Riven picked up a stone and placed it on top of the pile of rocks where he usually prayed. He was with his Mother for their routine worship. He joined her in prayer and closed his eyes.
"Is something troubling you, Son?"
"Nothing, Mother. I just feel I need to pay for my mistakes in the past."
"I support you, Son. Change so that no one looks down on you again. Make our clan proud. Make your Father proud. If not you, then who else will continue the existence of our clan?"
Riven smiled at his Mother. "Rest assured, Mother. I promise not to disappoint you again. See? I have performed my prayers. I will continue to change for the better."
Looking at the Mother of the original body's owner, he saw a resemblance to his biological Mother.
"Never forget me and your Father if you ever need anything, Son. Hold on to this change. May the Sky God always bless you," Xue-Qing said wholeheartedly. Riven nodded. They then left the temple grounds.
Among the passing servants, Lan Xue was visible in a servant's attire. Seeing this, Riven quickly excused himself from his Mother to speak with the girl.
"Lan Xue!" Riven felt his heart race.
As Lan Xue turned to him, Riven immediately pulled her hand. Unlike the previous Riven, the servants were increasingly surprised by the behavior of their clan leader's son. The former Riven was very harsh and liked to act arbitrarily. He was completely different from the Riven of the last two days. Whatever the reason, they were grateful they no longer received scoldings and glaring looks from their master. They quickly moved aside as Riven passed.
Lan Xue, noticing the strangeness around her, could only wonder. Riven took her to the flower garden. The garden was filled with dozens of types of flowers, with a long bench and a swing attached to a tree. Lan Xue chose the swing, staring at a rose she had picked. Riven mentioned that the garden was specially made for him. He often lay on the long bench just to sunbathe.
"What is it that Young Master wanted to talk about? I'm busy. My friends might be waiting for me."
"Why do you want to be a servant? You don't have to be a servant." Riven sat up from his reclining position.
"I... feel indebted to you, Young Master. This is my way of thanking you and your family."
"You have to stop wearing that dress. I will not accept any refusal from you." Riven was serious with his words. He couldn't accept the woman he was beginning to care for wearing clothes like that. It felt like hurting himself.
Lan Xue turned to look at Riven. She felt embarrassed to be stared at like that. She immediately shifted her gaze from her master to the blue sky.
"If you really want to thank me... you don't have to be a servant. You can do something easy."
"Such as?"
"Kiss my cheek."
Riven immediately slapped his own face, realizing his stupid mouth's blunder. However, seeing Lan Xue's blushing face added to his mischievousness.
"You're a pervert, Young Master! I would never do that." Lan Xue stood up and glared at Riven. Instead of looking fierce, Lan Xue looked adorable in Riven's eyes.
"You will only get a slap from me if you say that again. You... intend to take advantage of me, don't you?" Riven's smile instantly vanished, replaced by fear of Lan Xue's anger.
Riven stood up, trying to hide his panic. "Of course not. I was just kidding. How could I dare face your slap?"
Seeing Lan Xue's calm face, Riven then took a small red box from his pocket. He took out a necklace with a green emerald pendant. He approached Lan Xue and put the necklace on her suddenly.
Lan Xue felt difficulty breathing due to their close distance. She was confused by Riven's gift.
Riven stepped back. "It suits you perfectly. Never take it off, okay? This is an order for you."
Lan Xue examined the necklace Riven gave her. It's so beautiful, Lan Xue thought.
"Do you like it?" Riven asked. He was happy to see her wearing the necklace, which had been his grandmother's. Riven found it in his wardrobe drawer.
"The necklace is very beautiful, Young Master. It must be very expensive."
"Not really. It's a special gift for you. I hope you take good care of it."
"Thank you, Young Master. I really like it. It looks very expensive. But… why did you give it to me?"
Because I love you, Riven thought.
"You are kind. And you are also beautiful."
Lan Xue was surprised to hear her master's reason.
"Your reason isn't very appropriate, Young Master. But thank you."
"You're welcome, Lan Xue."
"Hello, idiot. Are you ready to fight me?"
Riven looked sharply at the approaching Su Ling.
"Well, well, well, are you trying to hook up with a servant now? Where are the cheap women you usually hang out with?"
"Hey, slut. Listen, you'll be his next victim. He's a playboy. His character is terrible. You don't deserve to be with him."
"Shut your damned mouth." It wasn't Riven who said it, but Lan Xue, who couldn't contain her anger.
"Wow, you dared to curse at me?" Su Ling asked in disbelief.
Riven immediately stepped forward. "Your opponent is me. Let's settle this like men."
Su Ling gave a sneer and a snort. He left the garden, followed by Riven. Lan Xue watched from behind Riven's back. She hoped Riven would win the fight. No, no, she hoped Riven wouldn't simply die.
The breeze carried leaves between the distance created by Riven and Su Ling. They stared at each other.
Riven tried to concentrate by focusing the strength within himself. Suddenly, Riven felt a new energy flowing inside him. He was surprised; his body felt cold. A system voice echoed in Riven's head.
[Ding! Level Up!
Strength +1
Endurance +1
Qi +1]
"It seems your strength has increased. But that won't prevent the death you're about to experience this time." Su Ling smiled cynically.
He unexpectedly shot quickly toward Riven. Riven dodged when he saw Su Ling aiming his fist. Riven jumped and then kicked Su Ling.
Su Ling was thrown two meters away. Su Ling pointed his hand at Riven, and suddenly a strong wind hit Riven, slamming his back against a rock. Waterfall spray drenched Riven's clothes. He coughed, holding his chest, then stood up steadily.
Riven laughed and then said, "Is that all you've got? That's just an ant bite to me!"
Su Ling advanced, exchanging attacks with Riven. Their movements were very fast. Su Ling was actually surprised by the change in Riven's mana. The youth he thought was an idiot skillfully held off his moves. Su Ling spun around; a gust of wind from his movement appeared until a kick landed squarely on Riven's chest. Su Ling gritted his teeth, then his hand was directed toward a large rock that lifted and he threw it toward Riven.
Riven immediately jumped, but it was too late; the rock hit his shoulder. He fell down. Riven felt his shoulder bone break.
Su Ling stood above a small vortex of wind, with two stones floating in the air in his hands.
"Stop what you are doing, Su Ling! Do you want to kill your own brother?!" Wei Feng appeared from the edge of the river. Su Ling was shocked to see him and immediately knelt on the ground toward Wei Feng.
Wei Feng flew and approached Riven.
"I never taught you to hate each other. Especially you, Su Ling, what was your Elder Brother's mistake? Oh Heavens, forgive the mistakes of my grandsons."
Su Ling stood up and lowered his gaze from Wei Feng.
Riven stood up, holding his shoulder, which was throbbing with pain.
"Your shoulder bone is broken, you must see a physician. And you, Su Ling, apologize to your Elder Brother. You are always bothering him."
Su Ling raised his gaze to Wei Feng. His heart felt hot, his emotions overflowing. "I will not apologize to him, Grandfather. I hope you understand, this is a matter between the two of us."
"Su Ling!" Wei Feng stared sharply at Su Ling. "Your fighting will only bring shame to our clan. The strength you possess is not for hurting each other."
"I apologize, Grandfather. I promise not to bring shame to our clan." Su Ling bowed his head respectfully and walked away from the place. His hands were clenched. His teeth were tightly shut.
Riven snorted, watching Su Ling's back. He vowed in his heart to increase his strength. Riven was quite confident in his current ability. And that made him even more excited to bring down Su Ling.
"Come on, let's treat your wound, Son."
Riven smiled faintly as he walked beside Wei Feng. "I'm fine, Grandfather. It's just a small injury."
"Yes, you can say that later," Wei Feng said with a sigh.
Crack!
"OUCH! DAMN IT—!"
Wei Feng covered Riven's mouth with a handkerchief and glanced at his grandson's shoulder. The repair of Riven's dislocated joint cost him his dignity. This was evident from the veins in Riven's neck and his face, which had turned red. He gritted his teeth, glaring fiercely at the physician who dared to make him feel such deep pain. He never expected such a small injury to make him suffer half to death. Being gagged like a cat was the second blow to his pride in front of Wei Feng and the physician.
I will kill you, Su Ling, Riven thought, enduring the pain. He chuckled softly, his mind starting to plan every way possible to murder the man.
"How is his shoulder?" Wei Feng asked, removing the cloth from his grandson's mouth.
"The shoulder bone is back in place. Fortunately, his body's resilience is strong; the wound on his shoulder is quickly closing up." Roy-Ziro put his medical equipment back into his box.
Riven leaned his head back against the bed's headboard. He let out a heavy sigh. His shoulder was now wrapped in cloth. Sweat drenched his shirtless body.
"Please don't tell Mother about this incident," Riven said to the physician.
"Yes, Young Master. I will keep this incident a secret from Madam."
Riven didn't want to worry his Mother. After all, he had made a promise to his Father.
The door to Riven's room suddenly opened, and Lan Xue appeared, looking worriedly at Riven. The next moment, the girl screamed, covered her eyes, and hastily left Riven's room. Riven, witnessing this, almost laughed if he wasn't thinking about his dignity in front of the two men. Riven smiled slightly. Did he look very charming? He was indeed a ladies' idol during his high school days.