Xiao Ding and Xiao Li

Rock Desert City, in a large courtyard in the southern part of the city.

Flags fluttered in the wind throughout the courtyard, bearing the words "Desert Iron Mercenary Group," with a faint aura of iron-blooded ferocity emanating from them.

In the courtyard's relatively spacious training ground, two young men who bore some resemblance to Xiao Yan stood before a group of mercenaries.

One wore white robes and appeared somewhat mature, with a gentle smile on his face. He was the leader of the Desert Iron Mercenary Group, Xiao Ding, known as the Cunning Fox.

The other wore a fitted black outfit, dressed like a mercenary. Unlike Xiao Ding's mature gentleness, this man's eyes carried a ruthless glint. He was the Desert Iron Mercenary Group's second-in-command, Xiao Li, known as the Vicious Wolf.

"Commander! Commander!"

Xiao Ding stood before the mercenaries, about to give instructions before leading them in training, when he heard a burly man rushing over and repeatedly shouting. Xiao Ding frowned and, once the man drew close, asked in a low voice.

"What's gotten you so flustered? Did the Storm Mercenary Group bring men here to attack us?"

At the mention of the Storm Mercenary Group, a fierce glint flashed through Xiao Li's eyes, as though he were a vicious wolf ready to devour its prey.

"No, no, Commander. There's a young man outside who says he's yours and the Second Commander's uncle. He came to see you. Look, he's even holding your clan's emblem."

The burly man hurriedly shook his head in explanation, then handed the clan emblem he had been clutching to Xiao Ding.

"Uncle?"

Xiao Ding frowned even more deeply. His family did not have many relatives. Beside him, Xiao Li snatched the emblem and carefully examined it. Only then did he look at Xiao Ding in confusion and ask.

"Big Brother, did Mother have any brothers?"

"I seem to remember one. He was less than a year older than me, but there's been no news of him for many years."

After thinking hard for quite some time, Xiao Ding finally recalled that he theoretically did have such an uncle. Still doubtful, he said to the burly man.

"Go invite him to the reception hall first."

"Yes, Commander. Oh, right, Commander, there's one more thing. More than one person came. Besides that exceptionally handsome young man, there's also a woman so beautiful it's unreal."

"Invite them both over."

The burly man had just nodded and turned to leave when he remembered something and hurriedly spoke again. Xiao Ding merely nodded slightly, unconcerned, and waved his hand.

How beautiful could she possibly be? This fool simply hasn't seen many women.

As for everything else, they would wait until they had confirmed that young man's identity and background. If he was genuine, it was merely another mouth to feed. If he was a fraud...

A sharp glint flashed through Xiao Ding's eyes before his gentle smile returned. After telling the mercenaries under his command to train on their own, he headed toward the reception hall with Xiao Li.

The moment the two brothers, Xiao Ding and Xiao Li, stepped into the hall, they halted in their tracks and stared blankly at the young man seated beside the stone table.

The young man sitting at the stone table was as handsome as a painting. He lightly waved a folding fan in his hand, smiling as he gazed outside. When he saw the two of them enter, his hand stopped moving, but the smile on his face bloomed, making the entire reception hall seem several shades brighter.

"You're... my uncle?"

Recovering himself, Xiao Ding asked with lingering uncertainty. The man before him was incomparably handsome, and his brows and eyes bore some resemblance to his mother's. That made Xiao Ding believe him a little more.

"You must be Xiao Ding and Xiao Li. Come, sit beside your uncle!"

Yang Chen sensed the connection of bloodline between them, and his smile deepened. Rising to his feet, he beckoned to the two brothers, while also casting a glance at Medusa Queen, who for some reason had insisted on following him.

After a single night, Medusa Queen had changed greatly. Having begun to master that secret technique, she could now barely transform her snake tail into a pair of legs. Even her clothing had been changed into a more vibrant crimson dress embroidered with gold.

Even the golden ornament on her forehead had been changed. It looked like a pair of cat ears and was rather similar to Yang Chen's hair ornament, except one was silver while the other was gold.

When Yang Chen looked at her, Medusa Queen's expression turned somewhat displeased. For some reason, her delicate red lips were slightly pursed, yet she still rose and gave up the seat right beside Yang Chen.

Medusa Queen's movement as she stood successfully drew Xiao Ding and Xiao Li's attention to her. The next moment, both brothers froze for an instant, but they quickly recovered, shifted their gazes back to Yang Chen, and strode over.

"Uncle, where have you been all these years? Mother had always been looking for you."

After sitting down, Xiao Ding asked in what seemed like casual concern, making Yang Chen chuckle before he sighed and patted Xiao Ding on the shoulder.

"When your mother left the imperial capital, she had already put the Yang Clan in order. Later, when I was ten, I dismissed all the Yang Clan's servants and entered the mountains alone to cultivate. It wasn't until I emerged from seclusion not long ago that I learned your mother had given birth to another child."

Upon hearing Yang Chen's words, Xiao Ding's smile became more sincere and intimate. His seemingly casual concern earlier had merely been a test for Yang Chen.

Seeing that his elder brother had verified there was no problem, Xiao Li also grew excited and hurriedly asked.

"Uncle, have you seen Little Yan?"

"Yes, I saw him a few days ago. You two needn't worry either. Xiao Yan can cultivate normally now."

Seeing the sincere affection between the brothers, Yang Chen felt a surge of gratification. He reached out and patted Xiao Li before speaking with a smile.

"Alright, I've seen you two today. Your uncle still has matters to attend to, so I'll be leaving first. I'll come visit you brothers again in a few days."

"Huh? Uncle, you're leaving already? Won't you stay for a meal?"

Hearing Yang Chen say he was leaving, Xiao Li hurriedly tried to persuade him to stay, his face filled with regret. Xiao Ding chimed in as well.

"That's right, Uncle. We've only just recognized each other today. You should at least let us brothers show our appreciation."

"There will be plenty of time in the future. I only came this time because I happened to be passing through on business and remembered Xiao Yan mentioning that you two were here, so I stopped by to take a look."

After rising, Yang Chen pressed Xiao Ding and Xiao Li back into their seats. He gave Medusa Queen a look, then smiled and waved his hand.

"No need to see me off. You should get back to your own affairs as well."

With that, Yang Chen directly left the reception hall with Medusa Queen, leaving Xiao Ding and Xiao Li staring at each other in silence.