Luo Ming, with Meng Lin beside him, stood outside the Clan, the humongous black door just behind them.
Two Clan guards stood there, expressions like frozen stone, hands hovering constantly near the long swords at their waists.
Considering how fast the Luo Clan was, it wouldn’t take them more than a second to unsheath their swords.
Luo Ming and Meng Lin, however, paid them no mind.
"We’re going alone?" He asked his mother, voice low as he took in the sight of the bustling city, people moving back and forth, absorbed in their own tasks.
Everyone bowed their heads in respect the moment they noticed them.
The air felt somehow sharp against the skin, and the sound of feet shuffling, grating, slapping the ground filled the space around them.
The city was alive.
And Luo Ming was alive with it.
"We’re not technically alone." Meng Lin said, pointing to her shadow with a slender index finger, "Sheng Ru is with us. She’s always with us."
As if to prove her point, Sheng Ru poked her head out of Meng Lin’s shadow, giving Luo Ming a smile.
"Greetings, young master."
"Hi, Aunt Ru." Luo Ming replied cheerfully, waving at her, "Glad to know you’re with us."
Sheng Ru giggled at him, then slipped back into the shadow, her voice echoing behind.
"It’s my honor, young master."
Meng Lin and Luo Ming’s lips curled up.
"You know," she said, lifting her head just in time to catch something flying through the air, coming straight toward them, "I was going to make Shen Rou your shadow. She was your maid, she was perfect for it."
"You’ve told me that." Luo Ming nodded, following his mother’s gaze. As it drew closer, he realized it was a flying carriage — one without a driver, or even a mount.
’A transport artifact.’
"But she dared to do this to you." She continued, shaking her head.
"It’s alright, Mother. I’ll find my own shadow eventually." He replied.
The carriage finally touched down in front of them with a sharp gust of wind.
Meng Lin lazily waved a hand, fragmenting the wind and dissipating it entirely.
Still, that didn’t stop their robes from fluttering sporadically.
Finally, Luo Ming got a good look at the carriage. It was painted black and red, the colors of the Luo Clan, with a raven proudly inscribed on its side.
It was made of a strange metal he couldn’t quite place. The wheels were etched all over with runic inscriptions.
The door creaked open slowly, revealing a luxurious interior.
"Let’s go," Meng Lin said, taking her son’s hand, "We have about half an hour of travel ahead."
"Aye." He nodded, following her in.
Soon, they boarded the flying carriage under the watchful eyes of the Luo guards, and the unseen watchers hiding among them.
The door closed behind them, and the carriage lifted off immediately.
And as always, Luo Ming inspected the carriage with Soul Record, trying to make a habit of using it constantly.
...
There was barely any conversation inside the flying carriage. Meng Lin, once she’d said everything she needed to, sank into deep meditation, cultivating even under these circumstances.
Luo Ming wasn’t at that level yet. He needed absolute stability and focus to cultivate properly.
He had neither.
He tried striking up a conversation with Sheng Ru, but she clearly wasn’t the talkative type.
All that was left for him was to think about what he’d do once they arrived.
Well, it was already obvious.
He would pursue Wei Bing. Sincerely. And since he had no interest in Wei Ting, he was considering shifting the engagement from Wei Ting to Wei Bing.
’Hope the Wei Clan will accept. I mean, she’s older than me, but that shouldn’t matter.’
Luo Ming smiled softly, suddenly catching his own reflection in one of the small mirrors adorning the carriage.
A thought struck him.
’I’ve never used Soul Record on myself, have I?’ He realized suddenly, ’Is that even possible?’
It should be.
He focused on his own reflection in the mirror and used Soul Record with the intent to examine himself.
Light flashed before him, and Luo Ming had to suppress a burst of joy as he read his own information.
[Name: Luo Ming]
[Age: 18]
[Cultivation: Seedling (Third Root)]
[Soulblades: Soul Record, Affinity of the Damned.]
[Bloodline: Unawakened.]
[Unique Karma: Anomaly]
[Cultivation Technique: Breath of Raven’s Cry.]
[Martial Arts: Three Fists of Defense.]
[Description: He is not the real Luo Ming, yet he is the real Luo Ming. With the goal of a family burning in his chest, he plans to do whatever it takes to survive...even if it means courting a demonic regressor.]
Luo Ming noticed nothing unusual compared to other people’s panels, except for the Unique Karma entry.
He frowned slightly, unsure what it meant.
But that lasted only a moment, as more information surfaced when he probed deeper with Soul Record.
His eyes widened slightly in surprise. ’Oh...the template of a Heaven Chosen?’
Every Heaven Chosen carried a Unique Karma tied to them, something that granted them advantages of one kind or another.
His own, however, was different.
He’d gained it through his reincarnation into this world as Luo Ming, bringing with him anomalies unnatural to this reality.
His Unique Karma meant he didn’t fully register as either Heaven Chosen or Villain.
He sat somewhere in between: an anomaly capable of becoming either, unbound by either path.
’This is incredible.’ He thought, pleased.
What surprised Luo Ming, though, was that he saw no such Unique Karma on Wei Bing or Wei Ting, which meant they weren’t as special as they seemed.
’Interesting.’ He murmured to himself, just as his mother’s eyes snapped open.
"We’ve arrived." She intoned, and Luo Ming felt the carriage touch down.
He straightened his clothes and took one last look at himself in the mirror. Then, without another word, the two of them stepped out, finding themselves face-to-face with a large house painted white and blue.
Just in front of the gate, where the character Wei was boldly inscribed, three people stood waiting, servants and guards arranged behind them.
There was Wei Bing, her flat blue eyes fixed directly on Luo Ming. Next to her, Wei Ting, eyes darting nervously, her left leg unable to stop tapping against the ground, clearly fighting the urge to rush toward Luo Ming and stop him from saying anything.
And then, finally, a woman. Older-looking, somewhere around 40, dressed in a luxurious white-and-blue robe. Her eyes were golden and fox-like, her hair a midnight black that fell past her hips.
She was tall, adorned with jewelry made of gold, some pieces set with jade.
She was Fang Meiyan, mother of Wei Bing and Wei Ting.
And she was staring at Luo Ming with searing, intense eyes, her golden gaze glowing with something akin to...
’Fuck.’ Luo Ming shuddered with realization.
...hunger.
"Oh my~"
—End of Chapter 20—