“I should warn you that some of the elders of our Dawn and Dusk Sect wanted to punish you for your actions.” Branch Head Xavier said.

  I blinked at Branch Head Xavier in surprise. His words caught me off guard. Some of the elders of the Dawn and Dusk Sect wanted to punish me. What? Why?

  “How dare they?” Ellen asked, offended.

  She looked ready to jump out of her seat and confront the elders herself. I reached over and grabbed her hand in order to sooth her anger. It worked, though Ellen continued to glare at Branch Head Xavier, as if blaming him.

  “Why would the elders of our sect want to punish me?” I asked, turning back towards Branch Head Xavier.

  He sighed.

  “They argued that you started this whole mess by killing Cultivator Blood Petal.” He said. “If you hadn’t, none of this would have happened.”

  “What?” I asked. “I killed her as part of a mission for our sect!”

  Branch Head Xavier nodded.

  “Yes,” he said, “The elders who supported you argued as such. The ones who wanted you punished responded by saying that you could have let Cultivator Blood Petal live. Your mission was to investigate the disappearances of the rogue cultivators and deal with the cause. Driving off Cultivator Blood Petal would have sufficed.”

  I stared at him in disbelief.

  “But she killed hundreds of innocent people! I couldn’t just let her go!”

  Branch Head Xavier gave me an odd look.

  “Most demonic cultivators wouldn’t care about such a thing.” He said. “At least not enough to risk angering the Ancient Blood Sect.”

  His words washed over me like cold water. Right. I forgot that the Dawn and Dusk Sect was equal parts righteous and demonic, which was why it was considered unorthodox. For the demonic cultivators in our sect, and even some of the righteous ones, the deaths of a few hundred people meant nothing. I was the odd one here for caring.

  “Why didn’t any of them say anything earlier?” I asked, frowning. “We reported what happened weeks ago. Why are they making an issue of it now?”

  Branch Head Xavier gave me a wry smile.

  “You got caught.” He said. “If the Ancient Blood Sect hadn’t found out that you and your companions were the ones who killed Cultivator Blood Petal, the elders wouldn’t have raised a fuss.”

  Ah, I understood the issue now. The problem wasn’t the fact that I killed Cultivator Blood Petal. The problem was that I lost face for our sect.

  “Regardless, the elders decided not to punish you in the end.” Branch Head Xavier continued. “However, the elders who called for your punishment are still unhappy with you. They may try to make your life more difficult when you return to the Dawn and Dusk Sect.”

  I nodded.

  “Thank you for the warning, Branch Head Xavier.” I said. “I will remember this.”

  The man smiled at me.

  “Oh, I should be the one thanking you,” he said. “Despite all the trouble we endured, we ended up benefiting a lot from this affair. As part of the agreement between our sects, the Ancient Blood Sect’s branch office here in East Mesa City had to pay us compensation.” His smile widened. “You should’ve seen the look on Cultivator Kasandra’s face when she handed it over. That alone made all this worth it.”

  I smiled in return.

  “Well damn.” I said. “I’m sorry I missed it.”

  Ellen narrowed her eyes at Branch Head Xavier.

  “Since my husband played a key role in this affair,” she said, “It’s only fair that he receives some benefits for it, don’t you agree?”

  I looked at her in shock.

  “Ellen!”

  Branch Head Xavier held up a hand and silenced me.

  “Junior Sister Water Fang is correct, Junior Brother Flamewind.” He said. “You deserve a reward for your contributions to the sect.”

  I stared at him in disbelief. What contributions? My actions brought nothing but trouble to the Dawn and Dusk Sect. I opened my mouth to say so, but I shut it after Ellen gave me a warning look.

  “As part of the compensation we received,” Branch Head Xavier said, “The Ancient Blood Sect handed over all of the Violet Sand that they gathered from the Violet Desert hidden realm this year. This means that you are the disciple who brought in the most Violet Sand, Junior Brother Flamewind, and will be rewarded as such.”

  I frowned.

  “I don’t know if I deserve it.” I said, which earned me a glare from Ellen.

  “Why not?” He asked. “When the Ancient Blood Sect attacked us, you rallied the disciples while I was busy fending off the Golden Core cultivators. Defending your fellow disciples and leading them against an enemy sect counts as a significant contribution.”

  “But the only reason why the Ancient Blood Sect attacked us is because of me!” I protested.

  Branch Head Xavier snorted.

  “So what?” He said. “Regardless of the reason, they attacked us and you defended against them.” He smiled at me. “Not only that, but you defeated a Golden Core cultivator and helped defeat a second one. You can’t deny that.”

  I wanted to protest, but I refrained in the end. Branch Head Xavier was right. Regardless of the circumstances, my actions were meritorious and benefited the sect. I just felt conflicted because my actions also caused problems for the sect in the first place.

  “While I would like to reward you for your actions,” Branch Head Xavier said, “Vice Hall Master Sidra said that she would take care of it.” He grinned. “However, I can still reward you for bringing in the most Violet Sand.”

  I perked up at that. While I still felt conflicted about the whole affair, I had to admit that a reward from Big Sis Sidra sounded tempting. The reward from Branch Head Xavier was less tempting, but not by much. He was a disciple of Myriad Treasures Pavilion. A reward from him was bound to be good.

  “What kind of reward?” I asked, making no attempt to hide my greed.

  Branch Head Xavier laughed at that.

  “First of all,” he said. “You will receive one thousand contribution points.”

  That was a significant reward. A thousand contribution points was enough to buy a technique or a mystic art from the scripture pavilion located at Mt. Dawn and Dusk. Usually, a disciple would need to complete several missions to earn that many contribution points.

  “That’s twice as much as the usual reward.” Ellen stated.

  Branch Head Xavier nodded towards me.

  “It’s only fair, since we earned twice as much Violet Sand this year thanks to Brother Flamewind.” He said to her, before turning towards me again. “The second part of your rewards is a high-grade magic treasure of your choice. The usual reward is a mid-grade magic treasure, but I say you deserve something better. You just have to tell me what kind of magic treasure you want.”

  I thought about it for a moment, before I took my broken bronze buckler out of my storage ring and showed it to Branch Head Xavier.

  “A shield magic treasure.” I said. “As you can see, I broke mine while in the Violet Desert hidden realm and I need a replacement.”

  Branch Head Xavier looked at my broken bronze buckler and furrowed his brow.

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  “What happened here?” He asked.

  “I fought disciples from the Thousand Blade Sect.” I answered. “Two of whom were in mid Foundation Establishment.”

  Branch Head Xavier looked at me for a moment, before he shook his head.

  “Very well.” He said. “I’ll have someone deliver a shield magic treasure to you before the end of the day.”

  I nodded my head in thanks.

  “Now for the final part of your reward.” Branch Head Xavier said.

  I raised an eyebrow at him. There was more?

  “Two thousand spirit stones.” Branch Head Xavier said.

  I stared at him in shock. Two thousand spirit stones? Added together with the spirit stones already in my possession, and I had close to four thousand spirit stones in total. For a Foundation Establishment cultivator such as myself, that was a small fortune. The thought of counting all those spirit stones filled me with an unholy glee.

  “I know it’s not much compared to what you already earned,” Branch Head Xavier said, sounding regretful. “However, that is all I’m authorized to give you.”

  I stared at him in confusion.

  “What are you talking about?” I asked. “Two thousand spirit stones is plenty.”

  In the Dawn and Dusk Sect, one could either spend contribution points or spirit stones to buy techniques, resources, magic treasures, and so on. However, buying things with spirit stones cost twice as much as buying them with contribution points. Two thousand spirit stones was enough to buy a mystic art, which I needed. My lack of suitable mystic arts had hindered me this entire journey and I needed to rectify that.

  “Didn’t you gain a lot from the loot you earned?” Branch Head Xavier asked, a baffled expression on his face. “You killed a Golden Core cultivator after all.”

  My eyes widened and my jaw dropped. He was right. Foundation Establishment cultivators often had more resources compared to their Qi Condensation juniors, and it was the same with Golden Core cultivators and Foundation Establishment ones. I had completely forgotten about my share of the loot from the battle of the Ancient Blood Sect.

  Wait a minute. I remembered that Ellen and Elliot helped with collecting said loot. There was no way that they would forget about my share. I looked over at Ellen, who wore an awkward expression on her face.

  “Ellen.” I said, narrowing my eyes at her.

  Branch Head Xavier looked between the two of us, understanding dawning his face.

  “We didn’t want to hide it from you,” she said, sounding guilty, “We just feared that a severe shock might aggravate your internal injury further.” She paused. “Among other reasons.”

  I sighed.

  “How much loot did I earn?” I asked.

  Ellen looked conflicted for a moment, before she pulled a storage ring out of her own storage ring.

  “It would be faster to show you rather than explain,” she said.

  I took the storage ring and peered inside. My thoughts ground to a halt when I saw what it contained. Just a few moments ago, I thought that four thousand spirit stones was a lot. However, my thinking had been too naive. There were tens of thousands of spirit stones inside this storage ring. It was an amount that I wouldn’t be able to put together after spending years, maybe even decades, completing missions.

  In addition to low-grade spirit stones there were also spirit stones with purer and more potent energy. I assumed these were mid-grade spirit stones, which were a hundred times more valuable than their low-grade counterparts.

  However, the storage ring contained more than just spirit stones. After all, cultivators carried all sorts of items on them, and the Golden Core cultivator that I killed was no exception. Pills, spirit herbs, precious materials, magic treasures, etc. The storage ring held all these things.

  The talismans, in particular, filled me with excitement. There were only a few of them, but they were meant for Golden Core cultivators. For a Foundation Establishment cultivator like me, each one was a potentially lifesaving trump card, similar to my treasure talisman.

  I stopped peering into the storage ring and stared off into space, still in shock. My family, and Flame Fiend Hall as a whole, believed that a cultivator should earn their resources. As such, I didn’t receive a stipend or an allowance, even though I was a core disciple of Flame Fiend Hall. Well, I did but not from them. Instead, I received one from Second Master since I was an honorary disciple of Celestial Warrior Hall. Even so, it wasn’t that much.

  In short, I was rather poor compared to my peers of the same status. If it hadn’t been for recent events, I wouldn’t have had much in the way of spirit stones or other resources. Having a fortune fall into my lap like this felt unreal, as if I were in a dream. I almost didn’t want to believe it. If it turned out to be a dream, I think I would cry.

  “Ellen,” I said, turning towards her, “I’m not dreaming, am I?”

  “No, darling,” she said, a fond smile on your face, “You’re not dreaming.”

  I stared at her for several long moments, before I exploded with anger.

  “Why did you hide this from me?” I said, raising my voice.

  I didn’t shout, since Ellen was still my wife and I didn’t want to be that kind of husband, but it was a near thing.

  “Well,” Branch Head Xavier said, “It seems like the two of you need to discuss some matters and I have to return to my duties. I’ll take leave now.”

  With that, he fled from the room, leaving Ellen and I alone.

  After Branch Head Xavier left, I glared at Ellen. I loved and trusted her, yet I couldn’t help but feel hurt and betrayed that she would hide something like this from me. For a moment, I wondered if she wanted to take some, or even all, of it for herself. However, I shook away those thoughts. If she had wanted to take this fortune for herself, she wouldn’t have shown it to me. Besides, we were husband and wife now. I would have just given it to her if she asked. That was why it hurt so much. Did she think I would be greedy and keep it all to myself?

  “Darian,” Ellen said, calling me by my name now that we were alone, “I know you’re upset, but please listen before you make any judgments.”

  “Who else?” I asked. “Who else knew about this?”

  Ellen paused for a moment.

  “Just our family.” She said. “Sister Willow and Elliot.”

  “All of you kept this from me?” I asked in disbelief.

  Three of the people I cared for and loved the most conspired against me. How could I feel anything but betrayed by this?

  “Yes.” Ellen said, keeping her expression and her voice calm. “As I said earlier, we feared that the shock might aggravate your internal injury.”

  I clenched my jaw.

  “I’m not that fragile.” I said.

  Her words just sounded like an excuse.

  “We know,” Ellen said, “But we didn’t want to take that risk.”

  “Well, as you can see, my internal injury is just fine.”

  My mental state, on the other hand, was another matter.

  “Yes,” Ellen said, “However, that wasn’t the only reason.” She gestured to me. “Darian, now that you have a fortune in your hands, what do you want to do with it?”

  I opened my mouth to answer her, before closing it shut. That was a good question. What did I want to do with this fortune? Spend it, of course! Excitement filled me as I thought about all the things I could buy with this many spirit stones.

  “That is the other reason why we kept it from you.” Ellen said. “You’re thinking about how you can spend all those spirit stones, aren’t you?”

  Did she just read my mind? Or was I that easy to read?

  “Yes,” I said in a defensive tone. “What’s wrong with that?”

  Ellen gave me a fond smile.

  “Nothing,” she said. “However, as a cultivator you need to think in the long term. Yes, you can gain immediate benefits if you spent all those spirit stones right now, but what about your future?” She gestured to herself. “What about our future?”

  I blinked at her. Huh. I hadn’t thought of it like that. To support my cultivation, I needed resources. That was true now, and it wouldn’t change in the future. More than that, Ellen was right. Now that we were married, I had to consider more than just myself.

  “Don’t misunderstand,” Ellen said, “I’m not talking about myself. You earned those resources. They’re yours, not mine.”

  I snorted.

  “Of course they’re yours.” I said. “We are husband and wife, aren’t we? What’s mine is yours. The same goes for Willow.”

  My anger towards Ellen and the others didn’t diminish my love for them.

  “Aw,” Ellen said, looking at me as if her heart was melting, “What did I do to deserve someone like you?”

  “Show kindness to a lonely and miserable child.” I said in a quiet voice.

  Ellen’s expression grew somber. She reached over and grasped my hand.

  “You’re not alone anymore, Darian.” She said. “Remember that. You have a family now.”

  I gripped her hand and nodded.

  “To return to the topic at hand.” Ellen continued. “When I said our future, I meant any children we may or may not have.”

  I froze and my thoughts ground to a halt when she mentioned children. I wanted children, of course. However, it was always a vague desire of mine, something I would worry about in the future. I never considered having any children at my current age. After all, I was only twenty one years old! By mortal standards, that was plenty old enough to have children. By cultivator standards, I was practically a child myself; or at least an adolescent.

  Wait, if Ellen brought this up, did that mean…? I glanced at her abdomen. Ellen caught my look and gave me a wry smile.

  “No, Darian,” she said, “I’m not pregnant. Neither is Sister Willow. Of course, that’s only because we’ve taken precautions. Otherwise, we would’ve already become pregnant, given how often you sleep with the both of us.”

  Oh. Her words filled me with both relief and disappointment. The former because I feared that I wasn’t ready to be a father just yet. The latter because… Well, the idea of siring children with Ellen and Willow filled me with joy and anticipation. I imagined what they would look like while pregnant, their abdomens swelling with burgeoning life, and my demonic nature stirred. The desire to make that image a reality burned within me.

  “I see that someone likes that idea.” Ellen said with a chuckle.

  She gave my lap a pointed look. I followed her gaze and realized that my Little Darian was proud and upright. My face flushed with embarrassment.

  “Um, I’m sorry,” I said, “It’s just…”

  I trailed off, unsure of how to continue.

  “Don’t apologize.” Ellen said, leaning forward. She had a predatory gleam in her eyes. “I find it flattering that the idea of having children together excites you this much.” She sighed. “However, I believe we should wait until we work out some kind of plan.”

  That made sense. Still, I felt more than a little frustrated. After not being able to spend the night with Ellen or Willow, I felt… Pent up.

  “What did you have in mind?” I asked in an attempt to distract myself.

  “In the future, our family will continue to grow.” Ellen said. “Not only will we have children, but you also intend to take in more wives. Correct?”

  I nodded.

  “In that case, why not found a clan?”

  I have a up and running, if you want to say hi.

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  This chapter was edited by Radriel7