Grand Ancestral Bloodlines

Lysander watched the scene of his daughter and son-in-law with a cocked eyebrow. At the moment, he was a bit speechless because...

Where was the trial?

Ryu was just walking as though it was a leisurely stroll and hadn't seemed to have been assaulted by anything yet, which was entirely atypical of this Holy Ground.

While they were standing in place, it still made sense for there to be no movement, but after walking up the first mountain range? That was impossible.

His plan had already gone awry after Ryu chose to carry Selheira, but he had hoped that Ryu would at least suffer for this choice and then things could go back to square one.

But it didn't happen like that at all. Ryu was strolling through their Holy Ground as though it wasn't a Holy Ground at all.

'Who gave this brat such a strong Dao Heart?'

His daughter seemed blissfully unaware of what was going on. She should have been just as shocked, but she was so lost in her fantasy world of learning about her husband that she didn't seem to care at all. It was like in Ryu's presence, she had completely shut off her brain, letting him handle everything.

Lysander sighed. "Raising a daughter is really a thankless job."

His daughter's temperament was excellent, and that wasn't just his bias as a father speaking. She was strong, meticulous, she was certain in her own path and willing to divert from the teachings of even a powerhouse like him and her mother if it meant dancing to the beat of her own tune.

And yet, the daughter he knew had become a blubbering fool he could practically see hearts in the eyes of.

Seeing this scene, he had hints of worry in his eyes. It wasn't because of his daughter's actions, per se. After a small interaction with Ryu, he quite liked this son-in-law of his.

Ryu was quite arrogant, but he also seemed willing to embarrass himself a little bit if it meant appeasing his women. That much was clear from their conversation, especially when he tried and failed to make small talk.

A man like that, though his talent seemed to be a bit lacking, was worthy of his daughter. That much he was happy about.

The trouble was that Selheira seemed to have fallen head over heels much too quickly, and it wasn't her fault.

Lysander sighed. He knew that this was a consequence of the path she had chosen.

When Selheira met Ryu, she had found herself at a crossroads. Down one path was the act of following her bestial instincts and giving herself to the man that could make her submit. Down the other path was firmly suppressing those instincts and taking another large step down the path of being human.

Unfortunately, she either didn't have the necessary Dao Heart, or she was too immature to realize how important the choice was in her path.

Lysander actually believed that it was the latter. Considering his daughter's determination, if she knew that falling for Ryu would hinder her path, she would have never done it. She would have rather cut off this budding love than fall into its abyss.

And that was part of the problem... it was hard to have the wisdom of a Crystal Dragon if the wisdom you wanted was exactly what you were running from.

Her path had not conflicted in ways she was probably too immature to even notice now.

This sort of matter could only end badly, and figuratively speaking, one of them would have to die.

Either his daughter would die, letting her dreams fade away into the ether, never to be relived again. Or... his son-in-law would die, losing the wife he clearly cared for.

'Maybe my old age has made me muddled...' Lysander thought. '... Maybe there's a third path that I have just yet to see...'

"... I don't know," Selheira responded. "I've never really thought about having children either. It would be very hard..."

Ryu knew that Selheira didn't mean in a physical sense, though that would probably be accurate as well. She probably didn't want her children to face the same fate she did, chained by their Bloodline and their talents.

"Well, we have time. I'm sure that I can help you with your path," Ryu said with a smile.

"Can you?"

She sounded both hopeful and a bit helpless. She wanted to believe, but... how could someone help another's comprehension? Things simply didn't work like that?

But then again, her husband did have a Founding Dao. That was something even her father didn't have, maybe he could?

She honestly wasn't sure.

"Hm..." Ryu mumbled. "I've been thinking about a lot of things recently. While I was speaking with my master, I was sent across Existence and I saw many things that I could have never imagined."

"Like?"

"There was a world of mere mortals capable of harnessing the powers of Stars to travel across the cosmos. It was maybe the most impressive thing that I've ever seen."

"Mortals?" Selheira's brows jumped, feeling extremely surprised. She found it hard to believe, but she didn't think that Ryu would lie to her, nor would he make such a foolish decision.

"I was surprised as well. But I double and triple checked. Even a child of this world who hadn't cultivated even a day yet could kill them with a slap, and yet they accomplished so many fantastical things.

"What was most impressive about them, though, was that they were perfectly capable of passing on their knowledge from person to person...

"Their advancements weren't made in a single generation like most are forced to here. In fact, even for Clans and Sects of the True Martial World who want to maintain their power, it's necessary for them to give up a great deal, sacrificing potential for sustainability.

"But these mortals continuously improved from generation to generation simply by passing down their knowledge... something we "immortals" are completely unable to do to the same effectiveness.

"It made me wonder... if there was a way."