Soon after the funeral ended, the core members of the Su family almost completely withdrew from Tiannan. Even Su Yaoqin and Su Yaoshuang completed their school transfer procedures to follow the family to the capital of Xiayu.

As for the Buzhou Group, professional managers were hired to run it. According to Yaoguang’s wishes, Su Chiming appointed a man named Zhang Ching to handle the financial audits and supervise the normal operations of the Buzhou Group. By the time these matters, both large and small, were concluded, half a month had passed.

Of course, the ones who arrived half a month later were Su Yaoqin, Su Yaoshuang, and Su Yaoyu, who was to be groomed as Lin Xia’s deputy. Yaoguang and Su Yaoxue had already returned to the Longyou Stream's villa ten days prior.

For reasons unknown, Su Chiming did not have Su Yaoyu, Su Yaoshuang, and Su Yaoqin stay in the royal palace upon their return; instead, he arranged for them to stay at Yuhuang Mountain.

After more than half a year of construction, Yuhuang Mountain was now heavily guarded. Not only had the entire mountain become private property that was no longer open to the public, but there were also many security guards patrolling the perimeter.

An elite division of ten thousand troops was stationed near the foot of the mountain, equipped with everything from fighter jets to anti-aircraft weapons. As for the mountain itself, it had undergone extensive development. The paths were more easily accessible, and the number of pavilions and villas had increased significantly.

One could foresee that in another year or two, Yuhuang Mountain would truly possess the grandeur of a sacred land for cultivation.

***

In a newly built villa located over four hundred meters away from Yaoguang’s residence, Su Yaoxue, who had been given a day off by Yaoguang, gathered with the recently arrived Su Yaoyu, Su Yaoshuang, and Su Yaoqin.

The four of them were chatting in the sunroom on the top floor. After glancing toward Longyou Stream, Su Yaoqin turned with a hint of envy toward Su Yaoxue, who was talking to Su Yaoyu. "Second Sister, is this how you have lived these past few months? You're really brave."

Su Yaoxue was momentarily confused. Su Yaoshuang, who was nearby, chimed in, "Our older sister has always been quite brave."

As she spoke, she snapped a photo of Su Yaoxue, who currently looked heroic and spirited. As for selfies, she had been taking them for half an hour already. Yuhuang Mountain was currently the most popular and mysterious place in the world; countless people took pride in simply being able to enter it. Now, she not only could enter but even had her own villa there.

She could already envision the sensation she would cause on her social media once she posted these photos tagged with Yuhuang Mountain's location. Then again...

Lately, no one had been coming to argue with her in her comments anymore. The excitement of posting photos, waiting for others to comment and like, seemed less thrilling than it used to be.

"What do you mean by brave? What are you guys talking about?" Su Yaoxue turned and asked.

"Third Brother, of course," Su Yaoqin leaned in curiously. "Second Sister, you have lived with him for half a year. Aren't you afraid?"

Su Yaoxue did not react immediately to Su Yaoqin’s words. Then, realizing something, she suddenly asked, "Why would you be afraid of Yaoguang?"

"Him? Isn't he scary?" Su Yaoqin whispered. "Like during dinner last night, when he didn't speak, I didn't even dare to make a sound while eating... He's much more stern than Grandpa."

After saying that, she glanced at Su Yaoxue and Su Yaoyu. "I don't want to go to dinner tonight. Can I skip it?"

"Why would you think that way?" Su Yaoyu was also somewhat taken aback.

"Don't you feel that Yaoguang has changed a lot? Although we aren't very familiar with him, he wasn't this terrifying when we first met, right? Anyway, I don't want to be around him—"

"Shut up!" Before Su Yaoqin could finish, Su Yaoxue interrupted her with a sharp rebuke. "You're wrong! That kind of thinking is completely wrong!"

"What’s wrong about it? Third Brother... He really doesn't fit in with us. Besides, we don't like being around him either. Most importantly, he never even greets us or anything..."

"Fit in?" Su Yaoxue let out a cold laugh. "Who do you think gave you the right to sit here and talk so boldly, enjoying this kind of peace and leisure? If it weren't for Yaoguang, do you have any idea what kind of fate would have awaited our Su family?"

Seeing that her second sister seemed truly angry, Su Yaoqin sensibly held her tongue.

"You shouldn't speak about your third brother that way." Su Yaoyu also reproached her, while turning to Su Yaoxue. "Little Qin is still young, after all. Just tell her nicely—"

"Tell her nicely? Do you know what her current behavior is called? It’s called ingratitude! She’s biting the hand that feeds her!" Su Yaoxue criticized her without hesitation. "Go and check the family records yourselves. If it weren't for Yaoguang, the Buzhou Group would never have withstood the combined assault from Zhang Yushu’s faction. It would have quickly become a windfall for someone else. Given Zhang Yushu’s ruthlessness and the way people take advantage of the situation, the best-case scenario would have been Grandpa going to prison. Every asset under the Su family name would have been seized, and everything you eat and use would have been sold off to pay back debts." 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

She let out a cold laugh. "If that had happened, forget about living in villas and soaking up the sun here on Yuhuang Mountain. Every single one of you would have had to drop out of school and go wash dishes just to earn enough for a living!"

After saying that, she glared at Su Yaoyu. "And that goes for you too! Without your status as a young lady of the Su family, did you really think you could be the general manager of Xingyu International Hotel? You would have been a waitress!"

This merciless scolding startled not only Su Yaoshuang and Su Yaoqin, but even Su Yaoyu, the eldest sister, was intimidated by Su Yaoxue’s aura and stood frozen on the spot. It took a good while before Su Yaoyu finally said, "It wasn't as exaggerated as you made it sound. The Su family was a prominent family in Tiannan, after all—"

"A prominent family? What is a prominent family without power?" Su Yaoxue said with self-deprecation. "You are about to enter the Speaker’s Office as a member of the secretariat, so you’ll have some status and privileges now. Whether I am exaggerating or not, go find out for yourself. Do you truly believe those competitors of yours who act like gentlemen are actually good people? Do you think they would be magnanimous enough to spare an opponent after achieving victory? Wrong. More than ninety percent of losers are completely wiped out, leaving them no way out. Business wars are exactly the same."

She glanced at Su Yaoqin and the others with a look of disappointment. "You don't understand how to be prepared for danger in times of peace. You don't know your own place, and you take the blessings others give you for granted. If disaster strikes one day and you end up full of resentment and regret, will it be useful then? Will it have any meaning?"

Once these words were spoken, Su Yaoyu also found herself at a loss for words. Su Yaoqin was like a frost-bitten eggplant, hanging her head low. Su Yaoshuang, on the other hand, was stunned. Soon after, a flicker of something different appeared in her eyes as she looked at her second sister, as if she had found a new goal in life.

"Everyone thinks they are a princess, but many only see the glamour of a princess without seeing the essential skills required to become a qualified one. If you want to wear the crown, you must bear its weight." Su Yaoxue looked at the others, including Su Yaoyu.

She continued, "I am telling you all this just to let you know that in this world, nothing should be taken for granted. Even if you are currently benefiting from the rise of the Su family led by Yaoguang and can enjoy life to your heart's content, that is no reason for you to be indulgent or lax. On the contrary, you should seize this rare and precious opportunity to rise further and make yourselves constantly stronger."

"Uhh..." For a moment, they were all speechless. These words were a massive shock, not just to the sixteen-year-old Su Yaoqin, but even to Su Yaoyu.

"The greatest fortune for all of you, including myself, is that we are Yaoguang’s sisters. Moreover, Yaoguang is incredibly generous and willing to help us. This is the greatest blessing for you and me!" Su Yaoxue glanced at Su Yaoqin.

Her silly younger sister did not know how to take advantage of her luck; she was even unwilling to go and have a meal with Yaoguang. One had to realize how many royal families in the world today would be willing to go bankrupt just for such an opportunity, yet could not obtain it.

"If you don't understand this logic and fail to seize this opportunity, then decades from now, while I remain successful, you will be old and feeble, acting like shrews who only care about trivial matters and self-pity. Don't blame me for not warning you today..." Su Yaoxue’s tone carried a hint of indifference. "Of course, no matter what your future looks like, we are sisters. As long as I, Su Yaoxue, have something to eat, I will never let you starve to death."

Su Yaoyu, Su Yaoshuang, and Su Yaoqin looked at each other in silence. These words were truly too heavy for them. They needed time to digest it all. Su Yaoxue did not rush them. She had a premonition that Yaoguang ​​was gradually drawing a line between himself and others, pursuing the things he wanted to chase.

He could not stay with the Su family forever, acting as their guardian deity. Therefore, they had to become strong as quickly as possible so that the Su family would truly possess strength worthy of its current status.

Otherwise, if anything happened to Yaoguang, everything they currently possessed would be like a house of cards, liable to collapse at any moment.

The heavy atmosphere lasted for quite a while before Su Yaoyu, the eldest sister, finally connected the dots. "Yaoxue, are you saying—"

"Don't ask me; I don't know. I just have a habit of thinking about things in the worst possible way and preparing methods to deal with them in advance," Su Yaoxue interrupted.

"Then what... should we do?" Su Yaoyu asked.

"It’s not about what we should do, but..." Su Yaoxue tilted her head to look at her. "Whether you are willing to do it. If you are, just learn from me. Whatever I do, you do."

Since her sisters were too simple-minded, it was better not to let them use their brains.

"The same as you... Do you mean to practice martial arts with Yaoguang?"

"Yes." Su Yaoxue nodded. "In any environment, the most reliable things are only the skills and martial power you have mastered yourself."

***

The next day, the "sheep" Yaoguang had to herd increased by a few. Although he was somewhat surprised, he did not say anything. Teaching one person and teaching several people was still teaching anyway.

He would not force anyone to do anything, but if they had the motivation and will, he did not mind lending them a helping hand. Heaven helps those who help themselves.

Time slipped away in this remarkably mundane fashion. Six months later, the Star Gate completed its maintenance and underwent a new round of calibration. Another six months passed, and the calibration was finalized; the Star Gate was once again qualified for activation.

However, Yaoguang was in no hurry to start it. He left Yuhuang Mountain, bringing along Kong Fang, whose cultivation had skyrocketed to the level of a unified martial paragon after consuming many Soul-Nurturing Pills, and Lyu Tianhe, a psychic-will martial paragon. They arrived at the site of the Star Gate on Yujing Mountain.

Yet, they did not stay near the gate. Instead, they remained in an underground bunker over fifty kilometers away. The area surrounding the Star Gate was rigged with hundreds of nuclear bombs that could be detonated through various methods.

Even great cultivators powerful enough to have established a Dao Foundation could not withstand the direct heat of Great Solar Fire; at best, they could only intercept it in advance or use high-speed maneuvers to dodge it. Having hundreds of nuclear bombs ready to be detonated essentially ensured that even if a great cultivator charged through the Star Gate immediately upon its opening, the situation would remain somewhat under control.

"The appointed time has arrived." Inside the underground works, Yaoguang glanced at his watch. "A slight discrepancy in timing is normal."

Beside him stood Xie Tiandao, the newly appointed president of the Snowdragon Empire.

"Is it possible that the environment on the other side is no longer suitable for opening the Star Gate? Perhaps they are waiting for us to open it from this side?" Kong Fang suggested.

Yaoguang pondered for a moment before glancing at Xie Tiandao. "Then open the Star Gate. In the worst-case scenario, we simply wait another year."

Xie Tiandao nodded upon hearing those words. As the order was issued, every department mobilized. Simultaneously, a new team consisting of twenty martial paragons stood ready, prepared to replace Xie Yushu, Ji Pingtian, and the others to continue the exploration within the Star Gate.

A day later, the Star Gate’s activation reached its peak. Accompanied by a brilliant radiance that nearly illuminated all of Yujing Mountain, the Star Gate officially opened. Almost as soon as the connection was established, the staff responsible for monitoring the gate’s activity cried out, "According to observations, biological entities are passing through the Star Gate..."

Everyone tensed up at those words. Yaoguang's gaze fixed on the button before him; at the first sign of trouble, they would immediately detonate the nuclear weapons buried around the Star Gate to eliminate any invaders.

Under the silent watch of the entire room, several figures finally emerged from the Star Gate. When they saw the familiar faces appearing, everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief.

"It’s Xie Yushu!"

"Zong Yan is here too."

"Fantastic! They survived over there for a year and are safe." Suppressed cheers rippled through the underground facility.

Xie Tiandao immediately ordered, "Give them the communication devices. Establish a link; we need to know the specific situation regarding the Artifact Sect."

A moment after the order was given, Xie Yushu and Zong Yan received the equipment. As soon as the connection went through, Xie Yushu delivered the two pieces of news everyone wanted to hear most.

"We won the war against the Lunar Fiend Empire, but the Artifact Sect... is gone."