Three days was not long, but for an eight-year-old child, it was already an agonizing wait.
As Lin Chen returned along the flagstone path outside the little courtyard, he spotted Cai'er sitting on the threshold from afar, clutching the Nine-Colored Jade Pendant, her chin resting on her knees and her eyes fixed unblinkingly on the courtyard gate.
As though she needed to make certain the person she was waiting for had truly returned, she kept staring until his figure rounded the foot of the mountain. Only then did her eyes curve into a smile, and she sprang up and threw herself at him.
"Big Brother!"
Lin Chen bent down to catch her and rubbed her fluffy hair. "I said three days, and three days it was. When have I ever lied to you?"
Cai'er buried her face against his chest and said in a muffled voice, "I knew you would come back, but I still wanted to see you sooner."
Smiling, Lin Chen shifted her higher in his arms. "Come on. I'm taking you out today to witness something important."
Along the way, Cai'er rested against his shoulder and asked curiously, "What important thing?"
"Finding a home for a group of people who have none," Lin Chen said. "Once everything is done, I'll take you to see their new home among the stars."
Cai'er only half understood, but as long as she was with her big brother, she would be happy wherever they went.
Space contracted beneath Lin Chen's feet. Moments later, he appeared before the royal hall in Holy Demon City with Cai'er in his arms.
Feng Xiu seemed to have expected his arrival.
The royal hall's doors stood wide open. Phantasms of the Seventy-Two Demon God Pillars shimmered dimly above its roof, and the Demon God Hall masters