CHAPTER 223: FAMILY REUNION 2

Chapter 223: Family Reunion 2

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Silence fell over the place as the revelation echoed through the surroundings and through the mind of the young elf, who stared at the figure before her with wide eyes.

Shock and disbelief flickered in her gaze before she finally said something, her voice slightly trembling,

"...Is this a Cat Wars reference?"

Zhu Rong: "..."

The sweet, tense atmosphere that had formed in preparation for the revelation he had finally decided to share was cut cleanly in half by a single comment.

Zhu Rong’s expression was empty as he looked toward his daughter.

"No, it’s not a Cat Wars reference," he said, giving her a flick on the forehead that immediately made her scrunch her face while rubbing the spot.

"Hey, that hurts," she complained, though the wounded look was mostly a cover for the turmoil stirred up by his revelation.

It was clear she was trying to hide the shock of the revelation, though she failed miserably as tears slipped out and she hugged Zhu Rong tightly.

She had always felt a certain closeness to him and assumed it was normal.

She had begun to cherish the moments she spent with him more and more, his gestures, his praise, and everything else made her want to learn from him with increasing effort and dedication.

She thought it was normal since she was his disciple, but lately she had noticed that the affection she felt toward him had grown stronger, and for some reason she sensed that there was something more in that affection, something that wasn’t simply the bond a master would have with his disciple.

She wasn’t sure what it was, but one thing was certain, she didn’t mind it at all.

So when she heard this revelation, her mind, though unprepared, still clung to the small hope that all of this wasn’t some cruel joke.

And now that he had confirmed it, she didn’t hold back anymore and let herself fall fully into his embrace, holding him tight as if all of this wasn’t a dream or something else.

She had often asked herself who her parents were, and no matter how hard she tried to remember, her earliest memory was of traveling with an older elf who resembled Lin Xian quite a bit.

For a moment she wondered if that woman had been her mother, but that idea was crushed by Lin Xian, who told her she was simply her mother’s best friend.

And when she tried asking more, she was told she would learn everything in due time.

She hated that feeling of being kept in the dark, especially regarding her past and her origins, but that feeling hadn’t been so frustrating lately, and the reason for that was Zhu Rong.

And now she also understood why. Was he truly her father?

There were a lot of things that didn’t add up, but deep down she felt he wasn’t lying to her, and for her, that was more than enough of a confirmation.

Zhu Rong didn’t say anything as he let her pour everything out, returning her embrace while gently rubbing the back of her head as if to soothe her.

Lin Xian, who had fled a moment earlier, saw the scene from afar as distant memories of a certain little troublemaker resurfaced in her mind, memories that had once seemed frustrating, but that were now among her most precious.

She was standing on the balcony of the residence, and next to her was another figure, Liang Yuexin, who watched the scene with a certain glow in her eyes.

The sight of the small elf girl gave her a strange sensation of closeness, as if her own blood reacted to her presence, sensing something long lost.

Following that sensation, without even realizing it, she had moved from the balcony to the small garden in the blink of an eye.

Her sudden appearance was noticed by Zhu Rong, who sensed her presence as well as her emotional state and immediately understood what was happening.

But he wasn’t the only one who noticed her.

Ye Ning, still wrapped in the embrace, seemed to tremble the moment the new presence appeared. For some reason, her blood vibrated and reacted to the presence that had just emerged.

A strong sensation burst in her chest, similar to the one she felt toward Zhu Rong: a feeling of familiarity and closeness.

But it was strange. How could someone else give her a similar feeling?

Without realizing it, the aura around her began to shift, not the normal aura she usually emitted, but a more chaotic and feral one.

Even her emerald green eyes began to shine, a faint violet gleam appearing within them, and along with it, her irises began to narrow and stretch vertically.

Yet none of this was noticed by her, as she stared in confusion at the new presence and saw the female figure standing not far from them.

She was a tall woman with a mature appearance, her long white-gray hair soft and silky as it fell over her shoulders and down her back. She wore a pure white robe adorned with delicate golden patterns, and her face bore slender, refined, and perfectly balanced features that elevated her beauty beyond compare.

She was, without a doubt, the most beautiful woman she had ever seen, but that wasn’t what drew her attention.

What seemed to pull her gaze was the woman’s chaotic yet restrained beast like aura, and a pair of shining violet eyes, both containing vertical pupils that looked capable of devouring anything.

She wasn’t sure why, but those eyes stirred a strong sense of familiarity within her, something that made her curious and deeply confused.

Who was this person, and why did she feel such a sense of closeness from her?

She didn’t know, but that sensation grew stronger and stronger within her until, with a slightly trembling and uncertain voice, she uttered a word she never thought she would say, but that her mind screamed out on its own,

"Mom?"

A single word,one she wasn’t used to, nor accustomed to using, but in that moment, it felt like the most natural thing to say.

It surprised her, but it seemed to trigger something even stronger in the woman before her, whose body trembled at that word as her eyes shone with increasing intensity.