Chapter 5: Father and Son

Ye Tian Yun came out of his room and headed towards the Imperial Palace.

At a very young age, he had started living in a different mansion outside the Imperial Palace. Though the Imperial Palace was very decorated and extravagant, it never gave him a feeling of being at home.

If his dates were correct, he should be fourteen years and five months old today. It's been ages since he last saw his parents. His mother, Empress Ye, was a well-known cultivator of the Great Wang Clan, another strong clan from the Ye Empire alongside the Ling and Ye clans. She was world-renowned for her beauty and cultivation talent. In her younger days, she was ranked 5th on the Middle Heavens Ranking Stele, just behind the Heavenly Kings. However, her cultivation had always been very mysterious because she never battled against any of the Heavenly Kings; her true extent of power was unknown to the public. Although it was rumored that she once battled Heavenly King Ling Xiao and beat him with no problem, though neither she nor Heavenly King Ling Xiao corrected or verified this rumor.

Even though it was just a rumor, it still instilled her position on the Ranking Stele.

And, Ye Tian Yun's father was Ye Tian Xuan, strongest of all four Heavenly King, possessor of the Emblem Of Chaos, the number one on the Middle Heavens Ranking Stele, and the closest person ever to reach the point of becoming the Heavenly Emperor in the last ten generations.

When Ye Tian Xuan was the Crown Prince, he shot to fame when he defeated a Saint Realm powerhouse as soon as he broke through Half Saint Realm.

However, his cold and aloof demeanor also made him look arrogant. Still, over the corpses of ten of thousands of cultivators, at the mere age of 26, he rose to become the youngest Heavenly King ever to exist.

Emblem Of Chaos, the third emblem introduced so far, made him invincible, boosting his cultivation talent to a whole new level, effortlessly making him the Heavenly King. However, the drawback was, he slowly lost his emotions, became merciless and cold-blooded.

While thinking of the achievements of his parents, Ye Tian Yun suddenly came to a halt, the question he was dreading to even think about kept popping in his mind, 'Why did his father not save him at the battle on the Hundred Realm Refinement Stage against the God's Legion?' and 'Where were his parents when their son was forced to concede his life with no way of survival?'

He stood there in the hallway as the guards passed by, greeting and bowing towards him as they went to do their work, though all of this was ignored by him. He was only focused on the weird questions popping up in his head. What he really was afraid of was 'what if his father thought of him as a threat since he was the most nominal cultivator to get the Throne?' or 'What if they didn't really care about him?'

Finally, he took a deep breath and resolved his will as he stepped forward, towards the Emperor's courtyard; this was the place where his father's true self was mostly at, if not in the Upper Heavens. The courtyard was simple and serene, with no special decoration; however, it had a majestic aura around it, making anyone around bow down to its glory.

Ye Tian Yun took another deep breath before stepping inside. Everything around still looked exactly the same he had seen every single time whenever he came here. He went to the central hall, the place where he would most likely meet his father.

"You've come?"

A majestic voice echoed all through the courtyard. It was his father, Ye Tian Xuan.

"Yes, Imperial Father"

"Speak, what do you want? I will soon be returning to my closed door cultivation, so be quick!"

"Father, I wish to head to the Lower Realm."

"Huh? Lower Realm? Why would you even bother about such a godforsaken place?"

"I wish to join a sect."

"A sect? Which sect is so special that you yourself want to be a part of? You can join a better sect anytime here, like the Immortal Pavilion. It is the best place to cultivate in the whole Middle Heavens. And you want to waste such a chance by joining a puny sect? Did you suffer from Qi Deviation last night?"

"No, Imperial Father, I am serious about this; I really wish to head outside and cultivate in the mortal environment."

"Well, I have no problem with that. Fate has its own plans for you, and I don't wish to intervene. I only have one thing to say, don't come crying to me if you face any setbacks; life isn't always a walk in the park."

"Yes, Imperial Father. I will keep this in my mind." Ye Tian Yun bowed and headed back.

He had a complicated expression on his face while returning, this was the longest conversation he had had in such a long time, and he didn't even get the chance to see his father's face.

Looking at his son's disappearing back, Emperor Ye felt a bit empty from inside. Even though he wanted to talk more to his son, he didn't know how to. Heavens have granted him the immense talent, but he didn't even know how to hold on to a conversation. He sighed and called, "Eunuch Li, have someone follow the Crown Prince secretly and protect him."

There was no movement, but only a reply echoed, "As you command your majesty."

And then, the courtyard returned to its serenity.

Ye Tian Yun was feeling depressed. It wasn't even an hour since he had his rebirth, and he was already depressed about his life. Much less seeing his father's face, he didn't even hear his mother's voice.

When he was about to enter his mansion, he heard the system's prompt.

[Two Half Saints are following host]