Rollaith and Sanreth looked toward one another.
In truth, they should have already expected this much. But, they couldn't help but be overrun with a whole host of complex emotions when it actually happened.
"Auntie," Sanreth stepped forward, descending from the air, "You have to listen to us. I know that he's your Life Partner, but staying with him is dangerous. After your link was formed, your Fate Wheel remained stagnant, you understand how dangerous that is, right?"
Ailsa frowned when she heard this. How could she not understand?
Ryu lacking talent obviously wasn't the problem. That meant that the only remaining possibility was that Ryu's life was destined to be cut short. But, how was that possible?
It would make sense if this was still Ryu's first life, but he should have been able to unwind his Fate during his second. He could now cultivate so there shouldn't be anything still restricting his life… Unless?
Ailsa's frown deepened even further. Her worries about Ryu's Mental Realm began to resurface.
After she couldn't find any leads, Ailsa had had no choice but to leave those matters aside. But, those repressed thoughts had begun bubbling up once again.
Ryu's poor Mental Realm talent simply didn't make any sense. Even if it wasn't the elite amongst the elite, it should have, at the very least, been above average.
Most geniuses didn't choose to focus on the soul, but that didn't stop their souls from growing along with their Qi Realm cultivation in a natural fashion. This was a choice many could make because they could afford to. The Mental Realm was the only one of the three paths that could grow on its own without outside interference – as long as one was improving in other facets, that is.
Yet, Ryu didn't have such a luxury. His Mental Realm talent was so poor that he had no choice but to temper himself continuously with Tribulation Lightning. It was almost comically poor.
The main issue though wasn't how bad it was, but rather how many reasons there were for it not to be. Whether it was Ryu's mental fortitude, his Heavenly Pupils, or even his Inheritance comprehension, all of them pointed toward a man with excellent Soul potential.
First, the Mental Realm was so synonymous with mental fortitude that back when such cultivation was still banned, the terms had become interchanageable to the upper echelon of the Shrine Plane.
Second, through all the records Ailsa had gone through, she hadn't found even a single instance of a Heavenly Pupils wielder having a poor Mental Realm. In fact, it was the exact opposite for those with the First Ranked Heavenly Pupils.
And third, one had to remember that when an Inheritance was comprehended, the soul was used as a proxy to communicate with the Heavens and gift Essence to fuel one's strength. It was almost impossible to sustain powerful Inheritances without an equally powerful soul.
Yet, even with all this evidence, it was all meaningless.
At this moment, Ryu's Spiritual Sense could expand for hundreds of kilometers. It seemed impressive. But, it was so useless to Ryu that he never used it. It was nothing more than a hodgepodge of cobbled together, unrefined Spiritual Qi that was of no use to Ryu. Once again… It was almost comically bad.
Even when Ryu suffered through the tempering of Tribulation Lightning, nothing seemed capable of fixing his Mental Realm.
All these thoughts Ailsa had suppressed for so long came roaring forth the moment Sanreth spoke, like tidal waves and rising tsunamis ready to wash everything away…
"Auntie, he's just going to weigh you down. Your future is much brighter than this. Just tell us your location and grandfather will come to get you."
Ailsa looked toward Ryu, a complicated look in her eye. Seeing such a scene, Rollaith and Sanreth grew excited, believing that they had finally gotten through to their aunt. But, Ailsa only stood there with a sad expression, seemingly on the brink of tears.
From beginning to end, Ryu hadn't said anything.
He didn't get annoyed when he had been ignored. He didn't get angry when the two spoke down to him. His expression didn't even shift when they said they would take Ailsa away.
He simply stood there and waited, his mind calm and cool. Maybe if these two were just random people trying to snatch his Ailsa away, he would have already swung his blade despite the throbbing in his eye right now.
But, they were Ailsa's nephews, her family. Though it didn't seem like it, Ryu had given Mistress Holy Wing a lot of leeway since she was Elena's grandmother in the beginning. It wasn't until she continued to cross the line that he began to counter.
And now, he was giving Ailsa the same respect. This was her family. And, unlike Mistress Holy Wing, they were truly looking out for her best interest.
As expressionless as Ryu was, his mind was just as calm. This wasn't an act. He truly didn't take any of these matters to heart. Should Ailsa want to leave, he would let her leave. Should she want to stay, she would stay. It was just this simple.
He had long since stopped seeing Ailsa as a tool. Maybe in the past, her response wouldn't have mattered to him. But now, things were different.
Ailsa gazed at Ryu. The crimson veins that snaked around his eyes, the hint of fatigue on his brow, his slightly labored breath… She took it all in…. Especially the fact that his back still stood ramrod straight.
His blades angled toward the ground, his grip around them relaxed and loose. It was as though nothing in the world could shake them.
Ailsa suddenly smiled. "Why are you being so serious? Did you think I could still bear to leave you?"
Surprisingly, Ryu replied immediately, speaking for the first time since Ailsa's nephews descended.
"No." He said casually. "Just that I have to prepare to teach my little nephews a lesson."
Ailsa blushed profusely hearing this. There was only one way for the two of them to both view these two as nephews. Her heart couldn't help but flutter despite Ryu's blunt choice of words.
"They're older than you, you know…" She rebutted.