Chapter 3-4

Su Family Long-Lost Ancestor Found

[If you want to blame someone, blame your mother, didn't she die after giving birth to you? Maybe she should have brought you to accompany her to the underworld]

Hiss~~

Yang Huo took a sharp breath as he continued reading. This person was truly heartless! Refusing to lend a hand was one thing, but dragging her deceased mother into it? Truly deserving of the villainous reputation!

Closing the tab, Yang Huo decided to take a breather from the story since there was no way he could finish it all today.

'Anyway, why aren't we there yet? We've been walking for almost 2 minutes! This Su manor is way too big for its own good,' he frustratedly thought.

Glancing at the servant guiding him, still walking patiently without making a single sound, Yang Huo sighed inwardly and decided to kill time by familiarizing himself with the items in his storage ring.

And true to the lifestyle of a core disciple, Yang Huo's items were nothing short of extravagant.

'There's a lot of stuff here. There's a Frostblade talisman.'

'Qi-Blossom Essence pill.'

'Dragonfire amulet.'

'Mini looking spider puppet.'

'Very Badass Looking sword.'

'Super Bright Looking pill.'

'A small necklac–'

"We've arrived Young Master Yang"

Yang Huo came to a halt, immediately redirecting his attention as he watched the servant slide the door open.

Upon entering the room, a young, well-groomed man appeared before him. Draped in an intricately embroidered robe, the man exuded elegance with a subtle yet tasteful charm.

"Master Yang, it has been a while! How are you doing?"

Yang Huo blinked and remained silent. Barely an hour had passed since he inherited this body, and he had yet to formulate a plan to address the 'sudden change in behavior' and 'missing memories'.

Now he already had to deal with it so soon?

Although Yang Huo didn't respond to the young man, the latter continued speaking.

"Hm? Master Yang, is that perhaps your pet?"

".....Pet?"

This question caught Yang Huo off guard. He quickly followed the young man's gaze to his shoulder... and lo-and-behold, the over-the-top, epic-looking owl, with black fur somehow radiating more light than the sun itself.

'Wha.... System!! They can see your body?!?! And stop with the stupid special effect! It's blinding my eyes!!'

[Well of course! How could I dare hide my unparalleled appearance and magnificent aura away from the world? It would be too unfair and cruel!]

[But I understand your feeling, Host. Who wouldn't want to keep such a dazzli–]

"Yes it is my pet," Yang Huo answered the young man.

[Oi don't ignore m–]

"I took pity on it after seeing it trying to eat its own pile of poop"

[Host! How could you smear my–]

"But alas, I can't stop its habit from relapsing every once in a while"

[Wha...]

Not only was the System left speechless, even the young man was stunned. He didn't expect the sudden info bomb coming from Yang Huo's mouth. Putting aside that Yang Huo had gotten himself a pet, was it really necessary to talk about the owl's weird habit?

"E-erm... Master Yang, are you alright, why is your pet stabbin- pecking you so harshly?"

"Aah..... yes, this is a sign that its habit is about to relapse. Pay no heed to it"

The young man showed an awkward smile and thought, 'Are you sure it's just the owl's habit and not because you're its mortal enemy? Why does it seem like it wants to peck you to death?'

Suddenly, a sound interrupted everyone.

"Cough, Su Zhiyuan stop playing around."

When Su Zhiyuan heard his father's words, he immediately readjusted himself.

"Yes, father. Master Yang, please."

Following Su Zhiyuan, Yang Huo comfortably took a seat opposite to an old man far surpassed his fifties. On Yang Huo's table, a hot tea was already prepared for him.

Yang Huo slowly scanned the room before shaking his head to show his disappointment. He gently grabbed the tea, enjoyed its aroma, and said, "After getting called at such a time, I thought there might be something urgent but..."

Yang Huo's eyes bore a chilling gaze as his gaze fell upon the old man. "But considering that there's only two people here, let's all hope this is something worth my attention"

Yang Huo's display of fierceness left both the old man and Su Zhiyuan momentarily speechless. Was he the guest, or were they? And why did he seem more at ease in this room than them?

The old man slowly cleared his throat.

"Our sincere apologies, something urgent just came up and the patriarch and the other elders had to delay themselves"

"More urgent than me?"

A flicker of irritation crossed the old man's face. Did you think you're our father? Could you not act so unreasonably?

"....Unfortunately, yes."

Yang Huo nodded calmly and took a sip of the tea, "I'll consider the apology later, but for now, state your business".

The old man's eyes started twitching uncontrollably in anger. You're indeed not our father.... you're our father's long-lost ancestor! You're so arrogant alright!

The old man sighed to himself and felt like crying. He himself didn't even know where the others had gone to. They only informed him about the purpose of this meeting and brought his son here for some experience. Who would have thought that everyone was nowhere to be seen? If he knew this would happen, he would rather continue his sleep with his wife.

As the old man let out an even deeper sigh this time, suddenly, the door was knocked several times.

"Forgive the intrusion, Elder Su Zhenhua. May I humbly request a moment of your time? There's a message from the patriarch."

"The patriarch?"

Su Zhenhua's eyes lit up with anticipation. Finally, someone with an explanation!

However, Elder Su Zhenhua's face froze and quickly shot a suspicious look at Yang Huo, fearing his terminally-ill narcissistic ego might flare up again.

But contrary to his belief, Yang Huo remained unfazed, calmly continuing to drink his tea.

"...Sorry for the inconvenience, Master Yang, I'll be back soon."

After saying that, Su Zhenhua glared at his son and signaled. 'Entertain him while I am gone!'

Su Zhiyuan gulped nervously. 'Father, this is an unreasonable request!'

But alas, as he witnessed his father sprinting faster than when his father's mother-in-law paid a visit to the house, Su Zhiyuan could only offer an awkward smile to Yang Huo, who was still leisurely sipping his tea.

While Su Zhiyuan and Yang Huo were never close before, with most just Su Zhiyuan greeting him and Yang Huo ignoring him. But why was this Yang Huo so different from what he remembered?

"H-how are you doing, Master Yang?"

"....."

Yang Huo remained silent.

Su Zhiyuan wore a wry smile. It appeared he was getting ignored once again. Su Zhiyuan had already grown accustomed to this lack of response, since the man despised anyone weaker than him, especially those older yet with lower cultivation than hi–

"...It's fine," Yang Huo suddenly answered.

"Eh?"

"How about you? It seems the Su family is prospering as usual."

Su Zhiyuan was stunned and immediately questioned whether he had heard it correctly. Did the infamous Yang Huo just respond to him and even inquire about his well-being? This was impossible, he must be a fake!

However, since Su Zhiyuan was too shocked to give a response, this silence made Yang Huo frowned. "What's wrong?"

Su Zhiyuan hastily responded in a fluster.

"N-nononono! It's nothing! Cough cough.... yes the family has been doing great, thank you for asking."

Yang Huo nodded, silently grabbing the teapot and filled his own cup. "I see. How are your brothers and sisters?"

Once again, Su Zhiyuan was puzzled. The Su family boasted a considerable number of members, especially in his generation. So which brothers and sisters could Yang Huo possibly be referring to?

"Umm.... Master Yang, which one are you referring to?"

However, when Yang Huo met him with a prolonged silence, Su Zhiyuan immediately provided an answer.

Gradually, the conversation shifted into a one-sided exchange, with Su Zhiyuan taking on most of the talking, and Yang Huo merely nodding and offering input once in a while.

The System, unusually quiet until now, finally couldn't hold back.

[Oh my god, watching snails racing each other is more entertaining than listening to this guy! Host, can't you do something more thrilling–..... Eh? Host, what are you doing?]

The System, sensing something unusual, quickly questioned Yang Huo.

Yang Huo blinked his eyes and responded. 'Aren't you the System? Can't you figure this out yourself?'

The System felt a surge of annoyance.

[Don't belittle me! Do you really think I am so incapable? Fine! I'll show you my ski– ....Oh my god, what is this?!??!]

The System was utterly surprised. It turned out Yang Huo was using a talisman to share visions with his spider puppet! And the puppet was actually monitoring on Su Zhiyuan's father, Elder Su Zhenhua!

[You've been eavesdropping on them all this time?! When did you use your puppet?!]

---

Traitor Within the Family!!

[You've been eavesdropping on them all this time?! When did you use your puppet?!]

'Ssh! I'm trying to focus! Who told you to listen to that guy's rambling all this time? Even a deaf man would get tired from listening to him!'

Normally, Yang Huo wouldn't mind indulging in the System's antics. However, the present situation demanded a high level of concentration. It seemed the news brought by the servant was very important, to the extent that it warranted a sound barrier to safeguard their discussion.

Fortunately, Yang Huo knew lip-reading skills, else figuring out their conversation would have been impossible.

Immediately, the System fell silent as it join in the fun of 'eavesdropping' while leaving the unfortunate young man, Su Zhiyuan, talking to himself.

"What?! The secret realm had opened?!" Elder Su Zhenhua couldn't believe the news he had just heard. No wonder they had to move to an isolated place and use a sound barrier to cover their conversation. No matter what, they couldn't afford to have this news leaked.

"No sir, not yet. But we detected massive energies radiating from the secret realm. Currently, the patriarch and the other elders are investigating it, but we anticipate it will open in a few days, or possibly even tomorrow."

With a contemplative expression, Elder Su Zhenhua gently stroked his long beard. Their ancestors had discovered the secret realm long ago. However, due to the unstable nature of the space connecting the real world to the realm, all they could do was conceal it and await the opportune moment.

Years of dedicated resources and calculations had led them to predict that this would be the year the secret realm finally opened.

"After so many years of waiting... what unfortunate timing."

Observing Elder Su Zhenhua pacing back and forth, the servant assumed an even more solemn demeanor. Unfortunately, even the news of the secret realm wasn't the primary concern.

"We... also suspect that there's a traitor."

Elder Su Zhenhua halted in his tracks, fixing the servant with a chilling gaze.

"A traitor? Already?"

"Yes, when the Patriarch and the others arrived at the scene, our spies also detected movement from the other families."

Su Zhenhua's frown deepened.

In anticipation of this moment, their ancestors had established a formation to block any energies emanating from the secret realm. However, even if there were leaks in the formation, the idea that the other families would respond almost as swiftly as the Su Family to a small amount of energy was simply incredulous.

As anger surged within Elder Su Zhenhua, he took a deep breath to regain his composure. However, a profound sense of disappointment soon overcame him.

Elder Su Zhenhua shook his head. "We have truly disappointed our ancestors."

Observing the unfolding situation, the System, as a mere bystander, sensed something peculiar in the elder's reaction. Which was why the System turned to Yang Huo for an explanation.

Feeling a little pity at the naïve System, Yang Huo explained reluctantly.

'Think about it, if the Su Family could plant spies on the other families, what's stopping the other families from doing the same?'

A moment of enlightenment flashed in the black owl's eyes, but it quickly disappeared and replaced by a deeper sense of confusion.

[Then why did the elder still appear surprised?]

Yang Huo let out a sigh.

'Yes, it wouldn't be surprising if the other families were aware of the secret realm's existence. But who cares? What matter is who got the first taste of it.'

'And assuming the Su Family knew this as well, their primary goal is to limit the flow of information to the bare minimum. At the very least, enough for them to reap most of the important rewards from the secret realm.'

'So, the issue isn't that the information got leaked, the problem is the speed at which it got leak.'

Instantly, the System connected all the dots.

In order to block information from reaching the spy, the Su Family needed to minimize the number of individuals involved in the operation. This meant that only the most trusted members of the Su Family were privy to the secret realm's current situation. So for it to still get leaked...

Elder Su Zhenhua massaged his temples wearily.

"How about the meeting? Did the patriarch say anything about it?"

"Yes, even though the Patriarch and the other elders won't be able to attend, the patriarch instructed us to proceed with the plan."

Elder Su Zhenhua released a tired sigh, waving his hand dismissively.

"Alright, alright. If that's all, then I need to go. If I linger any longer, who knows what that brat Yang Huo might get up to."

Observing the servant cupping his hand in a polite gesture and beginning to depart, Yang Huo swiftly cut his shared vision and directed the spider puppet to a secluded spot.

Meanwhile, the System, eager to share its thoughts, was about to say something before Yang Huo interrupted and spoke first.

'I know what you're thinking, but no, I see no reason to enter the secret realm.'

The System was taken aback.

[What?! Why not?!]

'What do you mean, why not? Let's set aside the fact that the Su Family and other families wouldn't let an outsider from entering the secret realm.'

'Not only do I not lack resources with my core disciple position. I also have limited combat experience, so why should I risk my second life on something so unreliable and dangerous?'

Yang Huo's words rendered the System speechless. Why was its Host not following the script? Had it chosen the wrong Host? But why did Yang Huo's rationale sounded undeniably sensible?

....N-No! The System couldn't let this go! If it didn't intervene now and allowed its Host to remain spineless like this, then the System might really change job into those sign-in System that only wanted to become a shut-in!

This won't do!

All of a sudden, a screen popped up into Yang Huo's vision.

[Mission

Description: To demonstrate your prowess as a master manipulator, engineer a fortuitous moment and obtain yourself treasures of the secret realm from the clutches of the esteemed Su Family, Golden Lotus Pavilion, and Wang Family!

Reward: Yet to be determined]

When Yang Huo saw the mission, he grinned secretly while calmly enjoying his tea. He didn't think fooling the System was so eas–

DING!

[Congratulation! You've successfully manipulated the System into assigning you a mission for additional rewards! You've earned 100 System Points!]

At that very moment, Yang Huo was caught off guard and accidentally choked on his tea. He instantly spat out everything in his mouth to the person smiling in front of him, Su Zhiyuan.

And as Yang Huo quickly wiped his mouth, his eyes still widened in disbelief at the screen in front of him.

"This is possible?!"