"Puh!!"
The sharp golden light swept across, and Wind Howl's body suddenly trembled, then froze in place.
"Thud."
A gust of wind blew by, and his body fell straight forward, eyes wide open, filled with endless terror.
It was uncertain if it was a coincidence, but his corpse just happened to land on the corpse of the old man lying on his back, aligned together.
Of course, it wasn't mouth to mouth; their orientations were opposite, definitely a perfect "Chicken Dinner Winner" combo.
"Having killed someone, one must destroy the evidence. As the saying goes, if you kill someone, don't leave a mess, or there will be a mountain of trouble."
Qin Chuan raised his right hand, releasing the Pure Yang Fire unique to a Pure Yang Realm practitioner, engulfing the two corpses.
Soon, both were reduced to ashes.
Qin Chuan used Spiritual Power to scan the surroundings, dissipating his own scent.
Then, he took out a folded white silk cloth, layer by layer, slowly opening it.
Inside were a dozen or so jet-black strands of hair.
These were Qin Zi's hair.
Collected quietly by him over time.
"Although this place might not be discovered, just to be safe, details must be meticulously handled."
He used Spiritual Power to extract three strands of hair, casually tossing them onto the ground around him, following the motion of free fall.
Wherever they landed, they would stay.
This way, it wouldn't seem so deliberate.
After doing this, he checked again to ensure there were no other traces, then prepared to leave.
But after taking a couple of steps, he suddenly turned back, looking at the two Space Rings partially covered by ash on the ground.
"Almost forgot, the Space Rings should also be taken. Killing without taking the treasure doesn't match that kid's identity."
With a wave of his right hand, he drew the two Space Rings into his hand, then flew low, leaving the scene.
...
Time passed, another three days elapsed.
Bai Chen and Qin Zi returned to Minghao City, while Qin Chuan deliberately delayed a bit.
So, when Bai Chen brought Qin Zi back to the residence, Qin Zi was stunned on the spot.
"Where's... where's my dad?"
Returning from a distant trip, he found the house empty, feeling an indescribable sense of loss.
Moreover, there was an instinctive panic—had something happened to dad? Did dad leave me?
Though reason told him this was impossible, emotionally he was still a bit at a loss.
"Qin Zi."
Bai Chen patted his shoulder, comforting him: "Don't worry, your dad just went out to handle something."
"He told me a few days ago, it's because he had other things to do that he had me take you to Wujiang City."
"Really?"
Qin Zi looked at Bai Chen.
"Do I look like the lying type?" Bai Chen calmly retorted.
"That's good, that's good."
Upon hearing this, Qin Zi felt relieved, patting his chest, a smile appearing on his face.
"Do you have anything else? If not, I'll take my leave first."
Bai Chen said.
"No, it's fine now... Thank you, Uncle Bai." Qin Zi said gratefully.
"It's a small matter, no need to thank me."
Bai Chen smiled warmly; being addressed as Uncle Bai was well-received by him.
At least, the relationship took a step forward.
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Bai Chen left the residence.
Thus, the large residence was left with only Qin Zi and a few pitiful young maidservants.
By rights, in this situation, he could shut the door and do something he wanted.
But he wasn't in the mood for it.
So, he moved out a chair, sitting in front of the residence facing the gate, waiting for his father to come home.
He waited like this for half a day!
By evening.
The sky was filled with red clouds, as if fireworks were blazing, dyeing half of Minghao City orange.
"Whoosh!!"
Finally, Qin Zi saw a dazzling golden light shooting from the horizon like a sharp sword, slicing through the red clouds in the sky.
"Thud!"
Eventually, that golden light fell to the courtyard, transforming into a figure kneeling on one knee, reeking of alcohol.
His head hung low, hair messily drooping, covering his cheeks, with an unexplainable sadness and despondency.
"Dad?!"
Qin Zi suddenly stood up from the chair, shocked looking at the figure—what happened to his father, how did he become like this?
"Let's go inside."
Qin Chuan slowly stood up, seemingly a bit unsteady, but his voice was incredibly calm, slightly hoarse.
Qin Zi hurried over to support him.
Immediately, a strong smell of alcohol hit his nose.
"Dad, what happened, why are you drinking like this?" Qin Zi asked with full concern and heartache.
"Hehe, it's nothing, just went to pay respects to an old friend."
Qin Chuan staggered, a blurry gaze with a smile: "This old brother liked to drink in life, so I accompanied him a bit..."
"Old friend?!"
Qin Zi's eyes widened.
Suddenly feeling a bit surprised, but thinking about it, everything seemed natural.
Given his father's cultivation level, it made sense to have met a few friends along the path, right? It would be odd if there were none.
No one is an island.
Soon, Qin Zi helped Qin Chuan to the living room, letting him lean on the tiger-skin-covered reclining chair.
He closed the door, then asked: "Dad, can you tell me about your past? I didn't even know you had these friends."
His father was too mysterious!
He felt, as the only son of his father, he had the right to know his father's past.
Moreover, he always had a perplexing question that he couldn't figure out, even his master couldn't.
That was...
His father was just over thirty, yet shortly after he was born, his father's cultivation was sealed.
Meaning, when his father's cultivation was sealed, he was only twenty years old.
But, looking at what his father had said before, it seemed he had reached the ninth realm of cultivation, maybe even surpassed it at that time?!
What concept is that?
A twenty-year-old Martial Emperor?!
Impossible, right?
Impossible!!
But looking at his father's performance in recent times, it wasn't fake, even his master was somehow fearful of his father.
What was going on?
He couldn't understand, couldn't grasp it!
So, seizing this opportunity, he decided to ask.
"Hehe, Xiao Zi, I know what you're puzzled about. Since you ask, I won't hide anything from you."
Qin Chuan looked at him with deep eyes, a slightly tipsy smile on his face, saying: "Actually… this is my second life."
"What?!"
Qin Zi's eyes widened.
Even the golden-haired woman listening from inside the ring felt as if caught off guard by a thunderbolt, stunned on the spot.
"Surprised? I thought you might have guessed."
Qin Chuan laughed, shaking his head, saying: "Cultivation isn't easy, and the further one goes, the harder it gets. Many cultivate for thousands of years without reaching the Martial Emperor realm; how could I achieve it at twenty?"
"It would take at least thirty to forty years."
He paused, smiling: "I reached the Martial Emperor realm, even exceeded it at twenty because I had reached that level in my previous life and retained the insights from that realm."
"So, in this life, upon regaining my memories, I had no bottlenecks, progressing step by step to that realm again."
Under the astonished gaze of his son, Qin Chuan continued: "Actually, in my previous life, I wasn't from this world. I came from the Upper Realm, the same place your mother's family hails from."
"In this life, after awakening my past memories, I cultivated silently in the Qin Family, surpassing the Martial Emperor realm by eighteen."
"Since my previous ties of love and hatred were in the Upper Realm, and there wasn't much to hold me in this small world, I shattered the void and returned to the Upper Realm after surpassing the Martial Emperor realm."
"So, my knowledge of this world is limited, with few friends here, perhaps just one or two."
"That old friend was a serendipitous acquaintance from when I was sixteen, a rare bond transcending age…"
"Unfortunately, I spent two years in the Upper Realm, and upon returning with your mother, he had already passed away."
Speaking of which, a melancholic expression appeared in his eyes, seemingly unable to let go of the past...
"So that's how it is…"
Qin Zi's eyes became unfocused, but his heart felt enlightened, as if the clouds had cleared to reveal the moon.
It wasn't just him.
Even the golden-haired woman in the ring was breathing rapidly, eyes empty, murmuring to herself: "I see, I see..."
She understood now.
She finally understood!!