Blue Phoenix

Although Hui Yue and his friends were relaxing the evening they arrived, the rest of the village was not calm at all. They were busy slaughtering beasts for the next day's banquet and cleaning up the entire village. They wanted to make sure that everything looked its best when Hui Yue and his friends awoke tomorrow.

Everyone was excited and talked with one another about this sudden group of experts which had appeared. If Hui Yue had returned on his own, it would have been a large event, but he had appeared with so many experts which was something nobody expected.

Hui Yue could hear the fuss from the outside, but he just smiled as he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. As he was sitting in this room, he thought back to how he had appeared in this world. How he found out that he shared a body with Lan Feng. He remembered that at first, he had hated the phoenix because of everything that happened, and he thought about how they slowly opened up towards one another.

He remembered what drove him was his goal of wanting to reunite with Li Fen, but thinking about her, Hui Yue chuckled slightly. He remembered how he started cultivating and that he would go to the hills every day and cultivate while watching the goats.

He remembered how he had met Rong Ming and Rong Xing and been tempted by their stories of Riluo City. He had followed them to the academy and that was just the start of his journey.

Laughing to himself, Hui Yue opened his eyes and moved to the window looking outside.

"Although so much has happened since then, I find myself at the beginning again. I have just started my journey as an immortal." He mumbled to himself.

Lan Feng said nothing; he just silently agreed, and the two friends felt how both souls were filled with excitement but also tranquility. Returning to their beginnings made Hui Yue feel a certain calmness he had not felt for a very long time. This was indeed the place where he felt the most at home.

A knocking sound was heard after which his father, Hui Guang, entered the room with a smile on his face.

"I figured you probably had many questions. This place has changed so much because of you and our lives are much better now." He said with a sigh as he found a chair and sat down.

Hui Yue was smiling brightly as he looked at his father.

"It’s hard to believe that my son has become a grown up." Hui Guang said with a sigh. "But many years have passed since you last returned home. Tell me, who are all these people you brought with you? I recognize some, but others I have never seen before. Some of them are even younger than your little brother!"

Hui Yue smiled and sighed. "The two children are mine." He said, and his words caused his father to falter and start coughing. His heart shook, and he looked at Hui Yue with disbelief. "Your children? But they are not that young!" He exclaimed, and Hui Yue could not help but chuckle.

"I adopted them quite a few years ago. The boy is Hui Lao, and the girl is Hui Jo. Both are older than what you think, but because they are a Saint and an Emperor they do not age anymore. I fear they will look like children until the day they become Gods."

"Gods? Those children become Gods?" His father was shocked. "Are you telling me that one can become a God? Aren't they born from the heavens and the earth? Gods are the ultimate creatures which we mortals revere more than anything, how could one become such an existence?”

Hearing this, Hui Yue laughed once more. He had forgotten that his father was not a cultivator, and for him to know about the God rank was simply impossible.

"While it is true that a God is born from the heavens and the earth," Hui Yue mused as he thought about his own body's reconstruction from Ancestral Worldpower. "But that does not mean that you cannot become a God through cultivation. Just recently I had a breakthrough, and I ascended to the God rank."

This was Hui Yue's father, and he would never lie to him. Instead, he told his father straight out that he was a God. "Of the ones who came with me, nine others are Gods while the rest are Saints with the exception of Jo who is an Emperor. Her talent in cultivation is not as high as her brother, but although she is only an Emperor, do not underestimate her. Her fighting prowess is simply outstanding."

Hui Guang felt his head spinning. His son had become a God? And not only that, but he had brought with him another nine Gods? This was simply an honor no normal city would ever receive; an honor which made him grow numb.

"Let’s not tell anyone except mother." Hui Yue said with a smile and Hui Guang nodded his head. This was not something common villagers could know.

"Your little brother has become a Duke ranked expert. He is training the abilities and cultivation techniques that you left behind. He is currently the genius of our village, but he refused to leave for the Royal Academy. He claims that the items you left behind are much more profound than what the Royal Academy can offer. With our current situation, we can provide our youngsters with resources to become much stronger than before."

"Many people come to our village in the hopes of becoming part of the family. At the start, we hired mercenaries to protects us but after seeing that they had steady pay here many of these mercenaries chose to have their families move here as well to become a part of the village. We accept the ones whom we can use and who can make our village prosper. We are no longer a secret village, but no one dares to slight us as we are under the protection of Riluo City."

"Not to mention everyone knows that the Grand Marshall of the Beast Army originated from this village." His father stated proudly, shocking Hui Yue. "Your many feats of strength have been spread far and wide, and people started searching for your heritage. When they came here, they found out that you came from this village, but no one dares touch us for fear of the retaliation you will bring. All in all, we live a safe life. The only danger comes from the magical beasts from within the Magical Forest."

"The intelligent beasts leave us alone, but the Magical Forest is vast, and many unintelligent beasts live within. Sometimes beast hordes appear and attack. We can fight them back much easier now that we have the palisade fence but for even more assurance we are in the middle of building a stone wall."

"This is great!" Hui Yue said astonished as he looked at his father, but some doubt was evident within his body. "Although this is awesome, how can you have the money to change this small village into one as flourishing as it is now? You say it is because of me, but I have done nothing."

"Before you left you made the insurance business for the Ma Family. Back then you were getting a certain percentage of the revenue, but instead of taking it for yourself you said that the money was to be delivered to our village." Hui Guang reminded Hui Yue, and the young man vaguely remembered that something like that had indeed happened.

"At the start, this revenue was not a lot, but it did help us get by, but as time passed, it increased drastically. Most mortal mercenaries have insurance by now to ensure that their family can keep living even if they die, and thus our share of the revenue is quite substantial. Our village is able to live off of it now, and we even have the money to purchase servants for certain families within the village."

"We are expanding, but we aren't thinking of becoming one of the hegemons of the area. When the village is finally safe, we will open it to outsiders. At that time, we will allow for more merchants and adventurers to visit us and to stop by our village while going to the Magical Forest. We are not cultivators, but we wish for our home to flourish, for it to become a place where many people will want to visit."

Hui Yue could see pride in his father's eyes and he nodded his head. He was now a God, and he was going to become the Crowned Sovereign of the Divine Beast World. If he could not even protect the village he came from, then what point was there to be as strong as he was?

"I am glad to see that you are living good lives now." Hui Yue said with heartfelt words while smiling as he looked at his father.

"Little Yue." Another voice came from the door, and Hui Lifen came in. When she saw her husband and her son seated in front of one another chatting intimately, she felt her heart warm. Hui Yue was the pride of her life.

"Mother." Hui Yue said excitedly as he saw his mother and instantly stood up making space for her to sit down. He found another chair and dragged it near the two others.

"You have been busy." Hui Lifen said with a smile on her face as she sat down. "You have been gone for some years, but when you return you not only bring two daughters in law, you also bring two children! It seems that our Hui family is growing rapidly." She joked lovingly.

Hearing the words, Hui Yue awkwardly scratched the back of his head as he laughed sheepishly. "Sorry." He laughed a little embarrassed. "I should have brought them home earlier, but a lot of things happened and it was never the right time." The apology made his mother giggle and his father smile.

"Don't worry. As long as you love these two women and the children, then we will support you. We will always support you. As your parents, that is what we must do." Hui Lifen said caringly.

"I am glad to see that you have good friends." Lifen said with a tender smile on her face. "Knowing that these strong experts are by your side, I am a lot less worried. Nothing is more important than a good friend."

"You need to value the friends you have." Hui Lifen said seriously, and her eyes seemed vacant as though she were thinking about something from her past. Reminiscing for a few moments, she shook her head and smiled as she gently stroked her son's face.

"You need to treat the two women well. Make them feel loved and never let them down! You do not know how proud I am of you for having found someone whom you truly love."

Hui Yue felt slightly embarrassed, but also warm at heart as he heard these words, and he nodded his head seriously. A comfortable quietness enveloped the three family members, and they all felt a serenity they had not experienced before.

"Mother! Father!" A clear voice sounded out in the corridor, and the faces of Hui Lifen and Hui Guang turned to joy. "Please welcome your younger brother." They said excitedly. Hui Yue, who was completely stunned, looked at the doorway where a youngster appeared. He was quite handsome in a youthful way. His long black hair and his brown eyes were glistening with life and excitement could be seen in his every move; however, when he saw Hui Yue, he instantly stopped in his tracks. His mouth opened wide, and he seemed slightly frightened.