Lucas

Alex!" she exclaimed cheerfully, hugging him as if he had just returned from a long journey.

"Sigh, she will never change," Alex thought as he hugged his dear mother again.

"Hey, Mom..." Well, it's not like he despised it. After all, his mother had always been cheerful and kind to him, and he had grown to appreciate that in this life.

Alex always felt at peace when he hugged his mother; it was like his happy place, where he could relax and not worry about anything.

Alina tried to hold his head while hugging him.

"Huh?!"

Her eyes widened, and her smile faded. She blinked several times before being shocked once more. She couldn't help but open her mouth to speak at some point.

"Have you grown taller, Alex?"

"Huh?"

Alex, who was hugging his mother and listening to her speak, gave her a curious look.

He could see traces of shock and astonishment on her face.

"What exactly do you mean, Mom?"

"Have you grown taller since I last saw you?"

"Oh!" Alex had grown taller; he was now taller than his mother, who had been 171 the last time they were the same height.

Alina didn't notice at first because she was preoccupied with her son, who had been locked in his room since he awoke, but she was shocked when she tried to caress his head.

She couldn't get to Alex's head right away, and to make matters worse, her son had changed.

'Does that look like my son?' Alina was completely dazed as she stared at Alex.

Her son wasn't particularly attractive, and she had no idea why. What happened to the skinny, frail Alex she gave birth to and raised?

For a brief moment, she was stunned.

"How did you get so tall, so muscular, and so... handsome?" She asked him, marveling at the young man her son had become.

"May I explain it later, Mom?

Let's get inside first," Alex said with a wry smile.

"You're right, let's go inside first," Alina said, nodding.

She smiled, taking a moment to appreciate the sight of her son standing beside her, full of life and energy.

Alina escorted Alex inside and shut the door behind her.

"Follow me. Your father wanted to see you, and you must explain how you changed so drastically."

She began walking inside, and Alex trailed behind her. As Alina and Alex walked down the corridor, she looked over her shoulder at Alex.

'How did he get to be so handsome?' She couldn't help but wonder if her son had been replaced by an imposter.

They eventually arrived at a study room. Alex's father was waiting for them inside the study room.

He was at his desk, reading a piece of paper.

When Alex saw him, he thought, 'Same as usual, huh?'

Alex's father had been a man who was always working; he didn't have time to rest, and he seemed to be always busy for as long as Alex could remember, so seeing him sitting at his desk reading came as no surprise.

His father had short black hair, black eyes just like him, and a slim face that wrinkled with age and experience.

His father always wore a dark blue robe with a golden dragon head embossed on the back, similar to Alex's black robe.

When Lucas, Alex's father, noticed their presence, he lifted his head from the piece of paper he was reading and looked directly at Alex. His eyes widened in shock and surprise the moment he locked his gaze on Alex.

"W-what, in the name of the heavens?" he muttered. He dropped the paper he was reading, pushing his chair back and standing up.

Lucas unexpectedly vanished and reappeared in front of him. He reached out and grabbed Alex's hand.

"What?!"

Alex was still processing what had just occurred; he couldn't even see how his father moved this fast in front of him.

'What a terrifying speed,' he thought.

"Hmm..." Lucas, who had grabbed Alex's hand, began to pour Qi into Alex's body.

Alex felt an unfamiliar energy in his body as Lucas' Qi began to flow into him.

"Don't worry." The abrupt change startled Alex, but Lucas's calm voice assured him not to be alarmed.

Alex gradually began to relax; he sensed that his father had no malice toward him.

After a few minutes, Lucas' expression shifted from serious to shocked to happy. Alina, who was standing nearby, asked, seizing his expression.

"Dear, is there something wrong with him?" She was concerned because of her husband's unusual behavior.

"Hahaha!" Lucas burst out laughing, letting go of Alex's hand and looking into his wife's eyes, which surprised Alina because it was the first time she had seen her husband act like this.

"His is fine; no, his is better than fine!" He tilted his head and looked at Alex, who was still confused.

"Congratulations, son, on becoming a cultivator!"

'How did he find out?' Alex was surprised, but he didn't say anything.

"What!!" Alina was the most surprised, as she yelled and dashed over to Alex.

"Alex, is that correct?" She asked, grabbing Alex by the shoulders. Alex, who was also stunned, nodded slowly and confirmed it.

"Yes, mom, I am truly a cultivator now, and I have reached the realm of body refinement."

"That means that your body is..."

"Cured," Alex chimed in.

"Really?"

Alex nodded again, finally confirming that he was telling the truth. Alina screamed with joy as she hugged Alex once more.

Alex was deep in thought while being hugged. 'Well, I wasn't going to keep it a secret.'

Yes, Alex decided to tell his parents that he could cultivate and was cured before coming here, but who could have predicted that his father would figure it out right away?

He smiled and sighed in relief as he saw his mother happily hugging him.

Lucas, who was standing behind the mother and son, was smiling as he watched. He was most likely the happiest about his son.

To Be Continued...