He paused, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "I won't give him a chance to find out. Until he grows strong enough, I'll keep giving him resources and let him focus on cultivation, so he'll think the family values him. Once he lets his guard down, that'll be the perfect time for you to act."
Yu Xiaogang fell silent.
His heart was at war with itself. On one hand, the education and moral principles he'd grown up with told him this was wrong. Yu Tianlong was innocent; he shouldn't become a stepping stone for him.
But on the other hand, his craving for power, his jealousy of Yu Tianlong, and his discontent with his current situation gnawed at his reason like countless ants.
"What do I need to do?" In the end, he heard himself ask.
A flicker of satisfaction passed through Yu Yuanzhen's eyes.
"What you need to do now is cultivate hard and improve your ability to devour. Your Luo Sanpao is still too weak. Even if I put Yu Tianlong's Luo Sanpao right in front of you, you wouldn't be able to devour it.
"Once your Soul Power reaches level ten and you can absorb your First Soul Ring, I'll arrange the best Soul Beast for you, so your Luo Sanpao gains the strongest possible starting ability. That will be the perfect time for you to devour Yu Tianlong."
He withdrew his hand and turned toward the door. When he reached it, he stopped. Without looking back, he said coolly, "Remember, those who accomplish great things don't sweat the small stuff. Everything Yu Tianlong has will be yours in the end."
With that, he opened the door and strode away, leaving Yu Xiaogang alone among the bookshelves. The candlelight cast shifting patterns of light and shadow across his face.
The door clicked shut behind him.
Yu Xiaogang slowly lowered his head and looked at the pale golden Luo Sanpao at his feet, still staring around in innocent confusion. Then he glanced at the half-eaten strip of dried Soul Beast meat in his hand.
His eyes shifted from bewilderment, to struggle, and then to a gradually hardening, almost ruthless gleam.
"...I'm sorry, Cousin."
"But I have no choice."
He clenched the dried meat in his fist, as if he were gripping a resolve of his own.
At that moment, in a courtyard on the other side of the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan's grounds, Yu Tianlong's little residence was bustling with activity.
"Come on, Little Gold. Open wide—ahh—"
Yu Tianlong tossed a palm-sized chunk of dark red meat into the air, rich with Bloodline Power.
Little Gold flipped gracefully in midair and caught the meat precisely in its jaws. It swallowed the piece in a few bites, then narrowed its eyes in satisfaction as a rumbling purr rose in its throat.
It was high-grade Soul Beast meat the family had delivered that day: the tenderloin of an eight-hundred-year-old Crimson Flame Tiger. The meat was packed with fire-element energy and Bloodline Power, making it an excellent supplement for Little Gold.
Ever since his resources had doubled, Yu Tianlong's quality of life had shot up.
At least one piece of thousand-year-old Soul Beast meat was delivered to his courtyard every day. The varieties changed often: strength-focused one day, speed-focused the next, defense-focused the day after. Little Gold enjoyed a wide array of flavors and a balanced diet.
In just a few days, Little Gold had grown another size larger. The bump on its forehead had become more pronounced, and seemed on the verge of breaking open.
Little Silver, on the other hand, wasn't very interested in Soul Beast meat. It preferred absorbing all kinds of elemental energy.
Yu Tianlong had gone out of his way to exchange for a batch of elemental ores from the family's resource vault, so Little Silver could absorb a different variety every day.
On top of that, it went to Dugu Bo's residence once every half month for an "extra meal," absorbing the accumulated poison in his body. Little Silver's growth wasn't as obvious as Little Gold's, but its aura had grown steadily deeper. A small bump had appeared on its forehead too, opposite Little Gold's.
"Young Master, here is today's portion."
A family steward respectfully placed a food box on the stone table in the courtyard and opened it. Inside lay a golden, richly marbled piece of roasted meat, giving off an enticing aroma.
"Mm, leave it there." Yu Tianlong nodded, then casually asked, "What is it today?"
"Reporting to you, Young Master: it's the ribs of a twelve-hundred-year-old Golden Lion King. The kitchen marinated them in a secret sauce before roasting them. They say they're crisp on the outside, tender on the inside, and delicious."
The steward explained eagerly, his manner even more respectful than it was toward many direct-line descendants.
Yu Tianlong's standing in the Blue Lightning Tyrant Dragon Clan had changed beyond recognition. Though he still lived in that remote little courtyard, people came by in an endless stream each day to bring gifts and curry favor.
Everyone knew that this boy, who had awakened Twin Luo Sanpao, had been personally designated by the patriarch and the second elder as a key focus of the family's cultivation efforts. His future was boundless. If they didn't ingratiate themselves with him now, when would they?
"Got it. Please thank the kitchen staff for me." Yu Tianlong waved the steward away. Looking at the tempting golden ribs on the table, he furrowed his brow slightly.
"More high-grade Soul Beast meat... Haven't they been sending it a little too often lately?" he muttered.
Ever since their return from the Star Dou Forest, the family's supply of resources had become extraordinarily generous. At first, he'd assumed Yu Yuanzhen was simply honoring his promise to double his resources, which made sense.
But gradually, he realized there was more to it. Not only had his resources doubled, they'd also added plenty of "extra perks," like an additional serving of high-grade Soul Beast meat every day.
There were also rare cultivation materials that were hard to find on the market, and priority access to the Mimicry Cultivation Ground, something even the core direct-line disciples weren't necessarily entitled to.
Taken together, these things were worth far more than double his monthly allowance.
By a conservative estimate, the total value of the resources he received from the family each month was at least fifty thousand Gold Soul Coins.
This went beyond "focused cultivation." They were practically piling resources on him by the mountainload.
"Fifty thousand Gold Soul Coins a month... Even the patriarch's own son probably doesn't get that much, right?" Yu Tianlong stroked his chin, a puzzled look in his eyes.
"Yu Yuanzhen's being way too good to me... It's almost suspicious."
He wasn't without his suspicions. He was an orphan from a collateral branch, with neither father nor mother. Even if he'd awakened Twin Martial Souls—
even if he had Innate Full Soul Power, even if he'd displayed the unusual ability to devour and evolve, that still didn't justify the family investing in him so extravagantly. Could there be some reason he didn't know about?
"Could it be... Yu Yuanzhen wants to marry his daughter off to me? But he doesn't have a daughter."
He entertained the ridiculous idea for a moment, then shook his head.
"Whatever. I'll meet whatever comes, one way or another. The resources are real, so I'll focus on building up my own strength, as well as Little Gold's and Little Silver's. As long as our fists are strong enough, every scheme and trick is just a paper tiger."
He clapped his hands and called out, "Little Gold, Little Silver, dinner's ready!"
Two figures shot toward the stone table like lightning, and a feast of ravenous eating began.
Leaning against the locust tree, Yu Tianlong watched the two Luo Sanpao gobble down their food, a smile at the corner of his mouth. But deep in his eyes, a hint of thoughtfulness remained, too subtle to notice.
When someone offers you something for nothing, they're up to no good.
He knew that much.
He just didn't know when the "no good" behind all this would finally come to light.