"If you don't mind, I'll find a matchmaker to visit you tomorrow and put in a good word?" Granny Zhou gazed at Yang Kai, her tone earnest and heartfelt. "You're not getting any younger. It's time you settled down and started a family."
After all these years of living together, she clearly assumed that Yang Kai's earlier claim of having several wives had been nothing more than an offhand remark. Otherwise, she never would have made such a suggestion.
Yang Kai had no intention of clarifying. He simply said, "Granny, if a matchmaker does show up at the door, Yu Larou will definitely throw her out. Let's not cause her any trouble."
Granny Zhou paused at that, then sighed. "Well, that's true. Yu Larou… she's just a little stubborn."
In truth, she had already probed Yu Larou's feelings on the matter before. Over the years, Yu Larou had been a widow raising children on her own, and Yang Kai had helped out considerably. She was naturally grateful — especially since the way Yang Kai treated Xiaobai and Xiaoya was no different from his own flesh and blood. But she had been married before and had borne children.
If she were still an unmarried girl, she wouldn't have so many reservations. As things stood, she only wanted to raise Xiaobai and Xiaoya well. She dared not, and felt she had no right to ask for anything more.
After dinner, Yang Kai cleared the dishes and bowls while Granny Zhou went to rest.
When night had deepened and all was still, Yang Kai rose from the side room and took a single step forward.
Seven Stars Workshop, as a second-tier power on the Void Continent, had developed well over the years. This was mainly because the Workshop's founder had established the sect in a favorable location — within a thousand-mile radius, there were no other sects of comparable stature to compete with it. As a result, any talented individuals with aptitude for Cultivation in the surrounding area naturally funneled into Seven Stars Workshop.
Across the entire Void Continent, only those with an Emperor Realm powerhouse holding court were qualified to be called a first-tier force. Seven Stars Workshop had no Emperor Realm cultivator of its own. The strongest among them were only at the Dao Origin Realm, and although the Workshop Master had already reached the third level of the Dao Origin Realm, he still needed several more years before he could advance to the Emperor Realm.
That night, the higher-ups of Seven Stars Workshop had gathered in one hall to discuss the matters surrounding the disciple recruitment assembly to be held several months later.
Seven Stars Workshop opened its gates once every three years, and each time, the recruitment assembly became the grandest event within a thousand miles. Many friendly sects from distant locations would come to observe the ceremony, and Seven Stars Workshop naturally could not afford to be careless.
The crowd in the great hall was chatting animatedly when a terrifying wave of pressure suddenly descended from the sky.
Everyone's expressions changed in unison, and they rose to their feet. Shangguan Ji, the Workshop Master of Seven Stars Workshop, stepped out of the hall in a single stride, his face grim as he peered into the ink-black night. He cupped his fists and called out loudly, "I wonder which esteemed senior has graced us with their presence. I, Shangguan Ji of Seven Stars Workshop, failed to welcome you at the gate — please forgive this slight!"
The elders and protectors who had followed him out all wore solemn expressions, and the sound of quiet, nervous swallowing echoed one after another.
It was not without reason. That pressure was immense — it could only be released by an Emperor Realm powerhouse!
Such a figure was among the absolute peak of the entire Void Continent, and they were invariably the sect masters or faction leaders of the major powers.
A surprise visit in the dead of night, with no word of friend or foe — it was only natural to feel alarmed. Fortunately, the visitor seemed to harbor no ill will. The pressure that had just flashed forth had lasted only a moment and carried no intent to suppress, as if merely declaring their identity.
From the darkness of the night, a figure strolled forward at an unhurried pace. The crowd stared with wide, unblinking eyes, and only when the visitor drew near did they make out that it was actually a young man of heroic bearing, dressed in plain, coarse cloth.
The man had features as refined as jade. He appeared to be no more than twenty or thirty years old, but no one would truly believe him to be that young. Who among those who had cultivated to the Emperor Realm could possibly look so youthful?
The visitor wore a faint smile as he approached, offering the gathered crowd a slight nod without a trace of arrogance. On the contrary, his presence was warm and pleasant, like a gentle spring breeze. He spoke, "I am Yang Kai. I have traveled across the Void Continent for several decades and happened to pass through this fine territory. On a sudden whim, I sensed that this place and I share some destiny, so I came to take a look. I hope my unannounced arrival has not caused any inconvenience!"
The face Yang Kai showed Shangguan Ji and the others was entirely different from his true appearance.
This was not because he had altered his features. In truth, his appearance had not changed in the slightest — he had simply exercised the privileges of a Small Universe Master to make himself appear differently to those before him.
Shangguan Ji plastered a warm smile across his face. "Not at all, not at all! Having an esteemed senior grace us with their presence is the honor of a lifetime for Seven Stars Workshop."
But in his heart, a storm was raging.
This person had simply arrived on a whim? Shangguan Ji did not doubt Yang Kai's words. A dignified Emperor Realm cultivator had no need to trouble himself with a mere Seven Stars Workshop — if he had truly wanted to cause problems, no one here could have stopped him. He could have obliterated every last person with ease.
And when an Emperor Realm powerhouse experienced such a sudden impulse, it was because they had sensed something.
As he spoke, Shangguan Ji's mind raced. Was there something within Seven Stars Workshop that could interest an Emperor Realm cultivator? What confused him even more was why he had never heard of an Emperor Realm cultivator named Yang Kai on the Void Continent before.
There were only so many Emperor Realm cultivators in the entire world, and every single one of them was a household name. Yet the name Yang Kai sounded utterly unfamiliar.
Suppressing his doubts, he enthusiastically welcomed Yang Kai into the great hall.
The discussion of the recruitment assembly could not continue. Seven Stars Workshop was merely a second-tier power, and with an Emperor Realm powerhouse arriving in the dead of night, with their intentions unknown, all they could do was tread carefully and play the gracious hosts — lest they inadvertently offend the visitor in some way and invite true, unmerited disaster.