My Ares Son-in-Law

"Have you found out his exact cultivation level?" the old man asked in a deep voice, his tone carrying a hint of barely perceptible urgency.

“Unknown.” Li Changcun shook his head, carefully choosing his words. “But the spectators said that when he made his move, there seemed to be a strange golden energy flowing around his body. The martial arts he used were domineering and unparalleled. They were not any kind of inheritance in the current martial arts world. They were more like… some kind of lost ancient secret technique.”

Li Shicong slowly rose, stood with his hands behind his back, and gazed into the darkness deep within the courtyard. After a moment of silence, he slowly spoke:
"Xiao Chen... War God King Xiao Chen... Interesting. I reckon this kid was probably mentored by the War God King before and received some of his legacy. Now that the War God King has been missing for many years, he's using his name to make his way in the world and create momentum with the War God King's name?"

“There’s something else,” Li Changcun added softly. “Intelligence indicates that he has recently been investigating the War God King’s former subordinates, and… the whereabouts of the War God King’s wife. Perhaps, as you said, Father, he may be someone who received guidance from the War God King, or even the War God King’s secret successor.”

The old man suddenly turned around, his gaze sharp as a knife, and stared directly at Li Changcun: "This is quite interesting. Such a young and talented man, brave and resourceful, with formidable strength, is forced to serve someone who has been missing for many years. It's a real pity."

He paused, his tone carrying an undeniable authority: "Try to win them over. The Li family is in dire need of talent right now; we need someone like this."

“But he killed Li Sheng!” Li Changcun hurriedly reminded him, his tone hesitant. “Li Sheng was a core member of a collateral branch of the family. If we just let it go like this, the collateral branch might have objections.”

"Just a good-for-nothing playboy, he's not worth the death," Li Shicong said coldly, his tone full of disdain. "Kill him and be done with it. The Li family has no shortage of troublemakers like him. Of course, it won't be so easy for Xiao Chen to join the Li family. Let him pass the Li family's test first and prove his worth!"

"What if he fails the test?" Li Changcun asked in a deep voice, his gaze fixed on the old man's cold and hard profile.

"If you fail, then disappear from this world forever." Li Shicong's tone was completely calm, yet it carried a chilling coldness. "A piece of trash who can't even pass the Li family's assessment dares to kill someone from my Li family? He deserves to die."

Li Changcun was silent for a moment, then bowed and nodded: "Yes, son understands."

He knew perfectly well that the Li family's assessment was never a formality, but a life-or-death trial. Success would add a formidable member to the Li family, making them even stronger; failure would allow him to use the assessment to settle this blood feud for Li Sheng and get rid of a useless piece of trash. It was a win-win situation, the most prudent of all.

"There is one more thing I need to report to you." Li Changcun changed the subject and added, "The head of the Blood Demon Society's western division sent someone to say that he wants to meet with you."

"The Blood Demon Society?" Li Shicong scoffed, his tone full of disdain, as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world. "A bunch of vermin hiding in the gutter, surviving by assassination. Do they even deserve to see me? Ignore them and let them fend for themselves in the shadows."

……

Inside Xiao Chen's hilltop villa in the provincial capital of the western region.

The night was deep, and the neon lights outside the window were dazzling, but they couldn't penetrate the coldness in Xiao Chen's eyes.

He stood before the panoramic floor-to-ceiling window, a copper coin with an antique patina between his fingers. He stroked the blurred patterns on it with his fingertips, the coin spinning rapidly between his fingers, reflecting the hazy lights outside the window before quickly falling into the shadows.

The remnants of the Prison Clan have not yet been completely eradicated. Although irrefutable evidence of collusion between the New Martial Arts Association and the Prison Clan has been uncovered, these scoundrels are hiding deeper and deeper, like a malignant tumor, and eradicating them completely will not be easy. What infuriates him even more is that news of Jiang Meng remains completely unanswered, without even a trace.

The copper coin between his fingers suddenly stopped, and Xiao Chen's eyes darkened. Anyone who dared to touch him, whether it was the Prison Clan or the New Martial Arts Association, would pay the price sooner or later!

Just then, the air behind him rippled slightly, and a faint whooshing sound rang out, but it did not escape Xiao Chen's ears.

He didn't turn around, his tone calm yet carrying an undeniable authority: "Su Yu, this is the seventh time you've barged in uninvited. If you do it again, don't blame me for being impolite."

The woman in black lightly touched the ground with her toes and landed silently. Her long, ink-black hair cascaded down her shoulders, obscuring half of her face. The exposed features were as cold and aloof as the moon reflected in a deep pool, devoid of any emotional fluctuation.

"The Pavilion Master wishes to see you." Su Yu's voice was like ice beads falling onto a jade plate, crisp yet devoid of warmth. "Ten o'clock tonight, at the Mysterious Teahouse."

Xiao Chen put the copper coin into his palm, slowly turned around, and glanced at Su Yu with a hint of amusement and sarcasm: "Jiang Xueren? Does he even deserve for me to go see him? Does he really think he's the local tyrant of this western region?"

"You!" Su Yu's pupils suddenly contracted, and her face instantly darkened.

Throughout the entire Western Region, no one dared to address Jiang Xueren, the branch leader of the Blood Demon Society, by his given name, much less speak of him with such contempt. Xiao Chen was the first, and the only one.

"Xiao Chen, you should know the rules of the Blood Demon Society." Su Yuqiang suppressed his shock and anger and said in a deep voice, "You have killed three of my Blood Demon Society's top assassins in succession. This debt must be settled. The fact that the Pavilion Master is willing to see you is already a huge exception. Don't be ungrateful."

Xiao Chen ignored her threat, walked straight to the liquor cabinet, took out a bottle of whiskey, and poured two glasses of the amber liquid. He handed one glass to Su Yu, his tone indifferent: "Go back and tell Jiang Xueren that if he wants to talk, he'll have to come to me in person. As for what you said about giving instructions..."

He swirled the wine in his glass, the liquid rotating and reflecting a cold light.
"It was your Blood Demon Society that accepted the bounty for my assassination first, and you failed three times. I've already given you a lot of face by not directly wiping out your branch. Cleaning up a few clueless assassins is just self-defense, and Jiang Xueren surely understands that."

Su Yu did not take the wine glass, her arms still behind her back, her tone icy and chilling: "You are openly provoking the entire Blood Demon Society!"

“Provocation? Not really.” Xiao Chen tilted his head back and finished his drink, his Adam’s apple bobbing. His tone suddenly turned cold, and his gaze shot towards Su Yu like a knife.

"I'm just stating the facts. If the Blood Demon Society wants to continue this entanglement, I'll fight them to the bitter end. But next time, I won't just kill a few assassins and call it a day... Your Western Region branch needs to move."

The moment his words fell, a powerful aura erupted from Xiao Chen's body, sweeping across the entire area like an invisible tidal wave. Su Yu's face paled, and she instinctively took a half-step back, a strong sense of suffocation washing over her. She hadn't expected Xiao Chen's strength to be so formidable!
Su Yu remained silent for a long time before finally stepping forward, taking the glass of whiskey, and downing it in one gulp. The pungent liquor burned her throat, but it couldn't suppress the fear in her heart. "I will deliver the message. But Xiao Chen, I remind you, the Blood Demon Society's foundation far exceeds your imagination, and Jiang Xueren's strength is far more terrifying than you imagine." (End of Chapter)