Chapter 296: Blood Kin (Part 2)
“Are you really… my… grandfather?”
Even though all the evidence was clearly laid out before him, and the fused drop of blood was an irrefutable and unquestionable ironclad proof, he still voiced his doubt. It wasn't that he didn't believe it, but under the impact of this startling truth, his chaotic mind simply couldn't accept it all at once.
“Child… my child…” Yun Canghai's face was covered in tears. “I truly never imagined that nineteen years ago, I already had a grandson… You carry the bloodline of our Yun Clan, yet you have suffered so much… Separated from your parents at birth, never having met them to this day. I, as your grandfather, have never given you a single ounce of care. On the very first day we met, I almost killed you with my own hands… I am truly the most useless and despicable grandfather in this world… Heaven has shown mercy, allowing us to reunite as grandfather and grandson in our lifetimes. For the past hundred years, I have constantly cursed the heavens, but now… I have never thanked the heavens as much as I do today in my entire life…”
“Are you really… my grandfather?” Yun Che still muttered in a daze.
“I know I am not worthy to be your grandfather. I never gave you a shred of care, but instead dragged you into this place of calamity. It is only right for you to hate and resent me however much you want…” Yun Canghai, the mighty Demon King who shook the Huan Yao Realm and the Four Sacred Grounds, now shed tears with every word. Perhaps the tears he shed in these few hundred years combined were less than what he shed today.
Yun Che slowly stood up, looking at the old man whose clothes were tattered, whose hair was dirty and gray, and whose thin, weathered face was completely soaked with tears. A wave of intense bitterness surged into his nose… Family! The person before him was his family, his grandfather, his closest kin—the first true relative he had found in his two lifetimes!
“Grand… father…”
The two words that had once been so familiar, that he had called countless times in this life, now came out extremely rough and difficult… yet they escaped his lips uncontrollably… because in Yun Canghai's eyes, he saw the same content as in Grandpa Xiao Lie's—that kind of love that ran deep in the blood, willing to give him the entire world…
Yun Canghai's entire body stiffened, as if he were suddenly floating in a cloud. He had spent sixteen months with Yun Che, enough to have a basic understanding of him. Yun Che had astonishing talent, immeasurable potential, and a willpower that even he found awe-inspiring. His temperament was proud, sometimes wild, and his dignity was absolutely not to be violated. Someone like that—Yun Canghai never dared to hope that he would call him “Grandfather,” because all he had for Yun Che was debt and guilt. But he never expected that the title between blood relatives would be called out to him from such close proximity.
At that moment, the happiness and satisfaction he felt made him willing to die right then and there, without any regrets.
“You are willing to acknowledge me… You don’t… blame me?” Yun Canghai said with a trembling voice.
Yun Che shook his head slowly: “You are my grandfather. Without you, how could I exist in this world… You are my grandfather. How could I possibly blame you… Finally… I have finally found my family… Grandfather, you have suffered all these years.”
As his voice fell, Yun Che stepped forward and hugged Yun Canghai tightly, embracing the first family member he had ever found. There had been no upbringing between them, and there had even been hatred and enmity before. But none of that mattered anymore. He would not be aloof or stubbornly reject this sudden kinship. He would not resent his grandfather for not fulfilling a single day of his duty as a grandfather… They were family, flowing with the same blood—that was enough.
When he parted from Grandpa Xiao Lie and Little Aunt, his heart ached deeply. Two lifetimes of experience had taught him that family was something worth protecting and cherishing with everything, with a whole lifetime.
“Good child… My good child!” Embracing the grandson that heaven had sent to his side, Yun Canghai's emotional dam finally collapsed completely. He wailed loudly without any dignity left…
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“Your father’s name is Yun Qinghong. Although I am already several hundred years old, I only have your father as my only son. His talent is not bad, and like me, he awakened the Blue Arcane Firmament. Your mother’s name is Mu Yurou. She is the daughter of the ruler of the Mu Clan, one of the Guardian Clans of the Demon Emperor. Although the Twelve Guardian Clans all exist to protect the Demon Emperor Clan, there are still rifts between them. The Yun Clan and the Mu Clan have always had the best relationship. Your father and mother grew up together as childhood sweethearts. A hundred years ago, when I left the Huan Yao Realm alone, they had just gotten married.”
“Sigh. For the past hundred years, they must have worried about me a lot. The reason they risked great danger to come to the Tian Xuan Continent might be because they heard from somewhere that I was still alive… I just didn’t expect that during the time they were secretly searching for me in the Tian Xuan Continent, they would have you. It’s truly a twist of fate. I’m afraid even they themselves never saw it coming.”
The grandfather and grandson stood facing each other. After calming down, they recounted their respective experiences.
“I just don’t know how they are now. That person named Ling Kun said that although they escaped from the Tian Xuan Continent, the prolonged escape and severe injuries had nearly extinguished their life flames… Sigh!” Yun Canghai let out a long sigh, his face full of worry and melancholy… and deeply hidden hatred.
Yun Che said nothing.
Even now, he still hadn’t fully come to terms with his true background.
He was not from the Tian Xuan Continent?
His homeland was actually in another world—a world ruled by demons.
As strong as his spirit was, it was hard to completely accept and be at peace with it in such a short time.
“Although your father didn’t find me, he gained you and a true friend in the Tian Xuan Continent, which is also a huge gain.” For the person who protected his friend’s son and sent his own son into an almost certain death situation, Yun Canghai felt profound gratitude toward the one who had adopted Yun Che: “Your foster parents, are they doing well now?”
Yun Che shook his head and closed his eyes: “Not long after that, Uncle Xiao, my foster father, was questioned by a mysterious person about my parents’ whereabouts and died at that person’s hands. My foster mother soon followed him in death… Grandmother, after giving birth to Little Aunt, also fell into depression from missing her son and passed away. I didn’t even have time to see what they looked like… It was Grandpa Xiao who raised and protected me, treating me better than his own grandson. He silently endured countless grievances and mockery because of me…”
Yun Canghai was deeply shaken. After a long silence, he said in a deep voice: “Che’er, we must never forget this great kindness! That Grandpa Xiao of yours—you must honor him as your own grandfather in the future. And this great vengeance—it must be avenged!”
Yun Che nodded slowly, silently clenching his hands. He recalled the words he had spoken at Uncle Xiao Ying’s grave three years ago when he left, and he said in his heart: “Uncle Xiao, I finally know who killed you… One day, I will offer their blood at your grave!”
Yun Che lifted the pendant around his neck and asked: “Grandfather, what exactly is this thing?”
“It’s called the Reincarnation Mirror,” Yun Canghai said.
The name startled Yun Che deeply… So it really was the Reincarnation Mirror, one of the seven Mystic Heaven Supreme Treasures that Mo Li had mentioned. Then, his two unbelievable lifetimes were indeed because of it!
If it truly was the Reincarnation Mirror, it would explain most of the doubts Yun Che had held for so long. But when Yun Canghai said the name “Reincarnation Mirror,” his expression was very calm. Yun Che suppressed his emotions and tentatively asked: “What does it do?”
“I don’t know.” Yun Canghai shook his head. “I only know its name. It is a certain ‘supreme treasure’ that the Demon Emperor Clan obtained in ancient times. According to the legends of the Demon Emperor Clan, it can change a person’s fortune or even fate. If the Demon Emperor Clan ever declines, it can allow them to rise again. But no one knows how to use it, or what its true purpose is. It was entrusted to our Yun Clan by the Demon Emperor Clan for safekeeping. In all the years I guarded it, I never saw it exhibit any power response… However, for some unknown reason, this treasure became known to the Four Sacred Grounds of the Tian Xuan Continent. They call it a ‘Mystic Heaven Supreme Treasure’ and attempt to possess it. The enmity between the Huan Yao Realm and the Four Sacred Grounds all stems from it.”
Yun Che gripped the Reincarnation Mirror, lost in thought. He also had no idea how to use it. But in his two lifetimes, it had been spontaneously unleashing its heaven-defying abilities, pulling him back from death twice and altering his fate.
In the Tian Xuan Continent, after he was poisoned to death by Xiao Yulong… the Reincarnation Mirror he wore unleashed its power for the first time, causing him to be reborn in the Cang Yun Continent, but without his memories.
In the Cang Yun Continent, after he fell off a cliff and died… the Reincarnation Mirror unleashed its power a second time, bringing him back to the Tian Xuan Continent, reviving him on a body that should have been dead. This time, he retained all his memories. Although his life in the Tian Xuan Continent was interspersed with death, there was no discontinuity. The life in the Cang Yun Continent was like a dream suddenly imprinted in his memory.
According to Yun Canghai’s description, the Demon Emperor Clan had never seemed to trigger its power after obtaining the Reincarnation Mirror.
So when did it activate? Could it be at the moment of death?
Or perhaps, it had to be on a specific person?
“Before I came to the Tian Xuan Continent, I entrusted it to your father. I didn’t expect that when he came to search for me, he would bring it along… Perhaps he thought he could use it to exchange for my life. He really underestimated the shamelessness of those so-called ‘saints’!”
Yun Canghai raised his head, his gaze suddenly becoming extremely sharp and cold. He stared at Yun Che and said with unwavering determination: “Che’er! As your grandfather, I should advise you to let go of hatred, forget everything, and live a peaceful life… But I cannot do that. Our Yun Clan is a royal clan of the Huan Yao Realm. Those bearing the surname Yun may be weak, but there is not a single coward among them! I want you to remember: who harmed the foster parents who saved your life? Who harmed your birth parents, causing them to flee for their lives, their fate unknown? Who caused your grandfather to suffer a hundred years of torment? And who caused you to be separated from your parents at birth, never to meet until this day? You must engrave these hatreds deep in your heart, and never erase them until the Tian Wei Sword Domain is destroyed!”
Yun Che said nothing, only nodded slowly.
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[The matter of Yun Canghai being Yun Che’s grandfather… many people complained it was too easy to guess, lacking depth… In those chapters when the demon people appeared, why did I have Ling Kun specifically and in detail talk about his son and daughter-in-law, and list the timeline specifically? Wasn’t it so that you could guess this? If I hadn’t made such an obvious hint, you would have been hard-pressed to guess it — In summary, you guys apparently don’t like hints that are almost direct, but prefer traps with no hints and various misleading patterns that suddenly explode… In that case, the ultimate face-slapping chain of the Mars style is fully activated! If you have the guts, bring it on!]
[The above is nonsense. The key point is: For the next four days: updates will be missing! Maybe one chapter a day… maybe no updates for four days! This is also unavoidable. But it won’t be a long-term drought. To not delay the update pace, my family’s baby-making plan is being postponed indefinitely under various pressures. Huh…]
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