*

On this day, Nan Qing had Qin Mobei change into a set of clothes that looked less cold and austere, and then took everyone back to the Su family's old residence.

It all started yesterday when her mother called to say that her father and brother had returned and asked her to come home for dinner.

The Su family's old house is located in a mountain in the suburbs. It is an ancient house with a history of hundreds of years. So when Nanqing's car drove into the winding mountain road, it was already noon.

"Navigation ended."

As the electronic female voice ended, Nan Qing stopped the car and turned to look at Qin Mobei in the passenger seat.

"arrive."

Qin Mobei looked up at the three-tiered brick courtyard in front of him. The gate and walls were decorated with patterns that ordinary people could not understand.

Today he was wearing a light beige silk short-sleeved shirt with the collar slightly open, looking casual yet elegant. Nanqing reached out and poked his cold arm.

"I've already told you before, the family I belong to in this life is a family of exorcists. There are many things in the old house that are harmful to you, so don't touch them randomly. After we finish eating and talk to Mom and Dad about our situation, we'll go back."

"Yes, don't worry, these things won't bother me."

As soon as the two got out of the car, a hunched old man walked out of the gate. As soon as he saw the two of them, his cloudy eyes stared straight at Qin Mobei.

Nan Qing stepped slightly to the side, blocking Qin Mobei, and greeted him with a smile: "Uncle Fu."

Uncle Fu then shifted his gaze to Nan Qing's face, a smile appearing on his aged face as he bowed slightly: "Miss is back. Master and Madam have been waiting for you for a long time."

Then, she turned her gaze to Qin Mobei behind her: "With such a distinguished guest, the old house is about to become lively."

In front of the main hall, a middle-aged couple was already waiting. The man was wearing a plain-colored cardigan with Chinese knot buttons, and the woman was wearing a dark red cheongsam with an antique-style wooden hairpin in her hair.

"Dad, Mom."

Upon seeing the people, Nan Qing pulled Qin Mobei forward quickly.

The moment Su's mother saw Nan Qing, she immediately smiled, took a few steps forward, patted Nan Qing's head, and said gently:

"You silly child, you haven't been home for so long, you must have been having a blast out there."

But her smile froze for half a second when she saw Nan Qing and Qin Mobei's hands clasped together. Her delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly, and she touched the trembling hairpin in her hair.

"Qingqing, who is this...?"

Su's father, who was standing still, had already looked past his daughter and landed directly on Qin Mobei, with his right hand behind his back.

Nan Qing glanced at Su's mother, whose expression instantly turned wary, then at Su's father, who was clearly making hand seals. Without any intention of hiding anything, she raised her clasped hand with Qin Mobei's, shook it, and smiled:

"Dad, Mom, this is my boyfriend, Qin Mobei."

"Nonsense!" Father Su shouted, drawing a peach wood sword from his sleeve. The runes engraved on the sword lit up one by one with his movements, pointing directly at the ghost king Qin Mobei, who was surrounded by yin energy behind Nan Qing.

"You dare to bewitch even a descendant of my Su family? Leave at once!"

Upon hearing the word "allure" from Su's father, Nan Qing inappropriately raised her hand to her forehead. But before she could explain anything, Su's mother grabbed her wrist and tried to pull her to her side.

However, Qin Mobei, who was holding Nan Qing's hand tightly, did not back down at all. His grip remained firm, and his dark eyes, as cold as a deep pool, were fixed on the wrist that Su's mother was holding tightly.

"Qingqing, do you know what he is?!" Su's mother's voice trembled, and her fingertips unconsciously increased the pressure.

Nan Qing looked up and met her mother's worried eyes, but a smile played on her lips as she spoke lightly and frankly:

"Yes, I know, they were people from a thousand years ago."

Then, looking at Su's father, who seemed ready to charge at Qin Mobei and fight him for three hundred rounds at any moment, he sighed helplessly:

"Dad, put the sword down first."

"Qin Mobei and I... are bound by a thousand-year-old predestined relationship. If you don't believe me, you can ask Daoist Qingyang to come and take a look."

"Besides, he's a good ghost~~"

Nanqing's words did not move Su's parents. Her special constitution made her extremely attractive to these evil spirits. It must be that this ghost used some method to bewitch their daughter's mind!

Just as the atmosphere was tense, an old but deep voice came from the main hall.

"Put the sword down."

The voice was neither hurried nor slow, yet it carried an undeniable authority.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound and saw an old man dressed in a dark brown Chinese-style long gown walking slowly out of the hall, leaning on a sandalwood cane. He was thin but upright like a pine tree, his hair neatly tied behind his head. Although his eyes were cloudy, they were still as sharp as a hawk's, as if they could see into people's hearts.

—Old Master Su, the previous head of the Su family, was also a renowned exorcist in the Xuanmen (Taoist sect).

Standing beside him was Uncle Fu, who had just welcomed Nan Qing and Qin Mobei into the house.

Father Su's expression froze, and he slightly lowered the peach wood sword in his hand, but he was still unwilling to give up:

"Father, who is this boy...?"

The old man snorted coldly and slammed his cane heavily on the ground, making a dull thud.

"I'm not deaf or blind yet!"

As soon as he finished speaking, his gaze sharpened and he looked directly at Qin Mobei, who calmly returned his gaze without flinching.

The air seemed to stand still at that moment.

After a long pause, the old man suddenly smiled, his wrinkles smoothing out, a profound meaning flashing in his eyes:

"The thousand-year-old corpse has awakened, its soul has returned to its old body, and the dragon aura around it has not dissipated in the slightest."

He turned to look at Nan Qing and said meaningfully, "You have good taste, girl."

Nan Qing's eyes immediately crinkled into a smile, and two dimples appeared at the corners of her lips: "Grandpa truly has discerning eyes. The person I've chosen must be quite good~~"

Seeing that the old man had agreed, Su's father immediately became anxious: "Father! He is, after all, a ghost, how can he..."

"Shut up." The old man waved his hand impatiently. "Why are you so stubborn? The living are not necessarily clean, and the dead are not necessarily vicious. This boy and the girl have a karmic connection that you can't sever."

As he spoke, he glanced again at Qin Mobei, who stood with his hands behind his back, his expression indifferent yet exuding an imposing aura. He narrowed his eyes, tapped his cane lightly on the ground, and said with a half-smile:

"The corpse remains incorrupt for a thousand years, and the soul is immortal. This is the will of Heaven, how can it be compared to ordinary evil spirits?"

He paused, his gaze deep: "Moreover, the dragon's aura has not dissipated after death, so he must have been a wise ruler who unified the country in life. Now that he has awakened, there is a reason for it."

Whether it was Su's father pointing his sword at him just now, or Su's old master praising him now, Qin Mobei's expression remained unchanged. But at this moment, he raised his eyes, looked past Su's old master, and pierced straight into the shadows deep in the main hall.

There, a tall, slender figure stood silently.

—Su Lin.

He is the most outstanding member of the younger generation of the Su family, the next heir to the family head, and Nan Qing's older brother.

He stood quietly in the shadows of the hall, watching the scene outside with neither joy nor sorrow. His eyes, which should have been gentle and warm, were now filled with a dark and cold light.

Their eyes met in mid-air.

Qin Mobei's eyes were deep and dark, with the majesty of an emperor scrutinizing his subjects.

Su Lin did not dodge or avoid the gaze, meeting it directly. His eyes showed no emotion, and his demeanor was as gentle as a breeze and the bright moon.

But Qin Mobei could still see the hostility in that person's indifferent eyes.

Furthermore, the way he looked at Nan Qing just now was no different from how I looked at Qing Qing.

Su Lin, standing in the hall, showed no emotion whatsoever, concealing the darkness in his eyes. At the same time, his hands, hanging at his sides, clenched into fists without him noticing.

Why did he feel something strange when he saw Qingqing just now?

Although he had never been in a relationship, he wasn't completely ignorant of love, and he knew the reason for that palpitation.

But--

That was his younger sister, his own sister whom he had watched grow up since she was a child...