Reunions were wondrous things in the vast world of cultivation. Sometimes, they were dreaded. Sometimes, they were hoped for with all one's heart. Sometimes, they were things that would never, ever, ever occur, divided by continued life and eternal death. They inspired one to dream, tempered Hearts of Cultivation, and forged goals on many paths of life.
Entering the Yang Mountain Realm, Wei Wuyin's gaze which had experienced the harshest of tragedies, peered into the Heavenly Daos, lived through Hell, and inspected the Void was honed onto a single location. The highest peak on the highest mountain of this dazzlingly golden realm.
A single familiar figure stood there, looking upwards, returning his gaze with wet eyes. The mountain of a man was larger than he remembered, clearly having grown up these last few decades. While his beady eyes and the bald head remained consistent, those bulky muscles and that innately fierce presence that concealed an incomparably gentle and innocent heart long ago were greater than before. Perhaps that large body of tempered muscle no longer hid the same gentle heart that Wei Wuyin knew.
"It does." Wei Wuyin whispered. Within that figure's wet gaze, the innocent, gentle, and often underestimated intelligence of his was still there. It was still alive.
Kree!Bai Lin cried out. Her cry shook the realm. The mountain rumbled. The sky coiled and twisted. Wei Wuyin walked off Bai Lin's back and began to free-fall toward the mountain. The Fire Phoenix soared, reaching the edge of the mountain peak, digging her talons into it, as her head poked out and observed the mountain with folded wings. She was extremely fast.
The muscly titan-like figure never once moved his gaze away from the falling figure.
BOOSH!With a harsh landing with two legs, Wei Wuyin shook the entire realm, and bits of the mountain crumbled apart. He landed a few dozen feet from the figure. Dust and dirt flew, yet they swerved to the side off the natural breathing of the muscular titan-like figure. Slowly, Wei Wuyin stood as dirt and dust dispersed around him, revealing his tall stature. He was still several feet shorter, but his presence wasn't the slightest inferior.
"Cousin..." the muscular titan-like figure's voice was weak as their gazes met.
"..." Wei Wuyin's eyes sparkled. Without any further words, he kicked off, dashing forth with explosive speed. The entire realm trembled. He clenched his fist. Light twisted and gravity distorted around his fist. The mere act of closing his hand with such strength was enough to change the surroundings!
"!" Suddenly, the muscular titan-like figure's eyes were caked with wetness, and his voice was weak as a feeble wind changed. His beady eyes unleashed a ferociously powerful aura, without the slightest light emission, and it was as if the entire world became angry. The Yang Mountain Realm had dozens of mountains surrounding the single tallest mountain, and they began to release strange, deeply disturbing sounds as if they were roaring!
The solar star above illuminated the world with golden radiance!
The muscular titan-like figure clenched their fist. Without a word, he threw it forward with steady feet and a forceful stance. The air currents of the world were turbulent to an extreme.
Wei Wuyin threw his fist forward in a simple manner! It was straightforward with only physical strength backing it. It was a pure, mortal fist. It carried only the feelings carried in his heart for the last few decades! The anger! The bitterness! The worry! The happiness!
All of it directed to a single person: Wei Si!
BANG!!!The two fists collided. They made direct contact as a hollow, thunderous noise resembling a catastrophic event of planetary destruction by explosion erupted! The sound was so loud that all those within the Realm, young or old, Mortal or Ascended being, were deafened. Si Yang was hovering stealthily in the distant sky, but he was blown to the edge of the realm.
Wei Si's beady eyes shook. It was heavy! The fist that Wei Wuyin threw was extremely, almost unbearably heavy! He could only observe Wei Wuyin's silver eyes that contained endless emotions, and absorb all of those feelings into his body. The ferocious aura within him exploded ten-fold! The world screeched as a sound like the grating of a chalkboard resounded!
Wei Wuyin's eyes sparkled once again!
BOOM!!!!!An explosion of air caused the mountain to sink a thousand feet into the earth while the other mountains wailed in agony, crumbling at the edges and quivering without end.
The two fists never once separated after colliding and the two stared at each other for several seconds. Shockingly, Wei Wuyin's skin was fissuring!
"Wei Si," Wei Wuyin whispered and the ferocious aura that permeated throughout the world softened. The two shot back, skidding across the mountain's surface.
Wei Wuyin inspected his fist. There were subtle cracks on his skin and fissures in his bones. While this was his False God Avatar, it was by no means weak with Draconic Void Starforce infused with Mystic-rank Bloodline Energies circulating within it. It could exert the physical strength that was no weaker than a true Demi-Mortal Lord after he consolidated his cultivation base.
"Gahh!" A breathy exclamation came from Wei Si. "So heavy..." The titan of a man said quiveringly. He lifted his beady gaze, the desire to apologize was piercing through his very soul, but there was also an even greater emotion within. He still had a gentle, soft voice...just like all those years ago.
Bai Lin observed with golden eyes glittering. She only watched silently.
"That's the aggression I remember," Wei Wuyin commented, diffusing the tension in the air with practiced ease.
Wei Si didn't bother looking at the surrounding destruction as his heart pounded with nostalgic feelings. Wei Wuyin had often chided him for constantly launching attacks without word or reason whenever they met. He had never won an exchange when they were younger despite his imposing physique and herculean strength. Wei Wuyin's application of qi and skillful techniques often triumphed over his raw power. Moreover, his cultivation base was always lower.
That said, his combat strength was always abnormal. While he was only at the First Stage of the Qi Condensation Realm, he could exhibit the strength of a Third Stage cultivator. While he might not outright win, he could challenge them fearlessly.
"Come, come." Wei Wuyin gestured just as he had done all those years ago, always the same, "Give your cousin a proper hug."
Those words.
When they
entered Wei Si's ears, those wet eyes no longer released just a simple river, but an entire gushing waterfall of tears. Before he knew it, with heavy, thundering steps, he was already holding someone in a strong embrace. The sight of a gigantic man of muscle running with wide arms like a child and hugging another unfolded before the heavens and earth. Who wouldn't be surprised at this sight? Once again, Wei Si squeezed fiercely as if he never wanted to let Wei Wuyin go.
Wei Si feared that...he would lose Wei Wuyin again. Just like he lost his adopted father, his adopted mother, his adopted granduncle, and his entire adopted family that was massacred by those bigot bastards!
"I'm here," feeling Wei Si's strong squeeze, Wei Wuyin understood intimately all the emotions they conveyed and what trauma lay within. He whispered, "I'm still here."
"..." Wei Si cried harder than he'd ever done today, and harder than he would ever in his lifetime.
After ten or so minutes, the two sat at the edge of the mountain as Bai Lin was being petted by Wei Si. The oaf of a child was Bai Lin's favorite playmate in the Scarlet Solaris Sect. When she was just a young crane, he would often bring her all sorts of delicious delicacies. Despite Wei Wuyin constantly telling him that she was under a strict diet to cultivate and grow, the innocent Wei Si only knew that Bai Lin loved snaking on things, and didn't care about anything else but her happiness.
Now, Bai Lin was far more intelligent and powerful than before, yet she was still as docile and comfortable with Wei Si despite the years.
Wei Wuyin was slowly retelling the stories of his journey thus far. "I saved Qing Qiumu from execution with a single sentence. The entire world went silent as I strutted around as I wished, deciding the fate of clans and prisoners alike. Hehe." Just like before, just like when with Qing Qiumu during their first meeting, Wei Wuyin spoke directly with small embellishments to enhance the story.
When meeting family, there was no need to be anything but yourself. That's how it should be. That's how it's always been. It was why his every interaction with Qing Qiumu felt noticeably different than others. Sometimes, this type of glorified storyteller would display itself before Xue Yifei.
"I whooshed across the stars through rings that could cover worlds! They grew larger and larger, and at the end, I saw the beauty of the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region...it was then that I...
"I let that idiot Alchemist pick my Chosen, and then...
"Bai Lin almost roasted an entire starfield! If they hadn't lowered their heads after trying to touch Yue Songli, my woman, I wouldn't have stopped her..."
The entire story left Wei Si incomparably interested. He listened to every syllable. At times, he would jump in with questions, and Wei Wuyin's eyes would brighten as he would delve into further details, often highlighting his own greatness. If it wasn't for the fact that every story was true, and many were known, it would be hard for anyone to believe him with his sly eyes and smug smile.
After three whole hours, Wei Wuyin finished with a heavy breath as he laid down flat on his back, looking at the golden star above and the clear skies of the realm.
"Amazing!" Wei Si exhaled breathily. Those adventurers were enough to leave a story that rivaled the immortal and hero stories of the Myriad Yore Continent. Moreover, they were real!
"Hehe," Wei Wuyin chuckled. The two sat there. It was as if time itself had turned back. When Bai Lin was a mere infant and Wei Wuyin was a Core Disciple of the Scarlet Solaris Sect. They would sit on the mountain and watch the skies.
While they weren't family by blood, they were family by the soul, forged by the bonds of tragedy, loss, and pain. It was far deeper than any bond. Unbreakable.
After several minutes of silence, Wei Si spoke: "I'm sorry."
"I know," Wei Wuyin replied. There was no need to think deeply about that apology. He knew exactly what it was meant for.
"I'm alive and well. You're alive and well. The Wei Clan's legacy and lineage is still breathing right here."
He slowly raised his upper body, his legs laid flat parallel with the mountain, using his arms to prop himself, and Wei Wuyin said firmly: "Uncle and Auntie would be proud of you. Proud of how far you've come."
"..." Wei Si's hands clenched tightly.
Wei Wuyin didn't say anything else after, waiting for Wei Si to process his thoughts and emotions. Bai Lin did the same, lying lazily next to Wei Si. She knew that Wei Si was adopted into the Wei Clan long ago. It was only because of his non-blood relation and how those monsters viewed him as a non-threat that he was 'spared' from their wrath that day.
While Wei Wuyin desperately rushed out to escape pursuit with his older brother and Du Ling, Wei Si was knocked out and kept until the bloody affair was over. And then, the next leader of Red Dove City wanted to adopt him. They wanted his genetic potential. After all, he possessed uniquely terrifying strength since young, and having that in their lineage would promote greater geniuses and innate talents amongst their descendants.
He was only spared because they wanted him to mate with the others. This wasn't an uncommon occurrence in the cultivation world either. There was a tale of a talented genius with a unique physique, a young man, who was captured by a Matriarchal Clan and was repeatedly taken advantage of for years, forced to sire many, many children.
Their actions led to the birth of a host of talented youths and the strongest eventually became the leader of a country, entering the Astral Core Realm!
The Myriad Yore Continent...
When it came to women, they would at most give birth to two or three children before expanding their potential and overworking their bodies, but men... were squeezed dry. And this lasted decades.
If Wei Wuyin hadn't come back for him before he fully matured...
"Cousin Wei, I-" Wei Si struggled and hesitated to speak, seemingly on the verge of speaking something very important.
Wei Wuyin's eyes kept staring upwards at the sky. There were a lot of curious things about Wei Si. For example, he had gone on a rampage upon learning of his death long ago, and this incident left the Scarlet Solaris Sect's Sect Master severely injured. They needed Mei Yang's presence, the Helios Witch, to stabilize their sect's fate.
How did Wei Si arrive in the Grand Cyclic Stellar Region?
From what he could tell, Wei Si felt like a titan and a human perfectly intermixed. Moreover, he wasn't a perfect hybrid like Yi Yun or a fractional hybrid like Da Shan. He had no Titan bloodline at all within him. He
could tell that at a glance.
Moreover, he wasn't in a high cultivation realm. In fact, his cultivation base was disgustingly low.
He was only at the Third Stage of the Astral Core Realm, the Soul Idol Phase. Despite that, he had the physical strength that faintly exceeded a Demi-Mystic Lord. What type of insanity was that?!
This wasn't attributed to any unique energy either. His physique was simply that strong. Just sitting down, he was absorbing yang energies like a black hole. Moreover, this was one of the only times Wei Wuyin couldn't sense any mental fluctuations from someone. It was as if Wei Si's thoughts, Sea of Consciousness, and Psyche were guarded by something instructable. There were simply too many odd things surrounding Wei Si.
"I..." Wei Si continued to hesitate with incomplete words. He looked at Wei Wuyin with clenched fists. His heartbeat was terrifyingly loud. Even those beneath the mountain could hear it.
"..." Wei Wuyin kept waiting.
And then, Wei Si finally spoke as he took a deep breath. He looked at Wei Wuyin and said:
"I was sent here to kill you."
Wei Wuyin's eyes constricted. "What?"
