Chapter 1000: Lu Ding Is Gone, the Western Region Has No Leader, Yu Liuli Intends to Launch the Final Strike! |
The gears of fate began to turn, and events that should have occurred much later were now starting ahead of schedule.
Voices rang out one after another in the meeting room.
"I propose increasing the exchange rate for demon contribution points to reward the brave with heavy incentives!!!"
"I propose opening the national treasury wide, mobilizing national power to the maximum scale, and increasing resource production to prepare for emergencies!!!"
"I propose lifting the environmental protection policies on the Heavenly Medicine Mountain to fully produce rare natural treasures!!!!"
Proposal after proposal emerged.
Since we're doing this, let's do it right!!!
Soon, each proposal was quickly voted through and approved.
On Document Number One, line after line of new text was inscribed.
On the other side.
Ji Continent, the Lu Family.
At this moment, in the Lu Family's living room, four people sat silently on the sofa, arranged in rows.
Until Lu Jiuchuan, who was stationed in the Great Han, transmitted the documents.
Of course, normally, it wouldn't have been this fast.
But didn't you want to investigate?
You didn't need to investigate—the Great Han directly compiled all the information available externally that didn't involve any of Lu Ding's classified details and handed it to you.
After all, if you wanted to find something, there was nothing that couldn't be found.
It didn't matter anyway.
Lu Teng, sitting on the sofa, looked at the introduction and information about Lu Ding in the documents, and his frown deepened with every passing second.
The other three gathered around and followed along from beginning to end.
The atmosphere grew heavier and heavier.
Especially for the two younger ones, Lu Bing and Lu Xiu.
They had been feeling indignant about Lu Ding's words earlier.
What was he so cocky about? What was there to be proud of? Did he really think he was the big brother or something?
If it weren't for their upbringing, just watch how they'd tear into him. His character was absolutely terrible—no wonder he'd been cast out.
Now that the information was presented, both of them fell silent.
The records were filled with dazzling and outrageous achievements, along with brutal and ruthless methods of handling affairs.
Although there was no clear account of Lu Ding's development in the Third Circle, even the scattered words and his specific performance in the Second Circle were enough to make anyone's scalp tingle.
Lu Bing and Lu Xiu, as descendants of the Lu Family, had lived in comfort and luxury, with everything they used being top-notch.
They had never experienced the life of scraping by amidst blood and fire.
Sure, they had seen blood and killed people—they called it training.
But that kind of life was Lu Ding's daily reality.
If he didn't touch blood for a single day, he felt uncomfortable all over.
From the time he had developed until now, the number of demons, monsters, cultists of evil sects, rebellious forces, and people of different stances that had died at Lu Ding's hands added up to hundreds of thousands at the very least.
Just going to Great Jing alone had cost plenty of lives.
Let's put it this way—the number of people Lu Ding had killed might have been more than what these two younger ones had even seen.
Originally, Lu Bing, who still harbored resentment and was eager to visit the New City to see for herself, suddenly felt a bit hesitant.
Lu Xiu spoke up beside her.
"He's killed so many people."
With those words, Lu Teng let out a slow sigh.
Although the Lu Family was not a charitable organization or a force of pure goodwill, they at least operated openly and didn't casually commit too much slaughter.
But Lu Ding...
"Dad, if we bring big brother back, he won't lay a hand on me and sis, right?"
Lu Teng and Luo Qingshi's hearts sank again at Lu Xiu's question.
He continued, "Mom, if we bring big brother back, with a personality like his, won't he cause trouble for the Lu Family?"
"I'm a bit scared of him."
"He's vicious, he's strong, and he's talented..."
"We've already had a falling out with him. If he comes back, gets the support of the Lu Family, gets trained by the ancestors, pushes his talent to the limit, and leaves all the other Lu Family disciples of our generation in the dust, won't life get tough for us?"
If Lu Ding had been there—well, if he had actually been there and seen Lu Xiu acting like this.
He would probably have slapped him across the face without a second thought.
Eighteen years old, seventh level of God Ascension, talent showing signs of surpassing even Lu Bing—and you're pretending to be weak and fragile?!
Male tea bitch, I'll finish you off, you little shit!
Lu Teng and his wife were affected by Lu Xiu's words and felt their heads spinning.
They didn't want to abandon Lu Ding, but bringing him back casually with the personality he had already developed was truly a headache.
Lu Bing suggested beside them, "How about we bring him back and send him to the Sixth Ancestor's side for some proper purification to grind away his aggression?"
The Sixth Ancestor Lu Bing referred to was the only member of the Lu Family who cultivated Buddhism. He talked about compassion and mercy all day long, and every Lu Family disciple who ended up under his care turned out just as foolish as him.
These siblings were playing off each other perfectly—it was as obvious as Sima Zhao's intentions, known to everyone. But Lu Teng and Luo Qingshi, due to their status as parents, simply refused to think in that negative direction at all.
But the Lu Family's Sixth Ancestor wasn't human-made—he was a weed.
After all, Lu Ding was still their son.
Lu Teng thought it over and finally shook his head.
"We'll talk about it when the time comes."
A refusal that wasn't explicitly stated.
A glint of sharpness flashed in Lu Xiu's eyes.
Lu Teng had four children in the Lu Family. Among them, the ones he had with Luo Qingshi—Lu Ding's birth mother—were Lu Xiu and Lu Bing.
With his first wife, Shui Ci, he had Lu Yuexin and Lu Yansheng.
Lu Yuexin was already betrothed, though the formalities hadn't been completed yet. Lu Yansheng had received a legacy from elsewhere and wouldn't return to the Lu Family in the future. Although Lu Bing's talent was outstanding, Lu Xiu's talent was showing signs of surpassing hers.
So when it came to the future authority of the Lu Family, Lu Xiu had a significant competitive edge.
He didn't want Lu Ding to come back and suddenly add a formidable opponent out of nowhere.
From the time he had developed until now, the number of demons, monsters, heretical cultists, rebellious forces, and people of different stances that had died at Lu Ding's hands added up to hundreds of thousands at the very least.
He thought to himself, 'Big brother, big brother, you never came back for over a decade, and now you suddenly appear. We have no bond between us. Don't blame little brother for being ruthless and playing tricks.'
Seeing that his first plan had failed.
Lu Xiu began silently calculating other methods in his mind.
Lu Teng and his wife were also thinking of ways.
On the other side.
The New City.
When Lu Ding left, although it wasn't with much fanfare, after experiencing how he had left and returned last time, grown in cultivation, advanced in combat power, and dealt a severe blow to the forces disrupting the western region, those hidden powers had learned their lesson.
They monitored the 749 Bureau's every move in the five western districts from various peripheral angles.
Although they couldn't infiltrate, they had seen Lu Ding leave.
And that was why.
In an old abandoned factory area in the Path of Dry Bones region.
Yu Liuli, who was hiding there, looked at her subordinates and younger brother and spoke.
"Currently, the situation in the western region and Lu Ding's strength are beyond what we can handle. I previously requested permission from above to retreat, but since we haven't made any effective interference, the higher-ups are very dissatisfied!!!"
"If we go back now, we might face punishment!"
"Now that Lu Ding is gone, the western region has no leader. We must seize this opportunity to launch our final strike, then retreat quickly. At the very least, this will prevent us from having made this trip for nothing and reduce our punishment."