Two hours passed.
Only then did Li Yaowen's spirit soul reappear in the Ancestor Space.
She bowed to the Old Ancestor.
"There is so good news, at least," she reported. "The young woman is sixteen years of age, from a clean background. She is the niece of the island's City Lord. However, that sea region is plagued by pirates who constantly raid the rchant caravans of both the Human and Demon races. Bloodshed is a frequent occurrence on the island. I have already dispatched our people to protect the young woman and, while they are there, to bring her back to the clan."
That was, at least, so good news.
Li Yaowen hesitated for a mont, then added, "Right. There's one more thing. That young woman... she's a half-spirit. She possesses the bloodline of a sea serpent, and that sa bloodline is now in our Li family's newborn."
...
The assembled Li family mbers fell even deeper into silence. Conceiving a child across different species was known to be exceptionally difficult.
Li Xingchen's eyes suddenly lit up, a look of pure joy finally breaking through.
"I rember her!" he exclaid. "Her na is Xuanxuan! She was my favorite on the island! I spent that whole last month with her! This is wonderful..."
One by one, the other clan mbers shot him looks that could kill, and Li Xingchen hastily ducked his head again.
"What's done is done," Li Dalong sighed. "We will simply have to raise the child well."
Li Wei let out a long breath.
"Xingchen, you are to co back as well," he commanded. "Until the child is old enough, you are not to go wandering again. Yaowen, bring the mother and son ho. Since her family background is clean, it doesn't matter that she is a half-spirit. This is, at its root, a consequence of Xingchen's actions, so they must both be treated as our own people."
"Yes, Old Ancestor!"
Li Yaowen nodded quickly and vanished from the Ancestor Space.
Seeing the Old Ancestor's lenient ruling, Li Dalong didn't dare say anything more.
He shot a vicious glare at Li Xingchen. Once that boy was back ho, he swore he would teach this unfilial whelp the true aning of clan discipline!
The other mbers of the Li family exchanged glances. After so many years, the clan was finally welcoming a new generation. As their eyes t, they saw a shared, unspoken understanding pass between them.
A new child was being born, and they did not want things to be as they once were.
Even if the child was not their own flesh and blood.
Li Yaoqing had already sidled up to Li Xinghuo. After a quick glance to the left and right, she whispered, "Xinghuo, now that Xingchen has a child, I've got my eye on you. Are there any young won in the army you've taken a liking to? In a few days, I'll have soone from the palace send you so... dicine."
...
Li Xinghuo, who had just been feeling happy for his cousin Xingchen, suddenly shuddered.
His mind raced, and he quickly blurted out, "Great-Grandaunt, I... There's an assassin in my barracks! We'll have to talk about this later!"
With a sudden shift, he was a hundred ters deep beneath the barracks, where a thousand assassins were gathered. They were celebrating a victory, drinking in silence. Aside from the sound of wine being poured, the deep underground chamber was completely still; the assassins exchanged not a single word.
Opening his eyes, Li Xinghuo wiped the cold sweat from his brow. His face turned cold as he silently poured himself a cup of wine, raised it, and drank along with the other assassins, forcing down the panic that had risen in his heart.
"Taking a wife, having a child..."
Li Xinghuo glanced at the assassins around him, a flicker of envy in his eyes.
"But I... I don't want to be like my father," he thought. "I don't want to send my own child away. I'm afraid he would end up just like —stumbling and struggling through life, only to beco a monster in the end."
Deep underground, the assassins continued to drink in silence. Not a word was spoken, and every face was grim, yet in truth, they were savoring every mont of it.
They would be needed on the battlefield soon, and none of them knew if they would still be alive and well tomorrow, able to sit at a table and enjoy a mont of peace. Googlᴇ search novel_fіre
...
anwhile, back in the Ancestor Space.
Li Xingchen was still kneeling.
Li Chang'an breathed a sigh of relief. He cast a grateful look at the rciful Old Ancestor, then quietly made his way to Li Yaozu's side and wiped the cold sweat from his brow.
"That wretched son of mine!" he muttered. "Great-Granduncle, there is sothing I don't understand."
"Hmm?" Li Yaozu frowned. It was rare for Li Chang'an to be confused about anything.
Li Chang'an made a sharp, slicing motion toward his own groin.
"Like this," he asked. "It would hurt a great deal, wouldn't it?"
...
For an instant, Li Yaozu's gaze went vacant. Then his face began to twitch violently as a towering rage surged through him. His eyes shot toward Li Yundou, who was still laughing and joking with his siblings. "You wretched spawn!!!"
"What???"
By the ti his Eldest Uncle seized him by the collar, Li Yundou knew it was too late. "What are you doing?!!" he yelled.
"You tell ," Li Yaozu snarled. "What have you been telling Chang'an? That gesture just now—what was the aning of it?"
"Huh? It wasn't , Eldest Uncle, it really wasn't!" Li Yundou cried. "Would I joke about sothing like that? You have to believe !"
"And do you think I believe you?"
Beside the Old Ancestor, Li Dalong shot a quick glance at the scolding Li Yundou was receiving. His eyes darted away guiltily for a second before he fixed a fierce glare on Li Xingchen.
When Xu Cuihua took his arm, he patted her hand and sighed deeply.
"They say you should use history as a mirror to learn from the past, Cuihua," he lanted. "But in the end, it seems it wasn't enough to scare these little wretches straight. Tell , I've lived an honest and proper life—how did every single one of them end up so disobedient?"
Only Li Wei's gaze remained heavy.
The family now had a newborn child, but out there in the Duravia Trade Prefecture was Prince Qian, and a secret force was still watching them.
The aura around his body began to surge. Every Li family mber present froze, their eyes turning to the Old Ancestor.
Li Wei slowly raised his head, and within the black mist, his eyes began to glow with a crimson light.
"The child will be born soon," he declared, his voice echoing with power. "I will not have him grow up in an age of chaos. Now... it is ti to deal with Prince Qian!"
At his words, every mber of the Li family vanished from where they stood.
They had once fallen into despair as they watched their kin die, one after another. Even now, that despair had not truly disappeared. The arrival of this newborn had filled their hearts with complex emotions.
But in him, they also saw new hope.
Kill Prince Qian, so that this child could grow up in happiness and safety!
---
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