Chapter 553: He Must Have Looked Just Like This When He Was a Child

“Everything’s fine.”

Feiyan led them downstairs.

The cubs had gone with Feili to play in the tribe’s vegetable patch and hadn’t returned yet.

The inner city seemed empty without the cubs around.

The two had just sat down to rest when they heard a chorus of high-pitched, childish voices drawing closer.

“Mother used this vegetable for a cold salad before. It was delicious.”

“I know how to make it too, Qiaoqiao. I’ll make it for you in a little while.”

“I don’t want you to make it for me! I want to do it myself.”

“Huh?”

Sangqi, who was walking at the front, suddenly stopped in his tracks, staring in astonishment at Qiao Yi sitting not far away.

Seeing Sangqi frozen in place, the other cubs curiously followed his gaze.

Xiya tilted her head, her azure pupils filled with confusion. “Who are you, and why are you in our house?”

The last time Qiao Yi had left, his face had been almost completely wrapped in animal hide, so the cubs didn’t have a clear memory of his appearance.

Moreover, he had intentionally concealed his aura at the time. It was only natural that the cubs wouldn’t recognize him now that he was standing right in front of them.

Seeing the wariness in the cubs’ eyes, Qiao Yi felt both gratified and sad.

He crouched down and opened his arms to them. “Don’t you recognize your grandfather?”

The little ones froze, their eyes widening in disbelief.

“Grandfather… It’s Grandfather!”

Qiao Ang was the first to react. He dashed right up to Qiao Yi, his eyes wide as he pushed his little face almost up to Qiao Yi’s.

After staring for a moment, he grinned and turned back to Qiao Qiao and the others. “It really is Grandfather! I remember he has a mole under the corner of his eye.”

Qiao Yi chuckled and said, “You little stinker,” then scooped him up into his arms.

The other cubs snapped out of it and ran to Qiao Yi, hugging his legs.

“Grandfather’s back! Grandfather’s back!”

Watching the ecstatic cubs, the heaviness in Qiao Yi’s heart from his journey began to lift.

Feili had recognized Qiao Yi at first glance, so he didn’t stop the cubs from approaching.

His gaze then shifted, landing on Sunxuan.

Sunxuan hadn’t intentionally concealed his aura, and as he drew near, Feili sensed that he and Sunxiao were of the same lineage: Devouring Giant Pythons.

Looking at Sunxuan’s features and the bloodline aura he emitted, which was similar to Qiao Lie’s, he could make an educated guess about his identity.

Like Qiao Ang and the others, Qiao Lie was also immersed in the joy of Qiao Yi’s return.

However, he hadn’t failed to notice the gaze that was fixed upon him.

While hugging Qiao Yi, his gaze fell upon Sunxuan, only to find Sunxuan staring right back at him.

Qiao Lie didn’t show any fear. Instead, he openly met the gaze of the person before him, who carried the same aura as himself.

Amidst his confusion, Qiao Yi picked him up.

Qiao Lie tilted his little head to look up at Qiao Yi, a hint of confusion in his eyes.

Qiao Yi knew the little one’s temperament. Just like his father, he tended to keep his thoughts to himself, so Qiao Yi decided to speak first.

“That’s your grandfather.”

Although he’d had a vague suspicion, hearing Qiao Yi say it aloud still brought an expression of unconcealed surprise to his little face.

Upon hearing this, Sunxuan’s lip twitched. “A four-star beast soul?”

Qiao Lie pursed his lips and slowly nodded.

Sunxuan gave a noncommittal nod. “Worse than I was at your age, but for a cub this big, I suppose it’s barely passable.”

Qiao Lie pressed his lips together even more tightly.

Qiao Yi’s eye twitched. He patted Qiao Lie’s little backside reassuringly. “Are you hungry? How about Grandfather makes you all some delicious roasted meat?”

Hearing there was roasted meat, the cubs happily followed Qiao Yi to the kitchen.

Feiyan had just been in the kitchen, having already prepared the beast meat for that evening’s meal.

When he saw Qiao Yi enter with the cubs, he didn’t interfere, leaving the grandfather and grandchildren to themselves.

He had just stepped outside the door when Feili pulled him aside.

“Is that Sunxiao’s father?”

Feiyan nodded. “Yeah. It’s pretty obvious, isn’t it? Don’t tell me you couldn’t tell, Father.”

Feili shot him a glare. “Even if my nose stopped working and my eyes went blind, I could tell who he was the moment he opened his mouth!”

Feiyan raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”

Feili huffed. ‘Three generations of them, and not a single one knows how to talk properly!’

During dinner that evening, the cubs pestered Qiao Yi with questions about Qiao Xixi.

The cubs were overjoyed when they heard directly from Qiao Yi that Qiao Xixi was in Tiger Beast City and would be back soon.

After they finished eating, Qiao Yi played with them for a while longer before Feiyan urged them to wash up and go to bed.

Qiao Lie finished washing up and returned to his room. Just as he was about to grab a clean animal-hide cloth to dry his hair, a large hand took it first and moved to stand behind him.

“Let your grandfather help.”

The little boy’s body stiffened slightly, but he pursed his lips and didn’t refuse.

Seeing that Qiao Lie didn’t refuse, a faint, involuntary smile touched Sunxuan’s eyes.

He had never done this for anyone before, however, so his movements were somewhat stiff and clumsy.

Qiao Lie’s brow furrowed a few times from the rough drying, but he said nothing, simply letting Sunxuan continue his clumsy efforts.

The entire process was exceptionally silent. Only when his hair was almost dry did Qiao Lie finally speak.

“Did you abandon my father because he wasn’t strong enough?”

The hands on his head stilled. Qiao Lie couldn’t see Sunxuan’s expression, but he could feel the man’s aura shift.

Just as Qiao Lie thought Sunxuan wouldn’t answer, a low voice drifted down from above him.

“No. It was an accident many years ago. I am very sorry about it.”

‘But when I’m face-to-face with Sunxiao, I can never bring myself to say these words.’

“Then… you do care about my father?”

Sunxuan tilted his head slightly, studying Qiao Lie’s delicate features. His eyes and brows were strikingly similar to Sunxiao’s, but his small mouth resembled his mother’s.

Sunxiao’s sharp features and thin lips gave him a colder, more severe look. But while Qiao Lie’s eyes were just as aloof, his full lips and slightly upturned corners softened the snake-beast’s ferocious aura.

“I do.”

At his words, Qiao Lie turned to meet Sunxuan’s gaze, looking into crimson pupils that were almost identical to his own.

Qiao Lie felt he was being watched with an intensity so great, it was as if Sunxuan were about to count his eyelashes.

But it also felt strange. Even though Sunxuan was looking right at him, it felt as though he wasn’t the one being seen.

Sunxuan suddenly reached out, his cool, calloused palm landing gently on the boy’s small face.

Qiao Lie instinctively wanted to pull away; he didn’t like people touching his face.

But for some reason, he didn’t move.

The delicate softness of the skin under his hand caused the icy glint in Sunxuan’s eyes to gradually fade. ‘I was so worried that Sunxiao didn’t have an heir, even thinking about finding medicine for him.’

‘This brat, telling me nothing. My grandson is already this big.’

“He must have looked just like this when he was a child.”