Chaoyang

At the doorway, two figures, one tall and one short, stood locked in a standoff.

"I'm a stranger?" Jiang Chaoyang's face alternated between green and white as he said coldly, "I'm your father! Your legal guardian!"

"Some of that is correct, and some is wrong."

"Biologically speaking, you are my father. That is correct."

Jiang Ding said flatly, "As for legal guardian, according to the court ruling, my only guardian is Lin Wanqiu—my mother."

"No matter what..."

"There is no 'no matter what'!" Jiang Ding cut him off, frowning. "I vaguely heard that you married a wealthy woman at the Qi Refinement realm, had new children and a new family, and that they're about the same age as me."

"You've got a happy, harmonious family, so what are you doing here?"

Jiang Chaoyang's tone stalled.

Back then, he really had not been much of a decent man. It was one thing to cheat during the marriage, but he had even fathered a child.

"Calling it marriage is exaggerating. Men and women are equal in modern society—what's this nonsense about marrying off?" Jiang Chaoyang grinned playfully. "Still, that heartless look of yours is rather like mine."

"Your aptitude isn't bad either. You're already at the Inner Qi realm, stronger than I was at your age."

Jiang Ding rubbed his brow. "Leave, or I'll call the police. The police won't care about your excuses."

"Impossible."

Jiang Chaoyang laughed. "I'm just standing in the corridor outside the door. I haven't broken any law."

Jiang Ding sheathed his sword and closed his eyes without another word.

There was no reasoning with someone this shameless. There was no need to keep talking.

Jiang Chaoyang's gaze sharpened.

He had not spent all these years for nothing. He had developed some discernment, and this swordsmanship far surpassed his own—perhaps even that of most Inner Qi martial artists in the Immortal Sect, who primarily used firearms.

What a pity about the aptitude of the Jiang and Lin families...

He said nothing more, folding his arms and leaning against the wall.

Who knew how much time passed.

"Big Brother, Dad!"

Jiang Yuan's voice came from the elevator. She carried a tray of eggs in one hand and a bag containing chives, eggplants, and red peppers in the other, looking in delighted surprise at the two men by the door.

"Oh! Little Yuan, it's been so long!"

Jiang Chaoyang immediately perked up. He went to the little girl, called her Little Yuan again and again, took the two bags of vegetables from her, and asked what had happened at school that day.

He coaxed the little girl until she was beaming.

Then, naturally, he followed her through the door without the slightest trace of apprehension.

Jiang Ding touched his sword hilt and turned away.

He did not cook as usual, nor did he go into his room. He merely sat on the sofa with his eyes closed, circulating the inner qi through his Greater Yin Lung Meridian to temper and nourish his meridians.

Jiang Yuan urged, "Big Brother! Go cook! There's still corn and tofu left over from yesterday in the fridge. You can make enough for one more person."

"No."

Jiang Ding answered coldly.

To protect her, neither Lin Wanqiu nor he had told his younger sister about what Jiang Chaoyang had done, allowing her to retain a basic image of him as a father.

Besides, the man had exceptionally high emotional intelligence and easily won the little girl's favor.

He could not handle this matter. They would wait until Mother came home.

Jiang Yuan snapped, "You lazy bum!"

But there was nothing she could do. Jiang Ding had never listened to her, and she had never learned how to cook. She only knew how to buy groceries.

Jiang Chaoyang merely smiled and said nothing.

Somehow, he had found a little Princess Feifei dress and played house with Jiang Yuan, making her laugh nonstop. She even forgot about the cartoons she usually sat down to watch at the same time every day.

Jiang Ding glanced at the two of them playing around and sighed inwardly.

His sister was not as aloof and quiet as he was. She needed companionship.

But Mother worked overtime every day and had no time, while he had to train and had no time either.

He could make sure she ate and keep the house clean. Beyond that, there was nothing else he could do.

At eight that evening, Lin Wanqiu came home from work, feeling a surge of surprise.

There was no clattering cartoon noise. Instead, Jiang Yuan's screams and laughter filled the entire apartment as she ran about barefoot, thump thump thump.

The moment Lin Wanqiu entered the living room, her face turned cold as ice.

"Wanqiu, you're back?"

Jiang Chaoyang, who was playing hide-and-seek, spoke gently, as though this were some ordinary afternoon from many years ago.

Clang!

A sword rang out from the side. At some point, Jiang Ding had risen from where he had been resting with his eyes closed. Calmly, he said, "Sir, please watch your words."

"What a joke..."

Jiang Chaoyang wore a playful grin, but his heart suddenly jolted.

He saw Jiang Ding's eyes. Something incomparably dangerous and crazed was brewing within them, utterly unlike the gaze a boy should possess.

"Lin Wanqiu, long time no see." Jiang Chaoyang's smile vanished.

Jiang Yuan stood there holding a toy, at a complete loss as she looked at the others.

Lin Wanqiu ignored him and sat down beside Jiang Ding. "Tell me. What did you smell, and what benefit are you hoping to get from me?"

She knew the man before her far too well.

If she had not been young and only cared about his face back then, none of what followed would have happened.

Still, it was all right.

Looking at her two children, Lin Wanqiu did not regret the past all that much.

"What are you talking about? There's nothing..." Jiang Chaoyang gave an awkward laugh.

"Then get out."

"Lin Wanqiu..."

"Get out."

Lin Wanqiu was expressionless.

Jiang Ding's gaze began to turn dangerous.

"There is one small matter." Jiang Chaoyang's expression remained unchanged. "I heard that you recently reserved an Azureflower Foundation Elixir through the Qianling University Dao Cultivation Department..."

Lin Wanqiu sneered. "Just as I thought. People like you never rise early without profit. You have no bottom line at all. What, your wealthy Qi Refinement woman wouldn't buy one for you?"

"Red Carp is an independent cultivator. She has no connections at Qianling University."

Jiang Chaoyang said solemnly, "And it isn't for me. It's for Jiang Jinxian. His martial aptitude is excellent, and he has already reached the peak of the Inner Qi realm. If he can obtain this Azureflower Foundation Elixir, he will definitely achieve Young Eagle Innate! He'll definitely get into the Dao Cultivation Department!"

"Heh!"

Lin Wanqiu did not want to speak anymore. She looked at him as though he were a lunatic or an idiot.

Jiang Yuan's little face changed as well. She turned to look at Jiang Chaoyang, anger gradually rising on her face.

Of course, she knew perfectly well how important that Azureflower Foundation Elixir was to her brother, and how much their family had sacrificed for it. Now, some mere playmate wanted to take it away?

The little girl's expression turned awful. With a cold snort, she walked away.

"Ten times the price."

Jiang Chaoyang said seriously, "We're willing to pay two million mortal coins and five hundred spirit coins."

"Furthermore, on Jiang Jinxian's behalf, I promise that if he gets into the Dao Cultivation Department, he will exchange another Azureflower Foundation Elixir for Dingding within a year. We can sign legally binding contracts for all of this, in my name, Red Carp's name, or Jiang Jinxian's name."

That damned bastard...

Lin Wanqiu's anger grew even stronger, but she hesitated.

It was a huge sum of money. If they obtained it, it would undoubtedly accelerate her son's cultivation.

And honestly, she knew her own son best. Though he worked incredibly hard, his aptitude limited him. His chances of successfully getting into a university Dao Cultivation Department through the college entrance examination were likely not great...

And he was stubborn. He would never give up.

That huge sum could make his future path of cultivation much smoother.

Lastly, they promised to return an identical Azureflower Foundation Elixir a year later. No matter how one looked at it, they would not lose out.

"Dingding..."

Lin Wanqiu looked at Jiang Ding. "Don't let your emotions decide this. Think carefully. Consider it purely from the perspective of your cultivation and answer me: do you want to sell it?"

She had switched paths before even breaking through the Inner Qi realm, eventually attending an ordinary key university. She did not understand the cultivation of the Young Eagle Takes Flight Formula very well either.

Jiang Ding nodded.

"Lin Wanqiu, that doesn't seem right." Jiang Chaoyang frowned. "You and I both went through that age. What young man isn't driven by passion?"

"As parents, we should plan for our children's future, rather than act on a momentary impulse."

"Shut your filthy mouth!"

Lin Wanqiu said calmly, "I believe in my son."

Jiang Chaoyang was speechless. He could not understand it.

"Mom, I've decided to refuse."

After thinking for several minutes, Jiang Ding said seriously, "Purely from the perspective of my cultivation path, keeping the Azureflower Foundation Elixir is best for me right now, and its benefits far exceed merely receiving ten times the price."

"Bullshit! Where does your confidence come from?" Jiang Chaoyang was furious. "You've only just reached the initial Inner Qi realm. Your aptitude is poor, your academic grades are poor, your family circumstances are average, and you can't afford many pills. Where do you get the confidence to break through to Young Eagle Innate in less than a year?"

He tried earnestly to persuade him.

"You're still young. You don't know how precious an opportunity is. You'll never encounter one like this again in the future..."

"Get out."

Lin Wanqiu was utterly blunt. She pulled up 110 on her phone and showed it to him. "If you don't want to spend the next few days in a cell, you'd better get out of my home right now!"

Jiang Ding made a stiff, cold gesture of invitation.

"If that's how it is."

Jiang Chaoyang gave her a long look. "Then let it be for now. If you regret it within three months, the terms will remain the same."