February 16, the Lantern Festival.
"Dad, this is where you brought me?"
Lu Hao looked at the "internet café" in front of him, glowing with all sorts of colorful lights.
???
Lu Hao felt a string of question marks pop up over his head.
Uh... this... is this right?
"Dad, are you sure this is the place?"
"What's wrong with it? Don't let your dad's age fool you. My heart's still young. If those young people can come here, why can't I?"
Lu Hao saw that Lu Jingxuan was determined to go inside and could only go along with it. What kind of normal person spent the Lantern Festival playing games at an internet café?
Lu Hao could only skillfully start up two computers. It was 2008, and some of the earliest games had already launched. He registered an account for his dad, then started playing CF with him.
"Son, you're pretty good at this. You must come here a lot, huh?"
Lu Jingxuan watched him operating the computer with practiced ease and asked.
"No, I came here a few times with my classmates back when I wasn't very talented, so I got used to it."
"I figured I'd give these computer games a try today and see if there's anything good."
Lu Jingxuan spoke as he learned the controls.
After two rounds, Lu Jingxuan had been reported by the other team ten times. As a grandmaster, his reflexes were naturally beyond what an ordinary person could match.
Every shot was a headshot. He held off five AKs with a single USP and dominated every round.
His moves looked like he was using cheats, except his "cheats" were simply his body's instincts.
Lu Hao had been reported too. Although he didn't have his dad's inhumanly quick muscular reflexes, after tempering his bones three times, his reflexes were still beyond what an ordinary person could match.
After two rounds, Lu Jingxuan led Lu Hao out of the internet café.
"There's nothing fun about this. I don't know why those young people are obsessed with it every day."
"I agree. I'd rather spend some time practicing basic leg techniques in the training room."
Lu Hao agreed. People got hooked on games because games brought them joy, but what kind of joy could compare to growing stronger and elevating one's very level of existence?
After that, Lu Jingxuan took Lu Hao for a stroll through the streets and alleys. They had no particular destination; they simply followed the lantern parade.
The Lantern Festival was filled with a lively, joyful atmosphere and the clamor of the crowd.
Lu Hao turned to Lu Jingxuan beside him.
"Dad, is this why you gave up your small family for the greater good?"
Although Lu Hao hadn't spoken loudly, Lu Jingxuan had heard him clearly. Seeing that his son was somewhat lost, he didn't give him another vague answer.
"Protection. That's why we martial artists exist. Each generation protects the next, and the generations pass it on. That's what it means to be a grandmaster."
"Small family? Greater good? They're one and the same. If there's no greater good, what small family would there be? This bustling Human Realm before your eyes is why we exist."
"We stand at the front, holding the line, so you can grow up here in peace. If everyone only cared about their own family, where would the greater good be?"
As Lu Hao listened to his father, he felt truly shaken. He'd already understood the state of the martial world here, but hearing it from his father brought it home to him.
So this was what it meant to be a grandmaster. They represented more than Rank Seven strength. They represented responsibility and protection.
"Dad, do you think we can win?"
Lu Hao knew too much, and that made him anxious and impatient. In a little over three years, their final enemy would have 260 million Vital Blood, and the ability to revive endlessly.
If the Spirit Emperor hadn't turned against them at the end, who could have defeated the Heavenly Emperor? But that was how the novel ended. Now that Lu Hao was here, who knew what would happen under the butterfly effect? What would become of his parents and family?
Lu Hao didn't dare think about it. He didn't want to.
That was why he seemed so anxious, always busy every day—tempering his bones twice, then three times, training in combat techniques. It wasn't that he wanted to take it easy; the pressure pushed him forward and kept him from daring to stop.
"We can. We'll definitely win in the end."
Lu Jingxuan didn't know Lu Hao was asking about the fate of the Three Realms. He thought his son meant the war against the Earth Caves. Although, as a grandmaster, he knew the Human Race didn't have the upper hand, he still answered with conviction.
Could they?
Lu Hao asked himself. He'd crossed over with the Slaughter Panel. Could he do it?
Listening to the vendors hawking their wares nearby, Lu Hao couldn't help losing himself in thought.
Could he reach that level in three years?
What did his future hold?
He looked at the hazy lights before him.
Was he really going to let the Earth Cave invaders destroy all this beauty?
No. He would never let them.
For his family, for this mortal world, they had to win. They would win.
Either he would die on the path to the top, or he would overturn the board.
Lu Hao made up his mind, and felt his Vital Blood flow more freely. Was this what it meant for one's resolve to be clear?
Lu Jingxuan had been keeping an eye on Lu Hao, so he naturally noticed the change in his son. He seemed more spirited. Since returning, Lu Hao had seemed tense and anxious.
But now, Lu Hao had changed. It wasn't obvious on the surface, but a close examination with spiritual power revealed that his martial will had suddenly grown stronger.
Was it because of what he'd just said? Protecting the Human Race? This was what it meant to pass the duty down from generation to generation. How could the Earth Caves not be destroyed?
The two said nothing more and continued moving with the crowd.
As time passed, the sky gradually darkened. Brilliant fireworks and firecrackers began going off along the lantern parade.
"Come on, Dad. Let's head home. Mom's probably back by now."
Lu Hao said with a smile. His dad had accidentally helped dispel some of his anxiety. All he had to do now was work hard. He believed his sweat would provide the answer.
"Sure, let's go home. When we get there, you can't tell your mom I took you to the internet café today. If she finds out, she'll give me an earful."
"Dad, you're a grandmaster, and you're still so afraid of Mom?"
"What do you know? There's no such thing as a man who's afraid of his wife, only a man who cherishes his wife. You'll understand when you're older."
"I'm afraid I won't get it. I probably won't have time for romance while I'm climbing the martial path."
"Hmph, you little brat. I'm warning you: martial arts are important, but you're the only son left in our family. Carrying on the family line is important too."
"Haha, I'll think about love after I reach the Absolute Peak."
"Lu Hao, you've got some nerve. Your dad's been back for ages, and you didn't even tell me!"
As soon as he got home, Lu Hao got a scolding.
"Dad said he wanted to surprise you, so he wouldn't let me tell you."
Lu Hao promptly threw his dad under the bus, blaming everything on him to distract his mom.
"Hmph."
His mom had nothing more to say. She knew her husband well; he did this sort of thing all the time, acting just like a child who'd never grown up.
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