At the same time, in an elegant courtyard.
Accompanied by a rush of footsteps, a middle-aged man arrived outside the house, anxiously knocking on the wooden door, he said urgently, "Brother, something's wrong!"
After a few seconds, a voice came from inside.
"Second Brother, you're not young anymore. What's the matter that has you so panicked?"
"Brother, something happened to Third Brother."
The person outside said rapidly.
"What!"
A surprised exclamation rang out from inside the house.
A fierce wind arose.
In the next second, someone inside opened the wooden door, and a man dressed in a black robe appeared.
"Second Brother, what did you just say? Something happened to Third Brother?"
"Yes, Brother!"
Song Wu said, glancing around even though this was the Song Family's forbidden area where few would dare enter.
"Brother, let's go inside and discuss."
"Alright."
The man in the black robe nodded, and after Song Wu entered, he again scanned the surroundings to make sure no one was eavesdropping before closing the door and turning around with a serious face, he asked, "Second Brother, you're not joking with me, are you?"
"Brother, do I look like someone who would joke about this?"
Song Wu was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, "Just now, I got word that there was a big fire in the rainforest, with a werewolf seemingly burned to death."
"What?"
The man in the black robe was shocked and quickly asked, "Rainforest? Which rainforest?"
"Which rainforest do you think? Of course, the one Third Brother went to."
Song Wu stamped the ground fiercely.
"This time, Third Brother went with John from the Revival Association to fight for the Cyan Dragon Fruit, didn't he? John carries werewolf blood. When I heard this news, I had a bad feeling.
No matter the outcome, with Third Brother's character, if he couldn't return immediately, he would definitely call me to explain the situation. But by nightfall, there was still no news."
"And then?"
The man in the black robe's face looked grim.
This afternoon while cultivating, he suddenly felt uneasy.
He didn't think much of it, assuming it was because he'd been cultivating for too long. After drinking some Calming Tea, he felt much better.
But now with Second Brother's news, could it be?
"Then, then..."
Song Wu's voice was almost choking with tears, "Then I tried calling Third Brother's phone over and over, but no one answered. I then tried calling John's phone, but likewise, no one picked up. Brother, the situation is dire!"
"Don't panic, don't panic."
The man in the black robe reached out to pat his shoulder, "No matter what, Third Brother is a True Essence Realm Martial Artist, only one step away from the Celestial Human Realm. Without those old monsters reappearing, there are very few people in the world who could kill him."
"That's true, Brother, but what if the one making the move is from the Awakened Association?"
Song Wu said.
As soon as these words fell, the man in the black robe's face turned even grimmer.
Yes, Noble Families and the Awakened Association have been fighting openly and covertly for years.
To give an example, in recent years, the Awakened Association has been trying to obtain complete Supreme Martial Arts from these Noble Families.
But these Noble Families are not foolish.
The Awakeners, with their naturally awakened superpowers, possess combat power comparable to Beast Emperor Level Fierce Beasts. If they also got complete Supreme Martial Arts, it would be disastrous!
In the future, would there still be a place in Yan Country for these Noble Families to survive?
The same goes for Supreme Martial Arts, and especially Divine Demon Martial Arts, which is utterly impossible.
Hence, it's often seen that some Awakeners attack members of Noble Families and use special methods to extract their martial arts into their minds.
Even if those Awakeners are later hunted by the Awakened Association and deemed traitors, who knows if they might still have secret ties with the Association?
And now, with Third Brother missing, is it possible it was the Awakened Association that made the move?
Second Brother mentioned a werewolf burned to death, suspected to have been killed by a Flame Superpower Awakener.
If that werewolf was John, then Third Brother is likely to be in grave danger too.
Critically, this incident's repercussions might only be beginning!
John had a high status in the Revival Association, and those Feng Country People are unexpectedly united. Once they learn of this, they might direct their anger at the Song Family.
Then, all the Song Family's efforts over the years would be in vain, and they'd have to pay a heavy price to appease the other side's fury.
Plus, the family's few elders wouldn't let him off easily.
"Don't, don't panic."
The man in the black robe's voice was trembling, "Maybe it's not as bad as we think. Maybe Third Brother was just busy and couldn't answer your call. Let me try calling him."
"Alright, Brother, give it a try. Hopefully, someone answers."
Song Wu said, swallowing hard.
Actually, there was another piece of news he hadn't mentioned.
But if Third Brother were alive, there would still be room to maneuver in this matter.
No matter what, he hoped Song Gang was still alive.
The man in the black robe took out his phone, found Song Gang's number in the contacts, and dialed.
"Beep, beep, beep..."
As the sound of the phone echoed, time passed minute by minute until the call ended automatically with no one answering.
At this moment, the atmosphere in the room was extremely silent.
Song Wu looked at his brother, not daring to speak.
The latter gritted his teeth and dialed again.
Unfortunately, the second call ended the same way as the first: Automatically disconnected due to no one answering.
Unwilling to give up, the man in the black robe started dialing for the third time, the fourth time…
Finally, Song Wu couldn't bear to watch anymore and spoke up, "Brother, no one is answering. No matter how many times you call, it's probably useless."
The man in the black robe froze, his left hand clenched tightly into a fist, murmuring, "Impossible, how could something happen to Third Brother? This can't be happening."
"Brother, I also hope nothing happened to Third Brother, only that some other reason is preventing him from answering our calls. But, the worst-case scenario needs to be prepared for. We must plan for the worst."
Song Wu forced a bitter smile.
"Brother, actually, there is another piece of bad news I haven't had time to tell you."
The man in the black robe twitched a few times and said, "Speak."
"Someone saw around the fire, a group of Feng Country People's corpses."
"Feng Country People's corpses!"
The man in the black robe's eyes widened.
"Yes."
Song Wu forced a bitter smile, "Around a dozen, some were John's followers."
"How could it be..."
The man in the black robe stumbled back two steps, his eyes fixed without moving.
Third Brother's life or death is unknown, his biggest concern was that the burned werewolf was John, because if so, the Revival Association would definitely bring trouble to the Song Family.
Moreover, John's combat prowess was even higher than Third Brother's.
If something happened to him, then Third Brother is most likely in grave danger too, otherwise, it wouldn't be possible that none of the calls were answered.
"Brother..."
Song Wu said bitterly, "Maybe it's not as bad as we think. The werewolf burned to death might not be John, but someone else. Third Brother might also be safe, just unable to contact us for some reason.
However, I think we need to prepare now. If, I'm saying if, Third Brother and John indeed met with trouble, then the subsequent impact could be quite serious."
His voice was filled with worry, "Many people know this news, and now all major families probably know it too. There's a chance some of them might discreetly convey this news to the Revival Association just to see our Song Family suffer."
With every word, the man in the black robe's face became grimmer.
After listening, he sighed deeply and nodded, "You're right. No matter the situation, we must plan for the worst."
"Yes, Brother, that's why I came running as soon as I got the news."
Song Wu sighed.
The Song Family was powerful, but as the saying goes, fame attracts trouble. Who knows how many eyes were watching them? Finding an opportunity and stepping on them even if there's no grievance.
"Don't worry, for now, everything is just speculation. Even if the Revival Association comes knocking, we can stall them."
The man in the black robe said.
"But paper can't hold fire."
Song Wu said, "Given their nature, they might set a deadline. If we can't provide a satisfactory explanation within that time, the consequences..."
"Then give them a satisfactory explanation."
Anger flared in the man in the black robe's eyes, "Whoever dared to strike against our Song Family, even if they flee to the ends of the earth, I, Song Tian, will bring them back, flay them, take their bones apart, and make them experience 81 different kinds of tortures!
Send my orders, Law Enforcement Hall fully mobilized, find out what exactly happened. Third Brother and his companions, alive or dead, must be found!"
"Yes! Brother!"
Song Wu responded urgently.
Law Enforcement Hall contained the strongest forces in the family apart from a few elders, and only generations of Patriarchs could command them.
The Song Family had been established for over a thousand years, and the Law Enforcement Hall had been fully mobilized less than twice.
This showed just how serious the situation was this time.
"Hope this time it's just a false alarm, otherwise, even if we find the culprits, with the shameless demeanor of the Revival Association members, they will surely ruthlessly shake down the Song Family, and the Song Family will still have to smile and offer it up."
Song Wu sighed inwardly.
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