The woman was simple and straightforward, with a linear way of thinking — but she was stubborn as a mule.
Her late husband's dying wish carried more weight in her heart than the sky itself. She would never dare go against it, no matter what. So even though she knew the white-bearded old man was right, even though she knew Lord Void truly had her child's best interests at heart, she refused to change her mind.
If the child's father were still alive, they could have dragged him over together and talked some sense into him, gotten him to reconsider. But the man was long dead — they couldn't exactly dig up his grave, could they?
And even if they could, the dead couldn't be made to say anything useful.
Yang Kai smiled bitterly and looked at Yu Changdao. "Grand-Uncle, you can't force a melon to ripen. Why not take some more time to look elsewhere? My Star Boundary may be vast and sparsely populated, but there's no shortage of talent these days. Perhaps Grand-Uncle will find another suitable candidate."
Yu Changdao shook his head slowly. "A Born Dao Body — how rare is that? I've walked through no fewer than a thousand Universe Worlds in my lifetime, and I've never seen anyone like this child. There won't be another."
"Then what are we to do?" Yang Kai said, rubbing his temples as though he had a splitting headache, gently patting the swaddled infant in his arms. "We can't exactly go against the father's dying wish. The dead must be respected, after all."
Yu Changdao's lips quivered, and he let out a long, drawn-out sigh. If he had known it would come to this, he should have just snatched the child and fled back to Xiaoyao Blessed Land in the first place — none of this mess would have happened. He had thought that bringing people here in person and having Yang Kai smooth things over would make it easy to pick up a fine disciple. Who could have guessed the situation would spiral into this? He was stuck in limbo, and it was infuriating.
"Tell you what, Grand-Uncle — why don't you stay in the Star Boundary for a while longer? Spend some time with the child. When he's grown, you can ask him what he wants," Yang Kai suggested helpfully.
Yu Changdao's eyes lit up at the words.
But Liu Caixia spoke softly: "When the child grows up, he'll still have to join Lingxiao Palace."
"You woman!" Yu Changdao was so furious he nearly spat blood.
Liu Caixia lowered her head, pinching the hem of her robe. "If he can't join Lingxiao Palace, then the child simply won't cultivate." With that, she reached toward Yang Kai to take the child back, apparently intending to go home.
Yang Kai hurriedly blocked her, waving his hands. "Fine, fine, fine — I'll take him into Lingxiao Palace right now. From this day forward, he is an official Disciple of my Lingxiao Palace."
Liu Caixia's hands froze in midair, her eyes going wide. She stared blankly for a moment, then erupted into wild joy. Her eyes reddened with emotion as she said gratefully, "Thank you, Lord Void. With this, the child's father can rest in peace."
"Grand-Nephew!" Yu Changdao stared at Yang Kai with a stricken expression. "How could you — how could you do such a thing?"
Isn't this an outright theft? He had once held some measure of goodwill toward Yang Kai on account of Xu Linggong, but that was now completely gone in an instant. Snatching his future disciple was tantamount to severing his lineage — a grudge as deep as the murder of one's father or the theft of one's wife!
Yang Kai pretended not to hear and turned to instruct Hua Qingsi: "Find a quiet place in the palace for the mother and child to stay."
He then said to Liu Caixia: "The child is still young and needs you to care for him, so please rest easy and stay. He can begin cultivation when he's a little older."
Liu Caixia was naturally overflowing with gratitude. A mother elevated through her son — she knew that from today onward, she would never have to struggle through life the way she once had.
Yang Kai then asked whether she had any other family who needed to be notified. When he learned that it was just the orphaned mother and child, that saved him some trouble.
After Hua Qingsi led Liu Caixia and her son away, Yang Kai turned to face Yu Changdao. "Grand-Uncle Yu!"
Yu Changdao's face was pulled into a long, sour scowl. He rose to his feet and flicked his sleeve. "Xu Manzi, I have matters to attend to. I'll be going."
With that, he moved toward the exit. He had finally found a disciple, only to have Yang Kai swipe him right out from under his nose — it was absolutely infuriating. He had already made up his mind to wait until Yang Kai wasn't looking, then snatch both the child and the woman and bring them back to Xiaoyao Blessed Land. Let's see if Yang Kai would dare come to Xiaoyao Blessed Land to demand them back!
This disciple absolutely could not be handed over to anyone else.
Xu Linggong kept his expression neutral. Yang Kai flickered and appeared in front of Yu Changdao, smiling apologetically. "Grand-Uncle, please calm down. Grand-Nephew had no choice but to act as he did."
Yu Changdao shot him a sideways glare. "No choice? That gives you the right to steal my disciple? Step aside, or don't blame me for bullying a junior!"
Yang Kai was unperturbed, simply smiling. "Can't Grand-Nephew see that I was retreating in order to advance?"
Yu Changdao frowned, eyeing him with suspicion.
Xu Linggong tugged his sleeve. "The boy's methods may be unconventional, but he's not an impolite person. If he did this, he must have his reasons. Sit back down and hear him out. If he can give a satisfactory explanation, all the better. If he can't, we'll beat him up and call it even — I'm sure he won't dare fight back."
Yu Changdao snorted. "He's the son-in-law of your Yin Yang Heaven — I wouldn't dare presume to discipline him!" If he actually laid a hand on the boy, that overprotective old Xu would fight him tooth and nail.
Xu Linggong chuckled. "Then I'll do it. I've been wanting to smack him around for ages."
Yang Kai pulled a long face. "Elder Xu, that hurts."
Xu Linggong snorted dismissively.
Yu Changdao eventually sat back down, fixing Yang Kai with a scrutinizing gaze.
Yang Kai chose his words carefully and began: "Grand-Uncle saw for yourself — the child's mother is set in her ways. The father left a dying wish, and she will absolutely not go against it. No matter how great the opportunity outside, the child will end up joining Lingxiao Palace. That is, unless Grand-Uncle has some means of summoning the father's soul to ask his opinion."