As the Feng swordsmen were sent out to capture Feng Mian, Feng Yanyang slowly bled out. It was only with the assistance of spiritual pills and Feng Bo’s transfusion of spiritual energy that his life could be prolonged just a little.

“Yicheng, come over here,” Feng Yanyang motioned to Feng Yicheng, still kneeling on the ground.

Feng Yicheng walked up to Feng Yanyang’s side, still on his knees.

Feng Yanyang then turned to Feng Bo. “Feng Bo, retrieve the box in the second drawer of my desk.” When he did so, Feng Yanyang then commanded, “Open it.”

Feng Bo opened the box to find a sparkling, translucent seal lying within.

“This is a seal carved out of a piece of sage-grade spirit crystal,” Feng Yanyang began. “As well as the insignia of the lord of the Feng family. This seal should have been passed down to my only son, Feng Mian, but his ignoble actions have denied him that right. Now, I pass this seal onto another descendant of the Feng family, Feng Yicheng.”

“Lord Feng!” Feng Yicheng raised his head in shock as he stared at Feng Yanyang. “How could I be responsible for the Feng city? No, I can’t!”

Feng Bo was also shocked, and he knelt down with Feng Yicheng. “This won’t do, Lord Feng! Yicheng’s young, and his status is lowly. How could he inherit the entire Feng city?”

“Yicheng’s the best Feng descendant of his generation,” Feng Yanyang proclaimed. “And I say that he has the right.”

“But—”

“No buts!” Feng Yanyang had clearly already made up his mind. “Yicheng, may the Feng family prosper and flourish under your rule.”

Feng Yicheng looked at Feng Bo, and then at Feng Yanyang, but he didn’t dare accept the seal and the weight it represented.

“Yicheng, you’ve always been a good child. Are you going to let me die without having my last wishes fulfilled?” Feng Yanyang pressed.

“Brother Feng,” Li Mo added. “The Feng family has to be united against the Pis in this time of war.”

Feng Bo sighed. “Yicheng, take the seal!”

Only then did Feng Yicheng reach out for the seal with quivering hands. “I swear I’ll remember your wisdom, Lord Feng.” He kowtowed to him, his forehead touching the ground.

Just then, Old Lin came back from outside and reported, “We’ve caught Young Master Feng. How should we deal with him?”

Everyone looked toward Feng Yanyang and waited for his judgment. He revealed a complicated, pained expression on his face—how could he find the words to describe the pain of having his only son be his killer?

“For now, imprison Young Master Feng,” Feng Bo stated, seeing Feng Yanyang’s face, but Feng Yanyang overrode him. “Bring my wayward son here.”

“Yes, Lord Feng.” Old Lin walked out, then returned with two guards and Feng Mian in tow. Feng Mian’s clothes were disheveled, and it was clear that he had fought to avoid capture.

“Release me!” Feng Mian struggled free from the guards and stood in front of Feng Yanyang’s bed, quietly observed by one and all.

“Kneel.” Feng Yanyang sat up, the sudden action causing more blood to seep out of his chest. Despite how close he was to death, his aura was as imposing as ever.

Feng Mian knelt, his head touching the ground. “Father, I—”

“Young Master Feng, why would you lay hands on your father?” Feng Bo questioned.

Feng Mian raised his head and looked at his father. “He might be my father, but a father only in name. He’s never cared or been concerned for me.”

“You—you’re my son, my only son, and the future heir of the Feng family! Should I not be strict or severe with you? You aren’t talented, so I tried to ensure you excelled at all other fields, but you couldn’t handle even that—”

“So you intended to strip me of my inheritance and pass the reins of the Feng family onto Feng Yicheng?” Feng Mian accused, kneeling up straight and pointing to the Feng family seal in Feng Yicheng’s hands. “There were times when I’ve suspected whether Feng Yicheng was your true son, and I just an imposter. Ever since he arrived on the Mingyuan continent, you’ve been full of praise and satisfaction toward him, but never have you had a good word for me! Are you satisfied now? You can finally hand the Feng family to Feng Yicheng! Your dreams are now a reality!”

“Young Master Feng,” Feng Bo interrupted. “From whom did you hear that Lord Feng intended on making Feng Yicheng the next lord of the Feng family? If he didn’t intend on making you the next lord, he wouldn’t have trained you so harshly. What could have caused you to misunderstand his intentions?”

“I didn’t misunderstand my father.” Feng Mian stood up and pointed at Feng Yanyang. “Pi Batian stole a letter that he personally wrote, stating that he would recognize Feng Yicheng as his godson and replace me with him, that there was no need to worry about saving me. Apparently, even if I were saved, with my qualifications alone, I would be far too insufficient to become the next lord of the Feng family, so all of you were supposed to help and support Feng Yicheng instead.”

“Is that why you attacked Lord Feng?” Feng Bo asked.

“Yes. I was supposed to be the heir of the Feng family. Why should I give up my position to Feng Yicheng? He’s only a lowly descendant of the Feng family who came from a lower realm. I reached an agreement with Pi Batian: as long as I killed my father and submitted to the Pi city, I would be allowed to inherit the Feng city and obtain everything that I deserve. I should be the next lord of the Feng family!”

Feng Mian looked all around him, his expression a little crazed. But when his eyes again fell on his ailing father, bloodless and gasping for breath, his legs failed him, and he knelt down once more. Tears flowed down his eyes. “Father, why? Why couldn’t I fulfill any of your expectations no matter how hard I worked? Why have you always criticized me? Why didn’t you care that I was captured as a hostage, that I suffered so much during my imprisonment? Why didn’t you visit me when I was unconscious? You didn’t visit me, so I had to visit you—but even then, you still treated me so poorly. You told me to leave, to stay in the Feng city and not create a mess for you. Have I only ever been a burden?”

Feng Yanyang stilled. He had never thought about how his stringent requirements had hurt Feng Mian’s mental well-being. He certainly hoped that Feng Mian could have been more talented, but Feng Mian was still his son. Was there a father alive who didn’t love his children?

It was just that Feng Yanyang had only displayed the strict side of himself to his son.

“Father, I didn’t want to attack you. I just couldn’t control myself after realizing that you were going to give up on me!”

“You were tricked. I never wrote that letter, and I never intended to give up on you. Before you attacked me, I was still treating you as my heir,” Feng Yanyang intoned. “But it’s true that you wouldn’t be a good lord of the Feng family. I knew this, but because you were my son, I still tried to groom you for the position. How I hoped that you would prove yourself! It’s clear now that I shouldn’t have forced this burden on you, and this is my fault.”

“Lord Feng, you should rest. We can discuss Young Master Feng’s actions later,” Feng Bo hurriedly said, sensing that Feng Yanyang’s condition was taking a turn for the worse.

Feng Yanyang shook his head wearily. He knew that he was about to die; given his blood loss, the pills and spiritual energy transfusion would only be enough to sustain him for another hour, at most two, so he had to make use of his remaining time to prepare for the future.

“Feng Mian shall be placed in house arrest in the Feng manor, never to leave for the rest of his life. Feng Yicheng shall be the next lord of the Feng family, and I expect your full support of him.”

“Yes, Lord Feng!” everyone shouted, even Yun Ruoyan and Li Mo.

“Before the war between the Fengs and the Pis is over, do not reveal my death,” Feng Yanyang continued. “You must eradicate the Pi family to avenge me!”

An hour later, Feng Yanyang finally died of blood loss, still filled with regret over his wayward son. Subsequently, Feng Mian was escorted back to the Feng manor. Feng Yicheng, suddenly thrust into his new position as lord of the Feng family and commander of the battle to take place within a day, assigned Zhuo Yifeng to take his place as vanguard, then continued planning for tomorrow’s battle with Feng Bo and Li Mo.

Feng Yicheng’s capabilities as commander asserted themselves within half a day. He took care of everything, barely less meticulous than Feng Yanyang himself. Even Feng Bo couldn’t help admiring Feng Yicheng’s talents further.

The next day, before sunrise, Feng Yicheng himself led five hundred swordsmen out of the town of Yang, where they were currently situated, and into the town of Li . This town used to be governed by the Fengs, but had been seized by the Pi family.

Only when his troops were by the foot of the gates did the Pi guards react. Although they were prepared for the invasion, Feng Yicheng’s sneak attack took them by surprise, and half a day’s effort was all it took for him to recover the town of Li once more.

With barely any rest, Feng Yicheng continued onward toward the next town seized and occupied by the Pis...