Xia Wei chuckled and pulled Qian Xun over, her hand gently stroking his head in a motherly gesture.
This left Qian Xun speechless with a bitter smile. If people on the Ultimate Ancient Path knew that the mighty Battle Saint Qian Xun was having his head stroked by a woman who wasn't even at the Saint Treasury Realm, they would surely die of shock.
However, for someone like Qian Xun, who had only known his mother since birth and was taken away for cultivation at seven or eight years old, lacking familial affection, he felt no resistance to Ye Ao and Xia Wei's head pats. On the contrary, a faint sense of joy stirred in his heart. He quite enjoyed this kind of care.
Just then—
"Master, Mistress, I could hear your laughter from afar. What's the happy occasion?"
A familiar voice came from the bridge corridor.
"Huan'er is here," Ye Ao and Xia Wei looked over.
Ye Chen had naturally sensed Huan'er's presence long ago. He turned to see an elegant and dignified woman gracefully approaching, a light smile on her face. "Is it that Young Master Ye Chen has—"
Her words cut off abruptly.
The elegant woman who now appeared to be in her early thirties was Huan'er. Due to cultivation, she had maintained her youthful appearance, not aging like an ordinary mortal, skilled in preserving her looks.
But seeing this familiar figure before her—the same figure she had cared for since childhood, the one who had once teased her—she froze in place, motionless.
"Yo... Young Master?"
She felt somewhat apprehensive. Although he looked identical, she sensed something different from the usual divine sense avatars that visited—a special, heartfelt intimacy.
Moreover, the numerous young men and women by his side, whom she had never met before, seemed to prove that this was the real Ye Chen, with flesh and blood.
"Huan'er, you're here." Ye Chen smiled, looking at the now elegant and dignified woman, recalling the petite, adorable little maid from back then, and couldn't help but chuckle.
Huan'er was, in a way, family to him.
"Young Master, it really is you!" Huan'er was both shocked and overjoyed. She wanted to rush over, but seeing the outstanding men and women standing by his side, along with two adorable, lively children, she restrained herself. Her face blossomed into a smile, yet hot tears streamed down. "Young Master, welcome home!"
...
The family reunited. Xia Wei, who hadn't cooked in a long time, personally took to the kitchen, ordering the best ingredients to be selected. She was going to prepare dishes for Ye Chen and the others to taste.
Huan'er also pitched in.
Although they were once master and servant, Huan'er had long been released from her maid status. Because of Ye Chen, she had entered the cultivation world and was now a Divine Transformation Realm cultivator. Thus, even after centuries, she still looked just as young.
But before Ye Ao, Xia Wei, and Ye Chen, she was still that lively, adorable maid, feeling truly blessed to be able to accompany their family.
In the main hall of the Ye Family mansion, there was a large round table big enough to seat everyone. All were seated, regardless of gender or age.
Ye Ao naturally took the seat of honor, as per Ye Chen's intention.
The table was laden with a dazzling array of dishes—delicacies from land and sea, exotic fruits and treasures, a truly sumptuous feast.
Although with Ye Chen and the others' cultivation levels, there was no grand feast they hadn't seen, no Heaven and Earth Treasures they hadn't encountered, being able to dine together like this, as they did in their weaker years, felt profoundly happy.
"Xi Xi, Lin'er, try the Heavenly Chicken Legs Grandma made. They're specially prepared with many precious ingredients, especially delicious." Xia Wei sat with a granddaughter on each side, tearing off chicken legs the size of forearms and offering them to her grandchildren.
Little Chen Xi, who looked about twelve or thirteen, was exquisitely cute like a porcelain doll, utterly innocent and adorable. She grabbed a Heavenly Chicken Leg and took a bite, her big, dark eyes curving into crescents as she giggled. "Grandma's chicken legs are so yummy."
She spoke from the heart. Usually, everything they ate and drank was top-tier Heaven and Earth Treasures, mostly vegetarian. They rarely got to taste the delicious flavors of mortal cuisine. At this moment, she forgot all maidenly restraint and couldn't help taking several more bites. Seeing the smiling faces of her mothers across the table made her eat even more happily.
On the other side, little Jun Lin, though small in stature, also ate quite a bit, tearing into a Heavenly Chicken Leg with a satisfying crunch, his mouth smeared with oil.
The table was filled with talk and laughter as the family chatted.
Ye Ao and Xia Wei asked about the Ultimate Ancient Path. Ye Chen mostly glossed over the details. If they knew all the situations he had experienced, they would surely worry greatly.
The meal lasted a very, very long time.
After the meal, night had already descended.
Xia Wei held the hands of several grandchildren, accompanied by five daughters-in-law, feeling extremely happy. Listening to their sweet words, she felt this was what a happy life should be like.
"Chen, come with your father."
Ye Ao called Ye Chen out alone to a pavilion on the lake.
Sitting in a rocking chair, swaying gently, Ye Ao took out from his pocket a strange white object, about as thick as a chopstick and as long as a middle finger, holding it between his index and middle fingers.
With a flick of his finger, a wisp of flame lit the end of the white stick. Immediately, tendrils of blue smoke rose.
Ye Ao took a drag and slowly exhaled a hazy cloud of smoke, giving off a rather ethereal feeling, as if riding clouds and mists.
Ye Chen was dumbfounded. "Dad, where did you get that Xiangyan?"
He had seen this thing during his past life's Samsara cycle; it belonged to that place called Earth. He just never expected Ye Ao to have it.
Suddenly, he remembered a phrase he often heard on Earth:
Smoking is harmful to your health!
Of course, he didn't try to stop him. The so-called nicotine toxicity of these Xiangyan couldn't harm a Saint's health in the slightest.
Instead of answering, Ye Ao chuckled and asked, "Want one?"
Ye Chen was taken aback, then nodded. "Agreed."
Soon, father and son were puffing away in the pavilion, sitting in relative silence.
After a long while, one Xiangyan burned out. Ye Ao slowly said, "A Xiangyan after a meal is better than being an immortal."
Ye Chen beside him nearly toppled over. He looked at Ye Ao with a bitter smile. "Dad, where did you get these Xiangyan, and where did you hear that saying?"
"Will gave them to me. He's the one who told me that too," Ye Ao said.
Ye Chen felt an impulse to beat Will to death. He actually taught his old man to smoke! But when did Will ever give his dad Xiangyan? How could he not know?
He thought about it; it was probably before he left for the Ultimate Ancient Path.
He didn't dwell on the topic.
Ye Ao said, "Chen, what realm are you at now?"
Ye Chen glanced at his father and answered honestly, "Quasi-Monarch."
"Quasi-Monarch, huh?" Ye Ao patted Ye Chen's shoulder. "Don't know what realm that is, but it sounds pretty impressive."
Ye Chen could only offer a bitter smile.
His father was merely a Saint. That was decent in the mortal world, but in the cultivation world, it was just the beginning. How could he possibly understand the power of a Quasi-Monarch?