the truth

A straight mountain ravine, endless at a glance, was actually hundreds of miles long, with cliffs on both sides that looked as if they had been carved by a knife.

At the bottom of the ravine, which was hundreds of feet deep, the rushing river water surged like galloping horses, roaring as it flowed into the distance and creating countless whirlpools.

On the edge of the ravine, two figures, one old and one young, stood still on the cliff, watching the surging river.

"Father, why did you bring me here?" Long Chen could not help but feel puzzled.

The two had traveled for a day and a night on a flying Demonic Beast to reach this ravine. Although the ravine was magnificent and the scenery shocking, Long Tianxiao would not go to such lengths just to bring him here for the view.

At the same time, Long Chen felt that this ravine was somewhat strange, but he could not quite put his finger on what was strange about it.

"I came here to tell you your true origin," Long Tianxiao said, looking at the surging river with a complicated expression.

"True origin?" Long Chen simply could not believe his ears.

Long Tianxiao sighed, patted Long Chen on the shoulder, and said, "Actually, you are not my biological son; you were found."

"How is this possible?" Long Chen looked at Long Tianxiao in shock, his mind in complete disarray.

"This is also why your mother lost control that day; she did not want you to know this secret," Long Tianxiao said.

Even when facing life-and-death battles, Long Chen had never felt lost, but this news was something he could not accept; his parents were not his biological parents.

Long Chen felt somewhat lost and afraid; for a moment, his heart felt empty, as if he had lost his soul.

"Chen'er, although you are not my, Long Tianxiao's, biological son, in your mother's and my eyes, you are our biological son," Long Tianxiao said, looking at the bewildered Long Chen.

"Since I am not your biological child, why do I have a fiancée engaged to me since birth?" Long Chen asked.

Hearing this, a trace of pain appeared on Long Tianxiao's face. He looked at the surging river below and said, "Originally, your mother and I had a child, but at seven months, an accident caused your mother to miscarry, and we lost a child.

At that time, your mother was heartbroken, and I was not at home. Your mother was so devastated that she almost tried to take her own life.

Later, when I brought you back, your mother told me about this."

"Was it done by the Marquis of Ying?" Long Chen said, gritting his teeth.

Long Tianxiao shook his head. "No, at that time, I did not have much of a grudge against the Marquis of Ying. I only cut off his finger later.

It was indeed your mother's own carelessness, an accident, which is why your mother was so heartbroken and full of regret.

So, when I brought you back, it just happened to fill the void in your mother's heart. Come to think of it, we should thank you; otherwise, your mother's Physique might have caused her to die of depression."

Seeing that Long Chen remained silent, Long Tianxiao patted Long Chen's shoulder firmly and said, "A real man should not let such sentimental matters disturb his state of mind.

Even if you are not my biological son, I can still shield you from the wind and rain. If I were in trouble, would you not still risk your life to protect me? Why dwell on these trivial matters?"

Long Chen nodded. He had been overthinking things, but it was just hard to accept for a moment that the parents who loved him so much were not his biological parents.

"Your mother and I both treasure you like life itself, especially your mother. After losing her child, you became the entirety of her life," Long Tianxiao said.

Long Chen was shocked. He finally remembered why Long Tianxiao had sent Chen Fei to protect the Long family and had listed Long Chen as the primary protection target.

At that time, Long Chen had been extremely angry and disappointed that his father had abandoned his mother to protect him. Now, thinking back, he finally understood his parents' good intentions.

Mother had already lost one child and absolutely could not accept losing a second. If his father had let Long Chen die to save Mother, she would have hated him for the rest of her life.

Thinking of how much his father and mother loved him, Long Chen's nose felt sore, and he could no longer hold back his tears; he began to cry.

A father's love is like a mountain, and a mother's love is like the sea. This is a debt of gratitude that can never be repaid in a lifetime, and yet he was going to leave them; it was truly too heartless.

"Father, I…" Long Chen wanted to say he would not leave, but he was interrupted by Long Tianxiao.

"Chen'er, a man should have ambitions for the world; do not give up your dreams because of personal sentiments. If that were to happen, your mother and I would feel guilty for the rest of our lives.

I understand your mother; although she is somewhat reluctant to let you go, she truly hopes that you can be happy."

Long Tianxiao paused and continued, "You have also noticed that your body has been tampered with.

I do not know who was so cruel as to take such vicious action against an infant only a month old. At that time, there were three strange holes in your Dantian and chest area, and the wounds had not even healed.

If I am not mistaken, the Spiritual Root inside your Dantian was taken by some special instrument.

As for the other two holes, I do not know, but I assume they were also some kind of tampering."

Long Chen's heart pounded. So the tampering on his body was not done by the Marquis of Ying and his people; there was another reason.

Long Tianxiao only knew that one hole was directly facing the Dantian, and he discovered that Long Chen's Dantian was empty; the Spiritual Root had been taken.

But Long Chen, having undergone Fusion with the Pill Emperor's memories, knew that not only had his Spiritual Root been taken, but his Spirit Bone and heart's Spirit Blood had also been stolen.

Just how cruel must one be to take action against a month-old infant? For a moment, he gritted his teeth in hatred.

"At that time, I noticed this situation and knew that you would likely never be able to Cultivate in your life. But back then, I thought that with my, Long Tianxiao's, ability, there would be no problem taking care of you and your mother so that you would live a life free of worry.

Unfortunately, I was drawn into a vortex, which led to our separation and caused you and your mother to suffer so much," Long Tianxiao said helplessly.

"Originally, your mother and I hoped that you could live a carefree life under our wings, but now your fate has undergone a heaven-shaking reversal, and your mother and I are no longer able to protect you.

So, when you proposed leaving, I was already mentally prepared. Bringing you here today was to tell you all of this.

After all, you have your own parents. As parents, we understand the pain of losing a child, and we felt you should know the truth."

"Who are my biological parents?" Long Chen asked, taking a deep breath.

Long Tianxiao shook his head and said, "I do not know either. When I first found you, it was right here. At that time, two people were locked in a fierce battle here. This ravine before you was slashed open by one person with a single sword."

Long Chen was suddenly shocked; he looked at the ravine before him with disbelief, unable to utter a word.

"If I had not seen it with my own eyes, I would not have believed it, but it is true. At that time, two people were fighting in the air.

Lights appeared on their bodies, they fought in the air, colorful clouds filled the sky, and Sword Qi pierced through the mountains…"

Long Tianxiao's eyes lost focus as he sank into his memories. Although more than a decade had passed, thinking back on it now, he was still shocked.

"At that time, I had gone out alone, wanting to hunt a Red-Horned Elk to nourish your mother's body, but I ended up stumbling upon a world-shaking battle.

I was hiding in the distance. Finally, one person unleashed a secret technique, Sword Qi shot into the sky, strange patterns flew everywhere, and with one sword strike, he killed the other.

That one sword strike created the ravine you see now. I was scared silly at the time, never having imagined that a person could Cultivate to such a Realm.

After killing the enemy with one sword strike, I realized that the person was holding an infant in his arms. That person glanced at me, and I immediately found that I could not move.

At the same time, the airflow around my body felt strange, and I involuntarily floated toward that person. I thought I was done for.

To my surprise, that person handed the infant in his arms to me, telling me to raise this child to adulthood.

I was stunned for a moment, completely unable to understand why someone so terrifyingly powerful would entrust an infant to me.

After that person said a few more words to me, his expression suddenly changed. He sent me away with a palm strike, countless patterns appeared on his own body, and his whole being slowly dissipated," Long Tianxiao said, sighing with emotion. It was as if that scene had happened yesterday; it was still vivid in his mind.

Long Tianxiao looked at Long Chen with a complicated expression and said, "Chen'er, although I do not know who your biological parents are, I am certain that they must be earth-shattering figures.

Because that person who brought you out actually addressed you as Young Lord. For someone so powerful to call himself a servant…"

Long Chen's heart pounded. A peerless expert who could pierce through mountains with a single sword strike was actually just a servant. How powerful must my parents be?

Long Tianxiao continued, "Later, in an ancient text, I saw records of those strange patterns. Those things are called Runes, and they are powerful beyond our imagination.

And that final act was called 'Dao Transformation.' I did not quite understand it at the time, but later I guessed that it might be a secret technique to cut off tracking, using one's own destruction to trade for your safety.

Later, when I brought you back to the Imperial Capital, I gradually forgot this memory and always believed that you were my son and would never leave us. But this battle at the Imperial Capital made me feel that this is fate."

"What fate?" Long Chen asked.

"That expert instructed before he died that if you were unable to Cultivate for your whole life, you should be allowed to live as a Mortal and be happy for your whole life.

If you were able to Cultivate, I was to inform you of your origin and let you make your own choice.

Originally, I thought you would never know the truth. When I saw you fighting the man in white, I knew you were going to leave.

Your mother did not want you to leave, largely because she was afraid that if you knew your origin, you would go to seek revenge."

That person had fled with Long Chen, encountering countless assassination attempts, and in the end, to shield Long Chen, he was forced into Dao Transformation. Needless to say, one could imagine how terrifying the enemies were.

If Long Chen were to learn the truth, he would inevitably choose to seek revenge, and he would have to face countless enemies who were terrifying beyond imagination.

"The revenge must be taken, but Father, rest assured, I will not foolishly throw my life away," Long Chen said.

This hatred for the stolen blood, taken bones, and ruined root must be paid for by the enemy with blood; otherwise, how could he justify all the suffering he had endured?

But now is not the time for revenge; he needs to quickly improve his strength, otherwise, it would just be suicide.

"I knew you would make this decision. Come, let's go and see what your parents left for you." After Long Tianxiao finished speaking, he flicked his hand, a giant rock was shattered, and an object was revealed underneath.