The Lin's Patriarch is weird.

Lin Zhaoyue quietly watched the Peng and Hao Families disappear into the distance.

Only after the last trace of their auras had vanished did she let out a satisfied nod.

"That should keep them busy for a while."

She folded her fan and tucked it into her sleeve.

Without another glance behind her, she circulated her spiritual qi and the Cloud Chasing Movement Technique activated once more.

Her small figure became a streak of white as she made her way towards Azure Willow city.

She hadn’t even traveled far when a terrifying aura descended from above and locked onto her with absolute precision.

In that instant, the surrounding spiritual qi seemed to solidify.

Lin Zhaoyue’s pupils shrank.

"...Nascent Soul."

Cold sweat instinctively formed along her forehead.

Although she had reached far greater heights in her previous life, her current cultivation was only at the Golden Core Realm.

Before a true Nascent Soul cultivator, the pressure was overwhelming.

She immediately came to a stop and a few breath later, a figure silently appeared before her.

He wore spotless white robes embroidered with silver clouds.

His hands rested calmly behind his back as he stood in midair.

His handsome face was expressionless and those familiar eyes quietly looked down at the little girl before him.

Lin Zhaoyue stared blankly for a moment.

Then, as though nothing had happened, her face blossomed into a radiant smile.

"Papa!"

The stern expression Lin Xuan had painstakingly maintained instantly cracked.

He had come here filled with anger and concern.

She had led all the kids astray, of course it also was a mistake on his part. Why did he send them all together if it was meant to be a solidarity punishment.

Crossing hundreds of miles to barged into the Xu Family’s affairs with a small army of twenty three qi refinement realm childrens and the mastermind behind the entire incident was undoubtedly the little girl standing before him.

On the journey here, he had already prepared countless lectures.

He had even resolved to punish her severely so she would remember this lesson.

Yet the moment that bright little voice called out, "Papa!"

Every bit of anger he had built up along the way simply... disappeared.

Lin Xuan closed his eyes and let out a long, helpless sigh.

When he opened them again, the only thing left was weary affection.

He rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"I really don’t know what to do with you anymore."

Lin Zhaoyue grinned from ear to ear.

Lin Xuan looked at the little girl standing before him and a helpless smile finally appeared on his face.

He reached out and gently patted her head.

"Let’s go. I’ll escort you home."

Lin Zhaoyue blinked.

’Escort?’

She tilted her head in confusion.

That single word immediately struck her as odd.

Escort? Shouldn’t he have said accompany?

For some reason, the wording felt strangely distant.

Her brows slowly furrowed.

Is Father... simply bad with words?

She lowered her head and fell into deep thought.

Watching the little girl’s expression change every few moments, Lin Xuan frowned slightly.

...What’s going through this girl’s head now?

He had long since given up trying to predict her train of thought.

After a brief silence, he decided to change the subject.

"There’s something you should know."

Lin Zhaoyue looked up and he continued as they began walking side by side through the forest.

"Zhaowen and the others have made it back safely, but they mentioned that Xu Qingyue was stolen from their possession by a mysterious woman will immense strength. Fortunately, none of the children were harmed."

Lin Zhaoyue came to an abrupt halt.

"...Xu Qingyue was taken away?"

She repeated the words under her breath, unable to conceal the surprise in her voice.

The only person she could think of who would take an interest in a crippled girl was her master, Qin Xishu.

She let out a quiet sigh before speaking softly.

"I believe she’ll be fine... at least for the time being."

Lin Xuan glanced at her but did not ask why she sounded so certain.

Instead, he simply nodded.

"If you believe so."

Then he looked at her and said in a gentle tone that nevertheless left no room for negotiation, "Whether you like it or not, you should start by telling me everything about your master and the Qin Family."

The smile on Lin Zhaoyue’s face gradually faded.

Without waiting for her to ask why, Lin Xuan continued.

"This attack by the Xu Family wasn’t the first time they have targeted us."

He turned to look at her.

"Do you remember the time you asked me about Violet Log City?"

Lin Zhaoyue gave a silent nod. She already had a vague idea of where he was going with this.

Lin Xuan nodded in return.

"Back then, under the Qin Family’s orders, the Xu Family laid an ambush for me. However, the timeline doesn’t make sense."

Lin Zhaoyue frowned and looked up at him.

"What doesn’t?"

Lin Xuan’s brows furrowed slightly.

"Before that incident, I had never met your mother. I can’t understand why the Qin Family was already targeting me when they had no reason to be involved with the Lin Family at the time."

Lin Zhaoyue frowned, her voice tinged with disbelief.

"Father... are you saying the Qin Family had already marked the Lin Family before Mother was ever involved?"

The realization struck her like a bolt from the blue.

In her previous life, she had always blamed her mother. Although she had lived for hundreds of years after the Lin Family’s destruction, she had never once seen the woman’s face.

To her, the mother she had never met had always been the root of every tragedy that befell their family.

After all, the Lin Family’s downfall had only become inevitable because the Qin Family intervened, giving the Supreme Elder, Lin Zhenghai, the confidence to seize the opportunity and betray his own clan.

But if her mother had never been involved in the first place and the Qin Family had already set their sights on the Lin Family long before then....

She did not dare continue that train of thought.

She simply couldn’t.

Seeing the turmoil in her eyes, Lin Xuan quietly drew her into his embrace.

One hand gently rested on the back of her head as he spoke in a calm, reassuring voice.

"Don’t worry. Daddy’s here."