Chapter Four: The Family Dinner

Seeing his son in this state, the father, who was eating voraciously, slapped his son’s head again before saying, “Alright, don’t go to school these days. I’ll help you apply for a month’s leave later. In this month, focus on practicing the third layer of the Wild Dragon Technique. With your nearly eight years of mastery, breaking through the third layer shouldn’t take too much time.”

As expected, it took only a month for Kuangchi to master the third layer of the Wild Dragon Technique. Witnessing his son achieve the third layer of the family’s famously difficult ancestral technique so swiftly, Kuangchi’s father was overjoyed and immediately taught him the method for cultivating the fourth layer. He then used his previous status to arrange a suspension from school for his son, disregarding any need for secrecy; nothing mattered more at this moment than not disturbing Kuangchi’s cultivation.

The fourth layer marked the first watershed of the Wild Dragon Technique. The first three layers were merely foundational, while the fourth truly contained its essence. Naturally, the fourth layer was not so easily mastered; achieving it in a short time was impossible, even with the strange energy residing within Kuangchi.

Half a year passed in the blink of an eye. Though Kuangchi’s cultivation advanced rapidly, there was no sign of achieving the fourth layer’s mastery, which would manifest as a qi dragon formed from wild dragon true energy appearing outside the body. According to specialized instruments, Kuangchi’s internal true energy had already reached half the amount his father possessed after mastering the sixth layer. Normally, he should have mastered the fourth layer by now, but his true energy remained bound within his body, unable to condense externally.

Over the past six months, Kuangchi seemed to be locked in a struggle with his own true energy, cultivating furiously. The true energy within his dantian grew denser each day, yet not a hint of external condensation appeared. Today, after months of fruitless pondering, Kuangchi’s father finally entered the secluded training chamber with his mother, where Kuangchi had been cultivating for half a year.

Watching their son for a while, Kuangchi’s father finally spoke, his expression troubled, “Son, it seems you’ve run into a problem with your Wild Dragon Technique. Normally, with the concentration of true energy in your dantian, you should have already condensed your qi externally and achieved mastery of the fourth layer. But it seems your unique constitution has caused some changes in the technique. Your mother and I have discussed this for days. For your safety, we think we should return to Wild Martial City and have the elders examine you.”

He looked at Kuangchi, awaiting his response. Kuangchi fell into deep thought. Though he disliked his uncles and cousins, he knew he would have to return eventually. Besides, his current situation only worried his parents. Seeing their anxious faces, Kuangchi smiled, “Alright, Dad. If you say we go back, we go back. At worst, I’ll listen to Grandpa and join the special training.”

The family quickly packed up their home, which they had lived in for ten days, informed Kuangchi’s grandfather in Wild Martial City, and three hours later, a civilian spaceship hovered above their residence. A few hours after that, the family of three arrived in Wild Martial City.

The Kuang family’s current headquarters was a towering skyscraper in Wild Martial City. When Kuangchi and his family appeared at the building’s private docking port, they were greeted by a crowd already waiting.

Leading the group were an elderly couple. Although Kuangchi wasn’t very old when he left, he could never forget his grandparents. Despite the family’s absence these days, they still kept in touch on important occasions.

Perhaps it was truly a genetic quirk of the Kuang family; at least seventy percent of the men present were overweight. Kuangchi’s grandfather resembled his father closely—a giant, corpulent figure who didn’t look aged at all. In Kuangchi’s memory, his great-grandfather, who was over three hundred years old, looked no older than a middle-aged man in his thirties. His own grandfather appeared to be at most fifty, but his grandmother looked much older. This was one of the Kuang family’s peculiar tragedies; deep cultivation of the Wild Dragon Technique seemed to have rejuvenating effects, yet women invariably appeared older than the men, often leading to many complications.

No sooner had the family stepped out of the docking port than they saw dozens of people, led by Kuangchi’s grandparents, quickly approaching. Kuangchi’s grandmother rushed over, grabbing his arm and holding him close, her voice trembling with excitement, “My dear grandson, let Grandma have a good look at you.”

She began to examine Kuangchi closely, making him blush, and he couldn’t help but notice some subtle changes in the expressions of his uncles who followed behind his grandfather.

Kuangchi’s grandfather, after exchanging a few words with his father, came over and showered him with affection. Finally, Kuangchi’s father, somewhat dissatisfied, said to his mother, “Mom, why do you only have eyes for your grandson? Isn’t your son worth anything?”

His grandmother replied, annoyed, “Go stand aside. You’re lucky I’m not settling accounts with you. You took my precious grandson away for over ten years. I’ll deal with you later.”

Kuangchi’s father was left awkward, while his mother chuckled quietly.

The family didn’t linger long at the docking port; as it was almost dinner time, they followed Kuangchi’s grandfather to the dining hall.

Entering the family’s lavishly decorated banquet hall, Kuangchi felt strangely out of place. After ten years of ordinary civilian life, returning to such an environment wasn’t something one could easily adapt to.

Under the servants’ guidance, Kuangchi sat at the lowest seat. When he looked around at the chairs, he couldn’t help but smile. Each chair was custom-made for the person who sat in it, varying in size, height, and shape. Kuangchi’s own chair was taller than all the others.

He glanced around, and finally his grandfather spoke, “Bao’er, you really made a foolish decision this time. Why didn’t you inform me when Chi’er was about to fuse with the bio-pod? I could have sent the special pod I prepared for him. How could you let me down like this? Don’t you know how much hope I have for Chi’er?”

Kuangchi’s father looked at him and replied, “Dad, I don’t think I acted foolishly. You know Chi’er’s situation well. When he was young, he cultivated the Wild Dragon Technique quickly and seemed exceptionally gifted, but after all these years, that fantasy should be over. His mother and I only want him to live a safe, peaceful life, so we agreed to let him fuse with the ordinary bio-pod distributed by his school. That may be the best choice now.”

At this, Kuangchi saw his grandfather’s expression turn stern, but his grandmother interjected, “Enough, old fool. Bao’er just came back. If there’s anything, discuss it after dinner.”

His grandfather ignored her and roared, “You know nothing! He thinks he’s clever for doing something stupid. Chi’er is our family’s hope, do you understand? He’s the third in our family with a chance to become a god of war. Do you understand? All you do is vie for affection. What use is that?”

His grandfather’s temper seemed unusually bad today, perhaps agitated by the news that Chi’er had fused with a common bio-pod. He pointed at the uncles and shouted, “It’s you useless lot that made me do this foolish thing! If not for the way you treated Chi’er back then, would I have allowed him to leave Wild Martial City? Would Bao’er have had the chance to let Chi’er fuse with an ordinary pod?”

Everyone seemed to sense something extraordinary in his words. Kuangchi’s mother asked, “Father, what do you mean by this?”

Kuangchi’s grandfather finally calmed down, took two deep breaths, and sighed twice. Then he looked at the uncles and said, “Your grandfather was right—I’m too soft-hearted and not fit to be patriarch. If not for Chi’er, the position would never have fallen to me.”

At this, not only did the uncles cry out in surprise, but even the servants murmured in shock. Kuangchi’s grandfather glared coldly around, sending the servants scurrying away, before continuing, “If I’d been tougher and taught you a lesson, Chi’er would never have left my side, and Bao’er would never have made such a foolish decision.”

His grandmother asked, “Old fool, what did the old master discuss with you before he passed?”

Kuangchi’s grandfather looked at Kuangchi, sighed deeply, and said, “What else? It was about Chi’er, whom he loved most and couldn’t let go. In the whole family, he cared most for Chi’er. Why did I become patriarch? Not for any other reason than being Chi’er’s grandfather. You useless lot, let me make it clear today: the next patriarch will be none other than Chi’er. From now on, stay away from him. If you dare disturb his cultivation, I’ll punish you by the family rules.”

Everyone was stunned by this shocking revelation. After a long silence, Kuangchi’s mother was the first to recover, saying, “Father, how can Chi’er be the family’s heir in his current state?”

His grandfather snorted coldly, “Why not? Don’t you remember our ancestor had no divine beast and still became a god of war with the Wild Dragon Technique? If Chi’er’s beast isn’t satisfactory, then we’ll act as if he never had one. If Chi’er truly lives up to his father’s claims and can cultivate the Wild Dragon Technique to the ninth layer, which hasn’t been achieved in thousands of years, that’s enough.”

At this, Kuangchi’s eldest uncle, Kuang Xiaotian, spoke up, “Dad, this can’t be. The next patriarch should be chosen from among us brothers, not handed directly to a junior like Chi’er.”

Grandfather looked coldly at Kuang Xiaotian and then at each uncle in turn. After a long silence, he said icily, “If you want to be patriarch, forget it. Even if Chi’er can’t be patriarch, none of you will ever hold that position. If you weren’t my sons, I’d have sent you to the mountains to train the younger generation long ago. So I warn you: if you don’t want to help Chi’er, stay away from him.”