Chapter 35

After the three gave Feng Delun a positive response, and followed his example of meditating, Feng Delun began recounting the day's events. [Eldest brother and I went and visited Dongfu.]

It left the three men confused, Lan Jianhong muttered, [Why Dongfu.] They all knew that Ming Yongnian would not visit somewhere without a purpose. Their eldest brother was one of those shut-in Jiang Xiaotong told them.

[In Dongfu we met with Kaijun, the man sitting beside eldest brother. His relation's to eldest brother seemed to be… brothers, or sworn sworn brothers, or childhood friends. Kaijun seemed to know of eldest brother more than we do, and knew him longer.]

Jie Qiqiang said, [Hmm, I never thought eldest brother had any acquaintances outside of his former sect and us. He never mentioned anyone.]

[We've always known, that we know nothing of eldest brother's past before he met us.] Li Jiayi pointed out.

Lan Jianhong said, [It's not like any of us ever asked him.]

[I'm sure in the near future we'll discover parts of eldest brother's past through Kaijun's mouth.] Feng Delun was certain of this. [After Kaijun arrived he went to take us on a tour around Dongfu, then the Mo Huijun came.]

[Hold on, who's Mo Huijun?] Lan Jianhong stopped Feng Delun.

[The Devil Venerable, it's his courtesy name.]

[I thought Mo Huoyuan is his given name, turns out it's his courtesy name.] Today too, Lan Jianhong learned something interesting.

[When Mo Huijun arrived I and Kaijun learned that eldest brother may have unintentionally sire a child with the Devil Venerable.] At this point Feng Delun believed that the world had cursed him to forever have a migraine.

Lan Jianhong was beyond impressed. [Spiritual foetus sure can make the impossible possible.]

Li Jiayi saw the countless incoming troubles they will face in the coming future, or to be specific the incoming troubles for the baby in future. [What a mess… I could already foresee the chaos in store for eldest brother's child.]

[I'm not much of an artifacts crafter, but I guess I'll have to learn how. Now that one of us needs it. Elder brother, I'll have to bother you for your help with imbuing the artifact with arrays.] Jie Qiqiang suggested.

Feng Delun did not refuse Jie Qiqiang's suggestion. [Call me whenever you need my help.]

Lan Jianhong who had experience on what it was like to be the son of a Sect Leader, and former heir, could sympathise with the baby. [Having eldest brother as a father is bad enough. Having the Devil Venerable as your other father is pure suffering.]

[We're here to make sure everything turns out well, it's the least we could do for eldest brother.] Li Jiayi said.

The nine of them were in debt to Ming Yongnian. The immortal had each lent them a hand when they most needed it, when no one was willing to spare a glance and walked on them. It was time for them to help Ming Yongnian's child.

While Feng Delun, Lan Jianhong, Li Jiayi, and Jie Qiqiang had an inner conversation. Ming Yongnian and the Devil Venerable were also speaking to each other telepathically.

Glancing towards the four meditating men, Mo Huijun smirked. [Those four seemed to be having quite the conversation.] They may seem to be meditating but nothing escapes Mo Huijun's eyes. Otherwise he was not fit for the title "Devil Venerable". He could also peek into their conversation but he had roughly guessed what they were discussing.

Not one for meaningless chit chat Ming Yongnian asked, [What is it that you are planning?]

A scoff, and Mo Huijun returned the question, [Shouldn't I be the one asking you the question. Oh, Golden Crowned Lord, what is it that you are planning? In the middle of the Barren realm?

[There's nothing here of importance, yet when you are meant to ascend you went to this place instead of the heavens, why is that? Is it because the Celestial realm is not up to your standards? Or was it rotten to the core like any country and established body of organisation? At least we of the "evil ways" are truthful to our wretchedness.]

Towards Mo Huijun's taunts and spite, Ming Yongnian retained his coolheadedness. [It has nothing to do with you.]

[It does now, when we happened to share a child.] Mo Huijun sneered. [She is of my blood, the future ruler of the Devil realm, the next Devil Venerable. I will not have her live in such a poor realm, with poor spiritual power.]

Becoming the next Devil Venerable was not a future Ming Yongnian wished upon his own blood. [You're not giving her much choice. You'll have her suffer the same way you do rather than set her free.]

[At the very least she's not part of your world's hypocrisies.] None knew the "righteous" world's mask better than Mo Huijun. They parade the goodness in their arse, while their filthy hearts spout nonsense.

It was Ming Yongnian's turn to raise a brow. [You're making her choose suffering by becoming a Devil Venerable.]

[Which will make her strong.]

[She's not you, Mo Huijun. Suffering doesn't make a person strong, it makes them frail in ways no one could foresee.]

What a joke, Mo Huijun felt like rolling on the ground, laughing. [We shall see, shall we not?]

***

Light entered the house through the open windows, chasing the darkness away, the candles in the room had long been burnt out of its life. Li Jiayi peeked his head from behind the door. "Eldest brother, it's time to make the sky rain."

A shower started pouring from the sky, clouds gathered out of nowhere blocking the sun. "It's done." Ming Yongnian said, then he wondered of the progress they've been making. "How is everything?"

Pulling a scroll out of his sleeves, it was the record Li Jiayi had created to keep track of their work progress for Jin Liwei to read once the man in golden returned. "Today Qiqiang and Jianhong are spreading our leftover grass seeds, with elder brother keeping a close eye on the two. Once everyone returns we will spread some more grass seeds in nearby areas, wait for it to fully grow. Observe the environmental changes. We shall see how it goes before we spread and buy more seeds."

Ming Yongnian approved, "Good. Were there other settlements in this realm?"

Nodding, Li Jiayi reported their findings, "Jinjing said that the old man told her there were several other villages spread along the coastal line. No settlement seemed to exist in the central parts of the realm. Elder brother had confirmed the old man's statements, he had spread his spiritual consciousness through the area, and there are indeed a few villages along the coastal line, but the centre of the barren realm seemed to be… barren of life."

Ming Yongnian asked, "Not even a single oasis?" Even a dessert had an oasis somewhere. Li Jiayi shook his head. "I see, you can return now Jiayi, thank you." Ming Yongnian dismissed Li Jiayi, who then bowed slightly and disappeared like he was never there.

Mo Huijun had been silently acting as an audience through the entire exchange between the two. The Devil Venerable was left with many question marks above his head. Ming Yongnian had yet to explain to Mo Huijun why he was in the barren realm, but it seemed that they were busy planting grass.

"..."

Grass!

Did Grass have some sort of secret properties in them that the Devil Venerable missed? Or was Ming Yongnian and his little entourage a bunch of mentally sick people? "Why are you planting grass?"

Ming Yongnian spared Mo Huijun a brief glance before turning to the window. The Immortal blinked slowly as he admired the rain. "Give me my child and I'll tell you."

How impressive, did Ming Yongnian think he — the great Devil Venerable — would give up his daughter over a grass. Was Mo Huijun's esteem in Ming Yongnian's mind that low? Well, Mo Huijun only thought of Ming Yongnian as a hindrance at best, and an insect at worst. "Try a little harder."

"I'm trying to spare both of our ears." Ming Yongnian turned away from the rain, his face was expressionless, flat. In a single motion he stood up from the chair he had been sitting on since last night, straightening the creases on his robes.

Making his way to another part of the house. Mo Huijun frowned, his eyes following Ming Yongnian's figure. From where he was seated he could tell that the room Ming Yongnian had entered was the kitchen.

Is the Immortal going to cook?!

These domestic thoughts entered Mo Huijun's head, but cooking in the kitchen seemed rather too mundane for an immortal like him. What else could one do in the kitchen other than cooking, no, was he preparing some type of poison? His master poison artist had a poison kitchen of their own. Mo Huijun crossed the thought, if Ming Yongnian uses poison in his fight, the Devil Venerable would be the first to know.