âXiaoyu!â Long Chen smiled and cried out when he saw his little sister. Long Xiaoyu had grown taller and prettier again.
As the guards around Long Xiaoyu parted the crowd, Long Xiaoyu ran over and hugged Long Chen, her face red from emotion.
Long Chen also tightly hugged her. âXiaoyu, when did you become so coarse? If mom knew of this, sheâd definitely scold you.â
Mrs. Long was a noble with high requirements for her children, especially when it came to manners. Because of it, Long Chen had often been scolded when he hadnât listened to her. Mrs. Long was always worried about him, but the Long family had been suppressed at that time, so she hadnât had that much time to bother with him. Now that her life was stable, she had more than enough time to teach Long Xiaoyu, and that liveliness was something Long Xiaoyu often complained about.
âHmph, you still remember us? You didnât come see us after all this time!â Long Xiaoyu wrinkled her nose stubbornly.
Long Chen felt a sour feeling. Long Xiaoyu was extremely attached to him, perhaps even more than their parents. Their father, Long Tianxiao, was carefree and focused on winemaking, while their mother had extremely high expectations of her, making her feel sullen. Hence, only when she was with Long Chen was she particularly happy and relaxed, because no matter what wrong she did, Long Chen would protect her.
Ever since she was young, Long Chen was like her protector god and pride. In the Grand Xia, no matter who spoke of him, they would be filled with worship.
However, Long Chen was too busy. Every time he came back, he was only able to stay a few days. Hence, she was always counting the days until he returned.
Now that he was back, she was excited but also sad. After that, she didnât know why, but she began to cry.
âItâs your big brotherâs fault. I promise you, as long as I have time, Iâll definitely come see you,â promised Long Chen, wiping away her tears.
Long Chen sighed inside. In the cultivation world, people did not have the freedom to do whatever they wanted. That truly was an unbreakable law.
Even now that he was a peerless heavenly genius who stood at the peak of the martial path in many peopleâs eyes, even though he was a target that countless people were hoping to reach, he himself knew just how powerless he was. No matter how powerful a person was, they couldnât choose to live the life that they wished.
Let alone him, even the Sovereigns were the same. Despite their power, didnât they also die? While with Sovereign Zi Yang, Long Chen had once noticed that Sovereign Zi Yang had wanted to say something, but he hadnât said it in the end.
However, based on the look in his eyes, Long Chen guessed that he had wanted to ask about the Beitang family. That was a look that Long Chen recognized.
Sovereign Zi Yang had given up on that love due to his own bitter struggles. With that as proof, even a Sovereign couldnât fulfill their heartâs desire.
âBig brother, Iâm not mad. I know that youâre a big hero. My teachers taught me that heroes like you are holding up the world. The reason we can live so worry-free is because heroes like you are holding back the darkness so that we can stand in the light. So I know that youâre very busy. Iâm not mad. I just⌠really miss youâŚâ
Long Chenâs heart skipped a beat. It was like a bolt of lightning had gone off in his mind. Long Xiaoyuâs words echoed the same tones that Sovereign Zi Yang had mentioned repeatedly.
âWhen you fall into darkness and despair, donât give up. Work hard to see the light behind the darkness. Perhaps, the light is right behind you.â
Long Xiaoyu had said such words casually, but Sovereign Zi Yang would not possibly say such a thing randomly. Perhaps there was some enlightenment to be found.
âBig brother, please donât be sad, alright? I wonât cry any longerâŚâ Long Xiaoyu wiped away her tears, holding them back upon seeing how serious Long Chenâs expression was.
Long Chen was pulled back into reality by her voice. Seeing her cute appearance, he felt an ache inside. He was not living up to his duty as her big brother.
Long Chen kissed her forehead and smiled warmly. âFoolish girl, your big brother is happy whenever he sees you.â
Long Xiaoyu smiled. Holding her hand, she started skipping to the Wine God Palace.
With the guards opening the path, things went very very smoothly. After a while, Long Xiaoyu suddenly asked, âBig brother, can you carry me?â
Long Chen didnât know whether to laugh or cry. Long Xiaoyu was now as tall as his chest. How could he carry her like a child?
âHow about I carry you on my back?â Long Chen squatted down, and his sister happily ran behind him and jumped on.
âHehe, good thing mom isnât here, or sheâd scold us,â giggled Long Xiaoyu. She leaned against his back.
Long Chen couldnât help shaking his head. His mother was trying to restrict someone who was so lively. The bigger she grew, the more she would resist. It seemed that he would have to warn his mother that some things were simply part of someoneâs character, and it was difficult to change. In the end, Long Xiaoyu was not that kind of gentle and refined girl, so having her be a classical refined daughter of a noble family was not realistic. It would only harm their relationship.
âOh, Xiaoyu, you started cultivating?â asked Long Chen, surprised to sense she had reached the Tendon Transformation realm.
âYes! Mom didnât want me to cultivate, but seeing that others who cultivated were able to fly through the air, I kept begging her. Hehe, she was finally moved by me and permitted me to start cultivating,â said Long Xiaoyu, very pleased.
Moved? What a way to put it. It seemed more like she had nagged and nagged until even Mrs. Long couldnât handle it. This little girl really had some smarts.
âAmazing. When I was your age, I was still at qi gathering,â said Long Chen.
In truth, Long Xiaoyu wasnât very talented. Oneâs natural talent was mostly affected by a personâs father and mother. The stronger the parents, the stronger the child on average. However, at the same time, the higher the cultivation base, the lower the chances of conceiving a child. Because of this, many experts would end up having children at various realms to protect against both scenarios. One aspect was having stronger descendants, while the other was being young enough.
As for Long Tianxiaoâs bloodline, it was very ordinary. There were no experts who had reached the Xiantian realm amongst their ancestors, resulting in Long Xiaoyuâs talent also being ordinary.
The reason that Long Xiaoyu was able to so quickly reach her current realm was entirely thanks to the cultivation environment in the Grand Xiaâs capital.
âSince youâve chosen to cultivate, Iâll refine a furnace of pills for you that can rebuild your Spirit Root and allow you to break through your cultivation limit,â said Long Chen.
âReally? But⌠mom wonât be happy.â Long Xiaoyu went from very excited to sad midway through.
âWhy?â
âMom doesnât want me to get too strong. She would rather I be an ordinary person and stay by her side,â said Long Xiaoyu sadly.
Long Chen was startled. Long Xiaoyu had a vision that surpassed her age. She had seen through her motherâs thoughts.
Mrs. Long didnât wish for Long Xiaoyu to be like Long Chen and leave her to roam the world. Mrs. Long was just an ordinary person, and a motherâs love was selfish. But there was a price to this selfishness. It might cut off Long Xiaoyuâs wings.
âIâll talk to mom. Itâll be fine. Remember, time is the most miraculous thing. It can change countless things in this world, including peopleâs thoughts. Sometimes people need time to get used to new ideas, understand?â Long Chen looked back and gave her a mischievous smile.
Long Xiaoyuâs eyes brightened and she winked. She actually fully understood his meaning.
The brother-and-sister pair laughed. With this weight lifted, Long Xiaoyu became even livelier. Long Chen began to transmit a technique for slowly convincing Mrs. Long of new ideas.
âBig brother, youâre the best!â exclaimed Long Xiaoyu.
Long Chen smiled, but that smile was a bit bitter inside. If his mother learned of this, would he be cursed to death?
They quickly arrived in front of the Wine God Palace. Everything was the same as before. At this moment, he saw the disciple of the Wine God Disciple greeting them.
Thinking of how he had conned wine out of the Wine God Palaceâs disciples the first time he had come here, he felt ashamed but also felt close to this dear place. When he passed by Tu Qianshangâs wooden hut, he saw that the fatty was actually at home and busy with something.
âHey, fatty, itâs been a long time. Your clothes are getting tighter,â greeted Long Chen.
Tu Qianshang ended up dropping whatever he was fiddling with and furiously turned around. But when he saw Long Chen, he laughed. However, that laugh also quickly changed. âHurry and finish your business. Once youâre done, come back and drink some of my new wine.â
Long Chen smiled. âI donât have any business. We can drink right now. Let me have a taste of this peerless wine of yours.â
Long Chen had long since finished the wine that Tu Qianshang had given him last time. His wine was extremely fierce, and Long Chen was fond of it.
âDonât joke. That old fellow of the divine families has been waiting three days for you. Get over there!â Tu Qianshang waved.
Long Chen was startled. An old fellow from the divine families? Who was that?