Invincible Dad

Su Daiyi and Old Jiang Ba looked at each other and didn't insist on paying. Doing so would have seemed too impersonal. Besides, she just needed to find a suitable opportunity in the future to indirectly give Xu Lai the money for the Magic Artifact.

Su Daiyi's beautiful eyes glimmered with admiration as she gazed at Xu Lai. What kind of man is he? Unparalleled in the Martial Dao. Even the Magic Artifacts he crafts so casually are ridiculously powerful. The most important thing is that he isn't a womanizer but is extremely faithful… otherwise, with my looks…

At that thought, Su Daiyi's expression dimmed for a moment. Sometimes, faithfulness isn't such a great quality.

But she quickly composed herself and said with a smile, "Mr. Xu, you have no idea what a major incident occurred after you left yesterday."

Xu Lai already had a good idea of what had happened but still said, "Tell me."

"Yesterday…"

Su Daiyi rattled on, describing her fear of the monster in the blood pool, as well as her annoyance and dissatisfaction with Dongfang Xun for being a swindler.

Old Jiang Ba had never seen Su Daiyi be so talkative, and he sighed inwardly. To fall for someone you shouldn't, a person with whom a relationship is doomed to be hopeless. It's hard to say whether that's fortunate or not.

Finishing her story, Su Daiyi pursed her lips and chuckled. "Dongfang Xun got a good beating from the Wan Family Head and the others. They all regretted not listening to you sooner."

"Mhm." Xu Lai nodded, indicating he understood.

Old Jiang Ba then asked tentatively, "Mr. Xu, about these Magic Artifacts… are you still selling them? The Wan Family Head and the Niu Family Head asked me to inquire. They said any price is acceptable."

"I am," Xu Lai said without hesitation.

He was in dire need of money right now. Not a huge amount, just the five-hundred-million-dollar dowry he was short.

"Then the price…?"

"One hundred million each," Xu Lai said coolly. "There are five in total, first come, first served."

Old Jiang Ba breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn't afraid of the price being too high, only that Xu Lai wouldn't sell. Forget one hundred million; even at two hundred million, the Wan, Niu, and Wen Families would be fighting tooth and nail for them.

"Same as before? Transfer it to your sister-in-law's card?" Old Jiang Ba asked.

The mere mention of this made Xu Lai want to kick the man. If Old Jiang Ba hadn't entrusted Ruan Lan with the earnings from Sea Temple Island last time—which his scheming sister-in-law then gave to Ruan Tang—would he be forced to sell these shabby Magic Artifacts now?

I am the magnificent Supreme Emperor, Lord of the Heavenly Court, Emperor of the Human Race! Do I have no dignity to uphold?!

"Transfer it to my salary card," Xu Lai stated, enunciating each word. "If you mess this up, I'm throwing you into the sea."

"...Yes, yes, of course." Although Old Jiang Ba didn't understand why Mr. Xu was suddenly angry, he quickly agreed.

After a bit more small talk, Xu Lai left with Yiyi. Qian Xiao had heard from the Boss Lady that they would be having roast Kunpeng for dinner, and the thought almost made him drool. But his parents were taking him to see his grandmother in the evening, and she had already prepared his favorite mapo tofu for her adorable grandson. So, he could only wave a tearful goodbye. "Boss Lady! Uncle Xu! Save me a bite! Let me have it next time I visit!"

"Got it, you little foodie," Xu Lai pursed his lips.

"Hehehe, to get a taste of Kunpeng, you can call me a big foodie, not just a little one!"

Xu Lai took his daughter and rode away on a cloud.

His sister-in-law, Ruan Lan, had returned home and was sneaking around, obviously feeling guilty for telling Yun Xi about Xu Lai's whereabouts.

Xu Lai wasn't angry and said casually, "I helped her out, for your sake."

"Hehehe." Ruan Lan's guilt vanished as she plopped down beside Xu Lai, chirping, "I knew my brother-in-law dotes on me the most!"

Ruan Tang, who had spent the entire day cleaning the house until her back ached, had just woken up and came downstairs from the second floor in time to hear her sister's words. She wasn't angry, however. She simply rolled her eyes and said, "Hurry up and take a shower. You're all stinky."

"I'll soak in the tub after dinner. Studying has been so exhausting lately," Ruan Lan said, stretching languidly.

"Auntie, you didn't just sleep in the library or the classroom for two days, did you?" Xu Yiyi asked with an innocent expression.

"..."

Ruan Lan retorted weakly, "How can you call that sleeping? When you're studying, that's called resting because you're tired."

Just as I thought! Ruan Tang said with annoyance, "You'll really be a disgrace if you fail another course."

Ruan Lan hummed and hawed. "Just wait! Once I'm well-rested tonight, I'll conquer them all!"

"Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow," Yiyi muttered under her breath.

TAP!

Ruan Lan gently tapped her niece on the forehead and said sternly, "Go on, pour your auntie a glass of water."

"Xiao Hei," Yiyi called out sweetly without moving an inch, "pour Auntie a glass of water."

Xiao Hei, who was eating bamboo in the backyard, turned his head in confusion. He scratched his big, black-and-white head, whimpered twice, and then went back to nibbling on his bamboo.

"Don't have hands?" Xu Lai glanced sideways at his sister-in-law. "Get it yourself, or you're going hungry tonight."

"..."

Ruan Lan shot up from her seat and proceeded to pour a glass of water for her sister, her brother-in-law, and even her niece. She then asked hopefully, "Brother-in-law, what are we having for dinner?"

Xu Lai said, "Bird."

Ruan Tang: ???

His sister-in-law, Ruan Lan, gave Xu Lai a look of shock and uncertainty, asking weakly, "Brother-in-law, isn't that... a little inappropriate?"

"Xu Lai, we need to talk!"

"No, honey, don't pull my ear! A Kunpeng is a bird! It really is a bird!"

"..."

The roasted Kunpeng that evening was delicious. Ruan Lan and Yiyi ate happily, their mouths glistening with grease.

But Xu Lai wasn't particularly happy, and the Kunpeng clan was even less so. Because starting from that night, the Heavenly Court, for some inexplicable reason, officially reclassified their valiant Kunpeng clan as the Bird clan...

The Kunpeng Ancestor was so furious he coughed up dozens of liters of blood, yet he dared not argue. As long as it was the Qingfeng Era, Kunpeng were birds. As for being a Peng or a fish, or any other names they held, those were matters for other eras.

This incident was widely considered by the major Tao Lineages, Holy Lands, and forbidden zones of the Immortal Domain to be the Heavenly Court's punishment for the Kunpeng clan's secret collusion with the suppressed Black Dragon Clan. After all, a clan's name is the very foundation of its heritage.

But no one knew that far away on Earth, the whole affair was because the Supreme Emperor had gotten his ear pulled by his wife over the issue of "eating bird."

That was all.

Nothing more.

***

While they were enjoying roasted Kunpeng meat at Haitang Court, two male figures stood by the dried-up man-made lake at Dongli University.

If Xu Lai were here, he would have immediately recognized one of them as Shang Er—the man who had tried to attack him twice, only to be blasted back into the lake and subsequently get peed on by the king of the stray dogs.

"Father, this is the place," Shang Er said cautiously, his voice filled with confidence. "I woke up right here both times I passed out. This place is also very close to the university clinic. That's why I suspect the mysterious powerhouse who knocked me out both times is none other than Li Mi!"

Li Mi's wife, Liu Nanwei, worked in the university clinic. Shang Er's original mission, after all, had been to investigate Hua Country's most mysterious powerhouse, Li Mi, but he kept being interrupted.

Gazing at the stray cats and dogs in the dry lakebed, Shang Sikong, the leader of the Upper Crescent Moon Clan, had an utterly foul expression on his face.