Chapter 879: A Madman?

Jin Chengwu had never imagined that Tang San could use the Ancestral Tree's power to sense the presence of every Blue Gold Tree in the area, even detecting some of their broken remains.

The Ancestral Tree's light slowly receded, and the blue glow illuminated the bodies of the Blue Gold Tree clan members. One by one, they floated into the Ancestral Tree's embrace, disappearing into its radiance.

Tang San then walked slowly toward Jin Chengwu. "Is there anything you would like to explain, Deputy City Lord?"

Jin Chengwu's expression changed, and its gaze grew cold. "I don't think there's anything to explain right now, Clan Leader Jin. I suggest you think things through carefully. Do you intend to provoke a conflict between our two clans and cities? I very much doubt the Blue Gold Tree clan can afford that. Now that you've taken your people back, I advise you to leave Adamant City immediately. You're not welcome here."

Tang San laughed coldly. "What a bandit's logic. You preyed on the weakness of our Blue Gold Tree clan, and caused an unspeakable tragedy to our people. Nobody could fight against you in the past... but that was in the past. I am the clan leader now, and with me in the lead and our great ancestor behind us, things are vastly different. So let me ask you: What makes you think we can't afford a conflict? You think a war between our two cities is beyond our abilities, but you are mistaken. Today, I will destroy Adamant City to avenge my fallen clansmen."

Jin Chengwu stared at Tang San in shock. "Are you delusional? You dare to challenge the authority of the Emperors?"

Tang San replied calmly, "Me?

You

,

yourselves

, are the ones that challenged the authority of the entire Ancestral Court. I'll give you time, so call back the Adamant Nymph Emperor. If I don't get a satisfactory answer to this issue, you have my word that I will raze Adamant City to the ground."

"Madman... You're nothing but a madman!"

Jin Chengwu looked at Tang San in disbelief. It knew exactly what the Blue Gold Tree clan was like—they quite literally couldn't fight even to protect their own lives. Without the protection of the Ancestral Tree's husk, they would have been wiped out long ago. While this new clan leader's ability to harness the Ancestral Tree's power made it cautious, the idea of wiping out Adamant City was pure fantasy.

However, Jin Chengwu didn't attack immediately. It closed its eyes and sent a ripple of divine consciousness toward the city lord's manor, communicating with someone.

Meanwhile, Tang San slowly rose into the air. Jin Chengwu, not daring to delay, continued communicating with the manor through its divine consciousness as it followed Tang San into the sky.

Then, Tang San's voice echoed.

"Hear me, people of Adamant City. I am Jin Miaolin, the new leader of the Blue Gold Tree clan. Just now, under the radiance of the Ancestral Tree, I found dozens of my clansmen imprisoned in Adamant City. Some are on the verge of death, others are nothing but mutilated remains. These despicable acts were committed by the Adamant Nymph clan and Adamant City. Their crimes are abhorrent to my clan. On behalf of the Blue Gold Tree clan, I formally declare war on the Adamant Nymph clan, and this war shall not cease until one side is destroyed. You have twelve hours to vacate Adamant City; if you do so, my clan shall consider you not to be part of this conflict. If you are still in Adamant City twelve hours from now, whether you are members of the Adamant Nymph clan or not, you shall be considered mortal enemies of my clan and you shall be treated as such."

Jin Chengwu stared wide-eyed at Tang San, jaw dropped in disbelief. It had never imagined that things would escalate to this extent—that the new Clan Leader of the Blue Gold Tree clan would dare formally declare war on the Adamant Nymph clan, and with such serious terms as a fight to the death. Was he dead set on annihilation?

Even the Blue Gold Tree clan elders who had come with Tang San were utterly shocked. Seeing the tragic state of their people, they were naturally filled with righteous anger, but none of them had expected that their young leader would dare to declare war on the Adamant Nymph clan—a clan with an Emperor, and one with significant influence throughout the Solstice Empire. Although they weren't quite as powerful as the Scorching Sunflowers or the Nethermoon Flowers, they were still a first-tier clan, the strongest among mineral-type nymphs.

Could the Blue Gold Tree clan even bear the consequences of declaring war on such a powerful clan?

But even so, the elders felt a deep sense of satisfaction. It had been so many years since the Blue Gold Tree clan had shown such backbone.

Was Tang San going too far? Hardly. If a strong clan faced this situation with a weaker clan, this would never be considered excessive. Their people had been abducted and slaughtered—if even the clan leader himself didn't fight back, it would only encourage more atrocities. What was more, Tang San had already arranged for the Ancestral Court to issue a decree demanding the return of their people, yet so far, not a single one had been sent back. Clearly, no one was taking the Ancestral Court's decree seriously, and the Ancestral Court itself was not going to help the Blue Gold Tree clan recover their missing kin.

At this moment, Tang San's open declaration of war sent a clear message to every other main city and every other clan: The Blue Gold Tree clan was standing up, and no one would oppress them any longer.

After delivering his speech, Tang San descended back to the ground, returning to his previous spot and sitting down cross-legged once again.

He had said that he would wait, and wait he would. He was not bluffing in the slightest—je was really waiting for the Adamant Nymph Emperor to return. Without the courage to face an Emperor, he wouldn't have made such a bold decision.

At that moment, the life energy within his body flowed even more freely. The connection between the Ancestral Tree's imprint and his own Blue Gold Tree clan bloodline imprint became stronger still. An even denser concentration of life energy began gathering from all around Adamant City, converging toward him.

The Ancestral Tree was a part of the planar ruler, and was controlling the life energy of the entire plane. Clearly, the phenomena manifesting around Tang San were due to him receiving the plane's acknowledgement. In other words, if the Ancestral Tree were to fully awaken and regain wisdom, it would do exactly what Tang San was doing.

The Ancestral Tree was an extraordinary being. It could be said that without the Ancestral Tree, the Daemon Continent as it was would not exist. It was one of the three great ancestors of all nymphs, yet its own people were being treated as mere resources and slaughtered without mercy. The Blue Gold Tree clan was forced to remain within the inner part of Skytree City, not daring to step out. Over the years, the clan had accumulated a tremendous amount of resentment, and every day, they were offering countless prayers to the Ancestral Tree. Even though its divine consciousness was no longer independent, the Ancestral Tree still had some rudimentary sentience; how could it not feel the pain of its descendants?

Tang San's actions were righting the wrongs suffered by the Blue Gold Tree clan, and this made the Ancestral Tree view him as its true representative.

And the truth was that these actions were not just to gain the Ancestral Tree's approval, but indeed for the sake of the Blue Gold Tree clan. Due to his long-time connections with the Golden Tree and the Blue Silver Grass, he had always felt a closeness to the Blue Gold Tree clan. Whether it was the Adamant Nymph clan or other clans that had captured Blue Gold Trees, to him, their behavior made them no different from vile devils. They were all nymphs, yet they slaughtered one another to strengthen themselves. This was practically cannibalism. The only way to deal with such beasts was to send a brutal message.

And now, the city was in an uproar.

Some of the denizens had no idea what was happening, but those who knew anything at all about the Blue Gold Tree clan could somewhat grasp the situation, especially since the Ancestral Court had issued a decree not long ago. What they found most bewildering was the fact that the Blue Gold Tree clan had dared to openly declare war on the Adamant Nymph clan while

in

Adamant City. Was it all because of their new clan leader?

The new leader of the Blue Gold Tree clan was definitely not an Emperor yet. If a new Emperor had been born, the Ancestral Court would have announced it immediately, spreading the news across the entire continent. On the other hand, the Adamant Nymph clan was a powerful clan with a true Emperor. The Adamant Nymph Emperor was not among the strongest Emperors, but it was nevertheless an old and experienced one; it was famous for its practically impenetrable defense, which had earned it the title of "Indestructible." So... what was it that gave him the confidence?