Meet the Parents

After we returned to Dragon Gate City, we went straight to the guild building to submit our reports. I split ways temporarily with them because I had a different mission – the collection of white lilies. The admin staff who had helped me earlier widened his eyes when he saw the amount of white lilies I had collected.

"How…how…?"

"What do you mean how? I found them by the riverbank as you said. Then I plucked them out. They aren't damaged, are they?"

"No, they aren't…but how did you collect so many? Did you not encounter any spirit beasts? I'm pretty sure the river is infested with diamondback crocodiles and other dangerous creatures!"

"Oh, I did run into a few diamondback crocodiles. I beat their leader up and the rest ran away."

The admin staff stared at me skeptically. I didn't know if it was the matter-of-fact manner in which I replied or the apparent absurdity of my claim that elicited such a reaction. Not that it mattered. I didn't care if he didn't believe me. Whatever the truth, the final result was that I had accomplished my task and brought the white lilies they had requested. That was all that mattered.

The admin staff shook his head in resignation, as if thinking that I wouldn't tell him the truth, and then he ran off to settle the process. It probably included storing the white lilies somewhere inside the guild building and readying them for shipment to the alchemists, and then gathering the spirit stones to remunerate me. I waited patiently, accepted the payment and dropped them into my spatial pouch. Turning around, I saw Lan Bei Er waiting for me.

"So that was your mission," she said, folding her arms. "I knew you were joking about looking for me."

"I wasn't joking. I took the mission to look for you, because they told me that there would be White Herb Sect disciples carrying out missions in the Verdant Forest. Otherwise why would a demonic sect disciple like myself disguise myself and do missions for orthodox cultivators."

Lan Bei Er blushed deeply and she hurriedly looked away. "E…enough about that!"

"Why are you still bothering Junior Bei Er?!" Jian Shen growled, stomping over. The guy was beginning to infuriate me. "Get away from her, you trash!"

Was he an idiot? Lan Bei Er was the one who approached me this time.

"Stop harassing me!" Lan Bei Er yelled at Jian Shen. "I told you, he's my guest! I'm bringing him home to discuss matters regarding Brother Ao Tian!"

"No…no way…" Jian Shen refused to believe her. He tried to grab her hands, but she backed away. "You can't possibly…I know! This bastard must have caught hold of your weakness or something, right? Junior Bei Er? He must be blackmailing you, threatening you to go along with his nefarious plans, otherwise…"

"You have an overactive imagination, Senior Jian," Lan Bei Er said coldly.

"How dare you blackmail Junior Bei Er?!" Jian Shen roared, ignoring her and turning on me. He drew his sword, drawing shocked and horrified gasps from the admin staff and other cultivators inside the guild building. "I'll kill you!"

He charged at me and thrust his sword forward, violent qi exploding along its edge and wreathing it in bright flares. However, before the blade could reach me, there was a tremendous detonation between us that sent Jian Shen flying.

A middle-aged man stood between us, dressed in black and gold robes. An emblem of a dragon threaded in glowing gold stood out against his chest. The newcomer turned his majestic countenance toward a fallen Jian Shen, his boiling fury suppressed beneath a surface of cold calm.

"G…Guild Master…" Jian Shen gasped, blood trickling from his mouth. He coughed and clutched his chest.

"Do you not place my Dragon Gate Guild in your eyes, Jian Shen?" The guild master asked icily. "Have you forgotten the rules here? No duels, no fighting is allowed within the interior of my guild. Whatever grudge you have, settle it outside."

"I…I apologize…but…but that guy…!"

"I apologize for the commotion," Lan Bei Er interrupted, bowing her head. She took a deep breath. "Guild Master Long, we will be taking our leave."

She then grabbed my hand and pulled me away, whispering to me urgently, "Let's go." I nodded and followed her.

"No! Wait! Junior Bei Er! Come back!" Jian Shen shouted behind her.

"You're not going anywhere." The guild master's voice was terrifying. Not as intimidating as my master, but close. He was definitely a powerhouse. Dragon Gate City was full of crouching tigers and hidden dragons, it seemed.

"Where are we going?" I asked Lan Bei Er, even as she pulled me by hand. She glared at me, as if resenting me for causing all this trouble. Yet at the same time she appeared afraid of me, aware that I could slaughter a large bunch of civilians and orthodox cultivators here in Dragon Gate City if she made a mistake. She didn't have to worry about that. I might be a villain, but I wasn't a murderous psychopath.

"Didn't I say earlier? We're going to my home."

"I mean, where is your home? Is it in Dragon Gate City?"

"Ah…" Lan Bei Er finally understood my question. She rubbed at her cheek hesitantly. "It's actually in Azure Cloud City. It's quite far from here, so we'll have to take a carriage."

As it turned out, she already had a carriage prepared. It was a heavenly carriage, pulled by two kirins. After we clambered aboard, the kirins jumped and hauled the carriage into the air, soaring through the heavens. This was the first time I was riding aboard a heavenly carriage. Even though I had seen the kirins before, I hadn't actually ridden one or a carriage that was being pulled by them. In fact, I only remembered ever traveling on foot ever since I was transmigrated to this world.

So it was quite a novelty to me. Despite the luxurious comfort of the leather seats and silk cushions, I spent more time staring out of the windows and watching the clouds drift by. They looked so white and fluffy, reminding me of marshmallows. Or the cushions that were propped up against the seats.

Lan Bei Er lay in her seat, looking exhausted. My excitement wore off and was replaced by concern.

"Are you all right?"

"Ah, yes. Don't worry about me." She then frowned. "I'm more worried about you. Do you just plan to follow me around?"

"Yeah."

She looked as if she had a headache. Pinching the bridge of her nose, she held back a sigh. Even if I wasn't capable of telepathy, I could tell what she was thinking. She didn't dare to leave me alone because she was worried that I would wreak havoc on the orthodox cultivator world the moment she let me out of her sight. She was bringing me home not because she liked me, but simply because she wanted to keep an eye on me. The consequences would be disastrous otherwise.

"Why me?" She asked finally. "I'm certain that there are many more female demonic cultivators more beautiful than me, especially in the demonic sects that practice the arts of seduction and eternal youth."

"Who cares about beauty?" I replied. "You're my type. Not them."

"Why am I your type?" She asked, trying to suppress her exasperation.

"You're kind, nice, brave and pure."

Lan Bei Er's face turned as red as a tomato and I could almost see the flames erupting from her ears. She turned away, coughing. "I can't believe you can say that with a straight face."

"It's the truth."

"Please…" She cringed. "I know you meant those as a compliment, but it's just so cheesy hearing you say it out loud."

Fortunately, the air of awkwardness didn't last much longer. Even though Azure Cloud City was far from Dragon Gate City, travel by air was fast. Like, really, really fast. We were there in under an hour. The horseman (or kirin-man…whatever) at the front pushed past the window to speak to Lan Bei Er.

"Young miss, we're here."

Then the carriage lurched as the kirin made their descent. A few seconds later, I felt the carriage shudder when its wheels hit the earth. Lan Bei Er rose from the cushioned seats and gestured for me to do the same. We then alighted the carriage, and I found myself gazing upon a magnificent residence.

The Lan residence. It resembled a castle of sorts – not as big as the imperial castle, but still a mansion worthy of a noble or major family. Vast orchards and gardens stretched between the walls and the mansion inside, bridges arching over artificial ponds where water lilies and lotuses grew. Contingents of servants hurried back and forth, bearing trays or other cleaning instruments.

At the front gate, a single woman waited for us, backed by armed and heavily armored guards with the word Lan emblazoned over their breastplates. She resembled Lan Bei Er heavily, with the same long blue hair and sky-colored eyes, but she looked slightly older. Maybe in her thirties…forties at most.

"Bei Er, you're back!"

"Mother!"

Mother and daughter reunited in a hug, Lan Bei Er's mom wrapping her in a tight embrace. After a few seconds, they parted, and madam Lan turned to stare at me.

"Eh? Bei Er, this is…?"

"Um, a friend. We sort of met after traveling with Brother Ao Tian for a while. He has helped me a lot, and…uh, has nowhere to go, so I decided to bring him back for now."

"Oh?" Madam Lan was grinning mischievously. "Our Bei Er has grown up now."

"Mother! It's not like that!"

"I see, I see." Madam Lan was nodding magnanimously and pretending to listen to her daughter. "You said the same about that brat Long Ao Tian…"

Then she stopped, looking slightly stricken. Her hand flew to her mouth and she turned away.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to mention him…"

Oh, so she probably already knew of Long Ao Tian's death. It wasn't strange. It had been a month since then, after all. I doubted Lan Bei Er would have kept the news from her mother.

"It's all right." Lan Bei Er cleared her throat and changed the subject to defuse the awkwardness. "How's Father?"

"Same as always. No improvement." Madam Lan's expression turned grim. "The doctor has given him several more spirit pills for the pain, but…"

"I will see him."

Lan Bei Er rushed past her mother and into the mansion. I followed, then paused when I caught sight of her mother watching me. I scratched my head sheepishly.

"I'm sorry, auntie. Do you mind if I see uncle as well?"

"No, not at all. If Bei Er brought you back, it means she trusts you."

Oh, she had no idea…she had no idea at all. That said, I was relieved for the misunderstanding. It allowed me to follow Lan Bei Er to the room where her father lay.

If Madam Lan was beautiful, then Master Lan was stalwart. Or at least I could see signs of strength, despite his body slowly wasting away. He wasn't emaciated, not exactly, but I could see the gray pallor of his skin, his flesh stretching tightly over his cheekbones. His dark hair had thinned and many strands had started graying. Worse, I could sense the ominous yin qi that swirled around him.

"What happened to your father?" I asked Lan Bei Er softly as I went to her side. She was sitting by the bedside, holding his hand and watching him wistfully.

"Father fought a demonic cultivator about a year ago and suffered a heavy blow. We don't know what demonic technique he used, but he left toxic yin qi in my father's body, which began to eat away at the organs. His health declined rapidly over the last few months and now he's bedridden."

"Is there a way to help him?" I asked, watching him. I had no medical knowledge. Perhaps if I was some protagonist of a cultivator web novel or manhua, I might be some secret doctor with miraculous medical skills and esoteric acupuncture techniques, but I was just a normal villain. I wasn't even the final boss, just a mid-level boss. The kind of cannon fodder who appeared just to get wiped out by the main character in a single paragraph. A Worf, if I'm not mistaken…you know, to show how badass the godlike protagonist was.

"The doctors say that only the Fire Dragon Pill can nullify the yin qi corroding his inner organs," Lan Bei Er said softly.

"Are you unable to find the Fire Dragon Pill?"

"No." Lan Bei Er shook her head. "An alchemist can refine the Fire Dragon Pill easily enough, but it's obtaining the ingredients that's a problem. We have most of them so far, but the last one is the most difficult to acquire."

"What's the last one?"

"The blood of a Red Python." Lan Bei Er looked grim. "I've been trying to convince people from the other sects to help me, but nobody is willing so far. The Red Python is notorious for being a very powerful demonic beast, capable of producing flames powerful enough to incinerate even an innate realm cultivator to ashes. They all think it's suicide. But that's precisely why its blood is necessary – the potent yang qi within it is powerful enough to vanquish the demonic yin qi that now ravages my father's body."

"All right," I said without any hesitation. "I'll go get the Red Python's blood right now."