Zhu Ziyang was very surprised; he hadn't expected Qian Lingyi's family to actually live in the Northern Mountain Range.
After Qian Lingyi led Zhu Ziyang into the Northern Mountain Range, she skillfully arrived at a valley in the middle section of the Northern Mountain Range. A small village was nestled in the valley, with fewer than twenty households. These households were all the current members of the Qian family.
The overall strength of these Qian clan members was average. At least according to Qian Lingyi, her grandmother's Spirit King level strength could rank at least in the top five in the clan, and the top-ranked was the clan leader, her second uncle, Spirit Saint Qian Zhenyu.
Qian Lingyi's family structure was very simple; her father was a live-in son-in-law, so she and her mother took the Qian surname. Speaking of which, her grandfather was also a live-in son-in-law and had three children with her grandmother, Qian Zhiya: two sons and one daughter—the eldest son Qian Zhenhuan, the second son Qian Zhenyu, and the youngest daughter Qian Chenxing.
Qian Chenxing was Qian Lingyi's mother. When Qian Lingyi was three years old, she died while hunting for a spirit ring. Also among the deceased were Qian Lingyi's eldest uncle Qian Zhenhuan, Qian Lingyi's father Ye Tianwei, and Qian Lingyi's grandfather Wang Chunqiu.
Therefore, Qian Lingyi's existing immediate family consisted only of her grandmother Qian Zhiya and her second uncle Qian Zhenyu's family of three. As for the other people in the village, although they were all blood-related cousins and uncles, they were not as close as her grandmother. Because she lost both parents at a young age, Qian Lingyi was raised by her grandmother Qian Zhiya, so it was normal for her to be closest to her grandmother.
Qian Lingyi's sudden return home, and bringing an unfamiliar young man with her, stirred up intense gossip among those who saw her in the village. This was because Qian Lingyi's father had returned with her mother in the same way back then. Life in the valley was uneventful, so everyone was naturally happy to see a joyous occasion.
"Grandma, I'm back!" Qian Lingyi's face was already flushed from listening to the teasing of her clan elders on the way. When she returned home and saw Qian Zhiya, she immediately pounced on her with joy, calling out softly.
"Yi Yi, you're back!" Qian Zhiya was naturally very happy to see her granddaughter after a long time. While hugging Qian Lingyi, she carefully examined her, her old face showing deep relief. She said, "Hmm! You've grown taller and become prettier. As expected of a daughter of my Qian family!"
"Hehe! Grandma, what are you doing at home? Where are Jiajia and Peipei?" Qian Lingyi hugged Qian Zhiya, her pretty face full of intimacy and attachment, and asked.
"They're exercising, of course. They'll probably be back in the evening," Qian Zhiya replied, while carefully observing Qian Lingyi's changes. A hint of surprise appeared on her old face. "Yi Yi, you... how can I not see through your strength anymore? Have you reached the Spirit Emperor realm?"
"Hehe! More than that!" Qian Lingyi said proudly, "Grandma, I'm already a Spirit Saint now! Even Second Uncle probably can't beat me anymore!"
"How come as soon as I return, I hear little Yi Yi wants to beat me?" A middle-aged man walked in from outside. This man had a very handsome appearance, somewhat similar to Qian Lingyi, and was clearly Qian Lingyi's second uncle, Qian Zhenyu. Qian Zhenyu entered the room, first saw Zhu Ziyang, a hint of scrutiny and appraisal in his eyes, and then looked at Qian Lingyi, his face showing doting affection and joy.
"Second Uncle, you're back!" Qian Lingyi called out happily when she saw Qian Zhenyu.
"Yi Yi, what did you say? Say it again?" Qian Zhiya, however, didn't pay attention to her son's appearance. Her attention was entirely focused on Qian Lingyi's earlier words.
"Hehe! I said, I'm already a Spirit Saint now! My spirit power has reached level 74!" Qian Lingyi's pretty face showed an even stronger sense of pride as she said sweetly.
"What?" This time, Qian Zhenyu heard it, and his face immediately showed a stunned expression. If he remembered correctly, his niece was only nineteen this year, wasn't she? How could she have already reached the Spirit Saint realm?
Qian Zhiya also had a face full of disbelief, staring blankly at Qian Lingyi. Seeing her grandmother and second uncle's expressions, Qian Lingyi smiled lightly and immediately released her Spirit and spirit rings. Six Seraphim wings flowed with the breath of light, and seven spirit rings—two yellow, two purple, two black, and one red—flickered behind the young girl.
Whether it was the three pairs of Seraphim wings, or the seven spirit rings, or that red hundred-thousand-year spirit ring, all of them shocked the hearts of Qian Zhiya and Qian Zhenyu, causing the mother and son to open their mouths wide, unable to speak for a long time.
Qian Lingyi looked at her stunned grandmother and uncle, feeling even more proud. She put away her Spirit and spirit rings and said, "How about that? I didn't lie to you, did I?"
"Yi Yi, your, your Spirit..." Qian Zhiya's voice trembled slightly as she said, "Could it be..."
"Uh huh!" Qian Lingyi said, "That's right, it's the Six-Winged Angel Martial Soul!"
"This, this,... Ancestors bless, Angel God bless, Ancestors bless,..." The old lady no longer knew what to say, she could only keep muttering words like "Ancestors bless" to express the inexpressible emotions of excitement, joy, and shock in her heart.
"Yi Yi, what exactly have you experienced these past few years? Quickly tell me and your grandmother in detail!" Qian Zhenyu excitedly sat next to Qian Lingyi, having completely forgotten about asking Qian Lingyi about Zhu Ziyang's identity. He only wanted to know what kind of fortuitous encounter his niece had experienced.
Qian Lingyi also didn't hide or evade. On the way back, she had already asked Zhu Ziyang, and after obtaining his consent, Qian Lingyi told Qian Zhiya and Qian Zhenyu her abridged experience in full.
Upon learning that Qian Lingyi had actually joined Shrek Academy and that the young man she brought back was Zhu Ziyang, a favored disciple of Shrek Academy, Qian Zhenyu's heart was filled with mixed emotions.
On one hand, as the clan leader of the Qian family, he had a good understanding of the outside world's situation and had naturally heard of Zhu Ziyang's great name. He largely regarded the rumored peerless genius with six hundred-thousand-year spirit rings as an exaggeration. However, when he saw his niece's red seventh spirit ring, he realized that he had been shallow, and a genuine admiration and respect for Zhu Ziyang arose within him.
On the other hand, as the clan leader of the Qian family, the education he received from childhood was that Shrek Academy was largely to blame for the Qian family's current plight. Therefore, he had an inexplicable dislike and aversion to Shrek Academy, which also reduced his good impression of Zhu Ziyang.
"You foolish girl, how could you join Shrek Academy?" Qian Zhiya was also very surprised upon learning that Qian Lingyi had joined Shrek Academy, and a reproving expression appeared on her old face as she spoke.
"Grandma, what's wrong with me joining Shrek Academy? I think our clan's approach is too extreme, too sensitive!" Qian Lingyi retorted, "What does the Sea God's feud with our Qian family have to do with Shrek Academy? Why should we be hostile towards Shrek Academy?"
"Because Sea God Tang San was trained by Shrek Academy!" Qian Zhenyu subconsciously replied, this answer clearly being his true inner thought.
"If that's the case, then Sea God Tang San's Spirit was awakened with the help of Spirit Hall, wasn't it? Should we also be hostile towards Spirit Hall?" Qian Lingyi retorted, without any hesitation.
"Uh!" Neither Qian Zhenyu nor Qian Zhiya had expected Qian Lingyi to say such words. They were immediately surprised and speechless. Zhu Ziyang also couldn't help but look sideways, pondering how to resolve the situation.
"Sigh! Never mind!" Qian Zhiya suddenly sighed and said, "Since the die is cast, there's no use in us scolding you anymore. You've grown up, you can make your own decisions. Go ahead."
"Grandma!" Qian Lingyi was startled by Qian Zhiya's tone, which implied she wouldn't interfere anymore. She immediately grabbed her arm and whined, "What are you doing? You're not going to ignore me, are you?"
"Of course not!" Qian Zhiya smiled and shook her head, saying, "I just don't want to deal with these annoying matters anymore. Let's talk about other things."
"Mom!" Qian Zhenyu still wanted to say something, but Qian Zhiya raised her hand to interrupt him.
"He must be Zhu Ziyang, what a fine young man!" Qian Zhiya's gaze fell on Zhu Ziyang, her eyes lit up, and she exclaimed with genuine admiration, "Oh? Young man, have we met before?"
"Grandma, have you forgotten? When you took me to find my third spirit ring, we met Brother Ziyang in Tianhui Grand Canyon!" Qian Lingyi's pretty face immediately lit up with joy when she heard her grandmother starting to pay attention to her beloved, and she said.
"So that's it, I knew you looked familiar!" Qian Zhiya said, enlightened.
"Hello, Grandma, we meet again," Zhu Ziyang said with a smile. "Allow me to formally introduce myself. My name is Zhu Ziyang, and I am the Pavilion Master of the Tian Yuan Pavilion at Shrek Academy."