Time, no matter how much one wished for it to stand still or slow down, it would move forward without pause. It didn't matter if Yin Long wanted more time to train or more time to spend with his family, time moved forward nonetheless. One mission became two and then four, days turned to weeks and then months, the seasons changing time and time again as the years came and went.
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The sun hung high in the sky as Yin Long stood in front of the forest surrounding the Lang clan mansion, his toned and slightly tanned upper body bare as he had slipped out of the upper part of his robe and allowed it to hang loosely around his waist. His long silver hair was tied into a neat ponytail that hung down to his waist and swayed slightly in the wind as he held a blunt metal sword.
Lang Huo stood a short distance away from him, her crimson hair sticky with sweat while faint flames flickered in her sapphire eyes. She let out a heavy breath and charged forward, raising the nearly two-meter long blunt greatsword she was holding and bringing it down at Yin Long like a furious bolt of lightning.
Six years had already passed since the funeral of their parents so they were both already 19 years and had shed all trace of their previous child-like cuteness. Lang Huo had turned into a graceful and charming young woman filled with dignity and an air that commanded respect wherever she went. Yin Long had turned into a tall and toned handsome man with a heroic air around him, his black eyes as well as his always calm and warm expression easily able to sway the hearts of people.
And just as their bodies had changed due to age, so had their strengths. As Lang Huo's sword came down at him it tore through the air and unleashed a slight whistling sound due to how fast it pushed aside the air, there was easily enough strength in the sword to pulverize boulders.
But just as he had done all those years ago, Yin Long simply swung his sword in a circular manner and redirected the attack, causing it to smash into the earth next to him. The attack caused earthen fragments to shoot in all directions, but Yin Long only twisted his body slightly to dodge them all, his sword shooting forward and tapping Lang Huo on the head.
"Nope, failed again. You're still not using your strength properly, you have to stop holding back like that while fighting others. My sword must shatter the moment it makes contact with yours, if it doesn't then that means that you aren't using your power properly."
Yin Long felt like a parrot as he spoke, he had almost lost count of how many times over the last 12 years he had told Lang Huo the exact same thing. But the very concept of not holding back, at least against her own twin brother, seemed to be unable to imprint itself in her mind. Yin Long couldn't help but be slightly troubled about this, how could you possibly hope to get as much as you could out of a sparring session if you were holding back?
Lang Huo stuck out her tongue at Yin Long and pulled her sword out of the earth, puffing her cheeks out slightly as she moved back to take up position again. She was the dignified matriarch of the Lang clan, it was only during moments like these that she could drop some of the weight from her shoulder and act more like a normal girl. But just as they were about to start again, two towels soared through the air and landed accurately on their heads, the voice of Lang Ru interrupting both of them.
"Alright, that's enough bullying for now. Little Huo, Sister Fen is waiting for you and hopes that you haven't forgotten your promise to go shopping with her."
Yin Long removed the towel and wiped his upper body before pulling up the upper part of his yellow robe again. He wore the robe rather loosely, not putting his left arm into the sleeve but rather keeping it resting on the sash around his waist while allowing it to stick out of the opening of the robe. Lang Huo hurriedly wiped away the sweat on her face and neck, Yin Long waving his hand and dismissing her apologies.
"Oh crap, right! I'm sorry, I forgot that I m..."
"Don't worry about it, just go and have fun. Don't keep Sister Fen waiting for too long otherwise, she'll start pouting until you spoil her rotten."
Lang Huo responded with a slight grin and a chuckle, quickly rushing away to go change, thanking Lang Ru for notifying her. Yin Long followed her departing figure for a while before turning his gaze onto Lang Ru. She had already turned 23 and become a mature and calm beauty, her chestnut brown hair slightly curled as it hung down to her waist, her red eyes constantly containing a soft expression.
Yin Long swiped his interspatial ring and took out a small gourd filled with wine, which was made by Lang Ru, and took a quick sip to ease his thirst while walking over to Lang Ru, the two walking side by side while they returned to the mansion and chatted.
"Impeccable timing as always. I swear, you somehow always manage to find us with perfect timing."
"You have your sword skills, Little Huo has her cultivation, and I have my unbeatable instincts. What, are you jealous?"
"Maybe a little, always arriving at just the right time sounds like something a hero out of a legend would do. You've got that part down pat, now you just need the strength to match it."
"I'm good, cultivation really isn't my thing. If I can continue to live in peace while watching over you kiddies while brewing better and better wine then I'll be content. I might not get to ascend like Mother and Father, but I'll still be content."
The two continued to chat and laugh amongst each other until they reached the entrance of the mansion, Lang Huo and Tang Fen bursting out through the doors. Tang Fen had also grown up to become a graceful and charming woman, her glimmering golden hair tied into a neat braid while a few strands hung down in front of her blue eyes. The two didn't stop their steps, rushing past Yin Long and Lang Ru while leaving behind a few words.
"Ah, good morning Brother Yin! I'm kidnapping Sister Huo for a bit, I promise we'll return before evening!"
"Bye-bye, we'll try to be back before it gets too late for dinner!"
The two girls rushed away from the estate and vanished into the city to enjoy themselves, Lang Ru and Yin Long smiling softly as they gazed upon their departing figures. The two then entered the mansion and walked through the hallways for a bit before splitting up, Yin Long heading to the fourth floor while Lang Ru stopped on the third floor.
Yin Long walked along the quiet hallways of the fourth floor, only two of the maids and one of the butlers in the mansion were allowed onto this floor so it was much quieter than the other floors. Yin Long pushed open the door to a room that was a few hundred meters away from the stairs leading to the fourth floor, entering a simple office-like bedroom.
The room contained a bed large enough to hold two people, a two-meter tall and one-meter wide window that allowed him to gaze upon a large portion of the city, two bookshelves, a single dresser, a nightstand, a desk covered in papers, and a fireplace right next to the window. Yin Long walked over and sat down on the chair behind the desk, letting out a slight breath.
This room used to be the personal office of his father but Yin Long had turned it into his own room four years ago, only a few days after Bai Xiang and his wife quietly left one night. Sitting here, he almost felt as if he was a bit closer to his parents, it gave him a slight sense of comfort and ease.
His gaze moved slightly and landed on the two framed items hanging above the fireplace. One was a painting of their entire family shortly after he and his sister were born, and the other was the framed contract delivered by the Tang clan, the one that was supposed to serve as the betrothal contract between him and Tang Fen. He only glanced at the painting for a short moment before retracting his gaze and closing his eyes, sucking in a deep breath.
His vision sank inwards and arrived above the silver sea where the rainbow-hued sword was floating, an area he had already learned was actually called the soulsea. The soulsea had changed slightly compared to the first time he entered it, the silver ocean had grown even larger and there were now five small silver orbs floating around the sword that was his soul.
With each breath Yin Long took, a few streams of translucent energy would enter his soulsea and sink the silver ocean for a bit before rising up and sinking into both his soul and the five orbs, nourishing them while also growing the silver ocean. A bit of the energy would split away from the rest, gathering up in the air next to the five orbs, slowly forming a sixth one.
This was the solution Yin Long had come up with on how to solve the problem that no cultivation manuals would work for him. Since he couldn't use his dantian as the place to store his Qi and go through the proper steps of cultivation then he would just use his soulsea. The silver ocean within his soulsea was his Qi so it was relatively easy to move over the few orbs of energy in his body that had already started to produce their own Qi.
The orbs had sunken into the silver ocean, and after being nourished by his own Qi as well as having more Qi added to them, one by one they slowly rose up into the five orbs in front of him. Each orb was the equivalent of one stage in the Mortal Door realm so Yin Long could be said to currently be on the cusp of the 6th Mortal Door.
It wasn't the highest cultivation realm, but he had been able to kill people at the 6th Mortal Door even before he properly started cultivating. Now that he was capable of properly cultivating it was like adding wings to a tiger, his strength had only grown greater.
A slight rumble from his interspatial ring drew Yin Long out of his cultivation state, his finger swiping the ring his parents had given him when he was seven years old. He took out an apple-sized chunk of clear quartz, his expression sinking slightly when it landed on the soft blue light flashing within the crystal. He let out a soft breath and stood up from the chair, leaving the room and making his way out of the mansion.
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