Zhu Ziyang discovered that the front door wasn't locked. A mischievous grin appeared on his face as he prepared to sneak in and surprise his parents.
Holding his breath, he gently pushed the door open and stepped inside. Seeing no one in the front room, he immediately understood—Zhu Changhe and Liang Ying must be in their bedroom. Quietly, he tiptoed through the yard, and just as he entered the courtyard, he saw Zhu Changhe.
"Dad!" Zhu Ziyang's eyes widened. He pointed a trembling finger at Zhu Changhe, his face full of shock as he shouted, "W-What's going on?!"
"Oh! Ziyang, why are you back?" Zhu Changhe was also surprised to see him, but when he saw Zhu Ziyang's expression, he chuckled and said, "Perfect timing—come meet your little brother."
Zhu Ziyang felt like he was going insane.
He'd only been away at school for a year! How did he come back to find he suddenly had a little brother? So… love really can disappear, right?
He didn't even know how he managed to walk over to Zhu Changhe. He stared at the sleeping infant in his father's arms, and a strange sense of warmth and closeness arose in his heart. This little guy, with his funny-looking, slightly squished face, was really… his younger brother?
"Dad, why did you suddenly have another kid?" Zhu Ziyang asked, still struggling to accept it.
"It was… an accident," Zhu Changhe said awkwardly with a smile. "Your mom and I were hoping for a daughter, but unexpectedly we got a boy. Total surprise."
"..." Zhu Ziyang was speechless. He didn't know whether to be happy or heartbroken.
"You came back at the perfect time. Your brother's full moon banquet is tomorrow," Zhu Changhe said with a big grin.
"Honey, who are you talking to?" Liang Ying's voice rang out from inside the house, full of energy, clearly having recovered well from childbirth.
"Ziyang's back," Zhu Changhe replied.
Thud, thud—there were hurried footsteps inside, and then Liang Ying rushed out and threw her arms around him in excitement.
"Mom!" Zhu Ziyang forced a smile uglier than a cry and called out.
"Don't worry, Yangyang. No matter what, you'll always be Mom's precious eldest son," Liang Ying said comfortingly.
"Okay!" Zhu Ziyang nodded, not even sure what emotion he was feeling anymore. His heart was a mess.
He couldn't remember how he got to bed that night, or how he even fell asleep. His head was in complete chaos. The sudden appearance of a younger brother had caught him completely off guard. Maybe he should be happy—now he didn't have to worry about his parents missing him while he was away at the academy, since they'd have someone else to keep them company. But… he had returned this time planning to persuade them to move back to Shrek City with him. Though he knew they'd probably refuse, now there was no point trying. With the new baby, there was no way they would leave.
"Sigh…" Zhu Ziyang sighed more than once that night.
The next day, the full moon banquet for his little brother was packed with guests. Zhu Ziyang and Jiang Nannan's return added more excitement to the atmosphere. Everyone knew that the Zhu family's eldest son had been accepted into Shrek Academy and was a verified genius soul master. Now, with a new son just born, who knew—maybe the second one would be another genius. It never hurt to build relationships early.
Zhu Ziyang's little brother was named Zhu Ziguang, with the nickname Xiaoguang. The inspiration behind the name was obvious—Ziyang and Ziguang together made up "sunlight." A clear and gentle comfort. As Zhu Ziyang gazed at the peacefully sleeping baby in Liang Ying's arms, he silently reflected on the meaning behind the name.
Just like that, a week passed. Zhu Ziyang gradually got used to having a younger brother in his life.
"Dad, Mom, wait a second," he said that night, stopping his parents as they were about to return to their room. He pulled out two spirit herbs from the Starflame Ring and placed them in front of them.
"What's this?" the couple asked in confusion. They could tell the herbs were extraordinary, but didn't recognize them or their effects.
"This one on the left is a thousand-year Snow Lotus—it's for you, Mom. And the one on the right is a Ground Origin Fruit—it's for you, Dad," Zhu Ziyang explained with a smile. "Both of these are high-grade spirit herbs. They'll enhance your talent and soul power. Oh right—do you still have any of the Essence Gathering Pills I mailed home?"
"No, they're gone," Zhu Changhe said, dazed. He hadn't expected that after only a year, his son would return with such confidence and casually offer them two top-tier spirit herbs. Remembering the pills and gold soul coins he'd mailed before, Zhu Changhe realized he could no longer see through his son at all.
"Yangyang, keep the herbs for yourself. Your dad and I don't need them," Liang Ying said, shaking her head. "We're already in our late thirties or early forties. Giving them to us would be a waste. You should use them instead."
"It's fine, Mom," Zhu Ziyang said warmly. "Didn't I tell you? I was accepted as a disciple by the dean of Shrek Academy. I picked these herbs out specifically for you both."
He only vaguely mentioned being taken in by Mu En as a disciple, saying it was the academy's dean who had accepted him. Technically, it wasn't wrong—Mu En was the true head of Shrek Academy. But to others, it would sound like he was a disciple of Yan Shaozhe, which carried very different implications.
"This…" The couple still hesitated.
"Don't think too much about it," Zhu Ziyang said. "Look at me—I'm already a Soul Ancestor. Would I care about just two spirit herbs?"
For the first time since returning home, Zhu Ziyang revealed his soul rings to his parents. Yellow, purple, purple, black—four dazzling rings immediately stunned Zhu Changhe and Liang Ying. Their hearts were bursting with pride and joy. Their son—only twelve—and already a Soul Ancestor!
They no longer hesitated and accepted their son's gift.
Liang Ying immediately began absorbing the Snow Lotus, while Zhu Changhe chose to wait until he obtained his fourth soul ring to absorb the Ground Origin Fruit.
In this past year, both Zhu Changhe and Liang Ying had made some progress in their cultivation. When Zhu Ziyang had left, Zhu Changhe's soul power was at level 37. With the help of the Essence Gathering Pill, he had reached level 40 a few months ago, though he hadn't been able to leave Liang Ying's side to hunt for a soul ring. As for Liang Ying, her progress was slower. Despite having the Body Nourishing Pill, she only gained two levels—mostly due to her pregnancy—barely reaching level 35.
Zhu Ziyang estimated that once she absorbed the thousand-year Snow Lotus, her soul power would rise by about three levels, reaching 38. With luck, she might reach the Soul Ancestor level within the year.
"Dad, let's go hunt your fourth soul ring in a few days," Zhu Ziyang suggested.
"Alright, I'll leave it to you," Zhu Changhe agreed happily. "Dad's fourth soul ring is all yours to handle!"
"No problem, Dad. I already picked out the perfect soul beast for you," Zhu Ziyang said with confidence. "Just follow my lead!"
Father and son chatted while Liang Ying focused on absorbing the Snow Lotus. As expected, her soul power jumped three levels after the absorption, reaching level 38.
She was overjoyed. Anyone would be, after gaining three levels at once.
—
About three days later, at Zhu Ziyang's home—
"We're ready to go," Zhu Ziyang said. Beside him stood Zhu Changhe, Jiang Nannan, and Hong Zhen.
In terms of soul power level, Hong Zhen was the strongest among them—he was already a level 57 Soul King. That's right, two years ago, he had already broken through to Soul King. Recently, with the help of an ice-attributed high-grade spirit herb gifted by Zhu Ziyang, his power had leapt from level 53 to 57. He was now expected to reach Soul Emperor within three years, which would make him the first Soul Emperor-level City Lord in Anyang City's history.
These past days had also been joyful for Jiang Nannan. Her mother's heart illness had been cured. With the help of a Bright Flame Pill and continuous soul power nourishment for a full week, Bai Xinyi's chronic illness was completely gone. That lifted a huge burden off Jiang Nannan's heart. Feeling much more at ease, her cultivation naturally progressed, and she broke through to level 36.
The four of them now set off—destination: the Tianhui Grand Canyon.
(End of Chapter)
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