After everyone was reborn, I was strictly disciplined.

Lu's mother knelt on the ground, kowtowing repeatedly, tears welling in her cloudy eyes, her voice choked with sobs and almost incoherent:

"It's...it's my fault. I'm incompetent and failed to educate Chengyuan properly, causing trouble for Young Master Xie. Please forgive me, Young Master..."

"Of course it's your fault!"

Before she could finish her apology, Xie Xingran abruptly cut her off with his arrogant and domineering voice, "Is it really my fault?!"

Xie Xingran's disgust was almost palpable: "If you hadn't given birth to him, would he be clinging to me like a mad dog, causing me so much trouble?"

He looked down at Lu's mother, who was kneeling on the ground, a mocking smile playing on his lips. His words were like knives, slowly torturing Lu's mother's dignity.

"No wonder the Lu family was so heartless as to kick you and your two children out. Ungrateful wretches like you are a menace wherever you are. You only waste food and tarnish other people's eyes."

The mockery in his eyes deepened: "If I were the master of the Lu family, I would never keep such a burden as you in the mansion."

"Not only is he so incompetent that he's like a piece of mud that can't be plastered on a wall, but he's also so ugly, with scheming and poverty in his eyes, and his personality is twisted and disgusting."

"What good are people like you? You might as well just die and stop getting in the way!"

The words whispered in her ear were like daggers piercing her heart. Finally, tears streamed down Lu's mother's face. She trembled slightly, but dared not resist in the slightest. She could only repeatedly whisper her repentance: "It's all my fault... It's all my fault..."

Xie Xingran's words were like poisoned ice picks, each one piercing into Lu's mother's ears and hurting her so much that she could hardly breathe.

She recalled the humiliation and cold treatment she received when she was kicked out of the Lu family home, the hardships she had endured raising her two children over the years, and how her children had become emaciated from trying to treat her illness. Her heart was filled with bitterness and helplessness, yet she dared not utter a single word of rebuttal. She could only apologize repeatedly, humbled to the extreme.

Seeing Lu's mother's submissive and trampled appearance, Xie Xingran's anger and interest gradually dissipated, leaving only impatience.

He chuckled and slowly extended his hand toward Lu's mother, his fingertips gleaming coldly. His smile was cruel and arrogant, carrying a manipulative malice.

"Because of your illness, that brat Lu Chengyuan came begging me to treat you!"

Xie Xingran's voice softened, but it carried a chilling edge, "But after he was cured, he felt that I had trampled on his ridiculous and cheap dignity. He really didn't know his place."

He paused, the cruelty in his eyes deepening, and spoke each word clearly and distinctly:

"Then I'll put everything back to normal."

"I want to see if Lu Chengyuan's insignificant dignity can be exchanged for precious medicinal herbs to cure your illnesses and save your worthless life."

As he finished speaking, his gaze fell on Lu Chengxue, who was huddled up behind Lu's mother, her face pale.

Lu Chengxue's big eyes were filled with fear. She clung tightly to her mother's clothes, trembling all over.

Xie Xingran's lips curled into a cruel smile, her tone filled with contemptuous disdain:

"And your daughter, if it weren't for my favor, if it weren't for the spirit stones I bestowed upon you, you would have starved to death in the streets long ago, becoming food for wild dogs!"

Lu's mother instantly sensed the murderous intent in Xie Xingran's words—an undisguised malice that wanted to wipe them out completely.

Her heart tightened, and a strong sense of fear instantly swept over her.

"Thank you for your mercy, young master! Please, young master, have mercy!"

Mother Lu's voice was hoarse and broken, filled with desperate pleading, "It's all my fault, all my fault alone. It has nothing to do with Xue'er. Please don't punish Xue'er, don't hurt her!"

"I am willing to bear all responsibility, even if it means being shattered to pieces, even if it means my bones are reduced to ashes, I am willing, please spare Xue'er, spare my daughter!"

"Who cares whether you're willing to take responsibility or not?"

Xie Xingran scoffed, his tone cold and impatient, as if Lu's mother's pleas were nothing more than annoying noise to him. "Let's all die together!"

Before she finished speaking, Xie Xingran suddenly condensed a ball of blazing flame at her fingertips. The flame burned fiercely, carrying a scorching heat wave, and like a fire dragon spitting its tongue, it suddenly attacked Lu's mother and daughter.

The surrounding air was instantly distorted by the heat, and even the withered grass on the ground curled up and turned black instantly. The pungent smell of burning filled the air, and the shadow of death instantly enveloped the Lu family mother and daughter.

Lu's mother closed her eyes in despair, hugged her daughter tighter, and tears streamed down her face silently. All that remained in her heart was endless regret and resentment.

She hated herself for being powerless, for not being able to protect her children, and for being able to watch death come to her.

However, just as the scorching flames were about to engulf the mother and daughter, a vast, powerful, and fierce force suddenly broke through the air, like an invisible wall of copper and iron, forcefully blocking the Lu family mother and daughter in front of them.

"Sizzle—"

With a deafening roar, the scorching flames crashed into the barrier of power, instantly crushing into tiny sparks that quickly dissipated into the air with a puff of white smoke. The sweltering heat also subsided instantly, and the surrounding air gradually returned to its cool state.

Just then, a thunderous roar, filled with awe-inspiring majesty, suddenly exploded in the air, its power so great that the surrounding air currents trembled slightly: "Who dares to bully the Lin family!"

The voice was deep and resonant, carrying the imposing aura of someone who had long held a high position, instantly drowning out all the noise.

Upon hearing the voice, Xie Xingran subconsciously frowned, looked up in the direction from which the voice came, and a hint of surprise and impatience flashed in her eyes.

Lu's mother loosened her grip on Lu Chengxue's arm slightly, and both mother and daughter looked up at the empty sky, wondering where the sudden sound came from.

At the same time, a hazy light and shadow slowly appeared in the air, and within the light and shadow, a tall and straight figure could be vaguely seen.

The man gripped a long sword with a chilling gleam in his hand, its blade shimmering with a faint, luminous light. He was surrounded by a vast and powerful spiritual aura, exuding an imposing aura that inspired awe in all who beheld him.

The figure was initially blurry and ethereal, like the moon's reflection in water, but gradually became clearer as spiritual energy gathered.

Xie Xingran looked down at the storage bracelet on her wrist.

The bracelet, which had been securely resting on his wrist, was now trembling violently, and a warm, jade-like light shot out from it—it was the jade pendant he had taken from Lu Chengxue.

The jade pendant, which had been dull and gray, had become lustrous and was now breaking free from his control, slowly flying towards the figure in the air.

Upon seeing this, Xie Xingran's face instantly darkened, his brows and eyes filled with anger and frustration. He subconsciously reached for the jade pendant, but only grasped at empty air.

"Damn it!"

He cursed inwardly, his eyes almost overflowing with malice. He couldn't help but think to himself, "Sure enough, jade pendants are the biggest bug in this world of cultivation!"

He seems inconspicuous on ordinary days, but he always manages to ruin his plans at crucial moments, showing absolutely no control over the situation.

The figure in the air gradually solidified, eventually transforming into a middle-aged man dressed in plain blue clothes.

He stood tall and straight like a pine tree, his back ramrod straight, his demeanor calm and dignified. His long, black hair was tied up with a wooden hairpin, a few strands of hair at his temples were slightly gray, a long beard hung down his chin, his face was resolute, and the spiritual energy surrounding him, along with the long sword in his hand, demonstrated his extraordinary cultivation.

He landed steadily in front of the Lu family mother and daughter, and the spiritual energy around him formed an invisible barrier, protecting the mother and daughter behind him.

The jade pendant that flew out of Xie Xingran's storage bracelet was now slowly floating in front of the middle-aged man. Its jade light flowed and resonated with the spiritual energy around him, appearing to be in perfect harmony.

The middle-aged man reached out his hand, his fingertips trembling slightly, and carefully held the jade pendant in his hand as if he were holding some rare treasure.

He lowered his head, gazing intently at the jade pendant, gently stroking its patterns. His eyes gradually hardened, tears welling up, filled with the overwhelming excitement and joy of finding something he had lost. He murmured softly, "This is...this is..."

A moment later, he gripped the jade pendant tightly, his voice trembling with barely concealed emotion and sob: "This is Shuyi's jade pendant! It's my Shuyi's jade pendant!"

The middle-aged man was named Lin Feng, the head of the Lin family in the cultivation world. He was highly skilled and imposing. Lin Shuyi was his youngest daughter and his most beloved child.

Back then, Lin Shuyi was young and impetuous. She ran away from home in a fit of pique and was never heard from again. For decades, he sent people to search for her everywhere, but there was never any news. His heart was filled with guilt and longing.

This jade pendant is no ordinary item; it is a family heirloom of the Lin family, worn by every member of the Lin family at birth. A unique protective array is set up within the jade pendant.

Whenever a member of the Lin family faces mortal danger, the jade pendant will automatically trigger an array, summoning powerful members of the Lin family across distances to protect them.

Thinking of this, Lin Feng finally couldn't hold back his tears. He gripped the jade pendant tightly, his voice choked with emotion, his heart filled with overwhelming joy and emotion.

"I never expected... I really never expected... After all these years, I would still be able to see it again, and still feel Shuyi's presence..."

He murmured softly, his eyes filled with a mixture of nostalgia and excitement. After a moment, he suddenly raised his head and his gaze fell on Xie Xingran in front of him. The sadness in his eyes vanished instantly, replaced by an undisguised excitement and joy. Even the oppressive aura around him softened a bit.

He had just clearly seen that the jade pendant belonging to Lin Shuyi flew out from the storage bracelet of the child dressed in brocade clothes in front of him.

Since the jade pendant is in the child's hands and has triggered the protective formation, this child must be his daughter Lin Shuyi's bloodline, and his grandson whom he, Lin Feng, has never met!

Thinking this, Lin Feng's joy intensified, and his tone softened considerably, even carrying a hint of barely perceptible urgency as he softly spoke to Xie Xingran:

"Child, don't be afraid, I'm not a bad person, I'm your maternal grandfather!"