I Tame Beasts by Feeding

「The next day.」

An underground room in the brothel.

"This is the intelligence you wanted." Elder Gu smiled at Yu Changsheng, revealing his yellowed teeth. "Is there anything else you need?"

Yu Changsheng accepted the report. "This is all for now. Thanks."

"Heh heh heh... The Yu Family is weak. They might not survive this. If you need our help, you can post an assassination mission. We guarantee the Chen Clan’s Clan Leader will meet a violent end within three days."

Elder Gu seemed quite interested in Yu Changsheng’s coin purse, grinning widely as he spoke.

Yu Changsheng, who was about to leave, paused. He was indeed tempted. "How many Spirit Stones?"

"It’s not expensive," Elder Gu said with a chuckle. "Twenty thousand Lower Grade Spirit Stones, and the head of a Qi Refining Peak cultivator will be delivered to your doorstep."

The corner of Yu Changsheng’s mouth twitched. He then left the underground room.

’Twenty thousand Lower Grade Spirit Stones? What a joke! I haven’t even earned that much in total since I came to this world. For that price to kill a Qi Refining Peak cultivator, I’d be better off just asking Grandpa to do it.’

After slipping back home unnoticed, Yu Changsheng took out the report. As he began to read from the first page, his pupils contracted sharply.

’How could it be him?’

’Dongyang City... the Tang Family... Tang Xing!’

After reading the entire report, Yu Changsheng’s mind reeled, his gaze filled with utter shock and confusion.

He recalled his meetings with Tang Xing and the time they had spent together.

’We never seemed to have any conflicts!’

’Whenever we were together, he was always so friendly and cheerful, never showing the slightest hint of discontent.’

’Why would it be him?’

’Could there be something wrong with the report?’

Yu Changsheng found it hard to believe. This was his junior martial brother. How could he suddenly become an enemy?

’No, Dark Stream might be greedy, but they wouldn’t go so far as to falsify a report.’

’Tang Xing of Jade Cauldron Peak is backed by the Tang Family, a Foundation Establishment Clan in Dongyang City. It makes sense that he could get his hands on a Scattered Demon Essence Pill to use against the Demon Beast. It seems he’s the one behind all of this.’

Yu Changsheng heaved a heavy sigh. Although he didn’t know why Tang Xing wanted to target him, now that he understood the situation, he wouldn’t just stand idly by.

’I need to show this report to Grandpa. It looks like moving to Dongyang City is out of the question now.’

With that, Yu Changsheng left his room and found Yu Taoran in the main hall, resting with his eyes closed.

"Grandpa, I’ve figured things out." He handed the report to Yu Taoran.

Yu Taoran took one look, his eyes narrowing slightly.

"Is it accurate?"

"Yes."

Yu Changsheng nodded. "He must be targeting me. I’m the one who dragged the family into this."

Yu Taoran looked at the downcast Yu Changsheng and chuckled. "If he’s an enemy, then we simply kill him. The path of cultivation is a ’kill or be killed’ affair."

"We can’t go to Dongyang City, so we’ll have to fight with our backs against the wall. When the Chen Family makes their move, I will do everything in my power to kill their Qi Refining Peak expert. As for the Tang Family, they’re a whole city away. Since they’re using the Chen Family as their sword, they most likely won’t send a Foundation Establishment cultivator."

"You should return to the sect tomorrow. Inside the sect, neither the Chen Family nor the Tang Family can threaten you. When you’ve become powerful enough, you can avenge the Yu Family."

Hearing this, Yu Changsheng looked up. He knew his grandfather had made up his mind: the Yu Family could not survive this crisis unscathed. They could only carve a bloody path to survival with the swords in their hands.

And as he was only at the Qi Refining Sixth Layer, his contribution in a chaotic battle would be minimal. That was why Yu Taoran wanted him to return to the sect and save himself.

But with his family in such peril, how could he bear to just turn tail and run back to the sect!

Yu Changsheng clenched his fists, his eyes bloodshot, and snarled through gritted teeth, "Grandpa, I’m not going back!"

"Nonsense!" Yu Taoran’s voice was grim. "You’re not strong enough yet. Staying here will only be a burden. If you go back, I’ll have a fighting chance to break out with the direct lineage!"

Looking at Yu Taoran’s darkening expression, Yu Changsheng cupped his hands. "I’ll go find reinforcements. I know people from the Xi Family. Maybe they’ll agree to help."

"Please don’t worry, Grandpa. I understand what you’re saying. I’ll make my own safety the top priority!"

After saying this, Yu Changsheng turned and left.

Yu Taoran remained seated on the wooden chair. He didn’t try to stop him. Instead, a faint smile touched his lips.

"The boy’s grown up," he murmured. "He has a mind of his own now."

"The Tang Family."

Yu Taoran’s gaze turned vicious, a flicker of killing intent in his eyes. He muttered, "I’ll be saving a sword strike just for you."

「Meanwhile, at the Chen Clan Estate.」

After receiving Tang Xing’s letter, it took the members of the Tang Family only half a day to arrive from Dongyang City.

Several Sword Shadows streaked across the sky. They were all cultivators using Sword Flight, and the middle-aged man in the lead was Tang Xing’s second uncle, Tang Tu Hong.

"Second Uncle!" Upon seeing him, Tang Xing felt a surge of confidence and cried out in delight.

Tang Tu Hong landed before him with three disciples, a resigned look on his face. "Why didn’t you discuss this with your father first? Do you realize that by bringing men here on my own, I’ve left the Medicine Hall poorly guarded?"

The Tang Family, like the Xi Family, was a Foundation Establishment Clan involved in the elixir business. However, they weren’t as successful as the Xi Family. Unable to open a shop in the Wanxiang Sect Marketplace, they could only operate their Medicine Hall within the city.

"Second Uncle, I didn’t expect things to escalate this far either," Tang Xing said with a wry smile. "At first, I just wanted to get him killed."

Tang Tu Hong already knew about Yu Changsheng from the letter, including the root cause of the conflict. Ultimately, he knew his family was in the wrong. But on the path of cultivation, there is no right or wrong—only strength and backing.

"He’s your senior martial brother. Do you really have to kill him?" Tang Tu Hong asked with a frown.

"I’ve already made a move against him once. If he puts his mind to it, he’ll find out sooner or later. That’s why I have to see this through to the end—and pull out the weed by its roots!" Tang Xing said through gritted teeth.

"Second Uncle, you don’t understand his talent for alchemy. And he’s only seventeen! Leaving him alive would be a huge threat to our Tang Family! Only by killing him can I become Gongsun Yang’s personal disciple!"

"Alright. Second Uncle will give you my full support. He should be with the Yu Family, correct?" Tang Tu Hong asked.

"He is. I’m certain. After leaving the sect, the only place he would go is back to his family. Plus, some of my spies have already spotted him," Tang Xing said.

"Good. We’ll settle this in one go. We can’t let him escape. That would be the real nightmare."

"Let’s go. I’ll speak with Chen Tianyun, the Chen Family Patriarch, and the others. After we annihilate the Yu Family, their many assets will need to be divided properly."

With that, Tang Tu Hong led his men into the Chen Clan’s estate.

Inside, Chen Yuanbai, Chen Mingze, and Chen Tianyun were already waiting for him.

Although they were all at the Qi Refining Peak, Tang Tu Hong was younger and had a much stronger backing.

Therefore, even on their own home ground, the three Qi Refining Peak experts of the Chen Family didn’t dare treat Tang Tu Hong with anything but the utmost respect.

The negotiations went very smoothly, and all parties were pleased with the outcome.

"Then we will be relying on you, Fellow Daoist Tang. Shall we make our move in two days?" Chen Mingze asked with a crafty smile.

"Agreed," Tang Tu Hong nodded.

At that very moment, Yu Changsheng arrived at the Xi Family’s Medicine Hall.