As we headed towards the Guest District, my father walked with a bounce in his step that I hadn't seen since I left Floating Reed Village. My mother shot proud glances at me constantly. Liu Chen had shown up as promised, although he appeared more subdued than someone whose his friend had just made it to the tournament finals.

  "Liu Chen, you're very quiet tonight," my mother said, reading into his demeanor with her maternal instincts. "Are you okay?"

  Before answering, Liu Chen looked at me. "I’m just worried about Wei Lin. He looked awful when the healers took him away."

  My father nodded gravely. "That boy pushed himself too hard, didn't he? I don’t understand all the technical aspects of cultivation, but I’ve seen many men push themselves beyond their limitations before. It rarely ends well."

  I felt a familiar weight settle into my chest. Even though I’d justified my actions during the fight to myself, I was still feeling guilty over what had happened. The memory of seeing my best friend collapse and hearing him beg me to save him from the corruption, wouldn’t disappear anytime soon.

  "Wei Lin will be fine," I said, trying to convince myself as much as my family. "The sect healers are very skilled, and his family has resources that most can’t even imagine."

  "Azure," I said mentally as we strolled through the main street of the Guest District, "Do you think I made the right decision during the battle?"

  "At the time, you were making an effort to protect your friend from exposure to the corrupting energies," Azure responded. "Whether he was already corrupt doesn't change the moral calculation you were making at the time."

  "But if I’d been more open about those energies from the beginning, if I’d explained their dangers when I first got them, maybe he would’ve trusted me more and told me about absorbing them in the Fallen Realm. We could’ve worked on purifying the corruption before it got this bad."

  "Maybe," Azure agreed. "But Wei Lin is an intelligent cultivator from a merchant family. He understands the value of keeping techniques secret. He made the choice not to reveal it, no one else. Don’t blame yourself.”

  Azure was right again. I couldn't let myself fall into the trap of self-blame.

  "Look, this is the type of restaurant we came here for," my father said, pausing in front of the restaurant called the Golden Phoenix Pavilion.

  I looked up at the building and immediately felt my heart drop.

  The Golden Phoenix Pavilion was easily the most expensive restaurant in the Guest District. The rich red columns supported a curved roof that was covered in gold-colored tile that caught the light nicely. I could see elaborate-dressed servers moving among the tables (each set with fine china and silver chopsticks) through the open windows.

  This was the exact type of place where my typical tactic of secretly paying the check wouldn’t work. These types of restaurants needed a deposit upfront just to reserve a table. There would be no helpful proprietress to claim that the meal was ‘complimentary for advancing disciples’.

  "Father," I said carefully, "this place looks really expensive. Maybe we should go somewhere else.”

  My father dismissed my concerns with a wave of his hand. "Nonsense!" he exclaimed. "My son just qualified for the finals of the outer sect tournament. I don’t care about the cost. We’re going to celebrate properly.”

  My mother placed her arm through his and smiled lovingly up at him. "Your father has been saving spirit stones for months, waiting for the perfect time to splurge. He’s been so proud of your progress that he's practically bursting to spoil you."

  "Besides," my father added, puffing his chest out slightly, "I might not be a cultivator, but I'm no penniless peasant either. I run a successful tailoring business now. I can afford to treat my family to a nice meal."

  I began to open my mouth to continue protesting, but the expression in his eyes stopped me.

  This wasn't only about some meal. This was about his pride as a father, his ability to provide for his family despite being outside of the cultivation world. If I continued to argue, I would be undermining something that clearly meant a lot to him. And I couldn’t do that. Not to my father.

  "You’re right," I said, forcing a smile. "Let's celebrate."

  The inside of the Golden Phoenix Pavilion was far more magnificent than its exterior. Soft music was playing in the corner, where a musician was plucking strings on an instrument that I didn't recognize. The tables were far enough apart to allow for private conversations, and the lighting was designed to create a warm and elegant ambiance.

  As soon as we entered, a server, whose aura indicated that she at least had some basic cultivation training, greeted us. "Welcome to the Golden Phoenix Pavilion," she said with a bow. "How may we serve you this evening?"

  My father stood taller. "We would like to reserve your finest table and order your most-recommended dishes. We’re celebrating my son's advancement to the outer sect tournament finals."

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  The server's eyes quickly scanned me. "Congratulations, young master. Follow me please."

  She led us to a table near one of the windows, allowing us to gaze out at the sect grounds while we dined. The view showed the mountain ranges rising in the distance. Their spiritual energy was visible as faint clouds illuminated by the moonlight.

  "This is lovely," my mother said, comfortably settled into her chair. "I never thought we would be having dinner in a place like this when we were living back in the village."

  "How’s the pregnancy progressing?" I asked, more concerned about how my unborn sibling was doing rather than the restaurant. "You didn't have any issues during the tournament, did you?"

  She instinctively laid her hand on her stomach, which showed a slight bulge under her robes. "Everything is going well. The midwife said that the baby is healthy and developing normally."

  "Have you thought about names for the baby yet?" Liu Chen asked, speaking up for the first time since we seated ourselves.

  My parents exchanged a glance that meant they had a lot of private conversations about this.

  "We have a few ideas," my mother answered hesitantly. "But we want to wait and find out whether it is a boy or girl."

  "The midwife believes she will be able to tell the gender in another month or two," my father added. "Although to be honest, I’d be happy with either a son to carry on the family trade or a daughter to spoil rotten. Both sound wonderful to me."

  “Big Brother Ke Yin,” Liu Chen looked up at me. "When the baby arrives, will you teach them cultivation?”

  "If they want to learn," I said. "But that’s still years away. Spiritual sensitivity usually doesn't appear until children are at least ten or twelve years old."

  "Unless they’re exceptionally talented," my mother added with a smile. "You showed the first signs at an earlier age than that."

  I nodded; however, I personally questioned how much of "my" early spiritual awareness was real, versus my parents' love for their child. The original Ke Yin was recruited by the sect at the age of seventeen, which was actually somewhat late in terms of cultivation ages. Most of the children that showed true potential were identified and brought to sects by the time they were fifteen.

  The server returned with a variety of dishes that looked as if they belonged in a palace rather than a restaurant. The aromas alone were making my mouth water.

  "This looks incredible," I said, genuinely impressed. "Father, you didn't need to go to such extremes."

  "I knew that this day would arrive when you first told me you wanted to become an immortal cultivator," my father replied, using his chopsticks to serve food to everyone's plates. "I’ve been saving money for this celebration."

  The food was delicious.

  Everyone was so focused on savoring it that for the next few minutes, we fell into a comfortable silence.

  "Ke Yin," my mother asked eventually, "Whether you win or lose the tournament, what happens next for your cultivation?"

  The question caught me off guard. I’d been so preoccupied with the immediate challenges, the finals, Wei Lin's condition, the corruption from the sun energies, and my return to the Two Sun's World, that I hadn't really considered the larger scope of my advancement.

  "Well," I said slowly, "If I win tomorrow, then I’ll gain access to the Elemental Chamber. And that’ll help me breakthrough to the next level of cultivation within a week or two.”

  "And if you lose?" my father asked.

  "If I lose, I’ll continue as normal,” I shrugged. “It might take longer to breakthrough, but it’s not like it’s the end of the world.”

  “You not going to lose, Big Brother,” Liu Chen looked up from his food. "After watching Wu Kangming fight, I think you’re stronger than him."

  As much as I appreciated the boy’s confidence in me, I wasn’t completely certain in myself.

  The fight between Wu Kangming and Luo Yichen had taught me a lot.

  It was a very impressive performance.

  And that probably wasn’t even his full power.

  It only made sense that he was saving some secret overpowered technique for the finals.

  “It’s not going to be an easy fight,” I answered honestly. “Wu Kangming is very skilled, I think even some Elemental Realm cultivators would struggle against him.”

  "What is he like, this boy, Wu Kangming?" my mother asked. "Is he a friend of yours?"

  I thought about how to respond to that.

  The relationship between me and Wu Kangming was complex.

  We weren’t exactly friends, but it felt like we were more than simple rivals.

  "It’s... complicated," I said finally. "We respect each other, but there is some history between us that causes tension at times.”

  “What do you mean by tension?” my mother asked with a raised eyebrow.

  “His clan kicked him out,” I explained as best as I could. “So, he’s been trying to regain his honor or something like that.”

  It was true. I really didn’t know what exactly Wu Kangming wanted.

  Did he really want to get back together with a demoness like Wu Lihua?

  Or did he just want his clan to acknowledge him?

  Or was there some deeper motivation that he hadn’t revealed?

  "Ah," my father said knowingly. "Pride. I can understand that."

  "He was also engaged to a Core Disciple, but that didn’t work out and it looks like their relationship is now strained," I continued, then instantly regretted mentioning that specific complication.

  My mother raised her eyebrows again.

  "And how do you know about the strain in their relationship?"

  “It's not what you’re thinking, Mother,” I felt a flush develop in my cheeks. "The girl, Wu Lihua, approached me once, but nothing happened. I’m not interested in becoming involved with another man’s woman.”

  "Good," she said firmly. "Drama with engaged women can ruin anyone.”

  “Big Brother is too focused on cultivation for girls anyway,” Liu Chen grinned. "He spends all of his time either cultivating or studying formation theory with Elder Chen Yong."

  As sad as that sounded out loud, it was true so I couldn’t even be mad at the kid.

  There was no way I was going to let some beautiful woman ruin me, especially not when I was in a world where a man could become a god.

  "Ah yes, that reminds me," my father said, placing a hand on my shoulder, "what is this Elder Chen Yong like? He’s your master, isn’t he?”

  Thinking about the crazy formation expert who had become such an important part of my cultivation journey made a smile appear on my face.

  "Elder Chen Yong is brilliant but eccentric. He’s obsessed with formations and spirit wine and has a habit of getting lost in theoretical discussions that can last for hours.”

  "Does he treat you fairly?" my mother asked, probably worried that I was getting taken advantage of or something.

  "He does," I nodded. "He’s a good teacher; he even offered to take me as his formal personal disciple after the tournament ends, which is a great honor and would give me access to advanced techniques and his personal library."

  My parents exchanged another meaningful look.

  "That sounds like a wonderful opportunity," my mother said slowly. "But it would mean more commitment to the sect, wouldn't it? Less time to visit family?"

  Ah, so this was the question they were leading up to this entire time.

  Cultivation versus family…

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