Patriarch Rahul Menon
Wiping of the blood he has just coughed out with his hand, Patriarch Rahul gloomily says as he looked at the two clan elders who have been empowering the level four defensive array with him, "The array's integrity will last for another week at most. It is time for us initiate the contingency plan. I have failed in my duty as the clan patriarch. Despite that, I still have to shamelessly ask the rest of the clan members to sacrifice themselves for the continuity of the clan."
"Please don't say that patriarch, I should be the one who should be apologizing. My third branch is at fault here." The second elder guiltily says. The Menon clan's current crisis is a direct result of the third branch's progeny betrayal.
The Menon clan founding ancestor is a disciple of Immortal Ascension Pavillion. For his descendants' own protection, little was shared about his experience prior to the founding of the Menon clan in a small rustic village. For two thousand years, the small family has transformed slowly but steadily from a second major realm loose cultivator (he had hidden his true cultivation realm but was in fact in the fourth major realm) putting down roots into the clan's current size and prosperity. After two thousand years of development, the clan is now a renown clan in the local area with two publicly known third major realm cultivators while one other third major realm cultivator has been kept hidden behind the scene. The small rustic village has also transformed into a small prosperous town with most of its industry controlled by the Menon clan.
Back when their founding ancestor started his family, the smart choice was to abandon his identity as an Immortal Ascension Pavillion. However, he refused to give up this identity of his. He owed his cultivation realm and achievement in life to the sect.
An orphan by the time he is old enough to remember, the founding ancestor might have died young as a beggar if fate has been harsh on him or even if he is lucky enough grew up to adulthood, his prospect would have been grim. Being uneducated and lacking a legal identity, there is not much of a future to talk about. Feudal societies are notorious for its rigid social mobility.
Fortunately, the founding ancestor's fate has been anything but extraordinary. When he is thirteen, the sect managed to discover his cultivation talent on one fine day when he stumbled into one of the sect's many soup kitchens in the immortal realm. Ever since then, he begun to live a life beyond his wildest imagination.
Even when the founding ancestor was on his deathbed three hundred years ago, he still couldn't let go of his ties to the sect. He had made his successors (those aware of the clan's secret) to promise never to forget the clan's root. It is only until then that his successors found out about the clan's one last secret. The founding ancestor has never been alone on Burkhana and is part of a clandestine network led by an even more senior disciple of Immortal Ascension Pavillion. The clan wouldn't have developed so smoothly without the support of the clandestine network.
In the founding ancestor will, he proudly states that he has lived a very fruitful life and pass away surrounded by numerous descendants. His only regret, he failed to live to see the day the sect managed to overcome its crisis and he can openly return to the sect. This one regret will have to be inherited by his descendants. He hopes that his clan can one day return to the sect and help rebuild the sect to is former glory.
It is a tall order but at least the founding ancestor has not gone senile on his deathbed asking for the impossible. There is no request of the clan is to embark on a suicide quest of revenge in the scenario where Immortal Ascension Pavillion ended up being destroyed by its enemies. If the worst-case scenario is to happen, he is rationale enough to tell his descendants to forget and erase all ties to the sect. Asking for the impossible with just sow the seed of resentment among his descendants.
"This is not your third branch fault, elder! It is that ungrateful Viraj fault." A younger clan member defends the second elder. "If the clan has not sent him to Crimson Sword Manor, he wouldn't have been able to breakthrough to the fourth major realm. And what did he do the moment he stabilize his cultivation realm?! He came back snooping around to uncover the clan's secret. He can satisfy his curiosity but revealing the clan's secret to his sect, that is heartless. I knew the clan has it's secret but hiding it is for our own protection. The best of each generation had always been sent away to join a sect, enabling them to achieve their full potential. It is the more average talent that are made to stay and inherit the clan's burden and legacy."
"Viraj betrayal is to be condemned but Aarush, you shouldn't have return." The first clan elder interrupts the younger clan member from continuing his rant. "You should learn from Rishi. The moment he discovers what has happened, he sent a warning back before cutting all ties. That is the rationale thing to do. He will make it his mission to start a family and continue to clan's legacy. What did you managed to achieve by returning aside from getting your cultivation crippled? You are already a third major realm cultivator and if nothing unexpected happens, you will be able to reach the fourth major realm, just like Viraj."
"I'm not like Rishi. He can weight everything rationally and make cold calculated decision despite the needed sacrifice." Aarush defends. "I owe my success to the clan. The clan has chosen not to impede our bright future. Not only that, the clan has never stop sending us cultivation resources periodically without asking anything in return. Some has claimed that the clan can only grow so quickly and smoothly over the past two thousand years because of its ties to the sects, build on sending them the clan's best cultivation talents. That is just a bunch of heresy and i know better. The clan has never relied on us but on its own network to prosper. My guess, Viraj is after that very secret. If I choose to be ungrateful like Viraj, I will never be able to overcome my inner demon tribulation. I hope that rat Viraj will start developing inner demons after this. For someone that is able to achieve the fourth major realm, I can't believe he made such a stupid and short-sighted decision. I bet his sect will begin to sideline him after destroying our clan. No one with a brain will ever trust a self-serving traitor. Even better, I hope his sect with get rid of him after this too. That will teach him for betraying the clan!"
"Aarush, this is one whole unfortunate affair for you and the clan. There is no avoiding having a black sheep in the family from time to time. Back when our ancestor is still alive, he had caught his fair share of unfilial descendant. It is unfortunate we have no way to protect against a descendant in the fourth major realm now that our founding ancestor has passed away." Patriarch Rahul steps in to stop Aarush. All elders in the clan knew Aarush has habit of ranting whenever he is agitated. "Our top priority now is to secure the continuity of our clan. It is with great regret that we can no longer honor our founding ancestor dying wish. First elder, I will entrust you to lead and protect the selected descendants to escape tomorrow. Take a quarter of the clan's wealth. We need to leave enough to misled the clan's enemies that they managed to eliminate the entire clan when the defensive array is finally breached. Escape as far as you can before settling down. Make sure everyone that escape change their names and forget their old life. Forget revenge. They are to swear an immortal oath never to reveal our clan's background to future descendants and disavow all ties to Immortal Ascension Pavillion."
"Great! I finally found you guys. I though this will just be another innocent clan implicated by the sect's crisis."
That exclamation alarms everyone in the clan's array hall. Patriarch Rahul and all clan members in the hall immediately prepare for battle as a mysterious intruder appears in a corner of the clan hall. He guesses the mysterious intruder had used a very complex and high-level invisibility spell to sneak into the clan hall.
"Greetings, my name in Lin Feng and just like your ancestor, I am from Immortal Ascension Pavillion."
The mysterious intruder quickly introduce himself before taking out a disciple token that looks almost identical to the one owned by their ancestor.