The introduction of Tang Fen into the Lang family didn't change the daily routine too much. They all still got up along with the morning sun and ate breakfast, they then had two hours of free time before they had to cultivate for at least one hour. The time allotted for cultivation grew a bit longer with each passing month, but parts of the afternoon were still reserved so that the children could play with each other, and the family would always gather in the evening to eat dinner together.

Tang Fen originally wanted to cultivate inside the foggy zone along with Yin Long but found herself unable to make heads or tails of the area within the fog and was thus forced to retreat. Due to this, she started cultivating with Lang Huo under the tutelage of Lang Hua. Lang Ru, who had far less talent for cultivation than her younger sister, chose to take this chance to cultivate along with her father instead, at least he would let her slack a bit.

Yin Long's parents also didn't stop searching for a cultivation manual for him but no matter what sort of cultivation manual they brought out, none of them worked for Yin Long, slowly causing the couple more and more agony. In the face of this, Yin Long could only do his best to ease their pain while continuing to train under Bai Xiang.

And in such a fashion, the days turned to months and the months turned to years. Before long, Tang Fen had already stayed in the Lang mansion for four years and turned eight, Yin Long and Lang Huo turning seven while Lang Ru turned 11. It was at this point that the Lang couple seemed to have come to a conclusion and decided to make a declaration to the clan.

--

Yin Long was standing in the foggy zone, his young yet toned body standing ramrod straight as he kept his eyes closed, his pristine silver hair slicked back so that it didn't get in his face. His knees suddenly bent as he crouched down and leaned back so far that he rolled backward. A wooden sword passed just over him as he rolled back, nearly grazing his dark yellow robe. Yin Long's eyes remained closed as he picked up a chestnut while rolling and sprang up into a standing position and gave his body a swift twist while throwing the chestnut.

The chestnut cut through the fog but crashed into something with a wooden thwack after only a few meters, Yin Long's expression not changing in the slightest. He suddenly bent his body as if someone was performing a cobra twist on him, a wooden sword from behind piercing through the air where his chest had just been, lodging itself in the earth with the handle vibrating slightly.

He grabbed onto the handle with his right hand and continued to bend his body so far that his left hand touched the earth. Then, using his own hand as a support, he vaulted into a handstand and spun his body so that he was facing the direction that the sword had come from, tossing out the sword while lowering his feet down to the earth again in a single swift motion.

The sword cut through the air but collided with something again after moving for only a few meters, the entire weapon splintering and falling apart from the collision. Yin Long's feet had just touched the earth again when a wooden sword jumped up from the earth, seemingly having been lying in wait for him. His brows shot up, but his eyes still didn't open, he knew that opening his eyes meant that he would be in for quite a violent 'training' session.

His right-hand thrust downwards in a stabbing motion, something akin to wind gathering within his clenched palm and forming together into a 20-centimeter long translucent sword covered in markings that resembled scaled leaves. His own sword collided with the wooden blade that jumped up from the earth, but it shattered a mere half-second after blocking the attack.

The wooden blade continued upwards without pause and crashed into Yin Long's forehead, hitting him so hard that his feet actually lost contact with the ground for a bit. The blade continued upwards and Yin Long's body was forced to spin in the air, only stopping when he was practically lying horizontally on his back in the air. He then crashed down to the ground with a thud, the voice of Bai Xiang echoing throughout the foggy area.

"You just died again. You died, so you couldn't protect a thing and thus everything dear to you will follow you to the grave. You need to put your conviction into your blade, otherwise, it'll just be a hollow pipe waiting to shatter. Your senses have improved drastically but none of that will matter if you swing around a hollow pipe. Also, how many times must I tell you that you need to sharpen your senses a bit more, don't look just for movement and things that contain energy, you must see everything."

Yin Long let out a deep breath and opened his eyes for the first time since the training started three hours ago. His pitch-black eyes contained a strange depth that shouldn't be present in the eyes of a seven-year-old child, a result of the continuous training and lectures that he had to go through with Bai Xiang.

Training with his eyes closed was so that he could immerse himself in the feeling he felt four years ago when he managed to create the sword for the second time. At that time he had let his senses and concentration spread out without any thought or aim, it was as if he had tried to take in the entire surrounding area at once. And now, after refining that sensation for four years, he could, in fact, do just that if he put his focus on it, he could 'see' everything within five meters around him even if he closed his eyes.

Of course, he had to focus to achieve this, and even then it wasn't quite perfect, as shown by the fact that he had failed to spot the wooden sword lying on the ground. Yin Long had nothing to say to his loss or Bai Xiang's lectures, he knew that his teacher was in the right. Bai Xiang's voice echoed out again, an ethereal stream of energy lifting Yin Long onto his feet.

"Oh well, at least you've improved, you only died 53 times during these three hours, you've also greatly increased the speed at which you can form your sword. If you continue like this, it shouldn't take you too much longer before you learn to take a proper look at yourself and your blade. We'll end the training here for today, you should return and get some rest before tomorrow, your father has some things planned for you. And don't forget, you mustn't tell anyone about what you are capable of, the moment you do so then I will leave and take with me the gifts I have given to your family."

Yin Long solemnly nodded his head, not daring to doubt Bai Xiang's words. This was one of the few demands that Bai Xiang had made that Yin Long didn't understand, he was strictly forbidden from telling the others about his power. It was fine if he showed his skill with the blade, but he was utterly forbidden from letting others know about his actual ability. This was a demand that Bai Xiang had hammered into Yin Long's head the day after Yin Long managed to materialize the blade to pick the pear.

But whether or not he understood it didn't matter too much to Yin Long, what mattered were the consequences. If Bai Xiang left and took his gifts with him, then Lang Huo would lose the Heart of Fire cultivation manual, which was one of the two pillars behind her strength. Yin Long would not let her lose something like that just so that he could show off, so he had yet to tell a single soul about his ability.

Yin Long was a bit curious about what his father had planned, but he knew that asking his teacher was pointless so he only bowed to the surroundings and then walked out of the foggy area. When Yin Long left the fog, the sun had already set and stars covered the entire sky, the three brilliant white moons hanging high in the sky. The grass was a bit moist, tickling Yin Long's bare feet as he walked and enjoyed the breeze that blew through the night.

When he turned the corner of the mansion and started approaching the entrance, he saw that Tang Fen and Lang Huo were standing outside the doors and were waiting for him. The two stood shoulder to shoulder to stave off the slight chill that followed the breeze, keeping their heads close as they chatted. When they noticed Yin Long turning the corner, they both reacted immediately and pointed at him.

"Target spotted!"
"A-ha, found you!"

The two then rushed over to him with pattering steps, each one grabbing onto one of his hands and starting to drag him towards the mansion doors. Yin Long's expression loosened into a wide grin as he felt the soft and somewhat cold hands grabbing onto his own. He twisted his body slightly as if he was trying to flee, putting up a tiny amount of resistance while keeping his voice lowered so that he didn't disturb the people sleeping in the mansion.

"Oh no, help, help! I'm being kidnapped again, I'm going to be forced to dress up like a girl!"

The two girls broke out into snickers upon hearing his pleas and noticing his resistance, their grasps on his hands tightening as they grinned at him.

"Hehehe, that's right, we'll make you a pretty maid!"
"Come, come, don't resist so much, we'll make you so pretty that everyone will love you and pamper you!"

The three quickly arrived in front of the mansion entrance and pushed open the doors, running straight into Lang Ru, who had brought a chair into the hallway behind the door and was waiting for them. A pair of socks and soft shoes, as well as a fresh robe, were laid over her lap. She stood up when the two entered, handing the items to Yin Long and doing her best to speak in a stern voice.

"You have to change before you enter, otherwise you'll dirty the carpet again and you might end up getting sick from wearing such a damp robe. You two as well, you should have brought these things when you went outside to wait."

Tang Fen and Lang Huo immediately raised their small hands into a salute, both of them also raising Yin Long's hands so that he was performing a strange double salute. The three then opened their mouths and spoke as one.

"Yes, Ma'am!"
"Aye aye, Big Boss!"
"Yes, Sir!"

Lang Ru did her best to roll her eyes in an exasperated manner but ended up failing as she broke out into a giggle. Yin Long quickly put on the socks and shoes, switching into the new robe right in front of the mansion. The oldest among them was Lang Ru, and she was only 11, so none of them had any concerns about Yin Long, a boy, changing in front of them.

Once Yin Long finished changing, the group of four moved through the hallways and corridors with swift yet quiet steps as they headed for the room where Tang Fen and Lang Huo would usually train. The reason they were heading there was because they had received an order from Lang Meng to bring Yin Long over along with everyone else once he finished training, he had something to tell them.