Chapter 49

"Alright, let's confront it then."

Du Zhenwu looked at Du Shaofu, his eyes showing some hidden fluctuations. However, since Du Shaofu was the one who first proposed the confrontation, he nodded and said to everyone in the hall, "Then quickly call Du Hao and the others over."

Upon hearing Du Zhenwu's words, many of the gossipy women immediately left happily, knowing that once the confrontation took place, Du Shaofu would have no way to deny it.

"Shaofu, you sit and wait for now."

Du Zhixiong had been sitting quietly all along. Seeing the gossipy women leave to call people for the confrontation, he finally spoke.

"Thank you, Uncle."

Du Shaofu did not hesitate and did not look for an empty seat at the lower end of the hall. Instead, he directly sat in the position where Ye Zijin had been sitting just a short while ago, which was considered the upper seat, giving him a commanding view. Du Shaofu did not sit in the position where Ye Baolin had been sitting, as that would have put him on equal footing with his elder uncle.

Many people saw Du Shaofu sitting in the upper seat and had objections in their eyes, but they did not dare to say much. After all, Du Shaofu was the nephew of the family head and the second uncle. Under the intimidating presence of the family head and the second uncle, no one dared to show any direct opposition. They could only allow the gossipy women to create a bit of a fuss, as the family head could not say much about it, and it also served as a way to test the waters.

After all, everyone now knew that Du Shaofu was no longer the foolish young master he used to be. With the identity of the third uncle's son, he naturally held a much higher status than the other young people in the clan.

The Du family had a distinction between the main line and the collateral line, but there was no doubt that Du Shaofu's identity was the main line of the main line.

Du Shaofu ignored the gazes of others and did not plan to pay attention to them. He directly opened the brocade box in his hand and held a three-foot-long sword.

The scabbard was ancient and simple, exuding a heavy aura.

"Hum!"

Du Shaofu drew the sword from its scabbard, and the sword's cry was like a rainbow. The three-foot-long sword was entirely black, with runes engraved on it, and a sharp aura immediately swept out.

All eyes were fixed on the black sword, gazing at it as if it were a living thing, like a sleeping dragon or a dormant fierce beast, making people's hearts tremble inexplicably.

"What a fine black spirit sword, a middle-grade spirit weapon."

In the hall, many eyes became intensely hot as they looked at the black spirit sword in Du Shaofu's hand. If it weren't for the presence of the family head and the second uncle, someone might have rushed forward. A middle-grade spirit weapon was something that even a cultivator of the pulse movement level would find hard to afford.

"Du Shaofu is really lucky."

Those with intensely hot gazes almost wanted to tear Du Shaofu apart. There was no doubt that Du Shaofu's luck was extremely good this time. Ye Baolin had given him a middle-grade spirit weapon, and this black spirit sword was well-known throughout the entire Stone City.

Du Zhenwu and Du Zhixiong's gazes also fell on the black spirit sword, and they smiled slightly, but their eyes showed some confusion, as if they were thinking about something.

In this world, there were spirit weapons, rune weapons, law weapons, dao weapons, and holy weapons. In fact, these were all weapons, but after the spirit weapon level, they were no longer ordinary things and had reached the level of treasures. Spirit weapons, rune weapons, law weapons, dao weapons, and holy weapons were each divided into three sub-levels: initial, middle, and high grade. According to legend, those law weapons and dao weapons already possessed the power to move mountains and seas. If they were refined by a powerful cultivator, they could connect heaven and earth and shake the mountains and rivers.

As a martial artist, a good weapon could greatly enhance one's strength. If two people with similar strength faced each other, and one had a weapon much stronger than the other, the chances of winning would be over ninety percent.

Du Shaofu knew that the black spirit sword was extraordinary. From the surprised voices in the hall, he could tell that it was a middle-grade spirit weapon. Although it was just a middle-grade spirit weapon, its value was already astonishing. This time, the Ye family had been extremely generous.

"It seems I haven't practiced any sword techniques."

However, he had not practiced any sword techniques, so he could not use the black spirit sword for now. He sheathed the sword and, under the intensely hot gazes of many people, put the black spirit sword back into the brocade box.

Those intensely hot gazes became somewhat restrained. If it had been two months ago, and Du Shaofu had had the black spirit sword in his hand, not only would the young people of the same generation have tried to snatch it, but even the elders sitting in the Du family would have likely put aside their dignity and tried to take it.

"Family head, elders, Du Hao and the others have arrived."

At this moment, the gossipy women who had rushed to call people for the confrontation hurriedly returned, their eyes filled with cold smiles, waiting to see how Du Shaofu would be unable to deny the facts.

"Meeting the family head, meeting the elders."

Du Hao, Du Yan, and others arrived, immediately bowing to the family head and the elders, their bodies wrapped in bandages and their faces covered in ointment. It was clear that they had been carefully dressed up before coming.

"Family head, elders, Du Shaofu has been too cruel, viciously beating us and stealing our belongings. Please, family head and elders, do something for us."

After the carefully wrapped young men and women bowed, Du Hao knelt down first, looking pitiful, almost on the verge of tears, making him seem very pitiable.

"Please, family head and elders, do something for us and severely punish the culprit, Du Shaofu."

Du Yan and others also knelt down, all pointing the blame at Du Shaofu. Indeed, they had been beaten by Du Shaofu, and it was not an exaggeration to say they had been beaten quite badly.

Several elders were moved, their gazes turning to Du Zhenwu, waiting for him to speak. The injuries were indeed real, and the blows had been heavy, though the bandages were a bit excessive, purely for visual effect. However, it did not affect the sharp gazes of the powerful present, who could see that Du Hao and the others had been beaten quite badly.

Du Zhenwu and Du Zhixiong looked at Du Hao and the others, their gazes also showing some hidden changes. They could see that Du Hao, Du Yan, and the others had indeed suffered, and not lightly.

Du Zhenwu looked at Du Shaofu and asked calmly, "Shaofu, do you have any explanation?"

"Yes."

Du Shaofu nodded, looking at the group of people kneeling in front of him in the hall, and said, "Didn't you say that Du Hao and Du Yan would be bedridden for half a year or more, unable to leave their homes? How are they here now?"

Du Shaofu knew the severity of the blows he had dealt. Although he had not been gentle, he had not truly injured them to the point of serious harm.

"This……"

Hearing Du Shaofu's words, Du Hao and the gossipy women were momentarily speechless.

In fact, the Du family members present had long known that saying Du Hao and the others would be bedridden for half a year was an exaggeration, but it was a way to emphasize how badly they had been beaten. Who would have thought that Du Shaofu would directly use this to his advantage, leaving them speechless.

"Du Shaofu, does this have anything to do with your cruel and vicious behavior towards your clan brothers and sisters? The facts are right here, do you still want to deny it!" A woman with a sharp appearance stepped forward, not wanting to get entangled in these irrelevant issues with Du Shaofu.

Du Shaofu looked at the woman, his clear and calm gaze suddenly becoming sharp, and he said, "How could it not be related? You said that Du Hao and the others were bedridden and unable to leave their homes, but now it's clear that you were lying. You are falsely accusing me. As the saying goes, one lie leads to another. So, when you say I beat Du Hao and the others, you are also falsely accusing me. How have I offended you that you would falsely accuse me like this?"

"Du Shaofu, you……"

Hearing Du Shaofu's words, the woman almost spat out a mouthful of blood in anger.

"Du Shaofu, you are denying it."

"Du Shaofu, you are making a fuss, clearly you viciously injured Yan and the others."

"……"

The gossipy women immediately started to verbally attack Du Shaofu, not allowing him to deny it.

Du Shaofu looked at the chattering gossipy women, his clear gaze sharp, and said, "You are all my elders. So many elders are now bullying me, surrounding me, and falsely accusing me. I can bear the委屈, and I can bear being falsely accused by you, but if this gets out, won't the Du family's reputation be ruined by you?"

"……"

The chattering gossipy women immediately fell silent, their faces turning red, and several of them even had blood trickling from the corners of their mouths.