Qi Yuan grinned. "I don't even have a marriage certificate, what Dao companion?"

Jiang Ruhua paused, then nodded with newfound respect. "I see... Keeping them hidden, huh? Impressive. Truly impressive."

So that was it, no official Dao companion, just arrangements.

Before long, the spirit ship began its descent.

Cultivators filed out. Men and women alike, each wearing different expressions. Below, rows of Cloud Rabbit carriages had already gathered to receive them.

Qi Yuan said casually, "Until next time, fellow Daoist"

Jiang Ruhua smirked. "Don't forget to invite me to your wedding feast!"

"...Sure," Qi Yuan replied without much thought.

Out here, identities were self-made and promises just as easily given.

Meanwhile, Jiang Ruhua glanced down and immediately spotted a lively girl in a yellow dress. A trace of satisfaction crossed his face. That brat still remembered to come pick up her father, after all! He straightened up, putting on a stern face, waiting for her to approach.

Sure enough, she came running over, joy written all over her face. Despite feeling thoroughly pleased, Jiang Ruhua maintained his serious expression.

In the next moment, his daughter walked right past him. "Senior Brother, you're finally back!"

Jiang Ruhua froze. Without even noticing him, Jiang Lingsu went straight to the lad he'd been chatting with. She slipped her arm around his with practiced ease, her eyes fixed entirely on him.

Something snapped in Jiang Ruhua's chest. Disbelief flooded his face. She hadn't come for him. Even though they were only a few steps apart, she didn’t spare him a glance. Instead, she came for that brat!

It clicked instantly for Jiang Ruhua. The lad was none other than Qi Yuan, his daughter's senior brother. Of course. How did he not see it coming? His realization was followed by anger. Gentle? Considerate? Sweet? That was his daughter all along?! And what was this about a busty junior sister?!

Jiang Ruhua’s eyes practically burned as he roared through clenched teeth, "JIANG LINGSU!"

If bloodlust alone could kill, Qi Yuan would've been torn apart on the spot. Jiang Ruhua couldn’t believe he had just taught the lad how to seal the deal with his daughter!

Jiang Lingsu's smile froze. Still holding Qi Yuan’s arm, she looked over in surprise. "Father?"

Jiang Ruhua snapped, glaring at her then at the arm wrapped around Qi Yuan. "So you still remember I'm your father?"

Qi Yuan blinked, then blurted out, "That lecherous cultivator is your dad?"

The father and daughter froze.

Qi Yuan went on, completely unfazed. "Along the way here, he was telling me to cross the line with my busty junior sister."

A flush instantly crept up Jiang Lingsu's ears, even tinting the corners of her eyes.

Jiang Ruhua exploded. "Nonsense!"

Qi Yuan appeared aggrieved. "And that's not all. He even asked me how to have multiple wives. Junior Sister, looks like you're getting a few more stepmothers."

All the anger drained from Jiang Ruhua's face in an instant.

Jiang Lingsu gritted her teeth. "I'm telling Mother."

Jiang Ruhua panicked. "Don't!"

His wife was far from domineering. She was demure and soft-spoken, but her crying... If she found out, she'd cry for the next ten years straight. It would be an absolute nightmare.

Jiang Lingsu stuck out her tongue. "This isn't over."

Now that she had leverage, she was clearly relieved. Otherwise, facing her father in such a situation would've been mortifying.

***

Half an hour later, Jiang Ruhua was still restless and frustrated. He hadn't expected things to turn out like this at all! Now, he could only stare at Qi Yuan with a hint of grievance. He'd completely lost face. Especially that "seal the deal" advice he had given. Just thinking about it made his chest tighten.

"About that earlier, don't take it seriously. I don't actually do things like that," Jiang Ruhua said quickly once Jiang Lingsu stepped away.

Qi Yuan chuckled. "You've misunderstood. My relationship with Junior Sister is completely proper. Everything I posted on the forum was made up. I don't have a senior sister either. And the sect master's daughter? That's Kang Fulu's Dao companion, I have nothing to do with her."

If anything, that only deepened Jiang Ruhua’s misunderstanding. Not even married women are safe from him? Back on the ship, I could’ve almost mistaken him for a kindred spirit. How shameless.

He flashed a cold smile. "Heh. Sure, I believe you."

Qi Yuan just shrugged.

For a brief moment, Jiang Ruhua saw a reflection of his younger self in the lad. He remembered bringing his junior sister to meet her father and getting beaten half to death.

He snorted. "Aren't you the number one Nascent Soul in Great Shang? Come, let me see what you've got!"

It sounded like a challenge but really, he just wanted an excuse to beat Qi Yuan up. Why should this punk have it easy when he’d suffered before?

Qi Yuan said without hesitation, brightening, "I always respect my elders. Bullying old men is in poor taste. How about you let Junior Sister fight in your place?"

Jiang Ruhua nearly choked on the spot. This guy's skin is thicker than mine.

In the days that followed, Jiang Ruhua stayed on Seven-Colored Peak. Qi Yuan went about his usual routine, holed up in his room modifying cultivation techniques. However, because of the recent events, things weren’t as quiet as before.

People came and went constantly, with Shen Wushen occasionally visiting. Violet Palace cultivators from the Blood-Clothed Alliance also showed up from time to time. Even Yin Spirit experts who had joined the Yuan God Sharing Society later on came to pay their respects. The stream of visitors only became endless after the Divine Method was released.

Sitting in his plain concrete house, Qi Yuan's eyes gleamed. "With the batch Shen Wushen just brought, I've got six Divine Methods and over two thousand Heaven-tier ones now. Not bad. Looks like group buying works even in this world."

He couldn't help but feel pleased. Why bother raiding sects or chasing after some white moonlights when he could just lie at home and let techniques come to him? At this point, he'd practically gathered the world's entire collection. Even mundane martial arts manuals were piling up.

"This should last me a while." After checking his storage pouch, his gaze shifted to the game jade slip, a flicker of anticipation in his eyes. "The game's finally downloaded, but what's with me being dead?"

If I go in now, what am I? A skeleton?

He would enter seclusion for a while, leaving everything to continue as usual. Jiang Lingsu had also been informed.

"Enter game."