Chapter 118: Reminiscence (8)

The Tianya Pavilion sat atop the highest point of Broken Horizon, its entire layout little different from that of the mortal realm.

Ye Zheng was quite familiar with this place, having visited many times and stayed for long stretches. The first time he came, Yu Zidu hadn't even appeared yet. Now look at him—such a big kid, already rebellious in that way older children are.

“Master, a few days ago my father received these gifts. Look, the whole warehouse is filled with them,” Yu Zidu tugged at Ye Zheng’s arm, leading him to his family’s storage room as he pointed out the contents.

Ye Zheng rubbed his forehead in resignation. This kid was serious—he thought Yu Zidu was joking, but it turned out he truly wanted to show him the gifts Yu Qiuming had received.

The items looked fine, but Ye Zheng wasn’t particularly interested—they were all mundane objects.

To be honest, Ye Zheng alone saw the entire room full of treasures as common trinkets, nothing worth his curiosity. But to others, it was a very different matter.

Fortunately, Ye Zheng kept his thoughts to himself. Otherwise, Yu Zidu would have been horrified. What kind of powerful being must Ye Zheng be to regard these spirit-infused treasures as mere common goods?

That was why Ye Zheng wore a look of disdain toward all these things. Had it been anyone else, Yu Zidu would have kicked them out without hesitation.

“All right, I’ve seen enough. Can we go sit now and rest?” Children truly were difficult to handle. It was easier to be a solitary elder like himself.

Calling out to Yu Zidu, Ye Zheng made his way toward the main hall. He simply didn’t want to look at those useless treasures.

They might be visually pleasing, but in terms of usefulness, Ye Zheng could release a bit of spirit power himself that far exceeded the stored energy in all those items combined.

Walking from the storage room to the hall, he found no one there. This struck him as odd.

Previously, whenever he came, there were many people in the Yu household. Why was Yu Zidu the only one here today? Even the usual servants were absent.

“Master, if you want to sit for a while, I’ll brew some tea for you. The pavilion’s been busy lately, so the servants have all been reassigned,” Yu Zidu said wearily, glancing at Ye Zheng before heading off to prepare the tea.

All this fuss just because the old man was celebrating a birthday? They had pulled everyone away to help?

In recent days, Yu Zidu had no one cooking for him, so he ended up eating outside and coming straight back to avoid hunger.

Just as Yu Zidu left, Madam Yu returned. Upon seeing Ye Zheng seated in the hall, her expression changed immediately.

This was a rare guest. She hadn’t seen him in a long time, and her husband had been talking about him often.

There had indeed been many joyous occasions lately. Unexpectedly, Ye Zheng had come to Broken Horizon as well—that was truly wonderful.

“Fanghua pays respects to Master. I wasn’t aware of your visit; please forgive me,” Fanghua quickly approached Ye Zheng and gave a slight bow.

Ye Zheng waved his hand dismissively. He disliked formalities. He saw himself as an equal among friends and felt no need for such ceremonies.

Simplicity was best; there was no need for complexity when dealing with friends in a natural way.

“What has Qiuming been busy with recently? Why isn’t he home? Zidu has been complaining that you don’t care for him,” Ye Zheng smiled, gesturing for Fanghua to sit and speak more casually.

He had seen Fanghua many times as a child. Her father was also a friend of his, and though she had been a wild girl then, after marrying Yu Qiuming she had become much more gentle and virtuous.

“Master, the old man’s birthday is just a few days away. My husband is helping prepare things at the old mansion. I’ve already sent someone to call him back,” Fanghua said nervously in front of Ye Zheng, likely out of respect or lingering fear from their childhood encounters.

Ye Zheng had noticed this for some time but said nothing. In his eyes, they were not just friends but also juniors to him. It was natural for them to feel some fear given his strength and status. He understood their nervousness.

“Master, I’ve brewed the tea for you. Please have a taste!” Yu Zidu returned to the hall and immediately frowned upon seeing another guest.

Usually, no one looked after him when he came back, but when Master visited, everyone suddenly appeared. Was this fair? After all, he was their son!

“Thank you, Zidu. Have a seat and rest for a bit,” Ye Zheng praised him and handed Yu Zidu a high-grade White Python Spirit Core.

It was of no use to Ye Zheng but invaluable to Yu Zidu. Fully absorbing the spirit power within this core could raise Yu Zidu’s cultivation by several great levels.

This spirit core had belonged to one of Ye Zheng’s ancestors. After a failed tribulation, all other treasures were destroyed by heavenly thunder, leaving only this core intact.

A deep male voice came from outside the door. “Master, every time you come, you give this child such precious gifts. You’re spoiling him too much,” he said with a smile toward Ye Zheng.

Though his words sounded accusatory, there was no resentment. He knew Ye Zheng held great expectations for Yu Zidu.

“Qiuming, you’re exaggerating. I’m just giving the boy a gift. If you keep speaking like that, I might not dare visit your home anymore,” Ye Zheng retorted with a smile, looking at the silver-haired man.

The man was about thirty, flamboyant and unrestrained, lacking any sense of mature steadiness expected of a father.

“You’re such a brat. Whenever Master gives you something, you just take it without a word of thanks.” He kicked the person beside Fanghua.

His son was spoiled by his wife. Neither the wife nor the son listened to him.

“If the Master gives it to me, why wouldn’t I accept? Are you jealous? Disrespecting your elders!” Listen to how this guy spoke to his own father.

Disrespecting his elders? He certainly knew how to show respect, especially to his own father!

“Fanghua, you shouldn’t exhaust yourself running around while pregnant. You must take good care of your health,” Ye Zheng suddenly admonished her.

Everyone in the hall looked at him, stunned.

Pregnant? Who was pregnant?

No… Ye Zheng said Fanghua was pregnant!

“Mom, are you finally going to give me a little sister?” Yu Zidu jumped up excitedly, crouching at Fanghua’s feet with an expectant look.

Yu Qiuming was also surprised. His wife was expecting—did that mean he was going to have a daughter?

This was wonderful. He would finally have a daughter of his own, instead of always feeling a pang of envy watching other families with daughters.