Yang Fan pondered for a moment before speaking slowly, "I cannot oppose the Yang Family Fort directly right now, nor can I simply obey their commands. The best course of action for now is to drag things out."
"If they push me too far… hmmph… I'll just join the 'Misty Rain Villa' and take up a guest position. Let's see what the Yang Family Fort can do to me then." A cold glint flickered in Yang Fan's eyes.
When he was a prodigious cultivator in the Spirit-Concentration stage, he basked in the family's favor, adorned with glory and accolades. But when he lost all his cultivation overnight and became a "cripple," he was ridiculed and scorned. Even the family head, Yang Hong, had harshly driven him out, telling him to "get lost."
Now, as Yang Fan had begun to achieve a certain level of success in his medical practice, the Yang Family Fort wanted to recall him under the guise of "atoning for past mistakes" to serve the family.
If Yang Fan agreed, wouldn't that make him nothing more than a dog, summoned and dismissed at will?
"Your plan is sound. I don't think the Yang Family Fort will resort to force against you, especially considering your younger brother Yang Lei is currently the family's rising star," Lin Zhong remarked with a nod and smile.
"In four or five days, I'll be heading to 'Ghost Corpse Mountain.' During that time, make sure to take good care of the clinic," Yang Fan instructed.
…
That very afternoon, a proud figure in dark robes appeared at Pu'ai Medical Clinic. His features bore a striking resemblance to Yang Fan's, though his expression was far more arrogant. He strode into the inner hall of the clinic without hesitation, and none of the doctors or apprentices dared to stop him.
Yang Fan, setting aside the jade slip in his hand, looked up and said calmly, "What are you doing here?"
"Big brother."
Yang Lei stood with his hands clasped behind his back, the two words he spoke echoing like thunder in Yang Fan's ears. In that moment, an overwhelming spiritual pressure suddenly radiated from Yang Lei, causing the air to tremble and the temperature in the room to plummet.
Boom!
Yang Fan felt the pressure weigh down on him, even his breathing became strained. Shock flickered across his face. "You… you've reached the Spirit-Concentration stage."
Spirit-Concentration!
Yang Lei smiled, clearly pleased, and withdrew his spiritual pressure. The room returned to normal, and he spoke coolly, "I've entered the Spirit-Concentration stage now. I'm the undisputed top talent of the family."
"When I reached this stage, the first person I wanted to tell was you, brother."
Yang Lei took a deep breath, his eyes resting on his elder brother, who was still in the early stages of Qi Refinement. A complex emotion flickered in his gaze—part achievement, part pity.
Yang Fan met his brother's gaze, sensing hints of both compassion and pride.
"Why?" Yang Fan asked quietly.
"Because… a long time ago, I made up my mind…"
Yang Lei's voice held a trace of excitement, though he tried to suppress his emotions. In a steady tone, he continued, "When we were children, you excelled in everything, and I could never measure up. What hurt even more was seeing that Father clearly favored you. He loved you more..."
"Yang Lei! Don't slander our father!" Yang Fan slammed the table with his hand, his voice full of anger, his hand trembling slightly.
Their father, Yang Tian, had always been a hero in their eyes, the man who treated Yang Fan with unparalleled kindness.
"Ha… Brother, stop deceiving yourself. I could see it in his eyes—Father always valued you more, invested more of his emotions in you. And I... I was nothing but the child of a mortal woman," Yang Lei's voice grew ragged, trembling with emotion.
Yang Fan fell silent.
It was true. Yang Lei was born to a mortal woman whom their father had met after leaving the immortal world.
"That's just your perception," Yang Fan replied calmly. "Perhaps the truth isn't as you imagine. It could all be your own mind playing tricks on you."
"Fine, fine!" Yang Lei sneered. "Let me tell you another thing then. It's about the treasure our father left behind. That day, I lied to you. Everything in that treasure trove—the artifacts, the spirit pills, the materials, and the jade slips—they were all meant for you, Brother!"
"What?" Yang Fan's body jolted in shock. "All of it… was meant for me?"
"Hmph, do you think I'd lie to you?" Yang Lei scoffed, then pulled out a white handkerchief from his storage pouch, tossing it impatiently to Yang Fan.
Yang Fan caught the handkerchief. Neatly inscribed upon it in delicate, elegant writing were two lines that seemed to carry a trace of spiritual energy:
*"The Spirit-Linking Jade Pendant, for my son Yang Fan."*
The signature at the bottom read: *Liu Mengyan.*
"The little jade pendant was wrapped in this handkerchief back then. Now, it's finally returned to its rightful owner," Yang Lei sneered. "Do you still have any doubts?"
Yang Fan held the handkerchief in his trembling hands, his emotions in turmoil.
"Liu Mengyan… Could that be my mother, the one I've never met?" Yang Fan inhaled deeply, trying to steady his emotions. He removed the translucent green jade pendant from around his neck.
Now, there was no doubt. This pendant had been left behind by the mother he had never known.
"Twelve years ago, Father sent you to the Yang Family Fort but left me behind at home," Yang Lei continued bitterly, his voice low and growling. "Didn't he realize I was also his son, that I too had the potential for cultivation?"
Yang Fan remained silent, unable to find words to respond.
"Eventually, after countless pleas and my stubborn determination, Mother finally sent me to the Yang Family Fort. But even then, I didn't receive the same treatment as you. I had no renowned teacher like Elder Liu to guide me, nor did I have access to better spirit pills or cultivation techniques. So despite our similar talents, I fell behind you once again... I lost to you once again!"
"I was bitter! Why? Why is the world so unfair!" Yang Lei's face twisted with rage, his voice trembling as he poured out the resentment and injustice he had harbored for over a decade.
"Why didn't you tell me any of this sooner?" Yang Fan asked, his gaze locked on his younger brother.
Yang Lei slowly regained his composure. In a low voice, he said, "Even though I kept losing to you, even though I was bitter, I've always known that you, Brother, have been the one person who genuinely cared for me—like Mother did."
"...That snowy night, when we fought two demonic cultivators, you took the final blow meant for me from that dying cultivator."
"Even though I resented Father and fate, I was too ashamed to ever show these thoughts in front of you."
Yang Lei's voice trailed off into silence.
"If that's true, why did you take everything Father left behind for yourself?" Yang Fan asked, his expression now complicated, realizing there was a side to his brother he had never fully understood.
Yang Lei's face returned to its cold and proud demeanor. "You were only stronger because you had all the advantages—Father's love, a famous teacher's guidance… But now, with all of those things in my possession, I will surpass you in every way."
"I'm seventeen now, and I've already reached the Spirit-Concentration stage, a year earlier than you did, Brother."
A slight smile tugged at Yang Lei's lips, his arrogance growing.
Yang Fan had entered the Spirit-Concentration stage just a year ago at the age of eighteen. In that regard, Yang Lei truly seemed to have surpassed him.