Shi Lang knew nothing about the situation and followed what the men said. He did not have any other option at the moment. After all, his realm was too low to make any counter-arguments.
Sure, these people did not put any pressure on him, but his soul was suppressed by the spiritual pressure they were emitting. The young man watched the blood drop on the stone. The others were looking at the scene intently too.
Shi Lang smiled and asked, “How long do you think it will take for the stone to react?”
Shi Yuwan said, “A few breaths.”
Shi Lang sighed and said, “I miss DNA testing.”
Shi Shanwang asked, “What is that?”
Shi Lang chuckled and said, “Well, how to say, in lower realms, there was a period when the spirit energy had run out, and humanity developed something called Medical science. They just started to look inside the human body with a set of glass pieces.” 𝐎𝐕𝑙xt.𝗇𝓔t
The people were amused, and Shi Lang took a mental note not to use advanced science terms in this place. Just when he was thinking about how long he would have to wait. The crystal began to glow slightly. The light was not blinding bright but more like a shimmer. Shi Lang asked, “What does that mean?”
Shi Yulong took a deep breath and said, “That means that you are an extension of our family, even if it is by a negligible margin.”
The three brothers looked at each other, and Shi Lang said, “Well, you do not have to worry about acknowledging me. I can go by my way to learn how things work here, and things will be fine.”
Shi Yuwan shook his head and said, “The issue is not acknowledging you but that you have a bone age of seventy years. That’s what makes us surprised. To think you are a talent who came this far in less than a hundred years. It is impressive.”
Shi Lang scratched the back of his head and said, “There are many people like me. My adoptive daughter is even better than me.”
Shi Yua was surprised to learn that Shi Lang has a family. The three men decided something with each other, and Shi Yuwan said, “You shall stay with us. The city outside is not as harmonious as it looks.”
Shi Lang looked at the ground and said, “Well, I do not mind staying here, but can you please arrange some work for me? I do not want to live off of you.”
Shi Yulong smiled and said, “Very well, there will be some tasks for you to do later, but right now, you need to get your knowledge and strength up to the level.”
Shi Lang nodded. He had almost forgotten that his strength was insufficient for the immortal plane. Shi Yuwan said, “Yua, take him around the manor, have him familiarize himself with the place, and then find Shi Tongli to arrange a place for him to live.”
The young lady nodded, and Shi Lang thanked the people again before they left the room. Shi Yulong and the rest began discussing what had happened before Shi Lang left the room. The terran understood a few things. One, they were not scared or cautious about him at all. This discussion in the backdrop also showed that the people did not carry any ill will.
Second, although the people tried to cover things up and almost got away with it, the silent communication with almost too timely nods and finger taps was too apparent for Shi Lang to avoid. He did not spend his time back in the federation in vain.
Shi Yua took him out of the room and then into the corridor. She was still unable to get her head wrapped around the matter. It was because although she knew about this rule, she never expected it to come true. Shi Lang himself had a different theory about this. He was not the only person with the Shi surname in this life.
He was not the only one in the past life either. As bizarre as it may sound, this was all just a coincidence. (Or plot armor)
Shi Lang silently followed the two ladies; Shi Ting asked, “Sister, what did Father say?”
Shi Yua cast her a glance and said, “You are grounded for the coming week and not allowed to step out of the cultivation room.”
Shi Ting froze in her place and wanted to protest when Shi Yua said, “He was about to cut off half your allowance. You can ask Shi Lang.”
Shi Ting looked at Shi Lang, who nodded solemnly. The young lady picked up her feet again and said, “I will stay grounded and be mindful of my actions in the future.”
Shi Yua nodded and then led Shi Lang around the manor. The place was akin to a small town. It had a martial arts training field, where Shi Lang spotted the young ones training with each other. He sighed at the situation.
Another thing he noticed was the way things worked. It was all like how he had imagined. There was no technology, and the people did not rely on spiritual energy for everything either. Basic old-fashioned methods did some things. One such example was mopping the floor.
Shi Lang gazed at the person kneeling at the side and furrowed his brows. Shi Yua spotted this and said, “These people come to serve the house willingly but do not stand up regardless of what we say. If some of us pass by, they will greet us like this.”
Sensing the frustration in her voice, the young man asked, “Your family seems to be a bunch of kind-hearted humans, then why do you not forbid them?”
Shi Ting clicked her tongue and said, “We forbade them, but the people from the Ling family raised the issue in a four-family meeting, and we were forced to revoke the decision.”
Shi Lang nodded and asked, “I have another question. It could be that I am looking too deep into things, but can you tell me why the children in the training field were wearing uniforms?”
Shi Ting replied, “Those are divided by the skill level each person has.”
Shi Lang raised his brow, and Shi Yua said, “The ones with a higher skill level will teach those who lack a few things. This is to create a better understanding of the clansmen with each other and also to instill leadership qualities in the minds of the younger generations.”
Shi Lang was surprised and nodded, “This is an excellent method. I thought that the uniforms were an indication of the family lines. All these people cannot be all from the main family, right?”
Shi Yua smiled faintly and said, “Shi family is not big. We only have twelve members. The rest of the people are the disciples from various origins.”
Surprised, Shi Lang asked, “How do you verify their loyalty? What if they just ran away in a time of need?”
Shi Yua shook her head and said, “We have our ways. You will know in a few days.”
Shi Lang nodded, and after finishing the tour, he was introduced to an old man dressed in a Chinese tunic. Shi Yua bowed to the man and said, “Grand Uncle Tongli.”
The old man was reading through the books and stuff. When he raised his head and smiled, “Yua, what brings you to the old man.”
The girl said, “Grand Uncle, this is Shi Lang. He has just ascended, and his bloodline roots return to the first patriarch. So, Father and the elders have decided to have him live with us.”
Shi Tongli opened his eyes wide in surprise and spoke with great enthusiasm, “Finally, the family has a Young Master.”
Shi Lang was surprised and asked, “Elder, what do you mean by Young Master?”
Shi Yua smiled and said, “Well, in our generation, it is only girls. So, the Shi Family is often taken as a descending family. If we can have a young master, our status will rise again.”
Shi Lang shook his head and said, “Aren’t you all betting a bit too much on me?”
Shi Ting sighed and said, “If you calculate the time lag from the lower to the upper realm, you will find that your bone age is seventy but that is by the time standard of a lower realm. In the upper realm, you are not a day over twenty, I do not know what that means or how is that calculated but you are just as young as my elder sister.”
Shi Lang sighed and did not say anything. The old man showed him a place to rest while he explained the realms of immortal cultivation to the young man before he left after telling him to get ready for dinner later on. He will be meeting all the members of the Shi Family.
Shi Lang nodded and turned around to walk inside the room. He sat down on the floor and sighed as he mumbled, ‘Young Master Shi.’