A stunned Heavenly Dao asked, "Supreme Emperor, could your senses have been mistaken? To fight you to a draw—er, to barely escape while you were completely overwhelming him… this…" Realizing his words were improper, Heavenly Dao's voice hitched, and he quickly flattered him.

Xu Lai paid no attention to such trivialities.

The combat power of that hand was terrifying. If its owner had a complete body, their strength would undoubtedly rival that of a peak Emperor Realm expert. The only thing that made me question it was that during our battle, I couldn't detect the slightest trace of life from that hand. I suspect its owner might not be a living person.

The reason for this speculation was that he was the Great Emperor of this era. Due to Xu Lai's existence, for the next million years after he became The Supreme Emperor, all other Cultivators were destined to be insignificant footnotes in the annals of history. A new Emperor Realm expert could only be born after a million years had passed, or if he died and his Dao fruits returned to the heavens and earth.

Therefore, even if the owner of the hand was an Emperor Realm being, they certainly weren't from his era.

But the problem was, an Emperor Realm expert's lifespan was a million years. If this person truly was a Great Emperor who had traversed the ages, how could they have possibly survived to this day? Yet, if they were dead, a mere Emperor Realm corpse, it would be impossible to possess such combat power.

Furthermore, an expert of this caliber had never revealed the slightest clue of their existence in the past. Why did they appear precisely after Jing Ke's Jade Slip was crushed? Was it because of Jing Ke? Or was it because of No-Face, the one he had trapped in the Soul Candle, destined to suffer torture for the next hundred thousand years? A single pawn wasn't worth such an elaborate move. Or perhaps, were there traces of the mysterious and unfathomable Nine Kings' Palace behind this powerhouse? Or… some other sinister and dangerous forbidden ground.

Heavenly Dao wanted to ask more, but Xu Lai didn't wish to elaborate. His figure flickered and returned to Haitang Court.

Ruan Tang was reading in her room. Seeing Xu Lai return, her pretty face filled with confusion. "Where did you just go? I've been looking all over for you."

Xu Lai frowned and replied, "Something came up."

Seeing the deep, persistent frown on her daughter's father—a rare sight—Ruan Tang put down her book and sat beside him, bringing a whiff of fragrance with her.

She reached out her fair, delicate hand and smoothed the lines on Xu Lai's brow. "Frowning all the time isn't good. You'll get wrinkles."

Looking at the hand in his vision, Xu Lai couldn't help but frown even more deeply.

Ruan Tang lightly pinched his ear and said with dissatisfaction, "Xu Lai, didn't you hear me?"

Xu Lai finally smiled. He emptied his mind, stopped pondering what had just happened, and asked softly, "Why aren't you asleep yet?"

"I just ate. I'm too full to sleep," Ruan Tang replied.

She would certainly never admit that without Xu Lai's embrace, she didn't feel sleepy at all. After finishing her porridge, she had gone to the backyard to look for him, but he wasn't there. So, she simply returned to her room to wait. Of course, she couldn't say that out loud. Wouldn't admitting it just make that rascal Xu Lai even more smug?

Xu Lai took Ruan Tang's small hand, propping his head up with his right. He gazed at her lovely face with a smile. "You can't sleep just because you're full?"

"What else would it be?" Ruan Tang said expressionlessly, though her heart quietly began to beat faster. She grew a little nervous. Did he guess something?

"I thought maybe you couldn't sleep comfortably without me to warm the bed."

"Pah! Shameless!"

Xu Lai pulled Ruan Tang into an embrace, inhaling the clean scent of her hair. He whispered, "Honey, what do you think the future will be like?"

The predictable trajectory of the next million years had suddenly been shattered, leaving Xu Lai with a complex mix of emotions.

Ruan Tang snuggled into Xu Lai's arms, finding the most comfortable position before replying contentedly, "I don't know."

In the darkness, her eyes were exceptionally bright, but alas, her back was to Xu Lai, so he couldn't see them.

"Do you want to know the future?" she asked.

"I do, and I don't," Xu Lai mused. He looked forward to the variables life might bring, yet he was unwilling for things to escape his control.

Variables. They meant that the people under his protection could face dangers beyond his predictions. A terrifying existence comparable to the Emperor Realm could destroy half the Immortal Domain with a single thought, affecting the lives and deaths of countless beings.

"People shouldn't overthink things," Ruan Tang said. "What's the use of thinking back and forth? Can you create a world with a single thought? Or destroy one? The only right path is to stay grounded and be practical."

Xu Lai whispered, "I can do both."

"Honey, say a little more. I love listening to you."

"Is my guidance helping you?" Ruan Tang was secretly delighted, never expecting she had the potential to be a spiritual mentor.

"No, but it's quite hypnotic. It's like listening to a bedtime story."

"Xu Lai!!!"

…

…

「Within the dead Star Domain.」

A coffin, pulled by the corpses of ninety-nine Divine Dragons, lay suspended in a space devoid of light, a place where the concept of time seemed not to exist. There wasn't the slightest sound; it was quiet, eerie, and oppressive.

Suddenly, an odd noise broke the silence of the starfield—something between a cough and the rattle of chains.

The sound… came from within the coffin.

The coffin, which had been traveling from south to north, was pulled by massive skeletal bodies that suddenly, and in unison, changed direction.

In the Vast Universe, even ninety-nine Divine Dragons moving in tandem, each with a body one hundred thousand zhang long, appeared incredibly insignificant.

Like a streak of light, they silently departed the dead Star Domain.

Their target: The East!!!

…

…

Time passed, and quite a few days had gone by since the Dragon Vein of Mount Fu was built. In the blink of an eye, it was New Year's Day, the first day of the solar calendar.

On this holiday meant for family reunions, universities and kindergartens alike were on break. Above the White Clouds, managed by Ruan Tang, even gave a generous three-day holiday, allowing its recently busy employees to spend time with their families.

Even though they were in the South, Ruan Tang was at home chopping meat and slicing shrimp, apparently planning to make dumplings.

Xu Lai was about to intervene when his sister-in-law, Ruan Lan, whispered, "Grandma grew up in the North. During holidays and festivals, she only ever made dumplings."

No wonder.

Xu Lai nodded and gestured. "Yiyi, Beibei, come help make shrimp dumplings."

Sensing trouble, Ruan Lan tried to flee but was caught by the back of her collar by Xu Lai. "Go help your sister peel shrimp."

"I don't want to! I have to study! Studying makes me happy!"

"One more word of nonsense and you'll get no dinner tonight."

"..."

Ruan Lan surrendered, shuffling dejectedly into the kitchen to peel shrimp.

Xu Lai, meanwhile, sidled up to Ruan Tang. While rolling out dumpling wrappers, he said, "You and the kids can be in charge of folding the dumplings later. I'll handle the filling."

"You don't trust me?" Ruan Tang raised an eyebrow. "I used to help Grandma make dumpling filling all the time when I was little."

"Oh, right. You did it twice," Ruan Lan whispered from the kitchen. "The first time, on New Year's Eve, the entire family got diarrhea and we had to take a taxi to a public restroom. The second time, you added four huge spoonfuls of salt. It was so salty that even our nanny from Dongshan Province almost threw up."

"..."

Xu Lai silently took the cleaver from Ruan Tang's hand. "Let me chop the meat."

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