Chapter 22 Uncle Anan is too old to be a match for Mother

Bai Yue’s brow furrowed, deeply startled by her son’s train of thought.

"Haochen, where did this idea come from all of a sudden?"

Long Haochen gave a guileless smile. "Because the Mad War Demon God is very powerful and can defeat the old father. That way, Mom wouldn’t have to worry about the old father taking revenge if you found a new father."

Bai Yue’s heart softened instantly. She hadn’t expected that Haochen’s first concern in finding her a new father would still be her own safety, fearing she might face retribution from Long Xingyu.

"Haochen, Mom can protect herself." Bai Yue cast a barrier to isolate their presence before revealing her cultivation level. She explained with a smile, "Mom is already at the eighth rank. With the cultivation talent of the Heaven-Defying Demon Dragon royal family, I will defeat Long Xingyu sooner or later. So, Haochen, you don’t need to worry about Mom’s safety."

From Haochen’s reaction, Bai Yue could sense that he had suffered quite a few grievances during his daily life with Long Xingyu.

"But Mom, why not choose Uncle Anan?" Long Haochen asked, his ears perking up with curiosity.

Bai Yue rubbed her forehead, patiently explaining, "Haochen, although I call the Uncle Anan you speak of 'brother' out of respect for our generational standing, if you go by age, he could be your great-grandfather."

"Huh?" Long Haochen began counting on his fingers, finally reaching a conclusion. "Then wouldn't Uncle Anan be two or three hundred years old?"

"I haven't asked Brother Anan his age, but according to the textbooks of the Temple Alliance, the Mad War Demon God must be at least five or six hundred years old," Bai Yue said thoughtfully.

Long Haochen shook his head repeatedly, stating bluntly, "Then that definitely won't do. Uncle Anan is too old; he isn't a good match for Mom."

Dozens of kilometers away, Anan, who was lying in ambush for Long Xingyu, sneezed repeatedly.

He rubbed his nose in confusion. It was strange—why had he been sneezing so often lately? Could a Demon God catch a cold like a common human? Or was someone cursing him?

Anan stared intensely at Long Xingyu, who was trapped in the maze, cursing and demanding that the demon who imprisoned him come out for a fair fight. Anan realized instantly that the culprit behind his sneezing was none other than Long Xingyu himself.

He added a few touches to the formation, increasing the difficulty of the maze.

The formation, which was originally intended to trap him for three or four months, would now hold him for at least half a year.

By the time Long Xingyu finally broke free from the maze and brought the news back to the Imperial Dragon Pass, he met his father, Long Tianyin. As the possessor of the Divine Throne of Order and Law, upon hearing that his grandson possessed the constitution of a Child of Light, he wanted to bring the child back to be properly raised.

However, Long Xingyu prevented this. He argued that staying with his parents would only make the child reliant and prevent him from growing into a pillar for the human race. He suggested that Long Haochen first study at the Haoyue Branch before being trained through the Demon Hunt Squad system.

Although Long Tianyin was eager to see his grandson, he realized his son’s words made sense. Many of the descendants of the higher-ups in the Temple Alliance were idle, spoiled heirs who relied on their elders' protection; wasn't that exactly how they were raised?

"It's fine for Haochen to study at the Haoyue Branch. In that case, to ensure his talent isn't wasted, take my Ring of Inheritance with you. See if he wants to be a Retribution Knight or a Guardian Knight. If he can't decide, he can dual-cultivate both," Long Tianyin said with a smile.

Long Xingyu nodded in agreement, ultimately resisting the urge to tell his father the truth. If Long Tianyin knew that Long Haochen was actually the son of the Demon God Emperor, his plans would be ruined. His father would surely kill this "abomination," and Bai Yue would likely be dealt with by his enraged father as well. For Bai Yue’s sake, he had to keep this secret buried.

***

During the six months Long Xingyu was away, Bai Yue and Long Haochen moved to Haoyue City. Bai Yue couldn't care less where Long Xingyu went; she and Haochen lived a carefree and comfortable life during this time.

Leveraging the connections of the Yueye Chamber of Commerce, Bai Yue used the alias "Bai Qian" to become a female knight at the Haoyue Sub-Temple, where she also became good friends with Li Xin.

"Qianqian, is your little brother really not a little sister?" This was the third time Li Xin had asked Bai Yue this question.

Bai Yue replied with a wry smile, "Haochen is truly a boy. He just happens to favor his maternal grandmother in his looks."

Li Xin said with some disappointment, "When I first saw him, I thought he was a girl disguised as a boy to participate in the assessment. I did the same thing not long ago; otherwise, my father wouldn't have agreed to let me become a knight. I snuck off to take the Knight Temple assessment behind his back."

"Behind Uncle Li's back?" Bai Yue asked, puzzled.

"Qianqian, haven't you noticed how few female knights there are in the Knight Temple?" Li Xin sighed.

"It's true, there aren't many. Counting you and me, there are only three," Bai Yue nodded.

"In the eyes of parents, the profession of a knight isn't as suitable for a girl as being a mage or a priest," Li Xin explained.

Bai Yue thought about how being a knight involved brandishing swords and spears, and she could certainly see why some parents would feel that way.

Long Haochen finished his lessons and came out to see his mother waiting with Li Xin, the "sister" he had just come to know.

"Sister, Sister Xin'er," Long Haochen greeted them. To facilitate their cover story for Long Xingyu, Bai Yue had told Haochen to claim that Bai Qian was her goddaughter.

As for Bai Qian's parents, they had been killed by demons during a raid on their town six months ago. She had become an orphan, and seeing her plight—and having had a friendship with her mother—Bai Yue had taken her in.

"Haochen, Qianqian, today I’m taking you to meet someone. Her family runs the largest magic shop in Haoyue City. Didn't you both need weapons? It’s a great time to pick some out, and we can even get a discount!" Li Xin said, waving her hand excitedly.

She led Bai Yue and Long Haochen to the magic shop. The goods inside were dazzling, but the prices were enough to make one hesitate.

Long Haochen looked at the price tags and exclaimed in shock, "Five hundred gold coins for a single sword! How many steamed buns could that buy?"

Bai Yue picked through the items, but truthfully, with her standards, she didn't find anything worth her eye. Unfortunately, while there were plenty of dark-attribute weapons among the demons, there were very few with light attributes.

"Haochen, pick whatever you like, don't worry about the money." Bai Yue winked at Long Haochen and took out a black card. Long Haochen tapped his head; he had lived a simple life for so long that he had forgotten his mother was incredibly wealthy.

According to his mother, the Yueye Chamber of Commerce, the richest in the Holy Demon Continent, had been given to her by "Grandpa Yue" as a welcome gift before he was even born. So, as she said, he could pick whatever he wanted without worrying about the cost—especially since Sister Xin'er said they could get a discount, which would save even more money!