Those outside the Ling mansion saw that it had been surrounded for nearly two quarters of an hour, and no one from the Ling family had come out. They began to suspect that Ling Luoyi had not returned, and that the rest of the Ling family dared not face the Wei family, which was why they had been hiding?
Not only did some people think this, but some also said it. Seeing that the main gate of the Ling mansion had not opened, they believed it even more. Thus, the rumors that the Ling family was nothing without Ling Luoyi began to spread.
The Ling family members, separated by just a single gate, watched the rumors spread without any change in their expressions or any ripple in their hearts. Not to mention that their current situation was brought about by Ling Luoyi, they had already endured ten years of humiliation and had long learned the principle of not being disturbed by rumors. Otherwise, their Ling family would have annihilated themselves long ago, without needing anyone else to do it.
Ling Luoyi did not look at their expressions; some truths had to be realized by oneself.
On the other hand, Qiu Yuanxi, who claimed to be there to help, glanced at the expressions of the Ling family members as if watching a play. Seeing that they remained unchanged, Qiu Yuanxi transmitted a message to Ling Luoyi, praising her greatly, "Little Luo'er, the people in your family have excellent mental fortitude. They can all remain composed regardless of their emotions. Even the younger ones are far superior to their peers. With such descendants, why worry about the family's prosperity?"
Upon hearing this, Ling Luoyi glanced at Qiu Yuanxi, her eyes filled with pride.
Ling Luoyi's reaction was too obvious, and Qiu Yuanxi saw it clearly, so he twitched the corner of his mouth speechlessly.
Little Luo'er, you've changed! You are no longer the person I knew!
Seeing that the Ling family still showed no movement, those outside became impatient. Second Master Wei asked the man, "Sir, there seems to be something on the gate. We are not a match for it. Could you please open the main gate?"
Wei Chuzhan, standing on the other side of Second Master Wei, heard his father speaking with this man and was puzzled. His father was extremely respectful to this person of unknown origin, even more so than he was to the clan leader. It seemed that this man was not his father's friend, so why was he helping the Wei family?
However, Wei Chuzhan also knew that even if he asked this question, the man would not tell him the answer.
Upon hearing Second Master Wei's words, the man frowned displeasedly, then raised his hand, and a dense ball of black mist was hurled towards the Ling mansion's main gate.
Seeing the man make a move, Second Master Wei breathed a sigh of relief. With the adult making a move, the Ling family would be easily dealt with. After destroying the Ling family, the Wei family could replace them, and the current honor of the Ling family would become the honor of the Wei family.
The other members of the Wei family shared the same thoughts as Second Master Wei. They were all immersed in the joy of what was to come, completely oblivious to the expressions of the onlookers.
After seeing the effect of the man's pill, the onlookers were somewhat inclined to build a good relationship with the man and buy some pills. However, upon seeing the man's attitude towards Second Master Wei, they dismissed this idea. Although the man was allied with the Wei family, he showed no respect to the father of the current head of the Wei family. Moreover, he had been here for so long without acknowledging anyone except Second Master Wei.
Therefore, even if they approached him, they probably wouldn't gain anything. Compared to the man's arrogant and dismissive attitude towards others, they felt it was better to trade with the Ling family. At least for the past few months, their relationship with the Ling family had been quite good. What if they gained nothing from the man and offended the Ling family, causing the Ling family to stop selling them pills? Where would they seek redress?
With this thought, those who were close by couldn't help but retreat a few steps, fearing that the Ling family would also consider them allies of the Wei family.
This thought was not only held by the onlookers but also by the families surrounding the Ling mansion. They also wanted to retreat, but the entire Tianwu Kingdom knew that they relied on the Wei family for survival and were in league with them. Even if they left now, this relationship could not be severed.
Furthermore, they had been involved when the Wei family took action against the Ling family back then, and the Ling family would not let them off. If the Wei family found out, they would probably not spare them either. Therefore, they could only continue to follow the Wei family in besieging the Ling mansion.
Just as they thought the main gate of the Ling mansion would be smashed open by the man's black mist, they saw a starlit barrier unfold one step away from the Ling mansion's main gate. The barrier blocked the black mist. In less than a breath, the black mist dissipated as if it had never appeared.
"This is... a barrier!"
"Don't barriers require one to be at least at the Spirit Scholar realm to use?" the person who asked suddenly remembered something and said, "I forgot, the eldest miss of the Ling family is a first-tier Spirit Scholar!"
"How large is this barrier?"
"From the looks of it, it covers the entire Ling mansion."
"Such a large barrier, even a first-tier Spirit Scholar couldn't achieve this, could they?"
Thinking of a certain possibility, everyone was no longer so surprised. The outside rumors stated Ling Luoyi's alchemy level was fourth grade, but after three months, it became seventh grade. Even the most monstrous alchemist couldn't advance so quickly, so she must have been hiding it. If her alchemy level could be concealed, then concealing her cultivation was not so hard to accept.
Wait, Ling Luoyi never admitted to being a seventh-grade alchemist, so...
This is impossible, she's only eighteen years old!
With this thought, everyone shook their heads, negating their guesses, and looked worriedly at how the Ling family would resolve this crisis. They did not wish for the Ling family to be destroyed. Compared to the Wei family, they preferred to trade with the Ling family.
The man clearly heard the words of the onlookers and also felt something was amiss. He had been on this continent for too long, so he was very clear about the affairs of this continent. Even if being able to cast a barrier at eighteen was normal in his world, it was impossible on this continent, especially such a large barrier.
Seeing the man's displeased expression, Second Master Wei dared not urge him, so the people outside waited.
Watching the Wei family, who had come with such imposing momentum, now reduced to the predicament of waiting for the Ling mansion to open its doors, the onlookers couldn't help but burst into laughter.
Hearing the laughter from the surroundings, the man was so angry he wanted to kill. But for some reason, he felt a powerful will of the Heavenly Dao above the Ling mansion. He had fled to this continent, and if the Heavenly Dao discovered him killing indiscriminately, he would likely be directly annihilated by the Heavenly Dao! But he couldn't die now; he hadn't yet fulfilled his master's expectations, so he couldn't die! At least not now!
The man couldn't vent his anger on the people mocking him, so he could only vent it on the barrier. Balls of fire carrying black mist were hurled at the barrier, but the barrier remained intact.
Seeing this, the man's doubts deepened. Who exactly had set up this barrier that could withstand so many of his attacks?
Hearing the mockery from the surroundings increase, the man furiously continued to attack the barrier. If it was merely venting before, it now seemed more like an urgent need to prove something.
The Wei family members, watching the man attack the barrier like a madman, yet seeing no damage to it, began to doubt the strength of this 'friend' of Second Master Wei. However, at this point, they had no other choice but to see it through to the end.
The Wei family's Old Ancestor, who had recently awakened, ordered everyone to attack the barrier.
But their attacks yielded different results from the man's. The spiritual energy balls they launched were repelled and struck themselves.
Seeing this situation, they dared not continue. Therefore, only the man was still attacking the barrier.
Even without opening the door, Ling Luoyi could see the situation outside. Seeing this, she secretly thought, "Let them attack. With the suppression of the Heavenly Dao, you can't unleash your full power. Therefore, no matter how many attacks you make, you won't be able to damage this barrier."