"Who gave you the courage to think I would agree?"
Ding Yunjun, incensed to the point of laughter, scoffed and retorted. She then casually withdrew the spiritual power she had used to conceal her cultivation, and a dense, terrifying pressure emanated from her, sweeping across the entire Liu Manor.
Liu Xiangjun, who was directly facing the pressure.
Before her mind could even process it, she was on her knees.
Certainly, Ding Yun could have continued to argue and make a scene, waited for them to do something even more excessive, and then revealed her cultivation. The effect of slapping their faces would have been even greater then.
But Ding Yun wasn't here to slap faces. There were no rewards for successfully doing so, so why should she endure their insults?
Thus, she simply revealed her cultivation directly.
Let's see who dared to suggest she become a concubine.
Meanwhile, most of the Liu family members with cultivation within the manor sensed this terrifying pressure. The timid ones, fearing they had provoked some great trouble for the Liu family, quickly fled. The bolder ones, unaware of the cause or consequences, lingered for the moment, planning to observe the situation.
Only the two Foundation Establishment old ancestors of the Liu family, along with the family head who was also at the Foundation Establishment realm, knew they had no choice but to face it.
They rushed over reluctantly.
Their intention was to apologize and reason with the person, no matter what. They hoped this powerful cultivator, who had appeared out of nowhere and was inexplicably angered within their Liu family, was not a bloodthirsty individual and would be willing to talk.
Otherwise, their Liu family would be in dire straits.
However, when they arrived at the center of the pressure, all three were somewhat stunned. This was because they could clearly sense that the terrifying pressure was emanating from Ding Yun.
They weren't strangers to Ding Yun. They had discussed her just that morning. In fact, Liu Xiangjun's approach to Ding Yun to discuss becoming a concubine had been their instigation.
But what was the current situation?
How could their Qi Refining stage girl suddenly be emitting a pressure comparable to a Golden Core True Monarch? Were they hallucinating, or what?
"It has nothing to do with me. My father ordered me to. I only found out about this today. They planned this long ago. I was just responsible for delivering the message."
Needless to say, Liu Xiangjun, who had been terrified to her knees, was desperately trying to distance herself from the situation, enduring the terrifying pressure.
When Ding Yun unleashed a pressure that could crush him, he no longer dared to treat Ding Yun as his daughter. After all, it was difficult to say if the person with such terrifying pressure was truly his daughter.
Who knew if it was some ancient demon possessing her body?
Who could guarantee that the other party wouldn't just swat him dead?
In the cultivation world, anything was possible!
"Oh, so the real culprits are the three of you. Come, come, tell me what you wanted from me. Let me see your audacity."
Ding Yun had no intention of killing them in the first place. If she had wanted to, she would have done so long ago. Therefore, she simply turned around, transferring all her pressure onto the three Liu family cultivators who had just arrived, namely her grandfather and the other two old ancestors.
These three were considered the pillars of the Liu family.
If anything unexpected happened to them.
The Liu family would be carved up by other powerful families in an instant.
"Senior, please forgive us. We had no idea when you took a liking to Yan'er's body, which is why we dared to act so recklessly and make such a decision. Had you revealed your identity earlier, we would never have dared to plan this.
We beg you to quell your anger. We will do our best to meet any request and offer any compensation. Please do not be offended!"
The Liu family head, now believing Ding Yun had been possessed, quickly bowed and apologized, while also pleading with Ding Yun to spare them.
To spare their family.
They would never dare to investigate the matter of possession.
Upon hearing this, Ding Yun finally understood their misunderstanding. Well, it wasn't entirely a misunderstanding. However, considering the original owner's dying wish to revitalize the family and make them proud of her, she had to quickly suppress her pressure and spread her hands helplessly:
"Father, Grandfather, have you misunderstood?
I have not been possessed. I was simply upset to suddenly learn that you two intended to sell me behind my back. If I had been possessed, why would I still be staying at home? I would have either left immediately or, to avoid any leaks, destroyed the Liu family before leaving."
"So, please relax."
"I found a master years ago. However, my master seemed to have powerful enemies and did not wish to reveal his identity. Thus, he only taught me cultivation techniques in private and also instructed me to keep a low profile. Because of this, although I broke through long ago,
I have been hiding my cultivation.
It was only recently, when I would have been forced into a marriage if I didn't break through to the middle stage of Qi Refining, that I was compelled to register."
"Oh, and the commotion at Green Wave Lake a few days ago was caused by me. It happened when I broke through to the Foundation Establishment realm. The cultivation technique I practice is special and extremely powerful. It also consumes a great deal of spiritual energy when cultivating. My master has not provided me with cultivation resources for a long time. The resources provided by the family are not enough to even fill my teeth.
And I could no longer suppress my cultivation.
So, I was forced to make do and break through!"
"Do you understand? Are there any other questions?"
Ding Yun had done quite well to concoct a plausible explanation in such a short time. What more could they ask for?
Her grandfather and the other two old ancestors thought for a while and felt that what Ding Yun said made sense. Throughout history, possession often occurred with infants. Even when adults were possessed, they would hide quickly afterward.
And focus on recovering their cultivation.
Why would they stay put?
Most importantly, they could sense that Ding Yun's strength made it effortless for her to destroy them. There was no need for her to deliberately weave a lie and call them father and grandfather.
If the other party were truly an ancient demon, would they have no dignity? How could they possibly call them father and grandfather?
Furthermore, Ding Yun had already retracted her pressure, and the overall atmosphere had eased considerably. However, the Liu family head and the others were still unsure how to treat Ding Yun.
Thus, the scene remained awkward for quite some time.
After a long pause, the Liu family head finally said:
"Since you were not possessed, I will still take the liberty of calling you Yan'er. You see, this matter is truly… one cannot help but wonder how to put it. You are too low-key. If you had been slightly more high-profile,
then none of these events would have happened.
Pretend you didn't hear those words from before.
No matter how senile we old folks are, we would never allow a Foundation Establishment cultivator to be a concubine to a Golden Core True Monarch."
"Uh… do you know where your master is now? And what is the current situation with your cultivation? How can your Foundation Establishment pressure be no less than that of a Golden Core?
Is the difference between cultivation techniques really that significant?"
"My master hasn't appeared for about half a year. I don't know if he's been delayed by something or if he's encountered enemies and fled. He's always contacted me before.
So, I don't know where he is now?
As for my cultivation.
I am certain that I am at the Foundation Establishment realm. However, my master told me that the True Essence in the Foundation Establishment realm of my cultivation technique is a thousand times greater than that of a normal Foundation Establishment realm. The condensation of True Essence can even be comparable to that of a true Golden Core True Monarch.
And generally speaking, the magic power of an ordinary Golden Core True Monarch does not reach a thousand times that of a Foundation Establishment. So, my current strength should be comparable to that of an ordinary Golden Core True Monarch cultivator.
Some prodigies might be stronger."
"The gap between good and bad cultivation techniques is indeed that large, that astonishing. I do not wish to reveal myself for now, so you can use the excuse later that a cultivator passed by to temporarily cover up what just happened.
That's all for now. I'll be leaving.
If there are any other questions, we can discuss them tonight."
The current Foundation Establishment realm did not allow Ding Yun to openly act. Thus, after briefly explaining the issues raised by her grandfather, she stated that she still wished to remain low-key and then hastily left the courtyard.
This was both to shift the blame for the recent events onto them,
allowing them to figure out how to gloss over it themselves.
It was also to give them time to accept what had just happened, to accept what Ding Yun had said, and to consider how they should treat Ding Yun in the future.