"You are… you are…" The man's hands trembled, and his words came out haltingly.
Yun Jin nodded and kindly helped him finish, "You guessed right. We're the big villains who caused a scene at the city gate and made the Yu Family disciples kneel and beg for mercy."
Who would call themselves a big villain?
For a moment, the man didn't know what to say. But seeing that Yun Jin and Yu Songnian showed no intention of harming him, he gradually calmed down.
"We just want to ask you a few questions," Yu Songnian said as he slowly took out several mid-grade spirit stones and placed them on the table.
For a mortal, this was already a huge sum of money.
The man's eyes inevitably lit up.
He didn't take them immediately and only cautiously asked, "What I know isn't much."
"Just some simple questions," Yu Songnian said in a low voice. "You all seem to be very afraid of the Yu Family?"
The man trembled slightly, as if weighing whether he should speak.
Perhaps because he felt that these two didn't look like people from the Yu Family, he finally spoke slowly, "Who in Lin City isn't afraid of the Yu Family?"
"Why?" Yun Jin asked. "Lin City could be considered to be a medium-sized city. Canglan Kingdom should have sent a city lord to manage it. The Yu Family is just a cultivation clan, yet it looks like they completely dominate the place. Does the city lord not intervene?"
This is a world of cultivation.
Anyone who could become a city lord would certainly have a notable cultivation level.
It shouldn't have been possible for a single family to expand to this extent.
The man gave a bitter laugh and said, "Back when the Yu Family's patriarch was still Senior Yu Feng, the Yu Family treated ordinary people very well. They would regularly provide relief to the common people, and they would normally even help guard the city gates. At the time, when the people of Lin City mentioned the Yu Family, who wouldn't give a thumbs-up?"
Yun Jin glanced at Yu Songnian.
Yu Feng was Third Senior Brother's father.
Yu Songnian's expression was indescribably complicated. He asked, "And then? How did things change later?"
The man let out a bitter laugh, "Ever since Patriarch Yu Feng met with disaster, and the young patriarch was also expelled, the Yu Family's patriarch became Yu Lin. In the first few years, things were still peaceful. But in recent years, Yu Lin's son, Yu Liangping, was tested and found to possess an Innate Thunder Body, and was taken in by the super sect Yuehua Sect. I heard that Yu Liangping is highly valued by Yuehua Sect, and because of that, the Yu Family's relationship with Yuehua Sect has grown closer and closer."
"That's the only super sect in Canglan Kingdom: Yuehua Sect! With Yuehua Sect's strong backing, even the king of Canglan Kingdom can do nothing. Gradually, the so-called city lord became nothing more than a figurehead. Lin City is now completely under the Yu Family's control."
Yu Songnian frowned, "No one manages it anymore?"
The man smiled bitterly, "Manage it? Who would manage it? The king dares not, and others have even less reason to. Who would be willing to offend Yuehua Sect for the sake of a mere Lin City? Could one still expect Qingxiao Pavilion to step in?"
In theory, this entire region fell under Qingxiao Pavilion's jurisdiction.
But as a holy land, Qingxiao Pavilion would never concern itself with such trivial matters.
Yun Jin nodded.
She now understood the Yu Family's situation. It's nothing more than latching onto a super sect and completely inflating.
"By the way," the man added on his own initiative, "you came to Lin City to challenge that sword domain at the Yu Family, right? You really shouldn't hold out any hope."
"Why?" Yun Jin wasn't convinced. "I'm a sword dao genius."
A fifteen or sixteen year old girl earnestly claiming to be a sword dao genius, the man took it as her boasting and smiled, "After the Yu Family got involved with Yuehua Sect, Yuehua Sect also specially sent people to look at that sword domain. It seems Yuehua Sect is quite interested in it. This time, Yuehua Sect announced early that they would have their sword dao genius, Ma Yuanwu, personally come to break the sword domain and seize the treasure at its center."
"Ma Yuanwu?" Yun Jin looked blank.
She didn't recognize the name at all.
The man hurriedly explained, "That sword domain is very special. To enter it, there are two conditions. First, one mustn't be older than a hundred years. Second, one's cultivation must not exceed the Soul Transformation Stage. That Ma Yuanwu is just short of a hundred years old, yet his cultivation is already at Soul Transformation Stage! Among cultivators who can enter the sword domain, he is the most optimal"
Soul Transformation Stage.
Yun Jin nodded, then asked, "But the sword domain should mainly test sword dao talent, right?"
The man said, "Ma Yuanwu's sword dao talent is even more astonishing. Setting other things aside, some time ago, that person from Kunlun Sword Sect came to our region. Do you know why?"
Yun Jin and Yu Songnian's expressions immediately turned strange.
The man continued in a lowered voice, "It's said that it was precisely for Ma Yuanwu! That supreme Sword Immortal of Kunlun Sword Sect also wants to take him as a disciple!"
Yun Jin & Yu Songnian: "..."
Although they didn't know how this rumor started, it was indeed quite outrageous.
"That's probably a rumor," Yun Jin said tactfully.
The man shook his head, "How could it be a rumor? I heard that even the Pavilion Master of Qingxiao Pavilion personally stepped forward to compete for Ma Yuanwu."
The corner of Yun Jin's mouth twitched.
This was getting more and more exaggerated.
"In any case, Ma Yuanwu's talent is extremely terrifying. On top of that, Yuehua Sect has secretly researched the sword domain for many years. This time they suddenly made such a grand announcement, it means they must have complete confidence. With Ma Yuanwu there, everyone else can only serve as background."
The man looked at Yun Jin with some pity, thinking that she must have suffered a heavy blow.
Yun Jin smiled, her eyes curving, "It's fine. I'll just casually give it a try. Big brother, judging by how you looked earlier, it seems you have some grudge against the Yu Family?"
The man sighed.
At this point, there's nothing he couldn't say. He spoke slowly, "My daughter was a servant in the Yu Family. A few years ago, she died under unclear circumstances. I went to the Yu Family to ask about it, but they directly beat me and threw me out. To this day… I have never even seen Xiao Yu's body."
The man's face was filled with sorrow, looking utterly despaired.
He also wanted to seek justice for his daughter, to find the truth.
But.
He's only a mortal without any spiritual roots.
And the Yu Family had long since become a colossal power.
How could he contend against the Yu Family?
All he could do was secretly shed tears.
Besides that, once he stepped out of this door, he didn't even dare to utter a single word of complaint.
Yu Songnian suddenly stood up and walked straight outside.
The man looked at Yun Jin in confusion, "What is he…?"
Yun Jin quickly said, "It's nothing. Keep the spirit stones. We have never met today."
Yun Jin sighed softly and vanished from the spot.
She roughly understood Third Senior Brother's feelings.
He was born in the Yu Family and raised in the Yu Family, and he must once have had many beautiful memories.
But now…
The Yu Family had become like this.
The anger in Third Senior Brother's heart was self-evident.
Yuehua Sect, a super sect.
Yun Jin silently repeated the name several times, and her brows couldn't help but knit slightly.