Brothers

The next morning.

In Yi Water City, at Dragon Mountain Tower.

Every city in this world had a Dragon Mountain Tower! The one in Yi Water City was an ancient, five-story stone building.

Powerful knights guarded the entrance. Commoners and nobles alike wouldn't dare come within ten meters of the main gate. Anyone who did could be killed on the spot, even if they were a noble!

A white-robed, white-haired old man came running into Dragon Mountain Tower.

"Sir You Tu," the two blue-armored knights at the entrance greeted him respectfully.

"Is the tower master here?" the old man asked.

"He is. The tower master hasn't looked happy since early this morning," one of the tall knights replied.

The white-haired old man entered Dragon Mountain Tower and went up to the third floor.

Knock, knock.

"Come in," a voice called from within.

The old man pushed the door open and closed it behind him. Inside stood a smooth, dark-yellow table, covered with stacks of papers and books. A black-haired, middle-aged man sat behind it, reading a file.

He was Sir Si An, the master of Dragon Mountain Tower in Yi Water City!

"You Tu, what news do you have?" Sir Si An looked up.

"The news is confirmed. Last night, Baron Dongbo and his wife of Snow Eagle Territory were taken away," the white-haired old man reported. "The guards at Snow Stone Castle tried to resist, but they were rendered powerless by lightning in a single breath."

"Hmph. The Moyang Clan is far too overbearing!" Sir Si An frowned. "I only received word from the prefecture yesterday, and they took the couple away that very night."

Dragon Mountain Tower's organization was just as strict.

The Empire had nineteen provinces.

Every provincial capital had a Dragon Mountain Tower headquarters, which commanded powerful forces hidden from public view.

Provincial capitals, prefectural cities, and county-level cities.

Three tiers of management kept the entire realm under surveillance.

"What can you expect? They're the Moyang Clan. They must be one of the ten greatest clans in East Region Province," the white-haired old man said.

"Hmph." Sir Si An gave a derisive laugh. "The Moyang Clan ranks last among the ten great clans of East Region Province! They only made the list thanks to the legacy of their clan's founding ancestor. Without it, they wouldn't even be in the top ten."

"Even so, they're a colossal force that could crush us with just a fraction of their power." The white-haired old man shook his head with a sigh. "Poor Snow Eagle Territory. Only two children are left there now. I heard while looking into the matter that their younger boy, who's only two, cried and fussed all night. Many of the soldiers and servants in Snow Stone Castle were heartbroken."

"Baron Dongbo and his wife treated their people well. They were deeply loved," Sir Si An said with a nod.

******

Snow Eagle Territory. Atop Snow Stone Mountain, the tallest peak, stood the magnificent Snow Stone Castle.

Some of the servants quietly discussed what had happened, but with the Lion-Man Tong San and the Six-Armed Snake Demon Zong Ling keeping everyone in line, the castle continued to run as usual.

Though it was already daytime, his younger brother, Qing Shi, had only just calmed down. After their parents were forcibly taken away, Qing Shi had cried nonstop. No one could soothe him! Their mother had always cared for him herself. As a mage, she could easily lull him to sleep with her voice... Getting a child to sleep had been simple for her. But now, the frightened Qing Shi was giving everyone a headache.

The Lion-Man Tong San and the Snake Demon Zong Ling had always frightened Qing Shi, and the maids had never put him to bed. So Dongbo Xueying had to take care of his brother himself!

Though grief-stricken, he had to swallow his sorrow and comfort Qing Shi. At last, daytime came, and his brother was exhausted. He seemed to have forgotten what had happened to their parents. After all, he was only two... By the time he was older, he probably wouldn't even remember what had happened the night before.

"Be good, Shi Tou. Go to sleep."

"I want to sleep with big brother."

"All right. I'm right here with you."

"Big brother, sing me a song."

"..."

At last, his exhausted younger brother fell asleep with his head on Dongbo Xueying's chest. Xue Ying didn't dare move, afraid of waking him.

By dusk, Zong Ling and Tong San came to the room.

"Let me take a look." Zong Ling gently pushed the door open and peered through the crack. The chubby little Qing Shi lay sprawled across his brother's chest, drooling on his shirt. Dongbo Xueying had fallen asleep too. His clothes were rumpled, and the blanket covered only half his body.

Tong San also looked through the crack. Seeing the two brothers curled up together, he felt sorry for them.

"A Yu always took care of Shi Tou. She never let the maids do it, and he's afraid of the two of us... What are we going to do? Does Xue Ying have to put him to bed every night?" Zong Ling asked worriedly.

"Uncle Zong, Uncle Tong." Xue Ying had quietly eased his brother aside and gotten up.

"You should sleep some more," Zong Ling said quickly. He knew Xue Ying hadn't slept for long.

In truth, Xue Ying had barely slept at all. His heart was in turmoil, and he'd been soothing his brother the whole time. He'd only started dozing off when he was too tired to stay awake, and his sleep had been light. Zong Ling and the others had woken him as soon as they arrived. Fortunately, his constitution was exceptional, and he could endure it.

"It's all right, Uncle Zong, Uncle Tong. Mother always put Shi Tou to bed. No one else ever took care of him," Dongbo Xueying said. "Now that my parents have been taken away, we can't keep it secret. I certainly can't let the servants look after my brother. And he's afraid of the two of you... So I'll take care of him. I only need to put him to bed. During the day, we can just have someone keep an eye on him."

"He'll be in the castle during the day. Plenty of people can watch him. It'll be fine," Tong San said.

"Then we'll leave it to you. Once your brother's a little older, things should get easier," Zong Ling said.

"Mm." Dongbo Xueying didn't say more. Qing Shi was his little brother, the only family he had left now that their parents had been taken away. Of course he had to take good care of him.

"By the way, Uncle Zong, Uncle Tong, you said before that I'd learn everything once I got a Black Iron Token from Dragon Mountain Tower. How exactly do I get one?" Dongbo Xueying asked.

Zong Ling and Tong San exchanged helpless glances.

The boy was still thinking about saving his parents.

"You only need to be strong enough. Dragon Mountain Tower will send you a Black Iron Token," Zong Ling said.

"How strong is strong enough?" Dongbo Xueying asked.

"Neither your father, Uncle Tong, nor I have a Black Iron Token," Zong Ling said. "When you're strong enough and Dragon Mountain Tower recognizes you, they'll send you one."

Dongbo Xueying understood at once.

To get that so-called Black Iron Token, he first had to become stronger than Uncle Zong and the others!

"I understand." Dongbo Xueying didn't ask anything else.

"How long has Shi Tou been asleep?" Zong Ling asked.

"Almost three hours," Dongbo Xueying said.

"Then let him get up. It's already dusk, and after all that fuss, Shi Tou hasn't eaten much. Let him get up for dinner! Then have the maids play with him for a while... That way, he'll be able to sleep tonight. Otherwise, if he sleeps now, he'll be up making a racket in the middle of the night," Zong Ling said.

Night had fallen.

In the dining room, Dongbo Xueying sat at the head of the square table, with his younger brother, Qing Shi, beside him. A servant stood nearby, bringing them food.

Dongbo Xueying had fruit juice and carefully prepared magical beast meat. His younger brother had animal milk and grains.

Qing Shi ate happily. Dongbo Xueying smiled at him, though his heart ached. Their father and mother had once sat at this table with them. Now it was only him and his little brother.

"Are you full?" Dongbo Xueying asked.

"Mm, I'm full. My tummy's all full." Qing Shi patted his belly, then asked curiously, "Where's Mother? Where's Father? Why aren't they here? Are they still sleeping?"

"They went out, Shi Tou. How about going to play in the back garden?" Dongbo Xueying said.

"The back garden? Let's go to the back garden!" Qing Shi's attention was immediately diverted. The garden had lots of places to play, built specially by their mother for the two brothers. Dongbo Xueying had loved playing there when he was little, too. There were even a few magical devices.

"Take Young Master Qing Shi to the back garden and keep an eye on him." Dongbo Xueying looked at the three maids standing nearby.

"Yes, sir."

The three maids answered respectfully. They all knew that from this day onward, this boy was the master of all Snow Eagle Territory.

Watching the maids lead his younger brother downstairs, Dongbo Xueying leaned on the railing and looked down at the back garden. More than twenty Fire Crystal Lamps illuminated every corner, and over ten servants were there to play with Qing Shi. They had assigned so many people because they'd chosen only those they could trust completely.

Dongbo Xueying then got up and went to his study.

The study was large: six meters high, fifteen meters long, and ten meters wide. In a castle that covered two square miles, a study of this size was quite ordinary.

There was a desk in the study, and the bookshelves held a large number of books. Many were biographies, novels, and stories. Dongbo Xueying had always loved reading stories, and his mother had gathered many books for him.

Sitting at the desk, he turned his hand over, and a book made of gold foil appeared in it.

"A spear manual for transcendent knights?" Dongbo Xueying immediately opened it and began to read.