New Family

The next morning, Xiao Hongchen yawned as he made his way to the dining room for breakfast. Lately, he'd spent several hours meditating every night, leaving precious little time for sleep.

Fortunately, breakfast was lavish, which helped him perk up a little.

"Next Friday, Xiao and I are going out." Jing Hongchen raised a cup of fragrant tea, his tone as casual as if he were talking about the weather. "We'll be back in two or three days. Meng, stay home and focus on your cultivation."

"Huh—" Meng Hongchen's fork stopped in midair. "You can't do this! Meng wants to go out and have fun too!"

"We're not going out to have fun." Xiao Hongchen reached over and ruffled his sister's hair. "We have some business to take care of in Star Luo."

"Isn't that the same as going out for fun?" Meng Hongchen grabbed his arm and clung to him. "I've never been abroad in my whole life! Big Brother, please let Meng come with you."

At last, a normal sibling relationship.

Xiao Hongchen calmly slipped his arm free and pretended to sound annoyed. "Don't do that. You're making it hard for me to eat breakfast."

Meng Hongchen clasped her hands together and pleaded, "Just let me come! It'll be the weekend by then anyway, Big Brother."

Seeing her like that, Xiao Hongchen found it hard to refuse, so he offered her a compromise. "If you can stop slacking off on your cultivation, I'll take you."

Since studying Soul Tools took so much energy, neither Xiao Hongchen nor Meng Hongchen had been especially diligent about meditating.

The fact that they had both reached Soul Power levels above forty-five by the age of thirteen was largely thanks to the Hongchen Family providing them with a wealth of cultivation aids.

Xiao Hongchen spent much more time on Soul Tools than his younger sister, but he could absorb rare metals to aid his cultivation, so his Soul Power was on par with hers. The Hongchen Family had no shortage of rare metals.

But medicine always carried some risk. Xiao Hongchen had already decided to gradually reduce his own intake, and he planned to remind his sister not to rely too much on medicine, either.

"You're so sly, Big Brother." She lowered her head with a mutter and prodded the breakfast on her plate with her fork, her voice muffled. "I don't have your boundless energy, and you still insist on dragging me into cultivation... Are you trying to tire your adorable little sister to death?"

Xiao Hongchen laughed. Although they had a Martial Soul Fusion Skill, they weren't perfectly compatible like Huo Yuhao and Wang Dong, nor did they have that freakish Hao Dong Power. They cultivated their Soul Power separately in their daily practice; neither could help the other.

"Who's dragging you into anything?" he said unhurriedly.

"I mean, you should break that habit of meditating for three days and slacking off for two. Don't always count on medicine. You have to put in the work yourself, too. How about this: in the future, whenever you're not making Soul Tools at night, you'll go meditate properly, and I'll take you with us."

Meng Hongchen pursed her lips, about to protest again.

But Xiao Hongchen's voice turned more serious.

"Meng, the Continental Advanced Soul Master Academy Elite Tournament starts in less than a year and a half. This time, we're going to defeat Shrek Academy once and for all."

Meng Hongchen looked up at her brother's expression and realized he was serious. All she could do was murmur, "Mm," before lowering her head and prodding her breakfast again.

She kept muttering under her breath as she ate: "Big Brother's gotten so strict," and "There goes my easy life."

Just then, the butler, Pin Hongchen, entered the dining room and bowed.

"Young Master, a girl claiming to be Ye Guyi is waiting outside the manor and wishes to see you." He paused, then continued, "She has Young Master Xiao's token."

The air around the table froze for a moment.

Xiao Hongchen put down his fork, his expression unchanged. "Show her to the reception room. I'll be there shortly."

She'd come sooner than he'd expected. The girl really was impatient. If he'd known, he wouldn't have given her the token—she could've gotten in anyway.

Meanwhile, Meng Hongchen stared at him in shock, the flames of gossip dancing in her eyes.

"Big Brother, have you finally figured it out?"

Before he could explain, Meng Hongchen cut him off with a barrage of questions.

"Come on, tell me! Is she pretty? How did you two meet?!"

"You even gave her your token. Big Brother, don't tell me you've already pledged yourselves to each other?!"

Xiao Hongchen felt a headache coming on and turned to ask his grandfather for help.

But Jing Hongchen said nothing. His gaze clearly spelled out: You explain it yourself.

"Come on, you've got it all wrong. Ye Guyi's Martial Soul is the Holy Angel."

Meng Hongchen blinked. "The Holy Angel? You mean the one that's... specially suited to countering Evil Soul Masters?"

"That's right." Xiao Hongchen breathed a sigh of relief. At least his sister was talking normally again. "I went to a lot of trouble to bring her over to our Hongchen Family's side. What are you thinking about?"

He turned to Jing Hongchen.

"Grandpa, you don't have a problem with this, do you? She'll be one of the trump cards the Sun Moon Empire can use against the Evil Soul Masters."

Xiao Hongchen knew very well that Jing Hongchen could contact the Holy Spirit Cult. In the original story, it was Jing Hongchen who told Zhongli Wu about Ma Xiaotao's complete corruption and her exact location in the Sea God's Pavilion.

"Of course not. Evil Soul Masters deserve to be hunted down by everyone."

Xiao Hongchen felt a slight weight lift from his heart.

But Jing Hongchen didn't stop there. He seemed to be weighing his words.

"Xiao, Meng." Jing Hongchen looked up, his gaze shifting from his grandson to his granddaughter and back again. "It's time I told you both a few things."

Xiao Hongchen sat up straight.

"The Evil Soul Masters in the Sun Moon Empire are no longer scattered fugitives." Jing Hongchen's voice was even, but there was a gravity to it that left no room for interruption.

"They've formed a vast organization called the Holy Spirit Cult. Its followers are spread throughout the empire, and its inner circle is unfathomable. What's more, they've reached some sort of agreement with the imperial family. I don't know the specifics, but one thing is certain: don't provoke the Holy Spirit Cult before you become Titled Douluo."

Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen both nodded firmly.

Jing Hongchen paused before continuing.

"As far as I know, the Holy Spirit Cult and the imperial family have reached some kind of agreement. And that's not all. I've met their leader. I sensed an extremely powerful threat from him, and I doubt I'd be his match. Not to mention their Worship Hall, whose strength is even more unfathomable."

Meng Hongchen was clearly startled—not only because the imperial family had allied with Evil Soul Masters, but also because she'd always thought her grandfather was one of the Sun Moon Empire's top three powerhouses. She hadn't realized there was always a higher mountain.

Xiao Hongchen, however, showed no reaction. He already knew. Within the Sun Moon Empire, Ye Xishui, Long Xiaoyao, Zhongli Wu, and Kong Deming were all far stronger than Jing Hongchen. Ye Yulin and Feng Ling were no weaker than his grandfather, either.

"So," Jing Hongchen said, "you were right to recruit the successor to the Holy Angel."

"Sooner or later, there'll be a reckoning between the Sun Moon Empire and the Holy Spirit Cult. When that time comes, whoever holds the card that counters the Evil Soul Masters will have a place at the negotiating table."

"...I understand," Xiao Hongchen said.

It seemed his grandfather really was at odds with the Holy Spirit Cult. Their cooperation was nothing but a show of mutual courtesy.

"All right. Let's go meet this bearer of the Angel Martial Soul. We shouldn't keep her waiting."

Jing Hongchen rose and headed for the reception room, pushing open the door. Xiao Hongchen and his sister followed behind him.

Ye Guyi stood up from the sofa. She carried herself with neither arrogance nor servility, and gave Jing Hongchen a slight bow.

"This junior is Ye Guyi. Greetings, Senior Jing Hongchen."

Jing Hongchen let his gaze rest on her face for a moment, nodded, then walked to the seat of honor.

Xiao Hongchen and Meng Hongchen entered behind him and took seats on either side.

From the moment they'd entered, Meng Hongchen had been staring at Ye Guyi, curiosity written in her azure eyes. In all her life, this was the first time she'd seen a girl her brother had taken the initiative with.

Ye Guyi sat back down. Her gaze swept over the three of them before settling on Xiao Hongchen. Her voice was cool, but sincere.

"Xiao Hongchen, thank you for inviting me yesterday. I've thought it over, and I'm willing to join your... family."

Jing Hongchen narrowed his eyes slightly.

"Have your relatives agreed to you joining our Hongchen Family? Think carefully. Once you join, you won't be able to leave."

Ye Guyi fell silent for a moment.

"I don't have any relatives. My parents were killed by the Holy Spirit Cult's Evil Soul Masters three years ago..."

She laid bare the whole of her tragic past.

Meng Hongchen unconsciously clenched the hem of her skirt. She parted her lips, wanting to say something, but realized she didn't know what to say.

"Since you have no concerns holding you back, then on behalf of the Hongchen Family, I formally welcome you. From today onward, you're a member of the Hongchen Family. I'll give you the status and resources you're entitled to, but remember this: the Hongchen Family will never tolerate betrayal," Jing Hongchen said gravely.

Ye Guyi rose to her feet and bowed deeply to Jing Hongchen.

"This junior understands. Guyi will do everything in her power and won't let the family down."

Meng Hongchen finally couldn't hold back. She suddenly stood and went over to Ye Guyi, taking her hand.

"Sister Guyi... from now on, you're part of our family! If Big Brother bullies you, I'll bully him back for you! Don't be sad. I'll stay by your side from now on... We're sisters now, okay?"

Ye Guyi was clearly taken aback. Looking at the sincere girl before her, a softness appeared in her eyes for the first time.

She gently squeezed Meng Hongchen's hand in return and said quietly, "All right... Thank you, Miss Meng."

Watching them, Xiao Hongchen felt a warmth in his heart, too.