Chapter 153: Chapter 153: Return to the Chu Kingdom
"Wow, Yanyan flew into the sky!"
Above the mountains, Ji Chen took Qu Luoning and Yanyan across the sky.
Yanyan found this incredibly novel and was exceedingly excited.
Ji Chen chuckled as he held her, "When Yanyan grows up, you’ll be able to fly by yourself."
Even now, he still found it somewhat unbelievable.
He never imagined that not only did he survive and come out of the Immortal Burial Forest alive, but also became a father.
"Are we going straight back to the Lingyun Sect?" Qu Luoning inquired.
Even now, she still had white hair but youthful features. It was said that those who practiced the Path of Emotionlessness would remain that way, even after self-severing.
"Almost, but first let’s stop by Yang City to see your father and mother," Ji Chen responded.
He understood that Qu Luoning missed the Chu Kingdom, having been away for several years.
"By the way, do they know about Yanyan?" Ji Chen asked.
Qu Luoning shook her head, "I returned to the Chu Kingdom three years ago, when I had already given birth to Yanyan. I temporarily left her at Kunlun and said goodbye to my father and mother before taking Yanyan to Zhou Village."
"My father has already retired and now holds the position of Supreme Elder, and my mother is also at the Lingyun Sect. When they see you, they should be very happy," Ji Chen said with a smile.
Hearing this, Qu Luoning couldn’t help but feel a bit nervous.
After all, this was considered her first official meeting with Ji Chen’s parents.
Soon after, after nearly ten days of flying at high altitudes, Ji Chen and his family of three finally entered the territory of the Profound Domain.
The Chu Kingdom, after moving its capital south, is now located in Yang City, not far from the Lingyun Sect.
After years of development, Yang City had transformed significantly and became far more prosperous than many could have imagined.
Ji Chen brought Qu Luoning and Yanyan down into the city, and to avoid alerting anyone, he directly led Qu Luoning and her daughter quietly into the Imperial Palace.
Despite the heavy guards of the palace, with Ji Chen’s current cultivation, this was not a difficult task for him at all.
In an ancient hall, which is the Emperor Chu’s study, he was currently engrossed in reading some memorials.
Ji Chen brought Qu Luoning and Yanyan into the hall, without letting the guards outside notice anything.
"Who goes there?"
When Ji Chen and the others approached, Emperor Chu finally sensed something, looked up suddenly, with a wary expression on his face.
Clearly, someone being able to sneak into his study unnoticed and appear before him naturally made Emperor Chu cautious.
But as soon as he saw Qu Luoning, he was taken aback.
"Luoning?"
He instantly recognized his daughter, and joy spread across his face as he stood up to greet her.
"Father!"
Qu Luoning was also somewhat excited. After three years, her father appeared much older than she had imagined, with streaks of white showing in his hair.
"And you are..."
After a warm exchange between father and daughter, Emperor Chu turned his attention to Ji Chen, who was standing behind Qu Luoning.
The white-clad young man holding a little girl appeared very familiar to him.
"Ji Chen?"
Quickly, Emperor Chu realized.
Recalling the last time he saw Ji Chen, it was more than four years ago during the Queen of Chu’s birthday celebration.
Even then, he could tell that Ji Chen was extraordinary and knew that he would be a dragon among men in the future.
Facts had proven him right.
Not long after the Queen’s birthday celebration, Ji Chen became renowned in the Profound Domain and later, in Bicheng, survived the Nine Dragon True Tribulation, astounding the world with the Nine Veins.
He also became aware of the relationship between his daughter and Ji Chen.
Four years ago, Ji Chen, severely injured by the Great Dao, ventured into the Immortal Burial Forest alone, and the world thought he had perished in the Forbidden Mountain.
But recently, news came from Yao City in the Nether Realm.
The prodigy who once became famous for the Nine Spirit Veins had returned.
In Yao City, he went on a killing spree, slaying thousands of Ancient Race cultivators.
Had it not been for the intervention of an Ancestral King, who descended from the skies to break Ji Chen’s grand array, likely even more Ancient Race cultivators in Yao City would have been killed.
It is said that after the array was broken, Ji Chen fled and was pursued by an Ancient King and over a dozen Ancient Race experts for thousands of miles, but eventually escaped without a trace by retreating into the mountains.
Since then, no one had known Ji Chen’s whereabouts.
No one expected that a month later, today, he would return to the Chu Kingdom with Qu Luoning.
"This child is..."
In his surprise, Emperor Chu’s gaze fell on the little girl in Ji Chen’s arms.
"My name is Ji Yan."
The little girl was well-behaved and not shy at all, blinking her big eyes at Emperor Chu, "Are you Yanyan’s grandpa?"
"Grandpa?"
Emperor Chu froze for a moment, looking at Ji Chen, then at Qu Luoning, as if he understood something.
"Three years ago when I returned to the Chu Kingdom, Yanyan had just been born, and I did not inform my father and mother about her..."
Qu Luoning spoke, briefly explaining the situation.
"Good, good, good..."
Emperor Chu was overjoyed, shedding tears of joy. No matter what, his daughter had been gone for three years, leaving no news. Her safe return was already a great joy for him.
Not only that, but there was an extra surprise; he happily took Yanyan into his arms.
Soon, Queen of Chu also heard the news and hurried over immediately.
After Ji Chen paid his respects to the two elders, knowing that Qu Luoning had many things to discuss with them, he temporarily left with Yanyan.
...
Anomaly Pavilion, located in the southern part of the city, was the largest branch of the Alchemy Master Alliance in the Profound Domain today.
Ji Chen brought Yanyan here.
Standing outside the Anomaly Pavilion, looking from afar, one could see that the Anomaly Pavilion was a nine-story building, appearing extraordinarily majestic and bustling.
Because it was in a busy area, and due to the Anomaly Pavilion’s growing reputation over the years, it attracted many visitors daily.
Ji Chen, holding Yanyan, entered the Anomaly Pavilion, intending to catch up with Zhuang Miao, Li Huayuan, and others, and introduce Yanyan to them.
"Move aside quickly, don’t block Master Zheng’s path."
Just as he entered the Anomaly Pavilion, such a voice came from in front of Ji Chen.
Looking around, he saw a young man coming out of the pavilion, followed by several supporters. Seeing Ji Chen blocking their way, one of them directly shouted, "What are you staring at? Didn’t you hear me?"
Ji Chen’s brows furrowed immediately. He did not know who this young man was, but his entrance was quite grand.
He did not intend to engage them, but when the speaker saw that Ji Chen was still standing there unmoved, he was about to make a move.
Seeing his overbearing demeanor, Yanyan was quite frightened and quickly nestled into Ji Chen’s arms.
"Truly blind, daring to block Master Zheng’s path?" The speaker was a middle-aged man, and as he spoke, he reached out his hand to push Ji Chen away.
"Bang!"
However, the next moment, a cold snort escaped from Ji Chen, and then the middle-aged man flew out unexpectedly.