Chapter 209: CH. 209 | Blessing From An Xiao
"Marry with you?"
An Yue couldn’t hide the shock on her face at all. Her cheeks flushed red, her heart pounded, and her eyes went glassy with tears.
She actually knew exactly what answer she’d prepared for a moment like this, but she hadn’t expected saying it out loud would be so hard, especially with Lin Tian, the man she loved, standing right in front of her.
"I... I..."
Lin Tian waited patiently. He didn’t want to push her on it. Still, he felt fairly confident that she felt the same way he did.
"I’m sorry. I’m a little nervous," An Yue said.
She took a long breath and let it out. She did that three times, her face staying flushed the whole time. Once she was truly certain, she answered with a nod instead of words.
Even though it was just a nod, Lin Tian felt it was more than enough, especially with how happy he felt knowing An Yue had been holding on to the same feelings he had.
He stepped forward, pulling her hand gently, drawing her closer to him.
The two of them wrapped their arms around each other tightly, gazing into each other’s eyes and smiling in the warmth of the moment.
Their lips met in a kiss, soft and unhurried, both of them closing their eyes to savor it.
Lin Tian pulled back from the kiss, opened his eyes, and reached up to tuck a strand of hair behind An Yue’s ear.
"I’m lucky. I’m truly lucky to be marrying you, Yue’er."
"That should be my line, Lin Tian. You’re the strongest cultivator in the Qin Kingdom right now. I’m the lucky one, marrying you."
They pulled each other into another tight embrace, arms wrapped around each other’s backs, simply enjoying the warmth between them.
"Let’s hold the wedding soon. Would that be all right with you?" Lin Tian asked.
An Yue smiled and shook her head. She added that moving the wedding up would actually be better for both of them, since it would let them focus on other important matters for the Lingxian Sect.
Lin Tian agreed completely with what she said. Given the current state of the Lingxian Sect, he felt it would be far better to get it done soon.
All the resources they needed were already available. All that was left was the preparation, and then the wedding itself.
"Come with me," Lin Tian said, taking her hand.
"But where are we going?" An Yue asked.
"To see An Xiao and ask for her blessing, and then to Wu Yue and Cao Ying, to let them know our plans."
An Yue listened, then gave a short nod in response. She had no objection to it, since what Lin Tian wanted to do was the right thing.
He needed to go see An Xiao and ask for her blessing, since she was still family to An Yue after all.
They flew off slowly, leaving the peak of Mount Taixuan behind, and arrived at the Sect Mission Hall.
The two of them arrived to find a large crowd of sect disciples gathered there. Their purpose was simple: to pick up sect missions, carry them out, and come back to report on the results.
If they succeeded, they’d earn a variety of rewards, ranging from spirit stones and weapons to pills for their cultivation.
Even so, the minimum cultivation base required to take on a mission was 10th Layer Qi Condensation, while the maximum allowed was Early Nascent Soul.
That made the Sect Mission Hall the busiest and most popular spot for disciples who hadn’t yet reached Core Formation.
The disciples turned when they noticed someone arriving at the Sect Mission Hall. The moment they realized who it was, they immediately lowered their heads in respect.
"Greetings, Sect Master Lin. Greetings, Hall Elder An."
An Yue and Lin Tian walked along the neatly laid paving stones ahead of them, heading straight toward the main building of the Sect Mission Hall.
One of the disciples managing the hall hurried to An Xiao’s office to let her know that Lin Tian and An Yue had arrived.
An Xiao listened to her disciple, then in the blink of an eye, shifted from her office straight to the front door of the Sect Mission Hall’s main building.
She took a long breath and let it out slowly. She reached out, gripped the door handle with both hands, and pulled it open, welcoming An Yue and Lin Tian inside.
The moment they saw An Xiao, both of them pressed their palms together and bowed their heads.
An Xiao was caught off guard, seeing Lin Tian do the exact same gesture as An Yue.
To her, Lin Tian had no real reason to bow like that, given that his standing in the sect was higher than her own.
Still, something about his demeanor felt different this time, and she was sure he had his own reason for the gesture he’d just made.
"There’s no need to bow your head, Sect Master Lin."
"I did it because you’re going to be my sister in law," Lin Tian said. "Could we talk for a moment, An Xiao?"
Hearing the words sister in law caught An Xiao off guard. She immediately turned and looked toward An Yue. She didn’t overreact, just cleared her throat and gave a short nod.
She took a long breath and let it out slowly. She understood how important this moment was for them. She didn’t want to spoil the mood.
The doors to the hall’s main building swung wide open, and the three of them stepped inside, walking through the interior until they reached An Xiao’s office, where stacks of paperwork related to mission requests for the Lingxian Sect covered the space.
"Sorry about the mess. We’ve been getting a lot of new mission requests lately. We’ve had to sort through which ones are worth giving to our disciples and which aren’t," An Xiao said.
"We’re getting married," Lin Tian said.
His words stopped An Xiao cold. She dropped the papers she was holding onto the desk and turned to look at them.
She’d actually suspected something like this was coming, especially after seeing Lin Tian bow his head, show his respect, and refer to himself as her future brother in law.
It was clearly a sign that the two of them were about to start a family together, and soon.
"I’m so happy!" An Xiao said, a wide smile spreading across her face as she rushed over to hug An Yue. An Yue hugged her sister back just as tightly, visibly moved.
"So, the two of you came here to ask for my blessing. Is that right?" An Xiao asked. Lin Tian nodded.
"You don’t need to worry about that at all," An Xiao said, "You have my full blessing!"