Chapter 250: Chapter 250: Who will lead us in the future?
In the distance, Daniel walked up to George and shook his head as George started to step forward, "This is their family matter. The Forebearer is protecting them. Let them handle it themselves; it\'s not our place to interfere."
"Alright."
George nodded, not fully understanding, and followed Daniel away.
Just a few steps later, he regretted it, realizing his uncle was tricking him. "George, you\'re the head of Azure Cloud Pavilion. Have you ever thought about using the prestige of Azure Cloud Pavilion, which has been around for tens of thousands of years, to gradually take over the major powers in Cloudview County..."
Behind them.
Michael continued to plead under the complex gazes of his family, his eyes filled with even greater shock.
He had spent his life on the high throne of Duke\'s Mansion, never having been so humiliated or so pleading.
He had calculated everything in his life, but he had never foreseen this day.
"I did it all for our family, for our family to continue in Cloudview County for a hundred thousand, even a million years. Only then could I share everything with you, so our whole family could achieve Basic Mastery, and we could spend countless ages together..."
Michael was begging when Kenneth pulled out a pill that could restore Competent Force!
"Give it to me, good boy. If dad survives, the whole Cloudview County, even the Emerald Empire, will be yours!"
But his hope quickly turned to despair as Kenneth, right in front of him, swallowed the life-saving pill!
"You\'ve deceived me for hundreds of years, and you still want to deceive now? You\'ve never treated us like family! Each of us was just a tool for your use!"
Blood poured from Michael\'s mouth.
Betty looked on with pity, "How long do you still want to harm us?!"
Joseph, always a man of few words, just silently watched.
The sun shone brightly over Duke\'s Mansion.
The family of five surrounded Michael, watching him quietly pass away.
The warm sunlight seemed to dispel the shadows that Michael had cast over their family for many years.
When the servants arrived, they only saw Michael staring up at the sky with eyes full of despair and unwillingness to die.
"Click, clack."
Only Kenneth remained, silently playing chess by the board.
[Special Event—At the Pinnacle of Azure Cloud, Masters of the Era, Completed!]
[Your family has completely eliminated Michael. With no more obstacles in Cloudview County, your family\'s power has reached the summit, recognized as the strongest in Cloudview County, replacing Duke\'s Mansion as the true rulers. The Blackwood family has become the masters of this era in Cloudview County, prestige enhanced.]
[Congratulations, you have gained +10 Family Will]
"He\'s finally gone for good!"
Ethan and his relatives watched as Michael passed away, and George\'s elders even took a tour around the entire Duke\'s Mansion to make sure Michael\'s Competent Force was completely extinguished before everyone finally felt at ease.
If the game says he\'s dead, then he must be dead.
For Ethan, reaching the peak of Cloudview County wasn\'t really a big deal.
After all, this was the reputation his family had fought for on this land generation after generation, earned through their blood and sweat, and it was only right.
Just as he was about to switch the view back to his family\'s home base.
Ethan saw George sneaking off to the back hill of Martin\'s place... that was where the cemetery was.
George looked solemnly at the energy locator in his hand, pondering something, as a guzheng had already been opened, and his elders skillfully picked up shovels and spades from inside the guzheng, looking quite interested.
"Stop digging, you!"
Ethan quickly used the Forebearer Psychic Position to prevent George from disturbing the peace of Martin\'s ancestral graves.
Looking again.
Martin was not at peace either.
Daniel, that guy, stood with his hands behind his back at the entrance to Martin\'s treasure vault.
Martin\'s household elders, retainers, and loyal servants all surrounded him as if facing a great enemy, but Daniel\'s gaze remained calm, speaking first.
"Please rest assured, unless you invite me, I will not enter."
An elder in plain clothes from Martin\'s family flashed a look of helplessness, "Fellow Daoist, I\'m not in charge of such secret places of Martin, and now that Michael... died from a psychic power mishap while cultivating, many matters will have to wait for the new family head to take over, right?"
"Indeed."
Daniel, now appearing even older, was completely composed in front of Martin\'s elder.
His demeanor seemed even more distinguished.
As the wind blew, Daniel\'s white hair and beard fluttered, and his face always carried a calm smile.
To outsiders, he exuded the aura of a transcendent sage.
Looking at the screen showing Martin\'s treasure vault, Ethan\'s eyes gleamed.
This was something the family had planned upon arrival: to eliminate Michael and take a look at Martin\'s foundation.
After all, Duke\'s Mansion had been around even longer than Azure Cloud Pavilion, and since Martin and Blackwood were related by marriage, it was good to know more about each other.
He then shifted the view to report the good news to Nathan and others.
...
[Blackwood]
"With Michael\'s death, our family has finally become invincible within Cloudview County! Forebearer, we did it, under the leadership of the Forebearer, step by step we reached the pinnacle of Azure Cloud..."
Nathan excitedly hugged Luna and wept in the ancestral hall.
Under the Primordial Blood Tree.
"Oh!"
Amelia raised the Forebearer Psychic Position high, circling around the Primordial Blood Tree, "Old tree, old tree! Forebearer said our family is powerful now, haha!"
This caused the face on the trunk of the Primordial Blood Tree to spin along with Amelia, dizzying it.
At this moment.
[Border of Cloudview County]
This area had gathered Psychics from various sects and clans within Cloudview County.
After the Druids retreated back to the Endless Forest, these Psychics had rushed to the border at the first call and assembled into an army.
Facing this war between races, they were able to set aside their differences and follow the arrangements of the ancient leaders of Cloudview County\'s Competent Forces.
They established magical formations along the border of Cloudview County, ready to counterattack at a moment\'s notice.
At this moment, Cloudview County was truly united.
On the ground, hundreds of massive ability vessels were in action, with all forces contributing.
Floating in mid-air was a grand structure where Competent Force Psychics were seated around a chessboard, meditating.
The chessboard displayed a projection of the distribution of Druid forces along the edge of the Endless Forest.
These venerable elders, with their far-reaching vision, discussed future matters.
"Thanks to Blackwood, the Druids were driven out, and Cloudview County was spared. But these Druids took away our inherited psychic fields, psychic medicines, and psychic mines. Without these resources, the future generations in Cloudview County might struggle to grow.
We fear that the scramble for scant resources will lead to deadly conflicts, endless internal strife, and accumulating grudges that will eventually affect us all."
"World affairs ebb and flow. United in purpose, we can find opportunities outside Cloudview County. The Druids still have them, and so do other regions! Starlight County and Cedar County are calling for our help, and they too have resources. It just means our descendants will have to travel far."
"Who will lead us in the future?"
The five elders from Martin, each taking turns to speak, completely ignored the other Competent Force elders from Cloudview County, causing many to frown.
Old acquaintances of Blackwood, like the rugged Immortal Master from Ten Thousand Life Mountain, the blindfolded Elder Ralph from Ghost Eye Demonic Gate, and Elder Jason from Azure Cloud Pavilion, who had mustered all their forces, were now quietly focusing on a young man—Marcus.