I step forward to greet him. "Junior Brother White, this should be our first meeting, shouldn't it!" I say with a smile.
White's surprise is evident on his face, and he looks at me in confusion. Soft Feather, Shuhang, and Doudou are also perplexed, not understanding how White could be the junior brother of someone so young like me. After all, I told them that I'm no older than 25, while White is already hundreds of years old. Wasn't this a well-prepared surprise on my part!
"Senior Brother? I don't understand," White says, his expression confused. "I've never heard about having a senior brother before."
I chuckle at the confusion on everyone's faces. "Let me explain," I begin. "Senior White, you are actually my father's indirect disciple. He was guided and led by my father on the path of cultivation, which essentially makes him my junior brother."
Song Shuhang looks impressed, "I never knew that Senior White had such a connection to your family. It's truly an honor to meet you, martial uncle.", he said, immediately realizing that this makes him his martial uncle, due to him being my disciple.
Soft Feather nods in understanding, "Oh, I see now. So, Senior White is like a brother to you?" she however was still confused about one thing and asks "Why do you not call him Senior brother then, after all he's much older than you."
I pause for a moment, taking a deep breath before continuing with my explanation. "You see, I was born much earlier than White, despite physically being much younger than him. It's all due to an accident that happened a long time ago, where I was sent into the future."
White looks at me with a puzzled expression, clearly not understanding how this could be possible. I take a moment to gather my thoughts before delving deeper into the story.
"I was born into a powerful family of cultivators, but a few years after I perfected my Way of Eternal Life, a accident happened, sending me through time. I ended up in the distant future." trying to not reveal everything, I only mentioned half the truth about my background.
As I reveal my background, they all listen with rapt attention. Soft Feather's eyes widen in surprise, while Shuhang and Doudou exchange curious glances. But as I mention the accident that sent me through time, their expressions turn to ones of disbelief.
I pause for a moment, taking a deep breath before continuing. "When I arrived in the year 2018, I was shocked to find that many things had changed since my time. The Ruism, which had been in decline when I was born, had somewhat recovered, while the Heavenly Court, which was once the most powerful force in the cultivation world, had collapsed."
"So that's a little bit about my background," I say with a small smile, hoping to put an end to the conversation. "But enough about me. Let's focus on the present and what we can do together."
White's eyes widen in disbelief as he hears that I have already perfected the Way of Eternal Life at the young age of 25. "That's incredible!" he exclaims, his curiosity piqued. "But wait, how is that possible? Perfecting the Way of Eternal Life usually takes millions of years of cultivation and experience."
I smile, understanding his confusion. "It's a long story, Junior Brother," I reply, "let's just say I have an incredible cultivation technique, the Heaven Devouring Battle Law."
As I mention the "Heaven Devouring Battle Law," everyone looks at me with confusion, including White. Soft Feather breaks the silence and asks, "What is the 'Heaven Devouring Battle Law'? I've never heard of it before."
I give a small smile and reply, "It's a cultivation technique that I was born with, one that defies the laws of heaven and allows me to devour the essence of the heavens and earth at an unprecedented rate. It's not something that many know about."
Shuhang scratches his head, "That sounds like a really powerful technique. How did you come to learn it?"
"I didn't learn it," I explain. "It's something that I was born with. Others have an Innate Talent, I have an innate cultivation technique. It's a part of me, and it has allowed me to progress much faster in cultivation than most others. But it also comes with its own challenges and dangers, as it draws the attention of many powerful beings.", well the last part only applied in the past as I currently stand at the peak of as the number one below the Heavens, but nobody needs to know, for now at least.
White's eyes widen in realization, "Ah, I see. Although still incredible, that somewhat explains how you were able to perfect your Way of Eternal Life at such a young age."
After our long conversation, I decide to wrap things up. "It was great meeting you, Junior Brother White," I say with a smile. "We should definitely catch up sometime, perhaps over some tea and snacks."
White nods in agreement, looking pleased with our meeting. "I would like that very much, Senior Brother," he responds.
As we start to say our goodbyes, Shuhang chimes in. "Senior Brother, I was thinking that we should bring White to Medicine Master's home. It's a safe place for him to stay while he gets reacquainted with the modern world."
I nod my head in agreement with Shuhang's suggestion. "That's a good idea, Shuhang. Medicine Master's place is safe and it'll give White a chance to catch up on everything that he's missed."
White looks at me with a grateful expression. "Thank you, martial nephew. I appreciate your hospitality."
"Of course, Senior White," Shuhang replies, smiling. "I'll lead the way, master can open a space gate to get us there faster."
"An excellent idea," I say, nodding in agreement. "I'll open the gate now, so get ready to step through."
I extend my hand and summon the power of the space gate, which shimmers into existence once again. While Shuhang and White step through, Soft Feather and I do not.
As Shuhang and White step through the space gate, Soft Feather looks at me with a questioning expression. "What about us, Zenith?" she asks.
I smile at her and pat her on the head. "Don't worry, Soft Feather. I'm taking you back to Spirit Butterfly Island now. We've had quite an adventure today, and it's time to return for now."
With a flick of my wrist, another space gate materializes before us, and I turn to Soft Feather with a warm smile and offer her my hand like a gentleman helping a lady out of a car. "Soft Feather, would you like to come with me back to Spirit Butterfly Island?" I said.
Soft Feather nods eagerly, grabs my hand and follows me through the space gate. As we step through, the world around us warps and shifts. We emerge on the other side, and I can see the not so familiar sights and sounds of Spirit Butterfly Island.
Soft Feather takes in a deep breath of the fresh island air, her eyes closing in contentment. "It's good to be back," she murmurs.
As soon as we arrived at Spirit Butterfly Island, an angry Spirit Butterfly greets us. His expression was furious, and he looked at me as if I had committed the greatest offense. It was clear that he had found out about Soft Feather's little adventure.
"Who dares to bring my precious Soft Feather out without my permission?" he screams.
I step forward speaking to Venerable Spirit Butterfly "Spirit Butterfly, please forgive me. I just wanted to show Soft Feather around and give her a taste of the outside world."
"Apologize? That's not enough to make up for your recklessness! Do you know how worried I was about my daughter?" Spirit Butterfly said, his voice booming in agitation.
"I assure you, Soft Feather was safe with us at all times," I replied, trying to calm him down. "We just wanted to show her the outside world and give her a break from her strict cultivation routine."
"A break? You call this a break? What if something had happened to her? What if she had gotten hurt?" Spirit Butterfly said, his voice rising with each word.
"I understand your concern, Spirit Butterfly, but I can assure you nothing will happen to her in my presence," I said, bowing my head in respect. "But please, don't blame Soft Feather. She was only enjoying her time with us."
"Nothing can harm her with you being present? I don't think so! You are after all the greatest harm for her" Spirit Butterfly screams at me.
As Spirit Butterfly continues to berate me, I realize that I have no chance of reasoning with him. His anger seems to be boundless, and I can feel his hostility seeping into my bones.
"Don't even try to defend yourself! You have no idea how much danger you put her in by taking her out without my knowledge," he screams, his voice rising with each word.
I can feel the tension in the air thickening, and I know that I need to act fast if I want to avoid a physical confrontation. Using the power of the space, I create a Space Gate behind me. I step back and prepare to make my escape.
"You're not going anywhere!" Spirit Butterfly roars, lunging towards me.
But it's too late. I have already activated the space gate, and with a bright flash of light, I disappear from his sight and reappear in a safe location far away from Spirit Butterfly Island, I let out a sigh of relief.
I then start to think about Spirit Butterfly's words. "Am I really the greatest harm to Soft Feather?" I ask myself. "I don't think so. I care about her deeply and would never do anything to intentionally hurt her."
As I continue to ponder, I realize that my decision to escape was the right one. "Nothing is more troublesome than an overprotective father," I mutter to myself. "But I won't let him stop me from spending time with Soft Feather. I just have to find a way to make him see that I have her best interests at heart."