Leaving Home
Commander Huo wasn't in the game as he had died before the plot began. But since the man's appearance was shown in various pictures throughout the Huo Clan manor, Xue Bai knew what he looked like.
Commander Huo naturally wore the signature light blue armor that had Xue Feng's emblem etched onto the heart guard as a commander under Xue Feng.
But since he was in the estate and not on a mission, he didn't bother to wear the helmet and kept his face out.
Commander Huo was a man with a clean-shaven chin paired with long and wild hair that he didn't bother to straighten out. Moreover, since he didn't have a beard covering it, you could see that his chin had a sharp jawline.
Coupled with his above-average face, he was definitely someone women would be after.
After being led by a maid to where Li Rou and Xue Bai were, he bid the maid farewell, and after taking a wide step, he instantly traversed the originally 20-meter distance and arrived in front of the two.
"Huo Chen reports to the Duchess and Young Duke!" Huo Chen loudly yelled as he knelt on one knee and cupped his fists respectfully.
While he had submitted to Xue Feng, Li Rou was just as strong as his Lord, so he had no qualms kneeling to her. Plus, Xue Bai was his Lord's child, so it was only right for Huo Chen to act humbly in front of him.
Li Rou didn't care about pleasantries and motioned him to stand up.
Huo Chen obeyed and stood up from his kneeling position.
"Commander Huo, it seems it's time for your annual return home, correct." Li Rou spoke.
While he was confused by the question and didn't understand where the Duchess was going with it, Huo Chen ignored his confusion and still answered it.
"Yes, Duchess, I plan to stay for a week this time. I've heard my older cousin has birthed a great child, and I plan to teach him how to use a spear while I'm there." Huo Chen spoke with a smile.
Thinking of Huo Long, he couldn't help but reveal a smile.
Li Rou ignored his emotions and continued with her own thoughts.
"Then my request is simple, take Bai'er with you and serve as his bodyguard. Since my Husband is currently in the Imperial Capital, we decided to let Bai'er gain some experience managing the subordinate families and want him to explore some of the Empire simultaneously." Li Rou explained.
Huo Chen's mind froze for a second once he heard that.
'I'm a dignified Law Manifestation realm powerhouse. Do I look like a babysitter?'
However, in fear of something wrong, he indirectly tried to refuse it.
"While I am fine with that, Duchess, you do know my Huo Clan is destitute and won't have anything to offer the Young Duke during his stay?" Huo Chen replied, confused.
Sadly Li Rou could sense his ulterior motives and didn't care.
"As long as this trip gives Bai'er some practical experience, it'll be worth it. So do you agree or not?" Li Rou bluntly asked as he raised an eyebrow.
"Yes, Duchess, this subordinate agrees." Huo Chen sighed as he accepted the mission.
Truthfully it didn't bother him much bringing Xue Bai with him, as he was confident in his strength and knew that not many people even dared to attack Xue Bai in The Great Xuan Empire.
He was only slightly annoyed that someone of his power still couldn't escape the fate of being used by their higher-ups.
However, he didn't get angry at Li Rou because of this. Unlike the Duke Wang Clan, the Duchess was rather kind and wouldn't go too far with her demands.
'Just think of it as an escorting mission. It's just one boy. How much could my trip be ruined?'
"Then it's settled. Also, since you are taking Bai'er with you, you may take a Bear Griffin as a mount instead of the usual carriage." Li Rou said with a smile.
And after giving the man a few more orders, she left.
Today was a busy day for her, and accompanying Xue Bai had already eaten up a large portion of it.
Now there were only two people left on the practice field.
One, 2 meters tall, clad in snow white armor, the other, an 8-year-old boy so delicate you'd mistake him for a doll.
Silence ensued for a few seconds until Xue Bai eventually coughed lightly to break it.
"Then I'll be in your care, Commander Huo." Xue Bai lightly spoke as he cupped his fists at the man who was almost a meter taller than him.
Huo Chen laughed heartily at this. However, the Young Duke had already been so cordial. How could he not reciprocate?
Cupping his fists back, Huo Chen replied with a smile.
"It's my pleasure to be your escort, Young Duke."
–
Two days passed in the blink of an eye, and soon it was time for Commander Huo's return home.
Currently, Xue Bai was getting a stern talking to from his mother just outside the estate.
Huo Chen was also there, but he was a few meters away, readying the mounts that they would use for the trip.
Usually, when Huo Chen returned home, he could only take a carriage as it was a personal visit, and the Bear Griffins were only to be used for official dukedom activities. But now that Xue Bai was with him, Li Rou let him take his mount home.
"Bai'er, listen to Commander Huo as you would to your Father or me. While he is our subordinate, he will become your dependency when you leave the estate. If you get attacked, however much effort he puts into the fight is your chance of survival." Li Rou seriously said as she fixed Xue Bai's collar.
However, she didn't bother to lower her voice, and Huo Chen, who was only a few meters away, heard it.
"Duchess, what kind of image of me do you have? I would protect the Young Duke with my life. And even if it weren't the Young Duke and another child, no matter how much they annoyed me, I wouldn't let them fend for themselves against cultivators." Huo Chen wryly spoke as he defended himself.
Children were innocent, and no matter how much a child annoyed him, Huo Chen would let the defenseless child fend for themselves. It was heartless, and he wouldn't be able to live with himself should he ever do it.
"Mother, what fools would even dare to attack someone affiliated with the dukedom? Let alone someone like Commander Huo." Xue Bai seconded.
While his mother's care touched Xue Bai, he still acted a little resistant to it. Being coddled so much was touching, but too much wasn't good.
But Li Rou didn't care about how she was acting and instead doubled down.
"Your Father and I have made many enemies over the years. And while we killed most of them, some have closed up waiting for situations like this, so any precaution is a good one," Li Ruo said solemnly.
Then without missing a beat, she turned around and looked at Huo Chen with cold and dead eyes and continued, "If Bai'er doesn't come back, that means you're dead as well."
However, even after being threatened, Huo Chen didn't cower and only pounded his chest in confidence.
"Don't worry, Duchess. The Young Duke is in safe hands." Huo Chen promised.
Li Rou didn't reply but only continued to stare the man down for a few seconds, but Huo Chen stood strong and didn't cower.
Content with his response, Li Rou knelt down, gave Xue Bai a big hug, and returned to the estate.
Huo Chen saw the Duchess off with cupped fists.
After Li Rou left, Huo Chen turned to Xue Bai and motioned for the boy to come over.
"Young Duke, the city where my Clan lives is far, so we should start to get going. The earlier we arrive, the better." Huo Chen spoke respectfully before lifting Xue Bai up onto the mount he had readied.
The Wang twins each had their own mounts that they would ride on during the journey, so after some discussions between the two groups and a few more preparations, the two Bear Griffins flew off.
The Bear Griffin that Huo Chen possessed was actually the son of Xue Feng's mount, and since it was technically the heir of the small clan, its cultivation base wasn't weak, being in the early stages of the Law Manifestation realm.
So once it flew off, the speeds that the group managed to fly at were far beyond the speed of sound and nearing 2000 kph.
Of course, this wasn't the fastest that the Bear Griffin could go. After all, it was in the Law Manifestation realm, and beings in that realm could go much faster than that. The Bear Griffin chose this speed because of the distance of Frontier City.
While it could go much faster than 2000 kph, it couldn't keep that speed up for 15+ hours. So it chose to go slightly slower so that the group wouldn't have to take a break during their trip and reach their destination in one go.
However, even at this much slower speed, the winds were slicing at the group at speeds and strengths that could eviscerate a Qi Sea realm cultivation.
And since Xue Bai was still a mortal, Huo Chen conjured a small shield of Spiritual Qi that covered him to prevent the Young Duke from being injured or killed by the violent winds.
And after a few minutes of flying, the small group had left the vicinity of the estate and Snowy Wind City.
Flying over the large forests that bordered Snowy Wind City, Xue Bai eventually realized just how large this world was.
This random Bear Griffin only had the strength of the Law Manifestation realm, and yet it could fly twice the speed of an airplane.
However, while this was fine and dandy, it begged the question, how fast could Domain Lord realm cultivators fly?
Spirit Severing realm cultivators?
What about the nigh immortal Immortal Ascension realm cultivators?
Would they just be able to traverse the entire Earth in one step?
It was a fascinating thing to think about, and it only further instilled the need for power in Xue Bai's heart.
From needing to protect his loved ones and find his previous life's parents to fulfill his dreams, Xue Bai needed power.
Xue Bai stayed in this state for a while, where he quickly lost himself in his thoughts. Eventually, he even lost his sense of time.
He was only brought back when he looked down below and saw nothing but forest. So they had left the boundaries of the dukedom, either recently or long ago. But from the fact that the sun was in the same spot, Xue Bai knew it couldn't have been long.
Back to reality, Xue Bai looked at Huo Chen.
"Commander Huo, how far is this trip going to take?" Xue Bai asked.
"Young Duke, my Clan lives in the Frontier City that sits at the borders of the Great Xuan Empire. And with how fast our mounts are flying, we should arrive by tomorrow morning." Huo Chen replied respectfully.
While the Bear Griffins were extremely fast, the Great Xuan Empire covered hundreds of thousands of miles in size. Moreover, their dukedom was in the core part of the Empire, while Frontier City was practically on the other side.
So while Huo Chen had a high estimate, it was true.
The Baishen Plane was just that big, after all. Even the tiniest continent was dozens of times larger than Earth. If anything, it was miraculous that Huo Chen could travel that quickly.
"Then I will rest for a little. Commander Huo, if anything important happens, wake me up." Xue Bai ordered. He had no plans to stay awake for another 16 hours, so he only instructed Huo Chen before closing his eyes.
"You can rest easy, Young Duke. The twins and I are enough to ensure your safety while you rest." Huo Chen promised.
Nodding, Xue Bai closed his eyes but didn't go to sleep. He only said he would because he wanted to think peacefully.
Currently, they were on their way to Frontier City, where Huo Long lived with his Clan.
The reason that the Huo Clan lived so far away from the Imperial Capital actually had a sad story behind it.
A few hundred years ago, during the peak of the Huo Clan, the previous Emperor foresaw that Huo Long's grandfather would eventually reach the stages of the Domain Lord realm. So in an act to bring the Huo Clan closer to the Empire, he gave the man the title of Marquis along with a fief.
However, this eventually came to be the Emperor's biggest mistake.
Other than Huo Long's grandfather, no one in the Huo Clan even reached the Law Engraving realm. And once he disappeared, the fief of the Huo Clan struggled to survive.
Without the Domain Lord realm of the founder to ensure safety, it had virtually turned into a bandit home.
Angry at the embarrassment, the Emperor took away the fief from the Huo Clan and banished them to the borders of the Great Xuan Empire.
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