NOVEL NEXT Chapter 255: 255- Updated*
Fang Yuan's smiled slowly as he offered a response, "Elder Joshua, you should not blame it on the name. A name is named because we need something to call each other by."
Fang Joshua shook his head, "But Clan Head, we have names with meanings for a reason. They carry weight and perhaps they may even influence fate."
Fang Yuan looked at him, a glint of amusement in his eyes. "Well... what about your name then? Would you like to offer an explanation?"
"Uh... I suppose there can be exceptions.. ahem.." The elder stammered, his cheeks flushing slightly.
Fang Yuan's grin widened. "I suppose."
"Hey.. I have no say in what my parents named me, or the random stranger who told my grandparents to name me," Fang Joshua gave his flustered rebuttal, defending his own inexplicably foreign name in this world.
Fang Yuan simply laughed. "That aside, let me first refill the spirit pond."
He focused inwardly and before his very eyes, a golden screen flashed with the numbers clear only to him: -10,000 Faith Points.
The air shimmered for a second and a moment later, the massive spirit pond groaned as spiritual water surged from its depths, filling it to the very brim in an instant.
Fang Joshua stared with his eyes wide with awe, "Clan Head, When can you teach me this trade? Please, let me know what I need to do to learn such a miracle."
Fang Yuan laughed again. "I suppose it's all down to luck, Elder. Come, let's go and see Niyun. I want to see what really is the problem this time."
"Oh! Okay, of course, Clan Head," Joshua said, scrambling to comply.
"Let me just open the valve to Cave #36 again."
Elder Joshua turned the valve and an expected rush of spiritual energy flowed towards Cultivation Cave #36.
It lasted for less than a single, second but the effects was lasting.
The water level in the massive spirit pond, just filled to the brim, visibly dropped.
About a day's worth of spiritual qi vanished in an instant.
Fang Yuan and Fang Joshua stood in stunned silence, their eyes locked on the markedly lower water level.
No words were exchanged. With a silent, mutual agreement, they turned and flew quickly toward Cave #36.
When they arrived at the cave's entrance , they found Fang Niyun already seated in the lotus position, bathed in the faint, residual glow.
Fang Yuan looked at the boy, then at the flabbergasted elder beside him.
A wry smirk touched his lips. "See, Elder Joshua? His name isn't what's stopping him after all. He was just a bit unlucky after all."
Fang Joshua offered no rebuttal as he simply stared at the peacefully cultivating boy and nod his head slowly in agreement.
Fang Yuan's smirk remained, but the amusement in his eyes solidified.
Jokes aside, what was happening around Fang Niyun was a significant anomaly that needed to be understood.
Consuming such a vast quantity of qi was not just unusual, it was unprecedented and, from a resource management perspective, it may have been a catastrophe.
Fang Yuan's divine sense swept towards the boy.
It carefully mapped the flow of energy, tracing the torrent of spiritual qi that had just vanished.
He focused on Fang Niyun, seeking the core of this bizarre phenomenon.
And then, out of the blue, his divine sense was instantly severed.
It didn't hit a barrier or get repelled, it was devoured the instant his divine sense entered the boy's dantian.
Fang Yuan physically flinched on losing his connection, a rare flicker of genuine shock crossing his features before he could control them back into normal.
Fang Joshua, watching from the side, saw the subtle recoil and the Clan Head's momentarily widened eyes.
"Clan Head? What happened?" he asked, his voice laced with confusion and concern.
Fang Yuan took a slow, deliberate breath, mastering his expression. He waved a dismissive hand.
"Ah, it's nothing... just a minor feedback from the dense qi."
He turned to look at Fang Niyun, "Hmm... this kid really is an abnormality, just as you say. Keep a close eye on him. See to it that you try to keep him as accommodated as you possibly can. Deny him nothing he needs for his cultivation."
The elder blinked, surprised by the sudden, firm directive after the Clan Head's initial skepticism. "Ah, okay... of course. I'll make sure of that."
He then studied Fang Yuan's contemplative expression and a knowing smile touched his lips. "You already have a liking for the boy already, have you?"
Fang Yuan didn't look away from Niyun, his voice a low murmur. "I suppose so. Anomalies are... interesting."
He then gave a firm nod, his decision made. "I need to go."
He began to turn away but paused. "And send me his files."
"Files?" Joshua asked, the term unfamiliar.
"Information," Fang Yuan corrected without missing a beat, his tone implying the request should be obvious. "His background, his family, when this started. Everything. I'll be expecting a detailed report."
Without waiting for another response, his figure blurred and he shot into the sky, leaving Elder Joshua alone in the cultivation caves.
Fang Yuan travelled slowly in the sky before he slipped through his office window, and then arriving at the familiar surroundings a stark contrast to the baffling anomaly he'd just witnessed.
Settling into his chair, he willed the familiar golden screen of the system interface into existence.
With a focused tap, he navigated to the [Family Members] tab.
The list of names scrolled past until he found the one he sought. He selected it, and the information materialized before him:
Name: Fang Niyun
Realm:Qi Condensation Stage (Early)
Fang Yuan gave a slow nod.
"The boy is still young. That much, at least, makes sense." His eyes moved downward, and the next line hit him like a physical blow.
Root: Divine Root
For a moment, Fang Yuan simply stared, the words not quite computing.
Then, his jaw went slack. He shot upright from his chair, his mind reeling. "A Divine Root? Another one? Here? In my clan?"
A torrent of disbelief and elation washed over him. The sheer, astronomical luck of it was staggering.
He already had one heaven-defying prodigy within the Fang clan in the name of Fang Lian, whom he had long claimed as his own disciple, and now, seemingly out of nowhere, another had been delivered to his doorstep.
A fierce, possessive grin spread across his face. "How impossibly fortunate am I?"
His eyes, still wide with shock, dropped to the final line of text.
Hidden Physique: Great Yang Emperor
The grin faltered, replaced by a furrow of his brow.
"Great Yang Emperor...?" he muttered under his breath, the name feeling foreign and heavy on his tongue.
The title itself was audacious, implying a sovereignty not just over land, but over the very essence of the sun, of immense Yang energy.
Fang Yuan smiled, muttering slowly under his breath as he slid the screen aside.
"I suppose I can take in a second disciple—"
Boom!
An explosion suddenly rippled from the eastern ravine, echoing through the whole place and shattering the very moment before he could even finish sounding out his thought.