Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains-Chapter 702 - 314, 700,000 Hexi troops

New Yu Era 1325, early March

Xingnan Prefecture City, Headquarters of the Hexi Alliance

Alliance Leader Duan sat alone at the main seat, his face looking rather displeased.

In front of him were three single desks, with Wan Xingyun and Shen Gu Yun seated to his left and right, respectively. The middle desk, reserved for the Hou Clan, remained unoccupied.

The meeting was scheduled for the fifth, but as Alliance Leader, he had arrived about fifteen minutes late, only to find that Hou Yuxiao had not yet appeared.

Seeing the indifferent expressions on the faces of Wan Xingyun and Shen Gu Yun in front of him, Duan Hong could already be eighty percent sure of his previous suspicions.

As the custom dictated, the four families of Hexi should be on equal footing. The fact that Hou Yuxiao was conspicuously late and the other two showed no reaction at all clearly demonstrated that they considered themselves subordinate to Hou Yuxiao.

This meant that the deaths of Shen Gufan and Wan Renjue were indeed the work of these two, in collusion with the Hou Clan—these were two ruthless individuals!

A chill ran through Duan Hong's heart just as he was about to speak, but then, a figure clad in a white scholar's robe casually walked in—none other than Fifth Brother Hou Yuduan of the Hou Family.

Before even fully entering, Hou Yuduan slightly bowed his body, a light smile on his face as he gestured with clasped hands towards the three men while making his way to his family's seat. He spoke humbly,

"My apologies for keeping you waiting. Unfortunately, my brother has recently had some insights in his cultivation and has gone into seclusion; thus, I'm here in his stead for this alliance meeting. I hope you will all be understanding!"

Seeing Hou Yuduan taking his seat before he could even react, Duan Hong frowned and said sternly, "Master of Hou Family, aren't you taking a bit too much liberty?"

This was the first meeting since the formation of the alliance, discussing major issues like the coalition of the four families and the defense matters of Hexi. Moreover, this meeting had been proposed by Hou Yuxiao himself, yet he was absent, sending Hou Yuduan instead.

This wasn't just liberty; it was a blatant disregard for him, Duan Hong, as well as for the Xiong Yun Gang and the Shen Clan.

The moment Duan Hong voiced his thought, his gaze fixed on Wan Xingyun and Shen Gu Yun. Seeing their complete lack of reaction—even turning their heads away in unison after he finished speaking—his heart cooled by half.

By that moment, he was certain his suspicions were correct.

The Shen clan and Xiong Yun Gang had indeed sided with the Hou Clan.

Feeling a heavy heart, Duan Hong looked up at Hou Yuduan, catching his calm gaze. A sudden dread gripped him, and he began to sweat.

If the three families had already united, it meant that from the moment he arrived in Xingnan Prefecture City, the situation for Pingtian Gate under his leadership was perilously unstable. At this point, his very life seemed to be in the hands of these three men.

With Pingtian Gate's hundreds of thousands of sect members still stationed in the regions of Jiujun and Yuzhao, and his own cultivation at the Yuan Dan Second Realm, thinking he could defy the Xiong Yun Gang in their own stronghold was a fool's dream, not to mention the watchful eyes of the Shen Clan and Hou Clan.

The situation was dire...

"Alliance Leader Duan, there's no need to worry. With the Hexi Alliance established, our four families will henceforth share weal and woe as one. The Xiong Yun Gang and Shen Clan have already formed a pact with my Hou Family. If Pingtian Gate can work together with us, the Hexi Alliance will undoubtedly achieve great things. What do you think, Alliance Leader Duan?"

Hou Yuduan's tone was soothing, but as he spoke, he had already approached Duan Hong, explicitly positioning himself directly in front of Wan Xingyun and Shen Gu Yun, making the situation three against one—Hou Yuduan, Shen Gu Yun, and Wan Xingyun, all facing Duan Hong.

Duan Hong, noting the authoritative look in Hou Yuduan's eyes and the menacing expressions on the faces of Wan Xingyun and Shen Gu Yun behind him, felt a jolt through his body.

He was not foolish; he clearly understood the implication in Hou Yuduan's words.

This was them forcing him to take a stand.

"To the west, there is Leiyin Temple and Rakshasa Holy Sect; to the south, the temples eye us covetously; to the east, though Tongtian River's lord has some connections with our Hou Clan, it's unreliable in the long term; to the west, Xuzhou is currently entangled in war, but once that ends, their focus might turn to Hexi; and to the north, we border Yunlan Ancient River, which is plagued by demons. Our Hexi Region is thus surrounded by formidable enemies on all sides.

Frankly speaking, given Pingtian Gate's capabilities in these chaotic times, it's impossible to survive alone. It's a dead end. Why not join under my Hou Clan, with the Hexi Alliance as our foundation? With the combined efforts of our four families, we might carve out a place for ourselves in these troubled times. What do you think, Alliance Leader Duan?"

Duan Hong paused for more than ten breaths, then looked up at Hou Yuduan and asked in a heavy voice, "Pingtian Gate may not be powerful, but it's still a first-class force in Jianye Prefecture. If we were to align with another, we could choose Leiyin Temple, Rakshasa Holy Sect, or another holy land or even Earth Spirit Demon Sect. Why should we join your Hou Clan?"

Since Hou Yuduan was being straightforward, Duan Hong no longer held back either, his tone carrying a hint of scorn. The so-called switching allegiances was just serving under others. If one had to serve, it made sense to choose a powerful master. Compared to holy lands, even competing against the Earth Level forces like Earth Spirit Demon Sect, the Hou Clan was not impressive.

Why then should he choose the Hou Clan?