Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

There was an odd pause as the woman frowned.

She wasn't quite middle-aged, but there were definitely some faint signs of age on her once delicate face.

Considering she dared to live out in the middle of the wilderness alone, her strength wasn't bad. But she was still only in the Divine Vessel Realm. Though, it seemed that it might not be long before she had a chance to break into the Connecting Heaven Realm.

She wore simple clothing, a pair of loose pants and shirt. Her hair was a bit messy, but the sort of messy that said she had been working all day, not the sort that made one feel like she didn't care for herself. Stay connected with empire

In her palm, though, she held a bloodied rag that smelled of beast. Maybe she had just gone hunting and used it to clean her knives, or maybe something else was going on.

For a moment, the two just stared at one another for a while before her eyes opened wide.

"You…"

Her pupils trembled.

She didn't know why it took her so long to remember that face. It had hardly changed at all, though it had somehow become more perfect than she remembered.

No… that wasn't the case. She knew exactly why.

In her mind, Ryu wasn't a man, he was practically mythology. That part of her life was something that she had long forgotten, pushing it down and erasing it.

There was too much hurt, too much pain. And… truthfully speaking, the two were from completely different worlds.

Much like Ailsa had said back then, Taedra's peak in this life would likely be the Path Extinction Realm and no further.

That said, after what Ryu left, and given Matheus'—her brother's—talent, Ryu expected her to have accomplished more by now.

It had to be remembered that geniuses of Sacrum made it to the Connecting Heaven Realm by age 100. Of course, those were Shrine Plane talents, not Blossom Plane talents like Taedra.

But… it was still honestly a bit disappointing.

Not everyone had the passion for cultivating, and it was clear by how long it took her to recognize him that he wasn't a figure at the forefront of her mind either.

Of course, Ryu didn't care very much about this. If not for Aika, he wouldn't have ever stirred up the intention to go and find this woman. He would have also cleverly avoided the topic with his mother.

But since it had been brought to the forefront of his thoughts, he couldn't just ignore it. Otherwise, it would bother him and his qi would no longer flow freely.

Taedra took a deep breath and exhaled, regaining her bearings.

She was no longer a little girl. As bad as her experiences with Ryu were, she didn't have much ill intent toward him either. They were just people from different worlds, and honestly speaking… she should be thanking him for the opportunities he allowed her brother to have.

She didn't know where Matheus was right now, but she knew that he was living the life he wanted to live as the genius he was.

Her brother deserved to become a great Sky God in the future. While she… she had no Fate with such things.

After collecting herself, Taedra bowed respectfully.

"Taedra greets Lord Husband."

Ryu didn't react to this very much. It could only be said that this woman was quite intelligent. It was obvious that she had basically never thought of him in his absence, at least not after she got over the initial event, but she still used such a greeting.

She knew that with Ryu's strength, even though she couldn't see through it, if he had kept even a fraction of his talent he would be able to kill her with a thought.

Such men, even for women they had discarded, wouldn't tolerate even the slightest bit of disrespect in this regard.

She could only thank herself for being lucky enough that she hadn't fallen for another man.

In the past, Ryu had told her that if she ran into someone she fell for, she should feel free to marry. Back then, his heart had been dead set on Elena, to the point he even ignored his own Life Partner, so obviously, Tae wouldn't receive any special treatment in this regard.

Taedra had mostly taken those words to heart back then. But now… she had matured considerably, and she had seen too much of the world.

Only a naive woman would believe in such words so casually. A promise made by a teenager to another teenager could hardly hold up to the test of time.

Of course, she still didn't know that Ryu had already been over a thousand years old in lived experience back then.

Ironically, after his Rebirth stalled his aging, they were about the same age now.

"Where are Matheus and your father?" Ryu eventually asked.

Taedra slowly raised her head. "… My father died in the war for the Blossom Plane. As for my brother, I have not seen him in several centuries."

"I see."

Ryu nodded. A silence fell between the two of them.

Taedra shifted somewhat uncomfortably beneath Ryu's gaze, not quite knowing what to do. But she had a staunchness to her that surprised Ryu nonetheless.

"Would you like to see your brother?" Ryu asked.

Taedra blinked in surprise. "I…"

She didn't know what to say. Was Ryu just asking to be polite? Did he even know where he was? Could he bring her there?

Ryu suddenly smiled, leaving Taedra in a daze.

"You can be honest. Since you call me Lord Husband after all of this time, how can I not treat you with some modicum of respect?"

Taedra found herself truly starstruck. She never thought that words she had spoken for no other reason than to spare her own life would be painted in such a light.

Inwardly, she couldn't help but feel slightly embarrassed and she began to fidget about things she hadn't even considered before.

Did she smell? How terrible did her hair look right now? Why had she chosen to wear this today, didn't she have anything better?

"So?" Ryu asked again, his smile not fading.

"I… yes. Yes, I do want to see my brother."

"Alright. Then come." Ryu held out a hand.