A Tragic Past, Father and Daughter Reunited

"Sea God above, I never thought this old man would get to cling to life a little longer."

Those were Mu En's first words upon waking. Huang Jinxu nearly cursed aloud when he heard them.

He was the one who had refined the pill. What the hell did the Sea God have to do with it?

But he could not be bothered to argue. The average IQ on Douluo Continent was below zero. It was understandable.

"Mu En, you're finally awake."

The moment Song Yunzhi saw Mu En wake up, the weight hanging over her heart finally lifted.

As long as Mu En lived, they had someone to rally around, and Shrek Academy's ten thousand years of glory could continue.

"Wait..."

Mu En did not answer Song Yunzhi right away. He had noticed something strange about himself. After a startled murmur, he tried to rise from the reclining chair.

What happened next stunned every senior member of Shrek Academy.

Before everyone's eyes, Mu En, who had been paralyzed for years, stood up without using Soul Power. He even took two steps.

A Mu En who could walk and a Mu En confined to a chair were two entirely different things.

"May Yan Shaozhe be cut to pieces!"

Someone thought of Yan Shaozhe again, and fury flared in his heart.

If Yan Shaozhe had not interfered, Mu En could have lived more than another decade. A Mu En who could walk freely and live another ten years meant far too much.

But Yan Shaozhe had ruined it all.

Some had already made up their minds. Even if Mu En forgave Yan Shaozhe after waking, they never would. They would find a way to crush him for good.

"The Primordial Bone-Shaping Pill has remarkable effects, but Mu En's old ailment has persisted too long to be cured completely. For now, it has only realigned his meridians and bones, allowing him to walk like anyone else. If he faces an intense battle, though, he may return to his former condition."

Huang Jinxu stepped forward and explained.

"Little Xu, you saved this old man."

Standing again, with his body feeling lighter than before, Mu En was in high spirits.

He did not know exactly what had happened, but Huang Jinxu had mentioned visiting Shrek Academy's treasury. Looking at the situation now, Mu En could piece much of it together.

"It was what I should have done."

Huang Jinxu made no effort to claim credit. Once Yan Shaozhe came up, Mu En would learn everything, whether Huang Jinxu told him or not.

"You brat. You dragged this old man back from death's door just to avoid becoming the master of the Sea God Pavilion."

"It cost you dearly, didn't it?"

Mu En looked at the weakened Huang Jinxu, joy and worry mingling in his eyes.

He was glad he would not die just yet and could walk freely again. But he worried about what Huang Jinxu had expended and whether it would affect his cultivation.

He could sense that the force suppressing the violent energy left by the Dragon Core inside him was Stellar Power. It might well have come from Huang Jinxu's own Martial Soul Origin.

"Mu En, as long as you're all right, I'll head back and rest."

Huang Jinxu had no intention of staying. His daughter might still be waiting for him.

As for Yan Shaozhe, he would leave them to settle that matter themselves.

Without another word, Huang Jinxu flickered into a streak of starlight and shot out of the academy.

Just as he had guessed, his daughter was still waiting for him.

"Dad!"

Seeing her father return with an unnatural look on his face, Nan Qiuqiu immediately grew worried.

The concern in his daughter's eyes warmed Huang Jinxu's heart. Perhaps having a daughter was rather nice after all.

"Qiuqiu, let's go inside. Today, Dad will tell you everything."

Huang Jinxu glanced at the inn, more than half of it wrecked, but paid it little mind. He would have Shrek Academy cover the repairs later.

Once inside the room, father and daughter sat facing each other.

"Qiuqiu, do you know why people call me the Heavenly Fiend Douluo?"

Huang Jinxu looked at his nervous daughter as he asked.

Nan Qiuqiu shook her head, puzzled.

Was there something special about that?

"Because my Martial Soul is the Heavenly Lone Star, linked to a Demon Star. On the day I was born, my mother died from massive bleeding, and my Martial Soul awakened on its own..."

Huang Jinxu slowly recounted parts of his past, though he chose to conceal some things he could not conveniently tell her.

"By then, my Martial Soul had already undergone its Second Awakening. Its effect on those around me was growing stronger, so I left for your mother's safety and yours."

"I could only reunite with you once my cultivation advanced far enough for me to control the power that brought harm to those close to me."

Huang Jinxu lied about that last part.

If his Martial Soul had not undergone its Second Awakening, then, as in the original timeline, he could have relied on the Fortune of a nation to suppress it and keep it from affecting those around him.

But after his Martial Soul Second Awakening, everything changed.

The power that brought harm to others had grown dramatically. By Huang Jinxu's own estimate, he would need to reach at least the level of a Limit Douluo and master his Martial Soul completely before he could stop it from harming those close to him.

For now, all he could do was direct that harmful power toward a single person or faction.

But it had to have a target. Otherwise, it would lash out uncontrollably at anyone connected to him, no matter how far away they were.

With Huo Yuhao there, he did not have to worry about the power slipping out of control for the time being. It would buy him time to master it completely.

"Dad, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry..."

By the time her father finished explaining, tears were streaming down Nan Qiuqiu's face.

Ever since she was little, her mother had told her that her father had never forgotten the two of them and that he had his reasons.

But as she grew older and met more people, how could she not have doubts?

Those doubts only deepened when she learned that her father was a powerful Titled Douluo. With strength like his, what reason could he possibly have?

Surely he was like other men: his heart had changed, and he had abandoned his wife and child.

If her mother had not always told her what a wonderful man her father was, building up an image of a great father in her mind, she would have come to confront him long ago.

She had never imagined how much her father had suffered throughout his life.

"It's all right. Everything has been resolved. From now on, our family can be together like any other."

"Dad will find a way to make up for everything you and your mother have endured all these years."

As Huang Jinxu comforted his daughter, his thoughts drifted, unbidden, to his parents in this life.