Chapter 192: Chapter 190: Profound Island, Qin Family
Qinling Mountain had no idea when the Qin Family had offended that vindictive Sect. Why else would they spread such vicious rumors targeting the Qin Family? The two were a thousand miles apart and ordinarily had no dealings with each other whatsoever!
It is said that rumors die with the wise, but the problem was, how many wise people were there in this world? He had heard plenty of stories where a lie, told often enough, became the truth.
While great strength didn’t guarantee one would make it to the end, it certainly improved the odds. Typically, if a family like the Qin Family truly produced a once-in-a-generation genius, they would most likely keep them hidden.
If such a genius were revealed, the family’s strength might not be enough to protect them. Although most families and Sects wouldn’t resort to such despicable acts, it takes all sorts to make a world. There were plenty of people with ill intentions, and there was no guarantee that someone, out of jealousy or some other twisted motive, wouldn’t try to harm the family’s prodigy.
This wasn’t just because of the Venerable Tournament; many other factors were at play, such as the principle that one family’s rise necessitates another’s decline.
In recent decades, the Qin Family had indeed produced some highly talented disciples who reached the ninth rank of the Celestial Level in their twenties. They were all considered future stars of the family.
But forget the Qin Family—in the entire Profound Island, there had never been anyone who reached the Celestial Shattering Realm at the age of sixteen or seventeen!
Even Qinling Mountain himself, hailed as the prodigy of his generation, had only entered the Celestial Shattering Realm at twenty-six. At the time, he too was secretly hidden away, unknown to the outside world.
However, Qinling Mountain hadn’t gotten far in the Venerable Tournament. He had the terrible luck of running into a ninety-nine-year-old expert at the Celestial Integration Realm and was eliminated immediately.
He considered it the regret of his lifetime.
Naturally, Qinling Mountain wouldn’t ignore the Thousand Kills Sect’s provocation. He sent someone to the Sect to inquire, but the answer he received made him curse at its absurdity.
They actually claimed that a Qin Family disciple, sent out to gain experience, had returned from the Mortal Realm and started a conflict by harassing a female disciple of the Thousand Kills Sect. The fight supposedly ended with the Thousand Kills Sect disciple gravely injured and an arm crippled.
What infuriated Qinling Mountain the most was that not only had the Thousand Kills Sect framed the Qin Family, but they had gone even further... demanding the Qin Family hand over the culprit!
This was simply outrageous!
Qinling Mountain actually wished his family truly had such an outstanding descendant. If such a disciple existed, and they could protect him properly, it wouldn’t be many years before the mere Thousand Kills Sect would no longer dare to provoke the Qin Family!
One person’s power might be limited, but it all depended on the person!
’What if they were in the Venerable Realm?’
But after thinking it over, Qinling Mountain decided to ask around within the family. After all, the Qin Family had dozens of young disciples from the direct lineage, and the number from concubines and collateral branches was even greater—at least several hundred.
The answer he received was that not a single young disciple was out gaining experience in the Mortal Realm!
Though the Qin Family was large, its rules were extremely strict. For instance, they stipulated that there must be at least a twenty-year interval between family members being sent to the Mortal Realm for training!
This was to prevent family members from being seduced by the decadent temptations of the Mortal Realm. Upon their return, they were required to undergo arduous training.
In fact, this was the very reason why Qin Wenxuan had told Qin Hanyue back then that he had to wait twenty years before he could come back for her. At that time, the equally young Qin Wenxuan had never considered what two decades meant. For the powerful Martial Artists of Profound Island, it was nothing. But for an ordinary woman from the Mortal Realm, it was long enough for her youthful bloom to fade and her hair to turn white.
Fortunately, before he left, Qin Wenxuan had given Qin Hanyue combat techniques, a Cultivation Technique, and enough Elixirs to rapidly increase her strength.
Within ten years, Qin Hanyue had transformed from an ordinary Martial Artist into a Celestial Level expert, which preserved her youthful appearance. But her heart... was it still stuck in that innocent, carefree time when she was seventeen or eighteen?
Qin Wenxuan was from Qinling Mountain’s great-grandson’s generation. Initially, Qinling Mountain didn’t have a strong impression of this junior with above-average aptitude. He only remembered that the young man had completed a family trial to escape an arranged marriage and enter the Mortal Realm for training. After returning, he had continued to refuse any marriages the family arranged for him. At the time, Qinling Mountain found his great-grandson to be a bit stubborn and wasn’t particularly fond of him.
According to Qin Family rules, once a disciple successfully passed the trial, the family was forbidden from forcing them into marriage. Therefore, for over a decade, Qin Wenxuan remained single, focusing on his cultivation in seclusion.
Five years ago, he finally broke through to the Celestial Shattering Realm, earning a respectable status within the Qin Family.
But what truly left a deep impression on Qinling Mountain about this young man from his great-grandson’s generation was an incident three years ago.
A Celestial Level woman from the Mortal Realm, accompanied by a young girl, had not only managed to enter Profound Island but had also found the Qin Family in Fengsha City and declared herself to be Qin Wenxuan’s wife!
The woman, named Qin Hanyue, was divinely beautiful, causing a huge stir throughout the entire Qin Family. Many finally understood why Qin Wenxuan had remained single for over a decade—he had already found his love in the Mortal Realm.
Qinling Mountain was quite pleased at the time and personally went to meet her. When he saw the young girl beside his great-grandson’s wife call her "mother," he felt a slight pang of regret. ’It would have been even more perfect if it were a grandson!’ he thought.
Qinling Mountain’s happiness didn’t mean the Qin Family encouraged its disciples to find wives in the Mortal Realm; rather, it was because Qin Hanyue was simply flawless in every aspect!
Furthermore, Qin Wenxuan was the seventh son of the eldest grandson from the main branch of the direct lineage!
He already held a considerable status in the family by birth, and he was also young and promising, with impressive strength. Because of this, Qinling Mountain had arranged a rather grand wedding ceremony for Qin Wenxuan and Qin Hanyue.
And Qin Hanyue lived up to everyone’s expectations. After formally marrying into the Qin Family, she began managing the family’s business while continuing her cultivation. The Qin Family of Fengsha City was a family that dealt in Elixirs!
Qin Hanyue managed a large Elixir Shop. The once-average storefront became well-organized and incredibly prosperous under her management.
Her adopted daughter, Qin Xue, served as the shop’s supervisor. Her sweet looks and gentle temperament won the respect and affection of the customers.
In Fengsha City, the Qin Family’s influence was immense, so almost no one dared to cause trouble at their shop. As a result, Qin Hanyue and Qin Xue had lived very comfortably for the past three years, and their strength had also improved dramatically!
Of course, the Qin Family was a large clan, not a monolithic entity. There was always some internal discord, and Qin Hanyue’s beauty and competence aroused the jealousy of some of the women in her generation.
However, after learning what Qin Hanyue had gone through over the past thirteen years, Qin Wenxuan was filled with immense guilt and was extremely protective of the mother and daughter. Additionally, since they didn’t live in the Qin Family’s ancestral home, they rarely encountered those people, so nothing major had ever happened.
Over the past three years, Qin Hanyue’s only persistent worry was her precious son. She even felt a little regret. ’If I had known things would go so smoothly, why didn’t I bring my child with me back then? I always thought leaving him in the Mortal Realm would temper his character, help him grow from a fledgling into a mighty eagle soaring through the heavens.’
But a mother’s heart is always connected to her child. ’Here on Profound Island, cultivation speed is several times faster than in the Mortal Realm. If my son could have been here for these past three years, then even if he didn’t become a pillar of the Qin Family, at the very least... it would be better than suffering and struggling out there, right?’
But the Qin Family’s rules were strict, and no disciples had been sent out for training in recent years. So, Qin Hanyue could only worry helplessly, with no way to do anything. Fortunately, she occasionally corresponded with Shangguan Shiyu of the Four Seasons Sect. Learning that Shangguan Shiyu held a very high position in her Sect brought her some comfort.
However, a new worry also surfaced in Qin Hanyue’s mind.
’My prospective daughter-in-law is so outstanding! In a few years, will she still think my son is good enough for her?’
Qin Hanyue and the others heard about the incident with the Thousand Kills Sect right away. Qin Xue even joked at the time, "Could it be that brother has entered Profound Island?"
Qin Hanyue replied, "How could that be possible? Didn’t you hear? The person is at the Celestial Integration Realm." Four years ago, when they left Yellow Sand City, what was Qin Li’s strength? ’It seemed to be only the fourth rank of the Profound Level, right?’
’What kind of genius could cultivate to the Celestial Shattering Realm in just four years?’
So, even when Qinling Mountain had someone ask if any family members were training in the Mortal Realm, Qin Hanyue didn’t think of her son. Her husband, Qin Wenxuan, however, knew he had a son in the Mortal Realm.
Although all parents under heaven believe their own child is the most outstanding, he couldn’t imagine, no matter how hard he tried, that his son who had suffered for sixteen years in the Mortal Realm could achieve the same level of success as him.
’If that were the case, what had he been doing for the past forty years of his life?’
However, when Qin Wenxuan heard that his great-grandfather, the Patriarch, was asking if the Qin Family had any disciples training in the Mortal Realm, he felt it was a good opportunity to bring the matter to light.
After all, it had taken him several days to accept the fact that he was a father. Before Qin Hanyue arrived, Qin Wenxuan was, in everyone’s eyes, a bona fide... young man!
So, Qin Wenxuan, now approaching middle age with a dignified and imposing bearing, went to the Qin Family’s ancestral home. He was prepared to tell his great-grandfather, the Patriarch, everything. Even if his great-grandfather blamed him, he would accept it.
’Because he was a father now. It was time for him to start shouldering the responsibilities of a man!’
"What? Wenxuan, my great-grandson, you... you’re saying your wife... really left a boy behind in the Mortal Realm? And he’s sixteen this year?"
The expression on Qinling Mountain’s face was like that of a man walking through a desert who suddenly spots an oasis, only to fear it might be a mirage...
"Ye-yes, Great-Grandfather. Is... is this matter very important?"
