With a casual lightness, Gu Xiechen leaped up, gently brushing the maiden's portrait belonging to Rong Bitu and chuckling, "There now, Mother, you won't have to be afraid anymore. With the Inversion Nine Palaces Formation set up by Zhao Yi protecting you, no one will dare disturb your peace. The insects and rats you fear most will never get near this place again. Nor will I have to worry about some worthless failure taking out their frustration on you because they can't handle me."

A few cold snorts escaped him, the gentle smile on his face slowly receding, leaving behind only a chilling, malevolent grin.

Gu Xiechen spoke darkly, "Although the old man's will stipulated that you be buried alongside him, forbidden from any disturbance, he also willed for us brothers to love each other like family, didn't he? That was just empty talk! Soon, someone will suffer a devastating loss, a loss so complete it will bankrupt them, and they will surely come here to vent their anger on you. So, I'll put an end to that notion beforehand."

Gui Hua let out a sinister chuckle, shaking a metal tablet carved with three flying Yakshas from his sleeve. With a flick of his wrist, he shot it out, embedding it deeply into the lower edge of the gravestone.

"This is the Corpse Emperor Token of our Nine Nether Dao, proving this territory is under our protection! Even the Xuanji Sect and Miluo Sect, masters of formation arts in the cultivation world, will hesitate to act upon seeing this token."

Zhao Yi raised an eyebrow, letting out a few arrogant, cold laughs, about to speak, but Xin Jia shot him a fierce glare. Zhao Yi immediately clamped his mouth shut, adopting a blank, puppet-like expression. Gu Xiechen glanced approvingly at Xin Jia; he couldn't allow that fellow Zhao Yi to boast that the Inversion Nine Palaces Formation was actually a legendary immortal formation—that would be far too astonishing!

After casting a lingering look at the gravestone, Gu Xiechen and his entourage were led out of the chilling Inversion Nine Palaces Formation by Zhao Yi.

As Gu Juechen, having finished paying respects to the ancestors of the Gu family with his wife and children, arrived nearby, he saw the elaborate, eerie field of white tulips completely enveloping the burial site of Gu Yitong. Above them, an equally bizarre wisp of cloud continuously sprinkled down countless ice crystals. Gu Juechen couldn't help but furiously point at Gu Xiechen and roar, "What are you doing?"

With a casual gesture of his hand, Gu Xiechen stood with his hands behind his back, looking up at the sky and sneering coldly, "My mother likes tulips. Sending a fresh bouquet of white tulips every day is a bit wasteful. My mother detests wasteful luxury. So, I created a field of never-wilting Snow Ice Tulips to keep her company. You have a problem with that?"

Gu Juechen trembled with rage. He glanced at the subtly complex flower field and sharply demanded, "But my mother dislikes white tulips!"

Gu Xiechen retorted with a savage cold laugh, "Damn it, the first one to strike wins; the one who strikes later suffers! My mother likes them, so I set this up first. I don't care what your mother likes!"

Casting a sidelong glance at Gu Juechen, Gu Xiechen said mockingly, "Oh, your mother—uh, my mother taught me to be polite. So, what does Auntie like? I can arrange something for her too! Tell me, what flower does the 'old' lady prefer? A radish flower? Or Foxtail grass?"

Gu Juechen's eldest son, Gu Huiyuan, lunged forward and struck Gu Xiechen with a palm strike, roaring in anger, "How dare you insult my grandmother?"

Gu Xiechen kicked toward Gu Huiyuan's lower abdomen. Flying out with the kick were dozens of long, sustained white ice prisms. These prisms were intensely cold, incredibly sharp, and each one spun rapidly, clearly possessing formidable lethality. Gu Huiyuan had not anticipated Gu Xiechen using his innate power simultaneously with the attack; he was nearly skewered through the belly by the ice prisms. In a hasty scramble, Gu Huiyuan tumbled like a clumsy donkey across the ground for a dozen rolls. The ice prisms narrowly grazed his body, embedding themselves deeply into the grass behind him.

Before Gu Juechen could reprimand him, Gu Xiechen preemptively pointed at Gu Huiyuan and thundered, "Insolent! This is our Gu family's ancestral ground. You dare strike an elder in front of our ancestors? You have rebelled?"

Gu Huiyuan jumped up and cursed Gu Xiechen a 'bastard,' but Gu Juechen slapped him back so hard the silver-haired man flew dozens of meters away. Gu Juechen roared in exasperation, "Insolent! All of you are insolent! This is the Gu family cemetery, and you are not street thugs fighting brawls!"

Maha let out a sinister laugh, saying viciously, "Cursing his own second uncle as a 'bastard.' Heh, what wonderful family etiquette!"

Borenda forcefully slapped Maha's bald head. Gu Xiechen suddenly felt something was amiss and glared at Maha, while Gu Juechen nearly spat blood in anger! Gu Huiyuan had spoken carelessly, but Maha's words were excessively spiteful, weren't they?

Panting a few times, Gu Juechen pointed at Gu Xiechen and raged, "Don't be so arrogant. I know your Hardwo Corporation just launched Hercules I three days ago. Our Gu Group's Thor I just completed its testing today! Hmph, it's still not certain which one the military will procure—yours or ours!"

Gu Xiechen casually shoved his hands into his pockets and chuckled lightly, "Oh? Then I shall wait and see!"

Gu Juechen sneered, and with a palpable aura of malevolence, brushed past Gu Xiechen's shoulder. Enraged, Gu Juechen, with a venomous expression, aimed a kick at the outermost Snow Ice Tulip in the flower field!

A flash of silver light appeared. Gu Juechen's kick, delivered with immense force, connected with nothing, yet it seemed as if he had stepped on a banana peel, like a child learning to walk. Gu Juechen shrieked, "Ouwu," and tumbled backward into the air, landing hard on the ground.

With a solid 'crack,' everyone present heard a faint sound near Gu Juechen's coccyx. He had put nearly all his physical strength into that kick, an impact force of at least several dozen tons. The Inversion Nine Palaces Formation had subtly deflected the force to the side. He had essentially kicked his own tailbone with the full momentum, shattering three segments of it on the spot!

"Tsk, how long has it been since you visited your father's grave? No wonder you're so nervous and panicked; you haven't even reached the tomb yet, and you've already stumbled?"

After throwing a few malicious barbs, Gu Xiechen led his group away triumphantly. As they walked, he instructed, "Senior Brother Guohua, if possible, please arrange for a few disciples of the Nine Nether Dao to be stationed here! If any emergency arises, notify me immediately, alright?"

Guohua readily agreed. The Nine Nether Dao housed plenty of demons and monsters; picking a few to guard the vicinity would be simple. Especially since Gu Xiechen had arranged the Inversion Nine Palaces Formation primarily using his compatible Ice-elemental innate powers, the chilling energy here would only grow denser over time. For cultivators of the Corpse and Ghost lineages, areas with heavy Yin-cold energy were the most conducive for their practice!

Exiting the cemetery gate, Gu Xiechen looked back. Gu Juechen was roaring hoarsely, commanding his sons and grandsons to find any means to destroy the tulip field. But protected by the grand formation, especially with the Cloud Mist Bell, a supreme spiritual artifact, serving as the formation's eye, the members of the Gu family, utterly clueless about formation arts, could do nothing to the field.

Siren suddenly spoke with a laugh, "You are ruthless. Now your elder brother won't even be able to pay respects to his own parents anymore. He's completely lost face!"

After a moment of silence, Gu Xiechen stated calmly, "I am not ruthless enough. He is truly ruthless. To be willing to strike at his own brother—his heart is far colder than mine!"

Stomping his foot heavily, Gu Xiechen grinned wickedly, "Thor I? Heh, I truly want to see what kind of trinket they can build using the data left behind by Bill. Rox and the others! Hmph hmph, Thor I? I'll make sure you lose so completely that you look like you've been struck clean away by lightning!"

They had arrived in three cars, but only two were leaving. Guohua had maliciously collided with Gu Juechen's convoy, completely crushing the front end of one of their vehicles, rendering it immovable. Fortunately, Gu Xiechen's group hadn't brought many people, and their vehicles were all luxury sedans, so they easily found space.

As the two cars left the road circling the cemetery and merged onto the highway leading to downtown New York, a plain-looking gray sedan suddenly pulled up close alongside Gu Xiechen's vehicle. The window of the small car slowly slid down, revealing a handsome, resolute face. The man made a gesture toward Gu Xiechen, signaling him to pull over.

The moment Gu Xiechen saw this person, he was only slightly surprised, but Siren's face turned livid—so purple it seemed to radiate light, much like one of his current organs.

The two cars stopped side-by-side on the grass shoulder, Gu Xiechen's face less than a foot away from the man's.

"Tartarus Jin, Federation Lieutenant General." Tartarus Jin nodded to Gu Xiechen.

"Uh, Gu Xiechen, Member of the Federal House of Representatives." Gu Xiechen extended his hand toward Tartarus. The other man gripped his palm firmly. Tartarus’s fingers were clean, supple, and strong; every strand of muscle beneath the smooth skin was as tough as steel cable. His capillaries subtly contracted and expanded, emitting a strange pulse.

This was a man possessing immense power, though Gu Xiechen couldn't immediately determine its focus. Gu Xiechen made an internal assessment and shook the man's hand in a friendly manner, laughing, "Lieutenant General, this way of finding me is quite surprising!"

Tartarus withdrew his hand and stated expressionlessly, "Perhaps you should know another of my titles: Director of Section Three of the Federal Military Intelligence Bureau. The Marshal is very interested in a certain suggestion you proposed to His Excellency Qishang Tian. We might find grounds for cooperation in certain areas."

"Oh? What suggestion?" Gu Xiechen looked at Tartarus with surprise. The Third Section of the Federal Military Intelligence Bureau was a powerful department known as the 'Gendarme among Gendarmes.'

"Suggestions that require careful, long-term consideration," Tartarus said calmly.

Suggestions requiring long-term consideration?

The Special Management Committee, Colonel Uriah! Gu Xiechen immediately understood.

Shaking Tartarus's hand once more, Gu Xiechen smiled, "Happy cooperation!"

Tartarus gripped Gu Xiechen's hand tightly and sneered, "If successful, we will require half the strength of the Special Operations Bureau—!"

"Deal!" Gu Xiechen was always generous; he knew that in this world, hoarding everything was not the custom.

"Happy cooperation!" The perpetually stern Tartarus finally showed a hint of a smile.

Curled up in the farthest corner of the carriage, Siren nearly wept... Why cooperate with this damned man?

It was utterly damnable!

Who could have predicted the ultimate outcome between Guohua and Tartarus?

Uh, a duel perhaps?

A duel scenario seemed rather cliché.