“Mom, you?!”

Long Chen’s jaw dropped as he looked at his mother in surprise.

Mrs. Long blushed, embarrassed to be stared at like this by her son. She viciously cut at Long Tianxiao with her eyes, angrily saying, “It’s all your father’s fault. He really doesn’t know how to be decent.”

Long Chen hadn’t noticed at first, but now he realized that his mother’s belly had swelled slightly. She had actually become pregnant!

Back when Mrs. Long had first miscarried, she had been filled with pain. Luckily, Long Tianxiao had brought back Long Chen just a few days later, filling that hole in Mrs. Long’s heart.

The two of them both treated him like a gift from the heavens, giving Long Chen all their love. But not long after, their Long family had been drawn into a conspiracy, and Long Tianxiao had been forced to stay away from the capital.

In reality, both Mrs. Long and Long Tianxiao were in the prime of their lives. Now that the storm had passed and they were at peace, the two of them no longer needed to stay apart all the time. The two of them were actually delighted that she had become pregnant again.

“Congratulations dad, congratulations mom!” laughed Long Chen heartily.

Long Tianxiao laughed with him, but Mrs. Long turned even redder. Her son had already grown up, but she was still unwilling to let go of him.

“Mom, let me feel your pulse and let me see if you’re carrying a little brother or a little sister,” laughed Long Chen.

Mrs. Long had recovered slightly from her embarrassment by now, and she shook her head. “Grandmaster has already helped me check. It’s a daughter.”

Mrs. Long gently rubbed her belly, a loving light shining on her face. “The heavens really have been kind to me. Even in my later years, they sent me a daughter. Everyone says that daughters are closest to their mothers. I really have been blessed.”

“A little sister, excellent!” Long Chen nodded. His mother was just an ordinary mortal incapable of cultivating. She was approaching her forties. For her to become pregnant at such a time really was a kind gift from the heavens.

With a child by his mother’s side, she wouldn’t spend all her days worrying about him. She would be able to pass her days much happier.

“Aiya, we’ve been talking so much, I forgot about our guests!” Mrs. Long really had been too happy and had completely forgotten about Chu Yao and Tang Wan-er.

“No problem, they’re all family,” laughed Long Chen.

Long Chen had only said this without thinking about it, and Chu Yao was completely fine with it. But Tang Wan-er blushed. Obviously, calling her family caused her to feel a bit odd. Her heart was pounding, but a trace of joy appeared in her eyes.

“Aunt Long, Long Chen’s right. There are no guests here, only family.” Chu Yao came up and wrapped her arm around Mrs. Long’s arm. “This isn’t an outsider, but a close female friend from Long Chen’s sect, Tang Wan-er.”

Long Chen was startled. Close female friend? When did that happen?

“Wan-er greets aunt Long.” Tang Wan-er hastily paid her respects. She appeared bashful and graceful, a completely different display from how fiery she normally was with Long Chen.

“Haha, what a beautiful maiden. It’s rare to find someone so cute, sensible, and sweet-tempered. Ah, your character’s very similar to Yao-er! Long Chen, you bad child, what are you secretly laughing about?”

Seeing Long Chen was doing his best to hold back his laughter to the side, Mrs. Long held onto Tang Wan-er’s hand and demanded.

Long Chen really was unable to hold back his laughter. How could ‘cute, sensible, and sweet-tempered’ be used to describe Tang Wan-er?

“Uh, you guys can talk for now. I won’t bother you any longer. I’ll go talk with dad.” Long Chen knew he would definitely get unequal treatment if he stayed here with these three women. He quickly went over to where his dad was.

Arriving beneath an old tree in the rear court, Long Chen and Long Tianxiao sat atop a stone bench. Long Tianxiao looked up at that old tree and sighed.

“Time really passes quickly. I still remember when you were just a snot-nosed child holding that wooden sword, constantly challenging me to a duel. Now you’ve already grown up, reaching a level that even I, your father, can only look up to.”

Long Tianxiao looked at Long Chen. His gaze contained pride, but it also contained a trace of sorrow. Although Long Tianxiao was a magnanimous person, it was impossible for a father to completely hold back his deep love for his child.

Long Chen felt a burst of emotion as he remembered how when he was young, his father would accompany him under this tree, playing with him and teaching him how to use the sword while his mother watched and laughed to the side.

Now he had grown stronger, so strong that he could easily subdue an entire empire. But that kind of joy from his childhood would never return again.

That was something being more powerful was incapable of fixing. This was just the cruelness of time. As time passed, it continuously pushed people forward. Once a moment had passed, it was impossible to return to.

“Son, your father cannot help you with anything in terms of cultivation. But there is one thing you have to remember. The more powerful a person becomes, the easier it will be for them to lose their original heart.

“So you absolutely can’t have any intentions of being some lonely dominator. Otherwise, the further you walk, the fewer people you will have walking beside you. Eventually you will be all alone, becoming a violent, tyrannical monster who will only believe in your own strength. That will lead you down the Devil path.” Long Tianxiao was extremely grave.

The reason Long Tianxiao gave this warning to Long Chen was because Long Chen always laid his inner heart bare to him. He could sense that there was a terrifying, tyrannical aura within Long Chen’s bones. That was a desire that wished to destroy the entire world.

If Long Chen were to allow that desire to overcome his senses, then Long Chen really might end up falling onto the Devil path, becoming a true demon king.

The stronger a person was, the easier it was to lose their original heart. That was because they only believed in their own strength. They didn’t have confidence in anyone else besides them.

The Corrupt path’s experts were like that. They only trusted in themselves and never anyone else. They revered strength, revered slaughter, and thought that power was everything.

Long Tianxiao was worried that Long Chen would one day walk down a similar path. Long Chen was just too strong, and it would be easy for him to lose his way.

“Dad, don’t worry. I understand. No matter how strong a person is, without someone guarding their back, they’ll definitely die sooner or later. I will definitely leave my back to those I trust,” nodded Long Chen.

“Hahaha, good! You really are worthy of being my, Long Tianxiao’s, son! You are the pride of my life!” Long Tianxiao laughed heartily, patting Long Chen on the shoulders.

“Actually dad, you are my real idol.” Long Chen gazed at his father sincerely.

Arrogantly looking down on all beneath the heavens, being unafraid of death, caring deeply about relations and emotions, being sincere and heartfelt. In Long Chen’s opinion, that was how a real hero should be.

In comparison, those experts with higher cultivation bases but who spent all day contemplating despicable little schemes were all just piles of dogshit in Long Chen’s eyes.

No matter how high their cultivation bases rose, they would never be heroes. At most, they would just go from a small lump of dogshit to a big lump of dogshit. There was no qualitative change.

“Hahaha, let’s go. The food should be ready now. Us father and son definitely have to have a proper taste.” Long Tianxiao pulled Long Chen into a dining room.

By this point in time, Long Tianxiao was the main pillar of the entire empire. His orders were no different from the Emperor’s orders.

The palace’s hundreds of chefs had all rushed over to the Long estate now, working all-out to bring out their finest delicacies.

By the time Long Chen and Long Tianxiao arrived, there were already over two hundred chefs that were working efficiently.

At the front was a table where Wilde was sitting alone. Those chefs were all quickly bringing plate after plate of meat to Wilde. Wilde would swallow each plate of meat in just a single gulp, and then rapidly reach out for a new one.

The chefs were all shaken. But as soon as Wilde emptied their dishes, they would run back and go prepare more food. In the end, there was a whole queue of chefs feeding Wilde while the others prepared more food as fast as they could.

“Uncle… brother... Long… you’ve… come…” Wilde was still wildly devouring all the food, stuttering out words between mouthfuls.

“Ah, just keep eating. There is more than enough food,” laughed Long Chen.

He knew Wilde’s body was special. This ordinary meat and food was unable to provide him enough energy. At best, they would just temporarily stall his hunger.

But as long as he wasn’t dying from hunger, it was still good enough. In order to completely replenish all of his energy, they’d probably have to return to the monastery and go hunt some high ranking Magical Beasts.

At this time, Mrs. Long also walked in with Chu Yao and Tang Wan-er each holding one of her arms, all three of them smiling happily.

Tang Wan-er was still displaying that warm and extremely pleasant behavior, something which made Long Chen feel extremely out of sorts. He continued to occasionally look at her oddly.

While they were eating, Tang Wan-er took advantage of when everyone wasn’t paying attention to viciously glare at Long Chen a couple of times. Only then did Long Chen relax. It was still the same Tang Wan-er.

Long Chen spent three days within the capital. Those three days passed extremely happily. Long Chen also accompanied Chu Yao on a trip to the imperial palace. Another burst of emotion came when those two, brother and sister, Chu Yao and Chu Feng, saw each other again.

The Phoenix Cry Empire was currently prospering. With Long Tianxiao present, none of the surrounding empires dared have the slightest intentions against Phoenix Cry.

Long Chen also gathered up Shi Feng, fatty Yu, Shou Hou, and everyone else at the Heroic Assembly House. At the top floor of the Heroic Assembly House, they constantly told stories about what had happened back then, and their voices only became louder as they drank more and more. Everyone became completely drunk in just a moment.

Due to his cultivation base, Long Chen would drink a large jug while others only drank a cup in order to maintain an even playing field.

So, even Long Chen was completely drunk in the end. He didn’t even remember how he managed to return home.

In any case, in a daze, he had felt two gentle bodies supporting him. Leaning against those two bodies, he had fallen fast asleep.

When he awoke the next day, Long Chen felt a burst of pain in his head. He had actually gotten so drunk that he didn’t even remember anything now. But sniffing the air, he could smell two faint fragrances lingering around his body.

After living at home for three days, Long Chen finally brought his group away. They left under his mother’s unwilling gaze.

Looking back at the ancient city walls, Long Chen sighed. Life was a series of multiple-choice options. After picking a few options, he didn’t even know just what kind of path he had picked for himself.

But Long Chen also had no choice. Rubbing that Soul Calming Jade, he knew he had to know his past. More importantly, he had to know who his biological parents were.

It was like he was standing in front of a huge door, while that jade pendant was the key. But he didn’t dare open that door. Because once he did, whatever was hiding behind that door would immediately take his life.

Long Chen urgently needed to increase his own strength. In fact, that urgency, which he constantly felt, had only grown compared to before. It was as if some sort of danger was slowly drawing near.

Leaving the capital, Long Chen’s group hurried in the direction of Skywood Mountain.