Guarding the River of Time

Chapter 424 - 414: Retracing Karma, Everything Is Predestined

"Brother Su, you should put away this ship first, I’m afraid... it might cause unnecessary commotion."

"Take my boat instead."

Du Ziren said with a smile to Su Mu.

Upon hearing this, Su Mu looked down, deeply examined the ship beneath his feet, and without saying much, with a wave of his hand, put the black ship into his sleeve and boarded Du Ziren’s ship, heading towards the Ancient City.

Soon, the two returned to the bustling and brightly lit Ancient City.

"Brother Su, I have already arranged a banquet."

Du Ziren said with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Su Mu waved his hand to decline: "Thank you for the kind offer, but I have been here for several days and need to return."

The bridge is repaired, the Favor Points earned, and staying longer is unnecessary. It’s time to go home; he is, after all, worried about those little ones at home.

"Alright."

"Should Brother Su wish to come, I would welcome you anytime."

Du Ziren had guessed that every moment of Elder Su’s time was precious, and he couldn’t stay long.

Soon, he led Su Mu to the edge of the Ancient City’s teleportation area.

"Brother Su, you only need to use the treasure the goddess gave you to leave directly, and in the future, you can come and go as you wish, unobstructed."

Du Ziren originally intended to use his own key to send Elder Su out, but upon thinking it through, does the elder need sending off when he has a Reincarnation Ship?

Where is it that the Reincarnation Ship can’t reach?

"Thank you for the hospitality these past days."

With that said, Su Mu waved his hand and summoned the black ship. With a thought, the black ship began to rise, ignoring all Power of Law, floating up towards the surface.

"Brother Su, take care!"

Du Ziren looked up and cupped his fists.

....

After a few breaths, Su Mu burst through the water’s surface, returning to the lake above.

Standing on the lake, looking into the water below, one would never guess that beneath this lake lay such a prosperous Ancient City. Truly impressive. In the future, he might bring Nannan here for fun at leisure.

...

Su Mu put away the ship and sped across the water’s surface at extreme speed.

He quickly returned home.

He went ashore, pushed open the wooden door, and walked into the courtyard, only to find Nannan nowhere in sight.

With a slight frown, he softly called out, "Nannan?"

After calling several times without a response, he expanded his Divine Sense but found no trace of Nannan, making Su Mu anxious.

Rushing inside, he found Nannan asleep over a book on a stool.

Seeing this, Su Mu finally let out a sigh of relief, seemingly she had fallen asleep reading, exhausted.

Su Mu approached, picked up Nannan, intending to carry her to the willow bed to sleep.

As he picked up Nannan, she slowly opened her eyes. Seeing it was her father, she tightly hugged Su Mu, sobbing, "Dad, I thought you didn’t want Nannan anymore."

Hearing this, Su Mu was momentarily stunned but then said with a smile, "How could dad not want Nannan, that would never happen."

....

Thus, Nannan held Su Mu and cried for a while, her eyes red, making one’s heart ache.

For Nannan to act like this surprised Su Mu, because Nannan had always been sensible. Sometimes he would be away for days dealing with tricky matters and Nannan would always wait at home quietly.

Why was it different this time?

So, he worried whether something had happened at home during the days he was gone.

"Nannan, did anything happen at home while dad was away?" Su Mu inquired softly.

After his words, Nannan shook her head: "No, everything was fine at home."

"It’s just... I’ve been having nightmares for days, dreaming that dad no longer wants me..."

Though Nannan was young, she was inwardly strong. Her only weakness was her father; her greatest fear was him having an accident or abandoning her...

That’s why, seeing her father return, she cried so miserably, like a forlorn little flower.

........

"There, there...."

"Dad would never not want Nannan."

Su Mu gently rubbed Nannan’s head, speaking softly.

Nannan nodded vigorously, wiped away her tears, and revealed a smile.

"Dad bought you a gift."

With that, Su Mu slowly took out a Plum Blossom Hairpin from his sleeve, delicate and jade-like, exquisite and beautiful.

"Come."

Su Mu walked behind Nannan, untied her twin ponytails, and combed through her silky hair repeatedly.

Only then did he realize Nannan’s hair had grown quite long, already reaching her waist.

He styled her hair into a hanging hairpin bun.

This was typically a hairstyle for unmarried girls, where the hair is parted, tied into a bun on top, let to hang naturally without support, and tied at the ends, draping over the shoulders—innocent and charming, yet elegant.

Then, carefully securing it with the hairpin, she looked like a celestial being fallen to earth. Now at nine, Nannan was already taller than Su Mu’s waist, gradually growing out of her cuteness into a breathtaking beauty. It’s hard to imagine how stunningly beautiful she will be when grown.

"Beautiful!"

"Nannan loves it."

Nannan, looking at herself in the Copper Mirror, was utterly surprised, smiling with curved eyes, a striking beauty in the present moment.

......

At this moment, in the Reincarnation Netherworld.

Du Ziren’s residence was knocked upon.

Opening the door, he found a woman in a blue dress standing coldly at his doorway: "Lord Du, where is she?"

This blue-dressed woman was none other than the one who sold Su Mu the hairpin that day.

"Shen Yu, trespassing here, do you know it’s a death sentence?" Du Ziren coldly looked at the blue-dressed woman before him, speaking angrily.

"Lord Du, where has she gone?" the blue-dressed woman persisted.

....

"I don’t know, I really don’t know where she’s gone," Du Ziren replied.

"Lord Du, I completed the task you gave me, played the part you asked of me, why make things difficult for her?" questioned the blue-dressed woman.

"Shen Yu! Mind your tone!"

"When have I ever made things difficult for your sister?"

"Moreover, do you know she almost caused a huge problem?"

Du Ziren’s tone was icy, dismissively waving.

"What happened to her?" A hint of panic flashed across the blue-dressed woman’s face as she pressed on.

"I don’t know specifically!"

"All I know is she has entered Reincarnation," Du Ziren admitted, even though he wasn’t sure what Shen Cha had done to be punished by the goddess and sent into Reincarnation, reborn afresh.

Despite having conflicting relations with Shen Cha, he felt some regret upon hearing this news.

After all... Shen Cha held a very important role in the Reincarnation Netherworld, an irreplaceable link.

He himself also wanted to know what Shen Cha had done to be punished so severely by the goddess.....