"Of course!"
Chen Qingyu answered without hesitation:
"I've long been itching to head out and travel the world."
He had long known the rule that, after reaching the Spirit Origin Realm, he had to travel the world and broaden his horizons.
And he had long looked forward to that day.
If he stayed in Divine Capital Changluo forever, he would never reach the second check-in location.
At his words, Chen Zhengxing fell silent for a long while, then suddenly let out a long sigh.
"Looking at you now, it really feels as though ten years passed in the blink of an eye. You really are sixteen now."
His voice grew somewhat hoarse:
"Would you like to hear about your mother?"
Chen Qingyu abruptly raised his head and looked straight at Chen Zhengxing, a slight tremor in his voice:
"Haven't you always refused to tell me?"
He had never seen his mother since birth.
When he was three, he had asked a few times, but Chen Zhengxing had always avoided the subject, so he had stopped bringing it up.
He had once thought he was probably a child from a single-parent family, and that perhaps his mother had met with an accident.
But now, there was clearly more to the matter than met the eye.
"Things are different now."
Chen Zhengxing smiled and said gently:
"Before your mother and I parted, we agreed that once you came of age at sixteen and advanced to the Spirit Origin Realm, we would let you go meet her yourself."
"I thought that day would take at least another ten years to arrive, perhaps longer."
"But I never imagined you would be so very much more outstanding than I expected."
Chen Qingyu fell silent for a moment, then asked quietly:
"Then where is my mother?"
Chen Zhengxing drew a breath and looked toward the southern sky:
"In the south, somewhere very far from Central Heaven Prefecture."
"You also have an older sister, exactly sixty years older than you. Perhaps you'll be able to meet her someday too."
At these words, Chen Zhengxing could not help asking in astonishment:
"I have an older sister? Sixty years older than me? This..."
He truly was stunned.
Before this, he had never heard so much as a whisper about it.
"There's no need to be surprised."
Chen Zhengxing smiled, a trace of reminiscence appearing in his eyes:
"Most of us cultivators marry quite late."
"I met your mother while traveling when I was twenty-four. We only married three hundred years later."
"In the second year of our marriage, we had your sister. The following year, your mother became pregnant with you, only..."
As he spoke, his voice gradually sank. He pressed his lips together before heaving a sigh:
"A great many things happened back then, things I'm very reluctant to recall."
"I committed a terrible mistake, one that blotted out the heavens."
"Afterward, I was punished by being made to guard the Great Yin Grotto. Because of my past mistake, your birth was also delayed by sixty years, and you were sent back to Divine Capital Changluo."
Hearing this, Chen Qingyu grew even more astonished:
"My mother was pregnant with me for sixty years before giving birth to me? This..."
Chen Zhengxing waved his sleeve and shook his head:
"The past has scattered like smoke. There's no use dwelling on it."
"Once you reach the Spirit Origin Realm and can go out traveling, I'll tell you some of that old story."
As he spoke, he smiled faintly:
"Come on. It's been a long time since we father and son went out for a stroll."
"Mm."
Chen Qingyu answered and walked out of their home with Chen Zhengxing.
Father and son walked along the long street for a while before reaching a bustling marketplace in the central district of the Divine Capital.
"Candied hawthorns! Fresh candied hawthorns!"
"The latest spirit-light recording is starting! Chen Shaojun battles Chen Qinggu and takes first place on both rankings! A spectacular fight you can't miss!"
"The latest issue of Heavenly Prides Compete for Supremacy is fresh off the press, telling the stories behind the greatest heavenly prides!"
"Issue one hundred and ninety-two of Immortal Chapters is out! Read the legendary records of history's mightiest heavenly prides!"
"Come take a look! New curiosities from Western Capital Ligu, the latest ornaments from the Crystal Clan of the Western Desolation!"
Throughout the marketplace, the cries of vendors and shopkeepers rang out without end.
An endless stream of people came and went, mostly direct-line descendants in luxurious clothes. Children were especially numerous, and the sounds of play and horseplay were everywhere.
"It really is lively."
Looking at the scene, Chen Zhengxing said wistfully:
"But even direct-line descendants only get to enjoy happy times before they turn six."
"When I was six, your grandfather wouldn't even let me go out alone. He made me recite books every day..."
Hearing this, Chen Qingyu smiled faintly:
"Those who occupy high positions must shoulder their authority and responsibilities."
"If every direct-line descendant indulged in pleasure and neglected cultivation, that would be the very root of the clan's decline."
"Mm."
Chen Zhengxing nodded:
"You have a point."
As he spoke, he pointed to a stall and said with a smile:
"Come on, let's take a look over there. When you were younger, you were always pestering me to buy you those novel little trinkets..."
Chen Qingyu chuckled and followed Chen Zhengxing.
He maintained his sixteen-year-old appearance and build, which seemed to have made Chen Zhengxing accept the fact that he had grown ten years older in a single day.
And all along the way:
Not a single one of the many direct-line descendants passing by recognized him as Chen Shaojun, whose name resounded throughout the Divine Capital.
Even though portraits of his face had long since spread throughout the Divine Capital, everyone unconsciously looked right past him, overlooking his presence.
Along the way, many direct-line clan members chatted and exchanged remarks.
And Chen Shaojun, the Divine Capital's recent center of attention, naturally came up repeatedly:
"Who do you think Chen Shaojun actually is?"
"No idea. Apparently, Chen Qingju and the others searched for a while, but there was no more word after that."
"Heh, he really is mysterious. Still, he must be from the direct line. He's probably one of those few people, right?"
"Ah, I thought that after defeating our younger cousin Qinggu, Chen Shaojun would definitely challenge Zhou Chenlong next and try to reach the top! But nothing came of that either!"
"Exactly! It's been several days already. He's probably chickened out..."
"Isn't that perfectly normal? Zhou Chenlong is the number one Blood Sea Realm cultivator in the world. Chen Shaojun hasn't even cleared the eighth floor of the War God Tower. What confidence could he have to challenge him?"
"If even Chen Shaojun can't do it, there's even less hope for Chen Qinggu and the others. Looks like our Chen Clan will be overshadowed by the Zhou Clan among this generation's young heavenly prides. How frustrating..."
Hearing these remarks, Chen Zhengxing turned his head and said with a smile:
"Did you hear that?"
"Everyone in the Divine Capital is very disappointed that you didn't carry your momentum straight into challenging Zhou Chenlong. They're all saying you chickened out."
Chen Qingyu said nonchalantly:
"What do they mean, chickened out? This is called building up my strength."
"If I challenged Zhou Chenlong without being confident, wouldn't I just be inviting humiliation?"
Chen Zhengxing laughed heartily:
"Then when will you be confident?"
"At your cultivation speed, in another ten days or so, you won't have the chance to challenge him even if you want to."
Chen Qingyu smiled faintly and raised his head to look toward the Floating Heavenly Palace:
"Perhaps it won't take ten days or so."