Chapter 436 - Withered Willow

Long Chen felt pressured. This would most likely be his last visit to Baiyang Town. It would be hard for him to return.

So he needed to say goodbye.

There was only one person that Xiaolang cared about other than Long Chen, Yin Mengyao. He wanted to see her one last time, but he didn’t want her to know that he had become a Sun Devouring Wolf, so he only wanted to look at her from afar.

Long Chen brought him into Yuanling City’s Lingwu family. The Lingwu family was visibly more quiet after their defeat. He brought Xiaolang into the Silver family’s territory and waited for Yin Mengyao in her little estate. Long Chen and Xiaolang had been lounging at the gazebo for an hour before Yin Mengyao returned. She pushed open the door and found Long Chen sitting inside.

This was a huge surprise to her!

“Long Chen!” Yin Mengyao shouted in surprise.

Long Chen took a close look at Yin Mengyao and saw that she had matured a lot. She looked more like a lady now and was already at the Heavenly Core Realm. She had improved a lot in such a short amount of time.

“Sister Mengyao, long time no see.” Long Chen smiled and looked at Xiaolang, who was staring at Yin Mengyao. His black eyes were slightly wet from the tears.

“Why did you come back without saying anything?” Yin Mengyao scoffed jokingly and looked at Long Chen. “You really grew up. I heard that you killed Lin Zichen and wanted to challenge the Sword Emperor. Why are you here?”

Yin Mengyao was secretly shocked by Long Chen’s talent. He had long become a legend in Yuanling City, but now he was an even larger legend.

Long Chen’s name had spread all across the Cangyang Kingdom. Yin Mengyao was brimming with pride since she had such a strong stepbrother. Even the people of the Lingwu family treated her with respect after learning what Long Chen had done.

He had rushed here before news of the Sword Emperor’s death had reached Lingwu City, so Yin Mengyao wasn’t aware yet. The people at the borders of the Cangyang Kingdom still had no idea that Long Chen had full control of the kingdom.

“Would you believe me if I said I killed the Sword Emperor and snatched the Cangyang Kingdom away from him?” Long Chen said in a joking tone.

Yin Mengyao sighed. “You really did it?” She trusted Long Chen, and she never doubted his strength after she learned that he had killed Emperor Yuan.

“Yes, but I don’t have time to manage the kingdom, so I gave it to my master, Zhao Qingyun of the Heavenly Demon Palace. Don’t worry though, he’s a fair person that treats others with kindness. I’m completely fine with giving him the kingdom.”

Long Chen was calm when he said that, but Yin Mengyao knew that he was no longer the same person who entered the Lingwu family with her.

“You are a legend! I will always be proud of you!” Yin Mengyao looked at Long Chen with pride.

Long Chen nodded. “Sister Mengyao, I have other matters to attend to. I’m here to say goodbye. We might never meet again.”

It would’ve been easy to come back with Ling Xi if he was just traveling, but there was a chance he would never return once he embarked on the next leg of his next journey.

Yin Mengyao’s face paled and she shook her head bitterly. “Go. You need a bigger space to grow. It will suit you.”

She knew that Long Chen’s talent would take him somewhere far away.

Long Chen nodded. He was glad that Yin Mengyao understood him, but he was here for another reason. He stood up and tossed Xiaolang to Yin Mengyao. “The wolf seems to like you a lot. Please take care of it for me. I will return soon.”

Long Chen was already gone when Yin Mengyao caught Xiaolang. She wasn’t sure why Long Chen had left so suddenly, but the wolf soon caught her attention. Its eyes reminded her of someone.

“Why does it resemble Xiaolang? I will ask Long Chen where Mo Xiaolang is after he comes back ...”

Long Chen wanted to stay for a bit after leaving Xiaolang and Yin Mengyao alone, but he suddenly heard something interesting from two ladies from the Silver family who were gossiping.

“The young master of Blaze City has reached the Heavenly River Realm already. The Patriarch of the Vermillion Bird family could not hold him back, so he ended up bringing the young master straight to the Azure Sun Pavilion. How did Liu Lan manage to make the young master fall in love with her?”

“What do you know about men? Young boys like him love voluptuous women like Liu Lan. Weren’t Chu Yunxi and Long Chen the same? I heard that Liu Lan became Long Chen’s woman back on Nine Devils Mountain. To think that the young master of Blaze City dared to touch Liu Lan even though Long Chen became such a legend ...”

“Long Chen might be strong, but I’ve heard that he wants to challenge the Sword Emperor. The Sword Emperor is at the Heavenly Passage Realm! It’s very likely Long Chen will die, so the young master could no longer hold back.”

“Liu Lan, that bitch. She’s nothing but a withered willow[1], and yet someone still wants her! I wish that young master would love me instead.”

“You? Look at your breast pads! You think you can win him over?”

Long Chen stood up.

“Let’s go find her. You spent some time with her, so it's technically fate.” Ling Xi was very understanding.

Long Chen nodded.

The Azure Sun Hall was not far from here. He soon reached it and recalled the first time he had met Liu Yuan here. He was only at the Earthly Core Realm and was getting ready to enter the Lingwu family, but times had changed.

I haven’t seen her since we came down from Nine Devils Mountain. I wonder what she will think of me. I wonder how she would react when she sees me.

Liu Lan had used Long Chen in the beginning, but he soon grew so strong that she couldn’t control him. Later on, he punished Liu Lan appropriately, and everyone assumed that she was his woman now.

“Withered willow.” That was the term the lady had used to describe Liu Lan.

He slowly approached the Azure Sun Hall and heard the sound of arguing inside. Long Chen looked through the mirror and saw what was happening. There were four people in the hall. The two people talking in the middle were the Vermillion Bird family’s Patriarch and Liu Yuan. The Patriarch was the same old woman, but Liu Yuan had visibly grown older.

Behind the Patriarch was a boy who looked to be roughly fifteen years old. He was arrogantly staring at the two people talking in the middle and taking greedy glances at Liu Lan.

Liu Lan was wearing plain clothes and little makeup, but her beauty could not be hidden. Even though she made no effort, every move she made could seduce a man. But now she was lowering her head and her face was pale. She was having difficulty breathing.

“Liu Yuan, think about it. Do you know how big Blaze City is? It’s three times larger than Yuanling City! Young Master Hong’s father rules over it, and he’s at the Fifth River Stage. Young Master Hong is also strong, reaching the Second River Stage at such a young age. Lan’er should be proud that he’s attracted to her ...”

The Patriarch looked at Liu Lan. As a woman, even she had to admit that Liu Lan was a vixen. If not, how could the young master of Blaze City be attracted to her even though Liu Lan’s reputation was in the gutter?

“Also, Lan’er is not young anymore. If she doesn’t get married soon ...”

Young Master Hong interjected, “Sister Lan, I really love you. Please rest assured that my father will send the dowry in ten days. We have prepared a massive dowry, including an elementary Earth-tier spiritual herb that will instantly get you to the Heavenly Core Realm!”

He was certain that Liu Lan would accept his offer because of the dowry.

Liu Yuan was in trouble too. He looked at Young Master Hong and Liu Lan. “Lan’er, I think ... Young Master Hong is indeed ...”

“Indeed what?” Liu Lan raised her head and glared at Young Master Hong. “Haven’t you heard the rumors of how many women he has trampled on even though he’s so young? Do you think he will be loyal to me? Also ...”

1. A fallen woman ☜