Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains

Chapter 350: 185, Brass Sword Formation

In the chaos that engulfed Tongling, the Hou Clan did indeed make a fortune, but that didn't mean they came out without any losses: casualties to some extent, exposure of their entanglements with the Qinglong Association, feuds with Ding Buhai and Tong Wudi, and lastly, by turning their coats on the battlefield, they offended the Ziqing Holy Sect...

Of all these losses, if Hou Yuxiao were to choose the most severe one, it would undoubtedly be the impact that the disturbance in Tongling had on Old Fifth—Hou Yuduan.

Honestly speaking, apart from the innocent lives that were lost, Hou Yuduan was the one who suffered the most from the disturbance in Tongling, and in some ways, his inner turmoil might even be more painful and excruciating than those who had perished.

All along, Hou Yuduan had kept a very deep cover. Not to mention strangers, some secrets about him, even Hou Yuxiao, his elder brother, might not fully understand—let alone knowing how strong he actually was, which still remained a mystery to Hou Yuxiao.

Hou Yuduan practiced both Confucianism and Martial Arts. His martial arts level could be sensed through his Qi, so his Cultivation in the Gang Qi Second Realm, Collecting Evil Phase, couldn't be concealed from Hou Yuxiao. But his Confucianism level was different—it could only be sensed when he made a move. Previously, when Hou Yuxiao joined forces with him to slay Ding Dian, he knew that Hou Yuduan's Confucianism level was in the Five Realms of Rectifying Heart, equivalent to a Master Realm Martial Artist, but he never asked which of the Five Realms he was in.

The reason Hou Yuxiao never inquired about his strength, first, was based on the trust in his own younger brother, and second, was to serve as an incentive for himself, always reminding himself that Old Fifth's strength might exceed his own, which better urged him as the Family Head to practice with even more diligence and effort.

Although Old Fifth was enigmatic in his thoughts, his loyalty to the clan and his trust in his elder brother were able to withstand any test. In this regard, Hou Yuxiao had absolute faith from beginning to end, unwavering despite any person or event.

But no matter how inscrutable, as Old Fifth's elder brother who spent day and night with him, there were things that Hou Yuxiao could be certain of, such as Old Fifth truly falling in love with Maiden Hong—a fact that, as an observer, he could fully ascertain.

When Maiden Hong died in the end, her physical body reverted to being Tian Honglu, unmistakably indicating that the starting point of the Blood Demon disturbance was last year's Zhaoyang Disturbance, with the process likely being as Maiden Hong and Ji Yanzhi had described during their great battle:

Four years ago, when Ji Yanzhi passed through Zhaoyang, Maiden Hong knew he was seeking a breakthrough to the Sub-saint level and that the checkpoint resided within her. Therefore, she preemptively orchestrated a plan, allowing him to discover Tian Honglu, leading him to mistake her for his reincarnated self, when in fact, she intended to revive herself using Tian Honglu's body.

Looking back now, it's clear that Ji Yanzhi knew about this. He counteracted with calculated compliance, taking Fa Zheng under his wing and making use of Tian Honglu. After all, reviving the Blood Demon was key to his breakthrough to the Sub-saint level. But during this process, he discovered the jade in the rough that was Hou Yuduan.

From Ji Yanzhi's final words and his reaction, Hou Yuxiao deduced that he must have met Old Fifth long before and held him in high regard.

Last year's disturbance in Zhaoyang began with Hou Yuxiao's visit to Tianling County, where he was threatened by Tong Hu into cooperating with their plan to bring back Tian Honglu. It escalated as the Mountain Sword Sect launched an all-out assault on Zhaoyang, leading to heavy casualties and even Fa Zheng killing his own sister before everyone's eyes. All these seemed to be instigated by Fa Zheng, but undoubtedly, Ji Yanzhi was the puppet master behind everything.

Ji Yanzhi knew early on about the connection between Tian Honglu and Maiden Hong. He deliberately had Hou Yuxiao bring him to Zhaoyang, prearranging Old Fifth to meet her in advance, leading to the subsequent romance between Maiden Hong and Hou Yuduan. In other words, their relationship was clearly orchestrated by Ji Yanzhi.

What was the purpose of this arrangement?

Looking back now, Maiden Hong's eventual suicide was evidently the greatest gain from this deliberate setup. However, considering Ji Yanzhi's deal with Huangfu Xing and the ongoing wars between the two states, Ji Yanzhi's intentions are surely not limited to this alone.

This kind of person, who uses his own life as a pawn to manipulate the situation of the world; someone with such ruthlessness in their thoughts, words, and actions, is beyond the speculation of ordinary people. Although Hou Yuxiao still hasn't fully grasped the extent of Ji Yanzhi's intentions in the Tongling affair, he understands the parts that are closely related to himself.

It includes why Ji Yanzhi made such a deliberate effort to arrange for Hou Yuduan to be with Maiden Hong. In the past three days, he has unravelled some clues and harbors some guesses as to his reasons.

Hou Yuduan is extremely talented with a very high aptitude for Confucianism. Ji Yanzhi values him highly. With this as the premise, many things become clear.

Without judging the merits, from Ji Yanzhi's final words and actions, he was at the very least a person with profoundly steadfast convictions, exceedingly loyal to the Great Yu Dynasty, and with an almost fanatical trust in Confucianism.

Such a person can influence and change many others' fundamental natures. For example, his student Fa Zheng is a typical case. During the last years of Wuzong, Ji Yanzhi, in his dedication to rescue the common people and serve the Great Yu, could even hand over his sister to bandits. His disciple, Fa Zheng, in pursuit of his ideals, was also able to kill his own sister Tian Honglu by his own hands. This is no coincidence. Whether it's considered indoctrination, cultivation, brainwashing, or influence—all are applicable terms.

Therefore, from this, Hou Yuxiao could somewhat discern that Ji Yanzhi likely intended to use this orchestrated event to change, or at least influence, Hou Yuduan's thinking.