"So how's the auction house going, Mother?"
Xiao asked as he walked with his sister in his arms in a certain direction, his mother too walked alongside him as they headed towards a certain area, hearing his question his mother was pensive for a moment before she spoke,
"Well, all things considered, the auction house is already on a steady rise, and the ideas you gave me were excellent, my son's a genius!"
At the end of her sentence, his mother proudly smiled at him, clearly still not having enough of boasting about him, seeing it Xiao smiled wryly on the inside cause some of these ideas were his mother's, he had just talked about them in an earlier time, speaking of his mother she's a business prodigy, his mother already has several auction houses in the Rexion Empire.
Not only that she has several hidden businesses and other establishments, some based on the assassination, brothels, and many more, though none knew that these belonged to his mother, she controls all these in secret, he could still vividly remember, back in the past when he was almost killed by his very own family, his mother had used all her assets to rain down hell upon the ones that hurt him but sadly she was killed protecting him.
Moreover, he also knew his mother's dearest wish, to have her business spread across the entire 4 heavens, which Xiao will make sure covers the 4 heavens and all the others that lay within the cosmos, he also knows that his mother dearly desires to get stronger but sadly her talents were not enough for it, seeing the proud and energetic smile on his mother's face he swore to never let her be hurt in this life,
"As your son, how could I not be great?"
Xiao spoke, to which his mother replied.
"You little mischievous boy, you really know how to sweet-talk a person, I pity the girls that fall in your arms,"
"Mother!"
Xiao 'blushed' as he responded to his mother, even if he did show he was mature, it doesn't mean a child won't blush at his mother's teasing, after all even if he shows that he's a genius, he still has to act like a child in certain things, seeing her son's furious blushing face Lan chuckled but a moment later a serious expression took her face,
"Son, be careful in the trial and do your best,"
Hearing his mother's serious voice Xiao nodded his head, he knew how important this trial was, right now he was to head to a trial that would be attended by all the kids of 7 years belonging to the Yun Family, the trial was simple, you just have to survive in an illusion created forest for 2 days, it sounds cruel but it was necessary for cultivation.
Plus, each of the kids is given a significant amount of training. All the kids are taught the perfect information to survive and understand the need for this trial.
Why the trial? because it's needed for one to find their path in cultivation, in the world of cultivation one is required to spend a lot of their time mediating or risking their life for resources, so how would these young masters who never faced problems be able to risk their life?
Show them despair and helplessness, that's how you do it, cultivation in a way is similar to studying, some might be good at it, while others might be bad, some might love to study while others might hate it, it's the same for cultivation, how can you expect 10-year-old kids to have the determination to cultivate when they never felt powerless? and that's what this trial does.
Everything in the trial is real, from the pain to the death, of course, if you die in the illusion world you won't die in the real world but the trauma and pain you feel will be real, this is the trail where the ones who can truly make it to the future in cultivation are chosen, the ones who couldn't overcome the trail will be either sent to the branch family or will get enough money to live a normal and happy life because cultivation is not for the weak-minded.
Sounds harsh and heartless but that's how it is in these family, even in the other realms the situation is the same, though they have their own way of dealing with it, the ages the test is done may also differ, yet, in the end, a test is still done to drill in the harsh realities of the cosmos.
In his past life, Xiao's score was average, back then he barely managed to survive but in this life, it would be different, he would be exceptional, and the better he shows he is, the more resources he would get, even if he's apathetic to his family, he can't ignore the fact that his family is a shield protecting him, once he's strong enough he would just throw away the shield.
As he was in deep thought, he along with his sister and mother reached a huge open area of the manor, where several people could be seen, converged on the center area stood several 7-year-old kids, some were nervous, some were calm, while some were biting their lips, Xiao's eyes were deep he looked at the gathering of his cousin's and family.
On a large area with huge tables sat several powerful figures ranging from Xiao's grandfather, father, and uncles, to some of his aunts, they all had powerful auras surrounding them, there were also his older cousins and the current talented generation, all of them seemed serene and calm, while an aura of superiority surrounded them
Looking closer Xiao could see a beautiful woman beside his father sitting at the seat of the 1st lady which should have belonged to his mother, in her arms there was a small baby boy, seeing it he discreetly looked towards his mother only to see that she was calm and that she didn't care, Xiao wasn't surprised as he knew that his mother didn't love his father nor did she give a crap about him.
Their marriage was political, even before his father barely talked to his mother, and after marrying the woman from the Min family, he became completely dismissive of his mother, Xiao was sure that the only reason that there was any amiability between them was because of his mother's businesses.
Seeing the other kids gathering towards the center he placed the reluctant Xuanyin on the ground as he smiled at her while patting her head, receiving his warm pats Xuanyin closed her eyes to relish in the warmth of the only person who could give her warmth, taking his hand from the pat he could feel a sense of disappointment from his sister, smiling cheekily he spoke to his sister while pointing at his cheeks,
"Xuanyin, why don't you give your brother a kiss to motivate him?"
Hearing her brother's words, Xuanyin with her apathetic eyes looked at her brother who was now kneeling a bit to show his cheeks, Xuanyin kept looking at her brother's cheek for a moment before she leaped to give a small kiss of luck to her beloved brother, feeling the kiss on his cheeks he patted his sister head for one last time before walking to the center, he couldn't help but pat his sister's head, her hair was silky and a cool feeling would always fill him when he patted it.
Giving a kiss to his mother who pouted at his sister's kiss, Xiao walked towards the center of the gathering, turning around a bit he could see his sister in his mother's arms as his mother walked towards the table where all the elders sat.
With quick steps, Xiao reached the middle of the gathering, those who saw him would either make way for him or move away, after all, Xiao's quite infamous in the family for beating up kids who offended his sister, even if the kids come back in the groups for revenge they still got beat up by Xiao.
Not only that there was always a sense of maturity and an inconsistent feeling from Xiao, due to which he always seemed more isolated from the kids, but his skill {Connection} was special in the fact that it played the double role of a passive and active effect.
The passive effect is that he would have more of a 'connecting' aura to him, basically giving others a good feeling, though it didn't help him keep a good view of the family, the other active effect is the one that he put on his sister, the same one that forms a deeper connection between him and his sister, overall his name is out there in the family, just not in a good way.
Thanks to everything he did, he was able to get his mother's recognition earlier this time, It was only then that he understood how terrifying his mother could be. She had concealed it to prevent him from harboring any hatred toward her in the past life. However, since he began revealing his "ruthless" side, she decided to reveal a part of herself as well.
After a year of such experiences, his mother recognized him as a "genius," and he gradually revealed his true abilities. Currently, his mother didn't treat him as a child but as a brilliant prodigy who possessed a vast understanding of the world, despite his young age.