Yang Xing's POV:
It has been over a month since I last saw my daughter, and I think I'm starting to lose my mind.
Ever since Nox created that hole in the estate back in December, that playboy has been trying to buy me over with tons, and I mean tons of gifts and trinkets worth a fortune, but no matter how tempting they may be, like this 2000 gold teals mithril paintbrush that have done wonders for my hobby, or that legendary enchanted sword made from adamantit, that is admittedly too heavy for me to wield without using 1st stage aura, I will never give him my precious daughter.
'You know, it would sound a lot more convincing if you weren't stroking that sword so creepily! Should I be worried?' My wife's spirit spoke as she read my mind.
'Well, technically, we were never married because of family drama, so I am not officially your wife, but I say you should just let it go!' she added.
'HAVE YOU GONE MAD?!'
'USE YOUR INSIDE VOICE IDIOT!!!'
"Ouch!"
'Yeah, not so fun when it is your head that is hurting!'
"But you're a ghost! You don't even have a head, silly!"
'…! ANYWAYS!'
"Ouch! I'm sorry, okay! Jeez!"
'You have no idea what her line up of potential partners are like? Out of all of them, this is probably the only one who is not a completely hopeless case! I would like to have some grandkids that I am related to, so please do not mess this up for me!'
'Hey, you're the one who tortured me for weeks because I wasn't a good father to her! What kind of father would I be to just throw my daughter at the first rich dirtbag who showed up?'
'What was that Mr. 'I have no daughter'? I couldn't quite catch that!'
"I'm never going to hear the end of that, am I?"
'No, you will not! Now stop being stubborn and just give the poor boy a break! I mean, he even paid for the renovations to the estate, and that is not even close to the amount he has sunk into trying to win over our daughter! So, just show some pity on the poor fool, and let him have a win before he loses interest!'
"I will not! There! It's finished!" I said, refuting my beloved's plea and finishing my newest masterpiece.
My childhood wasn't all that fun, as it mostly revolved around studying, training, and cultivating, but there was one thing I did recall having some fun with back then, and that was painting. It was one of the few times I was permitted some amount of freedom in my activities, whether it was just mashing a bunch of colors together, or actually trying to paint a portrait of something. Now that I am free from the pressure of having to rule the clan, and my efforts of trying to track down my missing daughter hitting a wall, I decided to pick up painting as a hobby, and I'd say, I'm rather good at it.
"Just look at this! It looks like we actually sat down to have our family portrait drawn!" I said, as I hung up the painting of me with, my wife, and my tiny daughter sitting in my lap.
'I think that is more because of the mithril in the brush guiding your hand than it is your actual skill! I mean, just look at the monstrosity you made from before the-!'
*Boom*
*Sizzle*
"I don't know what you're talking about! My artistic talents have always been this good!" I said, after using my aura to destroy the evidence.
'*sigh* Well, at least we know where our daughter got her artistic talents from!'
'Oh? So, my daughter has a sense for the arts as well! Maybe when we see her next, I can give her some pointers!'
'I think it would be the other way around, but sure! Just make sure you do not ask her to draw from the heart, or it will get a lot noisier in here!'
"What is that supposed to mean?"
Before I could get an answer, a servant came knocking at my door. Apparently, my father had some big news regarding Nox and wanted us all to gather at the main house. After hearing this, I rushed off to my parent's residence to hear it.
Ever since she flew off in that mountain sized aircraft, there has been almost no news of her whereabouts. There was a rumor that something like that flying mountain attacked the 2nd moon, but I'm sure even she would have the sense not to do something like that, despite what my wife keeps saying, however, with no news for so long I was starting to worry. I even went so far as to ask my wife for some forbidden tracking magic to help me find her, but even that came up empty.
'Well, I did say it would not work on her! I did learn this magic through her, so it would be strange if she did not have a counter to it.'
'You keep saying you learned all these things from her, but I still don't buy it! How in the world would our little girl learn all these things on her own!'
'She already told you! Blood, sweat, and effort! As sad as I am about it, I never had a chance to actually impart any useful knowledge to her before dying!'
'Then what about after? Couldn't you have just guided her as a ghost?'
'No. I was stuck in her subconscious for years, kind of like with you when I first transferred into your mind! By the time she actually realized this, she had already become a better mage than I ever was! On top of that, the reception in the conscious part of her mind is terrible which made contacting her rather difficult.'
'What do you mean by reception? Does she have a secretary or something in there too?'
'Kind off, but not really! It is all really complicated, and I do not think your dumb, dumb brain would be able to understand without seeing it for yourself!'
"Would you stop calling me stupid?" I accidentally thought out loud.
"Huh? What're you talkin bout Xing? We never called you stupid!" My sister said.
I had not yet told anyone else about Chrystalla being in my head yet. Mostly because they might think I'm losing it again if I did. So, the matter of Chrystalla's innocence as well as her presence remained a secret between me, my wife, and my daughter, until my daughter can come and vouch for me when I reveal it.
"Uh! Sorry! I was just thinking about something!" I said, as I felt my face heat up from how awkward this was.
While chatting with Chrystalla, I had reached the meeting room where my father was going to reveal the information I was dying to know. Unfortunately, I had to wait until the rest of the family got here before he would tell me. So far, we were only waiting for my mother and my bastard of an older brother Ping.
I still hadn't forgiven him for hurting my little girl's hand, or for the fact he had been trying to force her into marrying someone since the day she first got here, but the worst thing is…
*Bang*
"So, what has that little slut done now?!" Ping said as he slammed open the door.
Not only has he not shown any remorse for acting like an ass, he has doubled down on it, as he keeps insulting her every chance he gets.
"XING! STOP IT!"
My mother shouted as she grabbed my Radiance infused fist to stop me from socking that supposed older brother of mine.
"Hmph! You think just because your little whore of a daughter is sleeping with some bigshot, that it makes up for everything that's happened?!"
"Ping! I am warning you! Stop insulting your niece, or it won't just be your brother's wrath you'll incur!" My father said, glaring at Ping.
"Hmph! So, what is this about?" My brother said, putting up a strong front in spite of the river of cold sweat running down his face.
"Yeah, I want to know just what kind of crazy stunt that pipsqueak is gonna pull next! I laughed my ass off when I heard what she did on the moon! Haha!"
"THAT'S NOT FUNNY NING!!! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT KIND OF TROUBLE THIS WILL BRING TO OUR DOORSTEP SHOULD ANYONE MANAGED TO TRACE HER BACK TO US?!"
"Haha! You're just jealous your niece has bigger balls than you!"
"WHAT DID YOU SAY, YOU GORILLA?!"
"WHAT DID YOU JUST-! Ehem! You know what?! If you had balls like her, you might have had more luck in the bedroom! It sure would have been nice to have another nephew or niece around!" My big sister said, opting to tease Ping after noticing the look in our father's eyes.
"HOW DARE YO-!"
"ENOUGH!" My father shouted, silencing the room with his qi pressure.
It was enough to paralyze Ping and Ning. If not for the strengthening of my 1st stage aura protecting my body right now, this amount of pressure could have been lethal to me in my current state. As sad as it is, even though I am a rare 3rd stage aura master, as well as a dragonewt, my body is pretty fragile compared to everyone here. If I am not careful, even just a tap on the back from these guys could break a bone. Just imagining what kind of dangers my little girl might be facing out there keeps me up at night.
'Pft! HAHAHAHAHAHA!'
"Ouch! Hey, stop it! That hurts!" I said, as I got this sharp pain in my head from Chrystalla's rare, and also kind of creepy, loud monotone laughter.
"Hm? Oh, sorry Xing! I forgot to hold back! Are you feeling better now? Does it still hurt?" My father said in concern and pulled back his qi.
"Ugh! Yeah, sorry! I just got a headache is all! Could you tell us what happened to her now?" I asked, trying to focus on the well-being of my child rather than laughing my ass off like a certain someone.
'Sorry, sorry! It is just so funny hearing someone else genuinely worrying about her safety rather than that of whoever just so happens to cross her path!'
'What are you talking about! She might have that mountain, and that pain stick, but that doesn't make her invincible! If she lets her guard down for even a moment, that could be it for her!'
'Darling Xing! You worry too much! Our daughter is not nearly as fragile as you, or me! Even if the whole world turned against her, I am sure she would be fine!' She said in a somber tone.
"What do you mean by that?" I accidentally said out loud again
Before I had time to feel awkward about talking out loud again, my father dropped a bombshell on me.
"I mean, the seal is authentic. This is an official wedding invitation, issued by the dark palace! In other words, they are saying Nox has agreed to marry the Dark Lord!"
"Huh?"
"But what's worse is that they are implying that the little lass is already carrying that youngster's child!"
"…?"
The whole room went silent at my father's words, as all of us were struggling to process the information. Me and Ping were the first to snap back to reality and surprisingly, we both shouted the same thing.
"WHAT?!"