Chapter 288

What happened at the palace banquet quickly spread among the major aristocratic families of the Imperial Capital.

Chu Liuyue also became the center of everyone's discussion.

First, she had taken two first places at the Qingjiao Assembly, and subsequently, because she possessed the Earth Scripture Original Vein, she was selected to travel to the Tianling Dynasty alongside Mu Qinghe.

In just a few short days, Chu Liuyue's fame had soared! She had become an existence that everyone envied and detested!

Ordinary people might not know, but the influential figures within the major aristocratic families all understood what the "Tianling Dynasty" signified!

From now on, Chu Liuyue was feared to be rising rapidly toward the clouds, her future boundless!

The palace banquet ended at noon, but by evening, Chu Liuyue had already received many gifts.

Without even looking, she knew they were from those wanting to curry favor with her, so she rejected them all decisively.

After returning to the academy, she chose to enter the Nine Nether Tower to cultivate, leaving the storms raging outside to their own devices.

***

The Chu Family.

When Chu Xiao returned to the Chu family, his expression was incredibly grim.

Seeing his face, the servants attending to him trembled with fear, not daring to say a word.

However, this situation was quickly broken.

Starting from the afternoon, people continuously came requesting an audience.

And what they all wanted was the same thing.

"What?! Let the father and daughter, Chu Ning, return to the Chu family?!"

Hearing their proposal, Chu Xiao erupted like ignited gunpowder.

"That is absolutely impossible! Don't even think about it!"

Chu Ning and her daughter had already completely broken ties with the Chu family; everyone in the Imperial Capital knew they were adversaries!

To negotiate this matter with them at this time would be equivalent to them voluntarily bowing their heads in surrender!

If that happened, the entire Chu family would likely become the laughingstock of the Imperial Capital!

The mere thought of such a scene made Chu Xiao feel physically ill, and he adamantly refused!

But the members of the Chu family, who had always followed his lead, were also very firm in their attitude this time.

"Great Elder, times have changed. The news of Chu Liuyue being selected to go to the Tianling Dynasty has already spread among the major aristocratic families! Even if she had massive conflicts with us in the past, she is still family, after all; the same blood flows within her body! What is there that cannot be forgiven?"

"That's right! She is no longer that insignificant trash from before! Without even thinking, we know her future achievements will certainly not be low! For our Chu family, this is a massive opportunity!"

"Great Elder, it's not that we don't have your concerns. But at this point, if we continue to stand in opposition to them, we are the ones who will suffer the loss! After today, how many people in the Imperial Capital will want to climb into Chu Liuyue's good graces? She did come from our Chu family, after all. As long as we take the initiative to make peace, she will surely give us face—"

Listening to their words, which were filled with hope one after another, Chu Xiao grew extremely irritated. He abruptly interrupted them and roared

"In your dreams! Don't you know what kind of temperament Chu Liuyue has?! Seeking peace from her now is nothing more than seeking humiliation!"

The crowd looked at one another, feeling somewhat conflicted.

In truth, how could they not know this?

But was there no other way?

Were they to just stand by and watch this great opportunity slip away?

Compared to the Tianling Dynasty, what did a little bit of pride matter?

As long as they could repair the relationship with Chu Liuyue, wouldn't they be able to have whatever they wanted in the future?!

"Great Elder, we all know that you dislike Chu Liuyue. But now, shouldn't you consider the entire Chu family to some extent?"

The Third Elder suddenly spoke, his tone slightly cold.

Chu Xiao's expression turned fierce: "What do you mean by that?"

The Third Elder smiled.

"It means nothing. We all know why Chu Liuyue left the Chu family in the first place. To be honest, that matter was indeed partly your fault. If everything had remained peaceful and safe, it wouldn't have been an issue. But now, Chu Liuyue is no longer what she used to be. We are, in any case, close to her. If we give up now, wouldn't it be too much of a pity?"

The others nodded one after another.

"Chu Ning and her daughter are not unreasonable people. As long as we apologize with sincerity, I believe we can definitely win them back—"

Chu Xiao snapped: "You all have truly gone mad!"

"Great Elder, it is not that we are mad. This is our only choice right now."

The Third Elder was not intimidated by Chu Xiao's anger, his expression remaining unchanged.

"Over these years, our Chu family has gradually declined, and our situation was already poor. We worked hard to cultivate Chu Xianmin, and now she is basically half-useless. Now that we finally have a top-tier genius like Chu Liuyue, there is no reason for us not to seize the moment, is there? Regardless, she is someone currently favored by Vice General Mu. What harm is there in bowing our heads? Once she becomes successful in the future, trying to do this will be many times harder!"

The Third Elder's words immediately drew agreement from the crowd.

The people discussed fervently, their underlying meaning being that they hoped Chu Xiao would act as the representative to apologize to Chu Ning and her daughter and invite them back to the Chu family.

Chu Xiao was annoyed beyond belief

"Say whatever you want! If you want to go and curry favor with Chu Liuyue, then go ahead! Regardless, this old man absolutely will not go!"

The Third Elder gave a half-smile.

"Great Elder, you are so stubborn in your views. I wonder how the Family Head will view this once he comes out of seclusion and learns of it?"

Chu Xiao's expression froze!

He had almost forgotten that point!

The Family Head had been in seclusion for too long, to the point where Chu Xiao had begun to treat himself as the top authority of the Chu family.

Although the Third Elder's words were unpleasant, they were not without reason.

He could disregard the others, but the Family Head...

When the time came, he truly wouldn't be able to give a satisfactory explanation.

After hesitating for a long time, Chu Xiao's expression shifted repeatedly before he finally agreed.

"To Chu Liuyue—forget it! Send an invitation to Chu Ning. Say there is something we wish to discuss with him!"

***

Chu Liuyue entered the Nine Nether Tower once again.

Because her level had already broken through to the second tier, she ascended to the second floor quite easily this time.

Since the Qingjiao Assembly had just ended, there weren't many students at the Nine Nether Tower.

Chu Liuyue took a simple stroll around the second floor and found that, aside from the higher concentration of Origin Power, there wasn't much difference.

She casually found a room and began to cultivate.

Not long after sitting down, Chu Liuyue heard a sharp, raspy roar once again.

The sound came from afar and drew closer, gradually becoming clear!

And that powerful pressure became increasingly terrifying!

Chu Liuyue even felt as if the blood in her body were freezing!

*Skreeee!*

That piercing cry seemed to be right at her ear, nearly causing her eardrums to vibrate with pain!

Chu Liuyue snapped her eyes open!

However, in that instant, she suddenly saw a pair of crimson, sharp eyes right before her!

Within those eyes, a raging fire burned! It came rushing toward her, overwhelming and vast!