Clan Building System: I'm not the Protagonist?!-Chapter 53: Nascent Fight. [1]

The letter Gu Lanyue had sent was anything but courteous.

Laced with barely-veiled contempt, it demanded a hefty sum in reparations, for the so-called "damage" to the Gu family’s reputation.

And this meeting today wasn’t about reconciliation.

It was about humiliation.

A stage set to disgrace the Fang family, and to dictate just how far they would be allowed to crawl.

Fang Yuan chuckled under his breath as the ground approached.

"If I have to make the entire empire understand that I’m a threat," he muttered to himself, "then so be it."

"No one will get away with belittling the family I protect. And no one... will be spared if they dare threaten them in front of me."

He descended slowly over the stone path of River Light Bridge, letting his presence ripple just enough to be felt but not enough to be called arrogant.

There, on the River Light Bridge, Fang Yuan spotted the Gu family entourage and mixed among them, cultivators from several other clans.

Uninvited spectators, no doubt, a tactic from the Gu family to escalate the situation even.

Two figures stood out from the rest.

One was tall and imposing, his beard streaked with silver, his brow locked in a permanent scowl—Gu Lanyue.

The other stood quietly at his side, head slightly bowed, eyes shadowed with guilt or shame—Gu Jian.

The air was taut.

Tighter than a drawn bowstring. One breath too loud might have set the world ablaze.

"You’re late," Gu Lanyue said, voice like rusted iron dragged across steel, sharp, scraping, and utterly devoid of courtesy.

Gu Jian remained silent beside him, his eyes not daring to meet Fang Yuan’s.

Fang Yuan landed gracefully on the bridge, robe fluttering once as his feet touched stone. His expression didn’t change.

He met Gu Lanyue’s glare head-on and said calmly,

"I’m pretty sure I’m on time."

His voice echoed across the bridge, quiet, composed, and utterly unbothered.

Gu Lanyue’s gaze narrowed.

"So... when are the others arriving?"

Fang Yuan didn’t even blink. "Others?"

He let out a short breath, almost a laugh, and casually lowered himself onto a nearby stone bench. "There are no others. It’s just me."

The sheer leisure in his tone sent a ripple through the gathering.

A blatant act of disrespect.

Gu Lanyue’s jaw tightened, his eyes flashing with restrained fury.

He exchanged a glance with Gu Jian before the two silently took their seats as well.

The other elders of the Gu family followed suit, forming a semicircle around the meeting table.

Fang Yuan’s eyes swept over the assembly and he noticed them immediately.

Three elders.

Their qi was subtle, restrained, but not quite native to the Gu family’s style.

The rhythm of their breath, the way their auras pulsed, it was clear.

They practiced foreign techniques.

From other families.

So the Gu family had invited outside forces, even for something as petty as a "discussion."

Fang Yuan smiled thinly as he settled deeper into his seat, eyes glinting coldly beneath the moonlight.

So this is the stage they’ve chosen.

Gu Lanyue leaned forward, his voice oily with condescension. "Fang Yuan, you’re young. This sort of matter is best left to adults. I’m willing to wait."

Fang Yuan met his gaze, unflinching.

"There’s no need, old man. I’m a dictator in the Fang family," he said flatly. "If I say the Fang family must attack, they will. If I command them to kill those they love most, they won’t hesitate. They have no choice."

A ripple of shock swept through the gathered cultivators.

Gasps. Murmurs. One elder’s hand even twitched toward his storage pouch.

Of course, none of that was true.

But how would these guests, these spies even know that?

Gu Jian finally spoke, voice low, almost pleading. "Nephew... on account of your late father, I don’t wish to hurt you. Show some respect to the elders."

Fang Yuan turned his head slowly, eyes sharp.

"Nephew?" he echoed coldly. "Who are you to say such words? Do I know you? Are we related? I don’t think so."

Gu Jian looked at Fang Yuan, not with anger, but regret. He saw too much of Fang Wei in him.

Gu Lanyue’s laughter broke the tension, high, harsh, and theatrical.

"This is why adults should speak, not arrogant brats. You think a little cultivation gives you the right to bark?"

Then, like thunder rolling across the bridge, he moved. freeωebnovēl.c૦m

Gu Jian followed a breath behind him, two Nascent Soul cultivators striking in perfect coordination, a twin assault meant to overwhelm.

But Fang Yuan was already in the air, having leapt back the instant they moved.

Their strikes exploded against the stone bridge, but found nothing but wind.

Fang Yuan hovered high, robes billowing, spiritual energy crackling at his feet.

He looked down at the two elders below, expression calm.

Then he laughed.

"Come," he said, voice echoing over the river. "Both of you."

His eyes gleamed.

"Let’s see if your so-called experience can stop a dictator."

Gu Jian stood tall, the refined pressure of a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator rolling off his body in steady waves.

Beside him, Gu Lanyue’s qi surged, less refined, slightly unstable, but still formidable as an early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.

And yet, standing before them in midair with hands behind his back was Fang Yuan.

To the outside world, his cultivation was known as early-stage Nascent Soul.

But in truth...

He had already reached the peak.

Far beyond what either Gu Lanyue or Gu Jian suspected.

Below him, Gu Lanyue narrowed his eyes and glanced sideways at Gu Jian.

"It would be shameful," he muttered, voice loud enough for all to hear, "if we both attacked a junior together."

Fang Yuan didn’t respond. Outwardly, his expression remained unreadable.

Inwardly, he sneered.

Shameful? As if you both didn’t just try to cripple me with that little sneak attack. Hypocrite.

But he kept the thought to himself. He said nothing.

He was going to let the old man dance to his own drama.

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