Blue Phoenix

by Tinalynge

  Seeing that these Crusaders did not just die and collapse on the ground, but turned to dust, the jeering people were instantly silenced. They were unaware that the reason they had turned to dust was not due to Hui Yue's attack being too strong but because the Crusaders had been dead for a long time already. Everyone suddenly felt fear towards Hui Yue and his group of experts as they slowly started to back away.

  "Change of plans." Hui Yue sighed. "Since we encountered the Crusaders we had no other option than to kill them, however, killing them has caused us to become wanted criminals. Let’s leave the city and head straight to my parent's place."

  Having said that Ancestral Worldpower erupted from all the Gods. Wrapping itself around each one of his friends and with a stomp on the ground they all took to the skies. Soaring to the heavens, they left behind a group of shocked individuals in Riluo City. All of them stared into the sky where those terrifying individuals had long since vanished.

  "We will deal with all the Crusaders when we have managed to become the Crowned Sovereign of this world." Hui Yue sighed. "An He has had four thousand years to entrench himself in this world so it is only natural that it will take us time to deal with everything."

  Hui Yue was not discouraged that the world currently viewed him as a criminal or a murderer. After four thousand years it was only natural that An He had become as awe-inspiring as he currently was.

  The flight to his parent's village was swift with their current speed but as they approached Hui Yue felt stunned. The village had grown remarkably; there were no longer any worn down houses as everything was rebuilt. Now there was quite a bit more activity in the village but is was still as remote as ever.

  Around the village, a palisade fence had been built to keep unwanted visitors away, and at the back, this palisade fence was being changed into a stone wall. As they neared, they could hear constant sounds of activity from within the city. The sound of hammering drummed through the air, and the cheerful sounds of children playing could be heard alongside chattering voices.

  In the outskirts of the village there was a field where a large group of youngsters were gathered. In front of these youngsters was an older man who was shouting orders. Listening to them, Hui Yue instantly understood that this man was instructing the children in martial arts.

  Landing on the ground a bit away, Hui Yue looked at this village with a stumped expression on his face. It was not just him, but all his friends who had been here before were all greatly shocked. This place looked nothing like the old village they knew.

  "How could they afford this?" Hui Yue mumbled to himself but deep inside he was excited. Excited that his family and the villagers no longer needed to live dreadful lives.

  "Halt!" Just as they landed and were about to enter the village, they were stopped by a voice filled with authority. A group of guards whom Hui Yue had never seen before were blocking the road in front of him.

  "This village is closed to visitors. Please be on your way!" The man said with hostility in his voice causing Hui Yue to frown slightly. Had these changes happened because new people had taken over the village? Had his family suffered without him knowing anything?

  "I grew up in this village." Hui Yue said slowly. "My father is Hui Guang, and my mother is Hui Lifen.. Where are my parents?"

  Although the guard was incredibly hostile towards him, Hui Yue knew that the village had never invited in strangers. After a bandit attack that had happened when Hui Yue was at the academy, they had become even more on guard towards the outside world than before. For what reason was there now strange new guards?

  "You’re Hui Yue?" The guard asked, with disbelief in his eyes. The man said while looking at the blue eyes and white hair of the youngster in front of him. "Stay here!" He ordered before he gestured for another set of guards to come forward. "Pick up Master Hui and have him come to the gates immediately. No matter what he is doing, tell him that it can wait. Some youngster calling himself Hui Yue has appeared."

  The moment the guard spoke, these two men who had arrived looked at Hui Yue with veneration before they quickly nodded their heads and rushed into the village. Hui Yue felt a lot more comfortable hearing that his father was called Master Hui. It meant that he was still part of this village and thus also had a decent life.

  Suddenly, the village was filled with much more noise than before. People were cheering, some were yelling, but everyone was rushing towards the city entrance. Hui Yue could not help but feel slightly alarmed by this. It was a horde of excited people who wished to catch a glimpse of Hui Yue who had just returned home after years of never being here.

  Some of the people who arrived at the city gates Hui Yue instantly recognized. There was the young grandchild of the Village Elder, someone whom he had played with a few times before. This young man was no longer the child Hui Yue remembered him to be, instead, he was now a grown man. On his side was a beautiful woman whom Hui Yue recognized from the time he had lived in the village. She was a farmer's daughter and had worked her entire life in the fields, yet now there were no signs of hard work on her hands, and the clothes she wore were made from the finest silk.

  "Little Yue!" Someone called out, and a large man appeared in front of him. Seeing this middle-aged man, Hui Yue felt tears well up in his eyes. His father looked similar to how he had when he had left the village all those years ago, but white hair had appeared in his black hair.

  When his eyes landed on Hui Yue, a large smile broke on his lips. He went towards him in large strides before he embraced his son in a long, familiar hug. This show of affection stunned everyone present, both the villagers and Hui Yue's friends, but no one stopped it.

  "Little Yue!" Another voice called out, and his mother appeared from within the shadows of the city wall. Her steps were hurried, and tears were streaming down her cheeks. Her little baby had finally returned home!

  Hui Yue was overwhelmed with emotions. These people were his parents! They had lived a harsh life but everything they had was given to him so that he could live the life he had dreamt of. Although they had worried about him, they had never asked for him to come back home and look after them. They had never asked for him to give up his dream to live a life like theirs.

  "Master Hui, this is your son Hui Yue?" The guard from before asked. Although he by now already had an answer, he needed to get a direct reply from the father who soundlessly nodded his head.

  Freeing himself from his father's embrace, Hui Yue soon after found himself in his mother's arms instead. He felt as if he were a small child again, being held in these secure arms that were filled with the most tender love of all.

  While Hui Yue and his parents were busy feeling nostalgic, Sha Yun and Wang Ju Long were both incredibly nervous and held each other's hands. How were they going to be introduced? Although they had met Hui Yue's parents before were they going to approve of them? Especially Sha Yun was worried because she was not a human but a snake-woman; her heart was beating rapidly.

  Hui Yue could sense their nervousness and released himself from his parents, took a step back and took Sha Yun and Wang Ju Long's hands in his own. "Mother, Father these are your daughters in law." He said calmly, but he did not give them time to reply. Instead he pointed at all the others behind him, "These are all my friends. Each and every one of them is strong beyond belief and their loyalty knows no bounds. Please treat them as you would treat me."

  "We are here for an important purpose." Hui Yue continued. "But we are also here to visit family. Please, we have had a long and exhausting journey and would like to rest a little." He said apologetically and his father instantly nodded his head. "This way." He said as he led everyone into the village.

  The trip through the village truly displayed just how different this place was compared to how it used to be. Every building was constructed within the last few years, and the stone wall around the village was well underway.

  The village head's house had turned into a proper mansion, and Hui Guang led his family
straight to this mansion where he had Hui Lifen prepare some rooms for the guests.

  "Please rest at ease." He said with a smile on his face. "We will host a banquet tomorrow night to celebrate that you all have arrived, but tonight, please do not hesitate to rest. You can move anywhere as you see fit, and if you have any questions then you are free to seek me out. I will answer them as well as I can."

  Chapter 484 - Revenue

  * * *

  Chapter 484: Revenue

  Although Hui Yue and his friends were relaxing the evening they arrived, the rest of the village was not calm at all. They were busy slaughtering beasts for the next day's banquet and cleaning up the entire village. They wanted to make sure that everything looked its best when Hui Yue and his friends awoke tomorrow.

  Everyone was excited and talked with one another about this sudden group of experts which had appeared. If Hui Yue had returned on his own, it would have been a large event, but he had appeared with so many experts which was something nobody expected.

  Hui Yue could hear the fuss from the outside, but he just smiled as he leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. As he was sitting in this room, he thought back to how he had appeared in this world. How he found out that he shared a body with Lan Feng. He remembered that at first, he had hated the phoenix because of everything that happened, and he thought about how they slowly opened up towards one another.

  He remembered what drove him was his goal of wanting to reunite with Li Fen, but thinking about her, Hui Yue chuckled slightly. He remembered how he started cultivating and that he would go to the hills every day and cultivate while watching the goats.

  He remembered how he had met Rong Ming and Rong Xing and been tempted by their stories of Riluo City. He had followed them to the academy and that was just the start of his journey.

  Laughing to himself, Hui Yue opened his eyes and moved to the window looking outside.

  "Although so much has happened since then, I find myself at the beginning again. I have just started my journey as an immortal." He mumbled to himself.

  Lan Feng said nothing; he just silently agreed, and the two friends felt how both souls were filled with excitement but also tranquility. Returning to their beginnings made Hui Yue feel a certain calmness he had not felt for a very long time. This was indeed the place where he felt the most at home.

  A knocking sound was heard after which his father, Hui Guang, entered the room with a smile on his face.

  "I figured you probably had many questions. This place has changed so much because of you and our lives are much better now." He said with a sigh as he found a chair and sat down.

  Hui Yue was smiling brightly as he looked at his father.

  "It’s hard to believe that my son has become a grown up." Hui Guang said with a sigh. "But many years have passed since you last returned home. Tell me, who are all these people you brought with you? I recognize some, but others I have never seen before. Some of them are even younger than your little brother!"

  Hui Yue smiled and sighed. "The two children are mine." He said, and his words caused his father to falter and start coughing. His heart shook, and he looked at Hui Yue with disbelief. "Your children? But they are not that young!" He exclaimed, and Hui Yue could not help but chuckle.

  "I adopted them quite a few years ago. The boy is Hui Lao, and the girl is Hui Jo. Both are older than what you think, but because they are a Saint and an Emperor they do not age anymore. I fear they will look like children until the day they become Gods."

  "Gods? Those children become Gods?" His father was shocked. "Are you telling me that one can become a God? Aren't they born from the heavens and the earth? Gods are the ultimate creatures which we mortals revere more than anything, how could one become such an existence?”

  Hearing this, Hui Yue laughed once more. He had forgotten that his father was not a cultivator, and for him to know about the God rank was simply impossible.

  "While it is true that a God is born from the heavens and the earth," Hui Yue mused as he thought about his own body's reconstruction from Ancestral Worldpower. "But that does not mean that you cannot become a God through cultivation. Just recently I had a breakthrough, and I ascended to the God rank."

  This was Hui Yue's father, and he would never lie to him. Instead, he told his father straight out that he was a God. "Of the ones who came with me, nine others are Gods while the rest are Saints with the exception of Jo who is an Emperor. Her talent in cultivation is not as high as her brother, but although she is only an Emperor, do not underestimate her. Her fighting prowess is simply outstanding."

  Hui Guang felt his head spinning. His son had become a God? And not only that, but he had brought with him another nine Gods? This was simply an honor no normal city would ever receive; an honor which made him grow numb.

  "Let’s not tell anyone except mother." Hui Yue said with a smile and Hui Guang nodded his head. This was not something common villagers could know.

  "Your little brother has become a Duke ranked expert. He is training the abilities and cultivation techniques that you left behind. He is currently the genius of our village, but he refused to leave for the Royal Academy. He claims that the items you left behind are much more profound than what the Royal Academy can offer. With our current situation, we can provide our youngsters with resources to become much stronger than before."

  "Many people come to our village in the hopes of becoming part of the family. At the start, we hired mercenaries to protects us but after seeing that they had steady pay here many of these mercenaries chose to have their families move here as well to become a part of the village. We accept the ones whom we can use and who can make our village prosper. We are no longer a secret village, but no one dares to slight us as we are under the protection of Riluo City."

  "Not to mention everyone knows that the Grand Marshall of the Beast Army originated from this village." His father stated proudly, shocking Hui Yue. "Your many feats of strength have been spread far and wide, and people started searching for your heritage. When they came here, they found out that you came from this village, but no one dares touch us for fear of the retaliation you will bring. All in all, we live a safe life. The only danger comes from the magical beasts from within the Magical Forest."

  "The intelligent beasts leave us alone, but the Magical Forest is vast, and many unintelligent beasts live within. Sometimes beast hordes appear and attack. We can fight them back much easier now that we have the palisade fence but for even more assurance we are in the middle of building a stone wall."

  "This is great!" Hui Yue said astonished as he looked at his father, but some doubt was evident within his body. "Although this is awesome, how can you have the money to change this small village into one as flourishing as it is now? You say it is because of me, but I have done nothing."

  "Before you left you made the insurance business for the Ma Family. Back then you were getting a certain percentage of the revenue, but instead of taking it for yourself you said that the money was to be delivered to our village." Hui Guang reminded Hui Yue, and the young man vaguely remembered that something like that had indeed happened.

  "At the start, this revenue was not a lot, but it did help us get by, but as time passed, it increased drastically. Most mortal mercenaries have insurance by now to ensure that their family can keep living even if they die, and thus our share of the revenue is quite substantial. Our village is able to live off of it now, and we even have the money to purchase servants for certain families within the village."

  "We are expanding, but we aren't thinking of becoming one of the hegemons of the area. When the village is finally safe, we will open it to outsiders. At that time, we will allow for more merchants and adventurers to visit us and to stop by our village while going to the Magical Forest. We are not cultivators, but we wish for our home to flourish, for it to become a place where many people will want to visit."

  Hui Yue could see pride in his father's eyes and he nodded his head. He was
now a God, and he was going to become the Crowned Sovereign of the Divine Beast World. If he could not even protect the village he came from, then what point was there to be as strong as he was?

  "I am glad to see that you are living good lives now." Hui Yue said with heartfelt words while smiling as he looked at his father.

  "Little Yue." Another voice came from the door, and Hui Lifen came in. When she saw her husband and her son seated in front of one another chatting intimately, she felt her heart warm. Hui Yue was the pride of her life.

  "Mother." Hui Yue said excitedly as he saw his mother and instantly stood up making space for her to sit down. He found another chair and dragged it near the two others.

  "You have been busy." Hui Lifen said with a smile on her face as she sat down. "You have been gone for some years, but when you return you not only bring two daughters in law, you also bring two children! It seems that our Hui family is growing rapidly." She joked lovingly.

  Hearing the words, Hui Yue awkwardly scratched the back of his head as he laughed sheepishly. "Sorry." He laughed a little embarrassed. "I should have brought them home earlier, but a lot of things happened and it was never the right time." The apology made his mother giggle and his father smile.