As Li Kai stepped forward, Li Kaixin, Li Erniu, and the others immediately came up as well, their eyes filled with worry.
"Brother Li Dao, you weren't hurt, were you? That chain that flew around going whoosh, whoosh, whoosh was so powerful!"
"Brother Li Dao has gotten taller again!"
"Dao, you're growing more handsome by the day. Did you meet any girls you fancied while you were away?"
"..."
Li Dao's tense expression softened, and the faint sense of estrangement he had felt after years away from home vanished completely.
Li Kai spoke up at just the right moment and began arranging everything.
Beneath the Ancient Locust Tree, Li Dao stood where he had stood all those years ago, his eyes brimming with emotion.
Leaning on his cane, Li Kai came to his side. Compared to a few years ago, the old Village Chief had acquired a few more silver strands, and his vitality had weakened considerably.
"Child, you must have had a hard time out there these past few years."
Looking at the Village Chief's kindly face, unchanged from before, Li Dao felt warmth fill his heart and a stinging in his nose.
"Grandpa Chief, it was nothing. It's all in the past now."
"How is everyone in the village?"
Seeing that Li Dao did not want to dwell on it, Li Kai asked no further questions. Instead, he smiled magnanimously. "They're only minor injuries. With your precious elixir, I'm sure they'll recover very soon."
"It's all thanks to you appearing in time. Had you been even a little later, your Second Uncle and the others would have lost their lives."
"I don't know where those bandits came from. If you hadn't returned, Golden Feather Village would have been destroyed on my watch today."
At those words, Li Dao's