Supreme Emperor of Mist

"Welcome back, your highness." the housekeeper of Sun Wu Jian's personal manor greeted him the moment the forces returned. Only half of them returned this time from the initial 120 people during their departure.

The tear of joy and sadness mixed together as the people met.

Some people were happy as their child, spouse or father managed to came home after the expedition. But amongst them were people who cried in sadness because a member of their family failed to return.

Those with a complete corpse can still be buried honorably, but not all of them were as lucky as this.

Facing those who lost their family members, Sun Wu Jian speaks with them personally while delivering his regret and apology for being a weak leader.

"You're a murderer! Why can't you save my son? He's our family's only male child! Our family is going to end at my generation... God, where did I do wrong?" a father cries as he knelt on the ground after hearing the death of his only son.

"No... How are we going to survive after this? I'm just a weak woman... Without the father, is there a meaning for me to continue to live?"" a pregnant woman collapsed. Luckily, there are two other women beside her when she fell.

"Father! Please come back! Don't go with this weak prince anymore!" a daughter begged her father to return home.

The scene unfolding before Qin Lan made him remembered his past. Not even his glorious Kuangshan Lu Sect millenniums ago are capable of escaping this fate of returning home with sadness and joy.

After compensating those who lost a family member and also paying the wages for those who managed to return, Sun Wu Jian went to the grand hall of his manor in a solemn mood.

"Your highness, would you like to have a cup of wine first?" Qin Lan entered the hall uninvited.

"Why not? Let me thanks brother Qin first for being this understanding towards an incompetent prince." Sun Wu Jian waved his hand at the other servants to allow them to excuse themselves.

"Will it be the wine I had before on my first visit to your humble spiritual cave? The taste of that wine still lingers in between my lips..." Sun Wu Jian asked.

"Yes. But do your highness know how the wine came into life?" Qin Lan made a hole on the red wrapping paper before pouring it into two cups.

"Brother Qin's art of winemaking should be something a talentless individual like me never witnessed before. Please," Sun Wu Jian humbly surrenders as he raised the cup first to make a toast.

"Talentless? Your highness is too humble. If talentless is a weakness like your highness said, then how can this wine made from mere Rock Lotus Fruit capable of leaving a lingering taste in your lips?" Qin Lan replied.

"Rock Lotus Fruit?" Sun Wu Jian placed the cup down and stares at the wine jar. A part of him is unwilling to believe Qin Lan's word.

"Brother Qin, please don't make fun of me." Sun Wu Jian poured another cup for himself before he filled Qin Lan's cup.

"What the fun of making fun of someone?" Qin Lan finished his cup of wine in a gulp and replied.

"The Rock Lotus Fruit is indeed the main ingredient of this brew. But instead of forcing it to bring out all the flavor by itself, I've used a few other medicinal herbs to bring out its flavor before cooking it along with the wine biscuit."

"The end product is what we're drinking now. The path to sovereignty is the same." Qin Lan added.

"..." 

Sun Wu Jian remained silent as he finished his third cup of wine.

"Brother Qin... I want to become a king. Can you help me?" Sun Wu Jian asked. In exchange for his honesty, Qin Lan could only smile.

...

...

...

"Farewell, brother Sun. Let's meet each other again back in the Cloud Plucking Sect." Qin Lan bid his farewell with Sun Wu Jian and the others as he returns to the sect on a horse. Following behind him are Lu Yi, Lu Qing Yun, and Huo Zunjie.

It was a rewarding trip to them this time as Qin Lan managed to procure several materials beneficial to everyone. Sun Wu Jian also rewarded them with fifteen drops of Precelestial Essence per person for their service throughout the two weeks.

The four of them went on foot after leaving the horse at the entrance of Yunlong Pass.

The feeling of a home quickly came to them when they're greeted by the green farm situated right outside of the spiritual cave.

"We're home at last!" Lu Yi and Huo Zunjie are impatient because the feeling of advancing is right on the corner for those two.

"Young master, we'll go back to our room first. Let us know if you need us for anything later!" the trio scattered as soon as they finish informing Qin Lan what they're going to do.

That night, none of them came out for dinner.

Even Qin Lan is keeping himself busy inside the room as Hu Jia accompanied him by his side. Just like how an obedient wife behaves, she quietly stays beside Qin Lan while he worked with the material he brought home from the expedition.

But as a matter of fact, it was not because she was being understanding. She wanted to ask about what Qin Lan is doing once in a while, but the explanation is always far exceeding what her brain can process.

And right now, her beloved husband is working out on something ridiculous once again.

"What is my husband going to do with these materials?" Hu Jia cannot help but made a random guess at what Qin Lan was going to do with the Crimson Battle Wolf's spine and the Essence Metal.

"Beloved wife." Qin Lan called Hu Jia to his side.

"Yes, my beloved husband." Hu Jia meekly came to his side.

"Would you mind bringing me all the Jewel Lotus Fruit we have in our storage here?" Qin Lan politely asked. It looks like he already had an idea of what he was going to refine.