The girl walked briskly into the dining hall.
Feng Monian helped Wan Yue set the dishes on the table, and was stunned when he saw Li Xi.
His eyes were glued to Li Xi as if drawn by a magnet, unable to look away.
The girl was wearing a light blue long dress.
Her skirt was embroidered with white dots of red plum blossoms, and a white brocade belt cinched her slender waist.
She tied her long black hair into a Ruyi bun, and inserted only a white jade hairpin with plum blossoms.
Although simple, it appears fresh and elegant.
Her eyes were like clear lake water, bright and deep, as if they could attract one's soul.
Wan Yue also saw Li Xi, and was stunned at first glance.
Xiaoxi and Jin'er look alike, only Xiaoxi is taller and more slender.
"This dress looks really good on you, though it's a little short. Your mother probably didn't expect you to grow so tall."
Wan Yue's tone revealed joy, but also a hint of sadness.
In fact, Xiaoxi is more like her maternal grandmother.
Moreover, the power contained within her body was stronger and more domineering than that of her maternal grandmother.
"Is it alright?" To be honest, she rarely dressed as a woman.
Li Xi turned around, wanting the two of them to see clearly.
Wan Yue glanced at Feng Monian, whose eyes were glued to her, and nodded.
She inadvertently blocked his view and said with a smile, "Hurry up and sit down to eat."
At the dinner table, Wan Yue kept putting food on Xiao Xi's plate, looking every bit like a kind grandfather.
Feng Monian simply sat quietly, his gaze occasionally falling on Xiao Xi's face, his expression somewhat profound.
Xiaoxi felt his gaze, looked up to meet his eyes, and smiled gently.
"Brother Feng, what's wrong? Is there something on my face?"
Feng Monian withdrew his gaze and shook his head slightly.
"No, I'm just not used to your outfit yet." It looks great.
Seeing that there seemed to be some awkwardness between the two, Wan Yue quickly interjected, "Xiao Xi, after lunch, your maternal grandfather will take you somewhere."
Xiao Xi blinked and asked curiously, "Where is Grandpa taking me?"
Wan Yue smiled mysteriously, without answering directly, but said, "You'll know when you get there, I guarantee you'll like it."
The afternoon sun was warm and gentle.
Feng Monian didn't come along, since he wasn't officially recognized yet.
Back in Wan Yue's dormitory, he pressed a switch from somewhere, and a hidden door slowly opened.
“Let’s go in and take a look,” he said, leading the way with a lantern. “This is the secret chamber your father built.”
The interior of the secret room was dark and mysterious, with only the faint light of lanterns illuminating the surroundings.
The air was filled with a damp and ancient atmosphere.
“This was built by your parents to protect something important,” Wan Yue said in a low voice.
“Your mother was a very decisive person. She knew that a crisis would come one day. That’s why she bought this estate.”
Li Xi discovered that the walls of the secret room were covered with various strange symbols and patterns.
Looking around, one sees that the secret room is filled with bookshelves, piled high with various ancient books and scrolls.
There were some strange weapons and tools hanging on the wall, which looked very old.
In the center of the room, there was a large round table with a box on it.
“This is…” she whispered, reading the words on the box:
"Heaven and earth were dark and yellow, the universe was vast and boundless. The sun and moon waxed and waned, the stars and constellations were arrayed in the sky."
Upon opening the box, a slightly yellowed piece of paper lay quietly inside.
Wan Yue stroked the ornaments on the table, pondered for a moment, and then said, "I originally intended to take this secret to my grave, but since you've appeared, I should tell you."
"There is a rumor in the martial arts world that whoever controls the ancient clan controls the world. The people of this ancient clan are unmatched in combat power; one of them can hold off an entire army."
However, the tribespeople are not proud of this; instead, they live in seclusion in the mountains and rarely have contact with the outside world.
They are innocent, kind, and compassionate, but once they unleash their physical energy, they become bloodthirsty monsters, ruthlessly destroying everything that stands in their way.
The ancient tribe's territory is said to be an ancient mountain forest shrouded in mist, where ordinary people cannot find the entrance, let alone enter.
However, thirty-eight years ago, some greedy people in the martial arts world, coveting the mysterious power of the ancient clan, found them.
These people organized themselves and formed a powerful force called the "Seeking Clan Alliance".
Some of the members were notorious thugs in the martial arts world, some were traitors to the imperial court, and others were foreigners from overseas.
They meticulously developed a mysterious elixir specifically for the ancient people, attempting to control them.
In order to achieve their goal, they used women and children as bait and gradually won the trust of the ancient people.
After gaining their trust, the members of the Seeking Clan Alliance secretly gave the ancient clan members pills in an attempt to control them.
To avoid being controlled and committing irreversible acts, the ancient people all committed suicide.
When the tribespeople who had gone out to purchase supplies returned to the village, they found it eerily quiet. Gone were the usual laughter and chatter; only a deathly silence remained.
Among these people who went out was a woman named Hongying, who was your maternal grandmother.
Upon hearing this, a look of shock and confusion flashed in Li Xi's eyes.
When Wan Yue saw her expression, he smiled gently, his eyes filled with a profound look.
"The first time I saw her, I had the same expression as you."
She is the most beautiful and intelligent woman I have ever met.
Your maternal grandmother and the other nine members of the clan who escaped the calamity had no choice but to travel to various places to search for their enemies.
Your maternal grandmother was just a teenage girl back then.
At that time, I was just an ordinary scholar, and by chance, I came together with her.
With the birth of your mother, she gradually got used to the life of being a wife and mother.
I thought we would be like this forever.
Three years later, however, she left a letter saying she had news of her enemy and was going to see him. But she never returned.
I waited with your mother, and as the years went by, your mother grew up.
She is intelligent, quick-witted, and understanding, which makes me very happy.
She often asks me about her mother, and all I can tell her is that her mother is a brave and strong person who has her own pursuits and ideals.
Later, your mother married the fourth young master of the Xuanming Sect, who was also your father. They bought all the land in the vicinity and built this manor.
They know I'm still waiting for news of your grandmother, so they send people out every year to search for her, hoping to find any trace of her.
“Grandfather, my maternal grandmother…” Li Xi asked, “Did she leave any clues?”
Wan Yue shook his head. "No, she was afraid of revealing her whereabouts, so she didn't leave anything behind. These are all clues that your father and mother found later."
Suddenly I remembered something.
Wan Yue continued, "Not long after you were born, your father built this secret room and locked all the clues about the ancient clan here."
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