Chapter 25: A Father's Treasure
The journey back to the city was far quieter than the journey out.
No one celebrated loudly.
No songs echoed from the Frost Wolf Cavalry.
The dragon had been slain.
The mission had succeeded.
Yet every rider's thoughts remained with one person.
Shen Tianyu.
The young heir lay unconscious upon Bingya's broad back. Captain Han rode beside him without leaving his side for even a moment. His powerful Ki flowed continuously into the young man's body, slowing the spread of the poison while the emergency antidote pills fought desperately against it.
It wasn't enough.
The poison continued to resist.
Captain Han had spoken only once during the journey.
"Do not worry."
"Our Lord will handle the rest."
His confidence never wavered.
The guards believed him without question.
To them...
Lord Shen was the strongest person they had ever known.
If anyone could save the Young Master...
It would be him.
Yun Che wanted to believe that too.
But every time he remembered Tianyu's pale face...
His heart tightened.
As the company entered the city, people quickly gathered along the streets.
News spread faster than the cavalry.
"They're back!"
"They hunted the dragon!"
"I heard Young Master fought it himself!"
"And that blacksmith's son too!"
Children ran alongside the Frost Wolves while merchants stepped out of their shops to catch a glimpse of the returning warriors.
Yun Che felt dozens of eyes settle upon him.
Some were amazed.
Others respectful.
He even heard whispers following him through the crowd.
"The Eccentric Blacksmith..."
"No."
"That name doesn't suit him anymore."
"The Metal Spider either."
A veteran guard laughed loudly.
"Spider?"
"Did you not see him today?"
"He stood against a dragon!"
Another nodded enthusiastically.
"The Young Steel Dragon!"
The name spread almost immediately.
"The Young Steel Dragon!"
"It fits!"
"He forged dragon armor..."
"Then helped slay one!"
Yun Che rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
He had never cared much for nicknames.
Still...
Hearing it made him smile despite everything.
Only for the smile to disappear again as his eyes drifted toward Tianyu.
When he finally reached home...
He stopped.
The house had been decorated.
Bright lanterns hung beneath the roof.
Fresh flowers surrounded the doorway.
The smell of roasted monster meat drifted through the evening air.
His family had clearly expected a celebration.
The front door burst open.
His brother grinned.
"You're finally—"
The smile vanished the moment he saw Yun Che's expression.
"...What happened?"
Their parents immediately stepped outside.
Yun Jian looked once toward the city walls before returning his attention to his son.
Yun Che quietly explained everything.
The dragon.
The battle.
The Shadow Python.
The poison.
The attempted assassination.
The joy of victory faded from everyone's faces.
Silence settled over the courtyard.
Finally...
Yun Jian placed one hand upon Yun Che's shoulder.
"Our Lord is not an ordinary cultivator."
"He has protected this city for ten years."
"If Captain Han says Lord Shen can save him..."
"...then trust them."
His mother nodded gently.
"The whole city believes in him."
"There is a reason."
Yun Che looked toward the distant City Lord's Mansion.
"I hope you're right."
"So do I."
Dinner felt warmer than usual.
Not because of the food.
Because his family refused to let him sink into worry.
His brother repeatedly asked about the dragon.
Their mother wanted every detail of the hunt.
Their father interrupted constantly whenever Yun Che skipped over parts of the battle.
"You fought a Foundation Establishment beast."
"You don't get to summarize that in two sentences."
By the end of the meal...
Even Yun Che found himself laughing.
When he described the final attack...
Yun Jian's eyes shone with pride.
"My son..."
"...you've become a true warrior."
Yun Che almost choked on his food.
"I still lost to a snow tiger last week."
"And today..."
His father smiled.
"...you stood before something far worse."
"There is no shame in growing."
A moment later...
Yun Jian leaned back thoughtfully.
"You'll probably receive a portion of the dragon materials."
Yun Che blinked.
"...Really?"
"You fought it."
"You contributed greatly."
"The City Lord rewards merit."
His father's smile widened.
"So..."
"You should begin planning."
Yun Che's mind immediately shifted.
"The scales..."
"The bones..."
"The blood..."
His thoughts accelerated.
"I want to build something new."
His family immediately recognized that expression.
His brother laughed.
"Here we go."
Yun Che grabbed a piece of paper.
He quickly began sketching rough outlines.
"I've been thinking..."
"I rely too much on positioning."
"So..."
"I want another fighter."
His father leaned forward.
"A puppet."
Yun Che nodded.
"A combat puppet."
"It'll fight beside me."
"I'll control it using Ki Strings."
"When I reach Foundation Establishment..."
"I should also be able to manipulate it through telekinesis."
He continued drawing.
"Not only that."
"I also want six floating lances."
"They'll orbit around me."
"Attack."
"Defend."
"Carry my sword."
"Even reposition my rifle."
His brother stared.
"...That's ridiculous."
Yun Che smiled.
"Exactly."
"I like ridiculous."
His mother laughed softly.
"It certainly sounds like you."
Yun Jian remained unusually quiet.
Finally...
He stood.
"Come with me."
The family followed him into the workshop.
The old blacksmith knelt before a heavy wooden chest tucked beneath one of the workbenches.
Dust covered the lid.
It had clearly remained unopened for years.
He slowly unlocked it.
Inside...
Several small metal ingots rested upon dark cloth.
Even beneath the dim forge lights...
They shimmered beautifully.
One glowed deep crimson.
Another shone brilliant sapphire blue.
Yun Che's breathing caught.
"Ki Metals..."
His father nodded.
"I've been saving them."
The crimson ingot pulsed warmly.
"Red Ki Metal."
"Excellent offensive affinity."
The blue ingot almost seemed to ripple like flowing water.
"Blue Ki Metal."
"Exceptional speed affinity."
Yun Che carefully reached toward them.
Then stopped.
"They're..."
"...for me?"
Yun Jian smiled.
"They were always meant for you."
His voice softened.
"I collected them during my travels."
"Piece by piece."
"Year after year."
"I was waiting for the day you'd truly begin forging your own path."
Yun Che looked down at the precious metals.
He knew their value.
Most blacksmiths spent entire lifetimes without touching even a fragment.
His father had quietly preserved them all these years.
Just for him.
His throat tightened.
"Thank you..."
Yun Jian folded his arms.
"But."
Yun Che looked up.
"I'll only hand them over..."
"...after you defeat me."
The old blacksmith grinned.
"And when that day comes..."
"I won't merely help forge your equipment."
"I'll pour everything I know into it."
Yun Che laughed.
"Now I definitely have to win."
From the side...
His older brother slowly raised one hand.
"...Excuse me."
Everyone turned.
"What about me?"
"I get nothing?"
He tried to sound offended.
Unfortunately...
The jealous expression on his face ruined the performance.
"This is blatant favoritism."
"I've suffered for seventeen years."
"You've known him for thirteen."
Yun Che burst into laughter.
"So that's the real problem."
"I knew it!"
Their brother crossed his arms dramatically.
"I'm the forgotten child."
Their mother rolled her eyes.
"Oh, be quiet."
Yun Jian couldn't help laughing.
"You foolish boy."
He pointed toward the chest.
"I'll divide them equally."
Both brothers froze.
"Half each."
"But..."
His smile became challenging once more.
"Only after each of you defeats me."
He closed the chest with a solid thump.
"Until then..."
"Stop dreaming."
He pointed toward both sons.
"Break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm."
"Then..."
"...come and claim your inheritance."
--------------------------------
The City Lord's Mansion had never felt so silent.
Servants walked softly through the corridors.
Even the armored guards stationed outside the Young Master's chamber spoke only in whispers.
Victory had returned to the city.
Yet celebration had never entered the mansion.
Inside the largest room...
Shen Tianyu lay upon a bed carved from pale spirit wood.
His breathing came in uneven gasps.
Dark veins spread slowly from the bite wound across his shoulder, crawling beneath his skin like black roots searching for his heart.
Every few moments...
His body trembled violently.
A quiet groan escaped his lips.
The poison was still fighting.
Beside the bed stood the ruler of Mistforge City.
Lord Shen.
His back remained perfectly straight.
His expression remained calm.
Only his eyes betrayed him.
Every father wished to protect his child.
Even one who ruled a city.
Across from him stood his wife.
Lady Liu Meiying.
She had been born the second daughter of a powerful marquis family.
Graceful.
Elegant.
Composed.
Those who knew her only through politics believed she was a noblewoman first.
They were mistaken.
At that moment...
She was only a mother.
One hand rested gently upon the shoulder of the little girl standing beside her.
Their daughter...
Six-year-old Shen Lian.
Her small hands tightly clutched her mother's sleeve.
She looked from her unconscious brother...
To her father.
"...Father?"
Her voice was barely louder than the falling snow outside.
"Will Big Brother wake up?"
Lord Shen knelt before her.
His large hand rested gently upon her head.
"He will."
The answer came without hesitation.
Not because he wished it.
Because he intended it.
He slowly extended one finger.
With a single movement...
His fingernail sliced across the tip.
A drop of brilliant blue blood emerged.
Unlike ordinary blood...
It shimmered faintly with countless icy lights.
It resembled liquid starlight more than flesh.
Lady Meiying looked at him.
"...You're using it now?"
Lord Shen nodded once.
"It is time."
He allowed the drop to fall.
The blood entered Tianyu's wound without touching the skin.
Almost as though it possessed a will of its own.
For a long moment...
Nothing happened.
Then...
The dark veins slowed.
Their advance became noticeably weaker.
Tianyu's breathing gradually steadied.
Not healed.
But stable.
Lord Shen quietly exhaled.
"My own blood..."
"...should suppress the poison."
He looked toward his sleeping son.
"And."
A faint smile touched his face.
"I will soon be preparing for my next breakthrough."
"My blood has already begun changing."
"It will help him in the future."
Lady Meiying's tense shoulders relaxed slightly.
Not completely.
Never completely.
Until Tianyu opened his eyes.
Her gaze slowly hardened.
Whoever had seen Lady Meiying smile at festivals...
Would never recognize the woman standing there now.
"They hurt my child."
Her voice remained calm.
Almost frighteningly calm.
"I want every one of them dead."
Lord Shen looked toward her.
"I know."
"No."
She met his eyes.
"I don't think you do."
"They poisoned our son."
"They sent an assassin into our home."
"They came for our family."
For the first time...
A trace of murderous intent escaped the elegant noblewoman.
"I want them erased."
Lord Shen stepped closer.
Gently taking her hands.
Lady Shen had been born into one of the great noble families of the kingdom.
The second daughter of a Marquis.
Her marriage had originally been nothing more than a political alliance.
Two powerful families strengthening one another.
Many such marriages ended without affection.
Theirs...
Had not.
Lord Shen had made a promise to himself long ago.
If he married...
He would do so properly.
His own parents had treated one another as allies.
Never as husband and wife.
He had grown up surrounded by duty.
Very little warmth.
He refused to let his own children experience the same loneliness.
He slowly took his wife's hand.
"I know."
His voice remained gentle.
"And I promise..."
"...whoever reached for our son..."
"...will answer to me."
Lord Shen looked toward his daughter.
"Lian."
The little girl immediately stood straighter.
"Stay with your mother."
"Protect your brother while I'm away."
She puffed out her tiny chest proudly.
"I will!"
Then quietly added,
"...even though I'm little."
Lord Shen smiled.
"You are very brave."
Several minutes later...
He entered his private office.
Captain Han already waited there.
The old warrior immediately saluted.
"My Lord."
"Report."
Captain Han recounted every detail.
The battle.
The dragon.
The assassination.
Then...
The serpent.
"It travelled through shadows."
"Not within them."
"Through them."
Lord Shen's eyes narrowed.
"And?"
"It possessed another ability."
Captain Han's voice became unusually heavy.
"Abyss Gaze."
Silence filled the room.
Even the wind outside seemed to stop.
"...The Abyss."
Lord Shen murmured.
Few names carried greater weight.
The Abyss.
A realm without light.
Without mercy.
A place where monstrous beings endlessly sought to consume worlds beyond their own.
Legends claimed entire civilizations had vanished after opening even the smallest doorway into that darkness.
Captain Han slowly nodded.
"The creature looked like a Shadow Python."
"But..."
"It has changed."
"It carries Abyss blood."
Lord Shen folded his hands behind his back.
"This is no longer merely a bandit problem."
Captain Han agreed immediately.
"I expected ordinary raiders."
"So did I."
Lord Shen's gaze became distant.
"Abyss creatures do not simply appear."
"They require someone."
"Or something."
Captain Han quietly finished the thought.
"...A cult."
Lord Shen nodded once.
"The Cult of the Black Eclipse."
The very name seemed to chill the room.
Fanatics.
Traitors.
Men and women who believed humanity should surrender itself to the Abyss in exchange for power.
Captain Han frowned.
"If they possess Abyss beasts..."
"What are they planning?"
Lord Shen slowly walked toward the window.
Snow continued falling over the sleeping city.
"Several possibilities."
"A massacre."
"A sacrificial ritual."
"A summoned demon."
"Or perhaps..."
His eyes hardened.
"They simply wish to remove me."
Captain Han remained silent.
Every possibility sounded equally disastrous.
"What are your orders, my Lord?"
Lord Shen answered without turning around.
"It was not your mistake."
"The enemy exceeded every reasonable expectation."
Captain Han lowered his head slightly.
"My Lord..."
"Raise the city to the highest alert."
"Double the patrols."
"Search every district."
"Watch the gates."
"Handle every disturbance immediately."
"And..."
Captain Han looked up.
"You?"
Lord Shen slowly smiled.
"I shall deal with the greater threats myself."
His eyes suddenly glowed brilliant blue.
The room's temperature plummeted.
Frost spread silently across the floor.
Outside...
Snowflakes froze in midair.
The mountain itself seemed to awaken.
Lord Shen whispered only three words.
"Frost Mountain Domain."
An invisible wave spread outward.
Passing effortlessly through stone.
Wood.
Steel.
Snow.
Every building.
Every street.
Every forest.
Everything inside his territory entered his awareness.
The patrols.
The citizens.
The beasts.
The rivers.
The mountains.
Even unfamiliar presences.
Small points of light appeared within his perception.
Some ordinary.
Some...
Very interesting.
Lord Shen quietly observed them all.
Then...
He closed his eyes again.
Captain Han looked puzzled.
"You found them?"
"I found many things."
"Then why not leave immediately?"
Lord Shen opened his eyes once more.
"Because."
He looked toward the distant darkness beyond the city walls.
"If I leave now..."
"The true enemy will move."
"They have already shown me one piece."
"They are waiting for the next."
He slowly placed one hand upon the window.
"So..."
"I shall wait."
"And when they finally reveal themselves..."
The frost climbing across the glass suddenly covered the entire window in an instant.
"...they will discover why this mountain still belongs to House Shen."