Chapter 9: Family Secret
Fang Xuan stood at the front door of his home.
Normally, the ceremony would continue with a festival till night time, featuring delicious food, wines, alcohols, performances, and gifts for those who scored high.
Wealthy families and elders would offer these gifts to build connections, especially to those who performed really well, like Dong Huiqing and Ma Lifen.
But none of this concerned him. He was a loser, a reject, and trash.
"I'm home," he called out as he opened the door to his house. He made sure he was smiling to mask his true feelings.
"Welcome back," his mother, Liu Ming, replied with a warm smile. She was carrying a basket full of freshly washed clothing and robes.
She noticed his bruised face but chose not to say anything on it, knowing it would only hurt him more.
Instead, she decided to treat this like any other day. She hadn't really expected him to pass the test because of his weak body.
"I'll go back to my room," he mumbled, heading towards the stairs.
Liu Ming nodded and watched her son's back as he walked away, feeling a deep sense of guilt that she had failed him as a mother.
'Should I tell him the truth?' she pondered, her mind racing to a secret they had been hiding for so long.
But the fear of the unknown gripped her heart. Whatever they had discovered 16 years ago could potentially put this world in danger. Was it really worth it to tell her son the truth and put everyone at risk?
'That thing... It's too dangerous,' she whispered, gripping her chest.
Just imagining the horror she experienced 13 years ago was enough to make her tremble.
She loved Fang Xuan deeply and preferred to keep him safe as a normal person.
However, she could see that he was growing weaker as he got older. At this rate, he might really get sick to the point that it would endanger his life.
'I'll talk to Fang Zuan after he gets home,' she mused to herself. He deserved to be consulted first since they raised Fang Xuan together.
The truth was, Liu Ming and Fang Zuan weren't even a real couple.
Fang Zuan had an affliction that made his libido non existent, making him struggled to get in the mood at all.
This made him insecure, and he didn't want his family to find out. So, the two of them decided to pretend to be a couple, masking his problem.
And this was also around the time when they found Fang Xuan. They adopted him and pretended he was their son.
After that incident 13 years ago, they returned to their hometown and decided to lived a normal life.
As her mind wandered on what to do, she found herself walking into a cellar located below their kitchen.
It looked quite normal, with rough stone making up the structure. There were plenty of dry foods, herbs, and some inexpensive wine stored there.
But she didn't come here for any of that.
Instead, she decided to open a secret room located behind a stack of crates.
There it was: a completely jet-black, egg-shaped object sitting in the dust.
And along with it were dozens of black chains with talismans on them, preventing whatever entity lurked inside from getting out.
"Please tell me... Why did you make him do that?" she asked, her memory flashing to a past that still haunted her until now.
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone