Alvin, of course, did not notice the tension that seemed to thicken the very air.
To him, this was a simple, if not nerve-wracking, introduction.
He smiled stiffly and gestured to the three children he had brought with him.
"Master, this is my sister Hailey, and my brothers Noa and Trey. Guys, this is our master from now on. He is Master Dorian."
Alvin's words carried the excitement of a loyal servant who had just secured the future of his family.
His eyes flickered toward the three behind him, urging them silently to speak as they had rehearsed on the way here.
He was nervous, hopeful, and entirely blind to the deeper undercurrents hidden in this moment.
The three children did not disappoint.
"Your servants greet you, Master!" they cried out in unison, their small bodies bowing low until their foreheads almost touched the polished floor.
Dorian remained silent at first.
He stood tall and unmoving, his eyes sweeping over them with the detached calm of one who had seen countless such moments across eternity.
For the three, that silence felt like an eternity in itself.
Even Alvin began to fidget slightly, his palms slick with sweat.
At last, Dorian spoke. His voice was quiet, yet it resonated with an authority that could not be questioned.
"Hmmm… good. You may live in my house, and you will have my protection. But know this—since I have shown you kindness today, then you will also live and die bearing my house's name. My name is Dorian Axe."
His tone was gentle, but the words carried the weight of an unbreakable oath.
The chains of his declaration seemed to settle invisibly over them, binding them to him without question.
"I'll see you all in the morning."
With that, Dorian turned. His robe brushed lightly against the ground as he walked away toward the master bedroom, his figure as steady as a mountain and as unreachable as the heavens themselves.
Yet, just before his presence disappeared beyond the threshold, his voice slipped back into the room.
It was softer this time, almost like a whisper meant for only one set of ears.
"The same goes for you, little Dao Ancestor."
The words struck Hailey like lightning.
Her head was still lowered, her posture unchanged, but her heart thundered violently within her chest.
She dared not move. Her face remained blank, calm, utterly flawless.
To Alvin and her two younger siblings, she looked no different than before.
But inside… inside she was shaken to her very core.
How could he know?
For more than a trillion years, she had risen in power.
In her prime, she had been a being feared across the cosmos, a Dao Ancestor who had stepped into a realm that most cultivators could not even dream of.
She had witnessed the rise and fall of entire worlds, outlasted sects that had once ruled like gods, and walked alone in the endless silence of the void.
But that was all in the past.
Her body now was fragile, weakened, sealed into the form of a mere child.
Her cultivation was shattered, her true strength was nothing but a distant dream.
Even her presence was so carefully hidden that not even cultivators of great renown could detect a trace of her past.
And yet, this man—this Dorian Axe—had looked at her once, and all her secrets had been laid bare.
She clenched her fists so tightly her small nails dug into her palms.
But she dared not let even the faintest change appear on her expression.
Impossible. He shouldn't have been able to sense it. Unless… unless he's truly beyond what I can comprehend.
Her gaze flicked upward, just slightly, to the direction Dorian had vanished.
Her mind whirled. If he wished to expose her, he could have done so openly.
If he wished to destroy her, she would already be erased.
And yet, his words had been delivered not with malice, but as if making a casual statement of fact.
"At least he seems… not to care," she whispered inwardly to herself.
That was her one fragile thread of comfort, the only thing preventing her from collapsing under the weight of dread.
Still, unease gnawed at her. For the first time in countless eons, she felt small. Vulnerable.
Like prey in the gaze of a predator too far above her to resist.
But beneath that fear, something else flickered faintly—a spark of curiosity.
Who exactly was Dorian?
And what did it mean that such a man had accepted Alvin, Noa, Trey… and even her, into his household?
She closed her eyes briefly. For now, she would play her role as the quiet little sister.
The time to reveal her true self would come, but not tonight.
Not while she was still standing in the shadow of a man who could see through a Dao Ancestor as though she were nothing more than glass.
***
Dorian entered his room and quietly closed the door behind him.
Without hesitation, he sat down cross-legged upon the bed, his posture flawless, his breathing steady, and his mind instantly sinking into meditation.
His figure exuded a calm that could only belong to one who had long transcended the mortal plane.
Although he was already the strongest being within this multiverse, it was precisely because of this status that he refused to grow complacent.
At such heights, even the smallest oversight could invite disaster.
His divine sense unfurled like an endless tide, flowing through every fiber of his existence. His body, his soul, his spirit, even the faintest fluctuation of his will—nothing escaped his scrutiny.
Every cell, every strand of energy, every trace of thought was carefully examined.
He searched not only for weaknesses but also for hidden dangers, for in his path he had long since learned that great gifts often carried equally great consequences.
This was especially true now.
The Heart of the Multiverse.
That unfathomable existence had chosen to bestow its boon upon him.
A gift so great that even one such as Dorian—who had long since stood above the stars—treated it with the utmost caution.
He could feel the transformation within himself, the new strength flowing through him like rivers of eternal light.
But he also knew that nothing in creation came without equal payment.
For the first time since receiving its gift, he attempted to reach out.
His divine sense stretched across the void, piercing through layers of reality, seeking the familiar pulse of that mythical presence.
Yet no matter how far he reached, no matter how many veils he parted, there was nothing.
Silence.
Even when he allowed his divine sense to expand outward, covering the entire breadth of this multiverse like a net cast across infinity, he still found no trace.
No shadow, no whisper, not even the faintest echo of its existence.
It was as though the Heart of the Multiverse had never been there at all.
Dorian's eyes remained closed, but his thoughts turned sharp.
A gift so profound… yet the giver vanishes without a trace?
For others, such a thought might inspire fear. But for Dorian, it only deepened his resolve.
He had lived too long, fought too many battles, and peered into too many abysses to falter here.
If the Heart had chosen him, then he would accept the consequences, whether they were fortune or calamity.
A faint smile tugged at his lips as his aura surged subtly, shaking the very air of the courtyard outside.
"Very well," he whispered into the void, as if the Heart itself might still be listening.
"At least this would make my life more interesting. Another mystery to unravel."
And with that, he sank deeper into meditation, his divine sense continuing to roam—ever vigilant, ever patient, waiting for the day the silence finally broke.
***
Morning finally arrived. Dorian opened his eyes slowly, and in that instant, it was as though a trillion suns flared into existence within his gaze.
Light and majesty lingered for a fleeting heartbeat before vanishing, leaving only the calm eyes of a man who had lived longer than the stars themselves.
Yet despite his vigilance through the night, his quest had been fruitless.
His divine sense had scoured every corner of his being, but he had found nothing amiss.
No flaw, no hidden danger, no trace of the Heart of the Multiverse.
Strangely enough, this unsettled him more than finding something wrong would have. Still, he had long since learned that dwelling on mysteries without answers was useless.
"Enough," he muttered to himself, rising to his feet.
"Action will bring clarity where thought cannot."
He stepped out of his chambers and into the courtyard, where the gentle clatter of cooking greeted him.
Alvin and his siblings were gathered around a modest pot, the savory aroma of vegetable soup and roasted meat drifting through the morning air.
Their movements were careful, almost reverent, as though cooking itself was a sacred duty now that they were under his roof.
The moment they saw him, all four froze before scrambling to greet him. Alvin straightened first, a bright smile plastered across his thin face.
"Good morning, Master! The food is almost ready. Please, sit. Just a few more minutes."
Dorian's gaze swept over them, steady and unreadable, before he inclined his head slightly.
"Take your time. I can wait."
The siblings visibly relaxed, relief flashing across their expressions.
Alvin quickly returned to stirring the soup, while Hailey quietly set bowls on the table, her expression as calm as ever despite the faint glimmer of something unreadable in her eyes.
Just as the aroma thickened and breakfast neared completion, Dorian spoke again, his tone casual yet carrying the weight of inevitability.
"After we eat, I will take you all into the city. You'll need proper clothing and supplies if you are to remain under my roof. You all look poorer than rats."
The siblings exchanged glances, surprised yet quietly grateful.
But before their relief could settle, Dorian continued, his words like a thunderclap in their ears.
"And once that is done," he said with perfect calm, "you will accompany me to meet my wife-to-be."
Silence fell instantly.
Alvin nearly dropped the ladle from his hands, staring at Dorian with his mouth wide open.
His brothers froze as if turned to stone, while even Hailey's carefully composed face flickered with visible shock.
"W-Wife to be…?" Alvin stammered, his voice cracking. "M-Master, you mean… you're getting married? So soon?"
The air grew heavy in the courtyard, for none of them had expected such words.
They had only just begun to know this man, and already he was speaking of something so monumental.
Dorian merely smiled faintly, his eyes unreadable as ever.
"Did you think I came to this city for idleness? No. I have chosen, and today, we will see her… for the first time ever."