Yue Xiaoqian’s body shuddered. Her arms tightly held Long Chen’s waist as they immersed themselves in that feeling.

Eventually, the two of them slowly parted. Yue Xiaoqian still had wet marks on her face, and she didn’t dare to look at Long Chen’s fiery gaze. Instead, she plastered her face into Long Chen’s sturdy chest, feeling his wild heartbeat. Her heart was doing the same.

“It’s like a drum.”

Yue Xiaoqian suddenly smiled. Long Chen’s heartbeat really was like a drum.

“It’s like a honey peach.”

Long Chen also made a comparison.

“What?” Yue Xiaoqian looked at him in confusion.

Long Chen wriggled his eyebrows at her and licked his lips. “Fragrant and delicious.”

“Scoundrel.” Yue Xiaoqian couldn’t help lightly hitting him a few times for that joke, making Long Chen laugh. “Stop! Otherwise, I’ll tell my mom you bullied me!”

“That’s just what I was looking for. If she knew, would she immediately urge us to finish our marriage vows?”

“Hmph, that’s a nice dream. If an outsider wants to marry one of the original devil race’s women, they need the approval of Mixihaweiya, our god. Then they’ll need to accomplish three missions and get the approval of the entire race. Furthermore, hehe, the original devil’s race inheritance is matriarchal. Doesn’t that mean our children would have my surname?” Yue Xiaoqian laughed.

“Xiaoqian, aren’t we one family? What do you think about reversing this sequence?”

“What sequence?”

“What I mean is, let’s make it simpler. Let’s first have children before dealing with the rest.”

“Scoundrel! You wish!” Yue Xiaoqian ran away. Long Chen’s words were too roguish.

Long Chen laughed and caught up to her. Holding hands, the two of them continued onward.

“Xiaoqian, I thought you knew how to read minds? It seems you can no longer read mine,” said Long Chen. Back in the Jiuli secret realm when he had first encountered her, Yue Xiaoqian seemed to be able to read all his thoughts.

“Hmph, I told you that it wasn’t a mind-reading art. It was just guessing a person’s thought process based on their spiritual fluctuations, heartbeat, eyes, aura, blood flow, movements, etc. It’s only useful against strangers. My mom taught it to me back then so I wouldn’t get tricked by strangers. Now that we’re already this familiar with each other, it’s useless.” Yue Xiaoqian glared at Long Chen.

Long Chen was delighted to hear that. Then wouldn’t he be able to continue teasing other beauties without worry?

He walked alongside her, feeling her warm hand and smelling her scent. He felt relaxed and content.

“Long Chen, don’t you feel tired from fighting and killing all day in the Martial Heaven Continent? Aren’t you sick of it?”

“I am sick of it. I got sick of it a long time ago. There are so many idiots who have had water get into their brains. They buzz around me like house flies all day. As for being tired? It’s not that bad. When I think about it, all my efforts are so the people I love will feel happier and safer.”

Yue Xiaoqian’s hand tightened around Long Chen’s. Leaning against him, she felt like he was the one who made her feel safest in this world.

Two huge mountains appeared as they were walking. They formed a natural gate. Here, Yue Xiaoqian let go of Long Chen’s hand and her expression grew solemn.

“This is the ancestral land. Follow me.”

Yue Xiaoqian and Long Chen passed through the two mountains. After a dozen miles, they reached a giant palace.

It was an ancient palace, one that was grand and imposing. Although some areas were damaged and some looked like they had been patched, that did not hide its sacred air.

Inside the palace was a statue two hundred and ninety-seven meters tall. It looked as if it had been made using bright jade. Its expression was vivid, and it looked like a real person.

The statue was of a woman sitting cross-legged. She looked to be in her thirties and had a faint smile. A Devil character could be seen on her forehead. It was rainbow-colored and flowing with divine light.

“This is the original devil ancestor.”

Yue Xiaoqian respectfully knelt down and paid respect to the statue. The etiquette she used was one of worship and offering sacrifice to an ancestor.

In the cultivation world, many times when people offered sacrifices to their ancestors, they were actually offering sacrifices to their heroic spirits, using their devout faith energy to preserve those spirits so that they could protect their descendants.

In the secular world, there was a similar ritual, but it was simpler. They offered sacrifices to their ancestors as a reminder to themselves of how they had ended up in this world. Without their ancestors, they wouldn’t exist, so this was a form of thanks.

Of course, in the secular world, there were no heroic spirits remaining. That was why many cultivators turned their noses up at this secular rite, not realizing that they were the ones that had forgotten their roots.

This woman was Yue Xiaoqian’s ancestor. Sooner or later, Yue Xiaoqian would be Long Chen’s wife, so this person could also count as Long Chen’s Elder. Hence, Long Chen also followed along with Yue Xiaoqian’s etiquette.

However, he had just moved when Yue Xiaoqian’s expression completely changed and she grabbed onto him, preventing him from moving. Her face was pale.

“What is it?” Long Chen also jumped in fright.

“Long Chen, you have to remember, as the heir of the nine stars, no one is qualified to receive your kowtow other than your parents and closest family. Even heaven and earth, even gods are not qualified. If you did kneel to them, the heavens would crash, and the earth would wither. Even gods would fall.” Yue Xiaoqian’s frightened expression had yet to fade even though she had managed to stop Long Chen in time.

“Is the heir of the nine stars so amazing?”

“Long Chen, none of us can divulge too much about the secrets of the nine stars. The more we tell you, the worse it will be for you. It would be harming you. But you need to understand that the heir of the nine stars is the most respected existence in the world. You cannot lower your head to anyone, not even heaven or earth. Perhaps you’ve already sensed some clues. You are not accepted by the heavens because-”

BOOM!

Suddenly, divine pressure and angry light exploded out of the ancestral statue, interrupting Yue Xiaoqian’s words.

“Ancestor, please calm your rage! I know I was wrong!” Yue Xiaoqian hastily knelt toward the statue again.

Once she admitted her fault, the divine pressure and light faded. It seemed that it had been a warning.

“Long Chen, many things about you are taboo, so don’t blame the ancestor. She is doing this for you.” Yue Xiaoqian saw that Long Chen’s expression was a bit angry, and she knew it was because he was feeling resentful toward the statue for scaring her, so she hastily explained.

Long Chen felt a bit better from that explanation. In his heart, Yue Xiaoqian was already his woman, and he wouldn’t let her suffer.

Yue Xiaoqian began to pull Long Chen away. In the end, Long Chen only cupped his fists toward the statue. After all, it was still Yue Xiaoqian’s ancestor.

Once they were past the statue, they entered a long corridor. The two sides of the corridor were filled with ancient murals. Many of them were motley, and some places had been damaged too badly to be understood. However, nothing had been repaired at all. They were still in their original form.

“These murals were carved by the ancestors of my race. However, so much time has passed, and it’s unknown just how many wars the Skyscraping World has gone through. This is the place enemies wanted to destroy, so some places are already incomplete. The material used to create these carvings is very precious, and the ancestors’ wills and divine charm are still present within them. With our current level, it’s impossible to restore them, so we don’t even dare to try,” sighed Yue Xiaoqian. Her voice contained respect for those ancestors, as well as sadness for the original devil race’s decline.

“Things decline and prosper. When things get so bad that they can’t get any worse, they can only get better,” comforted Long Chen.

He knew that Yue Xiaoqian was actually carrying just as many things on her back as he was. Having a powerful sense of responsibility, she wanted to help the original devil race to escape its current predicament. That was immense pressure.

In truth, there were quite a few areas where Long Chen and Yue Xiaoqian had things in common. That made Long Chen understand the hardships she was under and feel more love for her.

Although he had more things on his back, he felt that as a man, he had to face those things. These difficulties, they were a whetstone to temper himself on. As long as he used them well, they would become his stepping stones to grow.

“Xiaoqian, don’t worry, I will help you carry this burden. Trust me.”

“Yes.”

Xiaoqian smiled happily. Now she had someone she could rely on. Furthermore, Long Chen’s shoulder always made her feel at peace.

They continued onward through the corridor. Suddenly, Long Chen paused as he saw a shocking scene.