Both Li Guanqi and Han Sijin were weighed down with heavy thoughts, having envisioned countless times the moment their dearest kin would be brought back to life.
To meet again would naturally be a joyous thing, yet neither could stop their minds from turning over it all.
Noticing this, Lin Wujiu simply invited them both over to his courtyard to drink.
Lin Wujiu summoned the dancer-musicians maintained by the Lin family to play music and dance for everyone, creating a relaxed, pleasant atmosphere.
The melodious notes of pipes and strings were gentle and lingering—not overly cheerful, but enough to soothe restless hearts.
Unaccustomed to such an atmosphere, Han Sijin excused himself and returned alone to his courtyard.
Li Guanqi and the others did not stop him; after all, each person carried their own state of mind.
“Qisha, how is your body?”
Qisha grinned, raising a clenched fist. “Much better. Now that the shackles on my heart are gone, I feel far lighter.”
Lin Wujiu looked at the two of them chatting, his gaze drifting slightly.
Last night, Qisha had spoken with him at great length, sharing many deep reflections.
Lin Wujiu had suddenly realized that the clan background he once seemed to care so little about was, in truth, the fortune of being born well.
Had he been forced to struggle at the bottom, he might not have fared any better.
“By the way, what are your plans for the future?” Li Guanqi asked Qisha, taking a sip of wine as he watched the dancers. “Why not just stay here with Wujiu?”
Qisha clasped his hands behind his head, stretched, and lay back on the soft rug, pondering for a moment.
“I don’t know...”
“Suddenly not having to live in constant fear takes some getting used to.”
“Still, I probably won’t choose to stay with the Lin family.”
Hearing this, Lin Wujiu was instantly dissatisfied. Leaning in toward them, he frowned and said, “What? Why? My family is great! You wouldn’t have to worry about cultivation resources or anything. Old Li aside—he’s always acting mysterious, with a heart full of secrets. Why aren’t you staying either?”
Qisha and Li Guanqi exchanged a look and simply smiled without speaking.
Li Guanqi took Lin Wujiu by the shoulder, pulled him closer, and pointed softly at the sky outside the window.
“A man should harbor grand ambitions, not remain tethered to the little corner before his eyes. In time, you might want to venture out and see the world as well.”
Lin Wujiu nodded, half-comprehending.
The journey to rescue Qisha had left a deep impression on him as well.
In the past, he had rarely set foot outside Qinzhou, yet this time he had gone all the way to Quping Prefecture.
He had witnessed just how formidable Xutian Palace, a major power in the Linluan Realm, truly was.
He had also heard of the Nine Heavens clans standing above the Ten Lands and Eight Desolations—where Golden Immortals were merely guards and Immortal Monarchs garrisoned the domains...
Such things sounded utterly fantastic, like tales from a myth.
Yet that was the sect of Li Guanqi’s wife: the Jiuding Heavenly Palace of Dihuang Heaven!
His father, Lin Jinting, was beaming with pride simply because the Lin family had forged a connection with Jiuding Heavenly Palace in the Zhongtian Lands.
Breadth of vision... was indeed vital.
In the days that followed, many exceptionally talented disciples emerged within the Lin manor!
Even some who had previously been overlooked by the clan were welcomed back to the main branch.
As for the reason, perhaps only Li Guanqi, Lin Wujiu, and Qisha knew.
Not only that, but significant moves were underway throughout the Lin estate, with colossal cloud boats descending upon Qinzhou City one after another.
For a time, transmission passages opened in Qinzhou City one after the other.
In contrast, Li Guanqi and Han Sijin grew much calmer, dedicating themselves entirely to focused cultivation.
During this period, Li Guanqi fully stabilized his cultivation at the second level of the Heavenly Immortal realm, making even further progress.
However, he discovered that his current cultivation method was gradually failing to keep pace with his strength.
He might need to spend some effort searching for the second half of the technique, or simply switch to a higher-grade art altogether.
Yet Li Guanqi did not mention this to Lin Jinting.
Believing he could resolve it himself, he was reluctant to trouble him.
Time flew by. Early that morning, Li Guanqi finished washing up.
Looking at his reflection, he hesitated for a moment before taking from his storage ring a slightly faded robe—one that was not even an enchanted artifact robe...
Two purple thunder patterns were embroidered extending from the shoulders.
Looking at the sleeves that were now slightly short, the corners of Li Guanqi’s mouth curved upward.
Gazing at himself in the mirror, he rubbed his cheeks, let a gentle smile show on his face, and pushed open the door.
In another side courtyard, the scars on Han Sijin’s face had been completely cleared away, and his skin had regained a fair complexion.
Dressed in green robes, he looked undeniably handsome and poised, yet his eyes betrayed uneasy tension, his breathing unsteady.
When Li Guanqi saw the green-robed man standing by the doorway taking deep breaths, his lips twitched into an unconscious smile.
It seemed Han Sijin was just as nervous as he was.
The two exchanged glances, each reading the apprehension and nervousness in the other’s eyes.
Nodding to each other, they took to the air side by side, flying toward the back courtyard.
Outside the barrier, Lin Shengwu sat cross-legged on a prayer mat.
Sensing their approach, he slowly opened his eyes, stood up, and smiled. “Here so early?”
The words had barely left his mouth when he glanced past the barrier and nodded. “Not really early, either. It should be just about finished...”
As Lin Shengwu spoke, Lin Jinting and Lin Wujiu arrived as well.
With a wave of Lin Shengwu’s hand, the barrier dissolved. Immediately, an immensely terrifying aura slowly emanated from the quiet room in the distance!
Li Guanqi swallowed nervously, his hands tightly clenched, staring unblinkingly at the door of the quiet room.
After what felt like an eternity, creak!
The door slowly swung open, and amid swirling clouds of mist, a figure gradually emerged.
Li Guanqi’s eyes widened, and his feet carried him forward uncontrollably.
The mist quickly cleared. The moment Li Guanqi saw that aged, stooped figure, his eyes rimmed with red!
Li Nanting wore a simple white hemp robe, his lips trembling as he slowly paced outward.
The old man’s eyes were brimming with yearning and heartache. Trembling, he reached out a hand; his throat choked up, and though he opened his mouth several times, no sound came out.
Step by step, Li Guanqi walked forward, memories flashing through his mind.
The little old man in the courtyard who loved sitting on the threshold...
All the hardship and toil of walking this path, step by arduous step over all these years...
And the parting words his master’s wife had urged upon him before his ascension, echoing in his ears.
Thud!
Li Guanqi gathered the hem of his robe and fell to his knees before Li Nanting with a heavy thud.
Tears welled in his eyes as he looked up at the old man, bowed low to the ground, and cried out in a loud, trembling voice:
“Disciple... pays respects to Master!!”
Li Nanting now possessed all his memories; everything Li Guanqi had lived through had unfolded before him like a revolving lantern seen through an observer’s eyes.
The old man understood, more clearly than anyone, the trials and tribulations Li Guanqi had endured along the way.
Wiping his tears, Li Nanting slowly crouched down, his eyes bloodshot, and pulled Li Guanqi into his embrace with rough, weathered hands.
In a voice hoarse, low, and aching with heartbreak, he murmured, “Child... how you have suffered... how you have suffered...
“What virtue or merit could I, Li Nanting, ever have possessed... to have a child as good as you?”
At the same time, the door on the other side of the quiet chamber slowly opened.
Han Sijin, who had somehow found a bouquet of flowers and now held it tightly in his arms, waited with anxious anticipation, craning his neck...
A gentle woman, her face slightly pale, walked out while leaning against the wall for support.
Their gazes met, and tears burst through like a broken dam.
The woman’s eyes reddened, and weeping like rain upon pear blossoms, she called out softly,
“Feng...”
Chapter 1713