Long Chen’s great ideal

Long Chen looked toward the source of the voice and saw Tang Waner waving at him affectionately from the crowd.

Long Chen was stunned. It seemed like there were very few times when Tang Waner was pleasant to him. Thinking about it carefully, it felt like it had never happened before, which made him feel very uncomfortable.

However, when he saw Qingyu beside Tang Waner, Long Chen immediately understood something. Even though he was reluctant, he had to bite the bullet and walk over.

"Sister Qingyu, hello." Long Chen had no choice but to greet Qingyu with a smile.

Tang Waner had said that the person she feared most was this Sister Qingyu. Qingyu was actually her maid, but she was exceptionally good to her, treating her like her own younger sister.

However, Qingyu had one flaw: she was too naggy, enough to drive people crazy, which was why Tang Waner both loved and feared her.

Originally, Qingyu was admonishing Tang Waner about something, but with Long Chen's sudden arrival, Tang Waner felt for the first time that Long Chen looked so cute and handsome, so she called him over.

"Long Chen, I heard you got into a fight with someone again. Are you okay?" Seeing Long Chen, Qingyu couldn't help but feel a little annoyed.

She gently raised her jade hand and plucked a blade of grass from Long Chen's hair. Long Chen felt a bit unaccustomed to this, thinking the gesture was too intimate, and instinctively wanted to step back.

However, looking into Qingyu's eyes, there were no Impurities, just like pure lake water, which made one feel exceptionally close to her.

After removing the grass from Long Chen's hair, she gently straightened his collar: "Although I heard from Waner that you have great combat power, we are here at the branch sect to cultivate. Unless you encounter something too unreasonable, you should try to endure it. After all, being overly combative…"

For some reason, feeling Qingyu's gentle movements, Long Chen suddenly thought of his mother. When he was young, she also used such gentle movements to tidy his messy hair.

He still remembered that back then, his mother was very young and very beautiful, just like Qingyu was now.

But as he grew up day by day, his mother grew older day by day. Touched by the memory, his heart felt a slight ache, and he felt like tears were about to fall.

At the same time, he could also feel Qingyu's heartfelt kindness and concern. No wonder Tang Waner, with her personality, would tolerate her for so long; it was a bond that could not be severed.

Seeing Long Chen arrive, Tang Waner finally breathed a sigh of relief, thinking she could finally relax. But then she saw Long Chen's eyes were slightly red, and she couldn't help but be stunned.

Guo Ran, seeing Long Chen—who had been acting so arrogant just moments ago, kicking a powerhouse into the sky—now acting like an obedient child listening to a woman's lecture, couldn't help but find it amusing.

Although Long Chen was moved, being constantly lectured was truly uncomfortable. Suddenly seeing Guo Ran secretly laughing on the side, he couldn't help but be furious:

"Guo Ran, come here."

"Boss, what's up?" Guo Ran quickly wiped away his smile and said with a serious face.

Long Chen said to Qingyu: "Sister Qingyu, I think what you said is very reasonable, every word is a gem, and truly thought-provoking. However, I have a poor memory. Let me introduce you to my brother. He is a famous memory expert and has a photographic memory. So, you can just tell these golden words of wisdom to him, and he will organize them all and write them down in a notebook. This way, even if you are not by my side, I can still study the warnings you left behind and listen to your teachings at any time."

Guo Ran was dumbfounded upon hearing this. 'Who did I offend?'

When Qingyu heard Long Chen say this, her eyes lit up: "I didn't expect you to be so smart, Long Chen. This is a great way to get twice the result with half the effort. You are called Guo Ran, right? Alright, the things I am about to say, you must remember clearly. It might be a bit long. If you can't remember, you can tell me, and I will say it again. Good, let's start from being overly combative…"

Qingyu pulled Guo Ran aside and began her true lecture.

Long Chen pretended not to see Guo Ran's resentful gaze. 'Who told you to gloat? We brothers should share blessings and hardships together.'

"Bad guy, why are you so smart?" Tang Waner walked to Long Chen's side, her beautiful eyes filled with surprise.

"In the future, when Sister Qingyu lectures me, I can use this method. This is really great."

Seeing Tang Waner staring at him, Long Chen couldn't help but say: "I'm telling you, don't you dare target me."

"Tch, do you think I would bother targeting you?" Tang Waner curled her lips and said dismissively.

Long Chen finally felt relieved and said seriously: "Have all the numbers been tallied?"

Tang Waner's expression darkened slightly: "They have been tallied. Most have arrived, but a few people met with accidents and died during the trial."

"How could that be?" Long Chen was stunned.

"In my team, there were two applicants with excellent talent who were accidentally pushed into the water while crossing the river, and as a result…" Mentioning this, Tang Waner gritted her teeth.

Long Chen understood immediately. That probably wasn't an accident; it was intentional. He asked: "Who did it?"

"Someone reported to me that it was Qi Xin's men. At that time, they were all crowded on a raft, and most of the people on that raft were his men. The raft suddenly split, and people were in a panic. Several people fell into the river immediately, including those two," Tang Waner said.

"This is malicious murder. The branch sect doesn't care?" Long Chen couldn't help but frown. Without even thinking, this was definitely a conspiracy.

"It's useless. A total of seven people fell into the water, and one of them was Qi Xin's subordinate. Even if we know they did it on purpose, there is no evidence. Moreover, one of their own people also died on that side, so they have every reason to say it was an accident. Even the branch sect can't do anything about it," Tang Waner sighed, saying helplessly.

"Those two people had very strong combat power, even stronger than Zhao Wu, whom you killed earlier. I didn't expect them to be so ruthless." Saying this, Tang Waner's beautiful eyes turned slightly red, clearly unable to accept this fact.

Perhaps in Tang Waner's eyes, this was just a game, but losing two lives for a game made her feel very uncomfortable.

"You need to learn to accept the cruel reality slowly. The competition here at the branch sect is nothing. If you lived in the secular world, you would understand what true cruelty is. When your loved ones fall before your eyes, that helplessness, that pain, that torture—that is what is called cruel. To you aristocratic children living in a honey pot, that is unimaginable, so you had better accept reality, because it will only get more and more cruel in the future, unless you quit cultivation." Long Chen said.

Having experienced the sinister nature of the human heart and several life-and-death battles, Long Chen had long seen through the essence of cultivation. Reality is just that cruel. If you want to live with dignity, you need to have matching strength.

Otherwise, whether it is a peddler or a king, everyone is equally helpless. As the son of a prince, in the eyes of commoners, Long Chen was already a high-and-mighty existence, at least having food and clothing without worrying about his next meal.

But what about reality? Wasn't he still pushed to the edge? If it weren't for the Alchemist Emperor's Soul, if it weren't for the Nine-Star Hegemon Body Art, the Long Family would have been annihilated by now, becoming a part of someone else's conspiracy.

Chu Yao was an Empire princess, yet someone tampered with her, destined for a tragic fate. If it weren't for Long Chen, she might have already perished.

Therefore, in Long Chen's eyes, you need the strength that matches the life you want. Otherwise, you either choose to live humbly or choose to die gloriously; there is no third path.

"I feel like I harmed them. If I hadn't pulled them into my camp…" Tang Waner said with some annoyance.

"Life and death are fated; wealth and honor are determined by heaven. It wasn't you who harmed them, but their fate wasn't strong enough. Cultivation is a path of no return. Once you step on it, there is no chance to turn back. If you shake your Dao Heart, it won't be long before you follow in their footsteps," Long Chen said, looking at Tang Waner very seriously.

Because of the death of two capable subordinates, she was confused about cultivation, which was very unfavorable for her, so Long Chen had to wake her up.

Tang Waner was shocked. Long Chen's words were like the evening drum and morning bell, waking her up.

"Thank you, Long Chen. I was just overthinking it," Tang Waner looked at Long Chen, saying with some gratitude.

As a monster-level powerhouse and the number one Genius of her Family, the powerhouses in her clan had long kept warning her to keep her Dao Heart clear. She hadn't realized she had shaken her Dao Heart.

If it weren't for Long Chen's reminder, this hidden danger might have spread. Although it might not necessarily form a Heart Demon, it would definitely affect her cultivation.

Long Chen smiled slightly, looked at Tang Waner, blinked, and said: "No need for courtesy. Just remember that thing, you know what I mean."

Long Chen wanted to say "marry me," but there were people nearby. Although they were speaking in very low voices, it would be bad if someone heard.

Tang Waner's originally guilty mood instantly vanished, and she looked at Long Chen with an angry face: "Bastard, do you want to die?"

Long Chen couldn't help but laugh: "You are only normal at times like this."

Tang Waner looked at Long Chen, feeling both angry and amused, while also feeling a faint sense of being moved.

Long Chen was diverting her attention, and he succeeded. At the moment she got angry, her state of mind recovered.

"Long Chen, I sometimes don't understand what is in your head. It seems like you know a lot of things," Tang Waner asked curiously.

"It's not 'seems like,' it's that I really do know a lot. I know the heavens above, the earth below, and everything in between," Long Chen said, shaking his head and acting serious.

Seeing Long Chen like this, although she knew he was intentionally acting weird, Tang Waner still couldn't help but giggle. Seeing people nearby casting surprised glances, she hurriedly stopped laughing.

Tang Waner scolded: "You are so thick-skinned. By the way, Long Chen, do you have an ideal?"

"Of course I have to have one. What if it comes true?" Long Chen said seriously.

"Then what is your ideal?" Tang Waner asked hurriedly.

"My ideal is… hehe, I feel a bit embarrassed," Long Chen said bashfully.

"Tch, with your thick skin, what could you be embarrassed about? Hurry up and say it," Tang Waner said with anticipation.

"Then I'll say it. You better stand firm. My ideal is to be a—big—bastard," Long Chen said word by word.