The lanternlight of evening flickered across the high corridors of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda Clan inner sanctum. Beyond the grand doors of the patriarch hall, two figures stood beneath the soft fall of cherry blossoms, their expressions caught somewhere between contemplation and restrained tension.
One stood like a pillar, arms folded, back straight. His long gray hair draped neatly down his back, and the gleaming bone staff in his hand pulsed faintly with power. His broad frame was a silent promise of strength.
Gu Rong, the Bone Douluo.
The other leaned with poise beside the pavilion edge, a sword resting against the stone, unsheathed but ever near. His presence was silent, measured—but no less imposing. His aura didn't blaze—it whispered. Like a sword drawn halfway from its scabbard, dangerous even in stillness.
Chen Xin, the Sword Douluo.
Both were Title Douluo. Both were legends.
And both were currently watching the retreating forms of Ning Rongrong and the young man who had arrived with her.
"…She really said he's her boyfriend," Gu Rong said at last, his tone a low grumble.
Chen Xin nodded, folding his hands behind his back. "She did."
Gu Rong turned, his usually passive face now tightening with the restraint of decades of cultivation. "That little girl… she dares come back after two years with some brat and say that so calmly? She didn't even flinch."
"She has grown, unlike the spoiled little kid we know before. Well it our mistake to begin with." Chen Xin said calmly. "We both saw it, how she has mature."
"She could've written a letter first!"
"She has spirit power close to rank 55 at that age, that is no longer in the realm of genius, it's more the realm of monster." the Sword Douluo said, eyes narrowing slightly as he gazed into the darkness. "And did you sense her control? It's not just brute strength. It's refined. Disciplined."
Gu Rong didn't argue. He'd noticed it too. The little wildflower had turned into something sharper. Something that bloomed even under pressure.
Still…
"I don't trust that boy," he muttered.
Chen Xin mouth twitched into a slight frown. "Li Wei."
"Yes, Li Wei," Gu Rong echoed, voice dry. "He walks like he doesn't care who's watching. Like he's already prepared for every question I want to throw at him even though he should not know we stand close."
Chen Xin remained silent for a moment, watching the wind stir the blossoms.
"He didn't flinch when Master Ning asked if he'd protect Rongrong. He didn't overpromise. He just said he would. That should carries weight."
Gu Rong narrowed his eyes. "You sound like you approve."
"I don't. I'm only observing. But I will say this—he carries himself like a warrior. One who's seen many things, we should give him a benefit of the doubt."
"He's too calm," Gu Rong said. "A thousand-yard stare at his age isn't normal. That's not cultivation. That's survival."
There was silence between them for a long moment.
Then Chen Xin spoke again, more quietly.
"I've heard of what happened in the Sunset forest, whisper about one of their own disappear. Spirit Hall denies half of it. The Elder Hall refuses to comment."
Another pause.
"…Do we test him?" Gu Rong asked flatly.
"No," Chen Xin said. "Not yet. Let Master Ning decide first. Besides…" His tone grew slightly more amused, "Rongrong would cut off your staff and feed it to the pigs if you hurt him."
Gu Rong snorted, shoulders shaking. "You're not wrong."
Their gaze followed the soft glow of lanterns toward the central pavilion, where laughter echoed faintly.
"…She really has changed," Gu Rong murmured, folding his arms again. "Still remember when she cried just because you sheathed your sword too fast in front of her."
"And now she dares bring a man home without warning."
"You think she loves him?"
"I think she'd kill for him," Chen Xin said simply. "Which is… more than I expected."
Gu Rong let out a long sigh, then turned back toward the direction of their own quarters.
"She's not a little girl anymore, Old Sword."
"No," Chen Xin replied. "She's not."
They walked side by side under the falling blossoms, old ghosts of battles past behind them, and new generations already stepping forward.
Tomorrow, they would question the boy.
But tonight, for just a little longer, they would let her be happy.
________________
The gentle hum of wind chimes echoed in the silence of the courtyard.
Ning Fengzhi sat alone beneath the blossoming tree in his private study garden, the scent of night-blooming jasmine mixing with the faint bitterness of the untouched tea at his side. The night sky above the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda clan was cloudless—clear, unguarded.
He, on the other hand, was not.
His daughter had returned home.
Not as the sheltered heir he once raised, but as a young woman transformed. Changed by trial. Hardened by fire. Softened, in ways, by something else.
By him.
Li Wei.
Ning Fengzhi slowly closed his eyes, the memory of the earlier conversation replaying like a slow ripple across still water.
"He's my… boyfriend."
She had said it without hesitation.
There had been no stammer, no deflecting charm or spoiled giggle. She simply said it, with a level of self-assurance that pierced deeper than any blade.
And Li Wei—he hadn't denied it. He hadn't shrunk from the implication or tried to embellish himself in that moment. He had simply stood there, shoulders square, gaze direct, like someone who understood the weight of the words.
"I'll protect her with everything I have."
Not boastful. Not dramatic. Just honest.
Ning Fengzhi opened his eyes and exhaled slowly.
He was a father. A patriarch. A leader. He'd buried more than one loved one during the long years of clan politics and Spirit Hall interference. He had learned that strength alone did not protect families. Wisdom, timing, alliances—trust—were the weapons of legacy.
Rongrong… she had never been meant to carry the burden alone.
But somewhere along the road, she had chosen to anyway.
The day she left for Shrek Academy, she had stormed from this very garden in tears, vowing to prove herself. He had watched her go, both proud and terrified, unsure whether the girl he raised would ever forgive him for pushing her so hard.
And now she was back.
Not asking for forgiveness.
Not even seeking approval.
Just… herself.
He looked down at the porcelain teacup in his hand and found his reflection distorted by the dark liquid.
"I return not just stronger. I became someone worthy of being more than just your daughter."
She hadn't said that to hurt him.
She had said that to claim her place—not the one he gave her, but the one she chose.
And it stung, not because it was wrong—but because it was right.
Ning Fengzhi stood slowly and walked toward the garden railing. Lanternlight glimmered faintly on the edges of the inner towers. Somewhere distant, he could hear the laughter of younger clan members gathered for music and light ceremony.
But it was her laughter that drifted to him from the eastern pavilion.
Soft.
Genuine.
Free.
He rubbed his temples.
"…Uncle Bone and Uncle Sword will make his life very difficult," he muttered to no one.
It wasn't just because Li Wei was unknown. Or powerful. Or close to Rongrong.
It was because he had earned her loyalty. Her heart.
And with it came the terrifying implication that this boy was not just a passing presence in her life. He was a permanent piece of her story.
Ning Fengzhi eyes narrowed.
He had read the Spirit Hall reports. He had decoded the veiled statements in the Elder Hall silences. The Rift had swallowed entire battle groups and shattered the sky. Those who came back were changed.
And the name that returned most often?
Li Wei.
A name surrounded by many contradictions. From the report that he sent his own people to investigate, he is a martial spirit user wielding strange, Rider-like powers. A commander among Shrek new generation. An enigma wrapped in legend.
"He'll bring trouble to her," Gu Rong had warned earlier.
"He may also be the only one strong enough to keep up and protect her," Chen Xin had answered.
Ning Fengzhi gripped the wooden railing, his fingers tightening.
"…I see it too," he whispered. "She shines brighter now. Not because of him. But with him."
That, perhaps, was what disturbed him most.
He had always wanted Rongrong to become strong.
But now… she was standing alongside someone else. Not above, not behind. But beside.
His daughter, once pampered, once underestimated even within her own clan—now stood tall. Unshakable.
And her light did not dim his.
That boy... perhaps he didn't steal her from the clan.
Perhaps, he completed her.
Still—
He would test him.
Not through battle. But through presence. Patience. Legacy. The true weights of responsibility.
Because any man who wished to walk beside the heir of the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda had to face not just her uncles…
But also her father.
And if Li Wei truly wished to be part of this clan—
He would have to prove it.
Not by sword.
But by soul.