a young age is truly rare. If Chen Feng knew this in the afterlife, he could rest in peace."
"Does Grandpa Su know Senior Chen Feng?" Lin Chen asked.
"I know him, how could I not know him?" Su Zhennan sighed, his gaze becoming distant. "Thirty years ago, I was the garrison commander of Qingyang City, and Chen Feng was the most outstanding young martial artist at the time. He was exceptionally talented, upright, and the most promising genius I had ever seen to break through to the Town Domain Realm."
He paused, his voice tinged with sorrow: "Back then, Chen Feng came to me, saying he had discovered the first Martial Emperor's notes and that the Wang family was colluding with the evil race to destroy the Demon-Suppressing Array. I had just taken office, my foundation was unstable, and I was being held back by Liu Kun and others, so I couldn't believe him in time. By the time I realized what was happening, he had already detonated his Star Power Source and perished together with the Beast Emperor to cover the people's retreat."
"For the past thirty years, I have lived with guilt. If I had trusted him back then and taken action to eliminate the Wang family sooner, none of this would have happened today."
Lin Chen fell silent. He could sense the guilt and pain in Su Zhennan's heart.
"Grandpa Su, this isn't your fault," Lin Chen said. "The Wang family is hiding too well, and they have the support of the evil clan behind them. Senior Chen Feng won't blame you."
Su Zhennan shook his head, looking at Lin Chen with unwavering determination: "No matter what, I owe Chen Feng my life. This time, I will do everything in my power to help you thwart the Wang family's conspiracy and protect Qingyang City."
After saying that, he took out an old-fashioned wooden box from his pocket and handed it to Lin Chen: "This is something Chen Feng gave me back then. He said that if a successor of Xingwu appears one day, I should give this to him."
Lin Chen took the wooden box and carefully opened it. Inside was a silver star-patterned badge and a yellowed notebook.
"This star-patterned badge was left behind by the first Martial Emperor and can amplify star power by 30%," Su Zhennan said. "This notebook is Chen Feng's cultivation notes, which record his understanding and insights into star martial arts techniques. It should be helpful to you."
Lin Chen picked up the star-patterned badge and felt a warm power flow from it into his body, causing the Star Martial Core in his dantian to hum joyfully. He opened the notebook, where the handwriting was vigorous and powerful, revealing Chen Feng's love for martial arts and his sense of responsibility towards humanity.
"Thank you, Grandpa Su." Lin Chen carefully put away the wooden box and said respectfully.
"You're welcome." Su Zhennan smiled. "This was originally yours. By the way, where's the evidence you brought? Let me see it."
Lin Chen nodded, took out the package wrapped in oil paper from his pocket, and handed it to Su Zhennan.
Su Zhennan took the package and carefully opened it. When he saw the three blood-written letters and the secret letter from Wang Xiaotian colluding with the evil race, his hands trembled slightly, and a surge of overwhelming anger flashed in his eyes.
"Beast! That beast Wang Xiaotian!" Su Zhennan slammed his fist on the stone table, instantly shattering the hard granite into dust. "Thirty years ago, I suspected Chen Feng's death was related to the Wang family. I never imagined they would actually collude with the evil race! They even tried to destroy the demon-suppressing formation and release the evil army! They are traitors to humanity!"
Su Muyue and Su Qingyue's expressions also changed drastically. They had long heard that the Wang family was colluding with the evil race, but they never expected it to be true! Moreover, their goal was to destroy the evil-suppressing formation! Once the seal was broken, millions of people in Qingyang City would become food for the evil race.
"Grandpa Su, now is not the time to be angry," Lin Chen said. "In the joint training six months from now, the Wang family will take the opportunity to detonate the Twelve Capital Heavenly Fiend Formation, break the seal, and seize my Star Martial Core. We must prepare in advance."
Su Zhennan took a deep breath, suppressing his anger, and nodded: "You're right. The most important thing now is to devise a meticulous plan to thwart the Wang family's conspiracy."
Just then, a middle-aged man in military uniform strode in. He was tall and straight, with a resolute face, and wore the rank of colonel. He was Jiang Chen, an observer from the Tianlan Province Martial Arts Army.
"Elder Su, young friend Lin Chen." Jiang Chen gave Su Zhennan and Lin Chen a standard military salute.
"Jiang Chen is here, please sit down." Su Zhennan nodded.
Jiang Chen sat down at the stone table, looked at Lin Chen, and said, "Young friend Lin Chen, I already know about how you crippled Wang Hao's bodyguard in the alley. I've also reported Zhang Tao's matter to the military. The military has set up a special task force to secretly investigate the collusion between Liu Kun and the Wang family."
"Thank you, Director Jiang." Lin Chen nodded.
"You're welcome," Jiang Chen said. "Protecting humanity is the responsibility of every soldier. The Wang family's collusion with the evil race is a capital offense. The military will fully support you."
Su Zhennan nodded and said, "Now, the three of us (the Su family, the military, and Lin Chen) will jointly formulate a plan to prepare for the joint training exercise six months from now."