High Martial Arts: Starting with a Martial Saint Peak Cultivation

"puff......"

He spat out a mouthful of blood, and his life force instantly weakened.

Chen Yuan didn't even glance at him, turning to Chen Tianling and saying, "Show him out. Also, pass on my message to Lin Wei, the head of the General Affairs Department, and Nan Liucang, the head of the People's Livelihood Department: they have openly offended the head of this department and are suspended from their duties pending investigation."

"No member of the Liu family may exchange any resources from the national treasury for three years."

Despite both being ministers, Liu Cang and Lin Wei wield vastly different powers!

Lin Wei is in charge of the General Affairs Department, which is the real power center of the Dragon Martial Division. All other departments have to be mindful of her feelings.

Liu Cang's Ministry of People's Livelihood was a marginal and obscure department with very little power; the two were simply not on the same level.

"Yes!" Chen Tianling accepted the order, picked up the limp Liu Cang, and strode away.

The garden returned to silence.

Chen Yuan lay back down in the chair and closed her eyes.

"You're asking for it."

"........."

That evening, in the secret chamber of the ancestral hall at the Liu family residence.

"Foolish! Foolish indeed!!"

After hearing Liu Cang's report, Old Ancestor Liu was so angry that he trembled all over and pointed at Liu Cang, who was kneeling on the ground, and cursed him.

"How could I have given birth to such an idiot?! No talent in martial arts and such a stupid brain! Who is Chen Yuan? A peak Martial Saint! The Honorary Master! Even Master Zhou treats him with utmost respect!"

"And you actually went to their door to confront them? And demand an explanation?!"

"Are you implying I'm dying too slowly?!"

Liu Cang's face turned pale, and he lowered his head, not daring to speak.

"Grandpa, please calm down," Liu Yunlie said quickly.

"Father acted impulsively, because the Holy Spirit Liquid is too important to our family..."

Old Ancestor Liu glared at him fiercely, scolding him with exasperation, "Calm down? I almost forgot about you!"

"Are you dead? Your father acted impulsively, didn't you know to stop him?! He's stupid, and you're stupid too?! Where's the sense of propriety I taught you?"

Liu Yunlie's face turned ashen, and he quickly bowed his head to beg for forgiveness.

"Grandson knows he was wrong...Grandson tried to stop him, but Father was blinded by anger and wouldn't listen to reason."

"You're just going to let him go to his death without listening to advice?! Is the Holy Spirit more important than life, no matter how important it is?"

Old Ancestor Liu continued angrily.

"Chen Yuan didn't kill you on the spot, which is already out of respect for the Dragon Martial Division!"

Those aristocratic families who wanted to curry favor with Chen Yuan, a peak Martial Saint, were already worried about not having a chance to curry favor with him.

If this gets out...

They will definitely launch an attack on the Liu family immediately, wishing they could crush the Liu family to curry favor with Chen Shengzun!

Old Master Liu took a few deep breaths, forcing himself to calm down.

"Issue my order: Liu Cang is to immediately resign as head of the family and seclude himself to reflect on his actions. All members of the Liu family must prepare generous gifts and accompany me to Dragon Abyss Mountain tomorrow... to plead guilty!"

"Grandpa..." Liu Yunlie exclaimed in surprise, "You're going in person?"

"If I don't go, the Liu family is finished!"

Old Master Liu sighed deeply, his eyes filled with bitterness.

"A peak Martial Saint's wrath can leave corpses strewn for miles. Our Liu family... cannot afford to gamble with that."

He staggered to the window.

Gazing at the deep night outside the window, his eyes filled with complex emotions, he murmured to himself:

"This Saintly Venerable Chen probably doesn't really need that bottle of Holy Spirit Liquid. He's clearly using this incident to give us, the old-established martial arts families entrenched in Luodu, a warning. I wonder when we ever offended him..."

Old Master Liu had no idea.

Chen Yuan took the Holy Spirit Liquid purely to complete a hidden achievement, assuming that the other party was deliberately targeting the Liu family, and was filled with resentment and fear.

The atmosphere inside the Liu family ancestral hall was so oppressive it was suffocating.

Liu Zhenyue, also known as Liu Laozu.

This once formidable Martial Venerable peak expert, who once dominated the battlefield, now seemed to have aged ten years overnight.

Sitting in the armchair, his hands trembled slightly.

Before he could come up with a solution...

Suddenly, the sound of orderly footsteps came from outside the Liu family mansion, heading straight for the ancestral hall with a fierce momentum.

A reprimand followed.

"General Affairs Department business is here; unauthorized personnel please step aside!"

"Where is Liu Cang? By order of Chief Chen, bring men to investigate!"

Liu Zhenyue suddenly stood up, his expression changing drastically.

They arrived so quickly?!

He strode out of the ancestral hall and saw Lin Wei leading a team of elite warriors from the General Affairs Department into the front yard of the Liu family.

They were all dressed in black uniforms with the Dragon Martial Division emblem embroidered on their chests. Their auras were deep and composed, and even the weakest among them was a Martial King!

Lin Wei stood at the very front.

A deep purple business suit accentuated her graceful curves, her makeup was exquisite, but her eyes were as cold as ice.

"Old Liu." She nodded slightly as a greeting.

"By order of Chief Chen, Minister Liu Cang of the Ministry of People's Livelihood has openly offended His Majesty and is hereby suspended from his duties pending investigation. Furthermore, the entire Liu family is prohibited from exchanging any resources from the national treasury for three years, effective immediately!"

"All members of the Liu family who hold positions in the Dragon Martial Division have been temporarily reassigned to sinecure pending further investigation."

Just as she finished speaking, she changed the subject again, her eyes sharp as knives, and continued, "By the way, after an emergency investigation by the General Affairs Department, it has been found that all the martial arts shops, spirit material mines and other enterprises under the Liu family have committed multiple violations, including tax evasion and hoarding of rare and precious materials."

"Starting today, all businesses will be closed for rectification, sealed off, and liquidated!"

"What?!" Old Ancestor Liu Qingtian's expression changed drastically, and he trembled with anger.

Which family doesn't have shady dealings in the Liu family's businesses?

Why investigate now of all times? It's obvious they're using Chen Yuan's name to target him!

As soon as the words fell, the faces of the Liu family members turned deathly pale.

This punishment... is too harsh!

The inability to exchange national treasury resources for three years means that the Liu family's cultivation progress will lag far behind other aristocratic families.

The fact that the sons of the Liu family were reassigned to sinecure positions undermines the family's foundation!

All of his family's businesses were also seized.

If the Liu family cannot find a solution in a short time after these three punishments, they will be crippled and their foundation shaken!

What's worse is that Lin Wei is going to take Liu Cang away!

Once Liu Cang falls into the hands of the General Affairs Department, those who want to curry favor with Chen Yuan will definitely take the opportunity to kick him while he's down, and he'll be badly hurt even if he doesn't die.

The position of Minister of People's Livelihood is completely out of the question!

"Minister Lin!" Liu Zhenyue suppressed his anger, forcing a smile as he spoke in a humble tone, "Little Lin, isn't there some misunderstanding about this?"

"Your grandfather and I were sworn brothers, and we even guarded the Southern Frontier Heavenly Cave together back then. Could you perhaps make an exception for Liu Cang's matter? I will make sure he personally goes to apologize to Saint Chen!"

Lin Wei chuckled softly, but the smile didn't reach her eyes.

"Elder Liu, if you had known this would happen, why did you do it in the first place? To put it bluntly and realistically, how could your mere Liu family dare to offend Chief Chen's authority?"

She had already made up her mind.

The opportunity to curry favor with a peak Martial Saint is a once-in-a-lifetime chance; what does it matter if we offend the Liu family?

The Lin family ranks third among the nine major martial arts families in Luodu.

Their strength already surpassed that of the Liu family.

If the Lin family can seize this opportunity to completely suppress the Liu family and thus climb up to Chen Yuan's high branch, they will definitely be able to rank among the top three!

As for the old friendship between the two families?

In the face of absolute self-interest, it is not worth mentioning.

"You... Lin Wei, are you really going to be so heartless?" Liu Zhenyue's face turned ashen.

This is the cruelty of martial arts families!

They call each other brothers in normal times, but once they fall on hard times, they will immediately kick them while they're down, eager to pounce on them and devour them!

"Heartless?" Lin Wei shook her head.

"Elder Liu, I am acting in accordance with the law. Chief Chen is the Holy Venerable One who protects the Great Xia Dynasty. To offend the Holy Venerable One is to offend the prestige of the Great Xia Dynasty."

"This crime... is no small matter."

This offense is neither too serious nor too minor; it all depends on the mood of the martial saint who has been offended.

But finally, there was an opportunity to please Chen Yuan.

It can be as small as possible, but it can't be allowed to be small!

As she spoke, she gave a wink to the martial artist behind her: "Search, find Liu Cang, and take him away immediately."

Upon receiving orders, the martial artists behind him immediately rushed into various parts of the Liu family compound, ransacking the place, deliberately bumping into members of the Liu family, and constantly provoking them with words.

It's obvious they're trying to provoke Liu Zhenyue!

A middle-aged man from the Liu family couldn't help but shout.

"How dare you! This is the Liu family mansion, you..."

He hadn't finished speaking.

A martial artist at the peak of the Martial Emperor realm behind Lin Wei took a step forward, and his aura exploded out!

The middle-aged man, who was only a Grandmaster, was directly shaken and forced to retreat repeatedly, his face turning deathly pale.

Lin Wei didn't even glance at him, and said indifferently.

"Obstructing the General Affairs Department's law enforcement is an even more serious offense. Old Master Liu, you wouldn't want the Liu family to have another charge against them, would you?"

"Considering the friendship between you and my grandfather, I can let this person go, but only this once. I hope that similar unpleasant things will not happen again in the future."

Liu Zhenyue clenched his fists so tightly they cracked.

He realized that Lin Wei was doing it on purpose!

Her goal was to provoke the Liu family. As long as someone in the Liu family dared to make a move, she could legitimately escalate the situation and even... eradicate the Liu family from the ground up!

What chilled Liu Zhenyue even more was...

He could sense at least three Martial Venerable auras hidden around the Liu family, one of which had even reached the peak of Martial Venerable! And he even recognized some of them!

That's... Lin Zuyao, the patriarch of the Lin family!

This woman had already set up a trap, just waiting for the Liu family to fall into it!

He was so shrewd that he instantly saw through Lin Wei's thoughts!

Seeing Old Ancestor Liu's angry expression, Lin Wei remained neither humble nor arrogant, her eyes concealing a calculation.

It would be even better if this old guy dared to make a move!

She had already asked the Lin family patriarch and several martial arts elders to hide nearby.

Once they take action, they can capture Liu Zhenyue on the spot, accuse him of "rebelling against the Dragon Martial Division," and wipe out the Liu family.

This would allow them to both divide up the Liu family's resources and curry favor with Chen Yuan.

It's a win-win situation.

I just don't know if this old guy will fall for it.

"Well... well, the Lin family is something else..."

Liu Zhenyue gave a bitter laugh, trembling with anger, but he clenched his fists tightly and endured it!

He knew.

Once they take action, the Liu family will be doomed in an instant!

We must swallow this humiliation!

As if all his strength had been drained, he slowly raised his hand, his voice hoarse: "Go...bring Liu Cang out."

"Ancestor!" the Liu family members exclaimed in surprise.

"Do as instructed!" Liu Zhenyue closed his eyes.

A few minutes later, Liu Cang was brought out by two Liu family martial artists.

His face was ashen, and he was weak and listless.

Clearly, he had not yet recovered from the injuries he sustained from Chen Yuan's attack.

Upon seeing Lin Wei and the menacing martial artists from the General Affairs Department behind her, Liu Cang's pupils constricted, and his voice trembled: "Minister Lin, I... I'm only suspended from duty for investigation, what are you doing..."

"Cuff him," Lin Wei said coldly, not expecting that Old Ancestor Liu could actually tolerate it, causing her plan to fail.

Followed by.

Two martial artists from the General Affairs Department stepped forward and put specially made spiritual energy handcuffs and shackles on Liu Cang.

These instruments of torture are entirely black, with densely packed runes engraved on their surface. Once worn, they can seal the major acupoints on a martial artist's body, turning them into an ordinary person with no cultivation.

"What are you doing?!" Liu Cang struggled in terror.

"I'm just suspended from my duties pending investigation! I'm not a criminal! Father! Father, save me!"

Liu Zhenyue felt heartbroken seeing his son's disheveled appearance.

But he knew he couldn't act impulsively now.

"Cang'er...cooperate with the investigation." Liu Zhenyue's voice was hoarse. "Go to the General Affairs Department...explain yourself properly."

"Father?!" Liu Cang looked at him in disbelief.

"Take them away." Lin Wei turned around, not looking at the Liu family members again.

Liu Cang was dragged out of the mansion by two martial artists, his desperate cries echoing in the night air: "Father! Save me! Father!!!"

The sound gradually faded into the distance and eventually disappeared.

Inside the Liu family mansion, there was a deathly silence.

The members of the Liu family lowered their heads, not daring to look at Liu Zhenyue's face. Several younger members even secretly wiped away tears.

They knew that from this day forward, the Liu family... was truly on the verge of decline.

"What a tragedy..."

Liu Zhenyue sighed deeply, his body hunched over.

He already knew in his heart that his eldest son's generation was completely ruined.

Although the Liu family was not wiped out, it was severely damaged.

If he were to choose a family head again in the future, he would definitely choose someone with a high level of intelligence, even if their cultivation level was low. At least they wouldn't be foolish enough to provoke a powerful enemy and push the Liu family to its destruction!