When the carriage reached the Xing Clan gates, Hanxu froze.
Hundreds of lanterns were hung across the archway.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4PHeK8YqOU
Golden banners fluttered in the afternoon light.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo8wcoITOqd
Children lifted flower petals to throw.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN103aFebJX
Clansmen lined the entrance in formal robes.
“Welcome home, Young Master Hanxu!”
The cheer rose like thunder.
Hanxu’s heart stuttered.
From the top of the stairs, Patriarch Xing Zhenyu stood proudly.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWKyMfC5Gg8
Beside him was his eldest son Xing Yichen, calm and steady.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrdWtZ3oqZL
Next to him, Xing Rongyue, smiling brightly with Long Wenxi at her side.
And in front of them all—
Xing Liuyue.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZH9O2cIvsS
His father.
As Hanxu stepped down from the carriage, Liuyue walked toward him slowly, as if afraid the boy would vanish if he moved too fast.
Hanxu’s vision blurred.
“Ah-Zhen,” Liuyue whispered.
Hanxu didn’t respond with words.
He ran — and Liuyue caught him in his arms.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0lXio7bjoD
The boy’s shoulders shook violently as he buried his face in his father’s chest.
Everyone quietly looked away, giving them space.
Even the toughest elders felt their throats tighten.
Soon, Jianxu and Tianyao burst from the side corridor, yelling,40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa3hZ04kPb1
“COUSIN! YOU’RE FINALLY HOME!”
And the three boys collapsed into a pile of laughter and wrestling on the steps, rolling around like puppies while the entire clan watched helplessly.
Xing Rongyue laughed until tears fell.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2FIxmcDSL6
Yichen shook his head.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡruWvMD83O5
Zhenyu sighed as if the heavens had cursed him with three disasters.
But he was smiling.
Later that evening, Patriarch Zhenyu led Hanxu into the ancient hall, lit with quiet lanterns and incense coils.
The ancestors’ tablets lined the altar.
“Bow,” Zhenyu said softly. “You are part of this lineage.”
Hanxu obeyed—40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnqc15Eo3fS
until he saw a name he had never expected to see.
Sheng Linyue40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2oWnmCJAxM
— Beloved Daughter of the Shengs40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJYk86z5za7
— Beloved Wife of the Xings40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ35cUgTGxZ9
— Mother of Xing Hanxu
His breath broke.
His knees collapsed.
He pressed his forehead to the floor, sobbing so hard the hall trembled.
Liuyue knelt behind him, his hand gently placed on Hanxu’s back.
“She would have loved you,” he whispered.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOkZUFWbn8t
“More than her own life.”
Hanxu cried until there were no tears left.
Night deepened.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXBaFVoqTgT
Stars flickered coldly over the rooftops.
In the clan meeting chamber, only five people sat:
Patriarch Xing Zhenyu40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1XiAsz8Lcy
Xing Yichen40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvyhQx4sGKc
Xing Rongyue40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxOL0q7ZtMK
Long Wenxi40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVNFIHD2ydE
Xing Liuyue
A single lantern glowed on the table, casting shadows like blades.
Yichen began, “The rumors are spreading faster. Villages claim a pendant was found — a cursed one. Those who touched it lost their minds.”
Long Wenxi added, “Some say it’s a relic from Heiwu Sect. Something they used to manipulate souls.”
At the word Heiwu, the room chilled.
Rongyue exhaled shakily.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDJx5X4d6g2
“Can they really be returning?”
Zhenyu’s expression darkened.
“Whether rumor or truth, the world is uneasy. We cannot ignore it.”
He turned toward Liuyue.
“As Bingyan Zun, as the world’s guardian, this task falls to you.”
Liuyue bowed his head.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhxFlJtAZZ7
“I will leave tomorrow.”
Wenxi frowned.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvG4x6woU64
“Are you sure? You only just reunited with Hanxu.”
Liuyue’s voice was soft but firm.
“The world cannot fall while he lives in it.”
Zhenyu stepped forward, placing a steady hand on his son’s shoulder.
“Go. Do what must be done.40Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ91vwdmb4vx
And do not fear — as long as I draw breath, nothing will ever touch your child.”
Liuyue lowered his eyes.
“Then I entrust him to you, Father.”
Outside the room, on the porch, Hanxu, Jianxu, and Tianyao were still laughing and playing, unaware of the storm about to fall upon the martial world.
And as Liuyue watched his son through the window—
His resolve hardened like forged steel.
The world was whispering of the return of Heiwu.
And Liuyue would be the first to face the shadow.
For his clan.
For his world.
For his son.
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