Chapter 4: Brothers

The next morning.

In the city of Yishui, at the Longshan Pavilion.

Every city in this world has a Longshan Pavilion! The one within Yishui City is an ancient five-story stone tower.

The entrance to the Longshan Pavilion is guarded by powerful knights. No commoners or nobles dare approach within ten meters of the main gate; anyone who dares to approach might be killed on the spot—even nobles are not spared!

An old man in a white robe and white hair ran swiftly into the Longshan Pavilion.

“Master Youtu,” greeted the two armored guards at the entrance respectfully.

“Is the Pavilion Master in?” the white-haired old man asked.

“He is. But he hasn’t looked too well since early this morning,” said one of the tall armored guards.

The old man entered the Longshan Pavilion and made his way to the third floor.

Knock, knock.

“Come in,” a voice called from inside.

The old man pushed open the door and closed it behind him. Inside, there was a smooth, dark-yellow long table, stacked with piles of papers and books. Sitting behind the table was a middle-aged man with black hair, flipping through a thick dossier.

This man was none other than the Pavilion Master of Yishui City’s Longshan Pavilion—Master Si An!

“Youtu, what news?” Master Si An lifted his head.

“The information has been confirmed. Last night, Lord Dongbo and Lady Xueying from Xueying Domain were taken away,” the old man said. “The guards at Xueshi Castle resisted briefly, but were struck down in an instant beneath lightning.”

“Hmph, the Mo Yang Clan is truly ruthless!” Master Si An frowned. “I only received word from the Prefecture City yesterday, and yet they took them away in the night.”

The Longshan Pavilion itself was highly structured and disciplined.

There were nineteen provinces in the Empire.

Each provincial capital had a central Longshan Pavilion Tower, wielding a secret and formidable power.

Provincial capitals, prefecture cities, and county-level cities—

These three tiers of governance ensured that the entire realm remained under surveillance.

“Who can blame them? The Mo Yang Clan is among the top ten families in the Eastern Province,” the old man said.

“Hmph,” Master Si An scoffed. “The Mo Yang Clan is only the weakest among the top ten families of the Eastern Province! They only hold that rank because of the lingering prestige of their ancestors. Without that, they wouldn’t even make the top ten.”

“Still, they are a colossal force that could crush us with the slightest exertion of power,” the old man sighed. “Poor things, now only two children remain in Xueying Domain. I heard from my sources that their two-year-old son cried nonstop after his parents were taken. Many soldiers and servants in Xueshi Castle were heartbroken over it.”

“Lord Dongbo and Lady Xueying were indeed beloved by their people,” Master Si An nodded.

…

Atop the highest mountain in Xueying Domain, Xueshi Mountain, within the magnificent Xueshi Castle.

Within the castle, servants whispered in hushed tones, but thanks to the presence of the lion warrior Tong San and the six-armed serpent demon Zong Ling, the castle continued to function as usual.

Though it was already daytime,

Young Qing Shi had only just calmed down. Ever since his parents were taken, he had cried nonstop, and no one could soothe him! He had always been raised by his mother, a sorceress whose voice carried a natural lullaby-like charm, making it easy to put him to sleep. But now, traumatized, the child had left everyone at their wits’ end.

The lion warrior Tong San and the serpent demon Zong Ling—Qing Shi had always feared them both, and the maids had never taken care of him at night. So it was Dongbo Xueying himself who had to do it.

Though his heart was heavy with grief, he had to suppress his sorrow and comfort his younger brother. Finally, by daylight, his little brother had grown exhausted and seemed to forget what had happened. After all, he was only two years old—perhaps, as he grew older, he wouldn’t even remember what had occurred last night.

“There, there, my little stone, go to sleep.”

“I want to sleep with my brother.”

“Okay, am I not right here beside you?”

“Brother, I want you to sing me a song.”

“…”

Gradually, the tired little boy finally fell asleep on Dongbo Xueying’s chest. Xueying dared not move, for fear of waking his brother.

By evening,

Zong Ling and Tong San arrived outside the room.

“I’ll check,” Zong Ling whispered, gently pushing the door open and peering inside. He saw the chubby little Qing Shi sprawled across his older brother’s chest, drool dripping onto his brother’s shirt. Dongbo Xueying had also fallen asleep, his clothes disheveled, and only half-covered by the blanket.

Tong San also peeked through the crack, watching the two brothers huddled together, and felt a pang of sorrow in his heart.

“Stone was always taken care of by Mother. He’s never been looked after by the maids. He’s always been afraid of us two… What will we do now? Will Xueying have to comfort him to sleep every night?” Zong Ling murmured with concern.

“Xueying, get some more sleep,” Zong Ling said as Xueying quietly moved his brother aside and got up.

“You haven’t slept much at all, have you?” Zong Ling added. He knew that Xueying must have barely rested at all.

Indeed, Xueying had barely slept. His mind was in turmoil, and he had been soothing his brother all night. He had only dozed off from sheer exhaustion, and his sleep was very light. As soon as Zong Ling and Tong San arrived, he had woken up. Fortunately, his constitution was extraordinary, so he could endure it.

“It’s fine, Uncle Zong, Uncle Tong. Stone was always taken care of by Mother. He’s never been looked after by anyone else,” Dongbo Xueying said. “Now that my parents have been taken away, the truth cannot be hidden. I can’t possibly let the servants take care of him now! And he’s afraid of you two… So I’ll take care of him. It’s only for bedtime. During the day, I can just have someone keep an eye on him.”

“During the day, he’s inside the castle. There are plenty of people around. It’ll be fine,” Tong San said.

“Then we’ll rely on you. Once Stone grows a little older, things will get better,” Zong Ling added.

“Mm,” Dongbo Xueying didn’t say much more. After all, this was his only younger brother. With his parents taken, he had to take good care of him.

“By the way, Uncle Zong, Uncle Tong, earlier you said that if I received the Longshan Pavilion’s Black Iron Token, I would know everything. How exactly do I obtain this Black Iron Token?” Dongbo Xueying asked urgently.

Zong Ling and Tong San exchanged helpless glances.

This child clearly hadn’t forgotten his parents’ plight for a moment.

“When your strength is sufficient, the Longshan Pavilion will naturally deliver the Black Iron Token to you,” Zong Ling replied.

“Strength sufficient? How strong is that?” Xueying asked.

“Your father, Uncle Tong, and I ourselves don’t even have the Black Iron Token,” Zong Ling said. “When you become strong enough, and the Longshan Pavilion recognizes you, they will certainly send it.”

Dongbo Xueying now understood.

To obtain the so-called ‘Black Iron Token,’ he would first have to surpass even Uncle Zong and Uncle Tong!

“I understand,” Dongbo Xueying said without further questions.

“How long has Stone been asleep?” Zong Ling asked.

“Almost three hours,” Xueying replied.

“Then it’s time to wake him up. It’s already evening now. He hasn’t eaten much all day after all. Let him have dinner. Then let the maids play with him a bit… That way, he’ll be able to sleep peacefully at night. Otherwise, if we let him sleep now, he’ll be up crying in the middle of the night,” Zong Ling said.

…

Night had fallen.

Inside the dining hall, at a rectangular table, Dongbo Xueying sat at the head, with his younger brother Qing Shi beside him. Servants brought in dishes of food.

Xueying’s meal consisted of some fruit juice and carefully prepared magical beast meat, while his younger brother had beast milk and grains.

Qing Shi ate happily, and Xueying smiled as he watched him. Yet his heart was heavy. Not long ago, his parents had also sat at this table. Now only he and his brother remained.

“Are you full?” Xueying asked.

“Mm, full! Very full!” Qing Shi patted his little belly and curiously asked, “Where are Mother and Father? Why aren’t they here? Are they still sleeping?”

“They’ve gone out. Stone, how about we go play in the backyard?” Xueying replied.

“The backyard! Let’s go to the backyard!” Qing Shi was immediately distracted. The backyard had many places to play, specially built by their mother for the two brothers. Even as a child, he had loved playing there. There were even some magical artifacts.

“Take Master Qing Shi to the backyard and watch over him carefully,” Dongbo Xueying said to the three maids standing nearby.

“Yes, sir.”

The three maids bowed respectfully. They all knew that from today onward, this young master was now the sole master of Xueying Domain.

As the maids led his brother downstairs, Dongbo Xueying leaned on the railing, watching the backyard. More than twenty crystal lamps illuminated the garden. More than ten servants were already there to play with the child. Such a large number of attendants had been carefully selected for their loyalty.

Then Dongbo Xueying rose and made his way to his study.

The study was large—six meters high, fifteen meters long, and ten meters wide. For a castle that spanned two miles, such a study was quite ordinary.

Inside, there was a desk, and the shelves were filled with countless books, many of them novels and stories. In the past, Dongbo Xueying had loved reading tales, and his mother had collected many books for him.

Sitting at the desk, he reached into his sleeve and pulled out a golden-leaf book.

“A secret manual on the spear techniques of Transcendent Knights?” Dongbo Xueying quickly opened the book and began to read.