Chapter 13: The Eaglet Leaves the Nest - I Was the Sun Before I Became an Immortal

More than a month had passed since the thunder clouds above the forbidden area in the rear mountains had finally dispersed.

Si Chen's life had returned to its former calm.

The scorched marks left by the lightning strikes had long since faded, replaced by new skin that was smooth and supple — yet beneath it lay a strength far surpassing what he had possessed before. In the way he walked and carried himself, his posture seemed even more upright and at ease.

The soft roundness of childhood had completely fallen away. He was now, unmistakably, a composed and handsome young man.

Yet to those on the outside, this once-celebrated young master of the Si Clan — who had dazzled the world with his Foundation Establishment at age seven — had gradually faded into silence, like so many brilliant talents who burn bright and then vanish.

Five years is more than enough time for the Cultivation World to forget a name.

New legends are born, old topics are buried — that is simply the way of things. And it was precisely what Si Chen was glad to see.

* * *

One morning, he pushed open his door and went straight to his father Si Kai's study.

Si Kai was attending to clan affairs. He looked up as his son walked in, his gaze lingering on the boy for a moment.

In just over a month, the young man's bearing seemed to have grown even more upright. Si Kai couldn't help but sigh inwardly — time flows like water, and children always grow up when you least expect it.

"Father."

"Mm. Have your injuries fully healed?" He set down the jade scroll, his tone gentle.

"Long since recovered," Si Chen replied.

He stepped up to the writing desk and bowed respectfully. "I've come today to inform you, Father — I wish to go out and journey for a while."

Si Kai was not entirely surprised. Ever since the successful Body Tempering in the rear mountains, he had known that the confines of the clan could no longer satisfy this eaglet whose wings were steadily filling out.

He studied his son without immediately responding, and simply asked, "Where do you intend to go? Do you have a plan in mind?"

"I don't know," Si Chen answered with candid ease. "I only feel that it's time to go out and see. The second layer of the Nine Tribulation Thunder Body requires 'Yang Thunder' for tempering. I want… to search for it myself."

Si Kai considered this for a moment. His son's reason was sound — venturing out to seek a breakthrough opportunity was the most natural thing in the world.

"And what else?" He looked at Si Chen, his gaze sharp as a blade, as though he could see through the words left unspoken.

Si Chen met his father's eyes without flinching. "I also want… to see the outside world. The real world."

The words carried a deeper meaning, but Si Kai understood immediately.

Ever since they returned from Yunjin City five years ago, Second Uncle and Third Uncle had spent no small amount of time giving this boy their "lessons."

It seemed he had truly taken them to heart. He no longer believed that the smiling faces that greeted him everywhere were born of simple courtesy — he understood clearly that most of them stemmed from the signboard of "young master of the Si Clan."

And now he wanted to set that identity aside and forge a path of his own.

"Not joining a Sect?" Si Kai confirmed.

Si Chen shook his head. "Not for now. Even if I do eventually, I'd rather find one that truly suits me — on my own terms."

— Rather than being arranged into somewhere that might be prestigious, but not necessarily right for him.

That clear-headed awareness brought Si Kai more comfort than worry.

His son had grown up — not only in strength, but in thought.

"Very well." Si Kai's answer was clean and decisive. The sons of the Si Clan were never flowers raised in a greenhouse.

"I'll speak to your mother."

* * *

Unexpectedly, Ye Fu's reaction was calmer than anyone had imagined.

She simply listened in silence as her husband finished speaking, her gaze resting on their son, who stood quietly waiting in the courtyard.

A twelve-year-old boy, his figure straight as bamboo.

The Si Clan was a Cultivation noble family — it was tradition for its children to go out and temper themselves. She had long been prepared for this. She simply hadn't expected the day to come so soon.

She rose and walked to Si Chen's side. Without a word, she reached up and gently smoothed a wayward strand of hair from his forehead.

Then she slipped off the jade bracelet she had worn on her wrist for more years than anyone could count — lustrous, translucent, and warm.

"Chen, hold out your hand."

Si Chen did as he was told. Ye Fu slid the bracelet onto his wrist. The jade was warm to the touch, and it seemed to shrink of its own accord, fitting itself perfectly to his young wrist.

"This is called 'Guarding Heart.' Wearing it… will let Mother rest a little easier."

Ye Fu's voice was soft, and she lightly pressed a fingertip to the bracelet.

A gentle radiance flashed, and the bracelet gradually turned transparent before dissolving entirely from sight, leaving behind only a faint, pale blue marking on Si Chen's wrist — like a natural vein running beneath the skin.

Yet Si Chen could feel it clearly: a warm, steady current was seeping from that marking into his body, thread by thread, resonating quietly with the vast vitality within him, bringing with it a sense of peace that was impossible to put into words.

This was not merely a protective Magical Artifact — it was his mother's silent longing and guardianship made tangible.

A strange emotion stirred quietly in his heart.

He suddenly felt that leaving this familiar courtyard, leaving the mother whose gentle gaze had always wrapped around him like warmth — perhaps it was not something he could greet with pure anticipation after all.

"Mother…" he called softly, but the words that followed refused to come.

Ye Fu saw that rare flicker in his eyes — the emotion called "reluctance" — and she smiled. It was a smile of relief and pride. She pulled him into a gentle embrace, just as she had when he was small.

"Go on. Take care of yourself. When you're tired, come home."

* * *

The day of departure was clear and bright.

There was no grand send-off. Si Chen wore only a plain set of blue-grey cloth robes, looking no different from an ordinary boy heading out to study.

On his finger he still wore the Storage Ring the clan had given him as a child — one that held an enormous space within — though it too looked simple and unassuming now.

Second Uncle Si Che and Third Uncle Si Shuo both came to see him off.

Si Che pressed several bottles of Pills into his hands and said, "Out there is nothing like home. Keep your guard up at all times."

Si Shuo threw an arm around his shoulder with his usual easy manner, winking and grinning. "Kid, this time you don't have your Third Uncle to play bodyguard. Remember — if you can win, fight; if you can't, run. Nothing shameful about it!"

Si Kai stood a little further back, hands clasped behind him, giving Si Chen only a quiet nod.

Si Chen's gaze swept slowly over his parents and his two uncles, etching each of their faces into his memory. He stepped back, and with gravity and sincerity, bowed deeply to all four of them.

Without another word, he turned and walked out through the gates of the Si estate.

The young man's steps were steady and resolute, carrying him further and further away.

Ye Fu watched until his silhouette had vanished completely before leaning softly into her husband's arms and murmuring, "He really… has grown up."

Si Kai drew his wife close, his gaze still fixed on the distance, as though he could still make out that faint blue-grey figure.

"Yes," he said quietly. "An eagle… always has to fly."

* * *

Si Chen walked along a winding mountain path.

This time, he was not the young master of the Si Clan. He was simply Si Chen.

A young Cultivator, fresh to the world, who wanted to see it with his own eyes.

The road ahead was full of the unknown — and he walked it with unhurried ease.

This time, there was no flying vessel, no escort.

The path ahead was uncertain, yet brimming with boundless possibility.

The wind lifted the loose strands of hair at his brow, and in the young man's eyes, the entire sky was reflected.

For the first time, the young man set foot on a journey that was truly his own.