Gazing at the radiant moon, Qin Li let out a long sigh. The clarity slowly returned to his eyes as an incredibly natural aura emanated from his body.

In the neighboring residence, Chen Yihan was meditating. His home was not as luxurious as one might imagine; in fact, he had very few servants.

Chen Yihan had never married. To him, there was only one thing in life: cultivation!

Just a moment ago, however, he had been startled. Slowly opening his eyes, he gazed toward the young Marquis’s courtyard next door, his expression one of utter disbelief.

In that brief moment, he had sensed an immense aura, as vast and boundless as the sea, emanating from that direction. Yet it lacked the piercing, suffocating pressure characteristic of a Celestial Level Martial Artist. Instead, it inspired an instinctive feeling of warmth and affinity.

This was the very realm Chen Yihan had pursued his entire life, but had never been able to reach!

And yet, the one who had achieved it was a mere teenager. How could he not be shocked?

A surge of indignation welled up within him, but it was immediately replaced by a wry smile. ’It seems super-geniuses truly do exist in this world!’

Otherwise, he had no idea how else to explain the transformation in the young Marquis.

Sixteen! He’s only sixteen years old!

Chen Yihan sighed to himself, his thoughts turning to Qin Li’s duel with the visitor from Profound Island. He had defeated his opponent so effortlessly. ’Thinking back,’ Chen Yihan mused, ’Qin Li must have been completely confident from the start! Otherwise, how could he have made such a wager? Not only did I and so-called top experts like Elder Yi fail to see it, but even the visitors from Profound Island were completely fooled!’

’And with that one battle, Qin Li effortlessly cemented his status in the Cyan Dragon Kingdom, becoming an idol to the genius students of the Advanced Academy.’

At this thought, Chen Yihan sighed softly. ’This boy’s mind and Martial Skill are both first-rate. I fear even the geniuses from the Mysterious Land might not be his equal. It seems the next few decades will belong to him! History will surely write a glorious Chapter about this young man!’

’How enviable!’

Chen Yihan shook his head, closed his eyes, and resumed his cultivation.

...

As Qin Li walked out of the rear garden, he noticed a light was still on in Bu Yunyan’s room. He hesitated for a moment before walking over and knocking softly on the door.

"Who is it?" Bu Yunyan’s gentle voice called out.

"Bu, it’s me."

"Ah, Young Master! I’ll get the door."

The door opened to reveal Bu Yunyan’s charming face, which broke into a joyful smile upon seeing Qin Li. Even though they lived in the same residence, Qin Li was reclusive and rarely made an appearance. Meanwhile, Bu Yunyan occasionally had to go out to manage the shop. As a result, they didn’t have many opportunities to see each other.

"What brings you here?" Bu Yunyan asked, her voice soft.

Having spent so much time with him, Bu Yunyan was well aware of Qin Li’s feelings for Shangguan Shiyu. At times, she felt ashamed of her own behavior. ’I feel just like the woman I once abhorred,’ she thought, ’the one who stole my father away. It seems... I’m doing the very same thing!’

But now, she was only just beginning to understand that love, at its core, was selfish. Even with this understanding, she was unwilling to let go. She didn’t seek to be the only one in his heart; she would be content just to have a small place there.

Because of this, she no longer held such deep-seated hatred for her father. Be it his faithlessness or his indifference, she was no longer a naive child; she had long since learned to see the world for what it was.

"I’ll be leaving on a long journey soon," Qin Li said directly, not trying to hide his intentions. "Along the way, I’ll see if I can find the Spiritual Medicines on Leng Yao’s list."

’Since I’ve made my decision, I will see it through!’

"Ah? Are... are you going to *that* place?" Bu Yunyan’s face paled, and a flicker of sorrow crossed her eyes before she masked it with a smile. "Young Master, with your current strength, can you be sure you’ll be safe there?"

Qin Li shook his head. "Even if I waited until after I broke through to the Celestial Level, there’s no guarantee I could escape that place unscathed. My people can wait, but my heart... cannot. The woman I love most is there, as is my mother. No matter what, I have to go! Besides, you don’t need to worry. I’ve already broken through to the Celestial Level. In fact, just a moment ago, I had another breakthrough. I believe the day I step into the Celestial Shattering Realm is not far off!"

"Really? That’s wonderful!" A genuine smile finally touched Bu Yunyan’s lips. She gazed at Qin Li, her eyes as gentle as still water, and said softly, "I ask for nothing more, Young Master. I only hope you can bring Miss Shangguan back safely."

Qin Li nodded silently. "Actually, there’s another reason I came to see you tonight."

"What is it?" Bu Yunyan asked, her delicate brows furrowing as she looked at him in confusion.

"I might... have news of your father," Qin Li said softly, looking directly into her eyes.

"What? That... how is that possible?" Bu Yunyan felt her heart seize in her chest, and an indescribable sensation spread through her entire body.

"Don’t get ahead of yourself. We don’t know if it’s true yet," Qin Li said, trying to soothe her. "Your surname... it’s your father’s, isn’t it?"

Bu Yunyan nodded silently. "Even though my mother always told me I took her surname, I’ve known for a long time that her surname isn’t Bu. So, yes, it must be my father’s."

"Mm. The vice-principal of the Imperial Advanced Academy, the man most likely to become the next principal, is named Bu Tong." Qin Li spoke softly. "The first time I met him, I thought it was strange. Your eyes are remarkably similar to his. He’s middle-aged now, but you can tell he must have been very handsome and distinguished in his youth. If he were twenty years younger, people would probably believe you were siblings."

Bu Yunyan gave a bitter laugh. "If he weren’t so distinguished, how could my mother have fallen so madly in love with him? She waited faithfully for him for many years, only to die in her prime..."

"Bu, don’t you want to see him for yourself? To ask him, face to face, what happened back then...?"

Bu Yunyan held up a hand, cutting Qin Li off. "Don’t say any more, Young Master," she said softly. "It’s meaningless. After you leave, I’ll go back to Yellow Sand City. The Daqing Gang needs one of our own overseeing things. Leng Ping is loyal, but... I feel my life needs a new purpose, too. I want to fulfill my promise to you and build a massive commercial empire in your name! I’ve been thinking about this for a while. Even if you weren’t leaving, I would have brought it up soon."

Qin Li sighed. He could somewhat understand what she was thinking. He nodded. "If that’s what you want, then do it. I support you. But I don’t feel right about you going alone. How about this? Have Hu go with you. The herbs Leng Yao needs for her Alchemy are common enough; we can just leave that task to Watermelon."

Bu Yunyan didn’t refuse. She nodded and said, "It would be good to have Hu with me. Hehe. Don’t you worry, Young Master. The Shangguan Family looks down on you, don’t they? Hmph, well I’m going to build a super-powerful commercial empire right under their noses and crush them!"

Qin Li chuckled. "Don’t take it too far. The Shangguan Family has several old monsters at the Celestial Level, you know."

"Hee hee, don’t let Miss Shangguan hear you say that, Young Master," Bu Yunyan said with a coy laugh, seemingly returning to her usual cheerful self. But was she truly feeling that way? Who could say?

"She wouldn’t care," Qin Li said casually, failing to notice the flicker of sorrow deep in Bu Yunyan’s eyes.

"Alright, Bu, I’m going back to my cultivation. You can go on your journey, but you must continue to cultivate diligently. Remember, our ultimate goal is not in this mortal world! So don’t lose sight of what’s truly important. And... remember to protect yourself and take care."

Qin Li’s gentle words sent a wave of warmth through Bu Yunyan’s heart. She said softly, "I know. I never knew you could be so caring, Young Master. Now hurry up and go. If you stay any longer, I’ll be so moved I might just have to offer myself to you!"

Qin Li retreated with a wry smile. After he had bolted the door, Bu Yunyan leaned against it, two streams of silent tears tracing paths down her cheeks.

’Do I really not care? Do I truly not long for a father’s love?’

’But in this life, things rarely go as planned. Even if I cared, even if I fought for it, so what? Would it change anything?’

’Forget it! In a few days, I’ll leave Cyan Dragon City and pour all my energy into achieving my lifelong dream!’

So Bu Yunyan resolved.

...

"Marquis! Marquis! Something’s wrong! Marquis, come quickly!"

Duoduo’s shouts echoed from the front gate of the residence. The young girl ran inside, her face a mask of anxiety. The servants all recognized her, as she used to live there, so no one stopped her. They merely wondered why this normally composed young woman was in such a panic.

As if dropping from the heavens, Qin Li materialized beside Duoduo. "What happened?" he asked in a low, steady voice. "Don’t panic. Tell me slowly. I’m here."

Duoduo gasped for breath for a moment, her flushed face covered in sweat. "A group of young masters came to our shop and started harassing us. When Bu came out, they turned their attention to her, and... and then they tried to take her away! There’s a really powerful man in their group. When he released his aura, none of us could even move. Bu was no match for them. I saw things were going badly and ran out the back door to get help."

"I understand." As soon as Qin Li spoke, his body vanished into thin air.

Duoduo stared, dumbfounded, searching for him for a long moment before turning to a nearby servant. "The Marquis... he was just talking to me, wasn’t he? I didn’t imagine that, did I?"