Meng Jingzhou's face underwent a drastic change when he heard the words, trying to use words to defuse the crisis.

"Dad, we're still outside."

"A trivial matter."

Meng Potian waved his hand grandly, bringing both Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou into the Meng Residence.

Old Ma snorted through his nose and instructed two guards to unload the carriage, while he himself leisurely walked into the Meng Residence to catch up with his second brother, Xu You.

"It's been a long time since I've been back to the Meng Residence. Where does Second Brother live again?"

...

Meng Potian led Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou to the main courtyard of the Meng Residence, a place Meng Jingzhou had enjoyed since childhood, other than his fondness for mountain climbing.

But now he felt there really was no need to come here to reminisce about his childhood.

"Father, there are still outsiders here," Meng Jingzhou tried once more to reason with his father.

He was the one who had been ignorant as a child, intentionally making many mistakes, but so many years had gone by that even he, the culprit, had forgotten them; why must his father continue to dwell on them?

"So, you must be Lu Yang, quite the fine figure of a man," Meng Potian's tone softened slightly when he faced Lu Yang, "Little Boat has been praising you, saying you have the talents of Daoist Buyu, always stirring up a series of events every time you go out."

Lu Yang: "..."

Old Meng, you're just making up stories about me in the background, right? Which time did I go out and you weren't by my side?

"The Great Era's struggle needs a talent like you."

"I've heard that you don't have a Dao companion yet, and with your master being Daoist Buyu, certainly no one dares to become your Dao companion. It just so happens that my daughter is twenty-eight, pure and lovely, a perfect match for you—I think our two families can agree on a marriage."

Before Lu Yang could even retort, he saw Meng Potian turn around with a stern face to look at Meng Jingzhou, his tone icy and sinister.

"Alright, there are no outsiders now."

Seeing that Meng Potian was about to pull out the metal ruler to teach Meng Jingzhou a lesson, Lu Yang could not bear to watch a good brother be beaten, and took a step forward: "Please wait a moment, Uncle Meng."

Meng Jingzhou was deeply moved, true friends indeed show their colors in times of trouble.

Meng Potian turned his head, puzzled as to why Lu Yang would stop him.

"Old Meng being punished by you must indeed have committed a grievous act, but him being alone, your punishment might lack force."

"Coincidentally, I happen to know a technique called 'One Meng Becomes Ten Thousand,' which can create ten thousand Meng Jingzhous, ensuring Uncle Meng you will thoroughly enjoy the punishment."

To execute 'One Meng Becomes Ten Thousand' is much more difficult than 'One Sword Becomes Ten Thousand,' demanding extremely high spiritual essence and Spiritual Sense.

But no matter, Lu Yang could temporarily increase his spiritual essence by taking elixirs, and as for the strength of the Spiritual Sense, he could temporarily borrow some from Fairy Eternity.

Meng Potian was overjoyed upon hearing this, never expecting Lu Yang to know such a technique, and bluntly told him to boldly use it.

Lu Yang did not hold back, grabbing Meng Jingzhou by the ankle and began to perform the sword technique.

"Damn it, Old Lu, you son of a..."

"One Meng Becomes Ten Thousand!" Lu Yang shouted loudly, interrupting Meng Jingzhou's last words.

Meng Potian looked up as if he had realized something and saw a dense crowd of his sons in the sky, so he swooped up with his metal ruler to beat them.

The pitiful screams of Meng Jingzhou circled above the Meng Residence, rather melodious, and upon seeing this, Lu Yang hastened to record it with the Recording Orb.

Before long, Meng Jingzhou fell to the ground rubbing his behind, walking with a limp.

"That's the spirit!" Meng Potian was becoming more and more fond of Lu Yang. After all, he was a disciple of Daoist Buyu, and it showed that he'd learned some real skills.

The commotion caused by Meng Jingzhou's return was substantial, and soon enough, the direct members of the Meng Family had all gathered in the courtyard to watch the excitement.

The first to arrive at the courtyard was a man who looked to be about thirty years old. "Jingzhou, you're finally back. You don't know how much your mother has missed you. She stays at home every day, refuses to go out, fearing that she might not be there when you return..."

"Where is my mother now?"

"She's been at the Imperial Palace for several days."

Meng Jingzhou sighed and then introduced Lu Yang, saying, "This is my second uncle, Meng Poli."

"Nice to meet you, Uncle Meng."

Second Uncle Meng Poli said, "Eh, this kid is far more polite than you, Jingzhou. You've never called me uncle like that."

Meng Jingzhou rolled his eyes, "Uncle, have you forgotten that time you got drunk, insisting on becoming sworn brothers with the stone lion at the door, declaring yourself the eldest brother and the pair of stone lions the second and third? You even said that from then on, I should call the stone lion second uncle instead of you."

Meng Poli's face turned red with embarrassment, and he coughed guiltily, "Cough cough, things said when drunk shouldn't be taken seriously."

"Jingzhou is back?" A gentle and refined voice spoke up. The newcomer looked exactly like Second Uncle Meng Poli but had an entirely different comportment, clearly someone who had spent a long time immersed in books and learning.

"This is my third uncle, Meng Poci. He's my second uncle's twin brother."

"Remember I once told you about an uncle at the Lock Demon Gate? That's him."

Lu Yang kind of remembered. He and Old Meng were thrown by the Eldest Senior Sister into the dense forests bordering the Demon Territory at the edge of Great Xia. The place they went to was the Demon Suppressing Pass.

At that time, Meng Jingzhou had expressed regret that he had an uncle at the Lock Demon Gate. It would have been better if they had been thrown there.

"Third Uncle, how come you've returned from the Lock Demon Gate?"

Meng Poci didn't seem to have the ironclad aura of a border-guarding general. Instead, he seemed more like a great scholar one might encounter in an academy.

Meng Poci smiled lightly, "I've been stationed at the Lock Demon Gate for fifty years. Last year, the Dynasty issued an order to recall me."

"That's great news," Meng Jingzhou said with a smile. He figured that after Great Xia made diplomatic connections with the Demon Territory, in an effort to ease the relationship between the two, they decided to withdraw his uncle, who was particularly adept at combat.

"Brother, you've finally returned?" A lovely figure appeared out of nowhere and ran excitedly up to Meng Jingzhou.

"Little Sister!" Meng Jingzhou smiled happily, patting and ruffling his sister's hair playfully.

If anyone in the Meng Family treated him the best, it was his little sister. When he had run away from home without a penny to his name, it was his kind-hearted little sister who gave him a Storage Ring. The treasures inside that ring had lasted him until now without running out.

"This is my sister, Meng Jingyu."

"Hello, Brother Lu Yang," Meng Jingyu said with a sweet smile, indeed as pure and adorable as Meng Potian had described.

"Ah, really well-behaved."

"Here, this is a gift for you from Brother Lu Yang." It was Lu Yang's first time meeting someone who called him brother, as he usually dealt with peers or much older cultivators.

Lu Yang took a wooden sword out of the Identity Jade, a carving he had made while practising his swordsmanship based on the design of the Green Peak Sword, capable of piercing through cultivators at the Divine Transformation Stage.

𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

"Thank you, Brother," Meng Jingyu said as she gratefully accepted it, her manners impressing Lu Yang and making him marvel at how she seemed a completely different species compared to Old Meng.

"Brother said in his letters about the interesting encounters you had during your travels. Brother Lu Yang, is your experience while cultivating abroad always this fascinating?" Meng Jingyu looked up at Lu Yang with admiration. She had never left the Imperial City all her life and was particularly interested in everything Lu Yang had experienced.

"What exactly did he say?"

"Brother mentioned that you often get into trouble, like when you strayed down the wrong path and joined the Eternity Sect willingly. To rescue you, he had to destroy the sect.

You enjoyed challenging those at the Foundation Establishment Stage while you were at the Golden Core Stage, and he also mentioned that you're constantly surrounded by admirers, though you remain unaffected and your luck in love affairs doesn't seem to work on you."

With an unchanging expression, Lu Yang simply laughed it off with a "heh heh."