r18novel Page 40
Page 40
As she spoke, she looked up into Yang Yitan's eyes, and ripples appeared in her originally calm eyes. Her eyes gradually reddened, and her voice trembled slightly.
Yang Yitan's hand, hidden in his sleeve, clenched tightly, his fingertips almost digging into his palm.
"What happened back then..."
"I sigh, do you know? This happened three years ago."
Before he could finish speaking, Yang Yan suddenly interrupted him, her tone becoming abruptly urgent.
Three years... ago?
Yang Yi was stunned for a moment, unable to react.
"Three years ago, that bastard Xiao Wancheng took the inspector to the Mu family, just to find that kid Mu Qinghan."
Yang Yan's voice rose slightly, her chest heaving slightly.
"Do you know what? That day, all the members of the Mu family, whether they were traveling or stationed elsewhere, all returned!"
"They stood guard together in front of the shepherd's house, determined to protect their family, even at the cost of their lives!"
Her voice suddenly choked up, and tears finally streamed down her face.
"But what about the Yang family? The Yang family just watched, watched my husband being dragged away by those beasts, watched him be beaten black and blue, and finally... finally beaten to death!"
"They say he colluded with monsters, that he disgraced the Yang family, and they don't even acknowledge that he's their family!"
"But he is my lover! He is Mu Mie's father! He is my closest family member in this world!"
Yang Yan raised her hand to wipe away her tears, her voice filled with despair.
“I know that families have to consider their reputation and abide by the rules of the Dao Alliance; they have too many ‘unavoidable’ circumstances…”
"But I just can't forgive him. I have no right to forgive those who stood by and watched indifferently on his behalf, and I have even less right to... forgive him on his behalf!"
"Aunt...you..."
Looking at her tearful face, Yang Yi sighed, his throat felt like it was blocked, and he couldn't say a word. He could only clench his fists.
Yang Yan took a deep breath, raised her hand to wipe away her tears, and her eyes gradually calmed down.
"Thank you for coming to see me today. I know how you feel."
"But I probably won't be able to get over this hurdle in my heart in this lifetime."
"From now on, I'll just stay here and guard Mu Mie, and live a peaceful and stable life."
She paused, her gaze falling on the sleeping child in the inner room, her tone filled with expectation.
“But… I hope your generation can be different. I hope you can change all of this, change the cold rules of the Dao Alliance, and change the indifference that only cares about interests and ignores family ties.”
"Don't let people like me go through that heart-wrenching pain again."
Yang Yitan followed her gaze to Mu Mie. The child was still sleeping peacefully, completely unaware of the hardships his mother had endured.
He turned to look at Yang Yan again, the guilt in his eyes gradually replaced by determination, and nodded solemnly.
"Auntie, don't worry, everything will change. I promise you."
After saying this, he bowed deeply to Yang Yan again, then turned and slowly left.
Yang Yan smiled faintly as she watched Yang Yitan leave.
She slowly walked to the back of the house, to the small earthen mound, and knelt down.
"Did you hear that? Everything... will change. You died young, so you won't live to see it."
"Haha, don't worry. Once Mu Mie grows up and his life settles down, I'll come over there to find you and tell you all about what happened."
"I want to tell you, I really miss you... I miss you so much..."
Chapter 51 Taoist Temple
As the morning mist drifts through the bamboo forest in the mountains, and the swaying bamboo shadows mark the passing of another three years.
Mu Qinghan stood on the edge of the cliff, his clothes fluttering in the mountain wind. The boy's figure had completely shed his childishness, and his brows had become more refined and composed.
He is sixteen years old.
There have been many changes in the past two years.
At the age of fourteen, on that day, when he was gathering magical power at his fingertips, he suddenly realized that his cultivation was trapped by an invisible barrier. No matter how he circulated his mental techniques, he could not make any further progress.
That was the first time he touched the "pinnacle" of the path of cultivation.
On his fifteenth birthday, he broke through his shackles in his room, and with a surge of magical power, he stepped into the realm of the Demon Emperor, which countless cultivators dreamed of.
But... he only stepped in. He remained at the "half-step demon emperor" level. No matter how hard he tried, he could never cross that final threshold to the true demon emperor realm.
At the age of fifteen, the half-step Demon Emperor has shaken the world, and countless forces have begun to gravitate towards Mu Qinghan.
The cooperation between the major core families of the Dao Alliance and the Mu family has become increasingly close. The Mu family is at its peak, almost on par with the Wang Quan family and the Dongfang family.
Mu Qinghan's prestige in the Mu family has far surpassed that of the family head. Old Master Mu sometimes jokes, "I feel like if you said one word, they would all kick you out and make you the family head."
Although it was a joke, it's hard to say whether Mu Qinghan would have ended up like this if he really wanted to become the head of the family.
Mu Qinghan didn't care about any of that. He only wanted to become stronger, stronger, strong enough to ignore all obstacles.
For countless days and nights, he sat in meditation, repeatedly deducing his own path, and even perused countless ancient books in the Dao Alliance's library, but he still could not find the crux of the problem.
His past cultivation journey had always been smooth sailing, without ever encountering a bottleneck. But this half-step distance felt like an insurmountable chasm in front of him, making him taste helplessness for the first time.
Why? What exactly is wrong?
In the stillness of the night, he circulated his magical power to look inward and could clearly feel the immense power within his body, but he always felt that something was missing.
That thing is formless and intangible, yet it is like a crucial piece of a puzzle; without it, the complete realm cannot be pieced together.
He often gazed at the night sky in deep thought, wondering what it was.
Is it a deeper accumulation of magical power?
Or is it a deeper understanding of more refined sword techniques?
He walked along the mountain path again and again, sparring and fighting with his close friends in the forest, trying to find the answer from actual combat, but the missing "point" was always like looking at flowers through the fog, leaving him clueless.
We can only continue our exploration and wait for the moment of enlightenment.
During breaks from cultivation, Mu Qinghan was more often seen within the Dao Alliance.
The Dao Alliance is riddled with deep-seated problems, and darkness and filth permeate the air; it urgently needs reform.
This is what Wang Quan Shouzhuo hoped for, and what he hoped they would change.
And now, he has begun.
The first step in the reform was to build a "Taoist temple".
If we want to change the mindset of a generation, or even free countless people in future generations from their old constraints, empty slogans are useless.
The most effective solution is education.
After the academy was established, all students were selected solely based on their talent, regardless of whether they came from wealthy families or were orphans or independent cultivators.
In this way, the current situation where powerful families within the Dao Alliance monopolize cultivation resources and wantonly oppress rogue cultivators will be fundamentally changed.
As for the teachers, they were chosen by the children from their respective families.
One must not only have solid professional skills, but also be upright in character and able to shoulder the responsibility of teaching and nurturing students.
At the same time, they will be a powerful foundation for the Dao Academy, a force belonging to Mu Qinghan and his group.
Moreover, this power will continue to expand. Over time, five or ten years, the power of the Taoist Academy will grow to an unimaginable extent.
As for those with mediocre talent, there is no need to force them to follow the path of cultivation.
Waste is waste.
Rather than wasting resources on the path of spiritual cultivation, it would be better for them to honestly farm, weave cloth, and live a peaceful life as ordinary people. This is the most suitable destiny for them.
The rules for resource allocation have been rewritten, and the advantages accumulated over generations will vanish, which naturally touches on the core interests of countless people.
The obstacles were inevitable from the moment the proposal was put into practice.
"Mu Qinghan! You are going to break the Dao Alliance's century-old rules! Our families have served the Dao Alliance for generations, and the resources should be in our control. Why should they be given to those rootless rogue cultivators?"
Before the old man's words had faded, a flash of cold light suddenly streaked past.
All the crowd heard was a soft "whoosh," followed by the crisp sound of bones breaking. The old man's right arm had fallen to the ground, and blood instantly spread, staining the hem of his robe red.
Mu Qinghan sheathed his sword, his expression calm.
Reforms always require someone to bleed; that's normal.
"You! You're bullying the weak!" Another white-haired elder trembled with rage, pointing at Mu Qinghan's nose and roaring, "So arrogant and domineering, do you want to turn the entire Dao Alliance into your personal tool?"
"I don't like to talk much; in my opinion, talking more is pointless."
"I didn't want to waste my breath on you, you noisy bug."
Mu Qinghan took out a piece of plain white brocade from his bosom and slowly wiped the bloodstains on the sword blade. Sunlight streamed through the windows of the council hall, reflecting a cold light onto the sword.
"But since all the high-ranking members of the Dao Alliance are here today, there are some things we can talk about clearly."
He paused in wiping his sword, looked up at everyone present, and his voice suddenly became deep and resonant.
"The original intention of our Dao Alliance was to unite all human forces to fight against the demon race, protect the human race's place of survival, and continue our bloodline."
"We were supposed to be humanity's sharpest sword facing the outside world, but what about now?"
Before he finished speaking, he had already slowly walked towards the roaring white-haired old man.
The old man was intimidated by the coldness in his eyes and subconsciously took a half step back, only to be grabbed by the neck by Mu Qinghan and slowly lifted off the ground.
The next second, his cultivation as a half-step demon emperor erupted without reservation.
A terrifying pressure swept through the entire council hall like a tidal wave. Apart from Wang Quan Shou Zhuo and Dongfang Gu Yue, who were seated at the head of the table, everyone else's knees went weak and they all lowered their heads.
It felt like a huge boulder was weighing on my chest, making it difficult to even breathe, and I was filled with shock.
Strong, unimaginably strong.
Even Wang Quan Shouzhuo and Dongfang Guyue couldn't help but frown slightly, their fingertips unconsciously gripping the armrests of their seats.
Although they were able to resist this pressure, they could clearly feel the oppressive feeling within it, which was far beyond what cultivators of the same realm could experience.