Jian Ruyan sighed deeply and said, "Just because of that Ice Phoenix Curse Mark, you're certain I'm Xiang Yinxui? Isn't that a bit too childish?"
Mu Jinyu replied, "It's not childish at all, because that Ice Phoenix Curse Mark is not something that can be cast by just any secret technique. Ah-Xiang has it on his face too, I don't know if you've ever seen it."
"He has it too?" Jian Ruyan couldn't help but ask.
"Yes, but he rarely uses it, because if he uses it too much, he easily loses control and his consciousness gets dominated by a murderous intent."
Mu Jinyu explained, "Do you know why my master eventually took Ah-Xiang as his disciple?"
Jian Ruyan asked, "Isn't it because if your master hadn't taken him, then you wouldn't have joined either?"
"Initially, that was indeed the case," Mu Jinyu said. "My master reluctantly accepted him as a disciple. Under those circumstances, my master couldn't possibly teach Ah-Xiang everything he knew. My pleading was futile, since he was only a registered disciple at that time..."
"But later, my master incidentally discovered that when Ah-Xiang lost control of his emotions, the Vermilion Phoenix Pattern would appear on his face. That's when he decided to make him a direct disciple, just like me, and taught him everything he knew, of course, excluding the art of medicine because Ah-Xiang really had no talent in medical arts."
"Just because of that Vermilion Phoenix Pattern, what does this curse mark represent?" Jian Ruyan was somewhat shocked and hurriedly asked.
Mu Jinyu said, "My master's explanation was that it represents a kind of Bloodline Power. You know, before me, Dragon King Hall was essentially a single lineage, always undertaken by people from the Su family. My grandfather could become the Dragon King, not just because of his strength, but also because he had the Dragon Clan's Bloodline within him."
"My body also contains traces of the Dragon Clan's Bloodline, but it cannot be activated, so I can't show you what the Azure Dragon Pattern looks like."
Mu Jinyu said with some regret.
"So you're saying..." Jian Ruyan frowned and said, "The Ice Phoenix Curse Mark on my forehead is actually a kind of Bloodline Power. No wonder they always kept it a secret from me."
She continued, "But my curse mark is clearly different from Tianshu's... from my brother's Vermilion Phoenix Pattern, isn't it? How could you be certain that I am Xiang Yinxui?"
Mu Jinyu laughed and said, "Without the special treatment you and Ah-Xiang received, I wouldn't have thought much about your Ice Phoenix Mark. But how could I not guess, considering how exceptionally kind you are to Ah-Xiang, to the point of making people jealous, and having such a similar Ice Phoenix Mark?"
As he spoke, Mu Jinyu frowned and said, "But since you have already found Ah-Xiang, why have you never acknowledged him? Why did you let him keep searching for you, and recently, he even got hurt by others because of it?!"
Mu Jinyu's tone at the end had a questioning and pressing implication.
If it wasn't for Jian Ruyan's relationship with Xiang Mantang, he would probably start teaching Jian Ruyan a lesson right now for this kind of playacting that almost got him killed.
Upon hearing Mu Jinyu's questioning, Jian Ruyan's face turned deathly pale. She lowered her head and said, "I'm sorry, I didn't want this either. I really wish to acknowledge my brother, but I'm sorry..."
Mu Jinyu furrowed his brows, stopped walking, turned around to look at her, and asked, "Is there some kind of difficulty you're facing?"
"Don't ask anymore, I can't tell you!" Jian Ruyan said with a pale face.
"Forget it." Mu Jinyu didn't press her further.
After all, Jian Ruyan was still Xiang Mantang's sister.
Just then, Mu Jinyu's phone suddenly rang.
He took it out and saw it was a call from Gu Xiyan.
"Hello, what's the matter?"
Upon connecting, Ji stirred with Gu Xiyan's panicked voice and the sounds of sobbing that could still be heard, alongside gentle utterances, "Jinyu, over here, someone just..."
"Someone suddenly became very terrifying, like an evil ghost, and attacked us... but they didn't succeed. They are still fighting with the bodyguards you sent us..."
"Hmm?" Mu Jinyu listened to Gu Xiyan's somewhat unclear words, his eyes widened in urgency. "You guys quickly hide first, then prick your finger to see if there is any change in the blood. If there is, separate immediately, I'll be right back..."
After instructing Gu Xiyan on what to do in this situation, he immediately hung up the phone.
He was ready to head back to the Huaxia Capital City but then paused, his expression tangled in conflict.
On one hand, Xiang Mantang was being eroded by a dark source, and the specifics were unknown; on the other, his family might have been attacked by a terrible calamity, and he simply couldn't leave!
"You go back, I will find Brother myself!"
Jian Ruyan noticed Mu Jinyu's distress and offered understandingly.
After his expression shifted several times, he sighed, "Then you track the dark source, be extremely careful, and make sure not to get into trouble. Otherwise, once Ah-Xiang is back to normal, she would definitely blame me for not protecting you well!"
Having said that, he didn't linger any longer and immediately dashed toward the nearby airport to hurry back to the Capital City.
Mu Jinyu really had no other choice.
Regarding Xiang Mantang, firstly, even if he went there, he really had no solution; secondly, Jian Ruyan was already on her way to check it out.
As for Gu Xiyan and others, since they had all come to the Capital City and were now under attack by demon minions presumably left from the previous calamity, they were ordinary people and needed his immediate rescue even more.
Moreover, Su Zijin was also there.
He couldn't disregard the safety of so many people and continue to search for Xiang Mantang!
"Ah-Xiang, I'm sorry, last time I abandoned mom and Xiyan to save you. This time, I can't go to help you again, I need to save them!"
Mu Jinyu murmured to himself in his heart.
He knew that by deciding to return to the Capital City to save Gu Xiyan and the others, he would essentially need to keep them protected, or ensure they were definitely safe before he could find time to continue investigating Xiang Mantang's disappearance and find a way to save him…
He felt very reluctant, but in the world, there are very few perfect solutions. Often, at the crossroads of life, making one difficult decision can influence your entire life.
...
Capital City.
Inside the Su Family Courtyard.
Gu Xiyan and Su Zijin, along with a few other women, watched in panic as one of their suddenly demonized bodyguards fought against their other bodyguards!
"Roar!!"
A long-haired demon with protruding sharp teeth and continuously drooling, sporting a malevolently twisted face like that of an evil ghost, swung its chillingly sharp claws in a battle with several members of the Dragon King Hall protecting Su Zijin.
Its nails, over a meter long and sharp as swords, endangered the Dragon King Hall members with each strike, bringing them close to peril several times.
"What on earth is this thing, and why has Little Zhang suddenly turned into this?"
Su Zijin and the others, trembling with fear, stared at the demonized Little Zhang.
Gu Xiyan tried to remain calm and said, "I will call Jinyu and see what's going on."
As she spoke, she took out her phone and dialed Mu Jinyu's number, looking up at the dark haze in the sky while waiting for the connection.