Hearing this, Lei Huo became even more enraged. Countless flames instantly gathered on its horn. With a flick of its head, a bolt of lightning shot out.
The lightning didn't strike Ding Ruozhao but instead slammed into the nearby stone wall with a deafening roar. The entire stone cave shook violently, and the stone wall crumbled, revealing a large hole as debris flew everywhere.
At the same time, Ding Ruozhao said in a deep voice, "The third option is to guard my Ding family for five hundred years. After five hundred years, I can release you from the spirit beast contract and return your freedom."
After saying this, Ding Ruozhao also released a powerful aura, her eyes staring coldly at the Lei Huo Beast.
The Lei Huo Beast also widened its eyes and met her gaze.
For a moment, waves of spiritual energy emanated throughout the cave, but neither the person nor the beast made a move.
......
Not long after, in a valley on the deserted island, the remaining two to three hundred Ding family cultivators were gathered.
Most of these people were Qi Refining cultivators, with only thirty or so disciples having Foundation Establishment strength. Among them, only a handful of four or five had reached the late stage of Foundation Establishment.
Moreover, they were mostly quite old, and it was likely they would have little chance to advance further. The leading Ding family Foundation Establishment cultivators were reporting something to Ding Ruozhao.
Finally, the few late-stage Foundation Establishment Ding family cultivators and Ding Ruozhao entered a stone room.
The decoration inside the stone house was simple, with only a few chairs. Besides that, there was also a red sandalwood incense table, on which dozens of memorial tablets were enshrined, and behind it, on the stone wall, hung seven or eight portraits of ancestors.
These portraits were all of Ding family cultivators who had achieved the Golden Core stage and were qualified to be enshrined here.
Ding Ruozhao led the few cultivators who held great power in the Ding family, first paying respects to the ancestral masters, and then sat down on the stone chairs to discuss the future plans of the Ding family.
An old man with white hair and a wrinkled face, narrowed his eyes and said.
"Now that our Ding family only has these cultivators left, our strength has decreased by at least half. Without the protection of the Qing Lei Sect, it will be difficult to develop further if we continue to hide on this deserted island. In my opinion, we should find another place with excellent spiritual veins to have a chance to restore the former glory of our Ding family."
"Hmph, Seventh Uncle, our Ding family has just experienced internal strife, and our strength has been severely damaged. It's better to recuperate for a while before discussing this matter. What we should be worried about is the revenge that the Qing Lei Sect might seek."
"Seventh Uncle, Ding Hui, what you said makes sense. Speaking of which, this matter is simple. Although our Ding family's strength has been greatly damaged, we have the family head, a late-stage Golden Core expert, to guard us. We don't need to hide here, acting timidly. Whether we go to other places to seize a spiritual vein as a stronghold or find another immortal cultivation sect to attach ourselves to, we have many choices."
The Qing Lei Sect is just a small to medium-sized force in the Liuyun Sea. Within ten thousand miles, there are several sects that are much stronger than the Qing Lei Sect, and even further out, there are super forces like the Ten Great Sects. Choosing some sects to attach ourselves to, our Ding family can settle down and establish ourselves.
For a time, the few people were discussing the future development of the Ding family.
During this process, only two people did not speak, one was the current acting family head of the Ding family, Ding Ruozhao, and the other was the old matriarch of the Ding family, dressed in luxurious clothes.
They discussed for a while without making a decision. Some people felt that their strength was greatly damaged and they should focus on recuperating.
Some people believed that finding a powerful sect to attach themselves to would lead to better development.
These people argued endlessly until the old matriarch suddenly stood up and tapped the ground with the gray wooden cane in her hand, and everyone gradually quieted down.
The old matriarch glanced at the few people, and finally looked at Ding Ruozhao and said, "Girl, the future of the Ding family still depends on your decision."
After pondering for a moment, Ding Ruozhao stood up and said calmly.
"The opinions you have all expressed are for the sake of the future of my Ding family. But there is one thing you must know, I am only the acting family head, and soon I have other important matters to go to the Wilderness Domain. I cannot guard the Ding family."
"What, the family head cannot sit in the Ding family."
"The most important thing now is to guard our Ding family. If you leave the family, our Ding family will not have a single Golden Core expert. What will we do?"
After Ding Ruozhao said this, the few people began to argue again.
Ding Ruozhao frowned slightly and snorted softly. Her spiritual power flashed, releasing the spiritual pressure of the late stage of the Golden Core, and the arguing people immediately shut their mouths.
Seeing that everyone was quiet, Ding Ruozhao suddenly raised her hand and took out a spirit beast bag from her waist, which landed in the center of the crowd. A red light flashed, and the Lei Huo Beast instantly appeared in front of everyone.
As soon as this beast appeared, it howled. The spiritual pressure on the seventh-order demon beast was no weaker than that of a late-stage Golden Core cultivator. For a moment, the people present couldn't help but take a few steps back, wondering what the intention was of suddenly releasing this beast?
The few people looked at Ding Ruozhao, waiting for her explanation.
Ding Ruozhao glanced at everyone and said leisurely, "You must all be familiar with the Lei Huo Beast. Although I will not stay in the Ding family, this beast is enough to guard the Ding family. As for whether to recuperate or make other plans, it is up to you to decide."
"But I want to remind you that this beast is different from before. It is no longer just a inherited spirit beast, but will be treated the same as the Ding family cultivators. Moreover, I have re-signed a contract with it. This beast will only guard the Ding family for five hundred years, after which it will be free."
"What do you mean? The Lei Huo Beast is our Ding family's inherited spirit beast, how can we re-sign a contract with it?"
"Yes, family head, you can't be joking."
The words spoken by Ding Ruozhao stunned the cultivators, and then someone questioned her. The inherited spirit beast should guard the family until death. How could it be allowed to leave the family?
This was the most unacceptable thing for everyone. This was not an ordinary spirit beast, but a seventh-order spirit beast equivalent to a late-stage Golden Core expert, and it had a longer lifespan than a late-stage Golden Core expert. It could guard the family for one or two thousand years.
If it was allowed to leave freely, it would be equivalent to immediately weakening half of the Ding family's strength.
Looking at the angry and questioning cultivators, the Lei Huo Beast roared and released a powerful spiritual power, and a force of thunder and fire quickly spread out.
Except for Ding Ruozhao, everyone else here was only at the Foundation Establishment stage. Facing this beast, they immediately felt their bodies burning and retreated one after another.
Ding Ruozhao just looked at all this coldly, without stopping the Lei Huo Beast. Only suddenly did the old matriarch's voice sound in her ear.
"Girl, why is this? Could it be that something happened to the Lei Huo Beast?"
Hearing the matriarch's question, a trace of emotion finally appeared on Ding Ruozhao's face, and she also transmitted her voice.
"Aunt, it's not that Zhao'er is not considering the family, but that the Lei Huo Beast has already swallowed the natal soul tablet. It has already obtained its freedom. The Ding family can no longer completely control this beast."
