--- Chapter 21 ---
"Qianye Xuanji is my father."
As Qianye Ying'er finished her words with a stutter, an absolute silence followed in the room. Huo Yuhao was stunned and stared at this noble girl with a gaped mouth for a moment.
"Damn..." Huo Yuhao muttered to himself.
He never knows that Douluo Dalu's dad could be this murderous because even his previous dad wasn't that cruel compared to them. Yes, That man still provided something for him.
"It must be a mistake." Qianye Ying'er clutched on her dress with teary eyes, feeling her world crumble quickly.
Huo Yuhao sighed and answered, "You can ask your maids and servants for more information. And unfortunately, I couldn't find your mother's corpse in the bandit hideout. They seemed to transport her away before I went there."
"Now the question, for what reason?"
"I don't know." Qianye Ying'er was a naive girl. Everything was fine for her until yesterday because a warm-loving family and happiness went down in a mere day.
Qianye Ying'er slowly crumpled in fear because she couldn't trust anyone now. She was beyond terrified and even traumatized at this point.
Huo Yun'er leaned on the wall and eyed the golden and black glow above the girl's head to become balanced. It should be impossible because Luck and Doom Qi couldn't coexist in balance without external cause.
"Ah..." She stared at Huo Yuhao. His luck is influencing Qianye Ying'er indirectly, making everything that happens from now on somehow related to him. Usually, It would be a horrible idea to keep them together, but that one girl named Xiao Xiao also experienced the same thing.
Yae said that Divine Dragon tends to mark people regardless of gender. It's usually an act of honoring a potential mate or loyal subordinate.
And Huo Yun'er didn't like the direction this was going. She should be the only one who possessed Huo Yuhao's love and passion. Even though Huo Yun'er sympathizes with Qianye Ying'er unfortunate fate, she doesn't allow this girl to get away with her beloved son.
'Hao'er. We aren't even leaving White Tiger Mansion for one day yet. And you have marked two girls.' She thought solemnly.
Huo Yun'er being possessive is normal because her extreme son's complex and Nine-Tailed Fox's bloodline flow inside her body. However, she also understands that Divine Dragon was beyond her ability.
"This is the only way." She hugged Qianye Ying'er. "Cry, child. Today is an exception."
Qianye Ying'er began to cry and hugged Huo Yun'er back like she was her mother. She felt the familiar motherly warmth and slowly fell asleep again.
"What a day." Huo Yun'er commented while patting Qianye Ying'er on the back.
Huo Yuhao chuckled helplessly and replied, "Tell me about it. We escaped one hole and fell to another within a day. I feel the Qianye Clan will arrive here soon and begin to spout some nonsense about the fake ambush."
"Hmm, How do you know about that?"
"Guts feeling." He added while shrugging his shoulders.
...
...
Huo Yuhao, Huo Yun'er, and Qianye Ying'er moved out at midnight and met with the servants again.
"Young lady!" They were excited when they saw Qianye Ying'er again.
[You have received the main Quest]
[Name: Start An Organization]
[Objective: Built a base(0/1) and have at least 200 loyal subordinates(0/200)]
[Reward: 1 Black Gold Upgrading Ticket and 1x Random Training Ground]
[Do you want to accept the Quest?]
[Yes/No]
Huo Yuhao pressed "Yes." immediately because he couldn't deny such a quest with good rewards. He planned a few things in his mind and peeked at Qianye Ying'er alongside her surviving servants. There are 14 of them, including Qianye Ying'er herself.
[Objectives: Built a base(0/1), have at least 200 loyal subordinates(1/200]
"I guess that one subordinate was my mom." He commented casually. "All of you, hear me out."
"I'll give you a choice. Will you follow me and survive in this world together or return to Qianye Clan."
They abruptly become silent, and Qianye Ying'er has such a complicated expression on her face. She stood before her servants and looked Huo Yuhao in the eyes.
"I can't return to the Qianye Clan." Qianye Ying'er politely said while lowering her head to Huo Yuhao. "I've realized returning to such a place will put my servant and me in danger, so please take care of us."
"This is a selfish request from the deepest part of my heart, but I'll pay you with everything I had." Her amethyst eyes shone with determination. It's not hard for Qianye Ying'er to realize coming back to Qianye Clan was a horrible choice.
No one besides Qianye Ying'er and her mother knew about her innate ability when reaching six years old a few days ago. She could see one's heart with her eyes, knowing their deepest desire and nature.
Huo Yuhao's soul was brilliant gold with the most beautiful blue light. It shows his ambition and free will to help them out of this situation.
"Sure." Huo Yuhao responded with a nod. "I'll take care of you all under one premise. Absolute Loyalty."
"I'll do it. Qianye Ying'er pledged her absolute loyalty to Huo Yuhao." She bent her body like a noble lady while raising her robe slightly.
[2/200]
Evo showed the Quest's progression.
"W-We'll do the same." The servants of Qianye Ying'er bowed before Huo Yuhao, increasing the progression even more.
'That would be fifteen, not bad for a start.' Huo Yuhao thought while telling them to stand up again.
He glanced at the Abandoned Mines and thought of something for a moment. He couldn't keep that place alone because they might be able to trace them later.
"Go to the North. I'll follow you guys shortly after." Huo Yuhao instructed them naturally. "And Mom, please prevent them from doing foolish things."
Huo Yun'er giggled and replied, "Okay."
"What are you going to do, though?"
Huo Yuhao summoned Eas and indifferently answered, "Erasing our traces."
He quickly disappeared like a ghost and came to the Abandoned Mines again with some explosive barrels of Eas's copies, loading them all with compact Thunderfire. He positioned them inside the weak spots of this place, setting them to explode in the morning.
"I want to make it as natural as possible, but that would take too much time." Huo Yuhao jumped off the mountain and followed his group.
...
As the morning sun ascended, the people of the village awoke from their sleep and began their usual activities. Yet, a loud boom suddenly echoed within the mountain range.
BOOM! SWOOSH!
The abandoned mines exploded from inside, and an enormous landslide descended, causing massive panics among the villagers.
"What?"
"What happened?!!"
"T-The mountain is gone!"
"Everyone, a huge landslide is coming. Take your family away immediately!"
Fortunately for them, Huo Yuhao calculated the cause and made it so that the landside moved to the cliff. That portion of land would get buried alongside the evidence of Qianye Ying'er existence. He's not evil enough to kill innocent people.
And as Huo Yuhao expected, a group of people from the Qianye Clan came to the crime scene and witnessed a destroyed mountain area. They obviously questioned how something like this happened, but these villagers didn't even know because it was at the start of the morning. They are too panicked to understand.
"God Damn it!" A middle-aged man with long gray hair smashed a rock in a fury. "I was so close... With their sacrifice, I could advance to the next realm effortlessly. My wife's blood isn't enough. I need Ying'er to complete the ritual."
A woman kneeled and said, "S-Sir Xuanji, should we go to the Star Luo Imperial City? She might be there."
Qianye Xuanji clicked his tongue in annoyance and replied, "No, that can't be. Since he said Ying'er would follow my wife soon in the bird carrier, that girl must have been running away. Ying'er is an intelligent child. She wouldn't go to the Star Luo Imperial City because it would be too obvious."
"It was such a great plan to paint my brother in a bad light. Now everything is ruined." He continued while summoning his nine spirit rings, releasing his Title Douluo's presence. "Search everything within 100 kilometers radius. Dig all this dirt because I want every last bit of trace you could find."
"I have to find Qianye Ying'er. She's the last part for me to awaken our buried lineage..."
"The Legendary Qian Clan. No, Seraphim shall appear in this world once again!" Qianye Xuanji tried to reach the sky with his hand.
...
...
Huo Yuhao and his companion purchased a medium-sized carriage and some horses, driving to the northern side of the Star Luo Empire.
"Eh, Organization?" Huo Yun'er stared at her son with a surprised expression. "You wanted to build one?"
Huo Yuhao nodded and replied, "Yeah, It's not a poor plan. We needed a strong foothold to survive in this world, and creating an organization isn't a bad start."
"That's why..." Qianye Ying'er muttered to herself. She was amazed at Huo Yuhao's ambition and marveled at his firm belief at such a young age.
"Um, do you have the name of the organization?"
Huo Yuhao smiled because Naga suggested a cool name for him once. The Divine Dragon was somehow able to give him so many brands for several scenarios, but one stuck in his mind until now.
He grinned widely and said, "Yes, I have one."
"Our Organization shall be called Dragon Nest."