Chapter Seventy-One: Father

“Uncle Xu, I wasn’t slacking off—I’ve been training diligently, look…”
Qu Hongxiu felt deeply wronged. She spun around in place, showing off the Qiankun Fire Shield that enveloped her.
“Wow, you’ve learned to argue back now!” Xu Zhe was stunned.
He looked at Qu Hongxiu, frustrated that she was not living up to her potential, and said with heartfelt concern, “Little Qu, poor aptitude isn’t scary, but neglecting your cultivation is the gravest mistake of all!”
“I… I’m not, I didn’t, Uncle Xu, you…”
Qu Hongxiu was nearly in tears. This was an enormous injustice.
She quickly pulled out twenty storage rings, explaining, “Uncle Xu, look—I’ve not only been training hard, I also killed twenty Nascent Soul cultivators who tried to attack me.”
Nascent Soul cultivators, strong?
Xu Zhe shook his head. Qu Hongxiu’s mindset was all wrong.
The main issue was, with her dull aptitude, she should focus solely on training, not spend time killing people.
“Little Qu, you must curb this killing impulse. If you become obsessed with slaughter, how are you any different from a demon? We who pursue the Dao must cultivate our hearts; with inner strength, everything else follows.”
Xu Zhe decided to take a gentler approach, guiding her with more tactful words.
But Qu Hongxiu stared wide-eyed: “Uncle Xu, I understand what you’re saying, but I want to point out that I am able to kill Nascent Soul cultivators beyond my own rank, and I’ve collected so much loot.”
“What? When did you become so arrogant? I thought you were just playful, but it turns out you’re showing off?”
Xu Zhe couldn’t sit still; his voice rose.
“I…” Qu Hongxiu couldn’t find a single rebuttal.
She realized she did want to show off to Xu Zhe—but her motivation was different!
“Little Qu, you mustn’t go on like this. Each of us is an independent individual. We must live our own lives, fulfill our own value, pursue our own dreams. There’s no need to compare or boast to anyone.”
Xu Zhe spoke earnestly, like a father sharing wisdom.
Qu Hongxiu was silenced, and her sense of grievance grew even stronger.
She hadn’t done anything wrong—those Nascent Soul villains tried to kill her, and she killed them in self-defense. What fault was there in that?
And she’d only collected the storage rings to show off in front of Uncle Xu, as any child would seek praise from an elder.
Why, then, was it so hard to earn a single word of praise from Uncle Xu?
Not only was it hard, she ended up being scolded.
The more Qu Hongxiu thought about it, the more indignant and angry she became, puffing out her cheeks.
“Uncle Xu, I think you’re teaching useless things!” she shouted angrily, sounding just like a rebellious child yelling at their parents.
“You…”
Xu Zhe was instantly infuriated, and raised his voice in anger: “Qu Hongxiu, I forbid you to belittle yourself like that. You may have dull aptitude, but you’re not useless—you’re a person!”
“???”
Qu Hongxiu felt her anger surge, nearly fainting with rage.
Xu Zhe went on, “Even an old pair of underwear or a scrap of paper has its purpose. So I don’t want to hear you talk down about yourself again.”
“I…” Qu Hongxiu’s eyes were practically blazing.
But shrouded in this fire-poison mist, Xu Zhe didn’t notice, and he sighed inwardly.
He hoped Little Qu could truly heed his words.
“All right, Little Qu, let’s put this behind us for now. Reflect more when you get home. For now, come here—I’ve brought something for you.” Xu Zhe beckoned, pulling out a storage ring.
With a flick of his mind, hundreds of streams of light flew from the ring, all enveloped in spiritual energy.
Qu Hongxiu had been ready to curse, but when she saw the pile of items emerging from the ring, she was utterly stunned.
Magical tools?
Fragments of treasures?
Rare medicines, dried yet still radiating aura?
And materials for crafting, like silken ice jade? Meteorite essence?
Wait, those golden chunks—weren’t they the Xuanxing Gold Stones, over which countless people had fought bitterly in the past?

Qu Hongxiu recognized many items—they were all incredibly rare and precious resources, almost unobtainable on the Azure Bestowal Continent.
And such quantity—wasn’t that excessive?
Uncle Xu, did you rob all the major forces across the four continents?
…
Suddenly, Qu Hongxiu felt her twenty storage rings were insignificant.
She’d spent ten days collecting them, but Uncle Xu had gathered such treasures in the same amount of time.
No wonder he wouldn’t let her show off—it was to spare her humiliation!
“Uncle Xu, I realize my mistake. I’ll remember your words always, so about these things…” Qu Hongxiu instantly put on her most obedient, respectful expression, eyes darting toward the hundreds of treasures, hinting desperately.
“Good.”
Xu Zhe finally smiled with satisfaction, the look of a teacher pleased with a promising pupil.
He waved his hand, and from the pile of treasures, drew out a golden wild ginseng as thick as his arm.
“Here, this is the Immortal Wild Ginseng Root. Brew it in water and drink a small cup daily—it will help cleanse the Lieyang Bird bloodline from your body.”
Xu Zhe plucked a root from the ginseng and handed it to Qu Hongxiu.
“Grass!” Qu Hongxiu couldn’t hold back any longer.
“This isn’t grass, it’s Immortal Wild Ginseng. I used to… well, never mind. Take it, don’t be shy. If you refuse, you’re treating me like a stranger.”
Xu Zhe insisted, pressing a root into Qu Hongxiu’s hand.
Then he swept the rest of the treasures back into the storage ring.
“Come on, Little Qu, it’s time to go.”
He beckoned, turning toward the edge of the secret realm.
Qu Hongxiu watched his back, mumbling under her breath.
“Master is always saying Uncle Xu is too naïve and easily tricked, but I say, naïve or not, he’s a real dog!”
…
Meanwhile, Xu Zhe, smiling, was heading out of the fire-poison mist.
He’d done another good deed.
When Qu Hongxiu had run over just now, so cheerful, he’d sensed something was off. That look, that expression—it wasn’t happiness, it was love!
That couldn’t be allowed; he had to nip it in the bud.
So he decided to stop being tactful and instead spoke bluntly, criticizing Qu Hongxiu.
Yet afterward, he couldn’t help feeling soft-hearted, originally planning to give her only half a root, but in the end, giving her a whole one.
“Hopefully, when you grow up, you’ll understand the pains I took today for your sake.”
Xu Zhe mused silently as he walked.
Soon, the mist cleared, revealing a bright, fiery landscape.
He stepped out of the fire-poison mist and returned to the outer region of the secret realm.
Qu Hongxiu followed quickly, and as soon as she was out, she whipped out her All-Seeing Jade Tablet, fingers tapping furiously as if sending messages.
Ha, addicted to the net!
Xu Zhe glanced at her, shaking his head.
Then he remembered he had an All-Seeing Jade Tablet himself, though he hardly ever used it.
While waiting for the secret realm’s transport, he took out his tablet, focusing his spiritual sense into it.
He immediately sensed an invisible barrier blocking him.
“Hm?”
Xu Zhe was surprised—why was there a spiritual sense barrier?
Could it be that using the tablet required a test of one’s spiritual strength?
He gathered his spiritual sense, braced himself, and pushed forward with effort.

Pop!
He broke through!
The entire tablet lit up, connecting to the Four Directions Spirit Web. The tablet’s interface and its various features appeared vividly before him.
It was as if a screen floated before his eyes—visible only to him, invisible to others.
“Using a cultivator’s spiritual sense to project the tablet’s interface directly into the field of vision?”
Xu Zhe instantly grasped the basic principle, marveling at its ingenuity.
He tapped the tablet, entering the “Spirit Web Page” function.
A screen, reminiscent of Earth’s “Weibo,” popped up.
On the homepage, a list of names appeared, each posting content, with like and comment counts below.
Among the names, Xu Zhe saw many strangers, but also several familiar ones.
Li Chungang (Verified: Azure Bestowal’s Blade God): “Immortal Cola is launching a new flavor soon. Guess what it is?”
…
Xu Zhe’s face darkened as he scrolled.
Chu Xiaotong (Verified: Vermilion Bird Army Commander, Azure Bestowal’s Valkyrie): “I miss the old days. I crave stir-fried beef with tomatoes.”
Xu Zhe tapped out a comment: “You look more like beef.”
He continued scrolling, raising an eyebrow.
Someone he had a grudge against.
Mo Xiaolian (Verified: Mo Family’s Eldest Daughter): “Qi Ming, I will avenge you.”
Scrolling further, still her.
“Qi Ming, I miss you. I remember the feeling of you holding me, with me sitting in your lap.”
Below the post was a photo—her sitting in Qi Ming’s lap, both smiling indecently.
Xu Zhe’s expression grew grim; he commented: “Outrageous! That kind of sitting is scandalous—soft seat turns hard seat, hard seat turns into a socket. Shameless. Reported!”
After posting, Xu Zhe kept scrolling.
Before long, the tablet began to vibrate violently.
Notifications of likes and comments flooded the interface.
The next moment, a call request popped up, displaying the name “Liu Gaoqing.”
“Hm?”
Xu Zhe was surprised, recognizing the avatar as a disciple of the Heavenly Machine Dao whom he’d met several times in Tianhe City.
Come to think of it, the tablet had been a gift from him.
Without much hesitation, Xu Zhe answered.
“Ah! Xu Tianjiao, Master Xu, no, let me call you Father—Father, please don’t mess with me!” Liu Gaoqing’s wailing voice burst from the tablet.
Xu Zhe’s face changed drastically.
I… became a father?
No way, could it be?
Did Ke Yi secretly bear my child?
But I remember we always took precautions, except during the safe period!
Besides, this kid named Liu Gaoqing doesn’t look like me at all!
Wait, his surname is Liu???
…
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