.....
"…I don't recall ever agreeing to become your disciple," Azmodeus muttered as he put all of the loot into his storage ring.
Yang Fa observed the boy's shameless actions with amusement. A smile formed on his face. "So you don't wish to become my disciple?" He asked.
"…Well, I didn't say that exactly," Azmodeus replied, his eyes gleaming as he inspected the contents of his storage ring. "But there could be a bit more of a reward. Maybe something to help your disciple reach the Qi Condensation Realm."
Drool slipped from his mouth as he spoke, but Yang Fa only chuckled. "Hah… You truly are an interesting one, aren't you, kid? Fine, but I will give you a little extra just this once. Choose from these."
Following the mildly humorous words of the Sect Leader, he retrieved a few more things of immense value out of his storage ring.
BING! BING!
Three pills appeared: a Physique Refining Pill, a Marrow Washing Pill, and a Qi Condensation Realm Breakthrough Pill, albeit of the Lowest Quality.
Azmodeus's eyes sparkled at the sight of the loot before him, but he was quickly taken out of his stupor by the Sect Leader's following words.
"If you wish to have any one of these pills," Yang Fa said, swiping away the enticing pills laid out on the center table, "you must promise me something."
Azmodeus frowned. He was a bit disappointed with the disappearance of the pills, but he still asked, "And what is it that you wish me to do for you?"
The Sect Leader's grin widened a bit more at the kid's response as he replied, "I need you to look out for my daughter for the next… Let's say… Forever," he mumbled. "Anyhow, on that note, have you ever thought of marriage? I know it's a little early considering your age, but—"
"Hold up a second, old man! What are you even talking about??" Azmodeus interjected with a tone of disbelief.
"Well, of course, I'm trying to ask you what you think of my daughter here. You know, I don't mean to brag, but her mother is quite the looker, and I'm sure that she'll be just as gorgeous—"
"F-Father, what are you saying!?" Yang Hua cried out, cutting the Sect Leader this time as she covered her dainty hands over his mouth.
Her complexion was as red as a beet and her slightly teary eyes darted in the direction of the young black-haired boy staring at them with a stunned look on his face.
Azmodeus watched the two with an utterly dumbfounded expression. He truly had no clue how his arena battles had spiraled into this…?
'Is this some sort of sick joke played by whatever gods are up there…?'
He was beginning to think that someone was laughing at him from above.
He lightly clicked his tongue. "I don't wish to marry your daughter, Sect Leader," he said. "Give me another task instead."
Hearing Azmodeus's cold words, Yang Hua's her eyes welled up. She pulled her hands off her father's mouth before running away with tears streaming down her cute face.
"Father, you're a big meanie! I hate you!" she cried out these begrudged words before disappearing behind a screen door that led deeper into the mansion.
In the room, she left behind a young black-haired boy and an old man staring at the door with blank expressions.
"You know," Yang Fa said, breaking the silence, "this is the part where you're supposed to run after her and bring her back."
"The f*ck you mean, me, old man??" Azmodeus snapped, a vein throbbing on his forehead. "I just met you and her! Furthermore, she's your daughter!"
Yang Fa sighed dramatically. "How can you say that, my dear disciple? After all I've done for you in these hard times, this is how you repay me?"
The Yang Sect Leader's voice trembled with 'devastation,' as he realized that he had been betrayed by his dear disciple!
There was nothing more terrible than being betrayed by the one you thought you could rely on above all others!
"…"
Azmodeus stood frozen, astonishment clear on his face as he watched the shamelessness of a man who ruled an entire sect.
'How can someone so strong and in such a high position be so utterly shameless-?'
BING!
His thoughts were cut short as the three pills that had appeared earlier, once again materialized out of thin air.
"Go and make things right with my precious daughter, and I'll give you not just one of these pills, but all of them," Yang Fa declared.
"Say no more," Azmodeus responded with a 'righteous' expression and immediately got up from his seat before vanishing from his spot.
And then there was one…
As Yang Fa gazed in the direction in which the young boy disappeared, a slight chuckle escaped his mouth which soon erupted into an intense laughter.
After a few seconds of laughter, the Sect Leader let go of his stomach. "He truly is the son of you both, isn't he…?" He murmured. "Even his talent is beyond anything that the Yang Sect can ever hope to contain."
A nostalgic look seemed to cross his face as he recalled two figures of immense strength, beings not of this world.
They had fallen from beyond the stars on a fateful day, bringing with them a child in a basket — a child destined for greatness.
"I wonder if those two are doing fine wherever they are right now," he muttered to no one in particular while gazing up at the bright blue sky that seemed to hold countless mysteries.
_____
Meanwhile, in a different part of the vast Yang Sect Leader's Mansion, a boy walked through the wooden corridors, searching for a young, pretty girl around his age.
It didn't take long before his ears caught a light sniffling coming from beneath a low-hanging bridge. With silent steps, he approached the bridge before crouching down. "What are you doing under here," he asked.
"!!!"
The sniffling girl was frightened by the sudden voice and jumped away, bonking her head against a wood beam under the bridge.
"Ow, ow, ow… it hurts…!" Yang Hua cried out as she rolled on the grassy ground, clutching her head.
Azmodeus watched this go down with a small, imperceptible grin on his face as he asked, "Did that hurt, little Miss Noble?"
He tried his best to suppress a laugh from escaping his mouth, but upon seeing her puffed-out cheeks, he couldn't hold it any longer...
...…