The First Summoner - Chapter 7

In a world where strength commanded respect, weakness was the original sin.

Shen Yan looked directly at the Shen family head.

“I only want her dead.”

The family head’s expression shifted. He studied Shen Yan with complicated eyes, then drew a long breath as if helpless.

“Shen Yan, why must you be so stubborn? At this point, doing as you ask would only hurt both sides. Xue’er has always treated you well, and she never meant to harm you. Can you not let bygones be bygones?”

Before Shen Yan could answer, Shen Tianhao erupted.

“Father, how can you say something so blatantly biased?” he demanded with a cold laugh. “How is any of this fair to Yan’er?”

The family head remained calm. “Tianhao, there is no absolute fairness in this world. Fairness is something you seize through your own strength.”

The Third Elder immediately chimed in, agitated. “Exactly! Shen family blood is wasted on a good-for-nothing. If she can repay the family in another way, then that is her contribution. Xue’er is already a Summoner, which makes her a true young lady of the Shen family. Shen Yan, what right do you have to demand her death?”

Shen Tianhao was on the verge of losing control when a slender hand caught his arm.

He froze and looked back.

“Father,” Shen Yan said slowly, “I understand now. There is no reasoning with them.”

If she spoke of reason, they spoke of strength.

To the Shen family, prestige and power mattered more than their own blood.

She saw them clearly now. Vanity lay at their very core.

If she attacked Shen Xue here, the entire family would seize her before she could kill the girl. One careless moment, and they might even “accidentally” kill her instead.

Besides, the family head valued Shen Tianhao. That was the only reason he had offered compensation at all.

Her thoughts settled.

Shen Yan raised clear eyes to the highest-ranking and strongest person present, then smiled.

“Fine. Shen Xue can live. In compensation, I want one hundred thousand taels of gold—roughly four metric tons—and one month of unrestricted study in the Shen family library.”

The elders’ faces changed at once.

The Third Elder sprang to his feet.

“Shen Yan, your greed knows no bounds! One hundred thousand taels of gold? Why not rob us outright? And what right does a good-for-nothing like you have to enter the family library?”

Shen Yan’s voice remained mild. “So in your eyes, Shen Xue’s life is worth less than one hundred thousand taels of gold and one month in the library?”

The Third Elder stiffened, suddenly at a loss for words.

“If she is not worth that much,” Shen Yan continued carelessly, “I can lower my demand.”

“Sister Yan’er, why must you… humiliate me this way?” Shen Xue asked, her voice catching as though she were deeply wounded.

Shen Yan did not spare her so much as a glance.

The Grand Elder glared viciously at her, then turned to the family head to defend Shen Xue.

“Family Head, Xue’er’s value far exceeds such a paltry sum. If Shen Yan is willing to put this matter behind us, then what is one hundred thousand taels of gold? But her demand to study in the family library cannot be allowed.”

The family head regarded the granddaughter before him with complicated eyes. She had changed beyond recognition.

Even if Shen Yan was no longer simple-minded, however, she was still a good-for-nothing.

Shen Tianhao fixed the family head with a deep, unwavering stare.

“Father, if you refuse Yan’er’s compensation, then she and I will sever all ties with the Shen family and leave.”

“Tianhao!”

Alarm crossed the family head’s face.

He could abandon a granddaughter like Shen Yan, but he could not allow his son to leave. It was not merely a matter of blood. Shen Tianhao was also one of the most talented Summoners in the Shen family.

More importantly, Shen Tianhao’s younger son, Shen Huai, was now the family’s finest Summoner. At only ten years old, he had summoned the divine beast Vermilion Bird. That feat had earned him special admission to the Western Region Academy two years ago.

The Western Region Academy was the foremost institution in the Pingze Western Region.

Shen Tianhao had once brought the family glory. Now Shen Huai had brought it unsurpassed honor.

The family head could not bear to lose them.

Shen Yan and Shen Huai were twins, yet the difference between them was as vast as heaven and earth. One was a disgraceful good-for-nothing; the other, a prodigy blessed with extraordinary talent.

At last, the family head yielded.

“Enough. I agree.”

“Later, I will have someone deliver the hundred thousand taels of gold and a token granting access to the library to your courtyard.”

Shen Tianhao’s expression eased slightly, but cold disappointment still spread through his heart.

He was growing more disillusioned by the moment with this family that devoured its own.

He turned to Shen Yan, guilt written across his face.

As her father, he had failed to protect his child. Worse, he could do nothing but watch her attacker walk free. Powerlessness welled inside him.

“Father, let’s go back.” Shen Yan seemed to see through him at a glance.

She felt little herself, but her tone softened.

Shen Tianhao hurriedly agreed. “Yes, yes. Father will find a physician to treat your wounds.”

Shen Yan gave a small nod.

Before she left, her icy gaze lingered on Shen Xue’s face.

The moment Shen Xue met her eyes, cold spread across her back. Her breath caught, and a sense of foreboding crept into her heart.

She watched Shen Yan walk away, twisting the fabric at her side in one clenched fist.

Shen Yan had clearly been dead then. How could she possibly have survived?

Had Nangong Yu betrayed her?

The Grand Elder smiled at Shen Xue with affection.

“Xue’er, congratulations on becoming a Summoner. Now you truly belong to the Shen family.”

Shen Xue came back to herself. Her face clouded with sorrow, and she lowered her head guiltily.

“But Sister Yan’er…”

“Don’t mention her,” the Grand Elder sneered. “It brings bad luck.”

Still kneeling, Shen Xue looked toward the family head. Tears streamed down her face as she spoke.

“Grandfather, I harmed Sister Yan’er and caused Father to misunderstand you and the elders. I am deeply ashamed. But what is done cannot be undone. From now on, I will cultivate with all my strength and do everything I can to repay the Shen family.”

The family head could see some of the calculation behind her words, but he did not expose it.

For one thing, Shen Xue’s talent was genuinely impressive.

For another, she was the daughter of an old friend.

Before that friend died, he had entrusted the young Shen Xue to him. To give the girl a proper place in the family, he had arranged for Tianhao to adopt her.

Now, looking at a face so strikingly similar to his old friend’s, the family head’s heart softened.

“Get up.”

“Thank you, Grandfather.”

Once Shen Xue rose, the family head sent for a physician to treat her injuries.

Anyone ignorant of the truth might have thought Shen Xue was his biological granddaughter—and Shen Yan a complete stranger.