Firmament Sword

When Huo Wanyu, Huo Wanchong, and Huo Wanhua, the three elders from the Huo Family's Wan generation, saw their Young Master Feng, they were all taken aback by the sight.

"Huo Feng" had blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, his face was pale, and his eyes were filled with profound grief. Upon seeing the three of them, tears even streamed down his face as he choked out, "Jinyin... To protect me, he was... killed by that detestable Beidou's Eighth Star... *sob*!"

Huo Wanchong's mouth twitched violently. 'Heavens,' he thought, 'I never realized Young Master Feng had such incredible acting talent. This level of intelligence and cunning... it leaves one speechless.'

Huo Wanyu looked helpless. 'My dear Young Master Feng... you don't have to put on such a convincing performance for us, do you?'

Huo Wanhua, however, looked at Huo Feng with admiration. 'As expected of someone destined for great things,' he thought. 'So damn hypocritical!'

In their eyes, it was obvious that Young Master Feng had used his hidden power to kill Huo Jinyin. Yet here he was, putting on such a realistic performance, even going so far as to injure himself...

He wasn't just ruthless to others—he was even more ruthless to himself!

Shameless, black-hearted, and ruthless in his methods. If someone like this couldn't succeed, it could only be chalked up to terrible luck!

And as a direct descendant of the Huo Family, Huo Feng's luck... was obviously not that bad.

Huo Wanchong said in a low voice, "Young Master Feng, my condolences. It was Huo Jinyin's honor to die protecting you. The Huo Family will not forget his contribution!"

Huo Wanyu said, "That's right. Huo Jinyin fulfilled his duty. He is a hero of the family!"

With a grief-stricken expression, Huo Wanhua added, "Huo Jinshan and Huo Jinyin were both killed by Beidou's Eighth Star while protecting Young Master Feng. They both sacrificed themselves for the family. They are heroes!"

Huo Wanchong and Huo Wanyu glanced at Huo Wanhua in surprise, only then noticing that Huo Jinshan was also gone.

Huo Wanchong sucked in a sharp breath, his mouth twitching. After a long moment, he managed to say, "The power of Beidou's Eighth Star... is truly immense! It's no wonder Huo Wanzhang and the others fell to him!"

Huo Wanyu nodded in agreement. "Yes, Beidou's Eighth Star is growing far too quickly, beyond anything we could have imagined!"

Huo Wanhua said, "Although we paid a heavy price, we... have more or less fulfilled the Ancestor's orders. Even though we failed to capture Beidou's Eighth Star, at least... we've confirmed his presence here!"

"Yes. We'll return and report to the Ancestor at once. We can't let Huo Jinshan and Huo Jinyin die in vain, no matter what!" Xu Luo said gravely.

Suddenly, Huo Wanchong's brow twitched, his eyes narrowing. "It seems someone is coming!"

Huo Wanyu added, "That's right, and it's quite a few people!"

Huo Wanhua said, "It looks like... our only choice is to... continue our pursuit of Beidou's Eighth Star."

Huo Wanyu nodded. "Yes, it seems that's our only option. This means... we can't report to the Ancestor in person. We'll have to send a message back."

Huo Wanchong walked up to Xu Luo. "Young Master Feng, you're injured. Let me carry you away from here!"

Xu Luo asked, "The arrivals... are they Huo Lin's people?"

"They must be!" Huo Wanchong sneered. "Who else would come here besides them?"

"Are they here to kill me?" Xu Luo asked.

"Alas, it seems Huo Lin already sees you as his greatest rival," Huo Wanchong sighed, looking at Xu Luo. "A man as intelligent as you, Young Master Feng, can surely see that. We should leave at once!"

"That's right, Young Master Feng," the prudent Huo Wanyu advised. "Since Huo Lin and his men have made a move, they must have come fully prepared. They won't stop until they've achieved their goal. It would be best for us to avoid them for now."

Huo Wanhua's eyes flickered as he added his own counsel. "Confronting them now won't end well. We're not afraid of them, but to be honest, our strength is still inferior to theirs!"

Deep down, Xu Luo was actually eager to confront Huo Lin's group. He had a means of escape, after all, and the more casualties the Huo Family suffered, the more advantageous it was for him.

However, insisting on staying would be illogical. More importantly, it wouldn't fit the "Huo Feng" persona he had so carefully constructed.

After weighing his options, Xu Luo decided to leave for now, for the sake of his future plans.

Huo Wanchong hoisted Xu Luo onto his back and sprinted off into the distance, with Huo Wanhua and Huo Wanyu flanking him like guards.

After this incident, the three Wan-generation elders of the Huo Family were filled with utter admiration for their Young Master, Huo Feng. They solidified their resolve to follow him completely.

Not long after the trio's figures disappeared, Huo Lin and his group arrived aggressively.

Among them, several elders had sharp glints in their eyes, their auras radiating outward without restraint, creating an overwhelming presence.

"We're a step too late." An elder glanced at the surroundings and said flatly, "They've already left."

"There was a battle here just now." Another elder narrowed his eyes, sensing the lingering presence in the air. After a moment, he said, "Someone died!"

"Could it be that Huo Jinyin succeeded?" Huo Dong asked in confusion. "But why isn't he here waiting for us?"

Huo Lin and his followers were also filled with doubt. This was not what they had planned. According to their agreement, Huo Jinshan was supposed to hold back Huo Wanchong and the others, while Huo Jinyin was responsible for attacking Huo Feng.

Afterward, they would claim Beidou's Eighth Star had killed Huo Feng, and that Huo Jinyin had been gravely injured in the process...

So why hadn't Huo Jinyin shown up, and why had Huo Feng and his people vanished?

"Could it be... that Huo Jinyin failed? Did something go wrong?" Huo Lin muttered.

"I'll go take a look," said the elder who had mentioned the battle, his figure instantly vanishing into thin air.

The elder who had declared them late spread his Divine Sense to scan the surroundings. A moment later, he opened his eyes and said in confusion, "There... there really seems to be a trace of Star Power in the air. Can it be... that Beidou's Eighth Star actually appeared here?"

"How is that possible? How could a good-for-nothing like Huo Feng possibly find Beidou's Eighth Star?" Huo Xu's grating voice rang out, filled with disbelief.

The elder shot Huo Xu a cold glance but said nothing.

That single glance made Huo Xu's limbs go cold, and a cold sweat broke out on his back. He immediately fell silent, not daring to spout any more nonsense.

Huo Lin said, "Elder Qi's judgment wouldn't be wrong. But Huo Feng... how could he possibly know the exact whereabouts of Beidou's Eighth Star?"

Huo Dong speculated from the side, "Could it be that he really... defected to Beidou's Eighth Star?"

Just then, the elder who had gone to investigate returned, his expression grim. "Huo Jinyin... is likely dead," he announced. "I sensed a very strong presence of Star Power in the air. If I'm not mistaken, it was the work of Beidou's Eighth Star!"

"Damn it!" Huo Lin gritted out. "I can't believe it... that scumbag Huo Feng actually dared to become a traitor!"

"This is no small matter. We must hurry back to the family and report to the Patriarch and the Ancestor!" Elder Qi said gravely.

A glint flashed in Huo Lin's eyes. "That's right! Huo Feng colluded with Beidou's Eighth Star to murder his own kin. His crime is unforgivable, and I will be the one to expose him!"

"We'll all be witnesses!" Huo Dong and the others said from the side.

They had brought a large group of experts to kill Huo Feng, only to come up empty-handed. But discovering the tracks of Beidou's Eighth Star here was a surprisingly welcome bonus.

Reporting their discovery of Beidou's Eighth Star's location to the Ancestor would surely earn them a reward. More importantly, it would allow them to viciously frame Huo Feng, leaving him with no way to defend himself!

As this thought crossed his mind, his frustration at failing to kill Huo Feng lessened. Huo Lin nodded. "Let's head back now!"

...

「In the living room of the Huo Family Patriarch.」

The Huo Family Patriarch's face was stiff, a complex light flickering in his eyes. He paced back and forth, holding a secret report, unable to make up his mind.

He had been the Patriarch for many years and had faced countless situations. When it came to cunning, few in the entire Huo Family would dare claim to be more shrewd than their Patriarch.

He could see through almost anything with a single glance.

But when it came to Huo Feng, he felt... he couldn't quite see through him.

Before leaving for the Central Plains Star Continent, Huo Feng, despite being a direct descendant of the Huo Family, was seen by everyone as little more than a worthless waste.

He was a hedonistic, arrogant, domineering lecher. His only talent was concealing it, always presenting the world with the facade of a refined and elegant gentleman.

But nearly everyone in the Huo Family knew what kind of person Huo Feng really was.

As the Patriarch, he had never taken Huo Feng seriously. He felt that comparing Huo Feng to his own grandson, Huo Lin, was nothing short of an insult to Huo Lin!

A hundred, even a thousand Huo Fengs, were not worth a single Huo Lin!

That was the Huo Family Patriarch's impression of Huo Feng before his departure to the Central Plains Star Continent.

He never expected that upon Huo Feng's return from the Central Plains Star Continent, it would take only a few days for him to completely transform his image in the eyes of the entire Huo Family.

First, he earned the Ancestor's favor. Then, he revealed an exceptionally outstanding side to his character. All his previous vices seemed to vanish overnight!

That good-for-nothing Huo Feng had transformed into an outstanding direct descendant of the Huo Family!

To the Huo Family Patriarch, this... was more bizarre than any myth.

He held the secret report, muttering to himself, 'You little brat. Even if you can't sense my killing intent, you must at least know that I'm Huo Lin's grandfather. What in the world do you mean by delivering this to me? If I were to suppress it... I wonder... has the Ancestor also received an identical copy?'

The more the Huo Family Patriarch thought about it, the more detestable he found Huo Feng. 'This is no hedonistic youth,' he thought. 'He's clearly a monster!'

'So shrewd it's frightening!'

'The Ancestor... has most likely already received this report!' the Huo Family Patriarch grumbled. 'Which means... I can't suppress this. I just can't!'

Just then, an excited voice called from outside, "Grandfather, I've found traces of Beidou's Eighth Star! And... I discovered that scoundrel Huo Feng colluding with him..."

The Huo Family Patriarch's expression instantly turned hideous. A fit of rage ignited within him, erupting uncontrollably.

"Silence!"

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