The Grand elder’s words that day felt like abandonment to Qin Dehao.

Holding only a managerial position in a branch further added to his embarrassment.

He locked himself in his study, feeling ashamed.

After days of seclusion, a commotion in the courtyard finally stirred Qin Dehao from his thoughts.

He pushed open the window and saw his daughter, Luwei, practicing swordsmanship.

The Grand elder’s words echoed abruptly in his mind, “Clearly, your daughter has better alchemy talent…”

Yes, Luwei’s alchemy talent was superior.

The third elder should favor Luwei more.

But then again, what good was favor if Luwei didn’t support him against the Main Branch?

Qin Dehao suddenly felt resentful, finding his daughter’s sword practice so glaringly reminiscent of his younger sister, Qin Dexin.

Unable to contain himself any longer, he pushed open the study door and walked into the courtyard, hands behind his back. “Luwei.”

Luwei saw her father and nodded slightly, but didn’t stop practicing until she finished a set of sword techniques.

She sheathed her sword and approached Qin Dehao, bowing respectfully. “Father.”

For some reason, there was a slight awkwardness in the relationship between father and daughter—respectful but lacking warmth.

Luwei addressed Qin Dehao formally as father, not dad.

“Why are you practicing swordsmanship again?” Qin Dehao frowned. “I’ve told you many times, if you want to excel in alchemy, you should spend more time practicing that instead of wasting your days on swords.

Most who pursue both end up mediocre in both. Focus on alchemy if you want to reach mastery.”

Luwei showed no emotion as she sheathed her sword, her heart unmoved.

She had heard this kind of advice many times before.

At first, she would argue with her father, but eventually, she simply nodded and obeyed.

Sometimes, Luwei even wondered if her father didn’t like her passion..

Seeing Lu Wei bow her head, Qin Dehao softened his tone a bit and asked, “Where have you been all this time? I haven’t seen you around.”

Luwei replied, “The family has started a trial run of a medical clinic in the western market. I’ve been helping out there, practicing medicine.”

The mention of a medical clinic made Qin Dehao instinctively frown.

Seeing this, Qin Luwei said calmly, “Father, are you about to tell me again that practicing medicine is not proper, and that Luwei should focus solely on alchemy?”

The disrespect in Luwei’s eyes annoyed Qin Dehao.

He turned away, his voice cold. “Am I not right?”

Luwei shook her head. “I believe that medicine is also part of alchemy. By studying medicine, I aim to improve my skills in alchemy. My actions should align with your expectations.”

Qin Dehao’s expression turned cold. “My expectations for you are simple: excel in alchemy, spend time at the alchemy hall, and seek advice from the third elder and the Ancestor. Qin Ruqing spends her days trying to please the Ancestor. Why can’t you do the same?”

Luwei tightened her grip on the sword hilt and looked up, retorting, “Ruqing doesn’t try to please the Ancestor!”

Qin Dehao hesitated.

Were they talking about the same person?

Looking at his daughter’s face, so similar to his own sister’s Qin Dexin, especially those eyes.

Those eyes were now staring intensely at him, challenging him over an unrelated, even hostile girl.

Qin Dehao suddenly felt a chill in his heart.

He looked at Luwei and said indifferently, “You’re grown now and have your own ideas. I can’t control you anymore.”

Luwei held her father’s gaze for a moment, bowed respectfully, and left.

She needed to go to the clinic to gain experience and improve her alchemy skills. Ah, the term “to work at the clinic” was something Ruqing had taught her.

Watching his daughter walk away, Qin Dehao couldn’t help feeling frustrated.

His daughter was becoming more disrespectful.

He couldn’t help but think it was because of the time she spent with Qin Ruqing.

Unsatisfied with his daughter’s behavior, Qin Dehao consoled himself that he still had his son.

His son’s temperament was most like his own, and he wouldn’t talk back or make him angry.

But when he saw Qin Luxuan, Qin Dehao hesitated again because his son seemed ready to leave.

“Where are you going?” For some reason, Qin Dehao felt uneasy, seeing his son’s evasive gaze, suspecting he wouldn’t like what he was about to hear.

Qin Luxuan had grown into a tall and lean young man, inheriting his father’s clever eyes and handsome features.

He paused, then spoke honestly, “The clan recently opened a medicinal field. Eldest Brother is overseeing it and wants me to help.”

Almost instinctively, Qin Dehao blurted out, “No! Your responsibilities are managed by me and the elder. Why are you following Qin Ruyu around?”

Qin Luxuan fell silent.

He was the one who understood his father’s heart the most in this family.

There was a time when he had felt deeply for his father and wanted to help him.

He even tried to compete with his eldest brother in the academy, but then…

Suddenly, Qin Luxuan said, “Dad, I don’t want to compete with my brother anymore. I think he’s doing well, He’s better at dealing with people than me, more gentlemanly in my demeanor, and even in cultivation, I can’t compare to him…

I don’t want to keep competing pointlessly with him anymore, and I’m not even that interested in the position of Young Clan Leader.”

“Nonsense!” Qin Dehao’s heart sank like the tea set he had knocked over that day.

He sternly rebuked, “Do you even know what you’re saying?

You think you’re not as good as Qin Deming’s son?

I’ve taught you everything, even to the point of being fed up! Saying you’re not interested in the position of Young Clan Leader,

if Qin Deming heard that, he would be ecstatic.

Because Qin Dehao actually fathered such an incompetent son who would willingly give up the position of Young Clan Leader!”

Qin Luxuan looked at his father’s flushed face, feeling his own heart tighten, and instinctively clenched his fists.

He raised his head and said, “But, Dad, wasn’t it you who taught me that the positions of Young Clan Leader and Clan Leader should be held by the most capable?

If someone is incapable, they should step aside.

I don’t know about you and Uncle, but between me and my brother…

I know I’m not as good as him, and now I’m choosing not to argue with him anymore. Isn’t that the right thing to do?”

Qin Dehao was so angry he nearly fell backwards.

He muttered, “Idiot!”

“Utterly clueless!”

Qin Luxuan lowered his eyes as he watched his father stomping around. “Dad, no matter what you think, I just don’t want to be caught up in these meaningless competitions anymore. I just want to work diligently!”

The phrase “work diligently” hit Qin Dehao like a massive rock falling from the sky, freezing him in place, unable to move.

Respectfully, Qin Luxuan bowed and said, “Consider me useless if you must. I’m going to the medicinal fields now.”

Qin Dehao watched his son walk away, suddenly feeling as he did when he saw his daughter and the Grand elder leave.

Qin Dehao felt deeply troubled, wondering if he had been wrong all along.

He stood silently in the courtyard for a long time, then suddenly heard a commotion outside.

The noise could have been anything—a group of attendants passing through the corridor, perhaps something else entirely.

Qin Dehao suddenly realized he hadn’t left the courtyard in a long time.

The Qin Clan was undergoing sweeping reforms; he wondered how much it had changed.

He used a flying artifact to patrol the Qin Clan’s territory.

When he reached a certain area, he stopped. It was the residence of Qin Deming’s family.

In the past, he would have hurried away, but now he suddenly realized that this residence was at the heart of the territory.

It seemed to symbolize the central position of the main branch within the Qin Clan.

This reminded Qin Dehao of many things he had overlooked before: the elders, who sometimes criticized Qin Deming’s abilities, were more hoping for his improvement.

They never intended to drag Qin Deming down.

Even if Qin Deming became Clan Leader, they never said, “You need to improve like Qin Dehao.” Because whether he improved or not didn’t matter.

Qin Dehao chuckled sarcastically and left. He went to the back mountain.

The back mountain was actually a medicinal mountain, with the Qin family’s medicinal garden at its foot.

Now, with the clan’s vigorous development, they needed to open new medicinal fields, and he heard they were choosing a location within a secret realm.

Behind the medicinal mountain was the Shadow Residence, the highest point in their territory.

It also symbolized the pinnacle of power within the Qin Clan.

Qin Dehao turned eastward and swiftly passed over several residential areas within the clan’s territory.

These were occupied by branches of the Qin family who had moved in, along with many others who had not yet resettled on the outskirts.

His newly assigned duty was to manage this area, which was why Qin Dehao hurriedly passed through.

It seemed like if he lingered for even a second longer, his eyes would burn.

As he reached South Street, the crowd bustled.

On the eastern side, where Qin family shops had originally been located, he noticed it was livelier than before.

The West Market, already bustling, was even more so.

In the distance, he saw a swaying flag bearing the words “Qin Family Clinic.”

The clinic was far busier than he had imagined.

The people coming and going mostly carried swords or knives, likely Wandering cultivators.

Without the backing of a family, they found it challenging to obtain cultivation resources and often had to take risks in dense forests or unstable small-scale secret realms.

Hence, injuries were common.

Qin Dehao didn’t enter the clinic, but he could imagine the scene inside.

Perhaps his daughter, Lu Wei, was sitting behind the counter, diagnosing and treating injuries for these freelance cultivators.

This was Luwei’s pursuit of the Dao of Alchemy.

To the left of the clinic was the Alchemy Pavilion, and to the right, the Medicine Pavilion.

It aligned perfectly with what that little girl had said: turn left to buy pills, turn right to collect herbs. It was all part of an integrated service.

It was a scene of bustling activity, as if a new vitality was inexplicably rising.

Qin Dehao silently returned to his study.

Today’s observations and thoughts seemed to make him realize something calmly:

What he had perceived as a “struggle for Clan Leader” with the main branch actually never existed.

There was never any real conflict; it was all his own imagination.

Awakening from a grand illusion, it was time to wake up from the dream of three lifetimes.