Bloodline Tree – [Clan Building]

“This is a tea house my parents opened up a few years back. Have a taste,” Song Hongchi said, gesturing to the cup of tea placed in front of Shu Yang. “It’s made from the leaves of the Kinhu Tree. It’s not only delicious but also aids your cultivation.”

“Just get to the point,” Shu Yang said. “Where is Tianyi?”

“She is in my courtyard at the Song Family Mountain,” Song Hongchi answered. “Just give me the inheritance ring, and I’ll bring her out unnoticed.”

‘I really wish my Sharp Mind trait was a bit stronger so I could tell if she’s lying.’

“You want all of it?” Shu Yang asked with narrowed eyes.

“For your daughter, it’s not too much, is it?” Song Hongchi asked, “Besides, it was mine from the start. I just want back what you stole.”

“I can give you the formation inheritance. I need the resources,” Shu Yang said, figuring it wouldn’t hurt to try haggling a bit.

“Don’t be greedy,” Song Hongchi said. “You can keep the spirit stones. That’s as far as I’ll go. You should know that Ding Quang immediately revealed you are a body cultivator at the Foundation stage when he got out. That body you had me place there as a cover only caused suspicion, just like I said it would. I’m sure there are people all over looking for you right now. It would actually be in your interest to get rid of the inheritance, as you would certainly be killed if you were discovered carrying it with you.

“But if you give it to me, you can just say so to the Golden Core cultivators when they question you. They would have no reason to harm you then.”

‘They know? That really is bad news. They might already know I’m here.’

“You would accept that? Wouldn’t they just take the inheritance back from you?” Shu Yang asked, thinking hard about his options. He felt that his time was truly running out. He needed to get out of this place with his daughter as soon as possible.

“I don’t have much choice, do I? It’s not easy to fool Golden Core True People. I still hope you can get away undetected, of course. But if it comes out that I have it, I still have a plan to deal with the consequences,” Song Hongchi answered.

‘How could she possibly deal with Golden Core cultivators?’

“Well? What do you say?” Song Hongchi questioned.

Shu Yang frowned slightly. He didn’t really have much of a choice.

‘I thought I could have Xiaorong steal the ring back, but it might not be so easy.’

Shu Yang realized that if he gave her the ring, they would definitely have to settle things with a Blood Oath. Both to assure Shu Yang wouldn’t target her, and to make sure Song Hongchi held up her end of the deal and got Tianyi out of the Song Family safely.

‘Fine. If the inheritance is gone, it’s gone. I’ve made good use of the spirit stones already. Returning home with Tianyi and all those resources is more than I could have wished for when I left home.’

Still, Song Hongchi having the final laugh rubbed Shu Yang the wrong way.

Seeing how Tianyi would soon be by his side, he thought he could use his Bloodline Ability just to make sure he wasn’t being fooled.

He focused on his connection to Tianyi through the Bloodline Tree and turned his head in the direction of the Song Family.

‘Oh?’ Shu Yang felt that his daughter wasn’t where he was looking. He turned his head and finally saw her face in his vision. She was drinking tea, looking a bit nervous, but not in a bad way. She looked to be a little excited.

‘She’s not in the Song Family? Where is she then?’

Originally, Shu Yang couldn’t make out many details whenever he used Piercing Gaze to see his children. But he had a lot of practice with it over the past year, and this time, Tianyi wasn’t half a world away; she was in the same city as him.

Shu Yang tried to delicately zoom out with his vision, careful not to go too far.

He slowly saw her upper body, then the table she was sitting behind. Eventually, he saw the building she was sitting in, and he recognized the sign outside. It was the same sign that Shu Yang had seen when he entered the teahouse he was currently in.

He pulled back his vision, large parts of the city flashing before his eyes, until he finally saw the wall of the room he was sitting in, his vision returning to normal.

‘I found her!’

Shu Yang suppressed a smile with all his might and turned to Song Hongchi. “Alright. It’s a deal. I’ll go get the inheritance and return as soon as I can.”

“What do you mean ‘go get it’?” Song Hongchi asked anxiously, “You don’t carry it with you?”

“Am I that stupid?” Shu Yang asked, rolling his eyes.

“You didn’t go anywhere after leaving the flying ship,” Song Hongchi said. “Do you mean to say it’s still in Chenqi Immortal City?”

“I have my ways,” Shu Yang said with a frown. “Don’t worry, it won’t take long.”

“I’ll go with you,” Song Hongchi said, getting to her feet.

“No way,” Shu Yang said. “Just wait here and be ready to get me and Tianyi out of here. I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“Why can’t I come along?” Song Hongchi questioned.

“Do you want the inheritance or not?” Shu Yang asked.

“Fine!” Song Hongchi said through gritted teeth, “You better come back quickly.”

“Believe me. I want my daughter back more than you want the inheritance,” Shu Yang said.

Without waiting for Song Hongchi to answer, Shu Yang hurried out of the tea house. He couldn’t give her a chance to change her mind. If she caught on to Shu Yang’s plan, she could easily alert her Elders and cause all kinds of trouble for him.

Shu Yang weaved through the city streets as quickly as he could without bringing too much attention to himself. In a city like Shenchu Immortal City, it absolutely wasn’t allowed to just fly around as you wanted.

‘She’s not that far away, fortunately. I just hope nothing unexpected can happen before I get there.’

Shu Yang’s heart was beating fiercely; he was about to finally see his daughter again.

After about fifteen minutes, Shu Yang finally reached the familiar tea house. He stepped inside and was approached by a young woman, asking him if he was having tea alone or was expecting company.

“I’m here to meet someone,” Shu Yang said, looking around for Tianyi. Unfortunately, he couldn’t spot her in the public area of the tea house.

‘Song Hongchi probably put her in a private room.’

‘But this tea house should also be the property of Song Hongchi’s parents. I doubt she hasn’t given these people instructions not to let anyone disturb her.’

“Never mind, I think I came to the wrong place,” Shu Yang said, shaking his head and leaving. The woman was left standing at the entrance with a confused expression.

Shu Yang hurriedly ran to a nearby restaurant. He ordered some food and headed into the bathroom.

Taking out a stealth talisman from his storage ring, he hesitated slightly.

‘That tea house is pretty fancy. Can someone really just enter it with a stealth talisman like this?’

Shu Yang didn’t have much experience in the cultivation world, but something told him that there had to be formations against these things. At least around private rooms in luxurious establishments.

Shu Yang really didn’t want to be discovered and cause a scene, so he put the talisman back.

“Xiaorong, are you there?” Shu Yang asked in a low voice.

He felt a paw touch his cheek, and relaxed.

“I need you to go inside the tea house across the street and find Tianyi for me. Bring her to…” Shu Yang hesitated slightly. “Bring her outside the city. Through the west gate. I’ll head out in advance and wait for you there.”

He really wanted to meet up with Tianyi straight away and make sure she made it out of the city. But their reunion was bound to cause a bit of a scene. He couldn’t count on Tianyi to keep her emotions in check and just go with him without asking a bunch of questions. It was better for her to see Xiaorong first, and then quietly leave the city on her own.

‘But then again, there might be complications along the way. Xiaorong can’t really intervene, and Tianyi is just a Qi Refiner.’

“It’s okay. I know where she is,” Xiaorong said.

“Xiaorong?” Shu Yang called out. This time there was no response.

‘Whatever. What’s done is done. I’ll just keep watch over the tea house and make sure she can get out of there without any issues. Then I’ll show myself once she gets to a place with fewer people around.’

Shu Yang might be a bit too cautious. But there was no time to think, and he didn’t want to make any mistakes now that he was so close.

He stepped out of the bathroom, ignored the food he had ordered, and went out onto the street again. He took cover behind a corner and kept watch over the entrance to the teahouse.

A minute passed. Then another.

After five excruciating minutes, Tianyi finally stepped out of the teahouse. It was the first time he had seen her without using his Piercing Gaze in ten years.

Shu Yang had to hold back with all his might so he wouldn’t rush forward and hug her.

Tianyi looked up and down the street for a moment, and then opened her mouth to say something; Shu Yang guessed it was to Xiaorong, before rushing toward the western gate.

Shu Yang followed at a distance. Judging by Tianyi’s eagerness, she should have believed Xiaorong about Shu Yang’s presence.

“She left a note before leaving,” Xiaorong’s voice suddenly sounded.

‘A note? Why?’

“What did it say?” Shu Yang asked, keeping watch over his daughter.

“Don’t know. Can’t read,” Xiaorong answered.

‘Right.’

“But she said it was for Song Hongchi. To explain that she left to meet her father,” Xiaorong said.

‘Damn it! Why would she do that?’

Now time was more pressing than ever. Song Hongchi might not trust anyone enough to inform them about Tianyi’s situation, as Tianyi wouldn’t have been able to leave so easily if she did. But with that note addressed to her, someone was sure to bring it to her soon enough.

Shu Yang could only move as fast as Tianyi at the moment. There was a chance that Song Hongchi could catch up to them.

‘Maybe I should have just given her the inheritance. I really don’t like these complications.’

After 20 minutes of following his daughter, nervously looking around for anyone running after them, Shu Yang finally reached a part of the city with a lot fewer people around.

‘I can’t hold back anymore! And we need to hurry.’

Shu Yang took a couple of quick leaps forward.

“Tianyi,” Shu Yang called out in a low voice, placing his hand on her shoulder.

Tianyi jumped back and turned to face him. When she saw his face, her mouth dropped open.

“Dad?” Tianyi asked, her eyes growing moist, “Dad! You’re here. You actually came!”

Tianyi threw herself in Shu Yang’s arms, and Shu Yang squeezed her tightly.

“I’m here. I’m sorry I’m so late,” Shu Yang said, feeling himself tearing up.

“Dad, I didn’t run away. I was taken. Does Mom know I didn’t run away?” Tianyi asked through the tears.

‘What is she talking about?’

“Of course you didn’t run away. No one thinks you did,” Shu Yang said, stroking her head. Then he noticed a few people watching them across the street. “We don’t have much time. I’ll explain everything later. Right now, we need to hurry out of the city.”

Shu Yang forced himself to let go of the hug and grabbed Tianyi’s hand, pulling her with him.

“Is it because of the inheritance? Have they found you, Dad?” Tianyi asked, “Does Song Hongchi know? Did you meet her? Maybe she can help.”

Shu Yang almost stumbled.

‘Help? What has that woman been telling Tianyi?’

“It’s fine. I’ve planned everything,” Shu Yang said. “We just need to hurry.”

“What about Xiaorong?” Tianyi asked.

“She’s here,” Shu Yang said.

“I can’t see her,” Tianyi said.

Shu Yang smiled, feeling helpless. But he was happy that his daughter was still as curious as ever.

“Xiaorong is a Foundation Beast now,” Shu Yang answered. “You’ll have to advance yourself first if you want to see through her hiding abilities again.”

“Really? Is it true that you’re a Foundation cultivator as well?” Tianyi asked.

“I’ll answer all your questions later. It’s a long journey home,” Shu Yang said, turning to look at her with a smile. “Focus on running for now.”