As soon as Yue Xing exited the meditation chamber, Xu Shu and Xu Zhen rushed towards him and latched onto his legs.

  “Big Brother, you’re back!” Xu Shu said, looking up at him with an aggrieved expression on her face.

  Xu Zhen nodded, his expression mirroring his sister’s. Yue Xing stared at the two of them in disbelief. He had been in the meditation chamber for less than an hour. Why were they acting as if he had been gone for several days?

  Xu Liang grabbed his younger siblings and pulled them away.

  “Stop being dramatic,” he said in a scolding tone. “You’re bothering him. And don’t call him ‘Big Brother.’”

  Xu Shu pouted and stomped her foot. Xu Zhen followed her lead and stomped as well. Yue Xing found the sight very cute. He covered his mouth to keep from chuckling.

  “Why can’t I call him ‘Big Brother?’” Xu Shu demanded.

  Xu Liang crossed his arms.

  “Because it’s disrespectful. He saved our lives. Call him benefactor instead.”

  Xu Shu turned away from her brother in huff.

  “I don’t care,” she said. “I think ‘Big Brother’ is better.”

  “Xu Shu!”

  Yue Xing cleared his throat, interrupting them before things went too far.

  “I don’t mind being called ‘Big Brother,’” he said.

  In fact, he rather liked it, though he’d never admit it out loud.

  Xu Shu shot Xu Liang a triumphant look, before she gave Yue Xing a radiant smile.

  “Thank you, Big Brother,” she said. “You’re the best!”

  Xu Liang's face twisted with anger, and a hint of jealousy.

  “However,” Yue Xing said. “It would be unfair to Xu Liang. He’s your real elder brother. I’m merely a stranger who happened to rescue you.”

  Xu Liang’s expression became conflicted.

  “It’s fine,” he mumbled. “I don’t mind.”

  Xu Shu scrunched her face in thought, before her face lit up with excitement.

  “What about this?” she asked. “You’re Big Brother, while Liang is First Brother. He’s the oldest of us, but you’re bigger and stronger.”

  Yue Xing looked at Xu Liang, who nodded after a moment’s hesitation.

  “Very well, I accept,” Yue Xing said, smiling at the Xu siblings. “I’ll be your big brother.”

  Xu Shu and Xu Zhen let out squeals of excitement, before they latched onto his legs again. Xu Liang looked like he wanted to join them, but held back.

  Well, that wouldn’t do.

  Yue Xing gestured to Xu Liang to come over. The boy obeyed and Yue Xing pulled him into a hug. He knew that doing this would make it more difficult when it came time for them to part ways, but he couldn’t help himself. The Xu siblings were just that lovable.

  After a while, the four of them pulled apart, though the younger two Xu siblings seemed reluctant to. They gazed at him with pitiable expressions on their faces. Yue Xing almost gave in, but managed to stop himself in time. After all, there was something he needed to do.

  “Perhaps later,” Yue Xing said. “Right now, there’s something I need to check. May I examine you?”

  Now that he could use spiritual energy and soul sense, Yue Xing wanted to check the children to see if they had spirit roots. That way, they could join him in the Myriad Path Sect. Even if they had Quintuple Spirit Roots, the worst kind there were, he’d find a way to bring them in.

  “What for?” Xu Liang asked.

  “I’ll explain afterward,” Yue Xing said.

  Xu Liang studied him for several moments. Yue Xing waited without a trace of impatience. While he didn’t need the children' s permission to check them for spirit roots, it would make things easier. Besides, he didn’t want to sour their impression of him by insisting.

  “Very well,” Xu Liang said with a nod.

  The other two Xu siblings nodded as well.

  With permission granted, Yue Xing put down Xu Zhen and began his examination, starting with Xu Liang. He took the boy’s hand and placed his fingers on the wrist. He sent his spiritual energy and his soul sense into the boy’s body, using both to examine him.

  The results shocked Yue Xing.

  Xu Liang did indeed have a spirit root. In fact, he had one of the best kinds there were: a Single Spirit Root, a metal one to be exact. It was also called a Heavenly Spirit Root. This was because those with this kind of spirit root had great talent for cultivation, as if blessed by the heavens.

  Not only did they cultivate much faster than their peers, but they faced fewer bottlenecks. It was often said that those with Single Spirit Roots were guaranteed to reach Golden Core.

  This made cultivators with Single Spirit Roots highly sought after. When they entered a sect, or a clan, they were guaranteed to become a core disciple.

  However, cultivators with Single Spirit Roots were rare. They showed up about once in a century, at least from what Yue Xing heard. Whenever one showed up, the various clans and sects scrambled to acquire them.

  A small, petty part of Yue Xing felt envious of Xu Liang. However, the majority of him felt joy on the boy’s behalf. As long as a great disaster didn’t befall Xu Liang, he had a brilliant future ahead of him.

  “Well?” Xu Liang asked, looking a little nervous. “Did you find anything bad?”

  Yue Xing shook his head.

  “No,” he said. “In fact, I found something very good. However, let me examine your siblings first before I explain more.”

  Yue Xing turned towards Xu Shu, who already held her arm out towards him. He chuckled, before he placed his fingers on her wrist. As with her older brother, Yue Xing examined Xu Shu with his spiritual energy and soul sense.

  Shocked slapped him in the face again. Xu Shu also had a Single Spirit Root, though she had an earth one instead of a metal one. This dumbfounded Yue Xing. The chances of finding even one cultivator with a Single Spirit Root were low, let alone two.

  Yue Xing pulled his spiritual energy and soul sense back from Xu Shu, before studying her and Xu Liang. Just who were these children? He started to suspect that their background wasn’t as simple as he first thought.

  Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

  “Is something wrong with me, Big Brother?” Xu Shu asked, looking afraid.

  Yue Xing shook his head, but otherwise didn’t respond. He was still reeling from the shock of finding two people with Single Spirit Roots. He looked at Xu Zhen, the youngest of the Xu siblings.

  What if…? No, surely not.

  Without a word, Yue Xing reached for Xu Zhen’s hand. Despite his shock, he took care not to hurt the boy. He placed his fingers on Xu Zhen’s wrist and examined him.

  Xu Zhen also had a Single Spirit Root, a water one.

  What kind of heaven-defying luck was this? Three people with Single Spirit Roots? Not only that, but all three were siblings?

  Wait a moment. Something about that sounded familiar to Yue Xing. After thinking about it for a moment, he realized that he read about it in the Book.

  Towards the middle of Liu Chen’s story, after he reached Golden Core, he ended up in a feud with three powerful demonic cultivators, who were also a trio of siblings. They were called the Three Terrors of the Blood Lotus Cult, one of the most powerful and dangerous demonic sects in the Myriad Valleys province.

  What made the Three Terrors so dangerous was that all three had Single Spirit Roots. This made them valuable to the Blood Lotus Cult, which had poured a lot of effort and resources into raising them. This included teaching them powerful techniques and spells, as well as gifting them several life-saving treasures.

  The Three Terrors gave Liu Chen a lot of trouble, and even came close to killing him on several occasions. However, Liu Chen managed to survive and grow strong enough to defeat them thanks to the System’s help.

  Yue Xing didn’t remember many details about the Three Terrors beyond that, including their names and why they ended up feuding with Liu Chen. He would have to consult the Book to find out more. Even so, he believed that the Xu siblings and the Three Terrors were one and the same.

  In that case, they were all in great danger. Yue Xing realized that the demonic cultivators hadn’t attacked the Xu siblings’ village by coincidence. They had done so on purpose. This meant that someone in the Blood Lotus Cult already knew about the Xu siblings.

  However, the demonic cultivators that Yue Xing killed weren’t disciples of the Blood Lotus Cult. They belonged to some other group. This meant that the person behind this wanted to keep the Xu siblings’ existence a secret. Otherwise, they would’ve acted openly instead of relying on proxies.

  Even if that weren’t the case, those demonic cultivators must’ve had some kind of connection to the Blood Lotus Cult. That alone made them a serious threat. Otherwise, the Xu siblings wouldn’t have ended up in the Blood Lotus Cult at all.

  It looked like they needed to reach the Myriad Path Sect sooner rather than later. That was the only way to keep the Xu siblings safe. The Myriad Path Sect was one of the few sects in the Myriad Valleys province strong enough to contend with the Blood Lotus Cult.

  “Big Brother, what’s wrong?” Xu Shu asked, pulling Yue Xing out of his thoughts. “You don’t look good.”

  Yue Xing gave her a reassuring smile, or at least tried to. He didn’t know how well he succeeded.

  “Nothing’s wrong,” he said. “I was just thinking about the future.” He gestured to the Xu siblings. “Your future to be exact. How would you like to be cultivators?”

  The three siblings stared at him in astonishment.

  “Cultivators?” Xu Liang asked. “Us?”

  Yue Xing nodded.

  “That was why I examined the three of you,” he said. “To see if you had spirit roots, which are necessary to cultivate. And all three of you do, which means all three of you can become cultivators.”

  When they realized that Yue Xing wasn’t lying or playing a cruel prank on them, the Xu siblings grew excited.

  “I want to become like one of the cultivators in the stories!” Xu Laing said. “Flying through the sky, splitting mountains and seas!”

  “I want to become a beautiful fairy, dancing in the moonlight!” Xu Shu said.

  While Xu Zhen didn’t say anything, he joined his siblings in celebrating. Yue Xing found their excitement infectious, despite the worries plaguing him.

  “Wait,” Xu Laing said, as if he just realized something. “If I become a cultivator, can I avenge our village?”

  Everyone’s expressions faltered and the joyful mood fled.

  “There’s no need,” Yue Xing said in a soft voice. “I killed the bad men who destroyed your village, remember?”

  Xu Liang shook his head.

  “Not them,” he said. “I mean the one who sent them.”

  Yue Xing frowned.

  “What do you mean?” he asked.

  Xu Liang looked down at the ground and clenched his fists.

  “Someone sent the bad men to our village to find us,” he said, his voice thick with emotion. “That’s why they attacked. They were after us.”

  Ah, so the Xu siblings already knew that someone was after them. That would explain a lot about their initial reaction to Yue Xing. They must’ve mistaken him for the person behind the attack on their village.

  “It’s all our fault,” Xu Liang continued. “If it weren’t for us-”

  Yue Xing interrupted him by placing a hand on his shoulder.

  “Look at me,” he said.

  Xu Liang continued to look at the ground.

  “I said look at me,” Yue Xing said in a firmer tone.

  This time, Xu Liang obeyed, though with great reluctance. There were tears in the boy’s eyes.

  “It’s not your fault,” Yue Xing said, his voice calm and even. “You did nothing wrong.”

  “But-” Xu Liang started to say, but Yue Xing cut him off.

  “But nothing. It’s not your fault. You did nothing wrong. I will repeat those words as often as I need to. The one at fault is the person who sent those demonic cultivators after you. They’re the one in the wrong. Blame them, not yourself.”

  Xu Liang nodded with a fierce expression on his face.

  “I’ll find out who they are,” he said, his voice full of anger. “I’ll find them and kill them to avenge our village!”

  Yue Xing flicked him on the forehead.

  “No, you will not,” he said in a matter of fact tone.

  Xu Liang stared at him in disbelief.

  “Then what about our village? What about the people who died? What about Auntie and Uncle?”

  Yue Xing looked the boy right in the eyes.

  “I will find out who was responsible,” he said in a solemn voice, as if swearing an oath. “I will avenge your village, including your aunt and uncle.” He gestured to Xu siblings. “Your job as children is to grow up well and be happy. Leave everything else to me.”

  “But why? You have no connection to our village. It’s our responsibility to avenge them, not yours!”

  Yue Xing nodded.

  “You’re right,” he said. “I don’t have a connection to your village. However, I have a connection to you.” He smiled. “I’m your big brother now, remember? I’ll take care of you, which includes settling your grudges.”

  Xu Liang’s lips trembled.

  “You mean it?” he asked, on the verge of tears.

  “Yes. Trust me. Trust your big brother.”

  Xu Liang hugged Yue Xing and broke down crying. He repeated the words “Big Brother” over and over again. The other Xu siblings joined in as well.

  In that moment, Yue Xing knew that he would never be able to walk away from the Xu siblings. They had entered his heart and made themselves at home during their short time together. As far as he was concerned, they were his siblings in truth.

  And he would do everything in his power to protect them.

  Li Zhanhao glared at Rising Sun City in the distance and resisted the urge to curse. This was the worst possible scenario for him. Whoever had killed his subordinates and taken the children had brought them to Rising Sun City. As much as he would love to assault it to take them, he couldn’t.

  Li Zhanhao was in Foundation Establishment, making him one of the most powerful cultivators in the local area. However, so was the city lord of Rising Sun City. The two of them had clashed a few times, with neither gaining the upper hand. Worst of all, several defensive formations protected Rising Sun City, which made attacking it even less viable.

  For a brief moment, Li Zhanhao considered sneaking into the city to try and find the children, before deciding against it. Even if he somehow managed to get into the Rising Sun City, it would be just a matter of time before the city lord discovered his presence. At that point, he would be in a fight for his life.

  No. He would have to rely on his subordinates. They were in Qi Refining, so they could blend in with the crowds. While they stank of demonic energy, he had taught them a concealment technique to hide it. As long as they were careful, they’d be able to enter Rising Sun City and search around without issue.

  The problem was that the people who joined his Blood Wolf Gang weren’t the most subtle of people. Except for one.

  Li Zhanhao looked at the woman standing beside him, the one who brought this matter to his attention in the first place. So far, she had proven herself the most reliable of his subordinates, especially when she found the tracks that led to Rising Sun City.

  “You there,” he said, gesturing to her.

  “Yes, Boss?” the woman said.

  “Take three others and enter the city. Look for the children. When you find them, report back to me.” He pulled some spirit stones out of his storage pouch. “Here. This should be enough for a few nights’ stay.”

  The woman nodded and gave him a martial salute. Afterwards, she picked three other subordinates and they all headed towards Rising Sun City.

  As Li Zhanhao watched them go, he hoped he had made the right choice. He felt the noose tightening around his neck. If he didn’t find the children, and soon, he was a dead man walking.

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