224: Chapter 224 She has missed you a lot these years

"I guess we're familiar... "

Shen Xingchen answered cautiously.

Without any warning, Jiang Shuo instantly became guarded and asked probingly, "How familiar?"

Shen Xingchen's lips froze. "This..."

How is he supposed to answer this?

Say they are familiar—familiar to the extent of kissing little lips and embracing a slender waist...

Or say they aren't familiar, that aside from kissing and holding each other while sleeping, they haven't done anything else.

Shen Xingchen was torn for a moment and couldn't speak.

Seeing Shen Xingchen's expression, Jiang Shuo set his mind at ease.

He was stuttering over such a simple question, so he must not have spoken much with his own precious daughter.

Jiang Shuo patted Shen Xingchen on the shoulder. "Young man, you need to work hard. The day you earn my approval, I'll introduce her to you, and you guys—"

"How about us?" Shen Xingchen's eyes lit up.

Looking at Shen Xingchen's expression, Jiang Shuo changed his tune and chuckled softly, "You can become sworn siblings!"

Shen Xingchen was covered in black lines. "..."

Old fellow, since you are unjust, don't blame me for being unrighteous!

Jiang Shuo continued talking to himself, "I suppose you must have seen my daughter from afar and were certainly captivated by her appearance, otherwise you wouldn't look forward to something so utterly impossible."

Shen Xingchen chimed in, "Yeah, yeah, so pretty."

Of course, if she wears the jade hairpin I gave her, she'll be even prettier...

Jiang Shuo's smile grew wider. "Your martial arts talent is indeed formidable, leaving no room for complaint, but you can't win my daughter's heart with just these. Look at you now, only able to stand aside and smile awkwardly."

Shen Xingchen nodded like a chick pecking at rice.

In the end, he still didn't say words like "old fellow, daughter, ghost fire", truly fearing that a King-tier expert would strike without measuring their strength and beat him up severely.

Jiang Shuo said with disdain, "Look at you, look at you, you only know how to nod. Can you find a partner with a mouth as clumsy as yours?"

Shen Xingchen endured and endured, finally shrugging helplessly.

Jiang Shuo completely let down his guard. His extraordinarily gifted and spiritual daughter could never like such a dazed boy.

He revealed a gentle smile. "I still remember when she was seven years old, she looked like a porcelain doll. Her eyes were like her mother's, as if they held ten thousand stars..."

"I was in too much of a hurry when I left back then; I should have said a proper goodbye. I can still even remember her bewildered and helpless face at the time of parting. Every time I recall it, my heart aches all over again."

Jiang Shuo seemed lost in his memories and no longer paid attention to Shen Xingchen's reaction.

Shen Xingchen quietly retreated from the conference hall, leaving this weathered man to have some peace alone.

"My daughter... is she doing well?"

Jiang Shuo's voice came from behind as he walked to the door.

This sentence sounded as if he was asking Shen Xingchen, and also as if he was asking himself, this irresponsible father.

Shen Xingchen's body slightly froze. After thinking for a moment, he said, "She misses you very much these years..."

...

Walking out of the conference hall.

Shen Xingchen did not presumptuously tell Jiang Qingyao that her father had come out of the ruins; all of this was best left to the father and daughter themselves.

As for the problem of the Third Branch of the Jiang Family, he would just wait for them to make their own decisions.

Shen Xingchen figured that the Jiang Family's fate would definitely be miserable. How could a family whose highest tier was only Tier 5 withstand the wrath of a King-tier expert?

Shen Xingchen walked toward the camp of the Xue Family Army.

At this moment.

Shen Xingchen suddenly noticed a figure wearing a leather jacket waiting for him beneath the city wall.

"Is there something you need, Marshal Yu?" asked Shen Xingchen.

Yu Juezhi walked to a position side by side with Shen Xingchen, his tone somewhat stern. "You are just an ungraduated student. I suggested in the council that you evacuate the battlefield, and everyone agreed. Why did you refuse? Do you know how dangerous it is for you to stay here!"

Shen Xingchen smiled faintly. "I've finished the mission you gave me, but I still have some things of my own to do."

Yu Juezhi was baffled. "What could you possibly have to do?"

You've only been in Snowfield Dragon City for a few days and haven't even known many people; what could possibly be so important?

Shen Xingchen said with a smile, "Believe it or not, I have a mission I must complete: kill demons, kill demons of sufficient quantity and quality."

Yu Juezhi froze.

Killing demons... what a pure matter. In his youth, he too had once vowed to wipe out all the demons.

So many years had passed, and that past goal had also turned into an out-of-reach dream. Yet, how much of this surging blood and passion could possibly remain?

Yu Juezhi sighed. "You still have time to grow. You can wait until your strength is sufficient before coming to kill them; the efficiency will be higher."

Shen Xingchen: "Me killing demons is my growth. Besides, my strength has long reached the standard for conscription. When Senior Brother Gu first arrived, he wasn't as strong as I am now."

Yu Juezhi said, "Why must you go to such lengths?"

In his view, it would be most suitable for Shen Xingchen to step onto the battlefield after graduating from university, when he reached Tier 7 or even Tier 8.

Shen Xingchen chuckled. "I didn't say I wouldn't go to school. I'll go back when the semester starts. Isn't this winter break? What's wrong with going out to do a part-time job?"

"..."

In the end, Yu Juezhi still couldn't persuade Shen Xingchen.

The two parted ways at the next intersection. At the final moment, Yu Juezhi just gave Shen Xingchen a somewhat helpless look.

...

Shen Xingchen walked back to the Xue Family Army camp alone.

When he arrived at the camp.

Liu Hero was bandaging his wounds by the campfire. There was a bowl-sized depression on the left side of his chest, and he was wincing in pain, baring his teeth.

Shen Xingchen walked over with a smile. "Need any help?"

Liu Hero was somewhat surprised. "Little Shen, to think you'd actually come back to our camp!"

He had watched with his own eyes as Shen Xingchen charged alone among Tier 7 and Tier 8 demons to reach the Land of Miracles.

He also saw how Shen Xingchen obtained the legendary Authority-tier power after Senior Zhou passed away.

A person like this... shouldn't be in the same dimension as them at all.

Shen Xingchen sat down beside him. "Why wouldn't I come back? I am still a glorious member of our Xue Family Army."

According to his estimation, even when rewards from the upper echelons came down, he would still just be an ordinary private second class.

Because his realm was right there; if his military rank were forcibly elevated, he would have to face opponents of higher tiers, needlessly increasing the risk of perishing.

Liu Hero laughed loudly. "Great, great, great! With you joining us, let's see who can beat our company in the next internal military competition."

Shen Xingchen grinned. "Look at your ambition. We are going to do great things; if we're going to compete, we should compete for first place in military achievements."

Liu Hero said speechlessly, "Look at your big ambitions!"

Shen Xingchen helped him bandage it, tying it into a bow at the end, and then said, "Old Liu, don't always rush to the very front in the future. You can rest appropriately; no one will say anything."

Liu Hero gave a carefree smile. "I am Tier 7. If I don't rush to the front, a lot of brothers will die."

"Still, you can't—"

"Aigo, just stop worrying about me," Liu Hero interrupted.

"..."

Shen Xingchen seemed to be able to empathize with Yu Juezhi's helplessness.

After half a minute of silence, Liu Hero suddenly spoke up. "Wang Teng is dead."

He said these words very calmly, but anyone could hear the suppressed emotion within them.

Shen Xingchen's hand froze mid-action, and his heart was fiercely jabbed.

He remembered that he was a somewhat shy boy from the higher institution Fengyun University, very polite, and would even politely introduce himself during duels.

"Mm." This voice was very soft.

Shen Xingchen abruptly turned his head away, sniffed, and said no more.