The arrests and interrogations of Brotherhood members were very busy, but Chen Fan found himself relaxed.
These matters were being handled by a large number of official personnel, and his task was essentially complete.
Therefore, after leaving the Dawn Base, he went to the Chen family home.
“Grandpa, Little Xing’er!”
Entering the backyard where his grandfather resided, Chen Fan saw the elder playing chess with Chen Xing’er and went over to greet them.
“Tianjiao is back!”
Grandfather looked up, glanced at Chen Fan, and nodded, “You did well.”
With his extensive network of information, he was naturally aware of the Brotherhood’s downfall.
“It wasn’t a complete success.”
Chen Fan said, “Wu Zhaohui and Lu Bicheng both escaped.”
“In this world, struggles and compromises often coexist; complete victories are rare!”
Grandfather said. “To eradicate them completely often only leads to a cornered beast’s fight.”
“What do you mean, Grandpa?” Chen Fan was taken aback.
“I mean nothing else. You understand all the principles now, and there’s no need for me to say more. I am very relieved to hand over the Chen family to you!”
Grandfather said with a smile.
“Grandpa, hurry up and make your move!”
Chen Xing’er urged impatiently.
Grandfather unhurriedly placed a piece.
Chen Xing’er smiled slyly and immediately made a move to entangle the position.
Chen Fan, paying no attention to the game, asked, “Did the Wu family approach you?”
“Naturally, someone conveyed messages. Not just the Wu family, but also the Yuan family.”
Grandfather smiled at Chen Fan and said, “Even the Xiang family!”
“The Xiang family sent you a message?”
Chen Fan asked in surprise.
“The head of the Xiang family intends to arrange a marriage alliance,” Grandfather chuckled heartily. “Between you and Xiang Jingzhu!”
Chen Fan’s mouth fell open, unable to close.
He recalled Xiang Jingzhu’s somewhat unusual expression when he saw her today; she already knew.
Xiang Jingzhu was highly favored in the Xiang family, and any marriage alliance would have been discussed with her.
“Grandpa, let’s see how your big dragon escapes now?”
Chen Xing’er joyfully placed a piece and said, “You’ve lost. No immortal can save you now.”
With a triumphant look, Chen Xing’er turned to Chen Fan and said, “Sister Jingzhu is very good. Chen Tianjiao, you should just go along with it!”
“A strong alliance between two major families will bring endless benefits to the Chen family. You won’t lose out, will you?”
“I was distracted when your brother arrived. If you won, then you won,” Grandfather put down his chess piece and looked at Chen Fan.
Chen Fan gave Chen Xing’er a glare and said, “In a few days, I will set off for Kunlun.”
“Kunlun?” Chen Xing’er blinked and asked, “To find Su Yingxue?”
Chen Fan nodded. “Yes.”
He turned to his grandfather and said, “Grandpa, please don’t casually agree to such matters. I will marry only Su Yingxue in this life.”
“Don’t worry, Grandpa has already said that your marriage is your own decision, and I will not interfere!”
Grandfather said. “However, if you find it difficult to refuse, I can convey the message to the head of the Xiang family myself.”
“Alright.”
Chen Fan nodded and said, “What about the messages from the Wu and Yuan families?”
“You are in charge of the Chen family now.”
Grandfather smiled and said, “As for me, I will enjoy my leisure and old age.”
Chen Fan nodded upon hearing this. His grandfather was over ninety, and indeed, he shouldn’t be worrying about anything anymore.
However, he might not be able to stay in the capital forever, so he needed to make arrangements.
After chatting with his grandfather for a while and staying for dinner, Chen Fan returned home with Chen Xing’er.
On the way, Chen Fan asked about Yuan Che and learned that Cao Wan and Yuan Che were already a couple.
When Wu Zhaohui showed Chen Fan the live video on the ‘Mayflower,’ Cao Wan was having dinner with Yuan Che.
This meant that Cao Wan’s constant proximity to Chen Xing’er during this period was for another purpose.
After the incident, Cao Wan felt too ashamed to face Chen Xing’er.
“What do you plan to do about your relationship with Cao Wan?” Chen Fan asked.
“What else can I do? Forgive her,” Chen Xing’er said. “I wasn’t hurt, but our relationship will definitely maintain a distance from now on, and it can never go back to how it was.”
Chen Fan also felt a bit emotional. Cao Wan had definitely been manipulated by the Brotherhood.
But what was done was done, and it couldn’t truly be forgiven.
The next morning, there was a knock at the door.
Chen Xing’er’s assistant, Shi Xiaoyan, opened the door and saw Huangfu Xi standing outside.
Chen Fan was quickly alerted and came out personally to greet her.
“The environment here is quite nice.”
Huangfu Xi looked around and commented.
Chen Fan smiled, “It’s still not comparable to Kunlun, is it?”
“It’s different. Kunlun is a utopia, far from the troubles of the secular world.”
Chen Fan invited Huangfu Xi to sit and, as promised, retrieved the not-yet-complete Dragon Pattern Compass.
Upon receiving it, Huangfu Xi examined it carefully and sensed the mysterious power within. She said, “Brother Chen, this Dragon Pattern Compass has already become your life-bound artifact!”
“Life-bound artifact?”
“It’s the most important artifact,” Huangfu Xi explained. “It’s connected to your mind and soul. If it were damaged, it would greatly affect your cultivation and state. However, there’s no need to worry about that. Once you have a more powerful and important artifact, and after a period of refining, it will naturally replace this one.”
As she spoke, she carefully examined the inscriptions on it.
After a while, she said, “Exchanging the Illusion God Pearl for the Dragon Pattern Compass, it seems I got the better end of the deal.”
“You recognize the inscriptions on it?” Chen Fan asked.
“I recognize some of them. These inscriptions are actually ancient runes. Each rune has a specific meaning, and when combined, they not only form the characteristics of an artifact but also possess some special and concrete significance!” Huangfu Xi said.
“I hope Brother Huangfu can enlighten me!”
Chen Fan said.
“Runes can be regarded as specific characters, but each rune contains many meanings, much like a single word in our everyday vocabulary having multiple interpretations,” Huangfu Xi explained. “However, runes have even more meanings, so I don’t understand all of them, especially since this compass is incomplete! However, the inscriptions record the specific location and method of opening a secret realm in Kunlun.”
“Kunlun secret realm?” Chen Fan’s heart tightened.
He had actually guessed something.
He had managed to decipher some of the inscriptions through guesswork and by consulting ancient texts.
But clearly, Huangfu Xi knew more.
“It says that the secret realm is located on a peak in the Kunlun Mountains, southeast of a place called Liusu Mountain. One must possess the compass and have a special bloodline to open and enter it!” Huangfu Xi said.
“Special bloodline?” Chen Fan was startled.
“It should be the descendant of the senior who created that secret realm,” Huangfu Xi said. “Whose bloodline descendant it is, however, is unknown.”
Chen Fan only knew that the compass pointed to a location within the Kunlun Mountains, but he hadn’t expected that a specific bloodline would be required for entry.
Could it be the bloodline of a descendant of the Su family?
A thought flashed through his mind, and Chen Fan asked, “Brother Huangfu, are there many secret realms in Kunlun? What is the relationship between this secret realm and the one you came from?”
Huangfu Xi shook her head and said, “How can there be many secret realms? This is the first time I have explicitly known of another secret realm’s existence. As for their relationship, I am also unclear. ‘Liusu Mountain’ should be an ancient name, and its exact location is not clear. The Kunlun mountain range spans tens of thousands of miles. Without a specific location, one could search a lifetime and still not find it.”