Chapter 567: The Young Man He Once Was
The meeting was over by the time Ye Guan returned to the main hall.
Qin Guan was the only one left in the main hall, seemingly waiting for Ye Guan.
Qin Guan smiled at Ye Guan and said, "We'll attack tomorrow."
"All right."
Qin Guan suddenly grabbed Ye Guan's hand. "Activate your Mortal Bloodline."
Ye Guan immediately activated his Mortal Bloodline, and his arms were instantly riddled with Mortal Veins.
Qin Guan stroked his Mortal Veins gently with surprise flashing in her eyes. "You truly have the Mortal Physique."
Ye Guan was somewhat surprised. "Mother, do you know anything about the Mortal Bloodline?"
Qin Guan smiled. "I know a little."
"Please tell me."
"We would have to talk about your aunt, Plain-Skirt Destiny. She's an extraordinary person, and she has never really cared about the Mortal Bloodline and the Mortal Physique. At her level, the bloodline powers have no meaning."
Ye Guan solemnly said, "So, I have no choice but to embark on this journey blind?"
Qin Guan chuckled. "Going at it blind may not necessarily be a bad thing."
Ye Guan was stunned, and then he smiled, saying, "I understand."
Ye Guan understood what Qin Guan was trying to say. In a nutshell, there were many things Ye Guan had to do by himself, and this was one of those things.
Qin Guan held Ye Guan's hand as they walked out of the hall. When they reached the door, she looked up at the sky and said softly, "Your father and I once argued about you. We argued about letting you live freely. My wish is for you to live happily and not suffer as he did."
"Then, why did you change your mind?"
"Because your father was right. Nobody wants to live an ordinary life in this kind of world. He said that we should let you choose, and you definitely wouldn't settle as a nouveau riche."
"True."
"This world needs an order. Your father was supposed to establish it, but he's not suitable."
"Is it because of his divinity?"
Qin Guan shook her head and said, "It's because of your aunt, Plain-Skirt Destiny."
Ye Guan was stunned.
"Do you know who's the most dangerous person in this world?"
"Is it... my plain-skirt aunt?"
"Bingo!"
Ye Guan was puzzled. "Why?"
Qin Guan whispered, "Because her divinity is the purest..."
Ye Guan still looked puzzled.
Qin Guan smiled at that and asked, "What do you think of her? She's pretty nice, right?"
Ye Guan nodded. "I haven't spent much time with her, but she's really nice to me."
"Well, she's only nice to you. Do you know how she treats others?" Qin Guan shook her head and said, "She'd show some humanity while she's with you and your father, but her indifference toward others is like how you would treat an ant..."
Ye Guan remained silent.
Plain-Skirt Destiny could indeed be very cold, but her coldness wasn't in a haughty way; her coldness was indeed as Qin Guan had described. It was like she was looking down on others as if she was at a height they couldn't even imagine reaching.
"Her divinity and humanity are both very pure; you could say that they're extremely pure..."
"Mother, are you worried that her divinity will one day suppress her humanity?"
"That is not going to happen, but I'm afraid she might do something unexpected. Your father is worried, too. It's a worry that did not come out of nowhere. We feel that she might do something drastic.
"That's the reason your father agreed to let her reincarnate."
An uncontrollable Plain-Skirt Destiny? Damn! Ye Guan's expression darkened. The mere thought of having to deal with an out-of-control Plain-Skirt Destiny was enough to send a shiver down Ye Guan's spine.
"She's worried about your father, and she'll stay that way until your father takes that final step. Considering that, she's not going to do certain things. However, it might be a different story once your father can finally protect himself..."
Qin Guan looked up at the sky with eyes full of worry. "She said that she wants to live once more by reincarnating. But... what is the point of that? Is it to have no regrets before taking that final step, or is it for her humanity to suppress her divinity?"
Seeing Qin Guan's worried expression, Ye Guan smiled and said, "Mother, perhaps we're both overthinking it."
Qin Guan looked at Ye Guan.
Ye Guan's expression was solemn as he said, "Plain-Skirt Aunt is not someone who can be measured by ordinary standards. Regardless of what she intends to do, I believe she won't abandon Father.
"I think it's really great to have someone or something to care about. It doesn't matter even if you're a god or a mere human. What's the point of becoming invincible when one has lost their desires and beloved ones?"
Qin Guan chuckled. "Indeed."
Ye Guan smiled. "Let Plain-Skirt Aunt and Father handle their own affairs!"
"Yes, I'll let them decide."
"Mother, I want to go somewhere else and experience things on my own once we're done with everything here."
Qin Guan was surprised. "What do you mean?"
"I want to settle down," Ye Guan said solemnly. He truly wanted to settle down. He had been missing those days in the Milky Way, and he believed that those days were what life was all about!
Moreover, Ye Guan felt that one didn't necessarily have to fight to cultivate. His circumstances had been pushing him along all this time; he had gotten really strong, but he was aware that he had reached a bottleneck. Simply put, his strength had reached a certain level, but his state of mind was lagging behind.
After a moment of silence, Qin Guan nodded and said, "All right, no matter what you do, I'll support you."
Ye Guan felt warm inside. "Thank you."
Qin Guan tapped Ye Guan's head lightly, feeling a bit dissatisfied, "Who says 'thank you' to their own mother? Don't say that next time."
Ye Guan grinned. "Okay."
Qin Guan ruffled Ye Guan's hair, and her eyes were filled with tenderness as she said, "I want you to remember that if you no longer want to shoulder these burdens one day, then go ahead and quiet. Live whatever life you want to live, and I will support you."
Qin Guan would be happy if Ye Guan managed to reach that step, but it was fine even if he couldn't reach it.
Ye Guan nodded. "Okay."
"Go ahead and greet those girls from the True Universe," Qin Guan said, smiling.
Cirou and Cizhen! Ye Guan smiled awkwardly, but he didn't say anything.
Qin Guan shook her head and said, "Handle your affairs yourself, but let me say one thing: don't disappoint them."
"I won't," said Ye Guan with a nod.
Qin Guan chuckled. "Go!"
Ye Guan nodded and turned around to leave.
Just then, Little Pagoda sighed softly.
Ye Guan was puzzled, "Little Pagoda, why sigh?"
"Nothing..." Little Pagoda whispered, "Just feeling a bit emotional."
Ye Guan asked, "What's wrong?"
"It's just that..." Little Pagoda said, "If Master's mother hadn't died back then... I believe he wouldn't have become so extreme..."
Master? Is Master Pagoda talking about Grandfather? Ye Guan's voice grew heavy as he said, "Little Pagoda, you've said that multiple times by now, but is he really that extreme?"
"Your Grandfather used to be truly indifferent to life and death, and he used to be the type to do whatever he wanted. He had endured more hardships than you and your father combined. At that time, he had neither sisters nor relatives; it felt like we were walking down the path to self-destruction rather than to the summit."
Ye Guan pondered for a moment before replying, "I'm grateful for Grandfather's past hardships. After all, his hardships had led to me and father's prosperous days."
Little Pagoda remained silent.
Soon, Ye Guan arrived at a hall where Cirou was handling official business. Her abilities were unquestionable, and her main task at the moment was to assist Qin Guan in handling a variety of affairs.
Cirou was slightly surprised to see Ye Guan. "Cijing is in the cultivation room."
With that, Cirou looked down at the documents on her desk and continued working.
"I came here to find you," said Ye Guan. Then, he smiled wryly and added, "I'm sorry."
Cirou stared calmly at Ye Guan and asked, "Do you need something?"
"Can we talk?"
Cirou gestured toward the pile of documents in front of her without saying a word.
Ye Guan remained silent as well.
After a moment of silence, Cirou nodded. "Okay."
The two left the hall and walked toward a distant garden.
Ye Guan whispered, "I'm sorry."
Cirou cast a bewildered gaze at Ye Guan.
Ye Guan smiled wryly and explained, "Actually, I've been wanting to apologize to you for a while now, but I've never really had the chance until now."
"Apologize for what?" Cirou asked.
Ye Guan whispered, "You know..."
Cirou was silent.
"I've experienced many things and learned many things. I realized that I was a bit childish. I was self-righteous, and I had been refusing to handle my affairs properly; my ridiculous ego has also led me to act in a certain extreme way..."
Ye Guan stared at Cirou and shook his head. "I feel ashamed just talking about it."
Cirou was still silent.
Ye Guan added, "After discovering my family's existence, I often thought that others were only treating me well because of my relatives. Looking back, I think I simply lacked confidence. I was not only weak, but I also had an ego along with a bad temper..."
Ye Guan looked up at the distant horizon, and his hands clenched slowly into fists.
"What kind of person would I become without my relatives? Perhaps I would still be hard-working, but there are definitely some people I'd never get to meet in my lifetime. Like you, Aunt Qingqing, and the people of the Yang Clan..."
The ruthlessness of the world became clearer and clearer to him as he climbed up the ranks. There were some circles that were simply inaccessible, and it wasn't a matter of hard work.
And there were lucky people born into those circles...
People were truly unique from one another.
Was it really my own efforts that brought me to where I am today at such a young age?
To put it harshly, even a pig could easily reach my position if they had the same headstart as me. I've been avoiding that fact all this while, and I've often boasted about relying only on myself and no one else... how absurd is this ego of mine...
Ye Guan smiled bitterly. He finally had a deeper understanding of himself.
What was scarier than ignorance was unknowingly being ignorant, and the scariest scenario that could happen was harming one's beloved ones through one's ignorance.
Ye Guan took a deep breath and stared at Cirou, "I'm really sorry..."
Just then, Cirou grabbed Ye Guan's hand.
Ye Guan was taken aback.
"There were times when you'd become unfamiliar in my eyes, and it all started when you discovered your roots. Thinking about it now, however, I realized that it wasn't actually that strange.
"I mean, who can always remain steady throughout the ups and downs of life? Who can always stay true to themselves with power in their hands? Who hasn't struggled with their identity and self-confidence?"
"I've been waiting..." Cirou trailed off. Then, she smiled before continuing, "Good thing I've been waiting for you—the young man from Ancient Desolate City..."
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