Family drama was typically beneath her notice, but something about this young man's desperation resonated.

"Revenge against someone else is not something I involve myself in," she began, but before she could finish the dismissal, something changed.

The air around them suddenly thickened with overwhelming power—true immortal aura that made her own Void Returning cultivation seem insignificant by comparison.

:: Child, do not dismiss this opportunity so quickly. ::

The voice seemed to come from Zhao Chen.

Her golden eyes widened as she turned to stare at Zhao Chen, specifically at the simple ring on his finger that now pulsed with otherworldly light.

She was not in fear but more so in surprise that someone of that strength was present in this place and had chosen—

"What do you want?" she asked, her tone shifting to one of wary respect.

Dealing with sealed immortals was a speciality of her clan, but the power radiating from that ring was genuine—and ancient.

So even they possess the power to seal, but they did not disrespect the one they could seal.

Power needs humility, or else it corrupts.

Chen's eyes blazed with desperate hope as he felt his master's support. "I want to become strong enough to kill him. Strong enough to take back everything he's stolen from my family."

For long moments, Kitsune Yuki considered the request.

The sealed immortal in the ring was clearly powerful, and the young man's hatred burned with the kind of intensity that could drive remarkable growth.

More importantly, if Tianlong was truly planning to ascend as he'd claimed, having a local power structure already prepared might serve the guardian tribe's interests in maintaining stability.

"Fine," she said finally, her decision made. "You can come to meet me after this wedding is over."

Chen blinked in confusion. "After? But aren't you leaving immediately?"

In response, she reached into her robes and withdrew what appeared to be a folded piece of paper carrying bun and meat stuffed in it.

"Isn't that... the food that's being served here?" he asked, bewildered.

Kitsune Yuki's expression turned contemplative as she studied the wrapped delicacy, clearly as if making the most available excuse. "I will eat this food to understand the danger and purposes behind such generosity. Until then, I will leave tomorrow morning."

She fixed Chen with a sharp look. "You better come to Whispering Valley at dawn. I will teleport you directly there when you're ready."

Chen bowed deeply again, but inside his chest, his heart was racing with anticipation. 'Finally,' he thought, a vicious smile spreading across his lips. "Now I will kill you, Tianlong."

'!?!'

The words had barely left Zhao Chen's lips before he felt it—a crushing wave of killing intent that slammed into him like a mountain collapsing on his shoulders.

"What a treacherous son I have."

The voice came from directly behind him, cold and disappointed, carrying an authority that made his very bones ache.

Chen's body went rigid, bronze eyes widening in terror as the pressure forced him to his knees on the rocky ground.

His newly stabilized Peak Core Formation cultivation meant nothing against this overwhelming presence.

Sweat broke out across his skin as he struggled to even breathe, the killing intent pressing down on him for a second before vanishing.

"Haa... w-wait..." Chen gasped, sucking in desperate lungfuls of air as his body trembled uncontrollably.

Slowly, fearfully, he turned to see who had spoken.

Tianlong stood there casually, his crimson-gold eyes holding a mixture of amusement and disappointment as he looked down at his grandson.

Wedding robes fluttered slightly in the mountain breeze, his entire demeanor suggesting he'd done nothing more strenuous than swatting a fly.

Chen's heart sank into his stomach as understanding crashed over him like ice water.

'He heard everything. My conversation with the fox woman, my plans for revenge... he knows.'

"So that guest might have left, huh?" Tianlong asked conversationally, stepping closer with that predatory grace that made Chen's instincts scream danger.

Chen struggled to his feet, his legs still shaking from the residual terror. "Yes... but what do you want from me?" His voice cracked despite his attempts to sound defiant. "Why are you here?"

Tianlong's expression remained neutral, almost bored. "Nothing really. It was just a father's instinct kicking in since I am about to marry your mother soon."

The casual mention of his mother sent rage exploding through Chen's chest, overwhelming his fear. "You bastard! Don't you dare mention her—"

But he was speaking to empty air.

Tianlong had vanished as suddenly as mist, leaving only the faint scent of sandalwood and the echo of mocking laughter.

"COWARD!" Chen roared at the empty mountainside, his voice cracking with fury and humiliation. "FACE ME LIKE A MAN!"

But there was no response save for the distant sounds of wedding celebrations continuing far below.

Clenching his fists until his nails drew blood, Chen stormed back toward the palace complex. His mind burned with a single thought: he needed to see his mother, needed to understand what that monster had done to her.

The corridors of the palace were bustling with servants preparing for the ceremony's continuation, but they scattered quickly when they saw the murderous expression on Chen's face.

He pushed through them without acknowledgment, following his instincts toward the main ceremonial hall.

What he found there made him stop dead in his tracks.

Yu Xiang stood near one of the ornate pillars, her violet eyes bright with curiosity as she conversed with a woman in an elegant bright dress.

The woman's back was to him, her posture graceful and refined, but something about her silhouette seemed... wrong.

"Mother," Chen called out, his voice softer now, uncertain.

The moment the word left his lips, killing intent sharper than any blade erupted from the woman's form. Chen staggered backward, his eyes wide with shock as the murderous aura washed over him.

But it was what the killing intent revealed that truly stole his breath away.

The pressure had caused the air around the woman to shimmer, and for just an instant, her true appearance was visible as the veil lifted a bit.

She was... magnificent.

Silver hair that seemed to capture starlight itself cascaded down her back in waves. Her profile, glimpsed for just that moment, showed features of such perfect beauty that they seemed carved by divine hands.

This was not his mother.

His mother had been pretty in a gentle, mortal way, with warm brown hair and kind eyes that crinkled when she smiled.

This creature was something else entirely—a goddess wearing mortal form.

Chen's confusion deepened into humiliation as he realized several wedding guests had turned to stare at him, their expressions ranging from curiosity to barely concealed mockery.

'What the....' Before he could suffer any more illusion, his master's voice was instantly there to clarify the thing.

:: That woman is definitely your mother, disciple. It seems that is some kind of illusion. ::

'Huh?' He had just been thinking, processing what his master said, standing there when suddenly he felt his wrist being grabbed.

"Are you alright?" Yu Xiang said quietly, her violet eyes holding concern and something else he couldn't identify. 'This idiot, is he trying to create another scene here?'

Chen looked down at her fingers wrapped around his wrist, felt the warmth of her skin against his, and something inside him cracked just a little more.

"Yes, I am," he whispered, his voice hollow with defeat.

But before he could say anything else, the woman's voice cut through the ambient noise of the hall.

"Why have you called him?"

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