The sunlight outside was bright and merry, and the warm light filtered through the windows, showering the room with fragments of radiance. In the air, invisible dust particles danced with joy. Despite this warmth, it couldn’t obscure the somber and ice-cold atmosphere in the hall.
"Master, you..." An Yiqing looked up at Ye Chenghong, parted her rosy lips, but the words didn’t come out.
"Girl Qing, I know what you want to ask." Ye Chenghong sighed deeply. "Originally, your four Elder uncles and I, along with your Junior Uncle, indeed planned not to tell you about this matter. You were too young and your strength hadn’t reached the Demigod level. I feared that if we put too much pressure on you, it might induce inner demons and affect your cultivation in Xuandu City. However, Third Gu later said to me that you weren’t so fragile. That made me realize my mistake."
Ye Chenghong looked at An Yiqing with loving eyes, contentedly saying, "Third Gu was right, my precious disciple has always become stronger in the face of adversity. Over the past six months, even when confronted with the greatest difficulties, you have managed to resolve them one by one. I shouldn’t have been so overcautious. You’re someone who can withstand the tough trials, and you have the right to know everything that has happened in the Medicine Sect."
An Yiqing silently looked at Ye Chenghong, with a hint of redness forming around her eyes. She had always known that no matter what kind of hardships or dangers she faced, her master always prioritized her above all else; whether he hid things from her or told her, it was always for her own good.
"Master, please speak, I’m listening."
"This matter is a relic from twenty years ago," Ye Chenghong’s gaze grew deep as his thoughts slowly drifted back to that era filled with the ravages of war, "Actually, it has been forty years. At that time, I was just over thirty years old, in the prime of life. As the newly appointed Sect Leader of the Medicine Sect, I was sharp and brilliant, flamboyant in my actions. At that time, the Medicine Sect was in a much better state than now, experiencing a rare prosperity. I was fully devoted to the sect, wanting to bring it to greater glory, to heal the sick and aid the injured."
"It was when I was thirty-two that I met a pair of siblings, Yu Rou and Yu Hai. The first time I saw Xiao Yu and her brother, they were being beaten up by a group of tattooed men. Xiao Yu was only in her mid-twenties at the time, and her brother, Yu Hai, had just turned twenty. I couldn’t stand by idly, and with a few moves, I drove those men away and then brought Yu Rou and Yu Hai back with me to the Medicine Sect."
Ye Chenghong paused, his eyes full of reminiscence.
"In the days that followed, I heard from Xiao Yu a bit about their background. It turned out they were bastards from an ancient martial arts family, who had been humiliated and tortured by their own clan and could no longer bear to stay. The day I met them, they had already been starving for several days and were nearly at death’s door. After learning this, my sympathy for Xiao Yu and her brother deepened, so I let them stay in the Medicine Sect to help with some menial tasks."
Gradually, Ye Chenghong’s gaze softened, and An Yiqing had never seen such an expression on her master’s face before.
"In the three years that followed, everything at the Medicine Sect was well. As Xiao Yu and I interacted more frequently, I found her to be a gentle and serene girl. She was well-read, sensible, and intellectually beautiful. We were both attracted to each other, and after over a year of being together, our affection grew increasingly passionate. During those years, Yu Hai’s talent also began to show. He was already a disciple of ancient martial arts, but because he was a bastard, he hadn’t received much attention from his family. During his years at the Medicine Sect, he learned quite a lot, and with his astonishing talent, he quickly broke through Condense Spirit to reach the Great Achievement Mid-Level. At that time, my master, your grandmaster, was still alive. Seeing that Yu Hai had potential in martial arts, he took him as an outer-door disciple, making him a Junior Uncle to me and Nie Shan."