"Xiaoyu, are you alright? You scared me half to death!"
Liu Erlong's arms clamped tightly around her little son, refusing to let go until she was sure he was safe. Her racing heart finally began to calm.
Just moments ago, when Er Ming had suddenly bolted out of the cavern, she knew something must have gone wrong. She had wanted to chase after him, but with Er Ming's lightning speed, by the time she reacted, he was already gone. She didn't even know where to start looking.
Only after Da Ming stopped her did she hold back. He told her from the aura he sensed that the intruder should be the Qianjun Ant Emperor. If that was true, then she had best stay here. Those three cunning bastards were infamous for circling behind and ambushing from the rear. Even beast kings had fallen to their tricks.
So she had no choice but to wait.
"Lu Yuan, can you hear me?" Liu Erlong called out, her eyes grave as she glanced toward her man. For a moment, she suspected he had lost himself again.
"…Hnn."
"I'm not deaf!" Lu Yuan snapped irritably, tipping back the wine jar in his hand without even looking at her.
"You bastard!" Liu Erlong clenched her fists and smacked him square in the chest, her relief spilling out in a burst of temper. "If you're fine, hurry up and find Tang Yuehua to help suppress it!"
But scolding aside, all that mattered was this—everyone returned alive.
"Fine then," Liu Erlong muttered, shaking her head. "If you're okay, let's prepare dinner."
As she spoke, Er Ming had already scooped Lu Xiaoyu onto his shoulder, the boy happily hiding in his enormous palm like it was a fortress.
"Lu Xiaoyu!" Liu Erlong's temper instantly flared again when she saw her son trying to avoid her. "Get down! Now!"
Her little brat wasn't even two years old yet, but he was already showing signs of being sly and mischievous. His stomach full of little schemes, always up to something.
"Eh, Sister Erlong…" Er Ming hurriedly jumped in to defend him out of habit. "It's been a few days already. Let's just—"
"Quiet!" Liu Erlong snapped. "Xiaoyu—you come down from Er Ming this instant. And tell me, what's going on with this buffalo at our doorstep?!"
She remembered clearly—she had given her son an apple that very morning. And by evening, somehow, there was a buffalo tied up outside the cave.
One or two times she might forgive. But nearly every other day something ridiculous happened like this!
"This buffalo, it's—"
Before Er Ming could even finish, Da Ming's tail whipped out like thunder, sending the towering titan flying over ten meters, crashing into the dirt.
And then came the beating.
"Don't even start making excuses, Er Ming," Da Ming said coldly after delivering a few slaps. "This is your fault. Don't blame Xiaoyu."
Er Ming groaned as he crawled up, brushing dust off himself. He was used to Da Ming's discipline by now—didn't really hurt much anymore.
"You two don't fool around in front of me!" Liu Erlong growled. "My Xiaoyu is getting corrupted because of you two!"
She yanked her boy back from Er Ming's shoulder and marched off toward the palace-like hall built for her. Da Ming and Er Ming could only hunch awkwardly outside, too large to fit into the residence.
Inside, Liu Erlong confronted her little son with a hard stare.
"Well," she said, "explain yourself."
"I… I went to Uncle Black Bear's cave," Xiaoyu said timidly, playing with his little fingers. "He wanted apples, and I wanted honey, so we traded. Then I went to Uncle Ghost Tiger—he wanted honey, I wanted an antelope… and then…"
The boy listed trade after trade until he finally gestured wide-eyed at her.
"I didn't steal anything, Mother! They all gave me things fair and square in exchange!"
Liu Erlong smacked her forehead. He looked exactly like a smaller version of his father, right down to that cheeky grin.
This brat was too much!
Meanwhile, in another chamber—
"Lu Yuan, hold still," Tang Yuehua said calmly. Folding her hands together, she summoned her noble domain. In an instant, refined halos of power spread out beneath her feet, shrouding the entire room in tranquil radiance.
Her energy soothed the black aura seething faintly from Lu Yuan's body.
"This time, your condition seems far better than before," she observed. "You can still carry on a conversation with me, at least."
"Mmmh." Lu Yuan exhaled and tapped his forehead with one finger. "That's thanks to the head soul bone I absorbed during the Elite Tournament. Uncle Ning gave it to me. Helps me clear my mind when things get heavy… smells so damn good too."
Tang Yuehua nodded gently. "That explains it."
For over a year now, she had grown accustomed to this strange life. Though confined here, she didn't feel suffocated. She busied herself daily with arranging flowers and teaching etiquette, finding surprising comfort in the routine.
She had thought once about leaving, but the towering Da Ming and Er Ming made it clear she had no real choice. Later, Liu Erlong personally approached her to apologize. She admitted she was afraid—without Tang Yuehua's calming aura, nobody could help Lu Yuan hold himself together.
And when Yuehua thought of that, her heart softened. In the end, she truly didn't want to leave anymore.
"Have some tea," she said softly, drawing back her domain and pouring into a delicate cup.
"Tea? Hah! What's the fun in that? Come drink with me properly!" Lu Yuan plopped two massive jars of fine liquor on the table.
"You know I don't touch wine." Tang Yuehua sipped at her tea, shaking her head.
"Suit yourself." Lu Yuan gave a half laugh and tipped his jar, drinking straight from the mouth.
After several jars, he collapsed heavily onto the bed, snoring loudly with the wine jar still clutched to his chest.
Tang Yuehua sighed helplessly. She moved to pull the quilt over him when suddenly—her brow furrowed.
A faint black line was forming on the center of his forehead.
Her domain instinctively activated, halo after halo spilling out to suppress the anomaly. Just as her jade fingers reached toward the mark, Lu Yuan's eyes snapped open.
In a flash, he grabbed her wrist and pulled her down onto the bed beneath him.
"Let me go!" Tang Yuehua gasped, struggling, her cheeks flushed. His hair brushed against her face, tickling and infuriating at once.
"This brat—!"
"Big sis, what are you trying to do to me while I'm asleep, hmm?" Lu Yuan peered down at himself, checking as if something might be missing.
"A black pattern just appeared on your forehead. I was trying to take a look at it!" Tang Yuehua shot back through clenched teeth.
"Really?" Lu Yuan touched his brow. Nothing seemed off. He glanced in the mirror—still as handsome as ever.
"Big sis, are you seriously feeding me this excuse? Trying to lie your way out again?" His grin turned mischievous. "Looks like I'll have to torture a confession out of you."
"It's the truth!" Tang Yuehua retorted firmly, meeting his eyes without fear. "I swear I saw a black line appear, even if it's gone now. You must be careful—something's not right."
Before Lu Yuan could reply, a small voice piped up from the door.
"Dad!"
Both turned to see Lu Xiaoyu standing there wide-eyed. The boy froze, then frowned. "What are you doing?"
"…Dad and your Aunt Yuehua are just playing games," Lu Yuan said smoothly, springing up and patting his son's head.
"Dad, let's go home!"
"Alright." Lu Yuan swept the boy into his arm.
"Goodbye, Aunt Yuehua!" Xiaoyu waved obediently.
"Goodbye, Xiaoyu," Tang Yuehua replied softly, adjusting her disheveled clothes after they left. The boy was such a sweetheart, unlike his father.
"Dad, can you stop bullying Mother in the future?" Xiaoyu asked as they walked. His little lips pouted.
"Your father has never bullied her," Lu Yuan said seriously, tapping his son's backside. "Don't go around slandering me."
"You're lying! Last time I saw you carrying Mother, you tossed her on the bed and hit her! Her clothes were gone, and she begged for mercy, but you still kept fighting!"
Lu Yuan nearly choked. "That was… your dad and mom playing games."
The boy wasn't convinced.
Lu Yuan set him down and ruffled his hair. "Go back and tell your mom I'll return soon."
He then wandered alone out toward the shimmering Lake of Life, wine jar in hand. Lowering himself by the shore, he closed his eyes, letting his mind settle.
And then—it appeared again.
A black line slowly formed on his forehead, growing sharper until it resembled the dark mark of the long sword strapped to his back.
When he opened his eyes, the water reflected it clearly—just for a moment—before it vanished completely.
Lu Yuan sighed and touched his forehead. No pain, no odd sensation.
"…Maybe I'm just imagining things. Too much wine," he muttered.
But deep down, unease stirred.
--
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