Shi Lang and the family spent the night sitting around the bonfire while singing and chatting with each other. Only during the second half of the night, the four elders decided to give the young couple some privacy and rested in their sleeping bags inside the tent.
Shi Lang was leaning against a block of wood with Amelia leaning against his chest, with her back facing him. The man held her in his arms and they both sat there in silence. The two people did not have anything to say, they were content when they were together.
After a few minutes, Amelia asked, “Was it hard to face those people in the galactic showdown?”
Shi Lang shook his head and said, “I would not say that it was easy, but it was not hard either. I do not know, to safeguard the lives of the rest of the team, I had them enter a state of indifference, which affected their conscious behavior as well. Things like difficulties became irrelevant when you are logically looking at the situation.”
Amelia found his words to be in line with her thoughts so she agreed and nodded gently. Shi Lang asked, “Was it difficult for you to watch over the Ace division when I was away?”
The lady shook her head and said, “Not really, the team was in order and all of them are brilliant at their tasks. The only obstacle was handling Milo’s curiosity about a lot of things. He has a tendency to get into the thick of it which possess a high risk of ruining the stealth element of the mission. I had to threaten him with disciplinary action during a task.”
Shi Lang gently pressed his cheek against hers and said, “Thank you for your hard work. I will tame that guy after I take charge of things.”
Amelia chuckled and said, “I wonder if he will call me a tattletale.”
Shi Lang smiled and said, “I dare him.”
The couple talked about the things that happened recently and the few changes that took place in the federal cabinet as well. Shi Lang had no idea about these, but Amelia had been keeping an eye on things like this.
It turned out that the Former First General had decided to come out of retirement and take up the mantle of the principal of the Federal Star Academy. Old man Stevenson had gone into seclusion to charge at the core condensation realm. He wanted to take time off from the secular world and petty matters.
As a person grows older, their bodies grow atrophic. The meridians lost their flexibility and the rate at which they absorbed Spiritual energy also decreased by a big margin. What Shi Lang found unfathomable was that Jenkins transferred from the first fleet to a duty where he can take part in potential battles on the frontline.
While Hayley had taken up the post of deputy in the same, she wanted to experience battles as well. Shi Lang asked, “I was not there, who approved their requests for transfer?”
Amelia hit the back of his hand and said, “Don’t tell me that you wish to hamper their growth. I have been able to reach the peak of the core condensation realm because I had you take me around. Although you are friends with them they did not have your special favor. Thus, to grow stronger, they need to be placed under pressure. Only the frontlines can bring them the pressure needed. Battling is the best way to unlock the potential.”
Shi Lang nodded and said, “I agree with you but these two could have told me that they wanted more, I would have sent them to train in Tartarus. That would have been efficient for them.”
Amelia shook her head and said, “Do not think much, everyone has their own path. Since they did not wish to tell you, it means they did not want to burden you. I can tell that they did not want you to view them as a burden.”
Shi Lang gazed at the cloudy sky and sighed. He did not know what he should say for a few minutes and then he mumbled, “I got too busy to maintain my connection with the people close to me.”
Amelia leaned against him and said, “Do not blame yourself, you are only one person and with so many things to deal with, it is normal to miss out on some things but you can make up for them. No?”
Shi Lang nodded and said, “You are the wiser one. Thank you.”
Amelia shook her head gently and said, “I also have a piece of bad news.”
The young general made an enquiring nasal sound and the girl said, “Darcx lost his left leg on a mission.”
Shi Lang opened his eyes wide and with a shocked gaze, he asked, “What do you mean? How did this happen, tell me in detail.”
Darcx was his team member and a valiant soldier, his skill was higher than that of normal people, so how could he suffer like this? He asked her the details but Amelia shook her head and replied, “I have no idea. The details are locked by the secret divisions. You can check on your own. I only found out accidentally when I saw him in the hospital taking surgery for the advanced prosthetics.”
Shi Lang became anxious and he was losing his usual composure. He cherished the people around him, and when they suffered, he suffered along with them. He was compassionate only to his friends, but not to anyone else.
Amelia sensed his condition and said, “Calm down, you can contact him when we go back to the city. Do not worry too much. He is a soldier, and must be aware of the risks of the job.”
Shi Lang took a few deep breaths and calmed himself down. The time flew away in a blink, and soon it was morning. Amelia had fallen asleep in his arms, so he decided to spend the rest of his time cultivating.
However, soon he noticed something and was surprised. The flow of the spiritual energy in the vicinity was odd. It was as if all the spiritual energy was being sucked away by a vacuum cleaner. When Shi Lang sensed the place with his spirit sense, he found the source of this suction to be located inside the small clinic on the summit.
The place they were camping at was just a few meters away from the clinic. Shi Lang did not notice anyone coming or going in or out of the clinic. He gently laid her down and cast a spirit barrier to keep her clear of snowflakes and moved in the direction of the clinic.
His steps were calm and steady, at the same time, his spirit sense was scurrying inside the clinic. He found a child about five or six years old, inside the clinic, or to be precise, under the clinic. He was surprised at first but then he decided to check out what was going on. He did not use any of his detection abilities earlier when they came outside this clinic, and that was why Shi Lang did not notice this anomaly.
He was keeping a watch on the spiritual flow as well. Just as he predicted, as soon as he stepped on the steps of the clinic, the spiritual flow stopped. He could tell that the child inside was aware of his presence, and stopped cultivating. Shi Lang smiled and sat down on the stairs of the clinic.
The young general was patient in his actions, he waited for the sun to come up. Then his parents came over and asked him what was going on, Shi Lang gave them a superficial reply and sent them back to the camp. He looked at the door calmly and said, “I have methods to come in and talk to you, but I do not wish to scare you. I can tell that your talent in cultivation is very high, but if you persisted on this path of staying alone, you will only bury your talent.
You need guidance, and given that you can detect my presence, I can speculate that you are very smart and intelligent. You can decide to follow me as a teacher, and choose your own master’s in the future, and I will provide you with some basic guidance, what do you think?
Do you not feel tired of hiding in that small space? Do you love eating wild weeds so much? What do you do when it is cold? Follow me, if you wish to get away from all this, I swear on heavens that I bear no malice against you.”
His voice was low but it was heard clearly by the child inside the clinic, and after much thought, Shi Lang heard a sound, the trap door was being pushed open, and a pair of sparkling eyes and a black head peeked out at the doors of the clinic.