"Lord Patriarch, would you prefer tea or spirits? I'm preparing a drink for myself. This will be a rather long… and strange conversation."
Chen Zhenlong shook his head, refusing any drink the boy might prepare.
Although he was willing to hear what Xue Hui had to say, his guard remained firmly raised.
Earlier, the boy had slipped from his grasp using only the strength of a Bronze Rank Demon Spiritualist.
Such a display was more than enough to make Chen Zhenlong wary of the boy he thought he knew.
Noticing the obvious caution directed at him, Xue Hui merely shrugged, showing no sign of discouragement. He knew how suspicious he appeared at the moment.
All he could do was convince Chen Zhenlong that he harbored no ill intent toward anyone, especially his daughter, and that he truly had a method to help her.
Sitting across from Chen Zhenlong, Xue Hui placed his cup on the table between them. He drew in a long, deep breath before beginning to speak.
"Lord Patriarch, allow me to say this first. I will answer all of your questions, but only after I finish telling my story. Let us avoid interruptions. What I am about to explain is already quite confusing as it is; constant interjections will only make it more baffling."
Closing his eyes, Xue Hui withdrew his soul force completely, leaving himself unguarded against any soul techniques.
"You may place me under your truth-detection soul technique, so you can judge whether all my words are genuine."
Hearing this, Chen Zhenlong was momentarily taken aback. He had not expected Xue Hui to willingly submit himself to such a method.
Which, admittedly, was quite convenient.
He had already intended to test the boy's story for its authenticity and had been planning to request that Xue Hui submit to his soul technique.
Since the boy had offered it himself, Chen Zhenlong saw no reason to refuse.
As for the possibility of the boy using some underhanded method to falsify the results of the truth-detection soul technique, Chen Zhenlong was not the least bit concerned.
He did not believe that a mere Bronze Rank cultivator could defend his soul against the Divine Family's truth-detection technique, especially when it was being personally performed by him.
"Very well. I will listen to your story first. But afterward," he shot a piercing glare at Xue Hui, "you will answer every question I ask."
Nodding at his words, Xue Hui remained still as Chen Zhenlong released his soul force, gently enveloping him before carefully extending his consciousness into the boy's mind to initiate the truth-detection soul technique.
Under normal circumstances, when a member of the Divine Family invoked the truth-detection technique, the target would be subjected to excruciating mental torment, often to the point of mental collapse.
This was because most subjects instinctively raised their mental defenses in resistance, a futile attempt that only made the process far more painful than it needed to be.
Moreover, Divine Family members typically used forceful pressure to erode the target's will, making them more likely to confess.
After all, those subjected to the truth-detection technique were usually criminals or offenders.
But with Xue Hui, Chen Zhenlong deliberately made the process as gentle as possible.
Coupled with the fact that Xue Hui offered no resistance whatsoever, the entire procedure proceeded with remarkable smoothness.
Unbeknownst to Chen Zhenlong, Xue Hui was more than capable of erecting a formidable mental defense against the truth-detection soul technique.
This was due to his overwhelming mental prowess.
Despite appearing as a mere child, he was someone who had entered the space within the [CREATION ORIGIN ANCESTRAL MANUAL] and spent an unknown amount of time studying there.
The tempering of his mind during those periods far surpassed what ordinary cultivators could achieve.
He simply allowed the technique to be used on him so that Chen Zhenlong would be more easily convinced that everything he was about to reveal was true.
"You may speak," Chen Zhenlong said after successfully casting the truth-detection soul technique on Xue Hui.
Xue Hui nodded in response and began.
"Lord Patriarch, do you believe that there are people in this world who can defy the heavens, escape death, and return to the past?"
Without waiting for a response, he pointed to himself and continued,
"I am one of those people."
Under normal circumstances, Chen Zhenlong would have immediately dismissed such words as utter nonsense. Yet his truth-detection soul technique clearly indicated that Xue Hui was telling the truth. This shocked him greatly, and he looked at Xue Hui as though he were staring at a ghost.
"In my previous life, or perhaps it is more accurate to call it another life, you also adopted me from the orphanage and brought me home to serve as Linlin's attendant," Xue Hui said. He took a sip of his tea, allowing his words to settle in Chen Zhenlong's mind.
As the man nodded, he continued.
"The difference is that, in that life, you chose me because of my poor innate talent and my excellent ability to draw portraits."
This made Chen Zhenlong display a confused expression.
"Aside from taking care of Linlin, I would often go outside the mansion to sketch the world around me and show it to her."
Xue Hui took out a piece of paper and passed it to the man in front of him.
Chen Zhenlong accepted the paper and gave Xue Hui a questioning look before unfolding it to examine its contents.
As soon as he did, Chen Zhenlong's entire body froze.
A cold sweat ran down his spine. The top of his head went numb, and his breath caught in his throat. His spiritual aura became chaotic and unstable.
The drawing was a portrait of a girl lying in bed.
She was a frail-looking young lady with an emaciated body that barely had any flesh left on it. Her eyes were dull, as though she had already lost all will to live.
The face on the paper was someone Chen Zhenlong knew all too well.
Because this frail young woman was none other than an older version of his daughter, Chen Linlin.
Looking at his daughter's possible future, Chen Zhenlong finally understood what people meant when they said their heart was being torn apart.
Unable to bear the sight any longer, he crumpled the paper and threw it into the trash. He looked angry, sad, and distressed all at once.
Xue Hui continued, knowing there was still much he needed to tell.
"As you can probably tell, the 'me' from that lifetime was very different from the current me. Even as a child in the orphanage, I was far more mentally and emotionally present than I was at the start of this life."
He took another sip of tea, but this time a faint frown appeared on his face.
He knew that what he was about to say next would be heavy for both of them.
Chen Zhenlong seemed to sense it as well.
"Life continued on like that. I spent most of my childhood and teenage years taking care of Linlin," Xue Hui said with a quiet sigh, lifting his head to meet Chen Zhenlong's gaze directly.
"Over time… Linlin's condition worsened."
At those words, Chen Zhenlong's fist tightened, crushing the armrest beneath his grip.
He had already seen the picture, but even so, hearing it again made his chest tighten with frustration.
"Gradually, her condition stole away what little mobility she had left. By the age of twelve, Linlin had become completely paralyzed. In the years that followed, even her internal organs began failing. The Divine Family expended enormous resources just to prolong her life."
Remembering the true cause of his friend's illness, a faint killing intent flickered from Xue Hui's body before he swiftly suppressed it.
The brief surge was enough to startle Chen Zhenlong, yet the patriarch chose to remain silent, his gaze sharpening as he observed the boy more closely.
'Now isn't the time to speak of the poison,' Xue Hui thought to himself, deliberately ignoring the probing gaze directed at him.
He continued in a steady voice,
"But all those efforts were ultimately in vain… because, in the end, she still died."
Before Chen Zhenlong could fully drown in the grief brought on by hearing the fate his daughter had suffered, and the possibility that the same fate awaited her in this lifetime, Xue Hui dropped another bombshell.
"We all died."
Chen Zhenlong, whose head had lowered after hearing about his daughter, snapped it up and looked at Xue Hui with a shocked expression.
"Nine to ten years from now, Glory City will come under assault by a demon beasts horde. Its size will be so vast that even Lord Ye Mo will be rendered powerless against it.
Glory City will fall, and everyone along with it."
Hearing this revelation, Chen Zhenlong's heart and mind fell into turmoil. He lost his composure and shot up from his chair.
Horror was written all over his face.
"Are you certain that the same thing will happen in our time!?"
He wanted to dismiss Xue Hui's words as nonsense.
Because if they were true, it would mean that everything he had sworn to protect would be reduced to nothing in less than a decade.
But with the truth-detection soul technique confirming Xue Hui's every word as genuine, he had no choice but to believe it.
"Although some things are different between my previous life and this one, most events are still unfolding exactly as before. Certain incidents are repeating themselves almost identically."
This made him suck in a cold breath.
Chen Zhenlong began pacing back and forth, his mind racing as he tried to think of what to do next. He turned toward the door, intending to head straight to the City Lord's Mansion and inform them of this discovery.
"Lord Patriarch, please calm yourself and hear me out first. Before you run off to Lord Ye Mo and reveal everything I've told you, think carefully. It wouldn't do either of us any good if you rushed things."
Sensing Chen Zhenlong's growing panic, Xue Hui quickly rose to his feet and stepped in front of him, raising both arms to block his path.
"Think about this. Even if you believe my words, there's no guarantee that the others will do the same. And even if they do…" His gaze became serious, and his tone turned grave. "What are they going to do to prevent it from happening?"
This made Chen Zhenlong stop.
"If Lord Ye Mo himself, the strongest guardian of Glory City, failed to protect the city and ultimately fell in the end, what makes you think this time will be different just because you know it's coming?"
Xue Hui's voice grew heavier with each word.
"Are you and Lord Ye Mo going to evacuate everyone to some safe location? Or maybe you have a method to force every Demon Spiritualist to achieve a major breakthrough?"
Xue Hui's voice grew firmer as he hammered his point home.
"Please, just listen to me first. I already have a plan for everything. I only need your cooperation, Lord Patriarch, and I promise you that the events of my last life will not repeat themselves here."
"Think about it, Lord Patriarch. If you reveal my situation to the other lords, what do you think is going to happen? For me, there would be two likely outcomes."
Xue Hui raised a finger in front of his serious, childlike face.
"First, if they believe my words, it will only create panic in everyone's hearts. And if that happens, people might take drastic actions that cause more harm than good."
Chen Zhenlong nodded.
Xue Hui's words carried some truth.
Xue Hui raised a second finger.
"Second, people will dismiss my words as complete nonsense, move on with their lives, and the Sacred Family will want me dead regardless."
This made Chen Zhenlong look at him in confusion. That was far from what he had expected Xue Hui to say.
"The Sacred Family? Why would they want you dead?" he asked skeptically.
"Because," Xue Hui said coldly, a faint killing intent emanating from his small body.
"The main reason Glory City fell in the first place is because the Sacred Family betrayed everyone and abandoned their duties as protectors. Before the demon beasts arrived, Shen Hong escorted his entire family to the Saint Ancestral Mountain and escaped through the west gate, leaving it unguarded and allowing the demon beast horde to breach that section of the city."
Chen Zhenlong nearly exploded with rage at that revelation.
His breathing became ragged, and his chest heaved with fury.
However, he still managed to regain control of himself and prevent the release of his soul force.
With Xue Hui's current strength, even a fraction of his overwhelming spiritual energy could cause serious injuries.
Controlling his breathing, he slowly sank back into his chair, looking more exhausted than he had ever been.
"You know what… hand me that liquor. I absolutely need it right now," Chen Zhenlong said as he massaged his temples with both hands.
This was, without a doubt, the weirdest day of his life.
And yet, he knew the boy was far from finished.
End of Chapter 12