"Huang'er, I've been neglecting you lately." In the rear courtyard of Taiyuan Pavilion, Jiang Chen gazed at Huang'er, and when the two were alone together, genuine emotion flowed freely between them.
Huang'er smiled radiantly. "I've actually been happier than you know these past few days. Watching you sweep through every challenge on the stage, seeing how everyone supports and adores you—I've been deeply moved."
Huang'er wasn't exaggerating. She had been born and raised on Wanyuan Island and had seen plenty of so-called geniuses who were even more outstanding. But those prodigies had never truly impressed her. She always found them somewhat frivolous at heart.
Jiang Chen, on the other hand, was nothing like that. He possessed a unique charm that few young men could match. It was impossible to put into words, yet it invariably won people over. No matter where he appeared, he became the center of attention, the core around which everything revolved, and earned the reverence of all.
In the Eastern Kingdom, Jiang Chen had been the one to turn the tide against catastrophe.
In the Tiangui Kingdom, he had played a decisive role in restoring the royal house and elevating Fourth Prince Ye Rong to power.
At the Treasure Tree Sect, he was the foremost genius disciple, one whose influence touched the very fortune of the sect.
At the Danqian Palace, he was someone even the Palace Master had to rely upon. In the end, when the Danqian Palace fell and its Master vanished without a trace, it was Jiang Chen alone who survived the chaos, worked tirelessly for the palace's future, rescued many of its disciples, and preserved the seed of hope for its eventual rebuilding.
When he arrived at the Glazed Glass Royal City, Jiang Chen was once again the focal point. Whether it was with the Wei family, or when he fought on behalf of Peacock Sacred Mountain, or later when he ventured into the barbarian wastelands—every action he took, almost without anyone noticing, influenced the fortune of an entire place, even an entire people.
That was true charisma. Every gesture, every movement, could shift the currents of destiny.
"Huang'er, I'm afraid I'll need to take up permanent residence at Peacock Sacred Mountain. Will you come with me?" Jiang Chen asked softly.
Huang'er smiled gently, her gaze clear and pure. "Wherever you go, I go. Even into mountains of blades and seas of fire—I would follow you."
There was no artifice in those words, no exaggeration. Her voice was quiet, yet it carried a resolve that stirred the heart.
Their eyes met, and in that moment, time itself seemed to freeze. All things stood still.
…
In a secret chamber within Taiyuan Pavilion, Ling Su and his daughter Ling Hui'er were in the middle of a heated argument. Ling Hui'er was nothing like her elder sister Ling Bi'er.
Her personality was endearing and willful, with a touch of stubbornness mixed into her innocent charm.
"Father, I'm Senior Brother Jiang's junior sister. What's wrong with going with him to Peacock Sacred Mountain?" Ling Hui'er pouted, her rosy cheeks flushed with agitation, her chest rising and falling with emotion.
Ling Su smiled bitterly. He knew this youngest daughter of his was simple at heart, spoiled since childhood by both him and her elder sister, and rather lacking in worldly awareness.
"Hui'er, your Senior Brother Jiang has a great responsibility this time in the Glazed Glass Royal City. It wouldn't be appropriate for you to tag along. Besides, there's also Miss Huang'er..." At this, Ling Su sighed inwardly.
He knew perfectly well that both his daughters had taken a liking to Jiang Chen. But at Jiang Chen's side stood the incomparably elegant Miss Huang'er.
Even though Ling Su was a man of wide experience and considered his own daughters exceptional, he had to admit that Miss Huang'er possessed a grace and bearing that no one else could hope to match.
His two daughters' feelings, he feared, would ultimately remain unrequited love with no happy ending.
Perhaps his youngest was still too innocent and carefree, too oblivious to matters of the heart for it to affect her too deeply. But his elder daughter, Ling Bi'er—once she gave her heart to someone, it would take the drying of seas and the crumbling of rocks before her feelings would change.
And so, it was his elder daughter whom Ling Su worried about most.
Because she was colder in temperament, prouder, and more reserved. Matters like these, she would only bury deep inside and bear alone. Once such feelings took root, they only grew deeper with time.
But Ling Su also knew that the romantic entanglements of young people were among the most impossible problems in all the world. Even as a father, he was utterly powerless to help.
That was why he wanted to keep his daughters from following Jiang Chen to Peacock Sacred Mountain. With time and distance, feelings would naturally fade.
But judging by Ling Hui'er's current demeanor, she was not about to let this go. She was determined to follow.
"Father, Sister Huang'er isn't going to eat me. Besides, we're fellow disciples with Senior Brother Jiang. It's perfectly natural for him to bring us along. Why would Sister Huang'er object?" Ling Hui'er declared with righteous confidence.
Facing this thick-headed daughter of his, Ling Su felt his headache growing worse.
"Hui'er, there are certain things one ought to be mindful of! Miss Huang'er and your Senior Brother Jiang are already a pair—they've become Dao companions. If you and your sister charge in after them, aren't you afraid Miss Huang'er will take it the wrong way?" Ling Su gritted his teeth and laid the matter out plainly.
He knew his daughter was simple. If he didn't spell it out, she probably wouldn't even understand why he was opposed.
Ling Hui'er's eyes widened as she stared at her father in bewilderment. "Father, you're so old-fashioned! I'm not going to steal her man. What would she have to worry about? Besides, in the world of martial cultivation, isn't it perfectly common for one man to have several Dao companions?"
"You..." Ling Su found himself at a complete loss for words. This daughter of his really was something else entirely.
One man, several Dao companions?
Ling Su could only smile helplessly. From the sound of it, Hui'er didn't mind sharing a husband with another woman in the slightest. When it came to matters like these, it was actually the parents who found them hardest to accept.