Going Home

Early the next morning, Dilia found Lin Feng, with her brother Dixie following close behind.

"Lin Feng, my father has asked my brother and me to return home, I..." Dilia hesitated, leaving her sentence unfinished.

"Go on back. I'm sure your parents have missed you after more than five years," Lin Feng said with a smile.

"But I don't want to be apart from you." Dilia looked at him with a resentful expression, her eyes filled with reluctance and attachment.

"Only through parting can we know the joy of reunion. Besides, it's not like you're never coming back after you go home," Lin Feng comforted her.

"Mm, goodbye." Dilia was clearly disappointed that she didn't have more time to chat with Lin Feng. In the distance, Dixie walked over. With just a glance from him, Dilia walked toward her brother. Dixie then looked at Lin Feng: "Lin Feng, thank you for protecting Dilia and helping her reach the level of a level-six mage. But if you want to marry my sister, you must continue to cultivate diligently. I hear you have already broken through to a level-eight mage, but that level of strength is still not enough."

Dixie's tone remained cold, but Lin Feng knew that Dixie treated everyone with this icy attitude, so he didn't take it to heart.

"I know. I will work hard on my cultivation," Lin Feng said, his face full of confidence.

Lin Feng had self-awareness; he knew that with his current strength and status, he was not yet enough to make Dilia's parents value him. In the original story, Dilia's parents had intended to marry her off to the emperor of the Yulan Empire to be his empress.

Dixie nodded slightly, then led his sister Dilia toward the academy gates.

The late August sun was like a giant fireball, scorching hot. After having lunch with his three brothers, Lin Feng set off directly for his hometown, Wushan Town.

Earlier, Lin Feng had exchanged some of the magical beast cores in his Space Ring for gold coins, totaling one hundred thousand. He then deposited them into a Four-Nation Bank, receiving a magical crystal card in return.

"Zhi zhi." Beibei, perched on Lin Feng's shoulder, squeaked excitedly.

Lin Feng glanced at Beibei and smiled, communicating through soul connection: "Beibei, we haven't been back in so long. Time really flies!"

"Yeah, Boss. I still clearly remember the scene when we first left Wushan Town," Beibei said with a touch of nostalgia.

Lin Feng didn't walk particularly fast, maintaining a pace of twenty li per hour. By the time he reached the outskirts of Wushan Town, it was already dusk. As he advanced toward the town, Lin Feng heard a familiar voice: "Keep your backs straight, everyone! Don't hunch over. If anyone touches the branches below and gets paint on them, that's a violation. Your training will be doubled!" Uncle Hillman's voice could be heard from far away.

Lin Feng looked toward the nearby clearing.

On the familiar open ground to the east of Wushan Town, beside that row of poplar trees, a group of children ranging from six or seven to fifteen or sixteen years old were divided into three teams. Under the strict supervision of Hillman and two other instructors, they were training hard, their clothes soaked through with sweat.

"Back then, I trained just like that," Lin Feng thought, feeling a wave of emotion.

"Lin Feng?" Hillman spotted him from afar. After briefly instructing Rory and Roger, who were beside him, he immediately ran toward Lin Feng and pulled him into a bear hug.

"Uncle Hillman, it's been a long time," Lin Feng said, genuinely happy.

"Haha, come, let's go home first. Lord Hogg will be very happy to see you," Hillman said with a chuckle, then walked with Lin Feng toward Wushan Town.

"Young Master Lin Feng." Rory and Roger also greeted him warmly from a distance.

"Uncle Rory, Uncle Roger." Lin Feng waved in acknowledgment, then continued toward his family estate with Hillman.

"Lin Feng, how could you go to the Magical Beast Mountain Range for training without even telling your father? And you were gone for over five years. You have no idea how worried Lord Hogg was. In these five years, I haven't seen Lord Hogg smile once." Walking on the road to the Baruch Clan estate, Hillman couldn't help but lecture Lin Feng.

"Uncle Hillman, if I had told my father back then, do you think he would have let me go?" Lin Feng countered.

"Sigh, forget it. You've already been, and you've returned safely, so I won't say anything more." Hillman shook his head helplessly.

In the courtyard of the Baruch Clan estate, Hogg was lying on a chair, reading a very thick book with great focus.

"Lord Hogg, dinner is ready," a maid walked over and said respectfully.

Ever since the butler Hilly had taken young Wharton to the O'Brien Empire, there hadn't been a single servant left in the entire Baruch Clan. Hogg was, after all, the patriarch of a Dragonblood Warrior clan; he couldn't very well do the servants' chores himself. So, gritting his teeth, he had hired one maid.

"Oh." Hogg closed the book and glanced at the maid, sighing inwardly, "It's fortunate that those nobles know my son is now a genius mage at the Ernst Institute and are willing to lend me gold coins, otherwise life would be even harder."

"Based on the current tax rates in Wushan Town, it's barely enough to cover the kingdom's taxes and the wages for the guards." Hogg felt stifled just thinking about it. By the time the clan reached his generation, most things that could be sold had already been sold.

Fortunately, he, Hogg, had two sons—two remarkable sons.

But whenever he thought of Lin Feng, Hogg's heart would ache.

"Today is five years, six months, and nine days since Lin Feng went to the Magical Beast Mountain Range," Hogg murmured to himself, looking up at the ceiling.

"Lord Hogg, Lord Hogg!" Hillman's voice rang out from a distance.

Hogg looked toward the estate gate in confusion. A moment later, Hillman stepped inside, and beside him was a sturdy-looking youth.

Hogg's gaze locked onto the sturdy youth. Although it had been over five years, Hogg recognized Lin Feng, his son, at a single glance.

Hogg walked toward Lin Feng, his steps trembling, his lips moving, but he couldn't utter a sound.

"Father!" Lin Feng ran forward and knelt before Hogg.

"Your son has been unfilial and caused you worry."

"Get up. It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back!" Hogg hurriedly helped Lin Feng up, looking him over with great emotion.

"You've grown up, and you've become strong. Good, good, good!" Three times he said "good," expressing the excitement in his heart. He then turned his head and instructed the only maid in the house: "Agatha, please prepare a sumptuous dinner."

Lin Feng stood up, took the magical crystal card from his pocket, and handed it to Hogg with a smile: "Father, this is the money I earned from selling the magical beast cores I hunted. It totals one hundred thousand gold coins. I think this should be enough for my brother's tuition."

"What?" Hogg took the card from Lin Feng's hand with trembling fingers, his heart giving a violent jolt. He said in disbelief, "You said how many gold coins are in here? One hundred thousand?"

What was the concept of one hundred thousand gold coins? Even an ordinary count wouldn't have that much. The Baruch Clan was only a minor noble family, and a fallen one at that. Even if the entire Baruch Clan were sold, it would never fetch one hundred thousand gold coins.

Seeing Hogg looking at him with such excitement, Lin Feng felt a sense of pride: "Father, that's right. There are one hundred thousand gold coins here."

Taking a deep breath, Hogg suppressed the shock in his heart and said in a low voice, "Lin Feng, you must be tired after traveling all day. Go get some rest early."

"Yes, Father."

Lin Feng left quietly, leaving only Hogg sitting silently in the living room as the candle burned.

The next morning, at the dining table in the Baruch Clan living room, Lin Feng was surprised to find his father looking radiant, his entire demeanor completely transformed.

Setting down his knife and fork, Hogg looked at Lin Feng with a smile: "Lin Feng, stay home for a while longer this time. It's been a long time since I've seen you; let's spend some quality time together, father and son."

Father wants me to stay home longer?

Suddenly recalling a similar plot point from the original book, Lin Feng felt a jolt of alarm: Could it be that Father is preparing to track down the culprit who abducted Mother Lina all those years ago?

Sigh, it makes sense. Mother Lina has always been the greatest ache in Father's heart. If it weren't for raising Wharton and me, he probably would have gone to investigate long ago.

Sighing, Lin Feng felt conflicted: The true culprit behind Mother's abduction is the Radiant Church. With Father's current cultivation as a level six warrior, investigating them is undoubtedly seeking death. In the original book, Hogg was killed while searching for Mother's whereabouts, but should I really stop him?

Lin Feng looked up at his father, whose spirit was so different from before, and let out a deep sigh: Forget it, let nature take its course. Father has suffered too much over these years. Rather than living in pain, it is better to let him fulfill his wish. Besides, once I go to the Netherworld in the future, I can have the Sovereign of Death resurrect him. When the time comes, I will rescue Mother from the Sovereign of Light, and then Father and Mother can be reunited.

Thinking of this, Lin Feng suppressed the urge to stop Hogg and replied, "Alright, Father."