At the address "Third Uncle," Su Miaoyin froze for a moment, then her tense shoulders relaxed slightly.
But Si Chen's question, "Does he owe you spirit stones?" instantly shattered her wistful nostalgia, leaving her unsure whether to laugh or cry.
She chided him irritably, "What he owes me is far harder to repay than spirit stones!"
With their connection confirmed, an elder's concern unconsciously crept into her gaze as she looked at Si Chen again, and her tone grew much warmer and more natural:
"Come to think of it, you really are a little like your third uncle back then."
She led Si Chen to a bench in a corner of the Scripture Repository and personally set up a soundproof barrier. Only then did she let out a long sigh, her gaze drifting out the window, as though passing through time and returning to the days of her own youth.
"Back then, he was just like you. His origins were mysterious, and he only told outsiders he was a rogue cultivator. But that talent of his... it truly shook the world."
"Among his peers, no one could even catch sight of his back."
She looked at Si Chen with a faint smile. "To tell you the truth, I noticed you the moment you reached third place on the Azure Profound Ranking. Because back then, your third uncle was the 'nightmare' who sat at the very top, pressing down on everyone of his generation until they could barely breathe."
Si Chen raised an eyebrow, picturing his third uncle, Si Shuo, making a racket and shouting, "Eldest Brother, Second Brother, something huge has happened!" at the drop of a hat...
Was this really the same person?
As she spoke of the past, even the sect master's tone grew considerably livelier.
"That man...